Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings 6-May-2022

Catena Aurea by St. Thomas Aguinas

6:52–54

52. The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?

53. Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.

54. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.

AUGUSTINE. (Tr. xxvi. s. 14) The Jews not understanding what was the bread of peace, strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us His flesh to eat? Whereas they who eat the bread strive not among themselves, for God makes them to dwell together in unity.

BEDE. The Jews thought that our Lord would divide His flesh into pieces, and give it them to eat: and so mistaking Him, strove.

CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. xlvii. 1) As they thought it impossible that He should do as He said, i. e. give them His flesh to eat, He shews them that it was not only possible, but necessary: Then said Jesus unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you.

AUGUSTINE. (Tr. xxvi. 15) As if He said, The sense in which that bread is eaten, and the mode of eating it, ye know not; but, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you.

BEDE. And that this might not seem addressed to them alone, He declares universally, Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life.

AUGUSTINE. (Tr. xxvi. 15) And that they might not understand him to speak of this life, and make that an occasion of striving, He adds, Hath eternal life. This then he hath not who eateth not that flesh, nor drinketh that blood. The temporal life men may have without Him, the eternal they cannot. This is not true of material food. If we do not take that indeed, we shall not live, neither do we live, if we take it: for either disease, or old age, or some accident kills us after all. Whereas this meat and drink, i. e. the Body and Blood of Christ, is such that he that taketh it not hath not life, and he that taketh it hath life, even life eternal.

THEOPHYLACT. (in v. 52) For it is not the flesh of man simply, but of God: and it makes man divine, by inebriating him, as it were, with divinity.

AUGUSTINE. (de Civ. Dei, l. xxi. c. 25.) There are some who promise men deliverance from eternal punishment, if they are washed in Baptism and partake of Christ’s Body, whatever lives they live. The Apostle however contradicts them, where he says, The works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like; of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. (Gal. 5:19. et seq.) Let us examine what is meant here. He who is in the unity of His body, (i. e. one of the Christian members,) the Sacrament of which body the faithful receive when they communicate at the Altar; he is truly said to eat the body, and drink the blood of Christ. And heretics and schismatics, who are cut off from the unity of the body, may receive the same Sacrament; but it does not profit them, nay, rather is hurtful, as tending to make their judgment heavier, or their forgiveness later. Nor ought they to feel secure in their abandoned and damnable ways, who, by the iniquity of their lives, desert righteousness, i. e. Christ; either by fornication, or other sins of the like kind. Such are not to be said to eat the body of Christ; forasmuch as they are not to be counted among the members of Christ. For, not to mention other things, men cannot be members of Christ, and at the same time members of an harlot.

AUGUSTINE. (super Joan. c. xxvi. 15) By this meat and drink then, He would have us understand the society of His body, and His members, which is the Church, in the predestined, and called, and justified, and glorified saints and believers. The Sacrament whereof, i. e. of the unity of the body and blood of Christ, is administered, in some places daily, in others on such and such days from the Lord’s Table: and from the Lord’s Table it is received by some to their salvation, by others to their condemnation. But the thing itself of which this is the Sacrament, is for our salvation to every one who partakes of it, for condemnation to none. To prevent us supposing that those who, by virtue of that meat and drink, were promised eternal life, would not die in the body, He adds, And I will, raise him up at the last day; i. e. to that eternal life, a spiritual rest, which the spirits of the Saints enter into. But neither shall the body be defrauded of eternal life, but shall be endowed with it at the resurrection of the dead in the last day.

6:55–59

55. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.

56. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.

57. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.

58. This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

59. These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum.

BEDE. He had said above, Whoso eateth My flesh and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life: and now to shew the great difference between bodily meat and drink, and the spiritual mystery of His body and blood, He adds, For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.

CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. xlvii. 1) i. e. this is no enigma, or parable, but ye must really eat the body of Christ; or He means to say that the true meat was He who saved the soul.

AUGUSTINE. (Tr. xxvi. 17) Or thus: Whereas men desire meat and drink to satisfy hunger and thirst, this effect is only really produced by that meat and drink, which makes the receivers of it immortal and incorruptible; i. e. the society of Saints, where is peace and unity, full and perfect. On which account our Lord has chosen for the types of His body and blood, things which become one out of many. Bread is a quantity of grains united into one mass, wine a quantity of grapes squeezed together. Then He explains what it is to eat His body and drink His blood: He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him. So then to partake of that meat and that drink, is to dwell in Christ and Christ in thee. He that dwelleth not in Christ, and in whom Christ dwelleth not, neither eateth His flesh, nor drinketh His blood: but rather eateth and drinketh the sacrament of it to his own damnation.

CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. xlvii. 1) Or, having given a promise of eternal life to those that eat Him, He says this to confirm it: He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him.

AUGUSTINE. (de Verb. Dom.) As for those, as indeed there are many, who either eat that flesh and drink that blood hypocritically, or, who having eaten, become apostates, do they dwell in Christ, and Christ in them? Nay, but there is a certain mode of eating that flesh, and drinking that blood, in the which he that eateth and drinketh, dwelleth in Christ, and Christ in him.

AUGUSTINE. (de Civ. Dei, l. xxi. c. 25) That is to say, such an one eateth the body and drinketh the blood of Christ not in the sacramental sense, but in reality.

CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. xlvi) And because I live, it is manifest that he will live also: As the living Father hath sent Me, and I lice by the Father, even so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me. (Aug. de Verb. Dom. [Nic.]). As if He said, As the Father liveth, so do I live; adding, lest you should think Him unbegotten, By the Father, meaning that He has His source in the Father. He that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me; the life here meant is not life simply, but the justified life: for even unbelievers live, who never eat of that flesh at all. Nor is it of the general resurrection He speaks, (for all will rise again,) but of the resurrection to glory, and reward.

AUGUSTINE. (Tr. xxvi. s. 19) He saith not, As I eat the Father, and live by the Father, so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me. For the Son does not grow better by partaking of the Father, as we do by partaking of the Son, i. e. of His one body and blood, which this eating and drinking signifies. So that His saying, I live by the Father, because He is from Him, must not be understood as detracting from His equality. Nor do the words, Even he that eateth Me, the same shall live by Me, give us the equality that He has. He does not equalize, but only mediates between God and man. If, however, we understand the words, I live by the Father, in the sense of those below, My Father is greater than I, (c. 14:28) then it is as if He said, That I live by the Father, i. e. refer my life to Him, as my superior, my1 humiliation in my incarnation is the cause; but He who lives by Me, lives by Me by virtue of partaking of My flesh.

HILARY. (vii. de Trin. c. 14) Of the truth then of the body and blood of Christ, no room for doubting remains: for, by the declaration of our Lord Himself, and by the teaching of our own faith, the flesh is really flesh, and the blood really blood. This then is our principle of life. While we are in the flesh, Christ dwelleth in us by His flesh. (c.14:19) And we shall live by Him, according as He liveth. If then we live naturally by partaking of Him according to the flesh, He also liveth naturally by the indwelling of the Father according to the Spirit. His birth did not give Him an alien or different nature from the Father.

AUGUSTINE. (Tr. xxvi. c. 20) That we who cannot obtain eternal life of ourselves, might live by the eating that bread, He descended from heaven: This is the bread which cometh down from heaven.

HILARY. (de Trin. x. c. 18.) He calls Himself the bread, because He is the origin of His own body. And lest it should be thought that the virtue and nature of the Word had given way to the flesh, He calls the bread His flesh, that, inasmuch as the bread came down from heaven, it might be seen that His body was not of human conception, but a heavenly body. To say that the bread is His own, is to declare that the Word assumed His body Himself.

THEOPHYLACT. For we do not eat God simply, God being impalpable and incorporeal; nor again, the flesh of man simply, which would not profit us. But God having taken flesh into union with Himself, that flesh is quickening. Not that it has changed its own for the Divine nature; but, just as heated iron remains iron, with the action of the heat in it; so our Lord’s flesh is quickening, as being the flesh of the Word of God.

BEDE. And to shew the wide interval between the shadow and the light, the type and the reality, He adds, Not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

AUGUSTINE. (Tr. xxvi. 20) The death here meant is death eternal. For even those who eat Christ are subject to natural death; but they live for ever, because Christ is everlasting life.

CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. xlvii. 1) For if it was possible without harvest or fruit of the earth, or any such thing, to preserve the lives of the Israelites of old for forty years, much more will He be able to do this with that spiritual food, of which the manna is the type. He knew how precious a thing life was in men’s eyes, and therefore repeats His promise of life often; just as the Old Testament had done; (Exod. 20:12) only that it only offered length of life, He life without end. (Deut. 22:7) This promise was an abolition of that sentence of death, which sin had brought upon us. These things said He in the synagogue, as He taught in Capernaum; (1 Kings 3:14) where many displays of His power took place. (Ps. 21:4; 91:16) He taught in the synagogue and in the temple, (Prov. 3:2) with the view of attracting the multitude, and as a sign that He was not acting in opposition to the Father.

BEDE. Mystically, Capernaum, which means beautiful town, stands for the world: the synagogue, for the Jewish people. The meaning is, that our Lord hath, by the mystery of the incarnation, manifested Himself to the world, and also taught the Jewish people His doctrines.

Catena Aurea John 6

The Life Story of St. Dominic Savio

Saint Dominic Savio is a wonderful hero for young people today. This teenage saint's way to holiness was to live the spirituality that was shared with him by St. John Bosco and his Salesians, basically a life lived simply by doing the everyday duties of life in an extra ordinary way. It is a youth spirituality that can be lived by people of all ages. The Salesian Spirituality responds to the Gospel imperative given by Jesus to his disciples and to all who follow Him, "Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.’ Then he embraced them and blessed them, placing his hands on them." (Mark 10: 14-16)

Childhood

On a beautiful spring day, April 2, 1842, in the village of Riva, two miles from the town of Chieri, in the province of Piedmont, northern Italy, Dominic Savio was born. He was the second of eleven children born to Charles and Brigid Savio, who were poor, hard-working, pious people. Charles was a blacksmith. Dominic was a remarkable boy. What we know of him comes from a biography written by St. John Bosco and the testimony of family and friends. He attended the Oratory of St. Francis De Sales a school, youth center and hospice founded by Don Bosco.

School Days

Dominic was very bright and enjoyed school as well as play. He was well liked and respected by his friends. Dominic had remarkable control over his emotions, and while he could get angry like any of his companions, he was able to control himself in most situations. He was friendly and showed early his leadership qualities and a strong sense of duty. He was a prayerful person and had an ever-maturing spirituality.

The Savios attended church in the town of Murialdo and the pastor, Father John Lucca, knew them well. He saw Dominic in Church often. Once he learned to serve Mass he was there every day. While children of the time customarily received their first Communion in their early teens, Fr. Lucca recognized the boy’s remarkable piety and let him make his First Communion at the age of seven.

Growing Faith

As the day of his first Communion drew near, Dominic wrote down four resolutions, remarkably mature thoughts of a seven year old:

I will go to Confession and Communion as often as my confessor will allow.
I will sanctify Sundays and holy days in a special way.
Jesus and Mary will be my friends.
Death, but not sin.

As we shall see Dominic lived by these resolutions.

Imagine a boy of ten trudging a total of twelve miles to and from school every day for a whole school year. That's what Dominic Savio did, because the school he attended was three miles away from home, and he had to go and come twice a day. On one very hot day an elderly man met him and asked, "Aren't you afraid to walk so far alone on this country road?"

"I'm not alone," replied Dominic. "I have my guardian angel with me. "

"But surely you find the journey long and tiresome in this very hot weather!"

"I work for a Master who pays well."

"And who is your master?"

"God is my master."

While full of energy and ready to join in any game with his friends, Dominic’s health was weak. The long walk every day took its toll. The next year his parents decided to move from Murialdo to another village called Mondonio to be closer to school.

Growing Love

It was at this school that an incident occurred which shows the depth of Dominic’s kindness and thoughtfulness. Once a classmate committed a serious offense. This boy had a reputation for misbehavior. The culprit falsely accused Dominic of the offence. The teacher scolded the class, and threatened Dominic was expulsion, but because Dominic had never misbehaved before, he gave Dominic severe scolding before the whole class. Dominic made no reply but stood in silence head bowed. A few days later the boy who was actually guilty was discovered. Regretting his previous harsh words, the teacher asked Dominic why he had not defended himself.

His answer came slowly but simply: "I knew that the other boy was in trouble for other things. I remembered how Our Lord had been unjustly accused, and I hoped that if I kept silence he would be given another chance."

This incident took place when Dominic was only eleven years old. It shows the depth and simplicity of this young soul.

Meeting A Guide

For several years Don Bosco would take some of the young people of the Oratory on an outing during the customary October break. This noisy procession of students would walk from the Oratory in Turin some 18 miles to Becchi where Don Bosco grew up and where his brother, Joseph, still worked the family farm. Don Bosco would arrange for food and lodging with the pastors of the parishes on the way. In return the young people would put on an entertainment for the people of the towns they visited.

Early on the morning of the first Monday of October' in 1854, Dominic and his father went looking for Don Bosco, who was going to be in the town of Murialdo on the outing. Dominic greeted Don Bosco with a bright smile, "Good morning, Father."

"Good morning, and what is your name?" asked Don Bosco. "Where are you from?"

"I'm Dominic Savio. I come from Mondonio. This is my father, Mr. Charles Savio. Father Cagliero, my teacher, told me that I should talk to you. Did he tell you about me?"

"Yes he did, Dominic." Don Bosco asked him about his schoolwork and his life at home.

Without hesitation Dominic asked, "Father, will you take me to Turin with you to the Oratory to study?"

"Well, you look like good material to me!" Don Bosco exclaimed.

"Good material, Father? Good for what?"

"To make a beautiful garment for the Lord, son."

"Then take me with you, Father. You can be the tailor, and I'll be the cloth. Make me into a beautiful garment for Our Lord."

Knowing a little about the boy from information given by his Pastor, Fr. Lucca, and his, teacher, Don Cagliero, Don Bosco explained, "I'm concerned about your health. Do you think that you will be all right? Life at the Oratory is not the same as at home?"

"Don't worry about that, Father. I’ll be O.K." Dominic was very excited about going to Don Bosco’s famous school.

"What do you want to do when you finish your studies?" Don Bosco asked.

"If God gives me the call, I very much want to be a priest."

"Bravo, Dominic! Now let's see how quick you are at learning. Take this book and see if you can learn this page by heart. Come back tomorrow when you have it memorized. Go now and join the other boys in that game. I want to talk to your father."

Don Bosco sent Dominic off to join the other boys who were playing, and then he turned to have a word with his father. Mr. Savio assured Don Bosco that his son was a very good boy and a bright student.

To Don Bosco's surprise, Dominic returned a few minutes later. Smiling, he said, "I can recite it now if you want me to, Father! " Don Bosco listened as the boy recited the assigned page word for word without hesitation or any mistakes. Dominic was motivated to accomplish the task as soon as he could so that he could join the other youngsters who were playing near by.

With a little doubt in his voice Don Bosco asked, "That is very impressive, Dominic, but do you know the meaning of what you have just recited?"

Eagerly Dominic explained clearly the meaning of the passage to the delight of both Don Bosco and his father.

"Very good," said Don Bosco. "Your father and I have spoken and he agrees that you may come to Turin. From now on you are one of the Oratory boys. Let’s pray for each other."

Overjoyed and grateful beyond words, Dominic took Don Bosco's hand and said, "Don Bosco, I will do my best."

Dominic arrived in Turin at Don Bosco‘s Oratory of St. Francis De Sales in early October 1854. He was twelve-and-a-half years old.

Dominic paid Don Bosco a visit in his office a few days after his arrival. Dominic noticed a sign in a frame hanging over the door.

"What's the meaning of those words, Father?"

Don Bosco explained, "That is a motto, Da mihi animas caetera tolle. It is Latin. Do you understand Latin?"

"No, Father."

"It is a saying of St. Francis De Sales, our patron. I have taken it as my motto. It is translated: Give me souls: take away the rest."

Dominic did not fully understand meaning of the words, but a seed was planted in his heart.

Don Bosco Explained, "I am very concerned that I work hard to help people and myself save our souls by following Jesus, nothing else really matters."

Meeting Another Guide

A second event captured Dominic’s imagination. On December 8, 1854 Pope Pius IX proclaimed the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception. Don Bosco and his Salesians took great care to prepare the young people of the Oratory for that special day. The whole community gathered in the Chapel. In a special prayer service the Salesians and the young people offered themselves to Mary, the Immaculate Mother of Jesus. Dominic remembered his first Communion resolutions and renewed them. Death but not sin… he remembered.

"From that day onward," wrote Don Bosco, "Dominic made such evident progress in virtue, that I began to write down everything I noticed about him."

Called to Holiness

A few months later on the second Sunday of Lent, 1855, Don Bosco was preaching to the boys of the Oratory. He exclaimed, "Every one is called to be a saint, and do you know, it is easy to be a saint. Just do this: diligently do the ordinary things of the day in an extra ordinary way." Dominic was profoundly impressed. He began to think most seriously about what it meant to be a saint.

He became quiet and looked worried. Don Bosco stopped him one day and asked him if something was bothering him, "Dominic, do you feel all right?"

"I am fine, Don Bosco! I have been thinking about your sermon last Sunday. From now on, I am going to be very serious about becoming a saint."

"Dominic," explained Don Bosco, "say your prayers devoutly. Perform all your duties exactly, and above all be cheerful. The Lord loves a cheerful giver."

At first Dominic did not really understand what Don Bosco meant. In his eagerness to become holy, Dominic began to do what he understood to be penance. He had heard about saints of the Middle Ages who would go on severe fasts and punish themselves with painful physical penances. Dominic actually put pieces of wood or small stones in his bed so that he could "suffer for Christ." When the dormitory monitor told Don Bosco about this he called Dominic aside.

"The way to be a saint, Dominic, is to be always cheerful, do your duties to the best of your ability, and give your classmates good example. Keep in mind that the Lord, Jesus is always with you and wants your happiness."

The educational method Don Bosco and his Salesians was guiding Dominic and the other youngsters of the Oratory, helping them to develop and grow into maturity. Don Bosco’s approach to ministry was to foster in the young people the skills and talents that would help them to develop into good Christians and upright citizens. In a short booklet entitled, The Preventive System, he described his approach to youth ministry as based on reason, religion and loving-kindness. Volumes have been written about Don Bosco’s method by his Salesians.

A Young Apostle

Don Bosco developed youth to youth ministry a hundred years before the term came to be used in education. Don Bosco began his ministry with very little help and no expertise except his own experience as a child and his keen insights into the nature of young people. He had to train a taskforce of people who would become experts in caring for these at-risk children. He gathered a hand full of generous adults willing to follow his lead and a large number of youth whom he could train to minister to their peers. Dominic became one of these young apostles.

Learning to Minister

During the next two years Dominic grew in his awareness of God’s call to holiness. He was already very pious, but now he became a person of prayer. Dominic realized that part of becoming a saint was sharing his knowledge and awareness of God with his companions.

Dominic was well liked by his classmates at the Oratory. He did well in school and enjoyed the games the other youngsters played. In Italy at the middle of the nineteenth century children did not play sports as we do today. Instead they enjoyed any number of games, races and field games. Dominic was always in the middle of the activities. He was always aware of what the others were doing and he became the mentor of his companions. The other kids respected him and appreciated his leadership, but when things went wrong he was not afraid to step in a bring order to difficult situations.

On one occasion two boys had gotten into an argument and challenged each other to a rock duel. This was a common way young thugs and street gangs settled arguments. These duels usually ended with someone getting hurt and sometimes seriously. It seems that one boy had insulted the family of the other. The two boys became so enraged that the only way they could think of settling the affair was to fight with stones. They were to meet in the lot about ten minutes' walk from the Oratory.

Dominic Savio learned about the fight. He caught up with the boys and tried to talk them out of it. They would not hear of it. Dominic followed them to a field where the fight was to take place.

Dominic pleaded "You must stop this. It is not right!"

The one of the boys shouted, "You can’t stop us."

"Not until I split his head open..." the other added.

"I am not stopping the fight," shot back Dominic, "but I am asking you to accept one condition."

"And what’s that? They asked. By now they had arrived at the field set up the duel. Each boy stood facing the other with a distance of about twenty feet between him. Each had a pile of stones arranged at his feet. On the signal they would began to throw the stones at each other until one gave up or was seriously injured.

Dominic stepped between them. One of the two shouted, "Dominic, what are you doing?"

"Do you promise you will fight under the condition I will set up?"

"Yes, now get out of the way, agreed one of the boys."

The other shouted, "Let’s get this over with. What’s the condition?"

Taking out a small crucifix, which he used to wear around his neck, Dominic held it up. "Before you start the fight you must look at this crucifix, and throw the first stone at me."

He strode before the angrier boy, and kneeling down said, "You start! Throw the first stone at me!"

Taken by surprise, the boy began to tremble. "No!" he protested. "Never! I have no argument with you, Dominic."

Dominic ran over to the other boy. He too was astonished and assured Dominic he was his friend and meant him no harm.

Then Dominic stood up. Looking at them, he said with great emotion: "Neither of you is ready to hurt me because I am your friend, yet you want commit this sin over a stupid remark made at school. Christ, who was innocent, died for us rather then seek revenge from those who hated him." Dominic stood, silent, crucifix in hand. Both boys dropped their stones, ashamed before his courageous stand.

"At that moment," one of them later admitted, "all my determination broke down and a cold chill ran through me. I hated myself for having forced a good friend like Dominic to go to such lengths to keep us from sin. To show my regret, I forgave the boy who had insulted me and asked Dominic to tell me of some good priest who would hear my confession."

Apostle of Prayer

Dominic had a special love for the Immaculate Heart of Mary. He prayed asking for the grace of keeping his heart like Mary’s, free from every impure desire. "Mary," he would pray, "I always want to be your son. Let me die rather than commit a single sin against chastity."

Every Friday he found a few minutes during recreation to go to the chapel with some friends and recite the Seven Sorrows of Mary or the Litany of the Sorrowful Virgin. One Saturday, for example, he invited a companion to recite Our Lady's Vespers with him, but the lad tried to get out of it by pleading that his hands were cold. Dominic took off his own gloves and gave them to him. Another time he lent his coat to a boy to have him go to church with him for a few moments. (Apparently, in the winter the Church was colder inside than it was outside.)

Dominic drew up an interesting set of stories about Mary, the mother of Jesus, to tell his schoolmates. Now and then he would drop a good hint to get someone to go to confession and Communion in honor or the Blessed Mother. He was the first to set the example. He saw the Sacrament of Penance as a good place to get advise from the priest.

A pleasant episode bears out his tender love for Mary. The boys of his dormitory had decided to set up a little shrine to Our Lady at their own expense so as to keep the month of May. Dominic was very excited about it, but when he found out how much it would cost, he exclaimed, "What can I do? I haven't a cent!" Then he had an idea. He got a book he once received as a prize and, giving it to the boys, said, "Now I can do my share for Mary! Take this book and sell it!" The others were so impressed that they too got books and things and had a little raffle to pay for their project.

After they bought the decorations they began setting up the shrine, but by the eve of Mary's feast they had not yet finished. "I'll stay up to night to get things ready," volunteered Dominic. But his friends knew that he was still recovering from a recent illness and made him go to bed. "All right," he agreed, "but when you finish, wake me up. I want to be among the first to see our shrine to Mary!"

Burning With Love

About ten months before his death Dominic confided to Don Bosco: "Father, I desire to do something for Mary, but I must do it at once. I want to share my love for the Blessed Mother with my companions. What can I do?" Together they agreed to start a group of students interested in promoting devotion to Mary, the Immaculate Mother of Jesus, and the good of the Oratory. He drew up a few rules and guidelines for the group, which he called Sodality of the Immaculate Conception. On June 8, 1856, nine months before his death, Dominic had the rules approved by Don Bosco, and the first members were enrolled. Today the function of the sodality remains in the Campus Ministry Teams in Salesian Schools and the Youth Ministry Teams in youth centers and parishes.

If we put the founding of the Immaculate Conception Sodality by Dominic Savio together with the apostolic direction that he received from Don Bosco, it becomes clear that for Don Bosco Salesian Spirituality is always a forward movement of prayer motivating ministry and ministry motivating prayer.

Before going to Don Bosco's Oratory, Dominic would to go to confession and Communion once a month, as was the practice of the day. Dominic heard Don Bosco tell the boys that to keep on the path to heaven, they should do three things: "Go to Confession regularly choosing a steady confessor to whom you can unburden the heart, receive Communion often, and promote goodness among your friends." He observed that advice diligently. He had a great love for the Eucharist. At first he went to Confession and Communion every two weeks, then every week. Observing his spiritual progress, his confessor (Don Bosco) advised him to go to Communion three times a week and by the end of the year every day. Dominic placed unlimited confidence in Don Bosco, sometimes speaking to him of his spiritual problems even outside of Confession. To spend time in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament was his delight, and he made at least one visit to church a day, taking other boys with him.

We should remember that Dominic lived at a time when Northern Italy was still influenced by Jansenism, which had a very negative understanding of confession and the Eucharist. In simple terms it regarded humanity as basically evil. The Holy Communion (Eucharist) was to be received only rarely and only by those who were worthy. Don Bosco was among those who were trying to combat this heresy. In today’s climate he would suggest frequent celebration of the Eucharist. His Salesians do so daily and offer their students the opportunity for daily Eucharist. Don Bosco knew well that we all need spiritual advise through a spiritual director and through regular celebration of the Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession).

Extraordinary Gifts

Don Bosco himself was an eyewitness to extraordinary events concerning Dominic Savio. Don Bosco wrote, "I am recording things I have seen with my own eyes. I assure you I am adhering strictly to truth …"

When Dominic received Communion or when he made a visit to Church he became completely absorbed in prayer. One day Dominic was missing from breakfast, from class, and from lunch. No one knew where he was. On being informed, Don Bosco guessed that he was in church as he had been at other times. His guess was right. He went into the sanctuary behind the main altar. There was Dominic, standing as immovable as a rock. One foot was over the other; one hand rested on a bookstand, the other was pressed against his heart. His face was fixed toward the tabernacle. Don Bosco called to him, "Dominic." He looked at Don Bosco and asked, "Is Mass over already?"

"Look, Dominic," said Don Bosco as he showed him the time. "It's two o'clock in the afternoon."

Dominic apologized. Don Bosco then sent him for something to eat, adding, "If anyone asks where you were, say you were doing something for me."
Another time, Don Bosco had just finished his thanksgiving after Mass and was about to leave the sacristy when he heard someone talking in the sanctuary. He found Dominic alone but speaking as if in a conversation with some invisible person. Don Bosco heard Dominic say, "Yes, Lord, I have said it before, and I will keep on saying it, I love you and I want to love you all my life. If you see that I am about to commit a sin, make me die first! Yes, death first, but not sin!"

Don Bosco asked Dominic what was happening. "I don't know," was his answer. "I get distracted and lose track of my prayer, and then I see such wonderful things that the hours fly by like seconds!"

One night after all had gone to bed Dominic rushed into Don Bosco's room, waking him, "Don Bosco come with me!

"What," asked Don Bosco?

"Please Don Bosco, hurry!"

With Dominic's insistence, Don Bosco dressed quickly and followed him. They left the Oratory, hurried down one street, into another, and up a third, without saying a word, and then into another street. They walked quickly along a line of tenements, and finally Dominic stopped before one. He ran up the stairs to the third floor with Don Bosco following. Dominic stopped at one door, knocking on the door and told Don Bosco, "Here!"

The door of the apartment opened, and a woman stood before Don Bosco. "Thank God!" cried the woman, "There's little time. My husband is dying. He left the Church, but now he wants to die a good Catholic!" The man made his peace with God. Don Bosco heard his confession and blessed him. The man died a few moments later.

Days later, Don Bosco asked Dominic how he knew about that dying man. His face clouded over with a look of distress, and tears came to his eyes. Don Bosco did not insist.

"Innocence of life," wrote Don Bosco, "love of God, and the desire of heaven had so elevated his soul that he could be said to be living always absorbed in God…"

Dominic's sister, Theresa, testified that on the morning of September 12, 1856, Dominic rushed into Don Bosco's room.

"Please, Father," he asked, "may I go home?"

"Why?"

"My mother is very sick, and Our Lady wants to take care her. "

"How do you know?"

"I just know, that's all."

"Has someone written to you?"

"No, but I know just the same."

Don Bosco gave him permission because, as he later told Mr. Savio, "When your son insists on anything, I do well to agree with him."

Don Bosco gave Dominic fare for the coach to Chieri and then a carriage to Mondonio. When Dominic arrived he met his father, who was on his way to find a doctor.

"What are you doing here?" he asked his son.

"I'm going to see mother. She's very sick."

"Go to grandma's!" insisted Mr. Savio and rushed on. Dominic ran home. His mother was in labor. The neighboring women were doing what they could for her but could not help her. Dominic suddenly rushed into the house. Disregarding the objections of the women he ran upstairs to his mother, saying, "I know she's sick. That's why I came!" His mother was alone.

"Dominic, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"I found out that you were sick, and I came to see you."

Forcing herself to sit up, she replied, "Oh, it's nothing. Go downstairs. I'll see you later." "I'll go, Mama, but first I want to hug you!"

He quickly embraced his mother and kissed her. Then he left the house and returned immediately to Turin.

A few minutes later Brigit’s labor pains reached their climax and subsided. It was at five that evening that Dominic's baby sister, Catherine, was born. By the time Charles returned with a doctor the birth was over.

The women who assisted Mrs. Savio noticed she was wearing a green scapular. Not having seen it before, they asked where she got it. She too was surprised but then replied, " Dominic must have put this scapular on me as he embraced me, because I've never had one like this before. That is why I have been safely delivered!"

On his return to the Oratory, the only answer Dominic gave Don Bosco was, "My mother is all right. I gave her a scapular of our Blessed Mother."

That same scapular later saved the life of Theresa herself in a similar condition, as well as the lives of several women. While Dominic was at home, during his last illness, he told his mother, "Do you remember the time I came to see you when you in labor with my sister? I left a scapular of Our Lady around your neck? It was Our Mother Mary who eased your Labor. Take good care of the scapular and lend it to other women in the same condition. Our Blessed Mother will take care of them also."

The scapular, however, was lost. "I had very many requests for this miraculous scapular," testified Theresa. "It was lent to many women in labor who were in danger of death. To my regret, it has been lost."

To the Father's House

Don Bosco promoted a practice he called The Exercise of a Happy Death. This monthly celebration consisted in conference by one the Salesians or a guest speaker on some aspect of faith development, an opportunity for confession, the celebration of the Eucharist, and prayers for a Happy Death. Don Bosco did not intend this to be a gloomy or frightening experience, but an educational opportunity to help the young people to examine their life and their relationship with God. Today the Salesians call it The Monthly Day of Recollection. Dominic always carried it out with great devotion. At the end of the prayers an Our Father and Hail Mary were recited "for the one among us who shall be the first to die." One time Dominic playfully remarked, "Don't say 'for the one among us'. Just say 'for Dominic Savio, who will be the first among us to die.'"

At the end of April 1856, Dominic went to Don Bosco and asked how he should spend the month of May in honor of Our Lady.

"Do your duties carefully," said Don Bosco. "Speak of Mary to your companions every day, and receive Communion every day."

"I will, Father. What should I pray for?"

"Ask Our Lady for health and the favor of becoming a saint."

"Yes, to become a saint and to die a happy death and have her help in my last moments and be taken by her to Heaven!"

Since Dominic began showing signs of failing health, Don Bosco called in several doctors. All admired his lightheartedness, bright wit and quick responses. Doctor Vallauri examined him and remarked to Don Bosco, "What a fine treasure you have in this boy!"

"But what is causing him to fail so quickly day by day?" asked Don Bosco.

"He seems to be generally in poor health. He is an intense young man and puts himself under constant pressure to succeed especially in his spiritual life."

"What remedy can we use?"

"There is nothing we can do medically. The only thing that might prolong his life is to relieve him of his studies completely for some time and just give him little odd jobs that will not tire him."

The doctor’s advice was based on the practice of the day, 1857. Today a doctor would have put Dominic in a hospital. The general opinion today is that Dominic was suffering from a respiratory infection. We should remember that in the mid 19th century childhood death was very common. Respiratory deceases were not well understood.

Dominic spent some days in bed. On days when he felt better he attended classes and study hall, and joined the community for prayer. However, his health continued to decline, Dominic did not want to go home. He did not want to interrupt his studies. He enjoyed very much the life at the Oratory, and would miss the regular prayer life of the community. Some months before, Don Bosco had sent him home. He returned to the Oratory after only a few days. Dominic valued the experience of Don Bosco’s Oratory.

Dominic had developed a persistent cough. Don Bosco with the doctor decided that it would be better if Dominic went home so that he could receive the attention his mother and family could give him. Dominic was not happy with the decision.

"Why are you so sorry to go home?" asked Don Bosco. "You should be glad to be with your parents again."

"I want to end my days at the Oratory," he replied.

"You will go home for a while, and, when you are better, you can come back. "

"No, Don Bosco, I'll go, but I'll never come back!"

The night before he left, he refused to budge from Don Bosco's side, looking for all sorts of questions to ask.

"What can a sick boy do to gain merit before God?" Dominic asked.

"Offer your sufferings to God," replied Don Bosco.

"Will I be able to see my parents and friends from Heaven?"

"Yes, you will be able to see everything at the Oratory and your parents. You will know everything that concerns them, and so many other wonderful things besides, but that is not to concern you now. You are going home to get well."

Dominic kept asking many other questions.

On the morning of his departure from the Oratory, Dominic made the Exercise For A Happy Death with his companions. With great devotion he went to Confession and Communion. He spent the rest of the morning packing and said goodbye to his friends He paid back two cents he owed to a friend saying, "Let's get this fixed, so I won't have to worry about it when I present my accounts to God." He spoke to the members of the Immaculate Conception Sodality, insisting that they be faithful to their promises to Mary and to place the utmost confidence in her.

Before leaving, he told Don Bosco, "Since you don't want this poor body of mine, I'll have to take it back to Mondonio. But it would have burdened you only a few days, and all would soon be over. But God's will be done! Pray that I may die well. Goodbye till we meet in Heaven."

As they approached the gate to the main road, Dominic was holding on to Don Bosco's hand. He turned to his companions. "Goodbye. Pray for me. We'll see each other where we will always be with God." Upon reaching the gate, Dominic turned back and asked Don Bosco, "Will you give me a present to remember you?"

"How about a book, Don Bosco proposed?"

"No, I want something better."

"Do you want money for your trip?"

"Yes, that's it, money for my trip to eternity. You told me once that the Pope had granted you plenary indulgences for the hour of death. Put my name among those who can gain that indulgence."

"Gladly, Dominic, you can consider yourself in that number now."

Dominic then walked out of the Oratory gate with his father. It was two o'clock in the afternoon of March 1,1857. He had lived at the Oratory almost three years to his great joy, and to the edification of both his companions and the teachers. He was never to return.

For the first four days at home Dominic did well. Then he took a turn for the worse. He became weaker, his appetite failed, and his cough became more persistent. The doctor found that the boy's illness was much worse than it seemed. Thinking that Dominic had an infection, the doctor used the accepted remedy of the time, bleeding. Dominic was bled several times. He seemed to rally.

However, Dominic asked to have the priest hear his Confession and give him Communion. They called for the pastor who heard his confession and gave him Communion. Dominic then recalled the resolutions at his first Communion. Several times he repeated, "Jesus, Mary, you will always be my friends… death but not sin!"

After four days, the doctor had good news for the parents. "Thank God," he said. "We are past danger. All he needs now is rest." They were overjoyed at the news. Dominic smiled. After the doctor left, he asked for the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. To please him, his parents agreed. On being anointed he prayed: "My God, forgive me my sins. I love you and I want to love you forever. Dominic's mind was so clear and his voice so loud, that all thought he was fine and on his way to recovery.

He had been bled ten times. He was very weak. The priest gave him a special Papal Blessing, which deeply consoled him. He repeated often, "Thanks be to God!"

No one but Dominic suspected he was so close to death. An hour and a half before he died, the pastor came to see him, and, noting how calmly he rested, was surprised to hear him recommend his soul to God. The boy kept praying in long, drawn out sighs. After reciting a few prayers with Dominic, the pastor turned to leave.

"Please, Father," called Dominic, "give me a little remembrance before you go."

"What remembrance can I leave you?"

"A word of comfort!"

"I know of nothing better than to recall the passion of Christ."

"Thanks be to God!" Dominic answered.

He then fell asleep and rested for half an hour. He then opened his eyes, looked at his parents, and gasped, "Papa, it's time! Take my prayer book and read for me the prayers for a happy death!"

For a while he seemed to be resting. Then slowly he awoke. Smiling, he said clearly, "Goodbye, Papa, goodbye, goodbye Mama! Oh, what a beautiful sight I see!" With these words and a smile on his lips, Dominic breathed his last...

According to the testimony of Charles Savio, Dominic’s father, shortly after his death Dominic appeared to him. After verifying it was his son, Charles said, "Oh, my dear boy! How wonderful you look! I don’t know what to say! Are you in Heaven?"

"Yes, Papa, I am in Heaven."

"Will you pray for us, for mother and me?"

"Yes, I will pray for you!"

With that the vision faded.

A Friend Forever

On December 6, 1876 nineteen years after his death Dominic appeared to Don Bosco. Dominic came to encourage and to advise Don Bosco about the future of his work for youth. In that vision Don Bosco asked his pupil, "Dominic, what gave you the most comfort at the hour of death?"

"What comforted me most at the point of death was the assistance of the powerful and loving Mother of God."

On March 5, 1950, Pope Pius XII beatified Dominic Savio. It is a curious coincidence that March 5, 1950, was the second Sunday of Lent. It was the second Sunday of Lent, 1855, when St. John Bosco gave the boys at the Oratory where Dominic Savio was a pupil, the sermon on how easy it was to become a saint.

On June 12, 1954. Pope Pius XII canonized Dominic Savio, this 14-year-old boy from Don Bosco’s Oratory a Saint.

Adapted from
A Brief Life of St. Dominic Savio By Paul J. Pascucci, SDB

Saint Dominic Savio, by St. John Bosco, translated from the fifth Italian edition with introduction and notes by Rev. Paul Aronica, SDB, Salesiana Publishers, 1963.

NAVARRE BIBLE COMMENTARY (RSV)

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

From: Acts 9:1-20

Saul on His Way to Damascus
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[1] But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest [2] and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. [3] Now a he journeyed he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from Heaven flashed about him. [4] And he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?" [5] And he said, "Who are you, Lord?" And He said, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting; [6] but rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do." [7] The men who were travelling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one. [8] Saul arose from the ground; and when his eyes were opened, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. [9] And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.

Ananias Baptizes Saul
-----------------------------
[10] Now there was a disciple at Damascus called Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, "Ananias." And he said, "Here I am, Lord." [11] And the Lord said to him, "Rise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for a man of Tarsus named Saul; for behold, he is praying, [12] and he has seen a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight." [13] But Ananias answered, "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to Thy saints at Jerusalem; [14] and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call upon Thy name." [15] But the Lord said to him, "Go for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; [16] for I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of My name." [17] So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came, has sent me that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit." [18] And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized, [19] and took food and was strengthened.

For several days he was with the disciples at Damascus.

Paul Begins His Apostolate
--------------------------
[20] And in the synagogues immediately he proclaimed Jesus, saying, "He is the Son of God."

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Commentary:

1-3. Roman authorities recognized the moral authority of the Sanhedrin and even permitted it to exercise a certain jurisdiction over members of Jewish communities outside Palestine--as was the case with Damascus. The Sanhedrin even had the right to extradite Jews to Palestine (cf. I Maccabees 15:21).

Damascus was about 230-250 kilometers (150 miles) from Jerusalem, depending on which route one took. Saul and his associates, who would probably have been mounted, would have had no difficulty in doing the journey in under a week. This apparition took place towards the end of the journey, when they were near Damascus.

2. "The Way": the corresponding word in Hebrew also means religious behavior. Here it refers to both Christian lifestyle and the Gospel itself; indirectly it means all the early followers of Jesus (cf. Acts 18:25ff; 19:9, 23; 22:4) and all those who come after them and are on the way to Heaven; it reminds us of Jesus' words, "The gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few" (Matthew 7:14). 3-19. This is the first of the three accounts of the calling of Saul--occurring probably between the years 34 and 36--that are given in the Acts of the Apostles (cf. Acts 22:5-16; 26:10-18); where important events are concerned, St. Luke does not mind repeating himself. Once again the Light shines in the darkness (cf. John 1:5). It does so here in a spectacular way and, as in every conversion, it makes the convert see God, himself and others in a new way.

However, the episode on the road to Damascus is not only a conversion. It marks the beginning of St. Paul's vocation: "What amazes you seems natural to me: that God has sought you out in the practice of your profession!

"This is how He sought the first, Peter and Andrew, James and John, beside their nets, and Matthew, sitting in the custom-house.

"And--wonder of wonders!--Paul, in his eagerness to destroy the seed of the Christians" (St J. Escriva, "The Way", 799).

The background to St. Luke's concise account is easy to fill in. There would have been no Hellenist Christians left in Jerusalem: they had fled the city, some going as far afield as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch. Many had sought refuge in Damascus, and Saul must have realized that their evangelizing zeal would win many converts among faithful Jews in that city. Saul genuinely wanted to serve God, which explains his readiness to respond to grace. Like most Jews of his time, he saw the Messiah as a political liberator, a warrior-king, a half-Heavenly, half-earthly figure such as described in the apocryphal "Book of Enoch", 46: "It is impossible to imagine how even his glance terrifies his enemies. Wherever he turns, everything trembles; wherever his voice reaches everything is overwhelmed and those who hear it are dissolved as wax in fire." A hero of this type does not fall into the power of his enemies, much less let them crucify him; on the contrary, he is a victor, he annihilates his enemies and establishes an everlasting kingdom of peace and justice. For Saul, Jesus' death on a cross was a clear proof that He was a false messiah; and the whole notion of a brotherhood of Jews and Gentiles was inconceivable.

He has almost reached Damascus when a light flashes; he is thrown onto the ground and hears a voice from Heaven calling his name twice, in a tone of sad complaint.

Saul surrenders unconditionally and places himself at the Lord's service. He does not bemoan his past life; he is ready to start anew. No longer is the Cross a "scandal": it has become for him a sign of salvation, the "power of God", a throne of victory, whose praises he will sing in his epistles. Soon St. Paul will learn more about this Way and about all that Jesus did and taught, but from this moment onwards, the moment of his calling, he realizes that Jesus is the risen Messiah, in whom the prophecies find fulfillment; he believes in the divinity of Christ: he sees how different his idea of the Messiah was from the glorified, pre-existing and eternal Son of God; he understands Christ's mystical presence in His followers: "Why do you persecute me?" In other words, he realizes that he has been chosen by God, called by God, and immediately places himself at his service.

4. This identification of Christ and Christians is something which the Apostle will later elaborate on when he speaks of the Mystical Body of Christ (cf. Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 1:22f).

St. Bede comments as follows: "Jesus does not say, `Why do you persecute My members?', but, `Why do you persecute Me?', because He Himself still suffers affronts in His body, which is the Church. Similarly Christ will take account of the good actions done to His members, for He said, `I was hungry and you gave Me food...' (Matthew 25:35), and explaining these words He added `As you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me' (Matthew 25:40)" ("Super Act. Expositio, ad loc.").

5-6. In the Vulgate and in many other translations these words are added between the end of verse 5 and the start of verse 6: "It is hard for thee to kick against the goad. And he, trembling and astonished, said: "Lord, what will Thou have me to do? And the Lord said to him". These words do not seem to be part of the original sacred text but rather a later explanatory gloss; for this reason the New Vulgate omits them. (The first part of the addition comes from Paul's address in Acts 26:14).

6. The calling of Saul was exceptional as regards the manner in which God called him; but the effect it had on him was the same as what happens when God gives a specific calling to the apostolate to certain individual Christians, inviting them to follow Him more closely. Paul's immediate response is a model of how those who receive these specific callings should act (all Christians, of course, have a common calling to holiness and apostolate that comes with Baptism).

Pope Paul VI describes in this way the effects of this specific kind of vocation in a person's soul: "The apostolate is [...] an inner voice, which makes one both restless and serene, a voice that is both gentle and imperious, troublesome and affectionate, a voice which comes unexpectedly and with great events and then, at a particular point, exercises a strong attraction, as it were revealing to us our life and our destiny. It speaks prophetically and almost in a tone of victory, which eventually dispels all uncertainty, all timidity and all fear, and which facilitates-- making it easy, desirable and pleasant--the response of our whole personality, when we pronounce that word which reveals the supreme secret of love: Yes; Yes, Lord, tell what I must do and I will try to do it, I will do it. Like St. Paul, thrown to the ground at the gates of Damascus: What would You have me do?

"The roots of the apostolate run deep: the apostolate is vocation, election, interior encounter with Christ, abandonment of one's personal autonomy to His will, to His invisible presence; it is a kind of substitution of our poor, restless heart, inconstant and at times unfaithful yet hungry for love, for His heart, the heart of Christ which is beginning to pulsate in the one who has been chosen. And then comes the second act in the psychological drama of the apostolate: the need to spread, to do, to give, to speak, to pass on to others one's own treasure, one's own fire. [...]

"The apostolate becomes a continuous expansion of one's soul, the exuberance of a personality taken over by Christ and animated by His Spirit; it becomes a need to hasten, to work, to do everything one can to spread the Kingdom of God, to save other souls, to save all souls" ("Homily", 14 October 1968).

8-11. Straight Street runs through Damascus from east to west and can still be identified today.

13. Ananias refers to Christ's followers as "saints"; this was the word normally used to describe the disciples, first in Palestine and then in the world at large. God is THE Holy One (cf. Isaiah 6:3); as the Old Testament repeatedly says, those who approach God and keep His commandments share in this holiness: "The Lord said to Moses, `Say to all the congregation of the people of Israel, You shall be holy; for I the Lord your God am holy'" (Leviticus 19:1-2).

The use of this term is an example of the spiritual sensitivity of our first brothers and sisters in the faith: "What a moving name--saints! --the early Christians used to address each other!...

"Learn to be a brother to your brothers" (St J. Escriva, "The Way", 469).

15-16. Our Lord calls St. Paul His "vessel of election", which is a Hebraicism equivalent to "chosen instrument", and He tells Ananias how much the Apostle will have to suffer on His account. A Christian called to the apostolate is also, by virtue of this divine vocation, an instrument in the hands of God; to be effective he must be docile: he must let God use him and must do what God tells him.

The task God has given him is far beyond Paul's ability--"to carry My name before the Gentiles and kings and sons of Israel". In Acts we will see how Paul fulfills his mission, with the help of God's grace and suffering a great deal on account of His name. Down through the centuries, in diverse circumstance, those whom the Lord elects to carry out specific missions will also be able to perform them if they are good instruments who allow grace to act in them and who are ready to suffer for their ideals.

19. In spite of the exceptional manner in which God called St. Paul, He desired him to mature in the normal way--to be instructed by others and learn God's will through them. In this case he chose Ananias to confer Baptism on Paul and teach him the basics of the Christian faith.

In Ananias we can see a trace of the role of the spiritual director or guide in Christian asceticism. There is a principle which states that "no one can be a good judge in his own case, because everyone judges according to his own inclinations" (cf. Cassian, "Collationes", XVI, 11). A person guiding a soul has a special "grace of state" to make God's will known to him; and even if the guide makes a mistake, the person who is being guided will--if obedient--always do the right thing, always do God's will. In this connection St. Vincent Ferrer says: "Our Lord Jesus Christ, without whom we can do nothing, will not give His grace to him who, though he has access to an expert guide, rejects this precious means of sanctification, thinking that he can look after on his own everything that touches on his salvation. He who has a director, whom he obeys in everything, will reach his goal more easily and more quickly than if he had acted as his own guide, even if he be very intelligent and have the very best of spiritual books" ("Treatise on the Spiritual Life", 2, 1).

On the spiritual guidance of ordinary Christians, who seek holiness and carry out apostolate in the context of everyday life, St Escriva, writes: "A Director. You need one. So that you can give yourself to God, and give yourself fully...by obedience. A director who understands your apostolate, who knows what God wants: that way he will second the work of the Holy Spirit in your soul, without taking you from your place, filling you with peace, and teaching you how to make your work fruitful" ("The Way", 62).

20-23. In his letter to the Galatians (cf. Galatians 1:16f) St. Paul tells of how he went into Arabia after his conversion and then returned to Damascus. He spent almost three years away, and it was on his return that he preached the divinity of Jesus, using all his energy and learning, now placed at the service of Christ. This surprised and confounded the Jews, who immediately began to take action against him.

From: John 6:52-59

The Discourse on the Bread of Life (Continuation)
-------------------------------------------------
[52] The Jews disputed among themselves, saying, "How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?" [53] So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you; [54] he who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. [55] For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. [56] He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. [57] As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me will live because of Me. [58] This is the bread which came from Heaven, not such as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live for ever." This He said in the synagogue, as He taught in Capernaum.

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Commentary:

52. Christ's hearers understand perfectly well that He means exactly what He says; but they cannot believe that what He says could be true; if they had understood Him in a metaphorical, figurative or symbolic sense there would be no reason for them to be surprised and nothing to cause an argument. Later, Jesus reaffirms what He has said—confirming what they have understood Him to say (cf. verses 54-56).

53. Once again Jesus stresses very forcefully that it is necessary to receive Him in the Blessed Eucharist in order to share in divine life and develop the life of grace received in Baptism. No parent is content to bring children into the world: they have to be nourished and looked after to enable them to reach maturity. "We receive Jesus Christ in Holy Communion to nourish our souls and to give us an increase of grace and the gift of eternal life" ("St. Pius X Catechism", 289).

54. Jesus clearly states that His body and blood are a pledge of eternal life and a guarantee of the resurrection of the body. St. Thomas Aquinas gives this explanation: "The Word gives life to our souls, but the Word made flesh nourishes our bodies. In this Sacrament is contained the Word not only in His divinity but also in His humanity; therefore, it is the cause not only of the glorification of our souls but also of that of our bodies" ("Commentary on St. John, in loc.").

Our Lord uses a stronger word than just "eating" (the original verb could be translated as "chewing") which shows that Communion is a real meal. There is no room for saying that He was speaking only symbolically, which would mean that Communion was only a metaphor and not really eating and drinking the Body and Blood of Christ.

"All these invitations, promises and threats sprang from the great desire which (Jesus) had of giving us Himself in the holy Sacrament of the altar. But why should Jesus so ardently desire us to receive Him in Holy Communion? It is because love always sighs for, and tends to a union with, the object beloved. True friends wish to be united in such a manner as to become only one. The love of God for us being immense, He destined us to possess Him not only in Heaven, but also here below, by the most intimate union, under the appearance of bread in the Eucharist. It is true we do not see Him; but He beholds us, and is really present; yes, He is present in order that we may possess Him and He conceals Himself, that we may desire Him, and until we reach our true homeland Jesus Christ wishes in this way to be entirely ours, and to be perfectly united to us" (St. Alphonsus Liguori, "The Love of Our Lord Jesus Christ Reduced to Practice", Chapter 2).

55. In the same way as bodily food is necessary for life on earth, Holy Communion is necessary for maintaining the life of the soul, which is why the Church exhorts us to receive this Sacrament frequently: "Every day, as is desirable, and in the greatest possible numbers, the faithful must take an active part in the sacrifice of the Mass, avail themselves of the pure, holy refreshment of Holy Communion and make a suitable thanksgiving in return for this great gift of Christ the Lord. Here are the words they should keep in mind: `Jesus Christ and the Church desire all Christ's faithful to approach the sacred banquet every day. The basis of this desire is that they should be united to God by the sacrament and draw strength from it to restrain lust, to wash away the slight faults of daily occurrence and to take precautions against the more serious sins to which human frailty is liable' (Decree of the S.C. of the Council, 20 December 1905)" (St Pope Paul VI, "Mysterium Fidei").

"The Savior has instituted the most august sacrament of the Eucharist, which truly contains His flesh and His blood, so that he who eats this bread may live forever; whosoever, therefore, makes use of it often with devotion so strengthens the health and the life of his soul, that it is almost impossible for him to be poisoned by any kind of evil affection. We cannot be nourished with this flesh of life, and live with the affections of death. [...]. Christians who are damned will be unable to make any reply when the just Judge shows them how much they are to blame for dying spiritually, since it was so easy for them to maintain themselves in life and in health by eating His Body which He had left them for this purpose. Unhappy souls, He will say, why did you die, seeing that you had at your command the fruit and the food of life?" (St. Francis de Sales, "Introduction to the Devout Life", II, 20, 1).

56. The most important effect of the Blessed Eucharist is intimate union with Jesus Christ. The very word "communion" suggests sharing in the life of our Lord and becoming one with Him; if our union with Jesus is promoted by all the sacraments through the grace which they give us, this happens more intensely in the Eucharist, for in it we receive not only grace but the very Author of grace: "Really sharing in the body of the Lord in the breaking of the eucharistic bread, we are taken up into communion with Him and with one another. `Because the bread is one, we, though many, are one body, all of us who partake of the one bread' (1 Corinthians 10:17)" (Vatican II, "Lumen Gentium", 7). Precisely because the Eucharist is the sacrament which best signifies and effects our union with Christ, it is there that the whole Church manifests and effects its unity: Jesus Christ "instituted in His Church the wonderful sacrament of the Eucharist, by which the unity of the Church is both signified and brought about" (Vatican II, "Unitatis Redintegratio", 2).

57. In Christ, the Incarnate Word sent to mankind, "the whole fullness of deity, dwells bodily (Colossians 2:9) through the ineffable union of His human nature and His divine nature in the Person of the Word. By receiving in this sacrament the body and blood of Christ indissolubly united to His divinity, we share in the divine life of the second Person of the Blessed Trinity. We will never be able to appreciate enough the intimacy with God Himself--Father, Son and Holy Spirit—that we are offered in the eucharistic banquet.

"We can therefore do nothing more agreeable to Jesus Christ than to go to Communion with the dispositions suitable to so great an action, since we are then united to Jesus Christ, according to the desire of this all-loving God. I have said with `suitable' and not `worthy' disposition, for who could communicate if it was necessary to be worthy of so great a Savior? No one but a God would be worthy to receive a God. But by this word suitable, or convenient, I mean such a disposition as becomes a miserable creature, who is clothed with the unhappy flesh of Adam. Ordinarily speaking, it is sufficient that we communicate in a state of grace and with an anxious desire of advancing in the love of Jesus Christ" (St. Alphonsus Liguori, "The Love of Our Lord Jesus Christ Reduced to Practice", Chapter 2).

58. For the third time (cf. 6:31-32 and 6:49) Jesus compares the true bread of life, His own body, with the manna God used to feed the Israelites every day during their forty years in the wilderness--thereby, inviting us to nourish our soul frequently with the food of His body.

"`Going to Communion every day for so many years! Anybody else would be a saint by now, you told me, and I...I'm always the same!' Son, I replied, keep up your daily Communion, and think: what would I be if I had not gone'" (St J. Escriva, "The Way", 534).

Source: Daily Word for Reflection—Navarre Bible Commentary

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John
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	John 6
52.	6:53 The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying: How can this man give us his flesh to eat?	6:53 Litigabant ergo Judæi ad invicem, dicentes : Quomodo potest hic nobis carnem suam dare ad manducandum ?	εμαχοντο ουν προς αλληλους οι ιουδαιοι λεγοντες πως δυναται ουτος ημιν δουναι την σαρκα φαγειν
53.	6:54 Then Jesus said to them: Amen, amen I say unto you: Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, you shall not have life in you.	6:54 Dixit ergo eis Jesus : Amen, amen dico vobis : nisi manducaveritis carnem Filii hominis, et biberitis ejus sanguinem, non habebitis vitam in vobis.	ειπεν ουν αυτοις ο ιησους αμην αμην λεγω υμιν εαν μη φαγητε την σαρκα του υιου του ανθρωπου και πιητε αυτου το αιμα ουκ εχετε ζωην εν εαυτοις
54.	6:55 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath everlasting life: and I will raise him up in the last day.	6:55 Qui manducat meam carnem, et bibit meum sanguinem, habet vitam æternam : et ego resuscitabo eum in novissimo die.	ο τρωγων μου την σαρκα και πινων μου το αιμα εχει ζωην αιωνιον και εγω αναστησω αυτον [εν] τη εσχατη ημερα
55.	6:56 For my flesh is meat indeed: and my blood is drink indeed.	6:56 Caro enim mea vere est cibus : et sanguis meus, vere est potus ;	η γαρ σαρξ μου αληθως εστιν βρωσις και το αιμα μου αληθως εστιν ποσις
56.	6:57 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, abideth in me, and I in him.	6:57 qui manducat meam carnem et bibit meum sanguinem, in me manet, et ego in illo.	ο τρωγων μου την σαρκα και πινων μου το αιμα εν εμοι μενει καγω εν αυτω
57.	6:58 As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father; so he that eateth me, the same also shall live by me.	6:58 Sicut misit me vivens Pater, et ego vivo propter Patrem : et qui manducat me, et ipse vivet propter me.	καθως απεστειλεν με ο ζων πατηρ καγω ζω δια τον πατερα και ο τρωγων με κακεινος ζησεται δι εμε
58.	6:59 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead. He that eateth this bread, shall live for ever.	6:59 Hic est panis qui de cælo descendit. Non sicut manducaverunt patres vestri manna, et mortui sunt. Qui manducat hunc panem, vivet in æternum.	ουτος εστιν ο αρτος ο εκ του ουρανου καταβας ου καθως εφαγον οι πατερες υμων το μαννα και απεθανον ο τρωγων τουτον τον αρτον ζησεται εις τον αιωνα
59.	6:60 These things he said, teaching in the synagogue, in Capharnaum.	6:60 Hæc dixit in synagoga docens, in Capharnaum.	ταυτα ειπεν εν συναγωγη διδασκων εν καπερναουμ

Readings at Mass

This man is my chosen instrument to bring my name before the pagans

My flesh is real food and my blood is real drink