Churches of the Day

Easter Thursday 

The initial response of the disciples to the Lord’s coming was one of alarm and fright;
that response quickly gave way to joy and then to loving service as they offered the Lord
some food which he ate although now fully living in the Spirit.

FIRST READING          

A reading from the Book of  Acts of the Apostles            3:11-26
You killed the prince of life. God, however, raised him from the dead.

Everyone came running towards Peter and John in great excitement, to the Portico of Solomon, as it is called, where the man was still clinging to Peter and John. When Peter saw the people he addressed them,
'Why are you so surprised at this? Why are you staring at us as though we had made this man walk by our own power or holiness?
You are Israelites, and it is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our ancestors, who has glorified his servant Jesus, the same Jesus you handed over and then disowned in the presence of Pilate after Pilate had decided to release him.
It was you who accused the Holy One, the Just One, you who demanded the reprieve of a murderer while you killed the prince of life. God, however, raised him from the dead, and to that fact we are the witnesses; and it is the name of Jesus which, through our faith in it, has brought back the strength of this man whom you see here and who is well known to you. It is faith in that name that has restored this man to health, as you can all see.

'Now I know, brothers, that neither you nor your leaders had any idea what you were really doing; this was the way God carried out what he had foretold, when he said through all his prophets that his Christ would suffer. Now you must repent and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, and so that the Lord may send the time of comfort. Then he will send you the Christ he has predestined, that is Jesus, whom heaven must keep till the universal restoration comes which God proclaimed, speaking through his holy prophets. Moses, for example, said:
"The Lord God will raise up a prophet like myself for you,
from among your own brothers; you must listen to whatever he tells you."
The man who does not listen to that prophet is to be cut off from the people. In fact, all the prophets that have ever spoken, from Samuel onwards, have predicted these days.

'You are the heirs of the prophets, the heirs of the covenant God made with our ancestors when he told Abraham,
"In your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed." It was for you in the first place that God raised up his servant and sent him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.'

The Word of the Lord                 Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm             Ps 8: 2. 5-9. R/v 2
Response                                 How great is your name, O Lord our God, through all the earth!
Or                                               Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

1. How great is your name, O Lord our God, through all the earth!
What is man that you should keep him in mind, mortal man that you care for him?               Response

2. Yet you have made him little less than a god; with glory and honour you crowned him,
gave him power over the works of your hand, put all things under his feet.                               Response

3. All of them, sheep and cattle, yes, even the savage beasts,
birds of the air, and fish that make their way through the waters.                                                Response

Gospel Acclamation            Ps 117: 24
Alleluia, Alleluia!
This day was made by the Lord; we rejoice and are glad.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL                           

The Lord be with you.                 And with your spirit
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke   24:35-48        Glory to you, O Lord
It is written that the Christ would suffer and on the third day rise from the dead.

The disciples told their story of what had happened on the road and how they had recognised him at the breaking of bread. They were still talking about all this when he himself stood among them and said to them, 'Peace be with you!'
In a state of alarm and fright, they thought they were seeing a ghost. But he said,
'Why are you so agitated, and why are these doubts rising in your hearts? Look at my hands and feet; yes, it is I indeed. Touch me and see for yourselves; a ghost has no flesh and bones as you can see I have.'
And as he said this he showed them his hands and feet.
Their joy was so great that they still could not believe it, and they stood there dumbfounded; so he said to them,
'Have you anything here to eat?'
And they offered him a piece of grilled fish, which he took and ate before their eyes.

Then he told them,
'This is what I meant when I said, while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses, in the Prophets and in the Psalms has to be fulfilled'.
He then opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them,
'So you see how it is written that the Christ would suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that, in his name, repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be preached to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses to this.

The Gospel of the Lord    Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

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Gospel Reflection               Easter Thursday                    Luke 24:35-48

The Stations of the Cross have been an important part of our Catholic tradition for many years. Recently, I came across the expression ‘The Stations of Light’. These stations are the various appearances of the risen Lord to his disciples as recorded in the gospels. The whole of the Easter Season between now and Pentecost Sunday is an invitation to reflect on those 'Stations of Light'. Today’s gospel reading puts before us one of those Stations of Light, Luke’s account of the appearance of the risen Lord to the disciples as a group. According to the beginning of that gospel reading, the two disciples who had met the Lord on the road to Emmaus and at table in Emmaus were sharing their story with the other disciples. It was while they were sharing their story that the risen Lord stood among them and declared, ‘Peace be with you’. Luke is reminding us that whenever we share our faith stories the risen Lord is there in our midst.

Sharing our faith with others creates an opening for the Lord to stand among us. In that gospel reading the disciples struggle to believe that the Lord was present to them. According to Luke, even after Jesus spoke to them, ‘their joy was so great that they still could not believe it and they stood there dumbfounded’. They presumed that the crucifixion of Jesus had brought to an end the story of their relationship with him. Yet, the presence of the risen Lord among them revealed that the Lord of love and life was stronger than the powers of hatred and death. The first Easter shattered all their expectations. Easter continues to shatter our expectations. The risen Lord continues to take us by surprise. He stands among us even when all hope seems lost; he touches us with his presence when we are least expecting it. When we are most aware of our failure to follow him, he speaks his word of peace to us, because even when we are faithless, he remains faithful. Easter announces that the story of our relationship with the Lord never ends, because his relationship with us never ends. He continues to stand among us, assuring us of his presence, offering us his gift of peace, and sending us out as his messengers of hope.



The Scripture Readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, published 1966 by Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd and used with the permission of the publishers.  http://dltbooks.com/


The Scripture Reflection is made available with our thanks from his book Reflections on the Weekday Readings : The Word is near to you, on your lips and in your heart by Martin Hogan and published by Messenger Publications  c/f www.messenger.ie/bookshop/

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Second Sunday of Easter
Divine Mercy Sunday

The struggle for faith experienced by Thomas leads us to think on the meaning of faith in the risen Christ. We cannot depend on physical experience of Christ but we can know his presence in gathered community, in the hearing of the word and in sacramental signs. So the Christian community is a thankful one, always blessing God for a sure hope through the resurrection of Christ.

FIRST READING

A reading from the Acts of the Apostles                   2:42-47
The faithful all lived together and owned everything in common.

The whole community remained faithful to the teaching of the apostles, to the brotherhood, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers. The many miracles and signs worked through the apostles made a deep impression on everyone. The faithful all lived together and owned everything in common; they sold their goods and possessions and shared out the proceeds among themselves according to what each one needed.

They went as a body to the Temple every day but met in their houses for the breaking of bread; they shared their food gladly and generously;  they praised God and were looked up to by everyone. Day by day the Lord added to their community those destined to be saved.

The Word of the Lord                Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm            Ps 117: 2-4. 13-15. 22-24. R/v 1
Response                                 Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

1. Let the sons of Israel say: 'His love has no end.'
    Let the sons of Aaron say: 'His love has no end,'
    Let those who fear the Lord say: 'His love has no end.'                  Response

2. I was thrust, thrust down and falling but the Lord was my helper.
   The Lord is my strength and my song; he was my saviour.
   There are shouts of joy and victory in the tents of the just.            Response

3. The stone which the builders rejected has become the corner stone.
    This is the work of the Lord, a marvel in our eyes.
   This day was made by the Lord; we rejoice and are glad.              Response

SECOND READING      

A reading from the first letter of  St Peter              1:3-9
 In his great mercy God has given us a new birth as his sons, by raising Jesus Christ from the dead.

Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy has given us a new birth as his sons, by raising Jesus Christ from the dead, so that we have a sure hope and the promise of an inheritance that can never be spoilt or soiled and never fade away, because it is being kept for you in the heavens. Through your faith, God's power will guard you until the salvation which has been prepared is revealed at the end of time. This is a cause of great joy for you, even though you may for a short time have to bear being plagued by all sorts of trials; so that, when Jesus Christ is revealed, your faith will have been tested and proved like gold - only it is more precious than gold, which is corruptible even though it bears testing by fire - and then you will have praise and glory and honour. You did not see him, yet you love him; and still without seeing him, you are already filled with a joy so glorious that it cannot be described, because you believe; and you are sure of the end to which your faith looks forward, that is, the salvation of your souls.

The Word of the Lord             Thanks be to God.

Gospel Acclamation          Jn 20: 29
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Jesus said to him: 'You believe because you can see me.
Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.'
Alleluia!

GOSPEL
The Lord be with you.                        And with your spirit
A reading from the Gospel according to  John         20:19-31        Glory to you, O Lord
Eight days later, Jesus came.

In the evening of that same day, the first day of the week, the doors were closed in the room where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews. Jesus came and stood among them.
He said to them, 'Peace be with you', and showed them his hands and his side.
The disciples were filled with joy when they saw the Lord, and he said to them again,
'Peace be with you. 'As the Father sent me, so am I sending you.'
After saying this he breathed on them and said: 'Receive the Holy Spirit.
For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained.'

Thomas, called the Twin, who was one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. When the disciples said, 'We have seen the Lord',
he answered, 'Unless I see the holes that the nails made in his hands and can put my finger into the holes they made, and unless I can put my hand into his side, I refuse to believe'.

Eight days later the disciples were in the house again and Thomas was with them. The doors were closed, but Jesus came in and stood among them.
'Peace be with you' he said.
Then he spoke to Thomas, 'Put your finger here; look, here are my hands.
Give me your hand; put it into my side. Doubt no longer but believe.'
Thomas replied, 'My Lord and my God!'
Jesus said to him:
'You believe because you can see me. Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.'

There were many other signs that Jesus worked and the disciples saw, but they are not recorded in this book. These are recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing this you may have life through his name.

The Gospel of the Lord    Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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For homily resources for this Sunday's Gospel click here:  https://www.catholicireland.net/sunday-homily/




Taken from THE JERUSALEM BIBLE, published and copyright 1966, by Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd and Doubleday, a division of Random House Inc, and used by permission of the publishers.