Friday within the Octave of Easter

Year of the Family "Amoris Laetitia The Joy of Love"

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict: Ch 65:1-10 The Prior of the Monastery

Mass: Acts 4:1-12; Resp Ps 118; Jn 21:1-14

It is wonderful in our eyes.

MARY, QUEEN OF PEACE,

PRAY FOR US.

It is the Lord.

(Jn 21:7)

Here is one of the first things that occurs to me with the opening line of today's account from the Acts of the Apostles. The man, crippled from birth, who we first heard about on Wednesday, caused quite a commotion. As you recall, with the words of Peter, "In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean, rise and walk" (Acts 3:6), the man regained strength in his feet and ankles, then immediately stood up, walked around, jumped about too, and praised God. Yesterday we found the man clinging to Peter and John. Is he still clinging to them? What must the people think about that? As we hear today, not everyone was pleased with all this commotion. The ones who were annoyed (Acts 4:2) have Peter and John arrested and put in custody. At the same time, many of those who heard the word believed, thousands of them (Acts 4:4). Three cheers for the formerly crippled, now healed man. At the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, every tongue confess Him, king of glory now, Jesus is Lord, king of glory now!

We also find Jesus is on the move this week appearing here there and everywhere, much to people's astonishment. We find the Risen Lord revealing Himself to the fishermen today. Hungry, Jesus invites the others to a meal: Come and have breakfast (Jn 21:12). So Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so with the fish (Jn 21:13). May we recognize Jesus in the breaking of the bread, and fish too. 

CHRIST IS RISEN!

HE IS TRULY RISEN!

Today's photo: This fawn lily is wonderful in our eyes. Another one from Bald Hill, near Corvallis, OR.

© Gertrude Feick 2022

Wednesday within the Octave of Easter

Year of the Family "Amoris Laetitia The Joy of Love"

Saint: Saints Marcellinus, Vincent and Domninus (-374); Saint Bueno (-640); Saint Agnes of Montepulciano OP (1268-1317)

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict: Ch 64:1-6 The Election of an Abbot

Mass: Acts 3:1-10; Resp Ps 105; Lk 24:13-35

Sing to Him, sing praise.

MARY, QUEEN OF PEACE,

PRAY FOR US.

The Lord has truly been raised and has appeared to Simon!

(Lk 24:34)

There is much that could be said today, and this week for that matter, when we celebrate Easter every day within this Octave of Easter. Alleluia!

I find it is sometimes best to go with my first reflections, especially when making haste. We have been blessed, in will continue so blessed, with the lively accounts of the nascent church as related in the Acts of the Apostles. We hear about a man crippled from birth, who, with the words and faith of Peter, "In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean, rise and walk" (Acts 3:6), leaps, stands up, walks around, goes to the temple area, walking and jumping and praising God. This was not before his feet and ankles grew strong though (Acts 3:7).😊 If this man can immediately get going after being crippled from birth, just imagine what we can do. We, each of us, are crippled in one way or another. However, call on the name of the Lord, invoke His name, and do what you can. Many, including us, can too be "filled with amazement and astonishment" (Acts 3:10). Glory in His holy name; rejoice, O hearts that seek the Lord! Look to the Lord in His strength; seek to serve Him constantly (Ps 105).

Jesus, King of glory,

have mercy on us.

SAINT MARCELLINUS, VINCENT AND DOMNINUS,

SAINT BUENO,

SAINT AGNES OF MONTEPULCIANO,

PRAY FOR US.

Today's photo: I've never seen one of these before, a favorite of Catherine's, a checkered lily (fritillaria). Wow! Glory in His holy name.

© Gertrude Feick 2022

Friday of the Second Week of Easter

Year of Saint Joseph

Year of the Family "Amoris Laetitia The Joy of Love"

Other saints: Saint Bernadette Soubirous (1844-1879)

Readings of the Day

RB: Ch 61:6-14

Mass: Acts 5:34-42; Resp Ps 27; Jn 6:1-15

I believe that I shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living.

JESUS, MOST POWERFUL,

HAVE MERCY ON US.

Today's first reading brings a smile to my face. After the Sanhedrin had the Apostles flogged, ordered them to stop speaking in the name of Jesus, then released them (Acts 5:40), I imagine the Apostles to have left quietly and said among themselves, "Yeah, right." Then the Apostles went about "rejoicing that they had been found worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name" (Acts 5:41). And with boldness and courage, "all day long, both at the temple and in their homes, they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the Christ, Jesus" (Acts 5:42). May we go forth with the same joy, boldness, and courage and proclaim the Christ, Jesus, wherever we find ourselves, at work, home, or play. At the Name of Jesus, every knee should bow, every tongue confess Him, King of Glory now, Jesus is Lord, King of Glory now! (cf. Ph 2:10-11). 

JESUS, OUR WAY AND OUR LIFE,

HAVE MERCY ON US.

SAINT BERNADETTE SOUBIROUS,

SAINT JOSEPH,

PRAY FOR US.

Today's photo: Kathleen in Olympia, WA, with a flower of the day, the Crown Imperial. God is praised! Thank you dear KH.

© Gertrude Feick 2021

Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Readings of the day: RB Prol. 45-50

Mass: Ac 16:22-34; Resp Ps 138; Jn 16:5-11

 

Traditional site of Paul's and Silas' prison
(https://revsshaffer.com/2014/05/20/first-glance-acts-1616-40/)

LET US REJOICE AND BE GLAD AND GIVE GLORY TO GOD,

FOR THE LORD OUR GOD REIGNS, ALLELUIA.

(Entrance Antiphon, Mass)

Do you wonder why Paul and Silas were stripped and beaten with rods? The weekday lectionary leaves out interesting details between yesterday’s account of Lydia and her household and today’s narrative of the jailer and his family. You can read for yourself Ac 16:16-21 about the girl with an oracular spirit who was annoying Paul. Paul had enough and said to the spirit: I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. ‘Then the spirit came out at that moment.’ Paul’s command impresses me as it relates to what he says to the jailer today: Believe in the Lord Jesus and your household will be saved. Not long after, the jailer ‘and all his family were baptized at once.’ The POWER of the NAME of JESUS.

She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,

because he will save his people from their sins.

(Mt 1:21)

If you ask anything in my name, I will do it.

(Jn 14:13)

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and

believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved.

(Rm 10: 9-10)

At the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

(Ph 2:10-11)

Wednesday before Epiphany: The Most Holy Name of Jesus

Readings of the day: RB Prol. 14-20

Mass: 1 John 2:29-3:6; Resp. Psalm 98; John 1:29-34

O LORD, OUR LORD,

HOW MAJESTIC IS YOUR NAME THROUGH ALL THE EARTH!

(Mass, Communion Antiphon for Optional Memorial)

The Amplexus
(Christ embraces St Bernard  from the cross)

Introduced to Bernard of Clairvaux’s (1090-1153) Sermons on the Song of Songs during retreat in preparation for perpetual monastic profession, I have been intrigued ever since. Of the Sermons as a whole, the author of the Introduction appropriately states: ‘The genius of St Bernard expresses itself to the full in his eighty-six Sermons on the Song of Songs. Nowhere else does his spiritual doctrine and experience display itself with such depth, vitality and spontaneity as in these conferences which are the fruit of his most mature years’ (M. C. Halflants). One Sermon is particularly fitting for today’s Memorial, that is, Sermon 15, ‘The Name of Jesus’. I’ve used the Sermon in classes with seminarians and share here a few marked passages we discussed, merely a taste of the riches contained therein:

Write what you will, I shall not relish it unless it tells of Jesus. Talk or argue about what you will, I shall not relish it if you exclude the name of Jesus. Jesus to me is honey in the mouth, music in the ear, a song in the heart.

It is a medicine. Does one feel sad? Let the name of Jesus come into his heart, from there let it spring to his mouth, so that shining like the dawn it may dispel all darkness and make a cloudless sky…The hardness of heart that is our common experience, the apathy bred of indolence, bitterness of mind, repugnance for the things of the spirit—have they ever failed to yield in presence of that saving name? The tears dammed up by the barrier of our pride—how have they not burst forth again with sweeter abundance at the thought of Jesus’ name?

For when I name Jesus I set before me a man who is meek and humble of heart, kind, prudent, chaste, merciful, flawlessly upright and holy in the eyes of all; and this same man is the all-powerful God whose way of life heals me, whose support is my strength.

(Sermon 15, 6)

O the healing, comfort, and strength in the name of Jesus.

JESUS.

In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, arise and walk.

(Acts 3:6)