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To: All
One Bread, One Body

One Bread, One Body


<< Thursday, April 16, 2009 >> Easter Week
Saint of the Day
 
Acts 3:11-26
View Readings
Psalm 8 Luke 24:35-48
 

IGNORANCE IS NOT BLISS

 
"Yet I know, my brothers, that you acted out of ignorance, just as your leaders did." —Acts 3:17
 

If we do not act in accord with the fact of Jesus' resurrection, we are acting in ignorance. If we rarely mention the risen Jesus in our conversation, we are speaking in ignorance. If we are content to watch TV programs which ignore the risen Christ, we are living in ignorance. Jesus' resurrection is not just another event which we may recall periodically.

The resurrection is such great news that it overshadows all other news and all reality. We are either preoccupied with the resurrection or ignorant of its significance. When the apostles first met the risen Christ, they thought they were seeing a ghost (Lk 24:37). Jesus went to great lengths to prove He had flesh and bones (Lk 24:39ff). Jesus' resurrection must not be for us a ghostly abstraction from antiquity, but the very flesh and bones of our everyday life.

We should buy what we buy, work where we work, and live where we live because of our commitment to the risen Jesus. We live a lifestyle that makes no sense except to those who believe in Jesus' resurrection. We draw our "life from the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1 Pt 1:3).

 
Prayer: Father, never let me "get over" the resurrection. Prompt people to ask me why I'm so different and happy (see 1 Pt 3:15).
Promise: "Then He opened their minds to the understanding of the Scriptures." —Lk 24:45
Praise: Praise Jesus, Who is proclaimed as "My Lord and My God!" (Jn 20:28) "God raised Him from the dead" (Acts 3:15). Alleluia!
 

33 posted on 04/16/2009 9:35:30 PM PDT by Salvation ( †With God all things are possible.†)
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To: All
Compline -- Night Prayer

Compline (Night Prayer)

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.


This is an excellent moment for an examination of conscience. In a communal celebration of Compline, one of the penitential acts given in the Missal may be recited.

Hymn
Jesu, the world’s redeeming Lord,
The Father’s co-eternal Word,
Of light invisible true Light,
Thine Israel’s Keeper day and night.
Our great Creator and our Guide,
Who times and seasons dost divide,
Refresh at night with quiet rest,
Our limbs by daily toil oppressed.
We pray thee, while we dwell below,
Preserve us from our ghostly foe;
Nor let his wiles victorious be
O’er them that are redeemed by thee.
That while in this frail house of clay
A little longer here we stay,
Our flesh in thee may sweetly sleep,
Our souls with thee their vigils keep.
All praise be thine, O risen Lord,
From death to endless life restored;
All praise to God the Father be,
And Holy Ghost eternally.

Psalm 90 (91)
The protection of the Most High
Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.
He who lives under the protection of the Most High
  dwells under the shade of the Almighty.
He will say to the Lord:
  “You are my shelter and my strength,
  my God, in whom I trust.”
For he will free you from the hunter’s snare,
  from the voice of the slanderer.
He will shade you with his wings,
  you will hide underneath his wings.
His faithfulness will be your armour and your shield.
You will not fear the terror of the night,
  nor the arrow that flies by day;
nor the plague that walks in the shadows,
  nor the death that lays waste at noon.
A thousand will fall at your side,
  at your right hand ten thousand will fall,
  but you it will never come near.
You will look with your eyes
  and see the reward of sinners.
For the Lord is your shelter and refuge;
  you have made the Most High your dwelling-place.
Evil will not reach you,
  harm cannot approach your tent;
for he has set his angels to guard you
  and keep you safe in all your ways.
They will carry you in their arms
  in case you hurt your foot on a stone.
You walk on the viper and cobra,
  you will tread on the lion and the serpent.
Because he clung to me, I shall free him:
  I shall lift him up because he knows my name.
He will call upon me and for my part, I will hear him:
  I am with him in his time of trouble.
I shall rescue him and lead him to glory.
I shall fill him with length of days
  and show him my salvation.
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. Alleluia. Alleluia.

Reading Apocalypse 22:4-5
They will see the face of the Lord, and his name will be marked on their foreheads. There will be no more night: they will not need sunlight or lamp-light, because the Lord God himself will shine upon them. And they will reign for ever and ever.

This is the day the Lord made: let us rejoice in it and be glad, alleluia.

Canticle Nunc Dimittis
Keep us safe, Lord, while we are awake, and guard us as we sleep, so that we can keep watch with Christ and rest in peace. Alleluia.
Now, Master, you let your servant go in peace.
  You have fulfilled your promise.
My own eyes have seen your salvation,
  which you have prepared in the sight of all peoples.
A light to bring the Gentiles from darkness;
  the glory of your people Israel.
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.
Keep us safe, Lord, while we are awake, and guard us as we sleep, so that we can keep watch with Christ and rest in peace. Alleluia.

Prayer
Let us pray.
  Today we have celebrated the mystery of the Christ’s resurrection, and so now we humbly ask you, Lord, that we may rest in your peace, far from all harm, and rise rejoicing and giving praise to you.
  Through Christ our Lord, Amen.

May the almighty Lord grant us a quiet night and a perfect end.
A M E N
Final Anthem
Queen of Heaven, be joyful,
  Alleluia.
You who were worthy to bear him.
  Alleluia.
He has risen, as he promised.
  Alleluia.
Pray for us to God.
  Alleluia.

34 posted on 04/16/2009 9:43:44 PM PDT by Salvation ( †With God all things are possible.†)
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