EASTER TUESDAY - 2026

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

This day was made by the Lord:
we rejoice and are glad. PS 117:24

ACTS 2:36-41

My Soul's Beloved,

We are all awestruck at the power of God being manifest in the world today, at this Easter Vigil, when so many catechumens were baptised into Your Body, echoing what happened on the day of Pentecost. After Peter preached,  Scripture tells us, 'They were convinced by his arguments, and they accepted what he said and were baptised. That very day about three thousand were added to their number.'

Beloved, the Holy Spirit is always at work powerfully, and Your victory over sin and death is eternal and has eternal consequences. The devil and his minions can try as hard as they can to steal, murder, and destroy, but they pose no threat to the power of the Cross and the glory of the Resurrection in which You give us a share. Many of us, Lord, are praying for the conversion of those we love, our sons, daughters, siblings, relatives, and friends. You encourage us to pray for them without losing hope. It does not matter if we do not see our prayers answered for years on end; we have the example of St. Monica, who prayed unceasingly with many tears for 17 years before her son, St. Augustine, converted, and now he is counted among the great saints in the Church.

As St. Padre Pio encourages us, I will continue to pray, hope, and I will not worry or be anxious, for in the end, I am confident they will be saved. I know my prayers are aligned with Your will, O Lord, and in the end, we will rejoice that they have come home. Thank You, Lord.

On the day of Pentecost, Peter spoke to the Jews: ‘The whole House of Israel can be certain that God has made this Jesus whom you crucified both Lord and Christ.’
Hearing this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the apostles, ‘What must we do, brothers?’ ‘You must repent,’ Peter answered ‘and every one of you must be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise that was made is for you and your children, and for all those who are far away, for all those whom the Lord our God will call to himself.’ He spoke to them for a long time using many arguments, and he urged them, ‘Save yourselves from this perverse generation.’ They were convinced by his arguments, and they accepted what he said and were baptised. That very day about three thousand were added to their number.

PSALM 32(33):4-5,18-20,22

The Lord fills the earth with his love.

The word of the Lord is faithful
and all his works to be trusted.
The Lord loves justice and right
and fills the earth with his love.

The Lord looks on those who revere him,
on those who hope in his love,
to rescue their souls from death,
to keep them alive in famine.

Our soul is waiting for the Lord.
The Lord is our help and our shield.
May your love be upon us, O Lord,
as we place all our hope in you.

The Lord fills the earth with his love.

JOHN 20:11-18

My Soul's Beloved,

All too often, like Mary Magdalene, we remain on the outside, consumed and caught up by our own emotions and grief, when all we had to do was stoop, look, and discover angels waiting to comfort us and reveal to us, to our immense joy, the Good News that You are alive. The same words used by the angels, 'Woman, why are you weeping?' are echoed by You, Lord, to her, 'Woman, why are you weeping?' Drowning in her tears and sorrow, she is unable to recognize You and assumes You to be the gardener, says,  ‘Sir, if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and remove him.’ It is only when You speak her name, 'Mary', that she recognizes You.

Lord, all too often, I also am so lost in my own thoughts, ideas, emotions, and understanding of the events happening in my life, that I fail to recall Your everlasting promises of peace, restoration, forgiveness, mercy, and everlasting love. If I am silent and still, I will hear You call my name, and then by the tender cadence of Your voice I will recognize You. Beloved, You are now with us in a way that is transcendent to Your earthly presence in the world 2000 years ago. You are closer, more intimate, united with us in a way that was impossible before Your glorious resurrection. This is what You wanted Mary to know when You asked her not to cling to You. You were inviting her to know You in a way that she never could while You walked the earth as one of us, as Man. We are given the same mission that she was, to go and tell the world the Good News that death does not have the last word and that with You we are all bound to the place that God has created for us since He laid the foundations of the earth. Thank You, Lord, for opening the gates of heaven for us. Grant O Lord that we, our loved ones, and the whole world gain admittance into it by the power of Your Blood.

Mary stayed outside near the tomb, weeping. Then, still weeping, she stooped to look inside, and saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had been, one at the head, the other at the feet. They said, ‘Woman, why are you weeping?’ ‘They have taken my Lord away’ she replied ‘and I don’t know where they have put him.’ As she said this she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, though she did not recognise him. Jesus said, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?’ Supposing him to be the gardener, she said, ‘Sir, if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and remove him.’ Jesus said, ‘Mary!’ She knew him then and said to him in Hebrew, ‘Rabbuni!’ – which means Master. Jesus said to her, ‘Do not cling to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go and find the brothers, and tell them: I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ So Mary of Magdala went and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord and that he had said these things to her.