Saturday of the Second Week of Easter

Readings of the day: RB 60 The Admission of Priests into the Monastery

Mass: Ac 6:1-7; Resp Ps 33; Jn 6:16-21

It had already grown dark, and Jesus had not yet come.

The sea was stirred up because a strong wind was blowing.

Our lives are like this sometimes: we experience dark periods of self-doubt, loneliness, betrayal, disappointment; we have troubles, anxieties, worries, and are afraid. The winds of daily life are blowing—we feel ungrounded, frustrated, and wonder where God is. Nevertheless, a line from Albert Camus’sThe Stranger comes to mind: ‘Mother used to say that however miserable one is, there’s always something to be thankful for.’ Our eyes and ears are opened to see and hear: It is I. Do not be afraid. Jesus walks toward us, behind us, before us, and with us. The Lord is with me; I am not afraid (Ps 118:6). Thank you, Jesus. 

Jesus Christ loves you; he gave his life to save you;

and now he is living at your side every day to enlighten, strengthen and free you.

Evangelii Gaudium, 164

Friday of the Second Week of Easter

Saint Martin I (d. 655)

Illustration in Moralia of Job, Citeaux, 13th Century

Readings of the day: RB 59 Reception of Children

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

ALL DAY LONG, BOTH AT THE TEMPLE AND IN THEIR HOMES, THE APOSTLES DID NOT STOP TEACHING AND PROCLAIMING THE CHRIST JESUS.

Today let us think about our freedom. We have three examples: Gamaliel, Peter and John, and Jesus. Do I possess Christian freedom? Am I free, or am I a slave to my passions, ambitions, riches, or passing fancies? It seems like a joke, but many people are slaves to fashion! … Let us reflect on our freedom in the midst of a ‘schizophrenic’ world. It shouts ‘Freedom, Freedom, Freedom!’ but is really a slave. Let us reflect on the freedom that God gives us in Jesus.

(Pope Francis, homily, Casa Santa Marta, April 13, 2018)

Holiness is also parrhesía: it is boldness, an impulse to evangelize and to leave a mark in this world. To allow us to do this, Jesus himself comes and tells us once more, serenely yet firmly: ‘Do not be afraid’ (Mk 6:50). ‘I am with you always, to the end of the world’ (Mt 28:20). These words enable us to go forth and serve with the same courage that the Holy Spirit stirred up in the Apostles, impelling them to proclaim Jesus Christ. Boldness, enthusiasm, the freedom to speak out, apostolic fervor, all these are included in the word parrhesía. The Bible also uses this word to describe the freedom of a life open to God and to others (cf. Ac 4:29, 9:28, 28:31; 2 Co 3:12; Ep 3:12; Heb 3:6, 10:19).

(Pope Francis, Apostolic Exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate, 129)

Let us ask the Lord for the grace not to hesitate when the Spirit calls us to take a step forward. Let us ask for the apostolic courage to share the Gospel with others and to stop trying to make our Christian life a museum of memories. In every situation, may the Holy Spirit cause us to contemplate history in the light of the risen Jesus. In this way, the Church will not stand still, but constantly welcome the Lord’s surprises.

(Gaudete et Exsultate, 139)

THE LORD IS MY LIGHT AND MY SALVATION;

WHOM SHOULD I FEAR?

THE LORD IS MY LIFE’S REFUGE;

OF WHOM SHOULD I BE AFRAID?

(Resp Ps 27)

Thursday of the Second Week of Easter

Readings of the day: RB 58:17-29

Mass: Ac 5:27-33; Resp Ps 34; Jn 3:31-36

WE MUST OBEY GOD.

My dear God, I am impressed with how much I have to be thankful for in a material sense; and in a spiritual sense I have the opportunity of being even more fortunate. But it seems to me that I am not translating this opportunity into fact. You say, dear God, to ask for grace and it will be given. I ask for it. I realize that there is more to it than that—that I have to behave like I want it. ‘Not those who say, Lord, Lord, but those who do the will of my Father.’ Please help me to know the will of my Father—not a scrupulous nervousness nor yet a lax presumption but a clear, reasonable knowledge; and after this give me a strong Will to be able to bend it to the Will of the Father (F. O’Connor, A Prayer Journal, p. 5).

BEHOLD, I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS,

EVEN TO THE END OF THE AGE,

ALLELUIA.

(Communion Antiphon, Mass)

Wednesday of the Second Week of Easter

Readings of the day: RB 58:1-16 The Reception of Candidates for the Community

Mass: Ac 5:17-26; Resp Ps 34; Jn 3:16-21

GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY-BEGOTTEN SON,

SO THAT EVERYONE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM MIGHT NOT PERISH

BUT HAVE ETERNAL LIFE.

When you feel in your marrow how you’re his beloved,

you do more than look for signs of his love in the world,

more than have a sign of his love; you actually

become a sign of his love. (A. Voskamp)

WHOEVER LIVES THE TRUTH COMES TO LIGHT SO THAT HIS WORKS MAY BE CLEARLY SEEN AS DONE IN GOD.

How will you be a sign of God’s LIGHT and LOVE today?

Keeping a heart free of all that tarnishes love: that is holiness.

(Pope Francis, Apostolic Exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate, 86)

Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter

Readings of the day: RB 57 Members of the Community with Creative Gifts

Mass: Ac 4:32-37; Resp Ps 93; Jn 3:7b-15

JUST AS MOSES LIFTED UP THE SERPENT IN THE DESERT,

SO MUST THE SON OF MAN BE LIFTED UP,

SO THAT EVERYONE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM MAY HAVE ETERNAL LIFE.

I have said on many occasions, in different situations, that I cannot fully explain the existence of evil and natural disasters. If I had that kind of knowledge and understanding, I would be God. But Our Lord has given us, and certainly given me, a way of entering into the mystery to try to discover some meaning, and that is his own death on the cross. It is only by looking at the crucifix that we begin to discover some kind of solution. There, and there alone, is the solution, because behind every crucifix you see, with the eyes of faith, the outline of the risen Christ. That is the point and that is why a crucifix is such a lovely thing (B. Hume, The Mystery of the Cross, pp. 6-7).

THE CHRIST HAD TO SUFFER AND RISE FROM THE DEAD,

AND SO ENTER INTO HIS GLORY.

ALLELUIA.

(Communion Antiphon, Mass)

Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord

Readings of the day: RB 56 The Table for the Abbess and Community Guests

Mass: Is 7:10-14; 8:10; Resp Ps 40; Heb 10:4-10; Lk 1:26-38

MAY IT BE DONE TO ME ACCORDING TO YOUR WORD.

What shall be opened to the Lord but the ear and the heart.

With your ear hearken to the angel’s word, with your heart receive the Word, and with your body conceive the Son of God.

(Guerric of Igny, Sermon 27, 3)

HEAR I AM, LORD; I COME TO DO YOUR WILL.

(Resp Ps 40)

Mary, House of Gold,

pray for us.

Second Sunday of Easter (or Sunday of Divine Mercy)

 Readings of the day: RB 55:15-22

Mass: Ac 4:32-35; Resp Ps 118; 1 Jn 5:1-6; Jn 20:19-31

Today’s musings…

THE COMMUNITY OF BELIEVERS WAS OF ONE HEART AND MIND.

Another one of my favorite lines in the Bible takes me to the psalmist: How good it is, how pleasant, when the people dwell as one! (Ps 133:1). Moreover, today we hit the jackpot! St Benedict uses Ac 4:35 in his chapter, ‘Clothing and Footwear for the Community,’ read today: There is one saying from the Acts of the Apostles which the Abbess must always bear in mind, namely, that ‘proper provision was made according to the needs of each’ (RB 55:20)

On this Sunday of Divine Mercy, we contemplate how the mercy of God bestowed upon us calls us to be united with one heart and one mind—to dwell as one in Christ Jesus. We are called to be bearers of mercy. Pope Francis uses these words: God covers us with His mercy, He enfolds us in Christ, so that we become instruments of his goodness (Pope Francis, Twitter, April 7, 2018). As believers ‘that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God’, and instruments of the love, mercy, and goodness of God, we look out for one another by tending to the needs of others; by seeking forgiveness and reconciliation; by making peace our quest and aim—peace be with you. Words from St John are fitting: Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten by God, and everyone who loves the Father loves also the one begotten by him. In this way we know that we love the children of God when we love God and obey his commandments. For the love of God is this, that we keep his commandments. And the greatest commandment: Love the Lord God with your whole heart, your whole soul and all your strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.

THE COMMUNITY OF BELIEVERS WAS OF ONE HEART AND MIND.

Jesus Christ taught that man not only receives and experiences the mercy of God, but that he is also called ‘to practice mercy’ towards others: ‘Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.’ The Church sees in these words a call to action, and she tries to practice mercy. All the beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount indicate the way of conversion and of reform of life, but the one referring to those who are merciful is particularly eloquent in this regard. Man attains to the merciful love of God, His mercy, to the extent that he himself is interiorly transformed in the spirit of that love towards his neighbor.

(Pope St John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Dives in Misericordia, 14)

HOW WILL YOU BE AN INSTRUMENT OF

GOD’S MERCY, LOVE, AND GOODNESS TODAY?