by | Apr 28, 2022 | Evangelium

Friday  29th April 2022

 

St. Catherine of Siena

(1347 – 1380)

 

Born in Siena, she entered Third Order of the Dominicans. She is remembered for her burning love of God and neighbour and contributions to doctrine. In 1970 Pope Paul VI declared her a Doctor of the Church.

 

 

Entrance Antiphon

Here is a wise virgin, from among the number of the prudent, who went forth with lighted lamp to meet Christ, alleluia.

 

Collect

O God, who set Saint Catherine of Siena on fire with divine love in her contemplation of the Lord’s Passion and her service of your Church, grant, through her intercession, that your people, participating in the mystery of Christ, may ever exult in the revelation of his glory. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

 

First reading : Acts 5:34-42

One member of the Sanhedrin, a Pharisee called Gamaliel, who was a doctor of the Law and respected by the whole people, stood up and asked to have the apostles taken outside for a time. Then he addressed the Sanhedrin, ‘Men of Israel, be careful how you deal with these people. There was Theudas who became notorious not so long ago. He claimed to be someone important, and he even collected about four hundred followers; but when he was killed, all his followers scattered and that was the end of them. And then there was Judas the Galilean, at the time of the census, who attracted crowds of supporters; but he got killed too, and all his followers dispersed. What I suggest, therefore, is that you leave these men alone and let them go. If this enterprise, this movement of theirs, is of human origin it will break up of its own accord; but if it does in fact come from God you will not only be unable to destroy them, but you might find yourselves fighting against God.’ His advice was accepted; and they had the apostles called in, gave orders for them to be flogged, warned them not to speak in the name of Jesus and released them. And so they left the presence of the Sanhedrin glad to have had the honour of suffering humiliation for the sake of the name. They preached every day both in the Temple and in private houses, and their proclamation of the Good News of Christ Jesus was never interrupted.

 

Psalm 26:1,4,13-14

R/  There is one thing I ask of the Lord, to live in the house of the Lord.

 

  1. The Lord is my light and my help; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; before whom shall I shrink?
  2. There is one thing I ask of the Lord, for this I long, to live in the house of the Lord, all the days of my life, to savour the sweetness of the Lord, to behold his temple.
  3. I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living. Hope in him, hold firm and take heart. Hope in the Lord!

 

Gospel Acclamation

Alleluia, alleluia! We know that Christ is truly risen from the dead: have mercy on us, triumphant King. Alleluia!

 

Gospel : John 6:1-15

Jesus went off to the other side of the Sea of Galilee – or of Tiberias – and a large crowd followed him, impressed by the signs he gave by curing the sick. Jesus climbed the hillside, and sat down there with his disciples. It was shortly before the Jewish feast of Passover. Looking up, Jesus saw the crowds approaching and said to Philip, ‘Where can we buy some bread for these people to eat?’ He only said this to test Philip; he himself knew exactly what he was going to do. Philip answered, ‘Two hundred denarii would only buy enough to give them a small piece each.’ One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said, ‘There is a small boy here with five barley loaves and two fish; but what is that between so many?’ Jesus said to them, ‘Make the people sit down.’ There was plenty of grass there, and as many as five thousand men sat down. Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and gave them out to all who were sitting ready; he then did the same with the fish, giving out as much as was wanted. When they had eaten enough he said to the disciples, ‘Pick up the pieces left over, so that nothing gets wasted.’ So they picked them up, and filled twelve hampers with scraps left over from the meal of five barley loaves. The people, seeing this sign that he had given, said, ‘This really is the prophet who is to come into the world.’ Jesus, who could see they were about to come and take him by force and make him king, escaped back to the hills by himself.

 

Prayer over the Offerings

Accept, O Lord, the saving sacrifice we offer in commemoration of Saint Catherine, so that, instructed by her teaching, we may give ever more fervent thanks  to you, the one true God. Through Christ our Lord.

 

Communion Antiphon : Cf. 1 Jn 1: 7

If we walk in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of his Son Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin, alleluia.

 

Prayer after Communion

May the heavenly table at which we have been fed, O Lord, confer eternal life upon us, as even in this world it nourished the life of Saint Catherine. Through Christ our Lord.

 

 

Meditation

What should disturb us most in life should not be the lack of means but lack of supernatural resources, for when there is a will, there is a way. We must be full of hope and trust in God, even when we have very little, for God will multiply our efforts. There will never be a time when we would have everything. There will also never be a time when we have nothing. We’ve got to begin with the little we have, and God will do the rest of the miracle for us. When our worries crowd in on us, we feel lonely, empty, and abandoned, unable to utter the excruciating feelings of our souls, but Jesus is there for us to feel with us and help us when and where we feel these pinches most.