Reading 1
Gn 1:1—2:2 or 1:1, 26-31a

In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth,
the earth was a formless wasteland, and darkness covered the abyss,
while a mighty wind swept over the waters.

Then God said,
“Let there be light,” and there was light.
God saw how good the light was.
God then separated the light from the darkness.
God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.”
Thus evening came, and morning followed—the first day.

Then God said,
“Let there be a dome in the middle of the waters,
to separate one body of water from the other.”
And so it happened:
God made the dome,
and it separated the water above the dome from the water below it.
God called the dome “the sky.”
Evening came, and morning followed—the second day.

Then God said,
“Let the water under the sky be gathered into a single basin,
so that the dry land may appear.”
And so it happened:
the water under the sky was gathered into its basin,
and the dry land appeared.
God called the dry land “the earth, “
and the basin of the water he called “the sea.”
God saw how good it was.
Then God said,

“Let the earth bring forth vegetation:
every kind of plant that bears seed
and every kind of fruit tree on earth
that bears fruit with its seed in it.”
And so it happened:
the earth brought forth every kind of plant that bears seed
and every kind of fruit tree on earth
that bears fruit with its seed in it.
God saw how good it was.
Evening came, and morning followed—the third day.

Then God said:
“Let there be lights in the dome of the sky,
to separate day from night.
Let them mark the fixed times, the days and the years,
and serve as luminaries in the dome of the sky,
to shed light upon the earth.”
And so it happened:
God made the two great lights,
the greater one to govern the day,
and the lesser one to govern the night;
and he made the stars.
God set them in the dome of the sky,
to shed light upon the earth,
to govern the day and the night,
and to separate the light from the darkness.
God saw how good it was.
Evening came, and morning followed—the fourth day.

Then God said,
“Let the water teem with an abundance of living creatures,
and on the earth let birds fly beneath the dome of the sky.”
And so it happened:
God created the great sea monsters
and all kinds of swimming creatures with which the water teems,
and all kinds of winged birds.
God saw how good it was, and God blessed them, saying,
“Be fertile, multiply, and fill the water of the seas;
and let the birds multiply on the earth.”
Evening came, and morning followed—the fifth day.

Then God said,
“Let the earth bring forth all kinds of living creatures:
cattle, creeping things, and wild animals of all kinds.”
And so it happened:
God made all kinds of wild animals, all kinds of cattle,
and all kinds of creeping things of the earth.
God saw how good it was.
Then God said:
“Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.

Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,
the birds of the air, and the cattle,
and over all the wild animals
and all the creatures that crawl on the ground.”
God created man in his image;
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
God blessed them, saying:
“Be fertile and multiply;
fill the earth and subdue it.
Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air,
and all the living things that move on the earth.”
God also said:
“See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earth
and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food;
and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air,
and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground,
I give all the green plants for food.”
And so it happened.
God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good.
Evening came, and morning followed—the sixth day.

Thus the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed.
Since on the seventh day God was finished
with the work he had been doing,
he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had undertaken.
or

In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth,
God said: “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.
Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,
the birds of the air, and the cattle,
and over all the wild animals
and all the creatures that crawl on the ground.”
God created man in his image;
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
God blessed them, saying:
“Be fertile and multiply;
fill the earth and subdue it.
Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air,

and all the living things that move on the earth.”
God also said:
“See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earth
and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food;
and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air,
and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground,
I give all the green plants for food.”
And so it happened.
God looked at everything he had made, and found it very good.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 104:1-2, 5-6, 10, 12, 13-14, 24, 35

R. (30) Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
Bless the LORD, O my soul!
O LORD, my God, you are great indeed!
You are clothed with majesty and glory,
robed in light as with a cloak.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
You fixed the earth upon its foundation,
not to be moved forever;
with the ocean, as with a garment, you covered it;
above the mountains the waters stood.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
You send forth springs into the watercourses
that wind among the mountains.
Beside them the birds of heaven dwell;
from among the branches they send forth their song.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
You water the mountains from your palace;
the earth is replete with the fruit of your works.
You raise grass for the cattle,
and vegetation for man’s use,
Producing bread from the earth.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.
How manifold are your works, O LORD!
In wisdom you have wrought them all—
the earth is full of your creatures.
Bless the LORD, O my soul! Alleluia.
R. Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.

or

Ps 33:4-5, 6-7, 12-13, 20 and 22

R. (5b) The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
Upright is the word of the LORD,
and all his works are trustworthy.
He loves justice and right;
of the kindness of the LORD the earth is full.
R. The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
By the word of the LORD the heavens were made;
by the breath of his mouth all their host.
He gathers the waters of the sea as in a flask;
in cellars he confines the deep.
R. The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
Blessed the nation whose God is the LORD,
the people he has chosen for his own inheritance.
From heaven the LORD looks down;
he sees all mankind.
R. The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
Our soul waits for the LORD,
who is our help and our shield.
May your kindness, O LORD, be upon us
who have put our hope in you.
R. The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.

Reading II
Gn 22:1-18 or 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18

God put Abraham to the test.
He called to him, “Abraham!”
“Here I am, “ he replied.
Then God said:
“Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love,
and go to the land of Moriah.
There you shall offer him up as a holocaust
on a height that I will point out to you.”
Early the next morning Abraham saddled his donkey,
took with him his son Isaac and two of his servants as well,
and with the wood that he had cut for the holocaust,
set out for the place of which God had told him.

On the third day Abraham got sight of the place from afar.
Then he said to his servants:
“Both of you stay here with the donkey,
while the boy and I go on over yonder.
We will worship and then come back to you.”
Thereupon Abraham took the wood for the holocaust
and laid it on his son Isaac’s shoulders,
while he himself carried the fire and the knife.
As the two walked on together, Isaac spoke to his father Abraham:
“Father!” Isaac said.
“Yes, son, “ he replied.
Isaac continued, “Here are the fire and the wood,
but where is the sheep for the holocaust?”
“Son,” Abraham answered,
“God himself will provide the sheep for the holocaust.”
Then the two continued going forward.

When they came to the place of which God had told him,
Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it.
Next he tied up his son Isaac,
and put him on top of the wood on the altar.
Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.
But the LORD’s messenger called to him from heaven,
“Abraham, Abraham!”
“Here I am!” he answered.
“Do not lay your hand on the boy,” said the messenger.
“Do not do the least thing to him.
I know now how devoted you are to God,
since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.”
As Abraham looked about,
he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket.
So he went and took the ram
and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son.
Abraham named the site Yahweh-yireh;
hence people now say, (On the mountain the LORD will see.”

Again the LORD’s messenger called to Abraham from heaven and said:
“I swear by myself, declares the LORD,
that because you acted as you did
in not withholding from me your beloved son,
I will bless you abundantly
and make your descendants as countless
as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore;
your descendants shall take possession
of the gates of their enemies,
and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing(
all this because you obeyed my command.”

or

God put Abraham to the test.
He called to him, “Abraham!”
“Here I am, “ he replied.
Then God said:
“Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love,
and go to the land of Moriah.
There you shall offer him up as a holocaust
on a height that I will point out to you.”

When they came to the place of which God had told him,
Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it.
Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.
But the LORD’s messenger called to him from heaven,
“Abraham, Abraham!”
“Here I am, “ he answered.
“Do not lay your hand on the boy, “ said the messenger.
“Do not do the least thing to him.
I know now how devoted you are to God,
since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.”
As Abraham looked about,
he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket.
So he went and took the ram
and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son.

Again the LORD’s messenger called to Abraham from heaven and said:
“I swear by myself, declares the LORD,

that because you acted as you did
in not withholding from me your beloved son,
I will bless you abundantly
and make your descendants as countless
as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore;
your descendants shall take possession
of the gates of their enemies,
and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing(
all this because you obeyed my command.”

Responsorial Psalm
16:5, 8, 9-10, 11

R. (1) You are my inheritance, O Lord.
O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,
my body, too, abides in confidence;
because you will not abandon my soul to the netherworld,
nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo corruption.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.

Reading III
Ex 14:15—15:1

The LORD said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me?
Tell the Israelites to go forward.
And you, lift up your staff and, with hand outstretched over the sea,
split the sea in two,

that the Israelites may pass through it on dry land.
But I will make the Egyptians so obstinate
that they will go in after them.
Then I will receive glory through Pharaoh and all his army,
his chariots and charioteers.
The Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD,
when I receive glory through Pharaoh
and his chariots and charioteers.”

The angel of God, who had been leading Israel’s camp,
now moved and went around behind them.
The column of cloud also, leaving the front,
took up its place behind them,
so that it came between the camp of the Egyptians
and that of Israel.
But the cloud now became dark, and thus the night passed
without the rival camps coming any closer together
all night long.
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea,
and the LORD swept the sea
with a strong east wind throughout the night
and so turned it into dry land.
When the water was thus divided,
the Israelites marched into the midst of the sea on dry land,
with the water like a wall to their right and to their left.

The Egyptians followed in pursuit;
all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and charioteers went after them
right into the midst of the sea.
In the night watch just before dawn
the LORD cast through the column of the fiery cloud
upon the Egyptian force a glance that threw it into a panic;
and he so clogged their chariot wheels
that they could hardly drive.
With that the Egyptians sounded the retreat before Israel,
because the LORD was fighting for them against the Egyptians.

Then the LORD told Moses, (Stretch out your hand over the sea,
that the water may flow back upon the Egyptians,
upon their chariots and their charioteers.”
So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea,
and at dawn the sea flowed back to its normal depth.
The Egyptians were fleeing head on toward the sea,
when the LORD hurled them into its midst.
As the water flowed back,
it covered the chariots and the charioteers of Pharaoh’s whole army
which had followed the Israelites into the sea.
Not a single one of them escaped.
But the Israelites had marched on dry land

through the midst of the sea,
with the water like a wall to their right and to their left.
Thus the LORD saved Israel on that day
from the power of the Egyptians.
When Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the seashore
and beheld the great power that the LORD
had shown against the Egyptians,
they feared the LORD and believed in him and in his servant Moses.

Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD:
I will sing to the LORD, for he is gloriously triumphant;
horse and chariot he has cast into the sea.

Responsorial Psalm
Ex 15:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 17-18

R. (1b) Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory.
I will sing to the LORD, for he is gloriously triumphant;
horse and chariot he has cast into the sea.
My strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
He is my God, I praise him;
the God of my father, I extol him.
R. Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory.
The LORD is a warrior,
LORD is his name!
Pharaoh’s chariots and army he hurled into the sea;
the elite of his officers were submerged in the Red Sea.
R. Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory.
The flood waters covered them,
they sank into the depths like a stone.
Your right hand, O LORD, magnificent in power,
your right hand, O LORD, has shattered the enemy.
R. Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory.
You brought in the people you redeemed
and planted them on the mountain of your inheritance(
the place where you made your seat, O LORD,
the sanctuary, LORD, which your hands established.
The LORD shall reign forever and ever.
R. Let us sing to the Lord; he has covered himself in glory.

Reading IV
Is 54:5-14

The One who has become your husband is your Maker;
his name is the LORD of hosts;
your redeemer is the Holy One of Israel,
called God of all the earth.
The LORD calls you back,
like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit,
a wife married in youth and then cast off,
says your God.
For a brief moment I abandoned you,
but with great tenderness I will take you back.
In an outburst of wrath, for a moment
I hid my face from you;
but with enduring love I take pity on you,
says the LORD, your redeemer.
This is for me like the days of Noah,
when I swore that the waters of Noah
should never again deluge the earth;
so I have sworn not to be angry with you,
or to rebuke you.
Though the mountains leave their place
and the hills be shaken,
my love shall never leave you
nor my covenant of peace be shaken,
says the LORD, who has mercy on you.
O afflicted one, storm-battered and unconsoled,
I lay your pavements in carnelians,
and your foundations in sapphires;
I will make your battlements of rubies,
your gates of carbuncles,
and all your walls of precious stones.
All your children shall be taught by the LORD,
and great shall be the peace of your children.
In justice shall you be established,
far from the fear of oppression,
where destruction cannot come near you.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 30:2, 4, 5-6, 11-12, 13

R. (2a) I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
I will extol you, O LORD, for you drew me clear
and did not let my enemies rejoice over me.
O LORD, you brought me up from the netherworld;
you preserved me from among those going down into the pit.
R. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
Sing praise to the LORD, you his faithful ones,
and give thanks to his holy name.
For his anger lasts but a moment;
a lifetime, his good will.
At nightfall, weeping enters in,
but with the dawn, rejoicing.
R. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.
Hear, O LORD, and have pity on me;
O LORD, be my helper.
You changed my mourning into dancing;
O LORD, my God, forever will I give you thanks.
R. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.

Reading V
Is 55:1-11

Thus says the LORD:
All you who are thirsty,
come to the water!
You who have no money,
come, receive grain and eat;
come, without paying and without cost,
drink wine and milk!
Why spend your money for what is not bread,
your wages for what fails to satisfy?
Heed me, and you shall eat well,
you shall delight in rich fare.
Come to me heedfully,
listen, that you may have life.
I will renew with you the everlasting covenant,
the benefits assured to David.
As I made him a witness to the peoples,

a leader and commander of nations,
so shall you summon a nation you knew not,
and nations that knew you not shall run to you,
because of the LORD, your God,
the Holy One of Israel, who has glorified you.

Seek the LORD while he may be found,
call him while he is near.
Let the scoundrel forsake his way,
and the wicked man his thoughts;
let him turn to the LORD for mercy;
to our God, who is generous in forgiving.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD.
As high as the heavens are above the earth,
so high are my ways above your ways
and my thoughts above your thoughts.

For just as from the heavens
the rain and snow come down
and do not return there
till they have watered the earth,
making it fertile and fruitful,
giving seed to the one who sows
and bread to the one who eats,
so shall my word be
that goes forth from my mouth;
my word shall not return to me void,
but shall do my will,
achieving the end for which I sent it.

Responsorial Psalm
Is 12:2-3, 4, 5-6

R. (3) You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.
God indeed is my savior;
I am confident and unafraid.
My strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
With joy you will draw water
at the fountain of salvation.
R. You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.
Give thanks to the LORD, acclaim his name;
among the nations make known his deeds,

proclaim how exalted is his name.
R. You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.
Sing praise to the LORD for his glorious achievement;
let this be known throughout all the earth.
Shout with exultation, O city of Zion,
for great in your midst
is the Holy One of Israel!
R. You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.

Reading VI
Bar 3:9-15, 32

Hear, O Israel, the commandments of life:
listen, and know prudence!
How is it, Israel,
that you are in the land of your foes,
grown old in a foreign land,
defiled with the dead,
accounted with those destined for the netherworld?
You have forsaken the fountain of wisdom!
Had you walked in the way of God,
you would have dwelt in enduring peace.
Learn where prudence is,
where strength, where understanding;
that you may know also
where are length of days, and life,
where light of the eyes, and peace.
Who has found the place of wisdom,
who has entered into her treasuries?

The One who knows all things knows her;
he has probed her by his knowledge(
The One who established the earth for all time,
and filled it with four-footed beasts;
he who dismisses the light, and it departs,
calls it, and it obeys him trembling;
before whom the stars at their posts
shine and rejoice;
when he calls them, they answer, “Here we are!”
shining with joy for their Maker.
Such is our God;
no other is to be compared to him:

He has traced out the whole way of understanding,
and has given her to Jacob, his servant,
to Israel, his beloved son.

Since then she has appeared on earth,
and moved among people.
She is the book of the precepts of God,
the law that endures forever;
all who cling to her will live,
but those will die who forsake her.
Turn, O Jacob, and receive her:
walk by her light toward splendor.
Give not your glory to another,
your privileges to an alien race.
Blessed are we, O Israel;
for what pleases God is known to us!

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 19:8, 9, 10, 11

R. (John 6:68c) Lord, you have the words of everlasting life.
The law of the LORD is perfect,
refreshing the soul;
the decree of the LORD is trustworthy,
giving wisdom to the simple.
R. Lord, you have the words of everlasting life.
The precepts of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the heart;
the command of the LORD is clear,
enlightening the eye.
R. Lord, you have the words of everlasting life.
The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever;
the ordinances of the LORD are true,
all of them just.
R. Lord, you have the words of everlasting life.
They are more precious than gold,
than a heap of purest gold;
sweeter also than syrup
or honey from the comb.
R. Lord, you have the words of everlasting life.

Reading VII
Ez 36:16-17a, 18-28

The word of the LORD came to me, saying:
Son of man, when the house of Israel lived in their land,
they defiled it by their conduct and deeds.
Therefore I poured out my fury upon them
because of the blood that they poured out on the ground,
and because they defiled it with idols.
I scattered them among the nations,
dispersing them over foreign lands;
according to their conduct and deeds I judged them.
But when they came among the nations wherever they came,
they served to profane my holy name,
because it was said of them: “These are the people of the LORD,
yet they had to leave their land.”
So I have relented because of my holy name
which the house of Israel profaned
among the nations where they came.
Therefore say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord GOD:
Not for your sakes do I act, house of Israel,
but for the sake of my holy name,
which you profaned among the nations to which you came.
I will prove the holiness of my great name, profaned among the nations,
in whose midst you have profaned it.
Thus the nations shall know that I am the LORD, says the Lord GOD,
when in their sight I prove my holiness through you.
For I will take you away from among the nations,
gather you from all the foreign lands,
and bring you back to your own land.
I will sprinkle clean water upon you
to cleanse you from all your impurities,
and from all your idols I will cleanse you.
I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit within you,
taking from your bodies your stony hearts
and giving you natural hearts.
I will put my spirit within you and make you live by my statutes,
careful to observe my decrees.
You shall live in the land I gave your fathers;
you shall be my people, and I will be your God.

Responsorial Psalm

When baptism is celebrated.

Ps 42:3, 5; 43:3, 4

R. (42:2) Like a deer that longs for running streams, my soul longs for you, my God.
Athirst is my soul for God, the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?
Like a deer that longs for running streams, my soul longs for you, my God.
I went with the throng
and led them in procession to the house of God,
Amid loud cries of joy and thanksgiving,
with the multitude keeping festival.
R. Like a deer that longs for running streams, my soul longs for you, my God.
Send forth your light and your fidelity;
they shall lead me on
And bring me to your holy mountain,
to your dwelling-place.
R. Like a deer that longs for running streams, my soul longs for you, my God.
Then will I go in to the altar of God,
the God of my gladness and joy;
then will I give you thanks upon the harp,
O God, my God!
R. Like a deer that longs for running streams, my soul longs for you, my God.

When baptism is not celebrated.

Is 12:2-3, 4bcd, 5-6

R. (3) You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.
God indeed is my savior;
I am confident and unafraid.
My strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
With joy you will draw water
at the fountain of salvation.
R. You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.
Give thanks to the LORD, acclaim his name;
among the nations make known his deeds,
proclaim how exalted is his name.
R. You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.
Sing praise to the LORD for his glorious achievement;
let this be known throughout all the earth.
Shout with exultation, O city of Zion,
for great in your midst
is the Holy One of Israel!
R. You will draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.

When baptism is not celebrated

Ps 51:12-13, 14-15, 18-19

R. (12a) Create a clean heart in me, O God.
A clean heart create for me, O God,
and a steadfast spirit renew within me.
Cast me not out from your presence,
and your Holy Spirit take not from me.
R. Create a clean heart in me, O God.
Give me back the joy of your salvation,
and a willing spirit sustain in me.
I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners shall return to you.
R. Create a clean heart in me, O God.
For you are not pleased with sacrifices;
should I offer a holocaust, you would not accept it.
My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit;
a heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
R. Create a clean heart in me, O God.

Epistle
Rom 6:3-11

Brothers and sisters:
Are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death?

We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death,
so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
we too might live in newness of life.

For if we have grown into union with him through a death like his,
we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.
We know that our old self was crucified with him,
so that our sinful body might be done away with,
that we might no longer be in slavery to sin.
For a dead person has been absolved from sin.
If, then, we have died with Christ,
we believe that we shall also live with him.
We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more;
death no longer has power over him.
As to his death, he died to sin once and for all;
as to his life, he lives for God.
Consequently, you too must think of yourselves as being dead to sin
and living for God in Christ Jesus.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23

R. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
Let the house of Israel say,
“His mercy endures forever.”
R. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
The right hand of the LORD has struck with power;
the right hand of the LORD is exalted.
I shall not die, but live,
and declare the works of the LORD.
R. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
By the LORD has this been done;
it is wonderful in our eyes.
R. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel
Lk 24:1-12

At daybreak on the first day of the week
the women who had come from Galilee with Jesus
took the spices they had prepared
and went to the tomb.
They found the stone rolled away from the tomb;
but when they entered,
they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
While they were puzzling over this, behold,
two men in dazzling garments appeared to them.
They were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground.
They said to them,
“Why do you seek the living one among the dead?
He is not here, but he has been raised.
Remember what he said to you while he was still in Galilee,
that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners
and be crucified, and rise on the third day.”
And they remembered his words.
Then they returned from the tomb
and announced all these things to the eleven
and to all the others.
The women were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James;
the others who accompanied them also told this to the apostles,
but their story seemed like nonsense
and they did not believe them.
But Peter got up and ran to the tomb,
bent down, and saw the burial cloths alone;
then he went home amazed at what had happened.

April Devotion: The Blessed Sacrament

Since the 16th century Catholic piety has assigned entire months to special devotions. The Church traditionally encouraged the month of April for increased devotion to Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. "The Church in the course of the centuries has introduced various forms of this Eucharistic worship which are ever increasing in beauty and helpfulness; as, for example, visits of devotion to the tabernacles, even every day; Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament; solemn processions, especially at the time of Eucharistic Congresses, which pass through cities and villages; and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament publicly exposed . . . These exercises of piety have brought a wonderful increase in faith and supernatural life to the Church militant upon earth and they are re-echoed to a certain extent by the Church triumphant in heaven, which sings continually a hymn of praise to God and to the Lamb 'Who was slain.'" --Pope Pius XII

ACT OF ADORATION
I adore Thee, 0 Jesus, true God and true Man, here present in the Holy Eucharist, humbly kneeling before Thee and united in spirit with all the faithful on earth and all the blessed in heaven. In deepest gratitude for so great a blessing, I love Thee, my Jesus, with my whole heart, for Thou art all perfect and all worthy of love.

Give me grace nevermore in any way to offend Thee, and grant that I, being refreshed by Thy Eucharistic presence here on earth, may be found worthy to come to the enjoyment with Mary of Thine eternal and everblessed presence in heaven. Amen.

FAITH IN THE EUCHARIST
O my God, I firmly believe that Thou art really and corporally present in the Blessed Sacrament of the altar. I adore Thee here present from the very depths of my heart, and I worship Thy sacred presence with all possible humility. O my soul, what joy to have Jesus Christ always with us, and to be able to speak to Him, heart to heart, with all confidence. Grant, O Lord, that I, having adored Thy divine Majesty here on earth in this wonderful Sacrament, may be able to adore it eternally in Heaven. Amen.

PETITION
Believing that Thou, my God, hast in any way revealed to us--grieving for all my sins, offenses and negligences--hoping in Thee, O Lord, who wilt never let me be confounded--thanking Thee for this supreme gift, and for all the gifts of Thy goodness--loving Thee, above all in this sacrament of Thy love--adoring Thee in this deepest mystery of Thy condescension: I lay before Thee all the wounds and wants of my poor soul, and ask for all that I need and desire. But I need only Thyself, O Lord; I desire none but Thee--Thy grace, and the grace to use well Thy graces, the possession of Thee by grace in this life, and the possession of Thee forever in the eternal kingdom of Thy glory.

FOR THE PEACE OF CHRIST
O most sacred, most loving heart of Jesus, Thou art concealed in the Holy Eucharist, and Thou beatest for us still. Now as then Thou sayest, "With desire I have desired." I worship Thee, then, with all my best love and awe, with my fervent affection, with my most subdued, most resolved will. O make my heart beat with Thy heart. Purify it of all that is earthly, all that is proud and sensual, all that is hard and cruel, of all perversity, of all disorder, of all deadness. So fill it with Thee, that neither the events of the day nor the circumstances of the time may have power to ruffle it; but that in Thy love and Thy fear it may have peace. --Cardinal Newman

ACT OF LOVE
I believe Thou art present in the Blessed Sacrament, O Jesus. I love Thee and desire Thee. Come into my heart. I embrace Thee, O never leave me. I beseech Thee, O Lord Jesus, may the burning and most sweet power of Thy love absorb my mind, that I may die through love of Thy love, who wast graciously pleased to die through love of my love. --St. Francis of Assisi

ACT OF REPARATION
Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, well known in connection with devotion to the Sacred Herat of Jesus, led the way in making reparation to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament for the coldness and ingratitude of men. This prayer of hers can become our own as we attempt to make amends for our own and others' neglect of the great Sacrament of His love, the Eucharist.
O kind and merciful savior, from my heart I earnestly desire to return Thee love for love. My greatest sorrow is that Thou art not loved by men, and, in particular, that my own heart is so cold, so selfish, so ungrateful. Keenly aware of my own weakness and poverty, I trust that Thy own grace will enable me to offer Thee an act of pure love. And I wish to offer Thee this act of love in reparation for the coldness and neglect that are shown to Thee in the sacrament of Thy love by Thy creatures. O Jesus, my supreme good, I love Thee, not for the sake of the reward which Thou hast promised to those who love Thee, but purely for Thyself. I love Thee above all things that can be loved, above all pleasures, and above myself and all that is not Thee, promising in the presence of heaven and earth that I will live and die purely and simply in Thy holy love, and that if to love Thee thus I must endure persecution and suffering I am completely satisfied, and I will ever say with Saint Paul: Nothing "will be able to separate us from the love of God." 0 Jesus, supreme master of all hearts, I love Thee, I adore Thee, I praise Thee, I thank Thee, because I am now all Thine own. Rule over me, and transform my soul into the likeness of Thyself, so that it may bless and glorify Thee forever in the abode of the saints.
--Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque

OFFERING
My Lord, I offer Thee myself in turn as a sacrifice of thanksgiving. Thou hast died for me, and I in turn make myself over to Thee. I am not my own. Thou hast bought me; I will by my own act and deed complete the purchase. My wish is to be separated from everything of this world; to cleanse myself simply from sin; to put away from me even what is innocent, if used for its own sake, and not for Thine. I put away reputation and honor, and influence, and power, for my praise and strength shall be in Thee. Enable me to carry out what I profess. Amen. --Cardinal Newman

Prayer Source: Prayer Book, The by Reverend John P. O'Connell, M.A., S.T.D. and Jex Martin, M.A., The Catholic Press, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, 1954

"The best, the surest , and the most effective way of establishing everlasting peace on the face of the earth is through the great power of perpetual adoration of the Blessed Sacrament." -- Pope John Paul II

"Could you not watch one hour?" -- Mark 14:37

EUCHARIST: HOLY MEAL

Early Christians on the Holy Eucharist

Holy Father stresses Need of Devotion to Holy Eucharist outside of Mass: Pope Paul VI

The Fourth Cup: The Sacrament of the Eucharist [Holy Thursday] [Passover]

The Holy Face of Jesus Christ as appeared on the Holy Eucharist

The Reverence due to the Holy Eucharist

New rules on the Holy Eucharist on Holy Thursday

Devotion to the Holy Eucharist Advances Devotion to Jesus' Person

Vatican: Matters to be observed or to be avoided regarding the Most Holy Eucharist (April 23, 2004)

CATHOLICS AND BAPTISTS WITNESSED UNUSUAL IMAGES IN BLESSED SACRAMENT

The Discipline of the Eucharist Holy See Releases Redemptionis Sacramentum...

Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament

THE HOLY EUCHARIST: NOURISHMENT TO FINISH OUR COURSE

LITANY OF REPARATION TO OUR LORD IN THE BLESSED SACRAMENT

The Disposition of Priests [Valid Mass, Valid Holy Eucharist?]

Grace of the Eucharist is secret to holy priests, says Pope

Area worshipers march to celebrate Holy Eucharist

Custody of Holy Land Concludes Year of Eucharist - In Capernaum, Site of a Key Discourse

Gift Of Life, Gift Eternal: The Most Holy Eucharist and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass

THE HOLY EUCHARIST IS THE WHOLE CHRIST

This is My Body, This is My Blood

Prayer Before the Blessed Sacrament

A series of reflections from St. Peter Julian Eymard Blessed Sacrament(Catholic Caucus)

From: Genesis 1:1-2:2

The Creation Account

[1] In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. [2] The earth
was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and
the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters.

[3] And God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. [4] And God saw
that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. [5]
God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was
evening and there was morning, one day.

[6] And God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and
let it separate the waters from the waters.” [7] And God made the firmament
and separated the waters which were under the firmament from the waters
which were above the firmament. And it was so. [8] And God called the
firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second
day.

[9] And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together
into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. [10] God called
the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called
Seas. And God saw that it was good. [11] And God said, “Let the earth put
forth vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in
which is their seed, each according to its kind, upon the earth.” And it was
so. [12] The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according
to their own kinds, and trees hearing fruit in which is their seed, each
according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [13] And there was
evening and there was morning, a third day.

[14] And God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to
separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons
and for days and years, [15] and let them be lights in the firmament of the
heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. [16] And God made the
two great lights, the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to
rule the night; he made the stars also. [17] And God set them in the
firmament of the heavens to give light upon the earth, [18] to rule over the
day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God
saw that it was good. [19] And there was evening and there was morning, a
fourth day.

[20] And God said, “Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures,
and let birds fly above the earth across the firmament of the heavens.” [21]
So God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves,
with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird
according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. [22] And God blessed
them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let
birds multiply on the earth.” [23] And there was evening and there was
morning, a fifth day.

[24] And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to
their kinds: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth according
to their kinds.” And it was so. [25] And God made the beasts of the earth
according to their kinds and the cattle according to their kinds, and
everything that creeps upon the ground according to its kind. And God saw
that it was good.

[26] Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness;
and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of
the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping
thing that creeps upon the earth.” [27] So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. [28]
And God blessed them, and God said to them.,”Be fruitful and multiply, and
fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and
over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the
earth.” [29] And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding
seed which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in
its fruit; you shall have them for food. [30] And to every beast of the
earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the
earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green
plant for food.” And it was so. [31] And God saw everything that he had
made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there
was morning, a sixth day.

[1] Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
[2] And on the seventh day God finished his work which he had done, and he
rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had done. [3] So God
blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all
his work which he had done in creation.

***********************************************************************
Commentary:

1:1-2:4a. Creatlon is the beginnrng of salvation history and the foundation
on which are built God’s salvific plans, which reach their climax in Jesus
Christ. The biblical accounts of creation focus on the action of God; it is
he who sets the scene and he is the creator, too, of those who will act out
the drama and with whom he will enter into dialogue.

The sacred text incorporates ancient traditions about the origin of the
world; scholars identify two separate accounts in the early chapters of
Genesis. The first of these emphasizes God’s transcendence over all created
things, and is written in a very schematic style; this account (1:1-2:4a) is
attributed to the “Priestly” tradition. The second, which also covers the
fall and the expulsion from paradise, speaks of God in an anthropomorphic
way; this more vivid, more popular account (2:4b-4:26) is considered to
belong to the “Yahwistic” tradition. Here we have two different ways in
which the Word of God (not intending to provide a scientific explanation of
the origin of the world and of man) expounds the basic facts and truths on
the subject in a way people can readily understand, inviting us to see me
greatness and love of God manifested first in creation and then in the
history of mankind. “Our faith teaches us,” St. Josemaria Escriva writes,
“that all creation, the movement of the earth and the other heavenly bodies,
the good actions of creatures and all the good that has been achieved in
history, in short everything, comes from God and directed toward him”
(”Christ Is Passing By”, 130).

In the first account the Bible offers profound teaching about God, about man
and about the world. About God, who is the only God, creator of all things
and man in particular; he transcends the created world and is its supreme
master. About man, who is the image and likeness of God, above all other
created beings and placed in the world to rule all creation. About the
world, which is something good and is at the service of man.

1.1. “Three things are affirmed in these first words of Scripture: the
eternal God gave a beginning to all that exists outside of himself; he alone
is Creator (the verb ‘create’—Hebrew “bara”—always has God for its
subject). The totality of what exists (expressed by the formula ‘the heavens
and the earth’) depends on the One who gives it being” (”Catechism of the
Catholic Church”, 290).

“In the beginning” means that creation marks the start of time and the
course of history. Time and history have a beginning and they are headed
towards a final goal, which the Bible will tell us more about, especially in
its last book, Revelation. At the end, we are told: ‘Then I saw a new heaven
and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,
and the sea was no more” (Rev 21:1).

God the Creator is the same God as will manifest himself to the patriarchs,
to Moses and to the prophets and make himself known to as through Jesus
Christ. In the light of the New Testament we know that God created all
things through his eternal Word, his beloved Son (cf. Jn 1:1; Col 1:16-17).
God the Creator is Father and Son and (the relationship of love between
them) the Holy Spirit. Creation is the work of the Blessed Trinity, and all
of creation (particularly man, created in the image and likeness of God) in
some way bears their seal. Some Fathers of the Church (Augustine, Ambrose
and Basil, for example), in the light of the New Testament, saw the words
“in the beginning” as having a deeper meaning—namely, “in the Son”.

The “action of creating” belongs exclusively to God; man cannot create; he
can only “change” or “develop” something that already exists. In the
creation accounts of other Near East religions the world and gods developed
out of preexistent matter. The Bible, however, records gradual revelation of
the mystery of creation interpreted in the light of God’s choice of Israel
and his covenant with mankind; it roundly asserts that everything was made
by God. Later on it will draw the conclusion that everything was created out
of’ nothing: “I beseech you, my child, to look at the heavens and the earth
and see everything that is in them, and to recognize that God did not make
them out of things that existed” (2 Mac 7:28). This creative power of God is
also able to give sinful man a pure heart (cf. Ps 51:12), to restore the
dead to life and to give the light of faith to those who do not know him
(cf. 2 Cor 4:6).

It was God’s love and wisdom that moved him to create the world, thereby
communicating his goodness and making his glory manifest. The world,
therefore, “is not the product of any necessity whatever, nor of blind, fate
or chance. We believe that it proceeds from God’s free will; he wanted to
make his creatures share in his being, wisdom and goodness” (”Catechism
of the Catholic Church”, 295).

The expression “the heavens and the earth” means everything that exists. The
earth is the world of men; the sky (or the heavens) can mean the firmament
or the divine world, God’s own “place”, his glory and all spiritual
(non-material) creatures—the angels.

1:2. The Bible teaches not just that God created all things, but also that
the separation and ordering of the elements of nature is something
established by God once and for all. The presence of the loving power of
God, symbolized by a gentle breeze or a breath (the text refers to it as a
spirit; “ruah” in Hebrew) which hovers and keeps watch over the world when
it is still in chaos, shows that, as the text will go on to say, the Word of
God and his Breath are present in the origin of being and in the origin of
every creature’s life. That is why many Fathers of the Church (Jerome and
Athanasaus, for example) saw this passage as reflecting the presence of the
Holy Spirit as a divine Person who, along with the Father and the Son, is at
work in the creation of the world, “This biblical concept of creation”, John
Paul II explains, “includes not only the call to existence of the very being
of the cosmos, that is to say, “the giving of existence”, but also the
presence of the Spirit of God in creation, that is to say, the beginning of
God’s salvific self-communication to thq things he creates. This is true
“first of all concerning man”, who has been created in the image and
likeness of God” (”Dominum Et Vivificantem”, 12).

1:3-5. At this point strictly speaking begins the description of the creation,
which, according to the literary plan of this account, is going to take place
over six days. These six days are meant to indicate the orderliness with
which God went about his work, and to show a rhythm of work and rest:
the Jewish Law laid down Saturday, the sabbath, as a day of rest and a
day dedicatcd to the Lord. In the Christian Church this day was shifted to
Sunday, because Sunday was the day on which our Lord rose from the
dead, thereby inaugurating the new Creation: Sunday, the “dies dominica”
(Latin), the Lord’s day.

On the first day God creates light and separates light from darkness (the
latter, being something negative—the absence of light—cannot be created).
Light is seen here as being a thing in its own right (without reference to
the fact that daylight comes from the sun, which will not be created until
the fourth day). The fact that God puts names on things (or in this case on
situations caused by some elements being separated from others) indicates
that he wields absolute power over them. God is in authority, whether it be
day or night.

Here we meet for the first time a phrase which is going to be used seven
times over the course of the narrative: “And God saw that it was good.” This
means that everything that God creates is good because in some way it
bears his seal and shares in his own goodness, for it has come from divine
goodness. The goodness of the world proclaimed here by Holy Scripture has
important consequences for the Christian: “We must love the world and work
and all human things. For the world is good. Adam’s sin destroyed the divine
balance of creation; but God the Father sent his only Son to re-establish
peace, so that we, his children by adoption, might free creation from
disorder and reconcile all things to God” ([St] Escriva, “Christ Is Passing
By”, 112).

1:6-8. In line with the culture of their time, the early Hebrews thought
that rain came from huge containers of water in the vault of heaven; when
trapdoors were opened, the rain poured down. When it says here that God
separated the water which were above the firmament from those below, what
is really being taugt is that God imposed order on the natural world and is
responsible for the phenomenon of rain. It is also making it clear from the
outset that the firmament must not be thought to involve any divinity (as
was believed in the nations roundabout Israel); the firmament is part of the
created world.

1:11. As the inspired author depicts here, a distinction is made between
God’s action in separating and ordering the elements (creating the vast
spaces of sky, sea and land) and his action of filling or adorning these
spaces with different kinds of creatures. These creatures introduced in an
increasing order of dignity (in line with the thinking of the time)—first
the vegetable kingdom, then the stellar kingdom, and, lastly, the animal
kingdom. Everything is perfectly arranged; the world of Creation invites to
contemplate the Creator.

1:14-17. Against the neighboring religions, which regarded the heavenly
bodies as divinities exerting influence over human life, the biblical author,
enlightened by inspiration, teaches that the sun, moon and stars are
simply created things; their purpose is to serve man by giving him light by
day and night, and to be a way of measuring time. Put in their proper,
natural place heavenly bodies (like all the rest of creation) lead man to
appreciate the greatness of God, and to praise him for his awesome works:
“The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his
handiwork...” (Ps 19:1; cf. Ps 104). It follows that all forms of divination
are to be rejected—consulting horoscopes, astrology, clairvoyance etc. (cf.
“Catechism of the Catholic Church”, 2116).

1:26. The sacred text emphasizes the special significance of this moment:
God seems to stop to reflect and plan every detail of his next creation—man.
Ancient Jewish interpretation (followed also by some Christian writers) saw
the use of the plural “Let us make...” as meaning that God deliberated with
his heavenly court, that is, with the angels (implying that God had created
them at the very start, when he “created the heavens and the earth”). But
the use of the plural should rather be taken as reflecting the greatness and
power of God. A considerable part of Christian tradition has seen the “Let
us make” as reflecting the Holy Trinity, for New Testament revelation has
made the Christian reader more aware of the unfathomable greatness of
the divine mystery.

“Man” here has a collective meaning: every human being, by his or her very
nature, is in the image and likeness of God. The human being is intelligible
not by reference to other created beings in the universe but by reference to
God. The likeness between God and man is not a physical one, for God has
no body; it is a spiritual likeness, lying in the human being’s capacity for
interiority. The Second Vatican Council teaches that man is not deceived
when he regards himself as superior to bodily things and as more than just
a speck of nature or a nameless unit in the city of man. For by his power to
know himself in the depths of his being he rises above the whole universe of
mere objects. When he is drawn to think about his real self, he turns to
those deep recesses of his being where God who probes the heart (1 Kings
1.6:7; Jer 17:10) awaits him, and where he himself decides his own destiny
in the sight of God. So when he recognizes in himself a spiritual and
immortal soul, he is not being led astray by false imaginings that are due
to merely physical or social causes. On the contrary, he grasps what is
profoundly true in this matter” (”Gaudium Et Spes”, 14).

The fact that God creates man in own image and likeness “means not only
rationality and freedom as constitutive properties of human nature, but also
from the very beginning, the capacity of having a “personal relationship”
with God as ‘I’ and ‘you’ and therefore the capacity “of having a covenant”,
which will take place in God’s salvific communication with man” (John Paul
11, “Dominun Et Vivificantem”, 34). In the light of this communication,
brought about in all its fullness by Jesus Christ, the Fathers the Church
read the words “image and likeness” as meaning, on the one hand man’s
spiritual condition, and, on the other, his sharing in the divine nature
through sanctifying grace. Even after the fall, man is still in the “image”
of God; through sin, however, he lost his “likeness” but this was restored
through Christ’s redemption.

It is part of God’s design that human beings should have dominion over other
created things (represented here by the animals). This dominion makes man
God’s representative (everything really belongs to God) in the created world.
Therefore, although man is going to be the lord of creation, he needs to
recognize that God alone is the Creator; man has to respect and look after
creation; he is responsible for it.

These words of Scripture show that “man is the only creature that God has
loved for itself alone, because all others were created to be at the service
of man. Here we can see, too, the basic equality of all human beings. For
the Church, this equality, which has its roots in man’s very being, takes on
the very special dimension of brotherhood through the Incarnation of the Son
of God. [...] Therefore, discrimination of any type [...] is absolutely
unacceptable” (John Paul II, Address, 7 July 1984).

1:27. The creation of man marks the completion of God’s plan, In presenting
this final act of creation, the sacred writer offers us a summary of the things
that go to make up the human being. As, well as repeating that God created
man in his image and likeness, he tells us that God created them man and
woman, that is to say, corporeal beings, endowed with sexuality, and
designed to live in society. “Being in the image of God, the human individual
possesses the dignity of a person, who is not just something, but someone.
He is capable of self-knowledge, of self-possession and of freely giving
himself and entering into communion with other persons. And he is called
by grace to a covenant with his Creator to offer him a response of faith and
love that no other creature can give in his stead” (”Catechism of the Catholic
Church”, 357).

“The fact that man ‘created as man and woman’ is the image of God means
not only that each of them individually is like God, as a rational and free
being. It also means that man and woman, created as a ‘unity of the two’ in
their common humanity, are called to live in a communion of love, and in
this way to mirror in the world the communion of love that is in God, through
which the Three Persons love each other in the intimate mystery of the one
divine life. This ‘unity of the two’, which is a sign of interpersonal communion,
“shows that the creation of man” is also marked by a certain likeness to the
divine communion (”communio”) This likeness is a quality of the personal
being of both man and woman, and is also a call and a task” (John Paul II,
“Mulieris Dignitatem”, 7).

The fact that the Bible and everyday language speak of God as masculine is
a result of cultural influences and the great care taken in the Bible to avoid
any hint of polytheism (which could arise if the godhead were described as
feminine, opening the way to generations of gods, as in other religions). God
transcends the body and sexuality; therefore, both man (masc.) and woman
(fem.) equally reflect his image and likeness. In these words of Genesis, for
the very first time in history, the fundamental equality in dignity of man and
woman is proclaimed—in marked contrast with the low esteem in which
women were held in the ancient world.

According to the traditional Jewish and Christian interpretation, this verse
is alluding to marriage, as if God had already created the first man and the
first woman as a married couple—forming that human community which is the
basis of every society. In the second Genesis account of the creation of man
and woman (cf. 2:18-24), this will emerge even more clearly.

1:28. God has already created animals, endowing them with fruitfulness (v.
22). He now addresses these two human beings personally: “he said to
them...”; this indicates that the reproductive power of human beings (and
therefore their sexuality) are values for which they must assume
responsibility before God, as a way of co-operating in God’s plans. Thus,
God, “wishing to associate them in a special way with his own creative work,
blessed man and woman with the words: ‘Be fruitful and multiply’ (Gen 1:28).
Without intending to underestimate the other ends of marriage, it must be
said that true married love and the whole structure of family life which
results from it is directed to disposing the spouses to cooperate valiantly
with the love of the Creator and Savior, who through them will increase and
enrich his family from day to day” (Vatican II, “Gaudium Et Spes”, 50).

God also commands man to make the earth serve him. Here divine Revelation
is teaching us that human work is regarded as a way by which main operates
in the plan God had when he created the world: “By the work of his hands and
with the aid of technical means man tills the earth to bring fruit and to make it
a dwelling place for all mankind; he, also consciously plays his part in the life
of social groups; in so doing he is realizing the design, which God revealed at
the beginning of time, to subdue the earth and perfect the work of creation,
and at the same time he is improving his own person” (Vatican II, “Gaudium
Et Spes”, 57).

>From this divine disposition we see the importance a person’s work has in
his or her personal life: “Your human vocation is a part—and an important
part—of your divine vocation. That reason why you must strive for holiness,
giving a particular character to your human personality, a style to your life;
contributing at the same time to the sanctification of others, your fellow men;
sanctifying your work and your environment: the profession or job that fills
day, your home and family and the country where you were born and which
you love [...]. Work, all work, bears witness to the dignity of man, to his
dominion over creation. It is an opportunity to develop one’s personality. It
is a bond of union with others, the way to support one’s family, a means of
aiding the improvement of the society in which we live and in the progress
of all mankind” (”Christ Is Passing By”, 46-47).

Man is charged by God with mastery over the earth; but he may not do
whatever he likes with it or act despotically: he should respect the universe
as being the work of the Creator. In this regard, Wisdom 9:3 says: “0 God,
[...] who hast formed man, to have dominion over the creatures thou hast
made, and rule the world in holiness and righteousness, and pronounce
judgment in uprightness of soul.” “This holds good also for out daily work.
When men and women provide for themselves and their families in such a
way as to be of service to the community as well, they can rightly look upon
their work as a prolongation of the work of the creator, a service to their
fellow men, and their personal contribution to the fulfillment in history of
the divine plan” (Vatican II, “Gaudium Et Spes”, 34).

1:31. These words bring to an end this first description of the work of
Creation. It is as if God, after making man, stood back to see what he had
done and was very pleased with the result. Whereas the wording previously
used was “And God saw that it was good,” now we are told that it was “very
good”. In this way, the goodness of the created world is being stressed,
indicating that “this natural goodness of theirs receives an added dignity
from their relation with the human person, for whose use they have been
created” (Vatican II, “Apostolicam Actuositatem”, 7). From this it follows
that the human person and his/her dignity must be valued above all other
created things, and all human endeavor should be geared to foster and defend
these values.

2:1-3. From this point onwards, God will almost never intervene in creation
directly. Now it is up to man to act in the created world through the work
he does.

God’s “resting” sets an example for man. By resting, we are acknowledging
that creation in the last analysis depends on and belongs to God, and that
God is watching over it. Here rest is an example set by the Creator; we
shall later find it as one of the Ten Commandments (cf. Ex 20:8-18; Deut
5:42-14). “The institution of the Lord’s Day helps everyone enjoy adequate
rest and leisure to cultivate their familial, cultural, social and religious
lives” (”Catechism of the Catholic Church”, 2184; cf. also John Paul II,
Apostolic Letter, “Dies Domini”, 31 May 1998).

Apropos of the sabbath, unlike the other days there is no mention of there
being evening and morning. It is as if that rhythm of time were being broken
by the sabbath—prefiguring the situation in which man, once he has
accomplished his mission of mastering the earth, will enjoy an unending
rest, at an eternal feast in God’s presence (cf. Heb 4:1-10). In the language
of the Bible “feast” or “festival” means three things—a) obligatory rest from
everyday work; b) recognition of God as Lord of creation, and joyful
contemplation of the created world; c) a foretaste of the enduring rest and
joy that will be man’s after he leaves this world.

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Romans 6:3-11

Baptism (Continuation)

[3] Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ
Jesus were baptized into His death? [4] We were buried therefore with
Him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

[5] For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall
certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His. [6] We know
that our old self was crucified with Him so that the sinful body might
be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. [7] For He
who has died is freed from sin. [8] But if we have died with Christ,
we believe that we shall also live with Him. [9] For we know that
Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; death no longer
has dominion over him. [10] The death He died He died to sin once for
all, but the life He lives He lives to God. [11] So you also must
consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

*******************************************************************
Commentary:

1-11. The universal dominion of sin, which began with the sin of Adam,
is not the only event to be reckoned with. When sin reached its full
extent, the grace brought by Jesus Christ came in superabundance.
Through Baptism this grace reaches each of us and frees us from the
control of sin. When we receive this Sacrament we die: that is to say,
our blameworthiness is destroyed, we renounce sin once and for all, and
are born again into a new life.

“The Lord”, St. Ambrose tells the newly baptized, “who wanted His
benefactions to endure, the serpent’s plans to be turned to naught, and
the harm done to be put right, delivered a sentence to mankind: ‘You
are dust, and to dust you shall return’ (Genesis 3:19), and made man
subject to death [...]. The remedy was given him: man would die and
rise again [...]. You ask me how? [...] Pay attention. So that in
this world too the devil’s snare would be broken, a rite was instituted
whereby man would die, being alive, and rise again, being alive [...].
Through immersion in water the sentence is blotted out: ‘You are dust,
and to dust you shall return’” (”De Sacramentis”, II, 6).

This passage of the epistle, which reveals the key truths concerning
Baptism, also reminds us of the profound meaning of this rite which
Christ established, its spiritual effects in Christians and its far-reaching
effects with respect to the Christian life. Thus, we can apply to Baptism
what St. Thomas Aquinas says about all the sacraments: “Three
aspects of sanctification may be considered—its very cause, which is
Christ’s Passion; its form, which is grace and the virtues; and its
ultimate end, which is eternal life. And all these are signified by the
sacraments. Consequently, a sacrament is a sign which is both a
reminder of the past, that is, of the Passion of Christ, and an indication
of what is effected in us by Christ’s Passion, and a foretelling and
pledge of future glory” (”Summa Theologiae”, III, q. 60, a. 3).

In the specific case of Baptism, the various things which the Sacrament
implies carry a special nuance—a new birth which presupposes a
symbolic death. It reproduces in us not only the Passion, Death and
burial of Christ, symbolized by immersion in water (verses 3-4, 6), but
also new life, the life of grace which pours into the soul, enabling
the person to share in the Resurrection of Christ (verses 4-5). This
sharing in Christ’s Resurrection to immortal life is a kind of seed
which will ultimately produce the glorious resurrection of our bodies.

The baptized person is, therefore, someone newly created, someone
born into a new life, someone who has moved out of darkness into light.
The white garment used at Baptism symbolizes innocence and grace;
the burning candle, the light of Christ—two symbols the Church uses in
the baptismal liturgy to signify what is happening.

Thus, in Baptism, God “removes every trace of sin, whether original or
personal” (”The Rite of Baptism”, Introduction, 5) and also remits the
penalties that these sins incur. On being baptized in the name of the
Three Divine Persons, the Christian is shown God the Father’s love for
him (a love he has not merited), is given a share in the Paschal
Mystery of the Son, and to him is communicated new life in the Spirit
(cf. “Instruction on Infant Baptism”, 20 October 1980, 9). Baptism,
which is also described as “the door of the spiritual life”, unites a
person to Christ and to the Church by means of grace, which makes
us children of God and heirs to Heaven. Finally, in addition to the
infused virtues and supernatural gifts, the person is given “the graces
necessary to live in a Christian way, and on his soul is impressed the
sacramental character which makes him a Christian for evermore”
(”St. Pius X Catechism”, 250).

Baptism, which confers a “character”, that is, a kind of seal
confirming our Christian calling, gives us a share in Christ’s
priesthood and makes us capable of receiving the other sacraments.

4. It is easier to grasp the symbolism of burial and resurrection if
one remembers that in earlier times, and particularly in the apostolic
period, Baptism was usually administered by immersion in water—in
some cases by total immersion, up to three times, with one Person of
he Blessed Trinity being invoked each time. “They asked you, ‘Do you
believe in God the Father almighty?’ You said, ‘I believe’, and you were
immersed, that is, you were buried. Again they asked you, ‘Do you
believe in our Lord Jesus Christ and in His Cross?’ You said, ‘I believe’,
and you were again immersed. This time you have been buried with
Christ, and he who is buried with Christ rises with Christ. For a third
time you were asked, ‘Do you believe in the Holy Spirit?’ You said, ‘ I
believe’, and for a third time you were immersed, so that by this
three-fold confession you might be loosed of your many attachments
to your past life” (St. Ambrose, “De Sacramentis”, II, 7).

Today Baptism is normally administered by pouring water over the head
— a method also used in apostolic times and which gradually came into
general use because it was found more convenient.

5. Just as the ingraft and the plant form a single thing and make a
single principle of life, Christians by being grafted onto or incorporated
into Christ through Baptism form one single thing with Him and begin
to draw on His divine life. We are also “united with Him in a death like
His”: Christ suffered physical death; we, in Baptism, die spiritually to
the life of sin. St. John Chrysostom explains this as follows: “Baptism
is for us what the Cross and burial were for Christ; but with this
difference: the Savior died physically, He was physically buried,
whereas we ought to die spiritually. That is why the Apostle does not
say we are ‘united with Him with His death’, but ‘in a death LIKE HIS’”
(”Hom. on Rom.”, 10).

9-10. Jesus Christ chose to bear all the consequences of sin, even
though He was sinless. His voluntary death on the Cross and His
glorious Resurrection broke the bonds of death, for Himself and for all
His own. Death no longer shall have dominion: “[Christ died] that
through death He might destroy him who has the power of death, that
is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject
to lifelong bondage” (Hebrews 2:14-15). And as a consequence He won,
for His own human nature and for us, a new life.

In all those who have been baptized these same events in Christ’s life
are in some way reproduced. “Our past sins have been wiped out by
the action of grace. Now, so as to stay dead to sin after Baptism,
personal effort is called for, although God’s grace continues to be with
us, providing us with great help” (Chrysostom, “Hom. on Rom.”, 11).
This personal effort might be encapsulated in a resolution: “May we
never die through sin; may our spiritual resurrection be eternal”
([St] J. Escriva, “Holy Rosary”, 1st Glorious Mystery).

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: Luke 24:1-12

The Women Are Told That Jesus Is Risen

[1] But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking
the spices which they had prepared. [2] And they found the stone rolled away
from the tomb, [3] but when they went in they did not find the body. [4] While
they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling ap-
parel; [5] and as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the
men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here,
but has risen. [6] Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, [7]
that the Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be cru-
cified, and on the third day rise.” [8] And they remembered his words, [9] and
returning from the tomb they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest. [10]
Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and
the other women with them who told this to the apostles; [11] but these words
seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. [12] But Peter rose
and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by them-
selves; and he went home wondering at what had happened.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

1-4. The affection which led the holy women to make the necessary prepara-
tions for the embalming of Jesus’ body was, perhaps, an intuition of faith which
the Church would express more elaborately much later on: “We firmly believe
that when his soul was dissociated from his body, his divinity continued always
united both to his body in the sepulchre and to his soul in limbo” (”St Pius V
Catechism”, I, 5, 6).

5-8. True faith concerning the resurrection of Jesus teaches that he truly died,
that is, his soul was separated from his body, and his body was in the grave for
three days; and that then by his own power his body and soul were united once
more, never again to be separated (cf. “St Pius V Catechism”, I, 6, 7).

Although this is a strictly supernatural mystery there are some elements in it
which come within the category of sense experience—death, burial, the empty
tomb, appearances, etc.—and in this sense it is a demonstrable fact and one
which has been verified (cf. St Pius X, “Lamentabili”, 36-37).

Jesus Christ’s resurrection completes the work of Redemption, “For just as by
dying he endured all evil to deliver us from evil, so was he glorified in rising again
to advance us towards good things, according to Rom 4:25 which says that ‘he
was put to death for our trespasses and raised for our justification’” (St Thomas
Aquinas, “Summa Theologiae”, III, q. 53, a. 1, c.).

“’Christ is alive.’ This is the great truth which fills our faith with meaning. Jesus,
who died on the cross, has risen. He has triumphed over death; he has over-
come sorrow, anguish and the power of darkness. ‘Do not be amazed’ was how
the angels greeted the women who came to the tomb. ‘Do not be amazed. You
seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here’ (Mk
16:6). ‘This is the day which the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it’
(Ps 117:24).

“Easter is a time of joy—a joy not confined to this period of the liturgical year, for
it should always be present in the Christian’s heart. For Christ is alive. He is not
someone who has gone, someone who existed for a time and then passed on,
leaving us a wonderful example and a great memory.

“No, Christ is alive, Jesus is the Emmanuel: God with us. His Resurrection
shows us that God does not abandon his own. He promised he would not: ‘Can
a woman forget her sucking child, that she should have no compassion on the
son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you’ (Is 49:15).
And he has kept his promise. His delight is still to be with the children of men
cf. Prov 8:31)” ([St] J. Escriva, “Christ Is Passing By”, 102).

Through Baptism and the other sacraments, a Christian becomes part of the re-
demptive mystery of Christ, part of his death and resurrection: “You were buried
with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the
working of God, who raised him from the dead” (Col 2: 12). “If then you have
been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated
at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things
that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hid with Christ in God” (Col
3:13).

9-12. The first people to whom the angel announced the birth of Christ were the
shepherds at Bethlehem; and the first to be told of his resurrection are these
devout women: one further sign of God’s preference for simple and sincere souls
is the fact that he gives themthis honor which the world would not appreciate (cf.
Mt 11:25). But it is not only their simplicity and kindness and sincerity that at-
tracts him: poor people (such as shepherds) and women were looked down on in
those times, and Jesus loves anyone who is humbled by the pride of men. The
women’s very simplicity and goodness lead them to go immediately to Peter and
the Apostles to tell them everything they have seen and heard. Peter, whom
Christ promised to make his vicar on earth (cf. Mt 16:18) feels he must take the
initiative in checking out their story.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Mass Readings

First reading	Genesis 1:1 - 2:2 ©
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was a formless void, there was darkness over the deep, and God’s spirit hovered over the water. God said, ‘Let there be light’, and there was light. God saw that light was good, and God divided light from darkness. God called light ‘day’, and darkness he called ‘night’. Evening came and morning came: the first day. God said, ‘Let there be a vault in the waters to divide the waters in two’. And so it was. God made the vault, and it divided the waters above the vault from the waters under the vault. God called the vault ‘heaven’. Evening came and morning came: the second day. God said, ‘Let the waters under heaven come together into a single mass, and let dry land appear’. And so it was. God called the dry land ‘earth’ and the mass of waters ‘seas’, and God saw that it was good. God said, ‘Let the earth produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants, and fruit trees bearing fruit with their seed inside, on the earth’. And so it was. The earth produced vegetation: plants bearing seed in their several kinds, and trees bearing fruit with their seed inside in their several kinds. God saw that it was good. Evening came and morning came: the third day. God said, ‘Let there be lights in the vault of heaven to divide day from night, and let them indicate festivals, days and years. Let them be lights in the vault of heaven to shine on the earth.’ And so it was. God made the two great lights: the greater light to govern the day, the smaller light to govern the night, and the stars. God set them in the vault of heaven to shine on the earth, to govern the day and the night and to divide light from darkness. God saw that it was good. Evening came and morning came: the fourth day. God said, ‘Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth within the vault of heaven’. And so it was. God created great sea-serpents and every kind of living creature with which the waters teem, and every kind of winged creature. God saw that it was good. God blessed them, saying, ‘Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters of the seas; and let the birds multiply upon the earth’. Evening came and morning came: the fifth day. God said, ‘Let the earth produce every kind of living creature: cattle, reptiles, and every kind of wild beast’. And so it was. God made every kind of wild beast, every kind of cattle, and every kind of land reptile. God saw that it was good. God said, ‘Let us make man in our own image, in the likeness of ourselves, and let them be masters of the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven, the cattle, all the wild beasts and all the reptiles that crawl upon the earth’. God created man in the image of himself, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them. God blessed them, saying to them, ‘Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and conquer it. Be masters of the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven and all living animals on the earth.’ God said, ‘See, I give you all the seed-bearing plants that are upon the whole earth, and all the trees with seed-bearing fruit; this shall be your food. To all wild beasts, all birds of heaven and all living reptiles on the earth I give all the foliage of plants for food.’ And so it was. God saw all he had made, and indeed it was very good. Evening came and morning came: the sixth day. Thus heaven and earth were completed with all their array. On the seventh day God completed the work he had been doing. He rested on the seventh day after all the work he had been doing.

First reading

Genesis 1:1 - 2:2 ©

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was a formless void, there was darkness over the deep, and God’s spirit hovered over the water.
God said, ‘Let there be light’, and there was light. God saw that light was good, and God divided light from darkness. God called light ‘day’, and darkness he called ‘night’. Evening came and morning came: the first day.
God said, ‘Let there be a vault in the waters to divide the waters in two’. And so it was. God made the vault, and it divided the waters above the vault from the waters under the vault. God called the vault ‘heaven’. Evening came and morning came: the second day.
God said, ‘Let the waters under heaven come together into a single mass, and let dry land appear’. And so it was. God called the dry land ‘earth’ and the mass of waters ‘seas’, and God saw that it was good.
God said, ‘Let the earth produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants, and fruit trees bearing fruit with their seed inside, on the earth’. And so it was. The earth produced vegetation: plants bearing seed in their several kinds, and trees bearing fruit with their seed inside in their several kinds. God saw that it was good. Evening came and morning came: the third day.
God said, ‘Let there be lights in the vault of heaven to divide day from night, and let them indicate festivals, days and years. Let them be lights in the vault of heaven to shine on the earth.’ And so it was. God made the two great lights: the greater light to govern the day, the smaller light to govern the night, and the stars. God set them in the vault of heaven to shine on the earth, to govern the day and the night and to divide light from darkness. God saw that it was good. Evening came and morning came: the fourth day.
God said, ‘Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth within the vault of heaven’. And so it was. God created great sea-serpents and every kind of living creature with which the waters teem, and every kind of winged creature. God saw that it was good. God blessed them, saying, ‘Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters of the seas; and let the birds multiply upon the earth’. Evening came and morning came: the fifth day.
God said, ‘Let the earth produce every kind of living creature: cattle, reptiles, and every kind of wild beast’. And so it was. God made every kind of wild beast, every kind of cattle, and every kind of land reptile. God saw that it was good.
God said, ‘Let us make man in our own image, in the likeness of ourselves, and let them be masters of the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven, the cattle, all the wild beasts and all the reptiles that crawl upon the earth’.
God created man in the image of himself, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them.
God blessed them, saying to them, ‘Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and conquer it. Be masters of the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven and all living animals on the earth.’ God said, ‘See, I give you all the seed-bearing plants that are upon the whole earth, and all the trees with seed-bearing fruit; this shall be your food. To all wild beasts, all birds of heaven and all living reptiles on the earth I give all the foliage of plants for food.’ And so it was. God saw all he had made, and indeed it was very good. Evening came and morning came: the sixth day.
Thus heaven and earth were completed with all their array. On the seventh day God completed the work he had been doing. He rested on the seventh day after all the work he had been doing.

Psalm: Psalm 103

Second reading	Genesis 22:1 - 18 ©
It happened some time later that God put Abraham to the test. ‘Abraham, Abraham’ he called. ‘Here I am’ he replied. ‘Take your son,’ God said ‘your only child Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. There you shall offer him as a burnt offering, on a mountain I will point out to you.’ Rising early next morning Abraham saddled his ass and took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. He chopped wood for the burnt offering and started on his journey to the place God had pointed out to him. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. Then Abraham said to his servants, ‘Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go over there; we will worship and come back to you.’ Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering, loaded it on Isaac, and carried in his own hands the fire and the knife. Then the two of them set out together. Isaac spoke to his father Abraham, ‘Father’ he said. ‘Yes, my son’ he replied. ‘Look,’ he said ‘here are the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?’ Abraham answered, ‘My son, God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering’. Then the two of them went on together. When they arrived at the place God had pointed out to him, Abraham built an altar there, and arranged the wood. Then he bound his son Isaac and put him on the altar on top of the wood. Abraham stretched out his hand and seized the knife to kill his son. But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven. ‘Abraham, Abraham’ he said. ‘I am here’ he replied. ‘Do not raise your hand against the boy’ the angel said. ‘Do not harm him, for now I know you fear God. You have not refused me your son, your only son.’ Then looking up, Abraham saw a ram caught by its horns in a bush. Abraham took the ram and offered it as a burnt-offering in place of his son. Abraham called this place ‘The Lord Provides’, and hence the saying today: On the mountain the Lord provides. The angel of the Lord called Abraham a second time from heaven. ‘I swear by my own self – it is the Lord who speaks – because you have done this, because you have not refused me your son, your only son, I will shower blessings on you, I will make your descendants as many as the stars of heaven and the grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants shall gain possession of the gates of their enemies. All the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by your descendants, as a reward for your obedience.’

Second reading

Genesis 22:1 - 18 ©

It happened some time later that God put Abraham to the test. ‘Abraham, Abraham’ he called. ‘Here I am’ he replied. ‘Take your son,’ God said ‘your only child Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. There you shall offer him as a burnt offering, on a mountain I will point out to you.’
Rising early next morning Abraham saddled his ass and took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. He chopped wood for the burnt offering and started on his journey to the place God had pointed out to him. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. Then Abraham said to his servants, ‘Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go over there; we will worship and come back to you.’
Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering, loaded it on Isaac, and carried in his own hands the fire and the knife. Then the two of them set out together. Isaac spoke to his father Abraham, ‘Father’ he said. ‘Yes, my son’ he replied. ‘Look,’ he said ‘here are the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?’ Abraham answered, ‘My son, God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering’. Then the two of them went on together.
When they arrived at the place God had pointed out to him, Abraham built an altar there, and arranged the wood. Then he bound his son Isaac and put him on the altar on top of the wood. Abraham stretched out his hand and seized the knife to kill his son.
But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven. ‘Abraham, Abraham’ he said. ‘I am here’ he replied. ‘Do not raise your hand against the boy’ the angel said. ‘Do not harm him, for now I know you fear God. You have not refused me your son, your only son.’ Then looking up, Abraham saw a ram caught by its horns in a bush. Abraham took the ram and offered it as a burnt-offering in place of his son. Abraham called this place ‘The Lord Provides’, and hence the saying today: On the mountain the Lord provides.
The angel of the Lord called Abraham a second time from heaven. ‘I swear by my own self – it is the Lord who speaks – because you have done this, because you have not refused me your son, your only son, I will shower blessings on you, I will make your descendants as many as the stars of heaven and the grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants shall gain possession of the gates of their enemies. All the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by your descendants, as a reward for your obedience.’

Psalm: Psalm 15

Third reading	Exodus 14:15 - 15:1 ©
The Lord said to Moses, ‘Why do you cry to me so? Tell the sons of Israel to march on. For yourself, raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and part it for the sons of Israel to walk through the sea on dry ground. I for my part will make the heart of the Egyptians so stubborn that they will follow them. So shall I win myself glory at the expense of Pharaoh, of all his army, his chariots, his horsemen. And when I have won glory for myself, at the expense of Pharaoh and his chariots and his army, the Egyptians will learn that I am the Lord.’ Then the angel of God, who marched at the front of the army of Israel, changed station and moved to their rear. The pillar of cloud changed station from the front to the rear of them, and remained there. It came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. The cloud was dark, and the night passed without the armies drawing any closer the whole night long. Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. The Lord drove back the sea with a strong easterly wind all night, and he made dry land of the sea. The waters parted and the sons of Israel went on dry ground right into the sea, walls of water to right and to left of them. The Egyptians gave chase: after them they went, right into the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. In the morning watch, the Lord looked down on the army of the Egyptians from the pillar of fire and of cloud, and threw the army into confusion. He so clogged their chariot wheels that they could scarcely make headway. ‘Let us flee from the Israelites,’ the Egyptians cried ‘the Lord is fighting for them against the Egyptians!’ ‘Stretch out your hand over the sea,’ the Lord said to Moses ‘that the waters may flow back on the Egyptians and their chariots and their horsemen.’ Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and, as day broke, the sea returned to its bed. The fleeing Egyptians marched right into it, and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the very middle of the sea. The returning waters overwhelmed the chariots and the horsemen of Pharaoh’s whole army, which had followed the Israelites into the sea; not a single one of them was left. But the sons of Israel had marched through the sea on dry ground, walls of water to right and to left of them. That day, the Lord rescued Israel from the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. Israel witnessed the great act that the Lord had performed against the Egyptians, and the people venerated the Lord; they put their faith in the Lord and in Moses, his servant. It was then that Moses and the sons of Israel sang this song in honour of the Lord:

Third reading

Exodus 14:15 - 15:1 ©

The Lord said to Moses, ‘Why do you cry to me so? Tell the sons of Israel to march on. For yourself, raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and part it for the sons of Israel to walk through the sea on dry ground. I for my part will make the heart of the Egyptians so stubborn that they will follow them. So shall I win myself glory at the expense of Pharaoh, of all his army, his chariots, his horsemen. And when I have won glory for myself, at the expense of Pharaoh and his chariots and his army, the Egyptians will learn that I am the Lord.’ Then the angel of God, who marched at the front of the army of Israel, changed station and moved to their rear. The pillar of cloud changed station from the front to the rear of them, and remained there. It came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. The cloud was dark, and the night passed without the armies drawing any closer the whole night long. Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. The Lord drove back the sea with a strong easterly wind all night, and he made dry land of the sea. The waters parted and the sons of Israel went on dry ground right into the sea, walls of water to right and to left of them. The Egyptians gave chase: after them they went, right into the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. In the morning watch, the Lord looked down on the army of the Egyptians from the pillar of fire and of cloud, and threw the army into confusion. He so clogged their chariot wheels that they could scarcely make headway. ‘Let us flee from the Israelites,’ the Egyptians cried ‘the Lord is fighting for them against the Egyptians!’ ‘Stretch out your hand over the sea,’ the Lord said to Moses ‘that the waters may flow back on the Egyptians and their chariots and their horsemen.’ Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and, as day broke, the sea returned to its bed. The fleeing Egyptians marched right into it, and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the very middle of the sea. The returning waters overwhelmed the chariots and the horsemen of Pharaoh’s whole army, which had followed the Israelites into the sea; not a single one of them was left. But the sons of Israel had marched through the sea on dry ground, walls of water to right and to left of them. That day, the Lord rescued Israel from the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. Israel witnessed the great act that the Lord had performed against the Egyptians, and the people venerated the Lord; they put their faith in the Lord and in Moses, his servant.
It was then that Moses and the sons of Israel sang this song in honour of the Lord:

Canticle	Exodus 15
Hymn of victory after crossing the Red Sea
I will sing to the Lord, for his triumph is glorious. Horse and rider he has cast into the sea. The Lord is my support and my strength, and he has saved me. This is my God, and I will give him glory This is my father’s God, and I will exalt him. The Lord is a warrior – Yahweh is his name! Pharaoh’s chariots and army he has thrown into the sea; the finest of his fighters have sunk into the Red Sea. The deeps have covered them; they have sunk to the bottom like a stone. In your strength, Lord, show us the power of your right hand. Your right hand, Lord, struck down the enemy. You will lead your people in and establish them on the mountain that is your inheritance, your solid dwelling-place, which you made, Lord; your sanctuary, Lord, which your hands made firm. The Lord will reign, to eternity and beyond!

Canticle

Exodus 15

Hymn of victory after crossing the Red Sea

I will sing to the Lord, for his triumph is glorious.
Horse and rider he has cast into the sea.

The Lord is my support and my strength, and he has saved me.
This is my God, and I will give him glory
This is my father’s God, and I will exalt him.

The Lord is a warrior – Yahweh is his name!
Pharaoh’s chariots and army he has thrown into the sea;
the finest of his fighters have sunk into the Red Sea.

The deeps have covered them;
they have sunk to the bottom like a stone.

In your strength, Lord, show us the power of your right hand.
Your right hand, Lord, struck down the enemy.

You will lead your people in and establish them
on the mountain that is your inheritance,
your solid dwelling-place, which you made, Lord;
your sanctuary, Lord, which your hands made firm.

The Lord will reign, to eternity and beyond!

Fourth reading	Isaiah 54:5 - 14 ©
For now your creator will be your husband, his name, the Lord of Hosts; your redeemer will be the Holy One of Israel, he is called the God of the whole earth. Yes, like a forsaken wife, distressed in spirit, the Lord calls you back. Does a man cast off the wife of his youth? says your God. I did forsake you for a brief moment, but with great love will I take you back. In excess of anger, for a moment I hid my face from you. But with everlasting love I have taken pity on you, says the Lord, your redeemer. I am now as I was in the days of Noah when I swore that Noah’s waters should never flood the world again. So now I swear concerning my anger with you and the threats I made against you; for the mountains may depart, the hills be shaken, but my love for you will never leave you and my covenant of peace with you will never be shaken, says the Lord who takes pity on you. Unhappy creature, storm-tossed, disconsolate, see, I will set your stones on carbuncles and your foundations on sapphires. I will make rubies your battlements, your gates crystal, and your entire wall precious stones. Your sons will all be taught by the Lord. The prosperity of your sons will be great. You will be founded on integrity; remote from oppression, you will have nothing to fear; remote from terror, it will not approach you.

Fourth reading

Isaiah 54:5 - 14 ©

For now your creator will be your husband,
his name, the Lord of Hosts;
your redeemer will be the Holy One of Israel,
he is called the God of the whole earth.

Yes, like a forsaken wife, distressed in spirit,
the Lord calls you back.
Does a man cast off the wife of his youth?
says your God.

I did forsake you for a brief moment,
but with great love will I take you back.
In excess of anger, for a moment
I hid my face from you.
But with everlasting love I have taken pity on you,
says the Lord, your redeemer.

I am now as I was in the days of Noah
when I swore that Noah’s waters
should never flood the world again.
So now I swear concerning my anger with you
and the threats I made against you;

for the mountains may depart,
the hills be shaken,
but my love for you will never leave you
and my covenant of peace with you will never be shaken,
says the Lord who takes pity on you.

Unhappy creature, storm-tossed, disconsolate,
see, I will set your stones on carbuncles
and your foundations on sapphires.
I will make rubies your battlements,
your gates crystal,
and your entire wall precious stones.
Your sons will all be taught by the Lord.
The prosperity of your sons will be great.
You will be founded on integrity;
remote from oppression, you will have nothing to fear;
remote from terror, it will not approach you.

Psalm: Psalm 29

Fifth reading	Isaiah 55:1 - 11 ©
Oh, come to the water all you who are thirsty; though you have no money, come! Buy corn without money, and eat, and, at no cost, wine and milk. Why spend money on what is not bread, your wages on what fails to satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and you will have good things to eat and rich food to enjoy. Pay attention, come to me; listen, and your soul will live. With you I will make an everlasting covenant out of the favours promised to David. See, I have made of you a witness to the peoples, a leader and a master of the nations. See, you will summon a nation you never knew, those unknown will come hurrying to you, for the sake of the Lord your God, of the Holy One of Israel who will glorify you. Seek the Lord while he is still to be found, call to him while he is still near. Let the wicked man abandon his way, the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn back to the Lord who will take pity on him, to our God who is rich in forgiving; for my thoughts are not your thoughts, my ways not your ways – it is the Lord who speaks. Yes, the heavens are as high above earth as my ways are above your ways, my thoughts above your thoughts. Yes, as the rain and the snow come down from the heavens and do not return without watering the earth, making it yield and giving growth to provide seed for the sower and bread for the eating, so the word that goes from my mouth does not return to me empty, without carrying out my will and succeeding in what it was sent to do.

Fifth reading

Isaiah 55:1 - 11 ©

Oh, come to the water all you who are thirsty;
though you have no money, come!
Buy corn without money, and eat,
and, at no cost, wine and milk.
Why spend money on what is not bread,
your wages on what fails to satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and you will have good things to eat
and rich food to enjoy.
Pay attention, come to me;
listen, and your soul will live.

With you I will make an everlasting covenant
out of the favours promised to David.
See, I have made of you a witness to the peoples,
a leader and a master of the nations.
See, you will summon a nation you never knew,
those unknown will come hurrying to you,
for the sake of the Lord your God,
of the Holy One of Israel who will glorify you.

Seek the Lord while he is still to be found,
call to him while he is still near.
Let the wicked man abandon his way,
the evil man his thoughts.
Let him turn back to the Lord who will take pity on him,
to our God who is rich in forgiving;
for my thoughts are not your thoughts,
my ways not your ways – it is the Lord who speaks.
Yes, the heavens are as high above earth
as my ways are above your ways,
my thoughts above your thoughts.

Yes, as the rain and the snow come down from the heavens and do not return without watering the earth, making it yield and giving growth to provide seed for the sower and bread for the eating, so the word that goes from my mouth does not return to me empty, without carrying out my will and succeeding in what it was sent to do.

Canticle	Isaiah 12:2 - 6
Behold, God is my salvation: I will be confident, I will not fear; for the Lord is my strength and my joy, he has become my saviour. And you will rejoice as you draw water from the springs of salvation. And then you will say: “Praise the Lord and call upon his name. Tell the peoples what he has done, remember always the greatness of his name. Sing to the Lord, for he has done great things: let this be known throughout the world”.

Canticle

Isaiah 12:2 - 6

Behold, God is my salvation:
I will be confident, I will not fear;
for the Lord is my strength and my joy,
he has become my saviour.

And you will rejoice as you draw water
from the springs of salvation.
And then you will say:
“Praise the Lord and call upon his name.
Tell the peoples what he has done,
remember always the greatness of his name.
Sing to the Lord, for he has done great things:
let this be known throughout the world”.

Sixth reading	Baruch 3:9 - 4:4 ©
Listen, Israel, to commands that bring life; hear, and learn what knowledge means. Why, Israel, why are you in the country of your enemies, growing older and older in an alien land, sharing defilement with the dead, reckoned with those who go to Sheol? Because you have forsaken the fountain of wisdom. Had you walked in the way of God, you would have lived in peace for ever. Learn where knowledge is, where strength, where understanding, and so learn where length of days is, where life, where the light of the eyes and where peace. But who has found out where she lives, who has entered her treasure house? But the One who knows all knows her, he has grasped her with his own intellect, he has set the earth firm for ever and filled it with four-footed beasts. he sends the light – and it goes, he recalls it – and trembling it obeys; the stars shine joyfully at their set times: when he calls them, they answer, ‘Here we are’; they gladly shine for their creator. It is he who is our God, no other can compare with him. He has grasped the whole way of knowledge, and confided it to his servant Jacob, to Israel his well-beloved; so causing her to appear on earth and move among men. This is the book of the commandments of God, the Law that stands for ever; those who keep her live, those who desert her die. Turn back, Jacob, seize her, in her radiance make your way to light: do not yield your glory to another, your privilege to a people not your own. Israel, blessed are we: what pleases God has been revealed to us.

Sixth reading

Baruch 3:9 - 4:4 ©

Listen, Israel, to commands that bring life;
hear, and learn what knowledge means.
Why, Israel, why are you in the country of your enemies,
growing older and older in an alien land,
sharing defilement with the dead,
reckoned with those who go to Sheol?
Because you have forsaken the fountain of wisdom.
Had you walked in the way of God,
you would have lived in peace for ever.
Learn where knowledge is, where strength,
where understanding, and so learn
where length of days is, where life,
where the light of the eyes and where peace.
But who has found out where she lives,
who has entered her treasure house?

But the One who knows all knows her,
he has grasped her with his own intellect,
he has set the earth firm for ever
and filled it with four-footed beasts.
he sends the light – and it goes,
he recalls it – and trembling it obeys;
the stars shine joyfully at their set times:
when he calls them, they answer, ‘Here we are’;
they gladly shine for their creator.
It is he who is our God,
no other can compare with him.
He has grasped the whole way of knowledge,
and confided it to his servant Jacob,
to Israel his well-beloved;
so causing her to appear on earth
and move among men.

This is the book of the commandments of God,
the Law that stands for ever;
those who keep her live,
those who desert her die.
Turn back, Jacob, seize her,
in her radiance make your way to light:
do not yield your glory to another,
your privilege to a people not your own.
Israel, blessed are we:
what pleases God has been revealed to us.

Psalm: Psalm 18

Seventh reading	Ezekiel 36:16 - 28 ©
The word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows: ‘Son of man, the members of the House of Israel used to live in their own land, but they defiled it by their conduct and actions. I then discharged my fury at them because of the blood they shed in their land and the idols with which they defiled it. I scattered them among the nations and dispersed them in foreign countries. I sentenced them as their conduct and actions deserved. And now they have profaned my holy name among the nations where they have gone, so that people say of them, “These are the people of the Lord; they have been exiled from his land”. But I have been concerned about my holy name, which the House of Israel has profaned among the nations where they have gone. And so, say to the House of Israel, “The Lord says this: I am not doing this for your sake, House of Israel, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone. I mean to display the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned among them. And the nations will learn that I am the Lord–it is the Lord who speaks– when I display my holiness for your sake before their eyes. Then I am going to take you from among the nations and gather you together from all the foreign countries, and bring you home to your own land. I shall pour clean water over you and you will be cleansed; I shall cleanse you of all your defilement and all your idols. I shall give you a new heart, and put a new spirit in you; I shall remove the heart of stone from your bodies and give you a heart of flesh instead. I shall put my spirit in you, and make you keep my laws and sincerely respect my observances. You will live in the land which I gave your ancestors. You shall be my people and I will be your God.

Seventh reading

Ezekiel 36:16 - 28 ©

The word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows: ‘Son of man, the members of the House of Israel used to live in their own land, but they defiled it by their conduct and actions. I then discharged my fury at them because of the blood they shed in their land and the idols with which they defiled it. I scattered them among the nations and dispersed them in foreign countries. I sentenced them as their conduct and actions deserved. And now they have profaned my holy name among the nations where they have gone, so that people say of them, “These are the people of the Lord; they have been exiled from his land”. But I have been concerned about my holy name, which the House of Israel has profaned among the nations where they have gone. And so, say to the House of Israel, “The Lord says this: I am not doing this for your sake, House of Israel, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone. I mean to display the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned among them. And the nations will learn that I am the Lord–it is the Lord who speaks– when I display my holiness for your sake before their eyes. Then I am going to take you from among the nations and gather you together from all the foreign countries, and bring you home to your own land. I shall pour clean water over you and you will be cleansed; I shall cleanse you of all your defilement and all your idols. I shall give you a new heart, and put a new spirit in you; I shall remove the heart of stone from your bodies and give you a heart of flesh instead. I shall put my spirit in you, and make you keep my laws and sincerely respect my observances. You will live in the land which I gave your ancestors. You shall be my people and I will be your God.

Psalm	Psalm 41 (42)
Longing for the Lord and his temple
Like a deer that longs for springs of water, so my soul longs for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, the living God: when shall I come and stand before the face of God? I remember how I went up to your glorious dwelling-place and into the house of God: the memory melts my soul. The sound of joy and thanksgiving, the crowds at the festival. Send forth your light and your truth; let them lead me away, let them lead me up your holy mountain, up to your sanctuary. I shall go in to the altar of God, to the God of my gladness and joy. I will sing out to you on the lyre, O God, my God.

Psalm

Psalm 41 (42)

Longing for the Lord and his temple

Like a deer that longs for springs of water,
so my soul longs for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, the living God:
when shall I come and stand before the face of God?

I remember how I went up to your glorious dwelling-place
and into the house of God:
the memory melts my soul.
The sound of joy and thanksgiving,
the crowds at the festival.

Send forth your light and your truth;
let them lead me away,
let them lead me up your holy mountain,
up to your sanctuary.

I shall go in to the altar of God,
to the God of my gladness and joy.
I will sing out to you on the lyre,
O God, my God.

Eighth reading	Romans 6:3 - 11 ©
You have been taught that when we were baptised in Christ Jesus we were baptised in his death; in other words, when we were baptised we went into the tomb with him and joined him in death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father’s glory, we too might live a new life. If in union with Christ we have imitated his death, we shall also imitate him in his resurrection. We must realise that our former selves have been crucified with him to destroy this sinful body and to free us from the slavery of sin. When a Christian dies, of course, he has finished with sin. But we believe that having died with Christ we shall return to life with him: Christ, as we know, having been raised from the dead will never die again. Death has no power over him any more. When he died, he died, once for all, to sin, so his life now is life with God; and in that way, you too must consider yourselves to be dead to sin but alive for God in Christ Jesus.

Eighth reading

Romans 6:3 - 11 ©

You have been taught that when we were baptised in Christ Jesus we were baptised in his death; in other words, when we were baptised we went into the tomb with him and joined him in death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father’s glory, we too might live a new life.
If in union with Christ we have imitated his death, we shall also imitate him in his resurrection. We must realise that our former selves have been crucified with him to destroy this sinful body and to free us from the slavery of sin. When a Christian dies, of course, he has finished with sin.
But we believe that having died with Christ we shall return to life with him: Christ, as we know, having been raised from the dead will never die again. Death has no power over him any more. When he died, he died, once for all, to sin, so his life now is life with God; and in that way, you too must consider yourselves to be dead to sin but alive for God in Christ Jesus.

Psalm	Psalm 117 (118)
A cry of rejoicing and triumph
Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, and his kindness is for ever. Now let Israel say, he is good and his kindness is for ever. “The Lord’s right hand has triumphed! The Lord’s right hand has raised me up. I shall not die, but live, and tell of the works of the Lord”. The stone that the builders rejected has become the corner-stone. It was the Lord who did this – it is marvellous to behold.

Psalm

Psalm 117 (118)

A cry of rejoicing and triumph

Give thanks to the Lord for he is good,
and his kindness is for ever.
Now let Israel say, he is good
and his kindness is for ever.

“The Lord’s right hand has triumphed!
The Lord’s right hand has raised me up.

I shall not die, but live,
and tell of the works of the Lord”.

The stone that the builders rejected
has become the corner-stone.
It was the Lord who did this –
it is marvellous to behold.

Gospel	Luke 24:1 - 12 ©
On the first day of the week, at the first sign of dawn, they went to the tomb with the spices they had prepared. They found that the stone had been rolled away from the tomb, but on entering discovered that the body of the Lord Jesus was not there. As they stood there not knowing what to think, two men in brilliant clothes suddenly appeared at their side. Terrified, the women lowered their eyes. But the two men said to them, ‘Why look among the dead for someone who is alive? He is not here; he has risen. Remember what he told you when he was still in Galilee: that the Son of Man had to be handed over into the power of sinful men and be crucified, and rise again on the third day?’ And they remembered his words. When the women returned from the tomb they told all this to the Eleven and to all the others. The women were Mary of Magdala, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James. The other women with them also told the apostles, but this story of theirs seemed pure nonsense, and they did not believe them. Peter, however, went running to the tomb. He bent down and saw the binding cloths but nothing else; he then went back home, amazed at what had happened.

Gospel

Luke 24:1 - 12 ©

On the first day of the week, at the first sign of dawn, they went to the tomb with the spices they had prepared. They found that the stone had been rolled away from the tomb, but on entering discovered that the body of the Lord Jesus was not there. As they stood there not knowing what to think, two men in brilliant clothes suddenly appeared at their side. Terrified, the women lowered their eyes. But the two men said to them, ‘Why look among the dead for someone who is alive? He is not here; he has risen. Remember what he told you when he was still in Galilee: that the Son of Man had to be handed over into the power of sinful men and be crucified, and rise again on the third day?’ And they remembered his words.
When the women returned from the tomb they told all this to the Eleven and to all the others. The women were Mary of Magdala, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James. The other women with them also told the apostles, but this story of theirs seemed pure nonsense, and they did not believe them.
Peter, however, went running to the tomb. He bent down and saw the binding cloths but nothing else; he then went back home, amazed at what had happened.

Office of Readings and Invitatory Prayer

Office of Readings

If this is the first Hour that you are reciting today, you should precede it with the Invitatory Psalm.

O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
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.

A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.

Psalm 4
Thanksgiving
When I called out, he heard me, the God of my righteousness. When I was in trouble, you gave me freedom: now, take pity on me and listen to my prayer. Sons of men, how long will your hearts be heavy? Why do you seek for vain things? Why do you run after illusions? Know that the Lord has done marvellous things for those he has chosen. When I call upon the Lord, he will hear me. Be vigorous, but do not sin: speak in the silence of your heart, in your bed, be at rest. Offer righteousness as a sacrifice, and put your trust in the Lord. Many are saying, Who will give us good things? Let your face shine on us, Lord, let the light of your face be a sign. You have given me a greater joy than the others receive from abundance of wheat and of wine. In peace shall I sleep, Lord, in peace shall I rest: firm in the hope you have given me. 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.

Psalm 4

Thanksgiving

When I called out, he heard me, the God of my righteousness.
When I was in trouble, you gave me freedom:
now, take pity on me and listen to my prayer.

Sons of men, how long will your hearts be heavy?
Why do you seek for vain things?
Why do you run after illusions?
Know that the Lord has done marvellous things
for those he has chosen.
When I call upon the Lord, he will hear me.

Be vigorous, but do not sin:
speak in the silence of your heart,
in your bed, be at rest.
Offer righteousness as a sacrifice,
and put your trust in the Lord.

Many are saying, Who will give us good things?
Let your face shine on us, Lord,
let the light of your face be a sign.
You have given me a greater joy
than the others receive
from abundance of wheat and of wine.
In peace shall I sleep, Lord, in peace shall I rest:
firm in the hope you have given me.

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.

Psalm 15 (16)
The Lord, my inheritance
Preserve me, Lord, I put my hope in you. I have said to the Lord “You are my Lord, in you alone is all my good”. As for the holy and noble men of the land, in them is all my delight. But for those who run to alien gods, their sorrows are many. I will not share in their libations of blood. I will not speak their names. You, Lord, are my inheritance and my cup. You control my destiny, the lot marked out for me is of the best, my inheritance is all I could ask for. I will bless the Lord who gave me understanding; even in the night my heart will teach me wisdom. I will hold the Lord for ever in my sight: with him at my side I can never be shaken. Thus it is that my heart rejoices, heart and soul together; while my body rests in calm hope. You will not leave my soul in the underworld. You will not let your chosen one see decay. You will show me the paths of life, the fullness of joy before your face, and delights at your right hand until the end of time. 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.

Psalm 15 (16)

The Lord, my inheritance

Preserve me, Lord, I put my hope in you.

I have said to the Lord “You are my Lord, in you alone is all my good”.
As for the holy and noble men of the land, in them is all my delight.
But for those who run to alien gods, their sorrows are many.
I will not share in their libations of blood. I will not speak their names.

You, Lord, are my inheritance and my cup. You control my destiny,
the lot marked out for me is of the best, my inheritance is all I could ask for.
I will bless the Lord who gave me understanding; even in the night my heart will teach me wisdom.
I will hold the Lord for ever in my sight: with him at my side I can never be shaken.
Thus it is that my heart rejoices, heart and soul together; while my body rests in calm hope.

You will not leave my soul in the underworld. You will not let your chosen one see decay.
You will show me the paths of life, the fullness of joy before your face, and delights at your right hand until the end of time.

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.

Psalm 23 (24)
The Lord comes to his temple
The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness, the world and all who live in it. He himself founded it upon the seas and set it firm over the waters. Who will climb the mountain of the Lord? Who will stand in his holy place? The one who is innocent of wrongdoing and pure of heart, who has not given himself to vanities or sworn falsely. He will receive the blessing of the Lord and be justified by God his saviour. This is the way of those who seek him, seek the face of the God of Jacob. Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors, and let the king of glory enter. Who is the king of glory? The Lord of might and power. The Lord, strong in battle. Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors, and let the king of glory enter. Who is the king of glory? The Lord of hosts – he is the king of glory. 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.

Psalm 23 (24)

The Lord comes to his temple

The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness, the world and all who live in it.
He himself founded it upon the seas and set it firm over the waters.

Who will climb the mountain of the Lord? Who will stand in his holy place?
The one who is innocent of wrongdoing and pure of heart,
who has not given himself to vanities or sworn falsely.
He will receive the blessing of the Lord and be justified by God his saviour.
This is the way of those who seek him, seek the face of the God of Jacob.

Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors, and let the king of glory enter.
Who is the king of glory?
The Lord of might and power. The Lord, strong in battle.

Gates, raise your heads. Stand up, eternal doors, and let the king of glory enter.
Who is the king of glory?
The Lord of hosts – he is the king of glory.

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.

Reading	Hebrews 4:1 - 13 ©
Be careful: the promise of reaching the place of rest he had for them still holds good, and none of you must think that he has come too late for it. We received the Good News exactly as they did; but hearing the message did them no good because they did not share the faith of those who listened. We, however, who have faith, shall reach a place of rest, as in the text: And so, in anger, I swore that not one would reach the place of rest I had for them. God’s work was undoubtedly all finished at the beginning of the world; as one text says, referring to the seventh day: After all his work God rested on the seventh day. The text we are considering says: They shall not reach the place of rest I had for them. It is established, then, that there would be some people who would reach it, and since those who first heard the Good News failed to reach it through their disobedience, God fixed another day when, much later, he said ‘today’ through David in the text already quoted: If only you would listen to him today; do not harden your hearts. If Joshua had led them into this place of rest, God would not later on have spoken so much of another day. There must still be, therefore, a place of rest reserved for God’s people, the seventh-day rest, since to reach the place of rest is to rest after your work, as God did after his. We must therefore do everything we can to reach this place of rest, or some of you might copy this example of disobedience and be lost. The word of God is something alive and active: it cuts like any double-edged sword but more finely: it can slip through the place where the soul is divided from the spirit, or joints from the marrow; it can judge the secret emotions and thoughts. No created thing can hide from him; everything is uncovered and open to the eyes of the one to whom we must give account of ourselves.

Reading

Be careful: the promise of reaching the place of rest he had for them still holds good, and none of you must think that he has come too late for it. We received the Good News exactly as they did; but hearing the message did them no good because they did not share the faith of those who listened. We, however, who have faith, shall reach a place of rest, as in the text: And so, in anger, I swore that not one would reach the place of rest I had for them. God’s work was undoubtedly all finished at the beginning of the world; as one text says, referring to the seventh day: After all his work God rested on the seventh day. The text we are considering says: They shall not reach the place of rest I had for them. It is established, then, that there would be some people who would reach it, and since those who first heard the Good News failed to reach it through their disobedience, God fixed another day when, much later, he said ‘today’ through David in the text already quoted: If only you would listen to him today; do not harden your hearts. If Joshua had led them into this place of rest, God would not later on have spoken so much of another day. There must still be, therefore, a place of rest reserved for God’s people, the seventh-day rest, since to reach the place of rest is to rest after your work, as God did after his. We must therefore do everything we can to reach this place of rest, or some of you might copy this example of disobedience and be lost.
The word of God is something alive and active: it cuts like any double-edged sword but more finely: it can slip through the place where the soul is divided from the spirit, or joints from the marrow; it can judge the secret emotions and thoughts. No created thing can hide from him; everything is uncovered and open to the eyes of the one to whom we must give account of ourselves.

Reading	From an ancient homily for Holy Saturday
The Lord's descent into the underworld
Something strange is happening – there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. God has died in the flesh and hell trembles with fear. He has gone to search for our first parent, as for a lost sheep. Greatly desiring to visit those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, he has gone to free from sorrow the captives Adam and Eve, he who is both God and the son of Eve. The Lord approached them bearing the cross, the weapon that had won him the victory. At the sight of him Adam, the first man he had created, struck his breast in terror and cried out to everyone: “My Lord be with you all”. Christ answered him: “And with your spirit”. He took him by the hand and raised him up, saying: “Awake, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will give you light”. I am your God, who for your sake have become your son. Out of love for you and for your descendants I now by my own authority command all who are held in bondage to come forth, all who are in darkness to be enlightened, all who are sleeping to arise. I order you, O sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be held a prisoner in hell. Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead. Rise up, work of my hands, you who were created in my image. Rise, let us leave this place, for you are in me and I am in you; together we form only one person and we cannot be separated. For your sake I, your God, became your son; I, the Lord, took the form of a slave; I, whose home is above the heavens, descended to the earth and beneath the earth. For your sake, for the sake of man, I became like a man without help, free among the dead. For the sake of you, who left a garden, I was betrayed to the Jews in a garden, and I was crucified in a garden. See on my face the spittle I received in order to restore to you the life I once breathed into you. See there the marks of the blows I received in order to refashion your warped nature in my image. On my back see the marks of the scourging I endured to remove the burden of sin that weighs upon your back. See my hands, nailed firmly to a tree, for you who once wickedly stretched out your hand to a tree. I slept on the cross and a sword pierced my side for you who slept in paradise and brought forth Eve from your side. My side has healed the pain in yours. My sleep will rouse you from your sleep in hell. The sword that pierced me has sheathed the sword that was turned against you. Rise, let us leave this place. The enemy led you out of the earthly paradise. I will not restore you to that paradise, but I will enthrone you in heaven. I forbade you the tree that was only a symbol of life, but see, I who am life itself am now one with you. I appointed cherubim to guard you as slaves are guarded, but now I make them worship you as God. The throne formed by cherubim awaits you, its bearers swift and eager. The bridal chamber is adorned, the banquet is ready, the eternal dwelling places are prepared, the treasure houses of all good things lie open. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared for you from all eternity.

Reading

From an ancient homily for Holy Saturday

The Lord's descent into the underworld

Something strange is happening – there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. God has died in the flesh and hell trembles with fear.
He has gone to search for our first parent, as for a lost sheep. Greatly desiring to visit those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, he has gone to free from sorrow the captives Adam and Eve, he who is both God and the son of Eve. The Lord approached them bearing the cross, the weapon that had won him the victory. At the sight of him Adam, the first man he had created, struck his breast in terror and cried out to everyone: “My Lord be with you all”. Christ answered him: “And with your spirit”. He took him by the hand and raised him up, saying: “Awake, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will give you light”.
I am your God, who for your sake have become your son. Out of love for you and for your descendants I now by my own authority command all who are held in bondage to come forth, all who are in darkness to be enlightened, all who are sleeping to arise. I order you, O sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be held a prisoner in hell. Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead. Rise up, work of my hands, you who were created in my image. Rise, let us leave this place, for you are in me and I am in you; together we form only one person and we cannot be separated. For your sake I, your God, became your son; I, the Lord, took the form of a slave; I, whose home is above the heavens, descended to the earth and beneath the earth. For your sake, for the sake of man, I became like a man without help, free among the dead. For the sake of you, who left a garden, I was betrayed to the Jews in a garden, and I was crucified in a garden.
See on my face the spittle I received in order to restore to you the life I once breathed into you. See there the marks of the blows I received in order to refashion your warped nature in my image. On my back see the marks of the scourging I endured to remove the burden of sin that weighs upon your back. See my hands, nailed firmly to a tree, for you who once wickedly stretched out your hand to a tree.
I slept on the cross and a sword pierced my side for you who slept in paradise and brought forth Eve from your side. My side has healed the pain in yours. My sleep will rouse you from your sleep in hell. The sword that pierced me has sheathed the sword that was turned against you.
Rise, let us leave this place. The enemy led you out of the earthly paradise. I will not restore you to that paradise, but I will enthrone you in heaven. I forbade you the tree that was only a symbol of life, but see, I who am life itself am now one with you. I appointed cherubim to guard you as slaves are guarded, but now I make them worship you as God. The throne formed by cherubim awaits you, its bearers swift and eager. The bridal chamber is adorned, the banquet is ready, the eternal dwelling places are prepared, the treasure houses of all good things lie open. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared for you from all eternity.

Concluding Prayer
Almighty and ever-living God, your only-begotten Son descended into the underworld, from which he rose into glory. In your kindness, grant that your faithful people, who in their baptism shared his burial, may advance to eternal life by sharing in his resurrection. He lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen.

Catholic Culture

Collect:
Christ became obedient for us unto death, even to the death of the cross.

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April 07, 2007

Holy Saturday

On Holy Saturday the Church waits at the Lord's tomb, meditating on his suffering and death. The altar is left bare, and the sacrifice of the Mass is not celebrated. Only after the solemn vigil during the night, held in anticipation of the resurrection, does the Easter celebration begin, with a spirit of joy that overflows into the following period of fifty days.

The Station today is at St. John Lateran. During the afternoon of Holy Saturday the faithful were summoned here for the final scrutiny of the catechumens. Then, in the evening began the vigil or night of watching which concluded at dawn with the solemn baptisms — the neophytes, plunged into the baptismal waters and there buried with Christ, were born to the life of grace at the very time when our Savior came forth triumphant from the tomb at dawn on Easter morning.

Holy Saturday

Holy Saturday (from Sabbatum Sanctum, its official liturgical name) is sacred as the day of the Lord's rest; it has been called the "Second Sabbath" after creation. The day is and should be the most calm and quiet day of the entire Church year, a day broken by no liturgical function. Christ lies in the grave, the Church sits near and mourns. After the great battle He is resting in peace, but upon Him we see the scars of intense suffering...The mortal wounds on His Body remain visible....Jesus' enemies are still furious, attempting to obliterate the very memory of the Lord by lies and slander.

Mary and the disciples are grief-stricken, while the Church must mournfully admit that too many of her children return home from Calvary cold and hard of heart. When Mother Church reflects upon all of this, it seems as if the wounds of her dearly Beloved were again beginning to bleed.

"According to tradition, the entire body of the Church is represented in Mary: she is the "credentium collectio universa". Thus, the Blessed Virgin Mary, as she waits near the Lord's tomb, as she is represented in Christian tradition, is an icon of the Virgin Church keeping vigil at the tomb of her Spouse while awaiting the celebration of his resurrection.

"The pious exercise of the Ora della Madre is inspired by this intuition of the relationship between the Virgin Mary and the Church: while the body of her Son lays in the tomb and his soul has descended to the dead to announce liberation from the shadow of darkness to his ancestors, the Blessed Virgin Mary, foreshadowing and representing the Church, awaits, in faith, the victorious triumph of her Son over death." — Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy

Although we are still in mourning, there is much preparation during this day to prepare for Easter. Out of the kitchen comes the smells of Easter pastries and bread, the lamb or hams and of course, the Easter eggs.

There are no liturgies celebrated this day, unless the local parish priest blesses the food baskets. In Slavic countries there is a blessing of the traditional Easter foods, prepared in baskets: eggs, ham, lamb and sausages, butter and cheeses, horseradish and salt and the Easter breads. The Easter blessings of food owe their origin to the fact that these particular foods, namely, fleshmeat and milk products, including eggs, were forbidden in the Middle Ages during the Lenten fast and abstinence. When the feast of Easter brought the rigorous fast to an end, and these foods were again allowed at table, the people showed their joy and gratitude by first taking the food to church for a blessing. Moreover, they hoped that the Church's blessing on such edibles would prove a remedy for whatever harmful effects the body might have suffered from the long period of self-denial. Today the Easter blessings of food are still held in many churches in the United States, especially in Slavic parishes.

If there is no blessing for the Easter foods in the parish, the father of the family can pray the Blessing over the Easter foods.

It is during the night between Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday that the Easter Vigil is celebrated. The service begins around ten o'clock, in order that the solemn vigil Mass may start at midnight.

Activities

Today we remember Christ in the tomb. It is not Easter yet, so it's not time for celebration. The day is usually spent working on the final preparations for the biggest feast of the Church year. The list of suggested activities is long, but highlights are decorating Easter eggs and attending a special Easter food blessing.
For families with smaller children, you could create a miniature Easter garden, with a tomb. The figure of the risen Christ will be placed in the garden on Easter morning.
Another activity for families is creation of a paschal candle to use at home.
The Directory on Popular Piety discusses some of the various devotions related to Easter, including the Blessing of the Family Table, Annual Blessing of Family Home, the Via Lucis and the Visit to the Mother of the Risen Christ.

Lauds -- Morning Prayer

Morning Prayer (Lauds)

If this is the first Hour that you are reciting today, you should precede it with the Invitatory Psalm.

O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
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.

A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.

Psalm 63 (64)
A prayer against enemies
Listen, O God, to my voice; keep me safe from fear of the enemy. Protect me from the alliances of the wicked, from the crowd of those who do evil. They have sharpened their tongues like swords, aimed poisonous words like arrows, to shoot at the innocent in secret. They will attack without warning, without fear, for they are firm in their evil purpose. They have set out to hide their snares – for they say, “Who will see us?” They have thought out plans to commit wicked deeds, and they carry out what they have planned. Truly the heart and soul of a man are bottomless depths. And God has shot them with his arrow: in a moment, they are wounded – their own tongues have brought them low. All who see them will shake their heads; all will behold them with fear and proclaim the workings of God and understand what he has done. The just will rejoice and hope in the Lord: the upright in heart will give him glory. 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.

Psalm 63 (64)

A prayer against enemies

Listen, O God, to my voice;
keep me safe from fear of the enemy.
Protect me from the alliances of the wicked,
from the crowd of those who do evil.

They have sharpened their tongues like swords,
aimed poisonous words like arrows,
to shoot at the innocent in secret.
They will attack without warning, without fear,
for they are firm in their evil purpose.
They have set out to hide their snares
– for they say, “Who will see us?”
They have thought out plans to commit wicked deeds,
and they carry out what they have planned.
Truly the heart and soul of a man
are bottomless depths.

And God has shot them with his arrow:
in a moment, they are wounded –
their own tongues have brought them low.
All who see them will shake their heads;
all will behold them with fear
and proclaim the workings of God
and understand what he has done.

The just will rejoice and hope in the Lord:
the upright in heart will give him glory.

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.

Canticle	Isaiah 38
The psalm of Hezekiah on recovering from sickness
I said, in the middle of my days I am going to the gates of the underworld. Where shall I find the remainder of my years? I said, I will not see the Lord God in the land of the living, I will never see another of the inhabitants of the earth. My dwelling-place is taken away, taken far away from me, like the tent of a shepherd. Like a weaver, he has rolled up my life and cut it off from the loom. From morning to night, you have made an end of me. I cried for help till daybreak; like a lion, he has crushed all my bones. From morning to night, you have made an end of me. I twitter like a fledgling sparrow, make noises like a dove. My eyes are weak from looking upward. But you have pulled my soul out of the pit of destruction, you have put all my sins behind you. For after all, the underworld will not proclaim you, nor death praise you; those who go down there do not wait in hope for your faithfulness. It is the living, the living who will proclaim you, as I do today. Fathers will pass on to their children the truth of your faithfulness. Save me, Lord, and to the sound of the harp we will sing to you, all the days of our life, in the house of the Lord. 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.

Canticle

Isaiah 38

The psalm of Hezekiah on recovering from sickness

I said, in the middle of my days I am going to the gates of the underworld.
Where shall I find the remainder of my years?

I said, I will not see the Lord God in the land of the living,
I will never see another of the inhabitants of the earth.

My dwelling-place is taken away, taken far away from me, like the tent of a shepherd.
Like a weaver, he has rolled up my life and cut it off from the loom.

From morning to night, you have made an end of me.

I cried for help till daybreak; like a lion, he has crushed all my bones.
From morning to night, you have made an end of me.

I twitter like a fledgling sparrow, make noises like a dove.
My eyes are weak from looking upward.

But you have pulled my soul out of the pit of destruction,
you have put all my sins behind you.

For after all, the underworld will not proclaim you, nor death praise you;
those who go down there do not wait in hope for your faithfulness.

It is the living, the living who will proclaim you, as I do today.
Fathers will pass on to their children the truth of your faithfulness.

Save me, Lord, and to the sound of the harp we will sing to you,
all the days of our life, in the house of the Lord.

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.

Psalm 150
Praise the Lord
Praise the Lord in his sanctuary, praise him in his mighty firmament. Praise him for his mighty deeds, praise him for all his greatness. Praise him with trumpet-blasts, praise him with the harp and lyre, praise him with timbrel and dance, praise him with strings and pipes, praise him with cymbals resounding, praise him with cymbals of jubilation. All that breathes, praise the Lord! 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.

Psalm 150

Praise the Lord

Praise the Lord in his sanctuary,
praise him in his mighty firmament.
Praise him for his mighty deeds,
praise him for all his greatness.

Praise him with trumpet-blasts,
praise him with the harp and lyre,
praise him with timbrel and dance,
praise him with strings and pipes,
praise him with cymbals resounding,
praise him with cymbals of jubilation.

All that breathes, praise the Lord!

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.

Short reading	©
The Lord says this: They will search for me in their misery. ‘Come, let us return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces, but he will heal us; he has struck us down, but he will bandage our wounds; after a day or two he will bring us back to life, on the third day he will raise us and we shall live in his presence.’

Canticle	Benedictus
The Messiah and his forerunner
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has come to his people and brought about their redemption. He has raised up the sign of salvation in the house of his servant David, as he promised through the mouth of the holy ones, his prophets through the ages: to rescue us from our enemies and all who hate us, to take pity on our fathers, to remember his holy covenant and the oath he swore to Abraham our father, that he would give himself to us, that we could serve him without fear – freed from the hands of our enemies – in uprightness and holiness before him, for all of our days. And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High: for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his path, to let his people know their salvation, so that their sins may be forgiven. Through the bottomless mercy of our God, one born on high will visit us to give light to those who walk in darkness, who live in the shadow of death; to lead our feet in the path of peace. 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.

Canticle

Benedictus

The Messiah and his forerunner

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for he has come to his people and brought about their redemption.
He has raised up the sign of salvation in the house of his servant David,
as he promised through the mouth of the holy ones, his prophets through the ages:
to rescue us from our enemies and all who hate us, to take pity on our fathers,
to remember his holy covenant and the oath he swore to Abraham our father,
that he would give himself to us, that we could serve him without fear – freed from the hands of our enemies –
in uprightness and holiness before him, for all of our days.

And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High: for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare his path,
to let his people know their salvation, so that their sins may be forgiven.
Through the bottomless mercy of our God, one born on high will visit us
to give light to those who walk in darkness, who live in the shadow of death;
to lead our feet in the path of peace.

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.

Prayers and Intercessions

Our Redeemer suffered and was buried for us, later to rise again. With sincere devotion we worship him and bring him our petitions: - Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ our Saviour, by your will your Mother was with you at your cross and burial:: when we are afflicted, make us also sharers in your passion.
Christ our Lord, like a seed falling on the earth you bore for us the fruit of divine life:: grant that we may die to sin and live for God.
Christ our Shepherd, as you lay in the tomb your were hidden from all:: teach us to love our true life, which is hidden with you in the Father.
Christ, the new Adam, you went down into the realm of the dead and freed from that prison all the just men who had died since the beginning of the world:: may all who lie in the tomb of sin hear your voice and come to life.
Christ, Son of the living God, in baptism you have given us the gift of burial with you:: may we share your resurrection also, and live renewed lives.

Our Father, who art in Heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come,
thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those that trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

Almighty and ever-living God,
your only-begotten Son descended into the underworld,
from which he rose into glory.
In your kindness, grant that your faithful people,
who in their baptism shared his burial,
may advance to eternal life by sharing in his resurrection.

He lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God for ever and ever.
Amen.

May the Lord bless us and keep us from all harm; and may he lead us to eternal life.

A M E N

Luke 24: 1-12
#	Douay-Rheims	Vulgate
1	And on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came to the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared.	una autem sabbati valde diluculo venerunt ad monumentum portantes quae paraverant aromata
2	And they found the stone rolled back from the sepulchre.	et invenerunt lapidem revolutum a monumento
3	And going in, they found not the body of the Lord Jesus.	et ingressae non invenerunt corpus Domini Iesu
4	And it came to pass, as they were astonished in their mind at this, behold, two men stood by them, in shining apparel.	et factum est dum mente consternatae essent de isto ecce duo viri steterunt secus illas in veste fulgenti
5	And as they were afraid, and bowed down their countenance towards the ground, they said unto them: Why seek you the living with the dead?	cum timerent autem et declinarent vultum in terram dixerunt ad illas quid quaeritis viventem cum mortuis
6	He is not here, but is risen. Remember how he spoke unto you, when he was in Galilee,	non est hic sed surrexit recordamini qualiter locutus est vobis cum adhuc in Galilaea esset
7	Saying: The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.	dicens quia oportet Filium hominis tradi in manus hominum peccatorum et crucifigi et die tertia resurgere
8	And they remembered his words.	et recordatae sunt verborum eius
9	And going back from the sepulchre, they told all these things to the eleven, and to all the rest.	et regressae a monumento nuntiaverunt haec omnia illis undecim et ceteris omnibus
10	And it was Mary Magdalen, and Joanna, and Mary of James, and the other women that were with them, who told these things to the apostles.	erat autem Maria Magdalene et Iohanna et Maria Iacobi et ceterae quae cum eis erant quae dicebant ad apostolos haec
11	And these words seemed to them as idle tales; and they did not believe them.	et visa sunt ante illos sicut deliramentum verba ista et non credebant illis
12	But Peter rising up, ran to the sepulchre, and stooping down, he saw the linen cloths laid by themselves; and went away wondering in himself at that which was come to pass.	Petrus autem surgens cucurrit ad monumentum et procumbens videt linteamina sola posita et abiit secum mirans quod factum fuerat

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