Posted on 05/18/2006 6:53:17 AM PDT by Salvation
Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter
Reading 1
Acts 15:7-21
After much debate had taken place,
Peter got up and said to the Apostles and the presbyters,
“My brothers, you are well aware that from early days
God made his choice among you that through my mouth
the Gentiles would hear the word of the Gospel and believe.
And God, who knows the heart,
bore witness by granting them the Holy Spirit
just as he did us.
He made no distinction between us and them,
for by faith he purified their hearts.
Why, then, are you now putting God to the test
by placing on the shoulders of the disciples
a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear?
On the contrary, we believe that we are saved
through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they.”
The whole assembly fell silent,
and they listened
while Paul and Barnabas described the signs and wonders
God had worked among the Gentiles through them.
After they had fallen silent, James responded,
“My brothers, listen to me.
Symeon has described how God first concerned himself
with acquiring from among the Gentiles a people for his name.
The words of the prophets agree with this, as is written:
After this I shall return
and rebuild the fallen hut of David;
from its ruins I shall rebuild it
and raise it up again,
so that the rest of humanity may seek out the Lord,
even all the Gentiles on whom my name is invoked.
Thus says the Lord who accomplishes these things,
known from of old.
It is my judgment, therefore,
that we ought to stop troubling the Gentiles who turn to God,
but tell them by letter to avoid pollution from idols,
unlawful marriage, the meat of strangled animals, and blood.
For Moses, for generations now,
has had those who proclaim him in every town,
as he has been read in the synagogues every sabbath.”
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 96:1-2a, 2b-3, 10
R. (3) Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Sing to the LORD; bless his name.
R. Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Announce his salvation, day after day.
Tell his glory among the nations;
among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.
R. Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Say among the nations: The LORD is king.
He has made the world firm, not to be moved;
he governs the peoples with equity.
R. Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Gospel
Jn 15:9-11
Jesus said to his disciples:
“As the Father loves me, so I also love you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father’s commandments
and remain in his love.
“I have told you this so that
my joy might be in you and
your joy might be complete.”
Please notify me via FReepmail if you would like to be added to or taken off the Alleluia Ping List.
From: Acts 15:7-21
Peter's Address to the Elders (Continuation)
From: John 15:9-11
The Vine and the Branches (Continuation)
| First reading | Acts 15:7 - 21 © |
|---|---|
| After the discussion had gone on a long time, Peter stood up and addressed the apostles and the elders. ‘My brothers,’ he said ‘you know perfectly well that in the early days God made his choice among you: the pagans were to learn the Good News from me and so become believers. In fact God, who can read everyone’s heart, showed his approval of them by giving the Holy Spirit to them just as he had to us. God made no distinction between them and us, since he purified their hearts by faith. It would only provoke God’s anger now, surely, if you imposed on the disciples the very burden that neither we nor our ancestors were strong enough to support? Remember, we believe that we are saved in the same way as they are: through the grace of the Lord Jesus.’ This silenced the entire assembly, and they listened to Barnabas and Paul describing the signs and wonders God had worked through them among the pagans. When they had finished it was James who spoke. ‘My brothers,’ he said ‘listen to me. Simeon has described how God first arranged to enlist a people for his name out of the pagans. This is entirely in harmony with the words of the prophets, since the scriptures say: After that I shall return and rebuild the fallen House of David; I shall rebuild it from its ruins and restore it. Then the rest of mankind, all the pagans who are consecrated to my name, will look for the Lord, says the Lord who made this known so long ago. ‘I rule, then, that instead of making things more difficult for pagans who turn to God, we send them a letter telling them merely to abstain from anything polluted by idols, from fornication, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. For Moses has always had his preachers in every town, and is read aloud in the synagogues every sabbath.’ |
|
| Psalm or canticle: Psalm 95 |
| Gospel | John 15:9 - 11 © |
|---|---|
| Jesus said: ‘As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my own joy may be in you and your joy be complete.’ |
|
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. Alleluia.
A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.
| Psalm 17 (18) |
|---|
| Thanksgiving |
| The Lord’s ways are pure; the words of the Lord are refined in the furnace; the Lord protects all who hope in him. For what God is there, but our Lord? What help, but in the Lord our God? God, who has wrapped me in his strength and set me on the perfect path, who has made my feet like those of the deer, who has set me firm upon the heights, who trains my hands for battle, teaches my arms to bend a bow of bronze. 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 17 (18) |
|---|
| You have given me the shield of your salvation; your right hand holds me up; by answering me, you give me greatness. You have stretched out the length of my stride, my feet do not weaken. I pursue my enemies and surround them; I do not turn back until they are no more. I smash them to pieces, they cannot stand, they fall beneath my feet. You have wrapped me round with strength for war, and made my attackers fall under me. You turned my enemies’ backs on me, you destroyed those who hated me. They cried out, but there was no-one to save them; they cried to the Lord, but he did not hear. I have ground them up until they are dust in the wind, trodden them down like the mud of the street. You have delivered me from the murmurings of the people and placed me at the head of the nations. A people I do not even know serves me – at a mere rumour of my orders, they obey. The children of strangers beg for my favour; they hide away and tremble where they hide. 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 17 (18) |
|---|
| The Lord lives, my blessed Helper. Let the God of my salvation be exalted. God, you give me my revenge, you subject peoples to my rule, you free me from my enraged enemies. You raise me up from those who attack me, you snatch me from the grasp of the violent. And so I will proclaim you among the nations, Lord, and sing to your name. Time and again you save your king, you show your loving kindness to your anointed, to David and his descendants for ever. 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 | Apocalypse 21:9 - 27 © |
|---|---|
| One of the seven angels that had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came to speak to me, and said, ‘Come here and I will show you the bride that the Lamb has married’. In the spirit, he took me to the top of an enormous high mountain and showed me Jerusalem, the holy city, coming down from God out of heaven. It had all the radiant glory of God and glittered like some precious jewel of crystal-clear diamond. The walls of it were of a great height, and had twelve gates; at each of the twelve gates there was an angel, and over the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel; on the east there were three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. The city walls stood on twelve foundation stones, each one of which bore the name of one of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. The angel that was speaking to me was carrying a gold measuring rod to measure the city and its gates and wall. The plan of the city is perfectly square, its length the same as its breadth. He measured the city with his rod and it was twelve thousand furlongs in length and in breadth, and equal in height. He measured its wall, and this was a hundred and forty-four cubits high – the angel was using the ordinary cubit. The wall was built of diamond, and the city of pure gold, like polished glass. The foundations of the city wall were faced with all kinds of precious stone: the first with diamond, the second lapis lazuli, the third turquoise, the fourth crystal, the fifth agate, the sixth ruby, the seventh gold quartz, the eighth malachite, the ninth topaz, the tenth emerald, the eleventh sapphire and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate being made of a single pearl, and the main street of the city was pure gold, transparent as glass. I saw that there was no temple in the city since the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb were themselves the temple, and the city did not need the sun or the moon for light, since it was lit by the radiant glory of God and the Lamb was a lighted torch for it. The pagan nations will live by its light and the kings of the earth will bring it their treasures. The gates of it will never be shut by day – and there will be no night there – and the nations will come, bringing their treasure and their wealth. Nothing unclean may come into it: no one who does what is loathsome or false, but only those who are listed in the Lamb’s book of life. |
|
| Reading | From a treatise by Saint Gaudentius of Brescia, bishop |
|---|---|
| The Eucharist is The Lord's passover | |
| One man has died for all, and now in every church in the mystery of bread and wine he heals those for whom he is offered in sacrifice, giving life to those who believe and holiness to those who consecrate the offering. This is the flesh of the Lamb; this is his blood. The bread that came down from heaven declared: The bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world. It is significant, too, that his blood should be given to us in the form of wine, for his own words in the gospel, I am the true vine, imply clearly enough that whenever wine is offered as a representation of Christ’s passion, it is offered as his blood. This means that it was of Christ that the blessed patriarch Jacob prophesied when he said: He will wash his tunic in wine and his cloak in the blood of the grape. The tunic was our flesh, which Christ was to put on like a garment and which he was to wash in his own blood. Creator and Lord of all things, whatever their nature, he brought forth bread from the earth and changed it into his own body. Not only had he the power to do this, but he had promised it; and, as he had changed water into wine, he also changed wine into his own blood. It is the Lord’s passover, Scripture tells us, that is, the Lord’s passing. We are no longer to look upon the bread and wine as earthly substances. They have become heavenly, because Christ has passed into them and changed them into his body and blood. What you receive is the body of him who is the heavenly bread, and the blood of him who is the sacred vine; for when he offered his disciples the consecrated bread and wine, he said: This is my body, this is my blood. We have put our trust in him. I urge you to have faith in him; truth can never deceive. When Christ told the crowds that they must eat his flesh and drink his blood, they were horrified and began to murmur among themselves: This teaching is too hard; who can be expected to listen to it? As I have already told you, thoughts such as these must be banished. The Lord himself used heavenly fire to drive them away by going on to declare: It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is of no avail. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. |
|
| A concluding prayer may follow here. |
|
|
 |
 |
|
|
May 18, 2006
St. John I
(d. 526)
Pope John I inherited the Arian heresy, which denied the divinity of Christ. Italy had been ruled for 30 years by an emperor who espoused the heresy, though he treated the empire’s Catholics with toleration. His policy changed at about the time the young John was elected pope. When the eastern emperor began imposing severe measures on the Arians of his area, the western emperor forced John to head a delegation to the East to soften the measures against the heretics. Little is known of the manner or outcome of the negotiations—designed to secure continued toleration of Catholics in the West. When John returned to Rome, he found that the emperor had begun to suspect his friendship with his eastern rival. On his way home, John was imprisoned when he reached Ravenna because the emperor suspected a conspiracy against his throne. Shortly after his imprisonment, John died, apparently from the treatment he had received. Quote:
|
||||
| Thursday, May 18, 2006 St. Felix Porri of Cantalice, Capuchin, Religious (Feast) |
||
|
Prayers:
|
 |
May 18, 2006    Optional Memorial of St. John I, pope and martyr Old Calendar: St. Venantius, martyr
Before the reform of the General Roman Calendar St. John I's feast was celebrated on May 27. Today was the feast of St. Venantius, whose feast is no longer celebrated in the United States, but he remains on the Universal Calendar. He was born at Camerino in Umbria, and was led at the age of fifteen before Antiochus, governor of the town under the Emperor Decius. He was made to suffer cruel torments, but angels came and assisted him. His tormentors were touched with repentance by his constancy and many were converted. He was beheaded around the year 250. His body lies at Camerino in the church dedicated to him.
St. John I This Tuscan was destined to be glorified not only during his lifetime but after his death as well. Although peace with the East had been restored, a suspicious Theodoric grumbled in his castle at Ravenna. An Arian, the king saw the new friendliness between East and West as a serious threat to his reign. To further alarm him, Emperor Justin had reinstated the laws against heretics, Arians included, and had embarked on a campaign of confiscating churches and excluding heretics from public office, causing many Arians to abandon their faith. Infuriated, Theodoric summoned John to Ravenna and ordered him to head a delegation to the orthodox emperor to ask that the persecution stop and allow forced converts to return to Arianism. At first John refused, then fearing that the king's wrath would be taken out on Western Catholics, he agreed to do Theodoric's bidding on every count save one. He boldly told the king that he would not ask the emperor to allow converts to return to heresy.
After meeting with Justin on Theodoric's behalf, the pope made the exhausting trip back to Ravenna. The king's fury raged. Jealous of the pope's grand reception in the East, Theodoric accused the pope of failing his mission by not securing all of the demands put to Justin. The king then ordered John to remain in Ravenna at his disposal. The aged pope was spent; the prospects before him were dismal. Already ailing, Pope John died and was hastily buried outside the castle walls. Pope John's body was exhumed and on May 27, 526, was returned to Rome and placed in the nave of St. Peter's. Excerpted from The Popes: A Papal History, J.V. Bartlett Things to Do:
St. Venantius  When still a boy of fifteen, Venantius was martyred for his faith in his native city under the Emperor Decius (249-251). With heroic steadfastness he endured many and unspeakably cruel tortures. According to legend, he was scourged, burned with torches and hung headfirst over a smoking fire. He was then thrown to the lions; while they lay like lambs at his feet, he preached the Gospel to the people. This induced many pagans to accept the faith. Finally he was beheaded. Excerpted from The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch. Patron: Camerino, Italy. Symbols: Young man crucified upside-down with smoke coming from his head; young man holding the citadel of Camerino; young man holding the city of Camerino, a palm, and a book; young man with a banner holding a city wall. Things to do:
|
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. Alleluia.
A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.
| Psalm 56 (57) |
|---|
| Morning prayer in time of affliction |
| Have mercy on me, God, have mercy. My soul flies to you for refuge. I will hide in the shelter of your wings until the time of ambush is past. I will cry to God the Most High, to the God who cares for me. He will send help from heaven to set me free. He will disgrace those who trample me underfoot. He will send forth his mercy and faithfulness. My soul lies among lion-cubs that would devour the children of men. Their teeth are spears and arrows, their tongues are pointed swords. May you be exalted above the heavens, O God; let your glory cover the whole earth. They prepared a trap for my feet; my soul was bent double under its burden; they dug a pit in front of me – but they fell into it themselves. My heart is ready, God. My heart is ready. I will offer you music and song. Awake, my glory, awake, lyre and harp. I will awaken the dawn. I will proclaim you among the peoples, Lord, and make music for you among the nations, for your mercy reaches as high as the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. May you be exalted above the heavens, O God; let your glory cover the earth. 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 | Jeremiah 31 |
|---|---|
| The joy of those whom God sets free | |
| All you nations, listen to the word of the Lord, proclaim it in the farthest islands: “He who scattered his people Israel has brought them back together. He will care for them as a shepherd tends his flock”. For the Lord has redeemed Jacob and freed him from the hand of his conqueror. They will come and sing praises on Mount Sion, they will flood in to receive the good things of the Lord, grain, and wine, and oil, and the young of both herd and flock. Their spirit will be like a richly watered garden, and they will hunger no more. The young girl will dance for joy, young men and old men too. “I will turn their weeping into gladness”, says the Lord, “I will comfort them and give them joy after sorrow. I will overwhelm my priests with rich food, and my good things will fill my people to overflowing”. 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 47 (48) |
|---|
| Thanksgiving for the safety of the people |
| The Lord is great and greatly to be praised in the city of our God. His holy mountain is a beautiful sight, the joy of all the earth. Mount Sion is at its northernmost edge, the city of the great king. Here among its palaces, God has shown himself as its refuge. For the kings assembled, made alliance against it – but when they saw it, they were amazed. Panic took them and they scattered. Trembling took hold of them, pain like that of childbirth. With the east wind you will destroy the ships of Tarshish. What we had heard, we saw in the city of the Lord of hosts, in the city of our God, which God has founded for ever. We ponder your mercy, O God, as we stand in your temple. Your name, O Lord, and your praise will reach to the ends of the earth. Your right hand delivers justice. Let Mount Sion be glad and the daughters of Judah rejoice, because of your judgements. Go round Sion, see it all, count every tower. Feel its strength, visit its palaces, so that you can tell the next generation – Here is God, our God, here he remains for ever; and for ever he will lead us and guide us. 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 short Bible reading and responsory may follow here. |
| 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. |
|
| Some short prayers may follow here, to offer up the day's work to God. |
| 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. |
| A concluding prayer may follow here. |
| May the Lord bless us and keep us from all harm; and may he lead us to eternal life. |
| A M E N |
|
Remain in My Love Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter John 15:9-11 Introductory Prayer: I believe in your love Lord, for you have loved me first. Your love manifests itself in being nailed to a cross. I trust that each of your commandments is an expression of your love and leads to my joy and the joy of others. I love you Lord and want my love to be as real and concrete as your love has been for me. Teach me to not stray from your love. Petition: Lord, Grant me your joy! 1. As the Father Loves Me. “Do you think that God really cares about you? This is a question especially typical of today’s post-Christian societies. The Father’s love is, above all, personal. He loves each and every of his children with a total love, and an increase in the number of children does nothing to diminish his love for each one. The world seems to believe that fewer children means a greater love for each one; but this would make love to be something very material. The Father’s love is generous towards each and every child. So Jesus, true son of the Father, assures us that he loves each one of us with the personal and generous love of the Father. Do I believe in Jesus’ love for me? 2. Remain in His Love. What most distinguishes divine love from human love is its constancy. Our love is fickle, temperamental and fluctuating. It is more contingent upon our moods, feelings, circumstances and successes. Divine love depends only on itself: the eternal decision to love me. So God’s love is by definition unchanging and always faithful. What changes is my openness to God’s love, my response to his call and grace. I remain in God’s love when my love learns to depend more and more upon his love. The more I am aware of his love, his blessings and his kind will toward me, the more I will respond with constancy. To remain in his love is to live permanently in an attitude and posture of grateful self-giving, to seek and give what he is asking. 3. That Your Joy May Be Complete. “Commandments” always strike us as constraints, impositions, limitations. Yet, since Jesus kept his Father’s commandments, obedience has become a positive and freeing experience. His obedience was one motivated by love for the Father. He wanted, in his will, thoughts and deeds, to be completely united to the Father. His obedience was a free, intimate and personal act of fulfillment. My obedience is an authentic affirmation of who God has called me to be. It is a trustful response to his call for me to be his child. I may not feel like obeying, but my love wants to fulfill his plan. I remain in his love if I remain in his will. This is the obedience that produces joy –– and not any joy, but the joy of eternal happiness, remaining in his love. Dialogue with Christ: Dear Lord, help me to learn to stay in your love. Help me to overcome my pride and self-will that seek their own passing joy rather than your joy, the joy that will last and complete me. Teach me the obedience of love, the generous submission of my heart. Open my heart to experience more deeply your love for me. And keep me alive in your love. Resolution: I will practice obedience today with great joy. |
|
Acts 15:7-21 / Jn 15:9-11 There's something of the policeman in most of us. Perhaps it comes from being given so many rules as children — and so many little "talks" from parents, teachers, and others about the importance of keeping those rules. The fact is, of course, that laws and rules can be liberating. They can make life more safe and more secure, and they can free us from having to think much about lots of ordinary things. But they can also be spirit-killers. That was the case in the first generation of Christians, when converts from paganism to Christianity were also required to observe all the religious rules and regulations of orthodox Jews as well. It was a huge burden, under which most of Jesus' contemporaries had been spiritually crushed or had simply given up. And it was so unnecessary, so utterly beside the point of Jesus' teaching, which was to bond to the Lord and to one's neighbors in self-giving love — to love as one wants to be loved. But old habits die hard, whether they make any sense or not, and it took the Apostles awhile to see the truth. When they did see, they set out to set the people free. Isn't that what we really want to do for one another — set one another free from the things that don't matter, the things that can't give us life? Be like Jesus and his Apostles. Be a liberator, not a policeman! |
|
|
Most Reverend Harry J. Flynn Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA This action of the Archbishop is not related to any scandal We regret any inconvenience and humbly ask for your prayers. Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis Most Reverend Harry J. Flynn |
|
|
Archbishop Flynn Responds to Our Letter Archbishop Flynn has responded to our letter in which we asked his permission to restore Father Altier's homilies to the DesertVoice website. In a negative 3-page response dated May 16, 2006, the Archbishop forbids us to publish his letter on this website or to make its contents known in any way. Below is the letter we sent to him on April 26, 2006. April 26, 2006 The Most Reverend Harry J. Flynn Your Excellency: Praised be Jesus Christ! Thank you for taking the time to read this letter. We operate the DesertVoice website which has published Father Altier’s homilies for the past five years. As Secular Discalced Carmelites, we are called to pray especially for priests and have devoted ourselves to serving the Church through this website apostolate. In recent weeks, we have received letters from faithful Catholics around the world telling us how much the website has benefited them in their spiritual life. We have enclosed a few excerpts of these for you to read yourself; they are very touching. People continue to ask for a complete restoration of the website and some wonder if it is at least possible for the material which was published prior to March 1, 2006, to once again be posted, as it had already been on the Internet these past five years. Perhaps it would help in making your decision to know that we ourselves have tended to every aspect of the website, including the recording, transcription, programming, etc. When you made your request to Father Altier, we promptly complied and wanted to show our respect for you by being obedient to your wishes. If you were not pleased with any particular material which appeared on our website, we would be willing to remove it should you indicate that to us. The organization Catholic Culture reviewed our site and gave it the Fidelity Green Light Award for excellence in fidelity to Catholic Church teaching. This site review is also enclosed, as well as statistics on the number of visitors we regularly receive. We can feel confident that the material which has been presented on our website is in conformity with Church teaching and has helped thousands of Catholics all over the world to better understand their faith and grow closer to Our Lord, as they themselves say in their many kind letters. It would be such a joy for us to continue our apostolate in obedience to you and in service of the Catholic people. We thank you for considering the possibility of allowing us to re-establish the website and once again publish the homilies which appeared on www.desertvoice.org. You remain in our prayers, and we humbly ask for your blessing and your prayers. In Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Ken and Elizabeth Schwab, OCDS Enclosures: Excerpts, Site Review, and Statistics
|
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. Alleluia.
A suitable hymn may be inserted at this point.
| Psalm 29 (30) |
|---|
| Thanksgiving for rescue from death |
| Lord, I will give you all praise, for you have rescued me and not let my foes triumph over me. My Lord God, I cried to you and you healed me. Lord, you led my soul out from the underworld, gave me life so that I would not sink into the abyss. Sing to the Lord, his holy ones, and proclaim the truth of his holiness. His anger lasts a moment, but his favour for a lifetime. At night there are tears, but in the morning, joy. Once I was secure. I said, “I will never be shaken”. Lord, by your favour you had given me strength, set me high; but then you turned your face from me and I was shaken. I cried to you, Lord, and prayed to my God. “What use is my life, when I sink into decay? Will dust proclaim you, or make known your faithfulness?” The Lord heard and took pity on me. The Lord became my helper. You have turned my weeping into dancing, torn off my sackcloth and clothed me in joy, It is my glory to sing to you and never cease: Lord, my God, I will proclaim your goodness for ever. 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 31 (32) |
|---|
| The joy of the forgiven |
| Blessed is he whose sins are forgiven, whose transgressions are hidden away. Happy the man to whom the Lord imputes no blame, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. While I kept silent, my bones grew old as I groaned all day long. While your hand lay heavy on me, by day and by night, my strength was dried up as if by summer heat. I made my sin known to you, and I did not hide my faults. I said “I will bear witness against myself before the Lord”, and you forgave the guilt of my sin. This is why every saint will pray to you in due time, and even in the great flood he will not be touched. You are my refuge, you will preserve me from trouble, you will surround me with cries of deliverance. I will give you understanding and teach you the path you are to follow; I will keep watch over you. Do not be like the horse and the mule, without understanding: if you approach them with bit or bridle, they will not come near. Many are the sufferings of the wicked, but the Lord’s mercy will protect those who trust in him. Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you just. Shout for joy, you upright of heart. 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 | Apocalypse 11 |
|---|---|
| The Judgement | |
| We thank you, Lord God Almighty, who are and who were, that you have taken up your great power and begun to reign. The nations were angered, but your anger came, the time for the dead to be judged, the time to reward the prophets and saints, your servants, and those who feared your name, both great and small. Now have come the salvation and might and kingdom of our God, and the power of his Anointed, for the accuser of our brethren has been brought down, who accused them day and night in the sight of God. But they vanquished him through the blood of the Lamb and through their own witness. They did not cling to life, even in the face of death. Therefore rejoice, heavens, and you who dwell in them. 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 short Bible reading and responsory may follow here. |
| Canticle | Magnificat |
|---|---|
| My soul rejoices in the Lord | |
| My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God, my salvation. For he has shown me such favour – me, his lowly handmaiden. Now all generations will call me blessed, because the mighty one has done great things for me. His name is holy, his mercy lasts for generation after generation for those who revere him. He has put forth his strength: he has scattered the proud and conceited, torn princes from their thrones; but lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things; the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel, he has remembered his mercy as he promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his children for ever. 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. |
|
|
||||
| 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. |
| A concluding prayer may follow here. |
| May the Lord bless us and keep us from all harm; and may he lead us to eternal life. |
| A M E N |
 |
Thursday, May 18, 2006 Meditation Acts 15:7-21 James, the relative of Jesus (Galatians 1:18-19), didn’t have an easy job. As leader of the early church in Jerusalem, he was confronted with the question of whether non-Jewish converts to Christianity should be obliged to follow the Mosaic law. Many Jewish Christians saw the law as something for Gentiles to embrace along with baptism. Among these, apparently, were some people associated with James. The issue came to a head at a Jerusalem meeting, where both Peter and Paul argued that everyone is saved by grace, not by pursuing a lifestyle of ritual purity (Acts 15:7-12). Now James was eager to preserve the more traditional customs of the Jewish Christian community, but he was also willing to listen. Then, persuaded by the apostles’ words, he offered a decision that defended the Gentiles’ liberty and imposed just a few basic requirements. James was flexible enough to part with his ideas of how the church should be and to be open to the movements of the Holy Spirit instead. Rather than adhere rigidly to familiar patterns of religious practice and tradition, he reflected on the way God was working among non-Jews. Mind you, James didn’t throw out all the traditional practices. He carefully discerned what would be appropriate for the new gatherings of Gentile and Jewish believers that were springing up. As a result of his respect for God’s unfolding plan, he came to a solution that resolved conflicts and helped preserve the unity of the primitive church. How important it is to listen to one another and, even more, to the Holy Spirit! It’s all too easy to fall in love with our own ideas of what the church should be. But when we love our ideas so much that they distract us from loving God and one another, we become easy targets for dissension. The result is divisions and factions between denominations and within our church, communities, families, and intimate relationships. God wants us to experience deep, joy-filled, loving unity. Jesus himself asked the Father to make us one, “as we are one” (John 17:11). God will do it—if only we allow him to make us people who listen, learn, and love. “Lord, help us to listen carefully to one another with an attitude of respect and cooperation. Teach us to be humble about our own ideas, and make us willing to seek solutions that honor your kingdom.” Psalm 96:1-3,10; John 15:9-11 |
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
The pope arrived in Constantinople shortly before Easter in 526, and since he was the first pope to leave Italy, his reception was more than he could have dreamed. He had been met by the entire city at the twelfth milestone, where the clergy led the procession carrying candles and crosses, and even the emperor prostrated himself before the Holy Father. The day of Easter, John was seated in a throne higher than the one occupied by the patriarch, in the church of Sancta Sophia, where he celebrated Mass in the Latin tradition. John was accorded the highest honor when he placed the customary Easter crown on the head of Emperor Justin. 
Father Altier Assigned to Nursing Home
