Readings for Easter Sunday, April 4, 2010 The Resurrection of the Lord

The Resurrection of the Lord

Aleluya Aleluya Aleluya!

1st Reading, from the Acts of the Apostles, 10: 34a, 37-43

This reading is about Peter's speech, delivered at the house of Cornelius, a captain of the Roman Army.

Three days before, while Cornelius prayed an angel appeared and instructed him to send for Simon Peter. Cornelius obliged to the angel's request and sent his servants to bring Peter back to him.

As Peter delivers his speech, he explains to Cornelius and to the others who were present, that God has made clear that he loves all men equally. God's love is blind and makes no difference between Jews and Gentiles, servant or free. Peter words are a detailed testament of Jesus' life, his miracles, and his legacy. The speech calls, not just the one's present but all of us who believe in the Good News, to "preach the Gospel to all the people and to testify that Jesus Christ is the one whom God has appointed judge of the living and the dead."

So, let us begin today, on the most special day of all special days, to tell our friends, our family, our neighbors, everyone, about God's instructions to believe in Jesus and to consider him "the One" sent by God to be the director of our lives.

If we believe, then let us share these news with everyone willing to listen! Remember that the reward for this task is the forgiveness of our sins.

***** ***** ***** ***** A L E L U Y A ***** ***** ***** ***** *****

2nd Reading, from the 1st letter of Paul to the Corinthians, 5: 6b-8

As a result of the problems that his church in Corinth was experiencing, Peter writes his 1st letter. He hopes that confusion amongst families and that immorality within the Christians would be resolved and turn into a thing of the past.

Paul asks the people to remove whatever is causing them to sin, from within their midst. Like the proverbial rotten apple that will rot the other good apples in the basket, Paul asks the Corinthians to be done with the old.

At one point or another we all have been able to observe the phenomenon of the rotten element meddling and spoiling the good one, and how rotten ways can speed up deterioration to anything within close reach. The wicked student who will incite the rest of the class to disrespect their teacher; the one nervous sheep that will lead the flock astray; the man who yells fire causing panic and promoting a stamped of fearful citizens; all of these and many more examples can be quoted as a parable to the problems that Paul is trying to solve.

On this letter, Paul recommends to the get done with the old habits so that -the Corinthians and us as well- can start anew.

Let us listen carefully to this simple advice: God recommends exactly the same for us.


***** ***** ***** ***** A L E L U Y A ***** ***** ***** ***** *****

The Gospel according to John, 20: 1-9

"They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don't know where they put him."

So it happened that on the morning of the 1st day of the week, they went to get the body and found the rock moved and the tomb empty.

Mary Magdalene and the other women alerts the apostles of the situation. Everyone suspects thievery and yet find finely folded burial clothes, which does not match with suspicion of what a grave robber would leave behind, after trashing a tomb. Some CSI mystery for the apostles...

The Good News have not yet sunk in their minds and they are slow to understand that, what is happening in front of their very eyes, IS the prophecy turning real.

It has been over 2000 years after this faithful Sunday morning, and presently a great deal of people in our world agree with the fact that the miracle of Jesus Christ's resurrection occurred that day. And this fact is what is of great importance: that we have no doubts in our hearts about the forces that are behind the rolled stone.

Jesus Christ's resurrection is the cornerstone of our Christian faith. Believing that he raised from the dead should be enough to cast out any doubt of the veracity of the Good News.

We believe, and because of this, we follow Jesus' advices... In doing so we guarantee for ourselves, a seat on the table of the eternal banquet!

ALELUYA, HE HAS RISEN!

The Gospel for Holy Saturday, April 3, 2010

The Gospel according to Luke, 24: 1-12

At daybreak on the first day of the week the women who had come from Galilee with Jesus took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. they found the stone rolled away from the tomb; but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.

While they were puzzling over this, behold, two men in dazzling garments appeared to them. They were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground. They said to them, "Why do you seek the living one among the dead? He is not here, but he has been raised. Remember what he said to you while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners and be crucified, and rise on the third day." And they remembered his words.

Then they returned from the tomb and announced all these things to the eleven and to all the others. The women were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James; the others who accompanied them also told this to the apostles, but their story seemed like nonsense and they did not believe them. But Peter got up and ran to the tomb, bent down, and saw the burial cloths alone; then he went home amazed at what had happened.

The Gospel of the Lord.

RITUALS AND CUSTOMS of GOOD FRIDAY

Good Friday is the only day of the year on which Mass is not celebrated. The altar is bare, without cloths, candles, or cross.

According to the Church's ancient traditions, today we celebrate our Lord's passion, which consists of three parts:

• the Liturgy of the Word,
• Veneration of the Holy Cross,
• reception of Holy Communion.

We read the Liturgy of the Word, which consists of the readings of Jesus' suffering and death, as told by the Book of John, and we pray the general intercessions.

On the first centuries after Jesus' passing, churches obtained relics of the true cross, upon which veneration took place. Gradually the practice took root on every church, even when a relic was not available.

On Good Friday we share the Eucharist, consuming Communion of the Presanctified (this is the bread that was consecrated the day before, on Holy Thursday).

We meditate the Stations of the Cross or we meditate upon the seven last words spoken by Jesus as recorded in the various gospels.

The Gospel for Thursday of Holy Week, April 1, 2010

The Gospel according to John 13: 1-15

Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to pass from this world to the Father. He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end. The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, to hand him over. So, during supper, fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power and that he had come from God and was returning to God, he rose from supper and took off his outer garments.

He took a towel and tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and dry them with the towel around his waist.

He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Master, are you going to wash my feet?" Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing, you do not understand now, but you will understand later." Peter said to him, "You will never wash my feet." Jesus answered him, "Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance in me." Simon Peter said to him, "Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well." Jesus said to him, "Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed, for he is clean all over; so you are clean, but not all."

So when he had washed their feet and put his garments back on and reclined at table again, he said to them, "Do you realize what I have done for you?" You call me 'teacher' and 'master', and rightly so, for indeed I am. If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash another's feet. I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do."
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ

The Gospel for Wednesday of Holy Week, March 31, 2010

The Gospel according to Mathew, 26: 14-25

One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, "What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?" They paid him thirty pieces of silver, and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over.

On the first day of the Feast of the Unleavened Bread, the disciples approached Jesus and said, "Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?" He said, "Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, 'The teacher says, "My appointed time draws near; in your house I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples." The disciples then did as Jesus had ordered, and prepared the Passover.

When it was evening, he reclined at table with the Twelve. And while they were eating, he said, "Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me." Deeply distressed at this, they began to say to him one after the other, "Surely it is not I, Lord?" He said in reply, "He who has dipped his hand into the dish with me is the one who will betray me. The Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed. It would be better for that man if he had never been born." Then Judas, his betrayer, said in reply, "Surely it is not I, Rabbi?"

He answered, "You have said so."

The Gospel for Tuesday of Holy Week, March 30, 2010

The Gospel according to John, 13:21-33, 36-38

Reclining at table with his disciples, Jesus was deeply troubled and testified, "Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me." The disciples looked at one another, at a loss as to whom he meant.

One of his disciples, the one whom Jesus loved, was reclining at Jesus' side. So Simon Peter nodded to him to find out whom he meant. He leaned back against Jesus' chest and said to him, "Master, who is it?" Jesus answered, "It is the one to whom I hand the morsel after I have dipped it." so he dipped the morsel and took it and handed it to Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot. After Judas took the morsel, Satan entered him. So Jesus said to him, "What you are going to do, do quickly." Now none of those reclining at table realized why he said this to him. Some thought that since Judas kept the money bag, Jesus had told him, "Buy what we need for the feast," or to give something to the poor. So Judas took the morsel and left at once. And it was night.

When he had left, Jesus said, "Now is the son of Man glorified, and god is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and he will glorify him at once. My children, I will be with you only a little while longer. You will look for me, and as I told the Jews, "Where I go you cannot come', so now I say it to you."

Simon Peter said to him, "Master, where are you going?" Jesus answered him, "Where I am going, you cannot follow me now, thought you will follow later." Peter said to him, "Master, why ca I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you."

Jesus answered, "Will you lay down your life me? Amen, amen, I say to you, the cock will not crow before you deny me three times."

Reading for Monday of Holy Week, March 29, 2010

The Gospel according to John, 12: 1-11
Six days before Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. They gave a dinner for him there, and Martha served, while Lazarus was one of those reclining at table with him.

Mary took a liter of costly perfumed oil made from genuine aromatic nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair; the house was filled with the fragance of the oil. Then Judas Iscariot, one of the disciples, and the one who would betray him, said, "Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days' wages and given to the poor?" He said this not because he cared for the poor but because he was a thief and held the money bag and used to steal the contributions.

So Jesus said, "Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me."

The large crowd of the Jews found out that he was there and came, not only because of him, but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. And the chief priest plotted to kill Lazarus too, because many of the Jews were turning away and believing in Jesus because of him.