Reading 1 Acts 22:30; 23:6-11

Wishing to determine the truth
about why Paul was being accused by the Jews,
the commander freed him
and ordered the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin to convene.
Then he brought Paul down and made him stand before them.

Paul was aware that some were Sadducees and some Pharisees,
so he called out before the Sanhedrin,
"My brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees;
I am on trial for hope in the resurrection of the dead."
When he said this,
a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and Sadducees,
and the group became divided.
For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection
or angels or spirits,
while the Pharisees acknowledge all three.
A great uproar occurred,
and some scribes belonging to the Pharisee party
stood up and sharply argued,
"We find nothing wrong with this man.
Suppose a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?"
The dispute was so serious that the commander,
afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them,
ordered his troops to go down and rescue Paul from their midst
and take him into the compound.
The following night the Lord stood by him and said, "Take courage.
For just as you have borne witness to my cause in Jerusalem,
so you must also bear witness in Rome."

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 Jn 17:20-26

Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed saying:
"I pray not only for these,
but also for those who will believe in me through their word,
so that they may all be one,
as you, Father, are in me and I in you,
that they also may be in us,
that the world may believe that you sent me.
And I have given them the glory you gave me,
so that they may be one, as we are one,
I in them and you in me,
that they may be brought to perfection as one,
that the world may know that you sent me,
and that you loved them even as you loved me.
Father, they are your gift to me.
I wish that where I am they also may be with me,
that they may see my glory that you gave me,
because you loved me before the foundation of the world.
Righteous Father, the world also does not know you,
but I know you, and they know that you sent me.
I made known to them your name and I will make it known,
that the love with which you loved me
may be in them and I in them."

Daily Gospel Commentary

Thursday of the Seventh week of Easter

Commentary of the day
Saint Peter Damian (1007-1072), hermit then Bishop, Doctor of the Church
Opuscule 11 “Dominus vobiscum”, 6 (Migne 1992, p.22 rev.)

"May they all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you"

Holy Church, although diverse in multiplicity of persons, is brought into unity by the fire of the Holy Spirit. If, from the physical point of view, she seems to be divided among several families, yet the mystery of her profound unity loses nothing of its integrity: “because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us,” (Rom 5:5). There is no question that this Spirit is both one and many at the same time: one at the core of its majesty; many in the gifts and charisms granted to the Holy Church filled by his presence. And it is this same Spirit that enables the Church to be at one and the same time single in its universal extent yet wholly present in each of its members...

So if those who believe in Christ are one, no matter where any particular one of them happens physically to be, the whole body of the Church is there through the sacramental mystery. And everything suitable to the whole body seems suitable to each one of its members... Hence it is that, when several of the faithful are together, they can say: “Incline your ear, O Lord; answer me, for I am afflicted and poor. Keep my life, for I am devoted to you” (Ps 86[85]:1-2). And when we are alone, we can still sing: “Let us all sing joyfully to God our strength; acclaim the God of Jacob” (Ps 81[80]:2). It is not misplaced for us all to say together: “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall be ever in my mouth” (Ps 34[33]:2) nor, when I find myself alone, to proclaim: “Glorify the Lord with me, let us together extol his name” (v.4) and many other, similar expressions. Solitude prevents nobody from speaking in the plural while the mass of the faithful can just as well express themselves in the singular. The Holy Spirit's power, which dwells in each of the faithful and encircles them all, means that in the latter case there is a peopled solitude and in the former a great many who form but one.

Holy Spirit Interactive Kids: A Saint a Day

St. Paschal Baylon

Feast Day: May 17
Born: 1540 :: Died: 1592

Paschal was born at Torre Hermosa, in Aragon (which today is Spain). His pious parents Martin Baylon and Elizabeth Jubera were peasants. From the time he was seven, he worked as a shepherd. His parents could not afford to send him to school but he taught himself to read and write by asking everyone he met to help him. He did this so that he could read from holy books and he often whispered prayers during the day as he took care of the sheep.

When he was twenty-four, Paschal became a Franciscan brother. The other friars liked him. Paschal was easy to get along with and kind. They noticed that he often did the most unpleasant and hardest jobs that no one wanted to do.

He did hard penances that were even stricter than their rules. Yet he was a happy person. When he was a shepherd, he had wished he could be in church praying to Jesus. Now his wish had come true. He loved to keep Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament company. He was also very happy to serve at Mass.

St. Paschal's two great loves were the Holy Eucharist and the Blessed Mother. Every day Paschal prayed the Rosary with great love. He also wrote beautiful prayers to our Heavenly Mother.

Out of some scraps of paper, St. Paschal made himself a little notebook. In it, he wrote down some beautiful thoughts and prayers. After he died, his superior showed the little book to the local archbishop who reading it said, "These simple souls are stealing heaven from us!"

Paschal died in 1592 at the age of fifty-two.

Reflection: How can we grow closer to Jesus in the Eucharist and to Mary? We can make a special visit to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and ask Mary to help us be faithful to her Son.

Catholic Culture

Easter: May 17th

Thursday of the Seventh Week of Easter

MASS READINGS

May 17, 2018 (Readings on USCCB website)

COLLECT PRAYER

May your Spirit, O Lord, we pray, imbue us powerfully with spiritual gifts, that he may give us a mind pleasing to you and graciously conform us to your will. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

show

Recipes (1)

Coffee Bread-and-Butter Pudding

show

Activities (3)

show

Prayers (4)

Library (0)

» Enjoy our Liturgical Seasons series of e-books!

Old Calendar: St. Paschal Baylon, confessor

According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of St. Paschal Baylon, who lived and died in the kingdom of Aragon, Spain. He spent his early years as a shepherd and often gave religious instruction to the shepherds on the hills of Aragon. At the age of twenty-four he entered the Franciscan Order and embraced the humble, austere life of a lay brother. He was noted for his devotion to the Holy Eucharist. Pope Leo XIII declared him protector or all Eucharistic Congresses and works. His feast is no longer on the calendar in the United States.

St. Paschal Baylon
Paschal Baylon (named after the day of his birth and death: Pentecost Sunday—Pascha Pentekostes) was a simple, pious shepherd boy who later became an ardent spiritual son of St. Francis and the heavenly patron of adorers of the Most Blessed Sacrament. He belongs to that illustrious circle of saints who, by heroic holiness of life, refurbished the Church's crown that had been desecrated by the heretics of the sixteenth century. He hailed from the Spanish section of Valencia and died at the age of 52. As he lay dead upon the bier, he opened and closed his eyes twice when the sacred species were elevated at the consecration. Leo XIII declared him the heavenly patron of all Eucharistic leagues and societies.

One day Paschal heard the bells of a convent announce the approaching consecration at Mass. Such an ardent longing for God overcame him that, prompted by yearning and love, he involuntarily cried out: "O God, most worthy of all adoration, please let me see You!" Hardly had he uttered the prayer when a glowing star appeared in the sky. As he watched, the heavens opened; the star disappeared and was replaced by a chalice with the Host, flanked by two adoring angels. Christian art has selected this vision to show his chief virtue, viz., love for the most holy Eucharist.

Excerpted from The Church's Year of Grace, Pius Parsch

Patron: Cooks; Eucharistic congresses and organizations (proclaimed by Pope Leo XIII); Obado, Bulacan, Phillipines.

Symbols: In adoration before a vision of the Host.

Things to Do:

Whoever intends to live with the Church must make the holy Eucharist the primary concern of his life. But he can accomplish this only by participating as actively as possible with the priest in offering the Sacrifice and by receiving holy Communion as part of the sacrificial banquet. Receive the Blessed Sacrament today with the desire to fully appreciate this great gift.

The Word Among Us

Meditation: John 17:20-26

7th Week of Easter

They are your gift to me. (John 17:24)

Even though it’s May, try to imagine it’s Christmas Eve. A father sits by the Christmas tree, struggling to assemble a bicycle for his son. No parts are missing, but it takes work to fit them together. The tires need air. The frame of the bike needs polishing, and the chain needs lubrication. But the father is happy to spend all that effort. He knows it will be worth it when he sees the look of delight on his boy’s face on Christmas morning!

John’s Gospel tells you today that you are a gift from the Father to Jesus. What does this mean? Most obviously, it means that you are precious and valuable to him. That in itself would be enough to ponder for quite some time. But let’s not stop there.

It also means that just as you are a gift to Jesus, so is every other person. We are all gifts individually, and we are also—and no less importantly—a gift as a group. It may not be the most perfect analogy, but the body of Christ is like that bicycle the father is putting together. There are many parts, but together they form a precious gift that God delights in giving to his Son, Jesus.

Sometimes when we look at our parish, all we see are unrelated parts spread out all over the place. There’s the social justice ministry, the pro-life ministry, and the Rosary guild. There’s also the church down the street and the Christians passing out pamphlets in the neighborhood. How will we ever come together? How will we ever become so united that we form one people singing to the glory of the Lord? It may seem impossible to us, but not to God. Like that father on Christmas Eve, he won’t stop working until all the pieces fit together perfectly.

God wants to bring Jesus joy by giving you to him as a gift of inestimable value. But he also wants to bring Jesus joy by giving him the entire Church—indeed, all of humanity—united in love. Let’s join in that mission by echoing Jesus’ own prayer that we “may be brought to perfection as one” (John 17:23). Let’s find ways to work together so that we can bring a bright smile to Jesus’ face.

“Father, make us all one!”

Acts 22:30; 23:6-11
Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11

Regnum Christi

May 17, 2018 – God’s Eternal Love

Thursday of the Seventh Week of Easter
Father Paul Campbell, LC

John 17:20-26

Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed saying: “I pray not only for these, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me. And I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one, that the world may know that you sent me, and that you loved them even as you loved me. Father, they are your gift to me. I wish that where I am they also may be with me, that they may see my glory that you gave me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world. Righteous Father, the world also does not know you, but I know you, and they know that you sent me. I made known to them your name and I will make it known, that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them.”

Introductory Prayer: Lord, I believe in you and all that you have revealed for our salvation. I hope in you because of your overflowing mercy. Every single act of yours on this earth demonstrated your love for us. Your ascent into heaven before the eyes of the Apostles inspires my hope of one day joining you there. I love you and wish you to be the center of my life.

Petition: Lord, increase my faith in your love.

1. Who is God? In his first epistle, John tells us that God is love. Before the foundation of the world, the Father loved the Son. Within the Trinity there is a perfect sharing of life and love. Even after the Incarnation, Jesus remained in his Father’s love. At Christ’s baptism, the Father spoke of his love for his Son. “This is my beloved son” (Matthew 3:17). At the Transfiguration he repeated this sign of love: “This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased; listen to him” (Matthew 17:5). These moments manifest God’s inner life.

2. A Share in His Life: God created us to share in the loving relationship of the Trinity. The Father’s plan is to love us, to bring us into Trinitarian love. He wants to love us in his Son with a Father’s eternal love. If we could catch a mere glimpse of the reality of this love, it would transform our lives. God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten son into the world (see John 3:16). Love is at the heart of the universe.

3. Sharing in God’s Love: God is love, and if he is in us, it is as love. God pours his love, himself, into our hearts. As he shares his life, he shares his love. This is the love that he wants us to give to others. Jesus gave his disciples the love he had received from his Father and sent them forth to continue his work of sharing that love with all of humanity. Think of the people today who are lonely and lost, starving for love and attention. They have no clue that God loves them with an eternal love or that he has loved them intimately, deeply and perfectly from all eternity. They do not know that this love has given them life and maintains them in existence. People need to hear the good news of God’s love. This is our mission.

Conversation with Christ: Jesus, help me to share your love with those around me. Don’t allow me to remain focused just on myself and the circumstances in my life. I need you. I need your love, as do so many others. I need to love in order to give myself to your work, but I also need your constant help and support.

Resolution: I will let someone know that God loves them.

Homily of the Day

May 17, 2018

In the first reading, St. Paul, knowing that his audience was composed of two factions, Pharisees and Sadducees, starts to talk about a point of contention between them. This led to a bitter dispute between the two groups, and they forget about Paul whom they opposed because of his preaching of Jesus.

When there is no unity in a group, there is chaos, and that is what happened in the first reading. There are many obstacles to overcome in order to achieve unity.

We must work to achieve the unity that Christ prayed for at the Last Supper. In the Church the Eucharist is the sacrament which unifies all its members with Christ and with one another.

The sacrament of matrimony is also meant to portray the unity of the members of the Church with Christ, its head. Couples are called to be one in love for each other.

The Triune God is One in the Godhead, “three Persons equal in majesty, undivided in splendor, yet one Lord, one God.”

May all the believers and followers of Christ achieve the unity Christ prayed for at the Last Supper, as we pray on the feast of the Chair of St. Peter, Apostle, “Grant, we pray, almighty God, that no tempests may disturb us, for you have set us fast on the rock of the Apostle Peter’s confession of faith.”

One Bread, One Body

Language: English | Espa�ol

All Issues > Volume 34, Issue 3

<< Thursday, May 17, 2018 >>

Pentecost Novena - Day 7

Acts 22:30; 23:6-11
View Readings

Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11

John 17:20-26
Similar Reflections

THE CROSS OF PENTECOST

"I do not pray for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their word, that all may be one as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; I pray that they may be [one] in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me." �John 17:20-21

Throughout this Pentecost novena, we are praying to receive more deeply the Holy Spirit of unity (see Eph 4:3) by which we can be one as the Father and Jesus are One (Jn 17:21). However, unity does not mean glossing over divisions; it means surfacing and confronting them. For instance, Paul surfaced the disunity between the Pharisees and Sadducees (Acts 23:6-7). Because of this, Paul was almost torn into pieces by the rival forces (Acts 23:10). If we receive the Holy Spirit of unity, we will face disunity head on and suffer accordingly.

This presents a problem. Although we desire unity with God, in the Church, and even between enemies, we probably don't want to sacrifice our life "to gather into one all the dispersed children of God" (Jn 11:52). If we are unwilling to die for unity, we don't want to receive the Holy Spirit of unity. So Pentecost, unity, and a self-sacrificial death all go together.

We have Pentecost when our love for the Lord and for people is stronger than our selfishness and fear of death (see Sg 8:6). Love is the catalyst leading us to die to self, build unity, and receive a new Pentecost. This, in turn, will greatly deepen our love, leading to martyrdoms, a progression of Pentecosts, and Trinity-unity. Will you love enough to pray: "Come, Holy Spirit"?

Prayer: Father, I decide to love enough to be a seed which falls to the earth, dies, and bears fruit abundantly (Jn 12:24).

Promise: "That night the Lord appeared at Paul's side and said: 'Keep up your courage!' " —Acts 23:11

Praise: Receiving the Holy Spirit gave Philip the heart for street evangelization.

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.

May 17, 2018

Thursday of the Seventh Week of Easter

Reading 1 Acts 22:30; 23:6-11

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

Alleluia Jn 17:21

Gospel Jn 17:20-26

May, 2018

The Holy Father's Prayer Intention

Evangelization: The Mission of the Laity, That the lay faithful may fulfill their specific mission, by responding with creativity to the challenges that face the world today.

Thursday of the Seventh week of Easter

St. Paschal Baylon

Easter: May 17th

Thursday of the Seventh Week of Easter

MASS READINGS

COLLECT PRAYER

Recipes (1)

Activities (3)

Prayers (4)

Library (0)

Meditation: John 17:20-26

May 17, 2018 – God’s Eternal Love

One Bread, One Body

THE CROSS OF PENTECOST