Posted on 04/14/2026 10:07:32 PM PDT by fidelis
“And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed. But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God. John 3:19–21
The contrast of light and darkness is a beautiful concept to ponder in prayer. They are not two opposing forces. Darkness is simply the absence of light. In the visual spectrum, darkness does not exist... Similarly, within the spiritual realm, the absence of God leaves us spiritually blind. Darkness does not remove our capacity for seeing; rather, our sight is rendered useless without the light that reveals truth and guides our way. In this spiritual darkness, we stumble, unable to discern good from evil or to find the path to holiness. Yet, when we invite the divine light of Christ into our souls, the darkness dissipates and we begin to see clearly, walking confidently in God’s grace and truth.
If you’ve ever been in complete darkness, perhaps at home on a cloudy night when the power goes out, you know that even one small candle is enough to find your way around. So it is with the Light of Christ. Even the faintest presence of grace in our souls enables us to begin to find our way back to God.
Today’s Gospel begins with that familiar passage from John 3:16: “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” This line comes toward the end of Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus, the Pharisee who came to Jesus at night to converse with Him... At the beginning of their conversation, Jesus gently but firmly challenged Nicodemus to move beyond what his human reason alone could comprehend and to walk with the light of faith. As Nicodemus listened and conversed, it seems that his mind and heart were opened, which enabled Jesus to teach him and us the beautiful truth found in today’s Gospel.
Perhaps as a way of softening His initial challenge, which was meant to help Nicodemus open himself further to the gift of faith, Jesus continued, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him” (John 3:17). Though God is a perfectly just Judge, Jesus’ earthly mission was to save us from condemnation, to set us free, to flood our souls with the light of truth, and to enable us to see God through faith in this life and face-to-face in the next.
As with Nicodemus, Jesus is able to see any flickering flame of faith within our souls. When He sees it, He will engage us, challenge us, and seek to shine His light more fully within us. He wants not only a flickering flame of light but a radiant light. The more clearly we see, the more firmly our feet are on the path to holiness and the quicker we are able to journey to the source of all light—Jesus Himself.
Reflect today on the contrast of light and darkness within your soul. How clearly is your spiritual mind able to perceive all that God wants to reveal to you? If you find yourself lost at times or confused about life, turn to Jesus and beg for light. We must not be among those who prefer “darkness to light.” If the light of the Gospel reveals your sin, do not turn away. Believe that Jesus does not want to condemn you; He wants to free you. He wants you to believe in Him, so that you “might not perish but might have eternal life.” Allow the light to shine brightly within you so that you will find your way to all the treasures God wants to bestow on you.
Lord of pure Light, I want to see all that You want to reveal to me. I want to know You, find my way to You, and follow You with clear spiritual sight. Please dispel all darkness within me so that I will understand You and Your will and serve You with all my heart. Jesus, I trust in You.
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The Month of April is Dedicated to Devotion to the Most Holy Eucharist
“Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you; for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” (Matthew 26:26-28)
Pope Leo XIV’s prayer intention for the month of April, 2026:
For priests in crisis
Let us pray for priests going through moments of crisis in their vocation, that they may find the accompaniment they need and that communities may support them with understanding and prayer.
Today’s First Reading
From: Acts 5:17-26
The Apostles Are Arrested and Miraculously Freed
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[17] But the high priest rose up and all who were with him, that is, the party of the Sadducees, and filled with jealousy [18] they arrested the Apostles and put them in the common prison. [19] But at night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out and said, " [20] Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this Life." [21] And when they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and taught.
Now the high priest came and those who were with him and called together the council and all the senate of Israel, and sent (officers) to the prison to have them brought. [22] But when the officers came, they did not find them in the prison and they returned and reported, [23] "We found the prison securely locked and the sentries standing at the doors, but when we opened it we found no one inside." [24] Now when the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were much perplexed about them, wondering what this would come to. [25] And some one came and told them, "The men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people."
The Apostles Before the Sanhedrin
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[26] Then the captain with the officers went and brought them, but without violence, for they were afraid of being stoned by the people.
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Commentary:
19. In Sacred Scripture we meet angels as messengers of God and also as mediators, guardians and ministers of divine justice. Abraham sent his servant on a mission to his kindred and told him, "The Lord will send his angel before you and prosper your way" (Genesis 24:7, 40). Tobit, Lot and his family, Daniel and his companions, Judith, etc., also experienced the help of angels. The Psalms refer to trust in the angels (cf. Psalm 34:8; 91:11-13) and the continuous help they render men in obedience to God's command.
This episode of the freeing of the Apostles is one of the examples the "St. Pius V Catechism" gives to illustrate "the countless benefits which the Lord distributes among men through angels, His interpreters and ministers, sent only in isolated cases but appointed from our birth to watch over us, and constituted for the salvation of every individual person" (IV, 9, 6).
This means, therefore, that the angels should have a place in a Christian's personal piety: "I ask our Lord that, during our stay on this earth of ours, we may never be parted from our Divine Traveling Companion. To ensure this, let us also become firmer friends of the Holy Guardian Angels. We all need a lot of company, company from Heaven and company on earth. Have great devotion to the Holy Angels" (St. J. Escriva, "Friends of God", 315).
From: John 3:16-21
The Visit of Nicodemus (Continuation)
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(Jesus said to Nicodemus,) [16] "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. [17] For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. [18] He who believes in Him is not condemned; He who does not believe is condemned already, because He had not believed in the name of the only Son of God. [19] And this is the judgment, that the light has come into world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. [20] For every one who does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. [21] But he who does what is true comes to the light, that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been wrought in God."
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Commentary:
16-21. These words, so charged with meaning, summarize how Christ's death is the supreme sign of God's love for men (cf. the section on charity in the "Introduction to the Gospel according to John": pp. 31ff above). "`For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son' for its salvation. All our religion is a revelation of God's kindness, mercy and love for us. `God is love' (1 John 4:16), that is, love poured forth unsparingly. All is summed up in this supreme truth, which explains and illuminates everything. The story of Jesus must be seen in this light. `(He) loved me', St. Paul writes. Each of us can and must repeat it for himself--`He loved me, and gave Himself for me' (Galatians 2:20)" (Pope Paul VI, "Homily on Corpus Christi", 13 June 1976).
Christ's self-surrender is a pressing call to respond to His great love for us: "If it is true that God has created us, that He has redeemed us, that He loves us so much that He has given up His only-begotten Son for us (John 3:16), that He waits for us--every day!--as eagerly as the father of the prodigal son did (cf. Luke 15:11-32), how can we doubt that He wants us to respond to Him with all our love? The strange thing would be not to talk to God, to draw away and forget Him, and busy ourselves in activities which are closed to the constant promptings of His grace" (St J. Escriva, "Friends of God", 251).
"Man cannot live without love. He remains a being that is incomprehensible for himself, his life is senseless, if love is not revealed to him, if he does not encounter love, if he does not experience it and make it his own, if he does not participate intimately in it. This [...] is why Christ the Redeemer `fully reveals man to himself'. If we may use the expression, this is the human dimension of the mystery of the Redemption. In this dimension man finds again the greatness, dignity and value that belong to his humanity. [...] The one who wishes to understand himself thoroughly [...] must, with his unrest and uncertainty and even his weakness and sinfulness, with his life and death, draw near to Christ. He must, so to speak, enter into Him with all his own self, he must `appropriate' and assimilate the whole of the reality of the Incarnation and Redemption in order to find himself. If this profound process takes place within him, he then bears fruit not only of adoration of God but also of deep wonder at himself.
How precious must man be in the eyes of the Creator, if he `gained so great a Redeemer', ("Roman Missal, Exultet" at Easter Vigil), and if God `gave His only Son' in order that man `should not perish but have eternal life'. [...]
`Increasingly contemplating the whole of Christ's mystery, the Church knows with all the certainty of faith that the Redemption that took place through the Cross has definitively restored his dignity to man and given back meaning to his life in the world, a meaning that was lost to a considerable extent because of sin. And for that reason, the Redemption was accomplished in the paschal mystery, leading through the Cross and death to Resurrection" (Pope John Paul II, "Redemptor Hominis", 10).
Jesus demands that we have faith in Him as a first prerequisite to sharing in His love. Faith brings us out of darkness into the light, and sets us on the road to salvation. "He who does not believe is condemned already" (verse 18).
"The words of Christ are at once words of judgment and grace, of life and death. For it is only by putting to death that which is old that we can come to newness of life. Now, although this refers primarily to people, it is also true of various worldly goods which bear the mark both of man's sin and the blessing of God. [...] No one is freed from sin by himself or by his own efforts, no one is raised above himself or completely delivered from his own weakness, solitude or slavery; all have need of Christ, who is the model, master, liberator, savior, and giver of life. Even in the secular history of mankind the Gospel has acted as a leaven in the interests of liberty and progress, and it always offers itself as a leaven with regard to brotherhood, unity and peace" (Vatican II, "Ad Gentes", 8).
You aren’t posting to anyone. Just spamming.
Christ is King.
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