SATURDAY OF THE 7TH WEEK OF EASTERTIDE - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

I will send you the Spirit of truth, says the Lord;
he will lead you to the complete truth. JN 16:7, 13

ACTS 28:16-20,30-31 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

When we obey the divine calling, we will find that God will make a way when there seems to be none. Paul came to Rome as a prisoner yet was able to stay in lodgings of his own, and there were no restrictions placed on him so people could visit him and he could evangelize and spread the Gospel without hindrance from anyone.

Paul was also prudent, aware that rumors of him were rife among the Jewish diaspora in Rome so he invited the leading Jews to visit him. He addressed them and spoke frankly telling them who he was and why he was arrested and brought to Rome. He had no ill feelings for his fellow Jews in Jerusalem even though he was wrongly accused. Since he had said or done nothing deserving of the death penalty he would have been set free but the Jews objected fiercely and to preserve his life from their malice he asked to be tried as a Roman citizen.

Having laid out his credentials frankly, he was free to carry out his mission to proclaim the Kingdom of God, to teach the truth about You, and to invite all to believe in You and be saved. 

In the land of the oppressors of God's chosen people, the Jews who had rejected You, God was establishing the New Jerusalem, forming a new people, and preparing them to receive the inheritance that You, His Son, and our Lord, won for all who believe in You. We are co-heirs with You, O King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, of the Kingdom of God. Death is vanquished and we look forward to the reward You will give us - eternal life in the presence of God and all the angels and saints.

PSALM 10(11):4-5,7 ©

The upright shall see your face, O Lord.

The Lord is in his holy temple,
the Lord, whose throne is in heaven.
His eyes look down on the world;
his gaze tests mortal men.

The Lord tests the just and the wicked;
the lover of violence he hates.
The Lord is just and loves justice;
the upright shall see his face.

The upright shall see your face, O Lord.

JOHN 21:20-25 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Sometimes like Peter, we can become overly concerned about non-essentials. Just as You upbraided him gently, You tell us not to get caught up in rumors, and gossip but rather to busy ourselves with our salvation and those around us. This is the mandate given to all Your disciples - in not naming himself, John, the Apostle, and evangelist invites us to see ourselves as the beloved disciple who leans on Your breast with childlike confidence.

As we stand on the threshold of the great feast of Pentecost, Beloved, grant Your Church a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit on her and all her members. Take away our heart of stone and give us a heart of flesh, a heart after Your own that spends itself in proclaiming the Good News so all may come to the knowledge of Truth and be saved.