Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 03-28-05, Monday in the Octave of Easter (Solemnity)

March 28, 2005
Monday in the Octave of Easter

Psalm: Monday 16

Reading I
Acts 2:14, 22-33

On the day of Pentecost, Peter stood up with the Eleven,
raised his voice, and proclaimed:
"You who are Jews, indeed all of you staying in Jerusalem.
Let this be known to you, and listen to my words.

"You who are children of Israel, hear these words.
Jesus the Nazorean was a man commended to you by God
with mighty deeds, wonders, and signs,
which God worked through him in your midst, as you yourselves know.
This man, delivered up by the set plan and foreknowledge of God,
you killed, using lawless men to crucify him.
But God raised him up, releasing him from the throes of death,
because it was impossible for him to be held by it.
For David says of him:

I saw the Lord ever before me,
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
Therefore my heart has been glad and my tongue has exulted;
my flesh, too, will dwell in hope,
because you will not abandon my soul to the nether world,
nor will you suffer your holy one to see corruption.
You have made known to me the paths of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence.

My brothers, one can confidently say to you
about the patriarch David that he died and was buried,
and his tomb is in our midst to this day.
But since he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn an oath to him
that he would set one of his descendants upon his throne,
he foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ,
that neither was he abandoned to the netherworld
nor did his flesh see corruption.
God raised this Jesus;
of this we are all witnesses.
Exalted at the right hand of God,
he poured forth the promise of the Holy Spirit
that he received from the Father, as you both see and hear."

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 16:1-2a and 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11

R (1) Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
R Alleluia.
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;
I say to the LORD, "My Lord are you."
O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot.
R Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
R Alleluia.
I bless the LORD who counsels me;
even in the night my heart exhorts me.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
R Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
R Alleluia.
Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,
my body, too, abides in confidence;
Because you will not abandon my soul to the nether world,
nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo corruption.
R Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
R Alleluia.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
R Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
R Alleluia.

Gospel
Mt 28:8-15

Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went away quickly from the tomb,
fearful yet overjoyed,
and ran to announce the news to his disciples.
And behold, Jesus met them on their way and greeted them.
They approached, embraced his feet, and did him homage.
Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid.
Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee,
and there they will see me."

While they were going, some of the guard went into the city
and told the chief priests all that had happened.
The chief priests assembled with the elders and took counsel;
then they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers,
telling them, "You are to say,
‘His disciples came by night and stole him while we were asleep.'
And if this gets to the ears of the governor,
we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble."
The soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed.
And this story has circulated among the Jews to the present day.

From: Acts 2:14, 22-33

Peter's Address

[14] But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and
addressed them, [22] "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of
Nazareth with mighty works and wonders and signs which God did through
Him in your midst, as you yourselves know--[23] this Jesus, delivered
up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you
crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. [24] But God raised
Him up, having loosed the pangs of death, because it was not possible
for Him to be held by it. [25] For David says concerning Him, 'I saw
the Lord always before Me, for He is at My right hand that I may not be
shaken; [26] therefore My heart was glad, and My tongue rejoiced;
moreover My flesh will dwell in hope. [27] For Thou will not abandon
My soul to Hades, nor let Thy Holy One see corruption. [28] Thou hast
made known to Me the ways of life; Thou wilt make Me full of gladness
with Thy presence.'

[29] "Brethren, I may say to you confidently of the patriarch David
that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.
[30] Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an
oath to him that He would set one of his descendants upon his throne,
[31] he foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He
was not abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption.
[32] This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses.
[33] Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having
received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured
out this which you see and hear."

Commentary:

14-36. Even as the Church takes its first steps St. Peter can be seen
to occupy the position of main spokesman. In his address we can
distinguish an introduction and two parts: in the first part (verses
16-21) he is explaining that the messianic times foretold by Joel have
now arrived; in the second (verses 22-36) he proclaims that Jesus of
Nazareth, whom the Jews crucified, is the Messiah promised by God and
eagerly awaited by the righteous of the Old Testament; it is He who has
effected God's saving plan for mankind.

14. In his commentaries St. John Chrysostom draws attention to the
change worked in Peter by the Holy Spirit: "Listen to him preach and
argue so boldly, who shortly before had trembled at the word of a
servant girl! This boldness is a significant proof of the resurrection
of his Master: Peter preaches to men who mock and laugh at his
enthusiasm. [...] Calumny ('they are filled with new wine') does not
deter the Apostles; sarcasm does not undermine their courage, for the
coming of the Holy Spirit has made new men of them, men who can put up
with every kind of human test. When the Holy Spirit enters into hearts
He does so to elevate their affections and to change earthly souls,
souls of clay, into chosen souls, people of real courage [...]. Look
at the harmony that exists among the Apostles. See how they allow
Peter to speak on behalf of them all. Peter raises his voice and
speaks to the people with full assurance. That is the kind of courage
a man has when he is the instrument of the Holy Spirit. [...] Just as
a burning coal does not lose its heat when it falls on a haystack but
instead is enabled to release its heat, so Peter, now that he is in
contact with the life-giving Spirit, spreads his inner fire to those
around him" ("Hom. on Acts", 4).

22-36. To demonstrate that Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah foretold by
the prophets, St. Peter reminds his listeners of our Lord's miracles
(verse 22), as well as of His death (verse 23), resurrection (verses
24-32) and glorious ascension (verses 33-35). His address ends with a
brief summing-up (verse 36).

32. To proofs from prophecy, very important to the Jews, St. Peter adds
his own testimony on the resurrection of Jesus, and that of his
brothers in the Apostolate.

Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.

From: Matthew 28:8-15

Jesus Appears To The Women

[8] So they (Mary Magdalene and the other Mary) departed quickly from
the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell His disciples.
[9] And behold, Jesus met them and said, "Hail!" And they came up and
took hold of His feet and worshipped Him. [10] Then Jesus said to them,
"Do not be afraid; go and tell My brethren to go to Galilee; and there
they will see Me."

The Soldiers Are Bribed

[11] While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the
city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. [12] And when
they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sum
of money to the soldiers [13] and said, "Tell people, `His disciples
came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.' [14] And if
this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out
of trouble." [15] So they took the money and did as they were directed;
and this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.

Commentary:

1-15. The resurrection of Jesus, which happened in the early hours of
the Sunday morning, is a fact which all the evangelist state clearly
and unequivocally. Some holy women discover to their surprise that the
tomb is open. On entering the hall (cf. Mark 16:5-6), they see an
angel who says to them, "He is not here; for He has risen, as He
said." The guards who were on duty when the angel rolled back the
stone go to the city and report what has happened to the chief
priests. These, because of the urgency of the matter, decide to bribe
the guards; they give them a considerable sum of money on condition
that they spread the word that His disciples came at night and stole
the body of Jesus when they were asleep. "Wretched craftiness," says
St. Augustine, "do you give us witnesses who were asleep? It is you
who are really asleep if this is the only kind of explanation you have
to offer!" ("Ennarationes in Psalmos", 63, 15). The Apostles, who a
couple of days before fled in fear, will, now that they have seen Him
and have eaten and drunk with Him, become tireless preachers of this
great event: "This Jesus, they will say, "God raised up, and of that we
are all witnesses" (Acts 2:32).

Just as He foretold He would go up to Jerusalem and be delivered to the
leaders of the Jews and put to death, He also prophesied that He would
rise from the dead (Matthew 20:17-19; Mark 10:32-34; Luke 18:31-34).
By His resurrection He completes the sign He promised to give
unbelievers to show His divinity (Matthew 12:40).

The resurrection of Christ is one of the basic dogmas of the Catholic
faith. In fact, St. Paul says, "If Christ has not been raised, then
our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain" (1 Corinthians
15:14); and, to prove his assertion that Christ rose, he tells us "that
He appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. Then He appeared to more
than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom are still alive,

though some have fallen asleep. Then He appeared to James, then to all
the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared also
to me" (1 Corinthians 15:5-8). The creed states that Jesus rose from
the dead on the third day ("Nicene Creed"), by His own power (Ninth
Council of Toledo, "De Redemptione Creed"), by a true resurrection of
the flesh ("Creed" of St. Leo IX), reuniting His soul with His body
(Innocent III, "Eius Exemplo"), and that this fact of the resurrection
is historically proven and provable ("Lamentabili", 36).

"By the word `resurrection' we are not merely to understand that Christ
was raised from the dead...but that He rose by His own power and
virtue, a singular prerogative peculiar to Him alone. Our Lord
confirmed this by the divine testimony of His own mouth when He said:
`I lay down My life, that I may take it again....I have power to lay it
down: and I have power to take it up again' (John 10:17-18). To the
Jews He also said, in corroboration of His doctrine" `Destroy this
temple, and in three days I will raise it up' (John 2:19-20) [...]. We
sometimes, it is true, read in Scripture that He was raised by the
Father (cf. Acts 2:24; Romans 8:11); but this refers to Him as man,
just as those passages on the other hand, which say that He rose by His
own power, related to Him as God" ("St. Pius V Catechism", I, 6, 8).

Christ's resurrection was not a return to His previous earthly
existence; it was a "glorious" resurrection, that is to say, attaining
the full development of human life--immortal, freed from all
limitations of space and time. As a result of the resurrection,
Christ's body now shares in the glory which His soul had from the
beginning. Here lies the unique nature of the historical fact of the
resurrection. He could not be seen by anyone but only by those to whom
He granted that grace, to enable them to be witnesses of this
resurrection, and to enable others to believe in Him by accepting the
testimony of the seers.

Christ's resurrection was something necessary for the completion of the
work of our Redemption. For, Jesus Christ through His death freed us
from sins; but by His resurrection He restored us all that we had lost
through sin and, moreover, opened for us the gates of eternal life
(cf. Romans 4:25). Also, the fact that He rose from the dead by His
own power is a definitive proof that He is the Son of God, and
therefore His resurrection fully confirms our faith in His divinity.

The resurrection of Christ, as has been pointed out, is the most
sublime truth of our faith. That is why St. Augustine exclaims: "It is
no great thing to believe that Christ died; for this is something that
is also believed by pagans and Jews and by all the wicked: everyone
believes that He died. The Christians' faith is in Christ's
resurrection; that is what we hold to be a great thing--to believe that
He rose" ("Enarrationes in Psalmos", 120).

The mystery of the Redemption wrought by Christ, which embraces His
death and resurrection, is applied to every man and woman through
Baptism and the other sacraments, by means of which the believer is as
it were immersed in Christ and in His death, that is to say, in a

mystical way he becomes part of Christ, he dies and rises with Christ:
"We were buried therefore with Him by baptism unto death, so that as
Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too
might walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:4).

An ardent desire to seek the things of God and an interior taste for the
things that are above (cf. Colossians 3:1-3) are signs of our
resurrection with Christ.

FEAST OF THE DAY

St. Guntramnus, also spelled Gontran, was the grandson of King
Clovis I of the Franks and was born around the year 525. In 561
Guntramnus was crowned king of Burgundy and Orleans. As king,
Guntramnus always strove to find balance between his public life
and his spiritual life. He was well known for his generosity with royal
funds; he used them to help the poor, especially in times of famine
and also used them to build many churches and monasteries.
Guntramnus worked to always rule his kingdom justly and used the
virtues taught in the gospel to guide his subjects. As king,
Guntramnus saw to the spiritual welfare of his people by
encouraging reform of the clergy and supporting several synods.

On the other hand, the public was aware of various sins he
committed as king. He divorced one wife and executed the
unsuccessful physicians to his dying wife. Guntramnus realized his
need for repentance and practiced public penance and displayed
great zeal for encouraging the Faith. The highlight of Guntramnus'
career as king happened when his kingdom was swept with a
contagious disease. He used his wealth to ease the sufferings of the
sick and personally went out to minister to his people. While doing
this, God worked many miracles of healing through his hands.

King Guntramnus died on March 28, 593 and was buried in the
church of St. Marcellus, which he had built. He was revered by his
people as a just and holy ruler and was soon regarded as a saint.
During the sixteenth century most of his relics were lost when the
Huguenots destroyed his tomb.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Then the angel said to the women in reply, "Do not be afraid! I know
that you are seeking Jesus the crucified. He is not here, for he has
been raised just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.
Then go quickly and tell his disciples, 'He has been raised from the
dead, and he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him.'
Behold, I have told you." -Mt 28:6-7

TODAY IN HISTORY

1799 New York State abolished slavery
1960 Pope John XXIII names the 1st Japanese, 1st African and 1st Filipino
cardinals

TODAY'S TIDBIT

During the Octave of Easter, all feasts and solemnities are either
suppressed or moved. This helps focus the attention of the faithful on
the Easter Mysteries and encourages us to let them penetrate our
lives beyond the celebration of Easter Sunday. The Octave of Easter
uses many of the prayers of Easter Sunday to extend the feast and
to point our attention back to this event. A final example of how the
Octave of Easter continues the Easter celebration is the word
"alleluia." This word is added to the beginning and end of many
common prayers to show our great joy at the Resurrection of the
Savior.

INTENTION FOR THE DAY

Please pray for those inactive Catholics who are thinking about returning to the Church.

Catholic Culture

Collect:
Father of love, source of all blessings, help us to pass from our old life of sin to the new life of grace. Prepare us for the glory of your kingdom. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Recipes:

» Easter Soup with Leftover Lamb

Activities:

Prayers:

» Roman Ritual Blessing Before and After Meals: Easter Week (1st Plan)

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March 28, 2005

Monday in the Octave of Easter

The Lord has risen from the dead, as he foretold. Let there be happiness and rejoicing for he is our King forever, alleluia. According to Moses and the prophets Christ was to suffer all "these things and so to enter into His glory". And what was this "glory" which Christ merited by His sufferings and death? It was His resurrection, His ascension into heaven, His sitting at the right hand of the Father, the homage of all the nations. It was especially the glorification of His body which only a few days ago hung mangled and lifeless on the cross.

Before the reform of the General Roman Calendar today was the feast of St. John of Capistrano. His feast is now celebrated on October 23.

At Rome, the Station for today is at the basilica of St. Peter. On Saturday, the catechumens received the Sacrament of regeneration in the Lateran basilica of our Savior; yesterday, they celebrated the Resurrection in the magnificent church of St. Mary; it is just that they should come, on this third day, to pay their grateful devotions to Peter, on whom Christ has built his whole Church.

Meditation
"In those days: Peter standing up in the midst of the people, said: You know the word that hath been published through all Judea: for it began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached, Jesus of Nazareth: how God anointed him with the Holy Ghost, and with power, who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. And we are witnesses of all things that he did in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they killed hanging him upon a tree. Him God raised up the third day, and gave him to be made manifest, not to all the people, but to witnesses preordained by God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose again from the dead. And he commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is he who was appointed by God to be judge of the living and of the dead. To him all the prophets give testimony, that through his name all receive remission of sins who believe in him." — Acts 10

St Peter spoke these words to Cornelius, the centurion, and to the household and friends of this gentile, who had called them together to receive the Apostle whom God had sent to him. He had come to prepare them for Baptism, and thus make them the first-fruits of the gentile world, for up to this time the Gospel had been preached only to the Jews. Let us take notice how it is St Peter, and not any other of the Apostles, who throws open to us gentiles the door of the Church, which Christ has built upon him as upon the impregnable rock.

This passage from the Acts of the Apostles is an appropriate Lesson for this day, whose Station is in the basilica of St Peter: it is read near the confession of the great Apostle. Let us observe, too, the method used by the Apostle in the conversion of Cornelius and the other gentiles. He begins by speaking to them concerning Jesus. He tells them of the miracles he wrought; then, having related how he died the ignominious death of the Cross, he insists on the fact of the Resurrection as the sure guarantee of his being truly God. He then instructs them on the mission of the Apostles, whose testimony must be received—a testimony which carries persuasion with it, seeing it was most disinterested, and availed them nothing save persecution. He, therefore, that believes in the Son of God made Flesh, who went about doing good, working all kinds of miracles; who died upon the Cross, rose again from the dead, and entrusted to certain men, chosen by himself, the mission of continuing on earth the ministry he had begun—he that confesses all this, is worthy to receive, by holy Baptism, the remission of his sins. Such is the happy lot of Cornelius and his companions. — The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch

March 28, 2005

Luke’s Resurrection Narratives

Now, after the long narrative of Jesus’ crucifixion and burial, comes the resurrection.

No one knows exactly when Christ’s resurrection took place, only that it was sometimes between his burial late of Friday and the discovery of the empty tomb early Sunday morning. There were no eyewitnesses to describe the resurrection itself. Instead, there are descriptions of appearances of the Risen Lord after the resurrection.

The account of the Passion is one continuous narrative, very similar in all four Gospels. Not so with the narratives of the resurrection appearances. There are isolated scenes and, while there are some similarities, each Gospel has its own stories to tell.

Luke’s Gospel account can be divided into five episodes all taking place on Easter Sunday:

(1) the finding of the empty tomb at dawn.
(2) the appearance of the Risen Christ to two disciples walking to Emmaus.
(3) the appearance to the disciples gathered in Jerusalem.
(4) the commissioning of these disciples to witness and preach in his name.
(5) the end of the visible appearances as Christ.

Homily of the Day

Homily of the Day

Title:	Are You Going with God?
Author:	Monsignor Dennis Clark, Ph.D.
Date:	Monday, March 28, 2005

Acts 2:14,22-33 / Mt 28:8-15

Since the beginning of time, the mortality rate for the human race has been a perfect 100%. The only question for each of us is “when” not “whether.” But just to make sure we don’t forget our mortality, life has a way of reminding us from time to time. We get sick, we get depressed, we lose our loves, we experience dramatic reversals of fortune. And we feel as if we may die, or even wish that we would. Into all of those circumstances, the resurrection of Jesus speaks eloquently: Though it may feel like it, this is not the end. You were made for something much more than suffering and death.

God does not inflict troubles and sufferings upon us, but in ways that we often cannot fully understand, God allows these things for a larger purpose yet to be revealed. Somehow, everything that happens can in the long run be made to work for the good, if we trust the Lord’s promise of life and then lay ourselves open to working through life’s inevitable pains and disasters with his help. There is no predicting how long it will take. Only God knows that. But it will happen.

If we go with God, there is a purpose in every event and in every day. Trust that and your own entrance into the Lord’s resurrection will begin now and will draw nearer day by day.

A Voice in the Desert

March 28, 2005 Monday Within the Octave of Easter

Reading (Acts 2:14, 22-33) Gospel (St. Matthew 28:8-15)

As we see this point about the fact that Our Lord had risen from the dead – Mary Magdalene had seen the vision of the angels, and as she was going to tell the apostles, Our Blessed Lord appears to her and to the other Mary; they bow down, they worship Him, and He instructs them on what to do – the interesting thing in juxtaposition is to see what happens with the guards. Like the high priest, rather than having faith, the guards run simply to tell what happened and then get caught into a lie. The point that is of great interest here is that only a few days earlier the high priest was willing to give thirty pieces of silver to put Our Lord to death; but when it comes to hiding the Resurrection, they were willing to give a very large sum of money. We are not told how big it was, just that it was large. And so Our Lord in life was worth thirty pieces of silver to them, but Our Lord in death was worth an immense amount.

First of all, they had put a guard at His tomb, the only person in history that we know of who had to be guarded so that he did not come out of the tomb! It did not work anyway. Then the fact that the soldiers would pocket the money, that they would buy into this lie, and that they would circulate this story so that people would not believe, we see the extent to which Satan is willing to go to try to undermine our faith. Money is not a problem for him. Power is not a problem for him. He uses anything that he can to try to lure us away, to try to put little ideas into our heads, or to play upon our selfishness or our greed so that we will not believe. What we have to be able to do is reject everything that is not of God.

When we talk about the Resurrection, there is no doubt that Our Lord has risen from the dead. We have eyewitnesses who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead. We have the witness of the Gospels. Someone could say, “Well, these were written by Christian people, so there is really no idea that they are historical.” It is funny that when we read pagan historians from the time, everybody bows down and says, “This is true; this is history,” but when we read history that is inspired by the Holy Spirit, then we say, “Maybe that wasn’t real.” This is more historical and there is more evidence of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead than there is of most historical personalities that have ever lived. No one would ever say, “Caesar didn’t live because there isn’t all that much written about him,” or this one or that one or whomever it may be. So there is no reason for us not to believe.

What that Resurrection means is not fully understood, and it will not be fully understood until our bodies rise from the dead. But we do know that the body of Jesus Christ was reunited with His soul, and His body shares in the glory of the eternal life of God. His body now is in a glorified form so that it is not held bound by any of the limitations that our bodies are. We cannot walk through the walls – He can. On the day of the resurrection, we will be able to as well. People wonder how we are going to get out of a grave that is six feet deep. Not a problem. Your body is not going to be held bound by any of the physical limitations. When you rise from the dead, all of the inherent weaknesses and problems of the body will no longer be a problem. The body is going to be freed from all of those things. The body is going to be freed from everything that keeps it bound, and it will share fully in the freedom of the children of God. Our Lord’s Resurrection is the guarantee of that; it is the foreshadowing of what is going to happen to us.

While it is imperative that we never take our eyes off of the Cross, it is also imperative that we never forget that the Cross is not the endpoint; there is much beyond it. In fact, the Cross, in Our Lord’s life and in ours, was very brief by comparison to the glory which is eternal. And so while we continue through our lives on earth, it is living in this vale of tears, it is sharing in the Passion of Christ, it is still to walk up Calvary; yet it is because we know that there is something that is beyond Calvary. As Saint Paul said, For the joy that lay before Him, Christ accepted the Cross, heedless of its shame. It is the Resurrection that is possible only through the Crucifixion. It is eternal life that is possible only through sharing in the death of Christ. For us, it is to be able to listen to the words of Our Lord when He told the man: Doubt no longer but believe, and to believe wholeheartedly in the Resurrection and to know that the life, the victory, that Our Lord has won for us is guaranteed to us as long as we remain faithful. So as we keep our eyes on the Cross, keep it focused on what the Cross leads to. The Cross is the key to heaven. The Cross is the opening to eternal life. We go to Calvary, we go to be crucified with Our Lord, not merely for the purpose of dying, but for the sole purpose of eternal life.

* This text was transcribed from the audio recording with minimal editing.

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