Daily Gospel
Monday in the Octave of Easter
First Reading:Acts 2:14, 22-33
Psalm:Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11
Gospel:Matthew 28:8-15
Psalm:
Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
1st Reading: Acts 2:14, 22–33*
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven and, with a loud voice, addressed them, .... “Fellow Israelites, listen to what I am going to tell you about Jesus of Nazareth. God accredited him and through him did powerful deeds and wonders and signs in your midst, as you well know. You delivered him to sinners to be crucified and killed, and in this way the purpose of God from all times was fulfilled.”
But God raised him to life and released him from the pain of death, because it was impossible for him to be held in the power of death. David spoke of him when he said: I saw the Lord before me at all times; he is by my side, that I may not be shaken. ... Friends, I don’t need to prove that the patriarch David died and was buried; his tomb is with us to this day. But he knew that God had sworn to him that one of his descendants would sit upon his throne and, as he was a prophet, he foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah. So he said that he would not be left in the region of the dead, nor would his body experience corruption. This Messiah is Jesus and we are all witnesses that God raised him to life. He has been exalted at God’s right side and the Father has entrusted the Holy Spirit to him; this Spirit he has just poured upon us as you now see and hear.
Gospel: Mt 28:8–15*
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, left the tomb at once in holy fear, yet with great joy, and they ran to tell the news to the disciples. Suddenly, Jesus met them on the way and said, “Peace.” The women approached him, embraced his feet and worshiped him. But Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to set out for Galilee; there they will see me.”
While the women were on their way, the guards returned to the city and some of them reported to the chief priests all that had happened. The chief priests met with the Jewish authorities and decided to give the soldiers a good sum of money, with this instruction, “Say that his disciples came by night while you were asleep, and stole the body of Jesus. If Pilate comes to know of this, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” The soldiers accepted the money and did as they were told. ... .
REFLECTION:
Fear and confusion give way to joy and renewed hope. The women could now again accept the gift of peace. The Risen Christ invites us not to fear, hoping for a future. His words give us the chance to start anew. While many will attempt to dilute and muddle Christian hope with various means of propaganda, our resurrected Hope will never be vanquished again. For surely, while we go our way towards our “Galilee,” we are assured that “there we will see Him.”
He who does not meditate acts as one who never looks into the mirror and so does not bother to put himself in order, since he can be dirty without knowing it. The person who meditates and turns his thoughts to God who is the mirror of the soul, seeks to know his defects and tries to correct them, moderates himself in his impulses and puts his conscience in order.
-- Saint Pio of Pietrelcina
Preaparation for the Feast of Mercy
March 29, 1937. During meditation today, I saw the Lord in great beauty, and He said to me, Peace be to you, My daughter. My whole soul trembled with love for Him and I said, "O Lord, although I love You with all my heart, please do not appear to me, because my spiritual director has told me that these sudden appearances of Yours arouse the suspicion that You could be an illusion. And although I love You more than my own life, and I know that You are my Lord and God, who are communing with me, I must above all be obedient to my confessor."
Jesus listened to my words with gravity and kindness and spoke these words to me: Tell your confessor that I commune with your soul in such an intimate manner because you do not steal My gifts, and this is why I pour all these graces upon your soul, because I know that you will not hoard them for yourself. But as a sign that his prudence is agreeable to Me, you shall not see Me, and I will not appear to you in this way until you have given him an account of what I have just said.
(Diary of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook III-1069)
http://www.saint-faustina.com/Diary/DMIMS22.shtml
http://www.ewtn.com/devotionals/inspiration.htm#ixzz1KWHi4ePq
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