Free Republic
Browse · Search
Religion
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings 4-10-2021, Easter Saturday
Universalis/Jerusalem Bible ^

Posted on 04/10/2021 9:41:49 AM PDT by annalex

April 10, 2021

Easter Saturday



Altar of the Cathedral of Pisa

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: White.


First readingActs 4:13-21 ©

We cannot promise to stop proclaiming what we have seen and heard

The rulers, elders and scribes were astonished at the assurance shown by Peter and John, considering they were uneducated laymen; and they recognised them as associates of Jesus; but when they saw the man who had been cured standing by their side, they could find no answer. So they ordered them to stand outside while the Sanhedrin had a private discussion. ‘What are we going to do with these men?’ they asked. ‘It is obvious to everybody in Jerusalem that a miracle has been worked through them in public, and we cannot deny it. But to stop the whole thing spreading any further among the people, let us caution them never to speak to anyone in this name again.’
  So they called them in and gave them a warning on no account to make statements or to teach in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John retorted, ‘You must judge whether in God’s eyes it is right to listen to you and not to God. We cannot promise to stop proclaiming what we have seen and heard.’ The court repeated the warnings and then released them; they could not think of any way to punish them, since all the people were giving glory to God for what had happened.

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 117(118):1,14-21 ©
I will thank you, Lord, for you have given answer.
or
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
Give thanks to the Lord for he is good,
  for his love has no end.
The Lord is my strength and my song;
  he was my saviour.
There are shouts of joy and victory
  in the tents of the just.
I will thank you, Lord, for you have given answer.
or
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
The Lord’s right hand has triumphed;
  his right hand raised me up.
I shall not die, I shall live
  and recount his deeds.
I was punished, I was punished by the Lord,
  but not doomed to die.
I will thank you, Lord, for you have given answer.
or
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
Open to me the gates of holiness:
  I will enter and give thanks.
This is the Lord’s own gate
  where the just may enter.
I will thank you for you have answered
  and you are my saviour.
I will thank you, Lord, for you have given answer.
or
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
Sequence

Victimae Paschali Laudes

Christians, to the Paschal Victim
  offer sacrifice and praise.
The sheep are ransomed by the Lamb;
and Christ, the undefiled,
hath sinners to his Father reconciled.
Death with life contended:
  combat strangely ended!
Life’s own Champion, slain,
  yet lives to reign.
Tell us, Mary:
  say what thou didst see
  upon the way.
The tomb the Living did enclose;
I saw Christ’s glory as he rose!
The angels there attesting;
shroud with grave-clothes resting.
Christ, my hope, has risen:
he goes before you into Galilee.
That Christ is truly risen
  from the dead we know.
Victorious king, thy mercy show!

Gospel AcclamationPs117:24
Alleluia, alleluia!
This day was made by the Lord:
we rejoice and are glad.
Alleluia!

GospelMark 16:9-15 ©

Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News

Having risen in the morning on the first day of the week, Jesus appeared first to Mary of Magdala from whom he had cast out seven devils. She then went to those who had been his companions, and who were mourning and in tears, and told them. But they did not believe her when they heard her say that he was alive and that she had seen him.
  After this, he showed himself under another form to two of them as they were on their way into the country. These went back and told the others, who did not believe them either.
  Lastly, he showed himself to the Eleven themselves while they were at table. He reproached them for their incredulity and obstinacy, because they had refused to believe those who had seen him after he had risen. And he said to them, ‘Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation.’

The readings on this page are from the Jerusalem Bible, which is used at Mass in most of the English-speaking world. The New American Bible readings, which are used at Mass in the United States, are available in the Universalis apps, programs and downloads.

You can also view this page with the Gospel in Greek and English.



TOPICS: Catholic; General Discusssion; Prayer; Worship
KEYWORDS: catholic; easter; mk16; prayer
For your reading, reflection, faith-sharing, comments, questions, discussion.

1 posted on 04/10/2021 9:41:49 AM PDT by annalex
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: All

KEYWORDS: catholic; easter; mk16; prayer;


2 posted on 04/10/2021 9:42:25 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: nickcarraway; NYer; ELS; Pyro7480; livius; ArrogantBustard; Catholicguy; RobbyS; marshmallow; ...
Alleluia Ping

Please FReepmail me to get on/off the Alleluia Ping List.


3 posted on 04/10/2021 9:43:15 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: annalex
Prayer thread for Salvation's recovery
4 posted on 04/10/2021 9:43:44 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: annalex
Mark
 English: Douay-RheimsLatin: Vulgata ClementinaGreek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
 Mark 16
9But he rising early the first day of the week, appeared first to Mary Magdalen, out of whom he had cast seven devils. Surgens autem mane prima sabbati, apparuit primo Mariæ Magdalene, de qua ejecerat septem dæmonia.αναστας δε πρωι πρωτη σαββατου εφανη πρωτον μαρια τη μαγδαληνη αφ ης εκβεβληκει επτα δαιμονια
10She went and told them that had been with him, who were mourning and weeping. Illa vadens nuntiavit his, qui cum eo fuerant, lugentibus et flentibus.εκεινη πορευθεισα απηγγειλεν τοις μετ αυτου γενομενοις πενθουσιν και κλαιουσιν
11And they hearing that he was alive, and had been seen by her, did not believe. Et illi audientes quia viveret, et visus esset ab ea, non crediderunt.κακεινοι ακουσαντες οτι ζη και εθεαθη υπ αυτης ηπιστησαν
12And after that he appeared in another shape to two of them walking, as they were going into the country. Post hæc autem duobus ex his ambulantibus ostensus est in alia effigie, euntibus in villam :μετα δε ταυτα δυσιν εξ αυτων περιπατουσιν εφανερωθη εν ετερα μορφη πορευομενοις εις αγρον
13And they going told it to the rest: neither did they believe them. et illi euntes nuntiaverunt ceteris : nec illis crediderunt.κακεινοι απελθοντες απηγγειλαν τοις λοιποις ουδε εκεινοις επιστευσαν
14At length he appeared to the eleven as they were at table: and he upbraided them with their incredulity and hardness of heart, because they did not believe them who had seen him after he was risen again. Novissime recumbentibus illis undecim apparuit : et exprobravit incredulitatem eorum et duritiam cordis : quia iis, qui viderant eum resurrexisse, non crediderunt.υστερον ανακειμενοις αυτοις τοις ενδεκα εφανερωθη και ωνειδισεν την απιστιαν αυτων και σκληροκαρδιαν οτι τοις θεασαμενοις αυτον εγηγερμενον ουκ επιστευσαν
15And he said to them: Go ye into the whole world, and preach the gospel to every creature. Et dixit eis : Euntes in mundum universum prædicate Evangelium omni creaturæ.και ειπεν αυτοις πορευθεντες εις τον κοσμον απαντα κηρυξατε το ευαγγελιον παση τη κτισει

5 posted on 04/10/2021 9:44:55 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: annalex

Catena Aurea by St. Thomas Aguinas

16:9–13

9. Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.

10. And she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept.

11. And they, when they had heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her, believed not.

12. After that he appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country.

13. And they went and told it unto the residue: neither believed they them.

AUGUSTINE. (de Con. Evan. iii. 25) Now we must consider how the Lord appeared after the resurrection. For Mark says, Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.

BEDE. (ubi sup.) John tells us most fully how and when this appearance took place. But the Lord rose in the morning from the sepulchre in which He had been laid in the evening, that those words of the Psalm might be fulfilled, Heaviness may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. (Ps. 30:5)

THEOPHYLACT. Or else put a stop at, Now when Jesus was risen, and then read, early the first day of the week he appeared, &c.

GREGORY. (ubi sup.) For as Samson at midnight not only left Gaza, but also carried away the gates of it, so also our Redeemer rising before the light, did not only come out free from hell, but destroyed also the very gates of hell. 1But Mark here testifies that seven devils were cast out of Mary; and what is meant by seven devils save all vices? for as by seven days is understood all time, so by the number seven 2 a whole is fitly figured.

THEOPHYLACT. But Mary had seven devils, because she was filled with all vices. Or else, by seven devils are meant seven spirits contrary to the seven virtues, as a spirit without fear, without wisdom, without understanding, and whatsoever else is opposed to the gifts of the Holy Ghost.

PSEUDO-JEROME. Again, He is shewn to her, out of whom He had cast seven devils, because harlots and publicans shall go before the synagogue into the kingdom of heaven, as the thief reached it before the Apostles.

BEDE. (ubi sup.) In the beginning also woman brought man into sin, now she, who first tasted death, first sees the resurrection, lest she should have to bear the reproach of perpetual guilt amongst men; and she who had been the channel of guilt to man, now has become the first channel of grace. For it goes on: And she went and told them that had been with him as they mourned and wept.

PSEUDO-JEROME. They mourn and weep because they had not yet seen, but after a short time they shall receive a consolation. For blessed are they that weep now, for they shall be comforted.

BEDE. (ubi sup.) Fitly too is this woman, who was the first to announce the joy of our Lord’s resurrection, said to have been cured of seven devils, lest any one worthily repenting of his sins should despair of pardon for what he had done, and that it might be shewn that where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. (Rom. 5:20)

SEVERIANUS. (Chrysologus ubi sup.) Mary brings the news, not now as a woman, but in the person of the Church, so that, as above woman was silent, here as the Church she might bring tidings and speak. There follows, And they when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, believed not.

GREGORY. (Hom. in Evan. xxix.) That the disciples were slow in believing our Lord’s resurrection was not so much a weakness of theirs as it is our strength. For the resurrection itself through their doubts was manifested by many proofs; and whilst we read and acknowledge them, what do we but become firmer through their doubting? There follows, After this he appeared in another form unto two of them as they walked and went to a farm house.

AUGUSTINE. (ubi sup.) Luke relates the whole story respecting these two, one of whom was Cleophas, but Mark here touches but slightly upon it. That village of which Luke speaks may without absurdity be supposed to be what is here called a farm house, and indeed in some Greek manuscripts it is called the country. But by this name are understood not only villages, but also boroughs and country towns, because they are without the city, which is the head and mother of all the rest. That which Mark expresses by the Lord’s appearance in another form, is what Luke means by saying that their eyes were holden that they could not know him. For something was upon their eyes, which was allowed to remain there, until the breaking of bread.

SEVERIANUS. (Chrysologus ubi sup.) But let no one suppose that Christ changed the form of His face by His resurrection, but the form is changed when of mortal it becomes immortal, so that this means that He gained a glorious countenance, not that He lost the substance of His countenance. But He was seen of two; because faith in the resurrection is to be preached and shewn to two people, that is, the Gentiles and the Jews. There follows, And they went and told it unto the residue, neither believed they them. How are we to understand the words of Mark compared with the account of Luke, that they then said, The Lord hath risen indeed, and hath appeared unto Simon, (Luke 24:34) if we do not suppose that there were some there who would not believe?

THEOPHYLACT. For he does not say this of the eleven, but of some others, whom He calls the residue.

PSEUDO-JEROME. But in a mystic sense we may understand that faith here labours, leading the active life, but there it reigns secure in the contemplative vision. Here we see His face through a glass, there we shall see the truth face to face, wherefore He was shewn to them as they were walking, that is, labouring, in another form. And when it was told, the disciples did not believe, because they saw, like Moses, that which was not enough for them, for he said, Shew me thyself; (Exod. 33:18. Sept.) forgetting his flesh, he prays in this life for that which we hope for in the life to come.

16:14–18

14. Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.

15. And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature.

GLOSS. (non occ.) Mark, when about to finish his Gospel, relates the last appearance of our Lord to His disciples after His resurrection, saying,1 For the last time he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat. (Acts 1:4, 9)

GREGORY. (ubi sup.) We should observe that Luke says in the Acts, As he2 was eating with them he commanded that they should not depart from Jerusalem, and shortly afterwards, while they beheld he was taken up. For He ate, and then ascended, that by the act of eating, the truth of the flesh might be declared; wherefore it is also here said, that he appeared to them for the last time as they sat at meat.

PSEUDO-JEROME. But He appeared when all the eleven were together, that all might be witnesses, and relate to all men what they had seen and heard in common. It goes on: And upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them who had seen him after his resurrection.

AUGUSTINE. (ubi sup.) But how was this done the last time? The last occasion on which the Apostles saw the Lord upon earth happened forty days after the resurrection; but would He then have upbraided them for not believing those who had seen Him risen, when they themselves had so often seen Him after His resurrection? It remains therefore that we should understand that Mark wished to say it in few words, and said for the last time, because it was the last time that He shewed Himself that day, as night was coming on, when the disciples returned from the country into Jerusalem, and found, as Luke says (Luke 24:33.), the eleven and those who were with them, speaking together concerning the resurrection of our Lord. But there were some there who did not believe; when these then were sitting at meat, (as Mark says,) and were still speaking, (as Luke relates,) The Lord stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you; (Luke 24:36) as Luke and John say. (John 20:19) The rebuke therefore which Mark here mentions, must have been amongst those words, which Luke and John say, that the Lord at that time spoke to the disciples. But another question is raised, how Mark says that He appeared when the eleven sat at meat, if the time was the first part of the night on the Lord’s day, when John plainly says that Thomas was not with them, who, we believe, had gone out, before the Lord came in to them, after those two had returned from the village, and spoken with the eleven, as we find in Luke’s Gospel. But Luke in his relation leaves room for supposing that Thomas went out first, while they spoke these things, and that the Lord entered afterwards; Mark however from his saying, for the last time he appeared to the eleven as they sat at meat, forces us to believe that he was there, unless indeed, though one of them was absent, he chose to call them the eleven, because the company of the Apostles was then called by this number, before Matthias was chosen into the place of Judas. Or if this be a harsh way of understanding it, let us understand that it means that after many appearances, He shewed Himself for the last time, that is, on the fortieth day, to the Apostles, as they sat at meat, and that since He was about to ascend from them, He rather wished on that day to reprove them for not having believed those who had seen Him risen before seeing Him themselves, because after His ascension even the Gentiles on their preaching were to believe a Gospel, which they had not seen. And so the same Mark immediately after that rebuke says, And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature. And lower down, He that believeth not shall be condemned. Since then they were to preach this, were not they themselves to be first rebuked, because before they saw the Lord they had not believed those to whom He had first appeared?

GREGORY. (ubi sup.) Another reason also why our Lord rebuked His disciples, when He left them as to His bodily presence, was, that the words which He spoke on leaving them might remain more deeply impressed upon the hearts of His hearers.

PSEUDO-JEROME. But He rebukes their want of faith, that faith might take its place; He rebukes the hardness of their stony heart, that the fleshy heart, full of love, might take its place.

GREGORY. (ubi sup.) After rebuking the hardness of their hearts, let us hear the words of advice which He speaks. For it goes on: Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature. Every man must be understood by every creature; for man partakes something of every creature; he has existence as have stones, life as trees, feeling as animals, understanding as have Angels. For the Gospel is preached to every creature, because he is taught by it, for whose sake all are created, whom all things are in some way like, and from whom therefore they are not alien. By the name of every creature also every nation of the Gentiles may be meant. For it had been said before, Go not into the way of the Gentiles. (Matt. 10:5) But now it is said, Preach the Gospel to every creature, so that the preaching of the Apostles which was thrust aside by Judæa, might be an assistance to us, since Judæa had haughtily rejected it, thus witnessing to her own damnation.

THEOPHYLACT. Or else; to every creature, that is, whether believing or unbelieving. It goes on: He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. For it is not enough to believe, for he who believeth and is not baptized, but is a catechumen, has not yet attained to perfect salvation.

Catena Aurea Mark 16

6 posted on 04/10/2021 9:47:52 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: annalex


Resurrection of Christ with Sts Leonardo and Lucy

Marco d’Oggiono

1491-94
Oil on panel
Staatliche Museen, Berlin

7 posted on 04/10/2021 9:48:34 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: annalex
Magdalena of Canossa (1774-1835) 
virgin, foundress of the Canossian Family of Daughters and Sons of Charity

 photo

MAGDALENA OF CANOSSA, was a woman who believed in the love of the Lord Jesus and, sent by the Holy Spirit among those most in need, she served them with a Mother's heart and an Apostle's zeal.

Born in Verona on 1st March 1774, of a noble and wealthy family, she was the third of six children.

By way of painful events such as her father's death, her mother's second marriage, illness, misunderstanding, the Lord guided her towards unforeseen paths on which Magdalene tentatively set out.

A CALL

Drawn by the love of God, at the age of seventeen she planned to consecrate her life to God and twice tried her vocation at a Carmel.

However, the Holy Spirit urged her to follow a new path: to allow herself to be loved by Jesus Crucified, to belong to Him alone, in order to dedicate herself exclusively to those in greatest need.
She returned to her family and, being compelled by sad events and the tragic political circumstances at the end of the 18th century, she nurtured her true vocation in the depth of her heart and went on with life at Canossa Palace, shouldering the burden of running her family's large estate.

A GIFT

With complete dedication Magdalene carried out her daily tasks and widened her circle of friends while at the same time remaining open to the mysterious action of the Holy Spirit who gradually moulded her heart and enabled her to share in the love of the Father for mankind revealed by Jesus' complete and supreme offering of Himself on the Cross, and by the example of Mary, the Sorrowful Virgin Mother.

Moved by that love, Magdalene responded to the cry of the poor, hungry for food, instruction, understanding and the Word of God. She discovered them in the suburbs of Verona, where the echoes of the French Revolution, the occupation by various foreign powers and the Verona uprising had left evident signs of devastation and human suffering.

A PROJECT

Magdalene sought and found her first companions called to follow Christ, poor, chaste, obedient and who were to be sent out as witnesses of His unconditional Love towards all people.
In 1808, Magdalene overcame her family's opposition and left Canossa Palace once and for all to begin in the poorest district of Verona what she knew in her heart to be the Will of God: to serve the neediest persons with the heart of Christ.

A PROPHECY

Charity is like a blazing fire! Magdalene opened her heart to the Holy Spirit who guided her to the poor in other cities: Venice, Milan, Bergamo, Trent ... In only a few decades the number of her houses increased, her religious family grew in the service of the Kingdom of God.

The Love of the Crucified and Risen Lord burnt in Magdalene's heart who, together with her companions, became a witness of that same love in five specific areas:
Charity schools, providing an all-round formation geared to pupils status in life. Catechesis, given to all classes of people, with special attention to those most ignorant of the Faith.

Support given to women patients in hospital.

Residential seminars, to train young teachers for rural areas and valuable helpers for parish priests in their pastoral activities.

Yearly courses of Spiritual Exercises for Ladies of the nobility, with the aim of deepening their spiritual life and involving them in various charitable works.

Later on, this last activity was offered to all those who had a desire for it.

Contemporary to Magdalene and her apostolic work, flourished other witnesses of Charity: Leopoldina Naudet, Antonio Rosmini, Antonio Provolo, Carlo Steeb, Gaspare Bertoni, Teodora Campostrini, T. Eustochio Verzeri, Elisabetta Renzi, Cavanis brothers, Pietro Leonardi, all of whom founded Religious Institutes.


 

A FAMILY

The Institute of the Daughters of Charity, between 1819 and 1820, received its ecclesiastical approval in the various dioceses where the communities were present.

His Holiness Pope Leo XII approved the Rule of the Institute with the Brief Si Nobis, of 23rd December 1828.

Towards the end of her life, after unsuccessful attempts with A. Rosmini and A. Provolo, Magdalene was able to start the male branch of the Institute which she had planned to set up from the very beginning.

On 23th May 1831 in Venice, she began the first Oratory of the Sons of Charity for the Christian formation of boys and men. She entrusted it to the Venetian priest Don Francesco Luzzo, helped by two laymen from Bergamo: Giuseppe Carsana and Benedetto Belloni.

Magdalene's active and fruitful life ended when she was 61 years of age. She died in Verona surrounded by her Daughters on 10th April 1835. It was the Friday of Passion Week.

A MISSION

Above all make Jesus Christ known! This heartfelt concern of Magdalene's was the great inheritance that the Daughters and Sons of Charity are called to live, a life of complete availability to God and service towards others, willing to go to the most distant countries for the sake of this holy work. (MAGDALENE, Ep. II/I, p. 266).

The Daughters of Charity traveled for the Far East in 1860. Today there are about 4000 sisters throughout the world, grouped into 24 provinces.

The Sons of Charity number about 200. They work in various cities in Italy, Latin America and the Philippines.

Canossian Religious, called to a missionary vocation, "ad gentes", make themselves receptive to those basic Christian values, "the seeds of the Word", present in every culture while giving witness to and proclaiming what the "have seen, heard, contemplated...": the Love of the Father who, in Christ, reaches out to every person so that they may have life. Through this giving and receiving, the charism is enriched and bears fruit for God's Kingdom.

The charism which the Holy Spirit brought to life in Magdalene did not exhaust itself in the vitality of the two Institutes.

Consequently, various groups of lay people have found in Magdalene and in her ideals, their special way of living the faith, of witnessing charity, in all walks of Christian life.

A SONG OF THANKSGIVING

The Church draws our attention, especially that of her Sons and Daughters, to Magdalene, a Witness of the constant and freely given love of God.

We give thanks to Him for the gift of this Mother and Sister of ours and through her intercession we ask that we may love Him, as she did, above all other things, and make Him known to our fellow men by living our specific vocation.


vatican.va
8 posted on 04/10/2021 9:52:30 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: annalex

9 posted on 04/10/2021 9:53:55 AM PDT by annalex (fear them not)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: annalex; All
NAVARRE BIBLE COMMENTARY (RSV)

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam (To the Greater Glory of God)

From: Acts 4:13-21

Address To the Sanhedrin (Continuation)
---------------------------------------
[13] Now when they (the Sanhedrin) saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they wondered; and they recognized that they had been with Jesus. [14] But seeing the man that had been healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition. [15] But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred with one another, [16] saying, "What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is manifest to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. [17] But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to any one in this Name." [18] So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. [19] But Peter and John answered them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God you must judge; [20] for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard." [21] And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people; for all men praised God for what had happened.

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

13. The members of the Sanhedrin are surprised by Peter's confidence and by the way these men, who are not well versed in the Law, are able to use Sacred Scripture. "Did not the Apostles," (St. John) Chrysostom asks in admiration, "poor and without earthly weapons, enter into battle against enemies who were fully armed [...]? Without experience, without skill of the tongue, they fought against experts in rhetoric and the language of the academies" (Hom. on Acts, 4).

18-20. In one of his homilies Pope St John Paul II gives us a practical commentary on this passage, which help us see the right order of priorities and give pride of place to the things of God: "Whereas the elders of Israel charge the Apostles not to speak about Christ, God, on the other hand, does not allow them to remain silent. [...] In Peter's few sentences we find a full testimony to the Resurrection of the Lord. [...] The word of the living God addressed to men obliges us more than any other human commandment or purpose. This word carries with it the supreme eloquence of truth, it carries the authority of God Himself. [...]

"Peter and the Apostles are before the Sanhedrin. They are completely and absolutely certain that God Himself has spoken in Christ, and has spoken definitely through His Cross and Resurrection. Peter and the Apostles to whom this truth was directly given--as also those who in their time received the Holy Spirit--must bear witness TO IT.

BELIEVING means accepting with complete conviction the truth that comes from God, drawing support from the grace of the Holy Spirit 'whom God has given to those who obey Him' (Acts 5:32) to accept what God has revealed and what comes to us through the Church in its living transmission, that is, in Tradition. The organ of this Tradition is the teaching of Peter and of the Apostles and of their successors.

"Over the centuries the sanhedrins change which seek to impose silence, abandonment or distortion of this truth. The "sanhedrins of the contemporary world" are many and of all types. These sanhedrins are each and every person who rejects divine truth; they are systems of human thought, of human knowledge; they are various "conceptions of the world" and also the various programs of human behavior; they are also the different "forms of pressure" used by so-called public opinion, mass civilization, media of social communication, which are materialist or secular agnostic or anti-religious; they are, finally, certain contemporary "systems of government" which--if they do not totally deprive citizens of scope to profess the faith--at least limit that scope in different ways, marginalize believers and turn them into second-class citizens...and against all these modern types of the Sanhedrin of that time, the response of faith is always the same: 'We must obey God rather than men' (Acts 5:29)" (Homily, 20 April 1980).

10 posted on 04/10/2021 10:49:09 AM PDT by fidelis (Zonie and USAF Cold Warrior)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: annalex; All
From: Mark 16:9-15

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene and to Two Disciples
----------------------------------------------------
[9] Now when He (Jesus) rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast our seven demons. [10] She went and told those who had been with Him, as they mourned and wept. [11] But when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.

[12] After this He appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. [13] And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them.

Jesus Appears to the Eleven. The Apostles' Mission
---------------------------------------------------
[14] Afterwards He appeared to the Eleven themselves as they sat at table; and He upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw Him after He had risen. [15] And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation."

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

11-14. When reporting these first appearances of the risen Jesus, St. Mark stresses the disciples' disbelief and their reluctance to accept the fact of the Resurrection, even though Jesus foretold it (cf. Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:34). This resistance shown by the Apostles is a further guarantee of the truth of Jesus' resurrection; they were to be direct, specially-appointed witnesses to the risen Christ, yet they were reluctant to accept this role. They had personal, direct proof of the truth of the Resurrection.

However, our Lord will say: "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe" (John 20:29). In the Apostles' case, they needed, in addition to faith in the risen Christ, clear evidence of His resurrection, for they were to be the eye-witnesses, key witnesses who would proclaim it as an irrefutable fact. In this connection [Pope] St. Gregory the Great comments: "The reason why the disciples were slow to believe in the Resurrection was not so much due to their weakness as to our future firmness in the faith; what other purposes does this have (the very Resurrection being demonstrated by many arguments to those who were in doubt) than that our faith should be strengthened by their doubt?" (In Evangelia Homilae, 16).

12. Our Lord's appearance to these two disciples is reported more fully by St. Luke (cf. 24:13-35).

15. This verse contains what is called the "universal apostolic mandate" (paralleled by Matthew 28:19-20 and Luke 24:46-48). This is an imperative command from Christ to His Apostles to preach the Gospel to the whole world. This same apostolic mission applies, especially to the Apostles' successors, the bishops in communion with Peter's successor, the Pope.

But this mission extends further: the whole "Church was founded to spread the Kingdom of Christ over all the earth for the glory of God the Father, to make all men partakers in redemption and salvation....Every activity of the Mystical Body with this in view goes by the name of `apostolate'; the Church exercises it through all its members, though in various ways. In fact, the Christian vocation is, of its nature, a vocation to the apostolate as well. In the organism of a living body no member plays a purely passive part, sharing in the life of the body it shares at the same time in its activity. The same is true for the body of Christ, the Church: `the whole body achieves full growth in dependence on the full functioning of each part' (Ephesians 4:16). Between the members of this body there exists, further, such a unity and solidarity (cf. Ephesians 4:16) that a member who does not work at the growth of the body to the extent of his possibilities must be considered useless both to the Church and to himself.

"In the Church there is diversity of ministry but unity of mission. To the apostles and their successors Christ has entrusted the office of teaching, sanctifying and governing in His name and by His power. But the laity are made to share in the priestly, prophetical and kingly office of Christ; they have therefore, in the Church and in the world, their own assignment in the mission of the whole people of God" (Vatican II, Apostolicam Actuositatem, 2).

It is true that God acts directly on each person's soul through grace, but it must also be said that it is Christ's will (expressed here and elsewhere) that men should be an instrument or vehicle of salvation for others.

Vatican II also teaches this: "On all Christians, accordingly, rests the noble obligation of working to bring all men throughout the whole world to hear and accept the divine message of salvation" ("ibid.", 3).

Daily Word for Reflection—Navarre Bible Commentary

11 posted on 04/10/2021 10:49:48 AM PDT by fidelis (Zonie and USAF Cold Warrior)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

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.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
Religion
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson