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RELIGION LITURGY AND LIFE

Archive for the month “May, 2024”

31 May 2024

CORPUS CHRISTI

This Sunday we celebrate the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ also known as Corpus Christi. The readings for the Solemnity of Corpus Christi Year B give background for the notion of sacrifice and explain why we call Jesus the Lamb of God. The first reading describes how the Israelites sacrificed animals to seal their covenant with God. Moses relayed God’s laws to Israel, recorded them, and confirmed the covenant by sprinkling blood on the people, symbolizing their commitment to God’s commands. The second reading explains Christ is our high priest, but he also demonstrates sacrificial love. Christ, the perfect high priest, entered heaven with his own blood, not that of animals, offering us eternal redemption and mediating a new covenant. in the gospel Jesus instructs his disciples to prepare the Passover in a designated room, where he institutes the Eucharist and predicts he will not drink any more wine until he drinks the new wine in the kingdom of god.

 When we see the Eucharistic Bread, we believe that it is Jesus who is there before us what is known as the real presence such is our faith in the Eucharist.  We are thus in the presence of Jesus who has risen and conquered death and is now in Heaven, in the Glory of the Father!  The Church teaches that the Eucharist is “the source and summit of the Christian life.” (CCC 1324) This means that, because Christ is really, truly and substantially present in the Eucharist, we recognize that all the graces we enjoy come from this great Sacrament, and all we aspire to, the fullness of the life of God. Corpus Christi is a Eucharistic solemnity that is, the solemn commemoration of the institution of the eucharist. It is, moreover, the Church’s official act of homage and gratitude to Christ, who by instituting the Holy Eucharist gave to the Church and to us as members of the Church our greatest treasure the bread of life.  Each time we celebrate the mass we embody the covenant of Christ, wherein God sees in us anew the flesh of Jesus. It was not by the “blood of goats and calves that we hear about in the first reading but by the blood of Jesus that our sins were forgiven and our redemption was achieved.

Jesus Christ, “body, blood, soul, and divinity,” becomes substantially one with us as our food and sustenance. Thus God beholds each of us and sees in us the beloved Son he sent to save us. But it is not only God’s vision of us that is affected. Our own vision of ourselves and of each other is transformed. If we fully enter into the eucharistic mystery of Jesus we will  see each other as God sees us. By following in our Lord’s footsteps. Christians over the centuries have sacrificed greatly, in a labor of love, for their faith, their Christian way of life and their families. Then as now, it begins with each individual humbly asking God to show the way and to provide the eucharistic food needed to follow in His footsteps. This strength comes from the Eucharist the Bread of Life which is the body of Christ.

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24 May 2024

Trinity Sunday

This weekend we celebrate Trinity Sunday which is all about the triune god Father, son and Holy Spirit. When my Father was alive he  often had a small tin of oil in the tool  box he used which was called three in one oil  when I was thinking about a definition of the Holy Trinity  it  came to mind however the trinity is  about  three divine persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. St Patrick, with a brilliance that we Irish are justly celebrate found in the three leaf shamrock rising from the one stem an image of the Trinity which is still used today. The feast of the Trinity goes back to 12th century England and St Thomas a Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury. Historians say the great Thomas celebrated a Liturgy in honor of the Trinity in his cathedral. So was born the observance. In the 14th century, the feast came to be observed by the universal Church. One week after the end of the Easter season, in which we gave thanks for the saving death and resurrection of Jesus, and the celebration of the gift of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost Sunday, this feast of the Holy Trinity invites us to contemplate the mystery of God. Paul in the Letter to the Romans reminds us that the Spirit of God makes us God’s children, destined to share in the life of God, as Christ does.

Through the Holy Spirit dwelling in our hearts we become aware of the love and strength of the living God available to us both now and in the life to come. In the First Reading from Deuteronomy  Moses urges reflection on God’s unique acts for Israel: speaking from fire, choosing them miraculously, and showing unmatched power. He emphasizes that the Lord is the only God and calls for obedience to ensure prosperity. The Second Reading from Romans  tells us As God’s children, led by His Spirit, we are freed from fear, adopted, and can call Him “Father”. This Spirit affirms our divine inheritance with Christ, linking suffering with shared glory. In the Gospel reading Matthew tells us that On a Galilean mountain, the eleven disciples met Jesus as instructed. Despite some doubts, they worshipped Him. Jesus declared His divine authority and commanded them to make disciples of all nations, baptize them, and teach His commands, assuring His continual presence until the end of time. The gospel reading speaks of power: the power of presence and the power of the name. Ancient people placed great weight in presence; the way someone dressed and acted spoke of social power. Ancient people also chose names carefully; they believed a person’s name defined their strength of character. Both outward presence and inward character are part of the disciples’ experience.

When the followers saw the resurrected Lord and heard his command to evangelize the entire world, they saw for themselves the Trinity in action. When we live as followers of Christ, we invite others to join us not because they see nice people living good lives. No, they, too, see the Trinity in action as God, Father, Son and Spirit work through us. Each Trinity Sunday, we only scratch the surface of this great mystery of our faith. In gratitude and faith, let us begin and end every prayer with greater reverence “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”

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19 May 2024

Pentecost Sunday

Today we celebrate the decent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and the beginning of the apostolic mission to bring the Church to the world. The readings for the Pentecost clearly tell us that we need to be willing to receive the Holy Spirit and then use the gifts we receive. In the first reading we hear how the Holy Spirit came to the disciples and empowered them to share the gospel with people from different nations as a result of this we are able to hear the word of God spoken in our own language. The second reading tells us that it is the Holy Spirit who enables us to proclaim the gospel in unity. By the time John wrote his gospel, Jewish Christians had been excommunicated for their belief in the Messiah. Ostracized and socially persecuted, some Christians reacted in fear, while others boldly proclaimed the gospel. Early Christians needed a sense of stability, a sense of divine peace.

Through the words of Jesus, “Peace” was John’s prayer for his readers as we listen to this gospel reading. With the sight of Jesus, fear turned into great joy. Anxiety turned into relief.  Desperation turned into vindication. And the lack of spiritual direction turned into a real sense of deep spiritual grounding. The divine presence stood close to them and with the divine presence came divine peace. We too have the divine presence in the Blessed Sacrament and it brings Joy and spiritual grounding to all those who come and Jesus says to each and every one of us you are welcome. We can’t ignore the problems that are there and there are many in our own lives and the lives of those around us church and otherwise.  If we pray through the problems as well as thinking them through we will find that they are much easier to get through the tough times.   Gathered at Mass week in week out we bring our prayers to God. We each have our own needs. Family and friends may be sick.  People we know need work. The person who has been central to our lives for so long has passed on.   

We bring all our concerns in prayer to church because they remind us of our need and they raise our hopes in the power of God made real to every generation through the Holy Spirit.  Through the Holy Spirit our relationship with God is fruitful, satisfies our longings, and brings us peace.  Because of God’s faithfulness to all of us, we give thanks and once again present our needs as we remember the presence of God and the Holy Spirit who are with us. The feast of Pentecost is a day of thanksgiving for the beginning of the Church, in which are contained all the treasures of spiritual grace. Pentecost is also the day of thanksgiving for the coming of the Holy Spirit firstly to  the Apostles as well as all of us. It is a day on which we renew our trust in the working  of the Holy Spirit within us and the Church in the world and  we thank Him for His inspiration and guidance in all the good and bad times and things that are part of our lives.

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11 May 2024

Ascension of the Lord

This Sunday  we celebrate the feast of Ascension.  In our lives we have seen the departure of so many people, Perhaps it is a son or daughter leaving for university or maybe it was someone leaving to go to another country or the hardest departure of all someone close to us dying. Our lives are made up of so many different times and places of departure or leave-taking and that is what Ascension is really about as Jesus returns to the Father. Jesus leaves us but remains with us through the gift of the Spirit that came at Pentecost.  The readings for the  Ascension of the Lord encourage us to be open to the Holy Spirit and be willing to spread the Good News.  In the first reading from the Acts of the ApostlesJesus, after His resurrection, instructed the apostles to await the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem, promising them power to witness globally. He then ascended into heaven, affirming His eventual return. In the Second Reading Saint  Paul prays for believers to receive wisdom and revelation to know God fully, understanding their hope, inheritance, and the immense power granted to them, the same power that raised Christ.

The words of the Gospel for Ascension day strike me in a particular way Jesus tells us ‘go therefore make disciples of all the nations and know that I am with you to the end of time.  Jesus has called the ragged, group of disciples, scattered after his crucifixion, back to himself to form them, fragile and doubtful as they are, into a community for mission in the name of God. The task of the historical Jesus is complete; the task of the church as the living Body of Christ has just begun. It is comforting to recognise that Jesus doesn’t insist on perfection before he calls us and entrusts us with his mission. Jesus is definite about what he has to say when he speaks and calls his disciples to be the first missionaries. This is in sharp contrast to the fact that, their feelings were varied. Some of them worshipped him, while some of them still doubted.  Jesus didn’t seem to have any great problem with that, because he knew that, when the Spirit came, all of those doubts would be ended. It would seem, indeed, that he was in a hurry to take his leave of them, so that the next  part of his salvation plan could get underway.  The mission of the apostles was simple to understand; difficult to carry out. It was to teach others all that Jesus had taught them.

Just as he asked his disciples to follow him, they were to ask that others would follow him and was so hard for them then and it is hard for us to do in the world of today.  So many things have changed in the Church and society. However the two things that have not changed are Jesus himself and his message as they are always new for each generation.  Again and again we need to ask ourselves what we are doing to make disciples of the people around us . The feasts of the Ascension and Pentecost help us to realize that we are part of a long tradition of faithful people who have taken up the challenge to pass on the faith . We have our faults and failings, but our call is to witness to and teach the way of Jesus by the kind of people we are, the values and attitudes we hold, in thought, word and deeds our calling is to be the living presence of God in the world where we are today.

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04 May 2024

6th Sunday of Easter

This Sunday is the 6th Sunday of Easter. it is also the beginning of the month of May. May is the month in  which we venerate the Mother of Jesus in a special way and in our parish we are hosting the annual Novena to our Lady of Perpetual Help.

In the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, we see a remarkable event where Peter, a Jew, realizes that God does not favour one group of people over another. As Peter spoke to a gathering that included both Jews and Gentiles, the Holy Spirit came upon everyone present. This was a clear sign that God’s love and salvation were available to all, not just a select few. Moved by this understanding, Peter baptized the Gentiles, officially welcoming them into the Christian community. This passage teaches us that God’s love knows no boundaries and that we, too, are called to transcend our prejudices and share God’s love with all.

The second reading, from the first letter of John, tells us straightforwardly: “God is love.” This profound truth is at the heart of Christian life. It means that loving others is not just a command from God, but a reflection of God Himself. When we love one another, we are participating in God’s own life.John goes on to explain that God showed this love most clearly by sending His Son, Jesus, to save us from our sins. This act of sending His only Son as a sacrifice is the ultimate example of love. Every act of love we show to others is a reflection of God’s love for us and an encounter with Him. In the Gospel for this Sunday Jesus tells us ‘As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Remain in my love. This is my commandment: love one another, as I have loved you.  The teaching about love is not a recent innovation, or a new-age trend as many people seem to think. Jesus does lay down a commandment for us today, but he does so, not as the master talking to servants, but as a friend speaking intimately  to other friends. Servants follow rules, their lives are dictated by the one who holds authority over them. Jesus’ religion isn’t based on such a model though many in the church today seem to think otherwise. Instead, love is the foundation of our faith. Jesus is asking us to live out of the realization of that love. We are his friends, he tells us, so now we are asked to go out and live like friends with one another. “Friends,” in this context, means “beloved ones.” We need to live out of that description for we are the beloved disciples. The instructions that Jesus gives are valuable  lessons by which we will master the love of God our Father in what we say and what we do. Jesus chose his followers to carry out God’s plan of salvation in every age he chooses us today in our turn to do the same.  

Love is the best way to become his “co-worker,” since it reveals the reason he made the world and affirms our friendship with the creator. Love changes everything it touches. It tells us to stop bragging about this or that. It enhances our reputation. It denies the power of position and wealth which we sometimes feel is ours by right, it raises us up as true leaders. It connects us to God and to one another. Divine love transcends mere emotion. It becomes our lifeline to God. And it forms the basis of real community where everyone is valued and none are left out. It is inexplicable in theory, yet easily seen in action. Wherever God loves, he acts. Wherever he acts, he is there with us. HE IS WITH US simply because he loves us and the love of God knows no bounds; we remember the love that God has for each and every one of us each time we look at the Cross. There was no greater love than the Cross of Good Friday. We are called to bring the love of God into our own lives as well as the lives of those around us remembering that the Love of God lasts forever.Jesus assures us that whatever we ask the Father in His name will be granted, emphasizing the power of living in accordance with His command to love. We experience God’s presence through the love we give and receive in our everyday interactions. Through His words and example, Jesus has equipped us to bring this divine love into the world.

As followers of Christ, we are called to live out the love of God in a real way, showing love to everyone we meet without partiality. When we show love genuinely, we make the truth that “God is love” visible and active in the world. Let us strive to embody this love in all that we do, bringing the light of Christ into every corner of our lives and our world.

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