Tag: easter

Tuesday of the Seventh Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said, “I revealed your name to those whom you gave me out of the world. They belonged to you, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you gave me is from you, because the words you gave to me I have given to them, and they accepted them and truly understood that I came from you, and they have believed that you sent me. I pray for them.”

Aware that his time on earth is coming to an end, Jesus prays to his Father in heaven. He asks that the Father would glorify him and protect his disciples. Jesus also prays that the disciples would be one, just as he and the Father are one. In the same way Jesus begins the Lord’s Prayer with “Our Father,” the relationship that Jesus has with him is one that he invites others into—a relationship of protection, unity, and love.

God, help me understand that the prayer of Jesus is not something relegated to the past but is active and vital in the world today. Jesus says, “I pray for them.” At the right hand of the Father and daily in the celebration of Mass, he intercedes unendingly for the whole world. Help me recognize and receive the graces that pour forth from him through the Advocate and in the Eucharist and sacraments of his Church. As Saint John Paul II said of the Eucharist: “Could there ever be an adequate means of expressing the acceptance of that self-gift which the divine Bridegroom continually makes to his Bride, the Church, by bringing the Sacrifice offered once and for all on the Cross to successive generations of believers and thus becoming nourishment for all the faithful?”

Lord, open my eyes today the beauty of the Son, who is always faithful to your will. Hear his prayer and guide me to you as I strive to follow him.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Monday of the Seventh Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus answered them, “Do you believe now? Behold, the hour is coming and has arrived when each of you will be scattered to his own home and you will leave me alone. But I am not alone, because the Father is with me. I have told you this so that you might have peace in me. In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world.”

Jesus speaks to the disciples about their belief in him. Although they say that they realize that Jesus knows everything and that he comes from the Father, Jesus questions their faith. The unity between the Father and the Son is not evident in his description of the disciples being scattered in fear to their own home. In their heads, they believe in Jesus’ divinity, but because of the division that fear will stir up in them, their conviction will mean, as Jesus says, “You will leave me alone.” During Pentecost, the disciples will receive the Holy Spirit and respond to God’s stirring up in them in a way that is described in the Acts of the Apostles: “When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.” To share in the unity of the Father and the Son, how can I make myself always receptive to the work of the Holy Spirit?

God, help me understand that the love you and Jesus share you desire me to share in as well. There is no limit to your generosity; just as Jesus is not alone because you are with him, he wishes the same for me, offering peace and strength. As Jesus said to the disciples, “I have told you this so that you might have peace in me. In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world.” But the limits of my perception see only a small part of your love and filter its purity, much like a prism breaks up pure sunlight into many splinters of light. Give me the grace, Lord, through the aid of the Holy Spirit, to take to heart the purity of your love.

Father in heaven, give me what I need today to know and do your will. Help me rest in the confidence that you are with me through the work of the Holy Spirit.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2W-KSOPWWBY

Seventh Sunday of Easter: Ascension

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come. Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you, just as you gave him authority over all people, so that your son may give eternal life to all you gave him. Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.”

Jesus prays directly to the Father for his disciples. He prays that God may give glory to him so that in turn he can glorify the Father. He asks this of his Father so that he may give eternal life to the disciples and to all who believe in him. To give eternal life is what Jesus prays for as he intercedes for us even now, in heaven and in body, blood, soul, and divinity in the Eucharist. And what is eternal life as Jesus states in his prayer: “Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.” The unity that Jesus has with the Father he prays that those who follow him may also have. Eternal life is this: knowing the one true God and the love between the Father and the Son.

God, part of your Son’s prayer is to glorify you as he asks you to glorify him. To give you glory does not always result in comfort, but any suffering we experience can be made into means of glorifying you. As Saint Paul says in the second reading, “But whoever is made to suffer as a Christian should not be ashamed but glorify God because of the name.” Give me the grace, God, to understand that to glorify you is to know you and your Son. To live in that love is to believe in eternal life, to perceive it dimly in this life but to experience it fully in the life to come. Jesus, who sits at your right hand desires this for the disciples and for all who believe in him. With these four words, he leaves no room for doubt about his love and constant intercession: “I pray for them.”

From the responsorial psalm, help me recall throughout the day: “I will not leave you orphans, says the Lord. I will come back to you, and your hearts will rejoice.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Saturday of the Sixth Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus said to the disciples: “I have told you this in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures but I will tell you clearly about the Father. On that day you will ask in my name, and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have come to believe that I came from God.”

Jesus speaks to the disciples in ways that at the time must have seemed unclear and mysterious. Having spoken to them about his relationship to the Father through parables and figures of speech, he tells them that this will no longer be. Instead, he will tell them clearly. As the incarnate Word, Jesus is God in the flesh among them, who speaks truth into existence and is love itself. To help the disciples understand, Jesus says he will return to the Father to send the Advocate, who will teach them all things. “Whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you,” Jesus tells the disciples. The Father who loves them is the same Father who loves us and hears whatever we ask in Jesus’ name.

God, help me understand today’s Gospel. What is obscure, Jesus wants to make clear; what is spoken in figures of speech, he wants to make manifest. In returning to you, Jesus sends the Advocate to bring to the heart a living understanding of the relationship of the Son to the Father. Give me the grace, Lord, to receive the Advocate. Grant me clarity of mind to recognize that I am an adopted son brought into this same love that you make accessible every moment of the day and in the life to come in the eternal light of your face.

Be by my side today, Lord. Help me call to mind that I can ask anything in your name. As Jesus said to the disciples, so he says to me so that I remain in him: “Until now you have not asked anything in my name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2W-KSOPWWBY

Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus said to his disciples: “So you also are now in anguish. But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you. On that day you will not question me about anything. Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.”

Jesus tells his disciples that they will experience sorrow and grief, but their sorrow will turn to joy. He compares this to the pain a woman experiences in childbirth that is forgotten once she sees her newborn child. Jesus says that he will see his disciples again, referring to his resurrection, and that their grief will turn to joy that no one will take away from them. The joy Jesus speaks of cannot be taken away because it comes from God, and no one on earth has the power to take God-given joy away. It is in this Easter joy that Jesus says, “Whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.” What is it I need today that I can ask of the Father?

God, as Jesus your Son speaks to the disciples, he reads their hearts and knows their anguish. Why does the world rejoice at Jesus’ death while his followers mourn? Those in the world who do not see Jesus rejoice at his departure because his presence calls them to him and they reject him. But the disciples know your Son and mourn his death. “But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice,” Jesus tells them. In the glory of the resurrection, Jesus calls them to him, which is a joy no one can take from them. In the anguish of this day, Lord, grant me the grace of seeing my grief turn to joy in the realization of your presence.

“Whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you,” says the Lord. Lord, help me know you and welcome you today.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2W-KSOPWWBY

Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus said to his disciples: “Are you discussing with one another what I said, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me’? Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.”

By telling the disciples “you will not see me” and then “you will see me,” Jesus meets their concern directly. John tells us that “Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him” what this might mean. Its meaning is tied to the transient mourning he mentions to them, which stands in contrast to the world’s rejoicing at his death. That the world believes it has no God, that there is no ultimate truth to convict it, is not part of long ago in Jesus’ time but is just as much a reality in the world today. How do I adjust my sight to see that Jesus is present in this world?

Seeming to have gone out of sight with his death, Jesus gives God glory in his resurrection and ascension; the disciples see and understand that Jesus is the Messiah. Through the Gospel, the Eucharist, and in the Mystical Body of Christ, Jesus is alive in the world today and is always present. Christ is not subject to death. Dying and rising with him through Baptism, I am brought into sonship with him in the eternal love of the Father. As Saint John Paul II said, “In him, the divine sonship has become our inheritance. By God’s will, as adoptive sons we are coheirs of the eternal Son, called to participate in the life of God, in eternal happiness in him.”

“His right hand has won victory for him, his holy arm,” the psalmist sings. Let me remain with you today, Lord, to see and understand that you are the victor.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus said to his disciples: “But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth.”

Jesus tells his disciples that he has much more to say to them, but they cannot bear it now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide them to all truth. The Spirit will not speak on his own but what he hears from the Father, what is yet to come. The Spirit will glorify Jesus by taking what is Jesus’ and making it known to the disciples. Jesus says to them: “Everything that the Father has is mine; for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.” Doing perfectly the will of the Father, Jesus is able to proclaim his unity with him through the Holy Spirit. Through the same Holy Spirit, how can I be attentive to the will of the Father?

God, help me understand the truth of your word. Grant me the grace to see that the Holy Spirit is truth itself, showing me how to live in accordance with your will. Thank you, Father, for the Spirit of truth that constantly teaches me to know and do your will and learn of your unending love for me.

From the responsorial psalm: “I will ask the Father and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus said to his disciples: “But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go. For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells his disciples that he is going away to the Father but that it is to their advantage. He explains that the Holy Spirit will come to them and convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. The Holy Spirit will show the world that they are sinners, that he is the only way to righteousness, and that judgment has come upon the world because of sin. The Holy Spirit will also guide the disciples into all truth and teach them everything they need to know. Jesus’ departure is not a cause for grief but instead a cause for joy because it means that the Holy Spirit will come and be with them.

God, when the Holy Spirit comes, help me remember that as Jesus says, “he will convict the world in regard to sin and righteousness and condemnation.” Because he has gone to you, I no longer can see Jesus but can now receive the Holy Spirit that he sent. Help me understand, Lord, that in the Holy Spirit nothing of Jesus is diminished. Instead, as the Son went to you, the fulfillment of his work on earth was accomplished. Grant me the grace to welcome the Holy Spirit as the one sent by your Son.

“I will send to you the Spirit of truth, says the Lord; he will guide you to all truth.” Help me today be guided by the Spirit of truth.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus said to his disciples: “I have told you this so that you may not fall away. They will expel you from the synagogues; in fact, the hour is coming when everyone who kills you will think he is offering worship to God.”

Jesus tells his disciples that he will send the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, to them. The Holy Spirit will testify about Jesus and help the disciples to be witnesses of Jesus’ life and teachings. Jesus also tells his disciples that they will be persecuted for their faith, but he tells them this to take courage in the help of the Advocate “so that,” as he says, “you may not fall away.” The Holy Spirit will be with them so that when their hour comes they may remember that he told them. As Jesus’ followers, we can expect to face persecution, but the Advocate is always with us to guide us and strengthen us through every challenge.

God, help me accept the full meaning of Jesus’ words “the hour is coming when everyone who kills you will think he is offering worship to God.” The words leave little room for interpretation, and I don’t think he spoke these words only for them to be softened or taken euphemistically. Because of faith in Christ your Son, faithful witnesses of the Church have been and will be persecuted and killed. Keep me in your care, God, and through the Holy Spirit help me have the courage to profess my faith in love at whatever cost.

From the responsorial psalm: “The Spirit of truth will testify to me, says the Lord, and you also will testify.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Sixth Sunday of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus said to his disciples: “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me, because I live and you will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you.”

In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells the disciples about the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, who will come to remain with them. The action of the Holy Spirit, who will remain with them always, allows Jesus to say to them: “you will see me, because I live and you will live.” Through his invitation to love him, Jesus invites the disciples into the same relationship he has with the Father who loves the Son.

God, as your Son prepared the disciples for his departure from them and ultimately his ascension into heaven, he gave them the hope of the Advocate. It seems odd at first glance that Jesus would send an invisible force to replace his physical presence. Yet, the Holy Spirit, he reveals to the disciples, is the love between you and your Son. As Jesus says, “On that day you will realize that I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you.” Through baptism, I participate in the death and resurrection of your Son. For that reason, I have in me through the Holy Spirit the same hope and joy of the resurrection. What Saint Paul says of Christ, I can also share in as I keep your word: “Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the Spirit.”

Stay with me today, Lord! As the responsorial psalm says: “Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord, and my Father will love him and we will come to him.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.