TUESDAY OF THE FIFTH WEEK OF EASTERTIDE (2023)

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

It was ordained that the Christ should suffer
and rise from the dead,
and so enter into his glory. LK 24:46,26

ACTS 14:19-28 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Opposition is nothing new to Christians and it ought not to surprise us when we are despised, treated harshly, persecuted, imprisoned, tortured, and even put to death. At no point in Your public ministry and even as You taught and formed the Apostles did You ever promise them joy in this life, rather You pointed out to them that, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.

All the Apostles including Paul, the early Christians, and Christians through the ages have suffered opposition to the Truth. You warned us that if the world rejected You they will reject us as too, if they persecuted You we can expect no less, if they put the Son of God and the Son of Man, we too could receive the glorious privilege of laying down our lives for You and for the Gospel. Anyone who believes in You and teaches, preaches, and upholds the Gospel values must always remember that the evil culture prevalent in our world today which is a culture that reeks of the stench of death and decay will brook no opposition.

This however will be our hope and our consolation that the 'blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians.' 

Like the Apostles and the martyrs from the dawn of Christianity let not fear deter us from standing firm in our faith in You confident that You who conquered death will raise us up to new life and give us an everlasting share in Your glory.

PSALM 144(145):10-13a,21 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Not only are we Your creatures O Lord but You have also made us Your friends, Your sisters, and brothers, You have espoused Yourself to us this is why we must make known the glorious splendour of Your reign. We must make declare the Good News of the salvation You won for us by Your life, passion, death, and glorious resurrection, by the powerful witness of our lives. Your light which You have given to us must shine brightly shedding light and giving hope to those who walk in darkness.

Even while we walk in this valley of tears, Beloved, our hope is in You, we lift our countenance to You and we rejoice in Your promises that someday You will come to take us to Yourself.

Yours is an everlasting kingdom;
your rule lasts from age to age.

Grant my Beloved, that at the end of my life's journey that there will be many who will know, bless, praise, and worship You because I made You known and loved. 

JOHN 14:27-31 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

As You gaze upon our broken, fallen, sinful world and see how we who share the same humanity treat one another especially the targeting of Christians everywhere, how it must break Your Sacred Heart. 

In every corner of the world Christians are hated and Catholics most especially because they stand in opposition to Satan, the world, and the flesh. They divide and crush. They instill fear and terror in the weak and hound them out of their homes and their land hoping to annihilate You and Your Living Presence. But we have You O Lord who gives all the members of Your Body a share in Your Life and Your Spirit this is why, with the amazing graces You pour upon us, Christians can stand unshaken despite the evil unleashed on them.

What You said to Your disciples on the night when that glorious hour of the salvation of the world would soon be upon You, is true for all believers until Your glorious return. Grant us the grace to imprint these words in our hearts and they will supply us with all the courage we need for our own journey from this life to the glorious, eternal life that awaits us.

‘Peace I bequeath to you, my own peace I give you,
a peace the world cannot give,
this is my gift to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.
You heard me say: I am going away, and shall return.
If you loved me you would have been glad to know that I am going to the Father,
for the Father is greater than I.
I have told you this now before it happens,
so that when it does happen you may believe.
I shall not talk with you any longer,
because the prince of this world is on his way.
He has no power over me,
but the world must be brought to know
that I love the Father
and that I am doing exactly what the Father told me.’