TODAYS REFLECTION 2ND WEEK OF EASTER TUES APRIL 5

TODAYS REFLECTION 2ND WEEK OF EASTER TUES APRIL 5 ( Acts 4:32-37, Jn 3: 7 -15 )

#LIFEAFTERTHERESURRECTION#

Friends todays first reading gives us an example of the lifestyle of the first Christian community after the resurrection, the life is being led in the following of the teachings and examples of the apostles, listening and sharing the word of God, gathering together for the celebration of the Holy Eucharist, they shared all the have in common. They had one mind and one spirit and loved one another and the spirit of the Lord guided them in one love. Their life is challenge to a life of individualism and selfishism that we see today among us.

In today's Gospel passage Nicodemus, a Pharisee and a leading Jew, comes to Jesus at night, this symbolizes that He is  trying to move beyond the night which the Pharisees seem to find themselves in. This simply means that we sometimes feel lost in the nighttime darkness of our lives and that we need to approach Jesus in our solitary desperation for a rebirth just as the more usual birth,  and this takes time to prepare and is only done in darkness.

Finally, Jesus explained to Nicodemus that the "Son of Man" must be "lifted up" to bring the power and authority of God's kingdom. Traditionally when kings began to reign they were literally "lifted up" and enthroned above the people. Jesus explains to Nicodemus that he will be recognized as the Messiah King when he is "lifted up" on the cross at Calvary. The bronze serpent which Moses lifted up in the wilderness points to the cross of Christ which defeats sin and death and obtains everlasting life for those who believe in Jesus Christ. May the Holy sprit give us spiritual power and gifts, especially the seven-fold gifts to live as sons and daughters of God.

THE GOSPEL OF MERCY REMAINS AN OPEN BOOK, SAYS POPE FRANCIS.

Pope: Gospel of Mercy Remains an Open Book

Invites Faithful to Continue Recounting Concrete Acts of Love

APRIL 3, 2016
KATHLEEN NAAB
POPE AND HOLY SEE
Www.zenit.org.

Many of Jesus’ works and signs are not recorded in the Gospel, St. John explains. And Pope Francis is inviting the faithful to continue writing “those pages of the Gospel,” which recount God’s continuous mercy.

“The Gospel is the book of God’s mercy, to be read and reread, because everything that Jesus said and did is an expression of the Father’s mercy. Not everything, however, was written down; the Gospel of mercy remains an open book, in which the signs of Christ’s disciples – concrete acts of love and the best witness to mercy – continue to be written,” the Pope said during his homily this morning at Mass on this Divine Mercy Sunday.

The Holy Father added that we are “all called to become living writers of the Gospel, heralds of the Good News to all men and women of today.”

We do this by practicing the works of mercy, he explained.

Fear vs mission

Pope Francis went on to note the “evident contrast” noted in today’s Gospel: “there is the fear of the disciples, who gathered behind closed doors; and then there is the mission of Jesus, who sends them into the world to proclaim the message of forgiveness.”

The Pope said this contrast might be present in us, as we struggle “between a closed heart and the call of love to open doors closed by sin.”

Christ “wants to enter into each one of us to break open the locked doors of our hearts,” Francis said. “Jesus, who by his resurrection has overcome the fear and dread which imprison us, wishes to throw open our closed doors and send us out.”

The Pope said that in God’s mercy “all of our infirmities find healing” and that mercy “desires to reach the wounds of all, to heal them.”

“Being apostles of mercy means touching and soothing the wounds that today afflict the bodies and souls of many of our brothers and sisters,” the Pope said. “Curing these wounds, we profess Jesus, we make him present and alive; we allow others, who touch his mercy with their own hands, to recognize him as ‘Lord and God.’”

SAINT OF THE DAY APRIL 4 ( Saint Isidore of Seville )

Saint Isidore of Seville

Also known as

• Isidore the Bishop

• Schoolmaster of the Middle Ages

Additional Memorial

15 December (translation of relics)

Profile

Son of Severianus and Theodora, people known for their piety. Brother of Saint Fulgentius of Ecija, Saint Florentina of Cartagena, and Saint Leander of Seville, who raised him after their father's death. Initially a poor student, he gave the problem over to God and became one of the most learned men of his time. Priest. Helped his brother Leander, archbishop of Seville, in the conversion the Visigoth Arians. Hermit.

Archbishop of Seville, Spain c.601, succeeding his brother to the position. Teacher, founder, reformer. Required seminaries in every diocese, and wrote a rule for religious orders. Prolific writer whose works include a dictionary, an encyclopedia, a history of Goths, and a history of the world beginning with creation. Completed the Mozarabic liturgy which is still in use in Toledo, Spain. Presided at the Second Council of Seville, and the Fourth Council of Toledo. Introduced the works of Aristotle to Spain.

Proclaimed Doctor of the Church by Pope Benedict XIV in 1722, and became the leading candidate for patron of computer users and the internet in 1999.

Born

c.560 at Cartagena, Spain

Died

4 April 636 at Seville, Spain

Patronage

• computer technicians
• computer users
• computers
• the Internet
• schoolchildren, students

Representation

• bees
• bishop holding a pen while surrounded by a swarm of bees
• bishop standing near a beehive
• old bishop with a prince at his feet
• pen
• priest or bishop with pen and book
• with Saint Leander, Saint Fulgentius, and Saint Florentina of Cartagena
• with his Etymologia

Storefront

medals

Readings

Prayer purifies us, reading instructs us. Both are good when both are possible. Otherwise, prayer is better than reading. If a man wants to be always in God's company, he must pray regularly and read regularly. When we pray, we talk to God; when we read, God talks to us. All spiritual growth comes from reading and reflection. By reading we learn what we did not know; by reflection we retain what we have learned. Reading the holy Scriptures confers two benefits. It trains the mind to understand them; it turns man's attention from the follies of the world and leads him to the love of God. The conscientious reader will be more concerned to carry out what he has read than merely to acquire knowledge of it. In reading we aim at knowing, but we must put into practice what we have learned in our course of study. The more you devote yourself to study of the sacred utterances, the richer will be your understanding of them, just as the more the soil is tilled, the richer the harvest. The man who is slow to grasp things but who really tries hard is rewarded, equally he who does not cultivate his God-given intellectual ability is condemned for despising his gifts and sinning by sloth. Learning unsupported by grace may get into our ears; it never reaches the heart. But when God's grace touches our innermost minds to bring understanding, his word which has been received by the ear sinks deep into the heart. - from Book of Maxims by Saint Isidore

Heresy is from the Greek word meaning 'choice'…. But we are not permitted to believe whatever we choose, nor to choose whatever someone else has believed. We have the Apostles of God as authorities, who did not…choose what they would believe but faithfully transmitted the teachings of Christ. So, even if an angel from heaven should preach otherwise, he shall be called anathema. - Saint Isidore

TODAYS REFLECTION, THE SOLEMNITY OF THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD MON APRIL 4.

TODAYS REFLECTION, Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, MON APRIL 4
( Is 7: 20-14, 8:10, Lk 1:26-38 )

#MARY'SBIGYESARESPONSEFROMTHEHEART#

Friends today we celebrate the Feast of the Annunciation.  The feast was moved from March 25 (Good Friday this year) to today. Reflecting on the Annunciation of the Lord, what struck me most was Mary's YES FROM THE HEART. She didn’t say yes because someone told her to or because society implied she should.

Many times we do things  out of our head because we hear a voice using words like “should” and “supposed to, we respond to these voices because we are  afraid of what others will think or afraid of making a wrong decision or afraid of pain. Many times we respond out of fear, not love.  Mary responded out of love.  She responded from her heart. Responding out of love can be challenging.  It takes courage. It can be counter-cultural. We need the grace of God in our decisions.

Beloved as we ponder and reflect on Mary's YES today, I invite us to always seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our decisions and allow the Lord to speak through us and be available to be used as HE WILLS. May we be encouraged today through the words of the ANGEL GABRIEL THAT NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE TO GOD. And like MARY MAY WE BE DISPOSED TO THE WILL OF GOD, and never be afraid.  "May it be done to me according to your word.” May God grant us Faith, Courage and love so that we can say YES TO HIM out of love. Have a lovely week and May God bless YOU.

NO PEACE FOR CHRISTIANS THIS EASTER.

No Peace for Christians This Easter

Recent Reports Highlight Ongoing Persecution

APRIL 1, 2016

FR. JOHN FLYNN
Www.zenit.org

ANALYSIS

ACN - Aid To The Church In Need

Easter is a time of spiritual rejoicing for Christians around the world, but for many of them their future continues to be marred by profound anti-Christian persecution.

A couple of recent reports provided ample evidence of the grave situation facing believers in many countries. In Britain the All Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom of Religion or Belief published a detailed study of the situation in Pakistan.

While not an official parliamentary document the report does provide an insight into the thinking of a cross section of members of parliament from both the Commons and the House of Lords.

The report calculated that 96% of Pakistan’s approximately 191 million population are Muslims. Christians make up around 1.59% of the population. For religious minorities “Pakistan presents a particularly bleak environment for individuals wishing to manifest their right to freedom of religion or belief,” the report stated.

Members of the Ahmadiyya, Christian and Hindu communities in Pakistan face a real risk of persecution from a variety of national and provincial laws, the report explained.

This discrimination in some cases reaches the state of systematic discrimination and persecution, carried not only by private individuals but also by “State-sanctioned  persecution.” The report talked of oppressive policies and laws imposed by government officials at both the federal and provincial levels, combined with impunity for those guilty of violent mob attacks on religious minorities.

This persecution persists in spite of Pakistan being a signatory to various international treaties and agreements that guarantee religious freedom. Moreover, even the nation’s constitution guarantees the right to religious freedom, and founder of Pakistan’s independence as a country, Mohammad Ali Jinnah, declared the country would provide a home for all religious minorities.

Tolerance dissipated

The report noted that with the death of Jinnah in 1948, shortly after the independence of Pakistan, “the vision of religious tolerance and equality for all also dissipated.”

The report contained a number of recommendations for Pakistan’s government, including the need to guarantee parliamentary representation for religious minorities to a reform of the discriminatory blasphemy laws.

Among the recommendations of the report to the British government was the request that asylum requests from members of Pakistan’s religious minorities should be treated seriously and that grounds for asylum could exist on a cumulative basis rather than a single act of persecution.

Apart from more sympathetic treatment of asylum requests the report also urged that British government aid to Pakistan be directed to organizations and government programs that uphold freedom of religion or belief.

Shortly after the British report in the United States the Knights of Columbus published a report on the persecution of Christians by Islamic extremists. Titled “Genocide Against Christians in the Middle East” the report was submitted to Secretary of State John Kerry.

The 280-page report was prepared to assist the State Department in determining if the actions by ISIS against Christians could be classified as “genocide.” As previously reported by Zenit both the State Department, and also the European Parliament, have officially declared that ISIS has engaged in genocide.

In presenting the report Knights of Columbus CEO Carl Anderson noted that with information continuing to arrive on the treatment of Christians the level of persecution detailed in the report “may only be the tip of the iceberg.”

Relieve suffering

The president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, supported the call to classify the persecution of Christians as genocide.

“With each passing day, the roll of modern martyrs grows,” Archbishop Kurtz said. “While we rejoice in their ultimate victory over death through the power of Jesus’ love, we must also help our fellow Christians carry the Cross of persecution and, as much as possible, help relieve their suffering,” he stated.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) welcomed the State Department’s decision proclaiming that groups including Yazidis, Christians, and Shi’a Muslims in Iraq and Syria are victims of genocide by Islamic extremists.

USCIRF’s Chairman, Robert P. George declared that all must stand against the destruction of religious minority communities. He also called upon the U.N. Security Council and the International Criminal Court to investigate and take action against the atrocities being committed in Iraq and Syria.

The Middle East is, of course, not the only place where Christians face persecution. Open Doors  USA published a recent report according to which 2015 was the worst year on record for Christians when it comes to beheadings, evictions and imprisonment.

“Islamic extremism continues to be the primary driving force behind the expansion of persecution,” said Open Doors President and CEO David Curry, according to press reports. “It is no longer just a Christian problem, but a global problem that must be addressed,” he said.

Amid all the reports, declarations and concern for the plight of Christians and other religious minorities, it remains to be seen if any effective action to put an end to religious persecution will be forthcoming.

SAINT OF THE DAY APRIL 2 ( Saint Francis of Paola )

Saint Francis of Paola

Also known as

• Franciscus de Paula
• Francis the Fire Handler
• Francesco di Paola

Profile

Francis's parents were childless for many years, but following prayers for the intercession of Saint Francis of Assisi, they had three children; Francis was the oldest. Following a pilgrimage in his teens to Rome and Assisi in Italy, he became a hermit in a cave near Paola. Before he was 20 years old he began to attract followers. By the 1450's the followers had become so numerous that he established a Rule for them and sought Church approval. This was the founding of the Hermits of Saint Francis of Assisi, who were approved by the Holy See in 1474. In 1492 they were renamed the Franciscan Order of Minim Fiars, which means they count themselves the least of the family of God.

Prophet. Miracle worker. Reputed to read minds. In 1464 Francis wanted to cross the Straits of Messina to reach Sicily, but a boatman refused to take him. Francis laid his cloak on the water, tied one end to his staff to make a sail, and sailed across with his companions. Franz Liszt wrote a piece of music inspired by the incident.

Defender of the poor and oppressed. Gave unwanted counsel and admonitions to King Ferdinand of Naples and his sons. Traveled to Paris at the request of Pope Sixtus IV to help Louis XI prepare for death. Used this position to influence the course of national politics, helping restore peace between France and Brittany by advising a marriage between the ruling families, and between France and Spain by persuading Louis XI to return some disputed land.

In an old tradition that has certain saints opposing on an equivalent demon, Francis is the adversary of Belial since his simple humility cancels the demons raging pride.

Born

27 March 1416 at Paola, Calabria, Kingdom of Italy (part of modern Italy)

Died

• 2 April 1507 (Good Friday) at Plessis, France of natural causes
• in 1562 Huguenots broke open his tomb, found his body incorrupt, and burned it; the bones were salvaged by Catholics, and distributed as relics to various churches

Canonized

1519 by Pope Leo X

Patronage

• against fire
• against plague
• against sterility
• boatmen, mariners, sailors, watermen
• naval officers
• travellers
• 7 cities

Representation

• man with the word "charitas" levitated above a crowd
• man holding a skull and scourge
• man sailing on his cloak
• green rose

Storefront

statues

Readings

Fix your minds on the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ. Inflamed with love for us, he came down from heaven to redeem us. For our sake he endured every torment of body and soul and shrank from no bodily pain. He himself gave us an example of perfect patience and love. We, then, are to be patient in adversity.

Take pains to refrain from sharp words. Pardon one another so that later on you will not remember the injury. The recollection of an injury is itself wrong. It adds to our anger, nurtures our sins and hates what is good. It is a rusty arrow and poison for the soul. It puts all virtue to flight.

Be peace-loving. Peace is a precious treasure to be sought with great zeal. You are well aware that our sins arouse God's anger. You must change your life, therefore, so that God in his mercy will pardon you. What we conceal from men is known to God. Be converted, then, with a sincere heart. Live your life that you may receive the blessing of the Lord. Then the peace of God our Father will be with you always. – from a letter by Saint Francis of Paola.

TODAYS REFLECTION SAT OCTAVE OF EASTER APRIL 2

TODAYS REFLECTION SAT OCTAVE OF EASTER APRIL 2 ( Acts 4:13-21, Mk 16: 9-15 )

#WEHAVEBEENCOMMISSIONEDTOPREACHTHEGOSPEL#

Friends it is not surprising to me today that in the first reading, the religious leaders tried to silence the enthusiasm of Peter and John because they saw their boldness and also recognized them as the companions of Jesus. Furthermore, because everyone living in Jerusalem knows that a remarkable sign was done through them by curing a crippled man, they were given a  stern warning never again to speak to anyone in Jesus' name.

These are some of the big challenges we face in our faith but glory to God Peter and John stood firm to their faith as they said  "It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard". Their conviction of the truth of the resurrection gives them strength and a fearless  eloquence to speak on the name of Jesus. Do we have courage and faith like them who believe that God is their strenght and protection? Let's believe in the good news because is a free gift which cost us nothing.

In the gospel we see that the first to see the risen Lord was not Peter or one of the apostles, but a woman noted for her demonized living, Unfortunately for the disciples, they would not believe her account of the Risen Master. Jesus had to scold his apostles because of their unbelief and stubborn hearts. After his appearance to his beloved apostles, Jesus commissions them to go and preach the gospel to the whole creation. This is the great commission which the risen Christ gives to the whole church. May the Lord increase our faith so that we may witness to others the joy of the Gospel and the hope of the resurrection. Have a blessed weekend and let's be united in prayers.