WEDNESDAY OF THE SIXTH WEEK OF EASTER - 2023

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

I shall ask the Father,
and he will give you another Advocate
to be with you for ever. JN 14:16

ACTS 17:15,22-18:1 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

In today's First Reading, we can learn from Paul's preaching that the Holy Spirit inspires him as He does all evangelists, to use and build on what people already know and believe. He draws parallels and points out elements of the true faith that are already present although imperfectly in the faith of the pagans who throng to hear him. 

Like Paul, we must be attentive to everything around us and allow the Holy Spirit to illumine our minds. He will give us the words necessary to open the eyes and the hearts of those who listen to us. All are hungry for the Truth and Light of the Gospel which gives Life. 

In the sea of monuments of stone, and other metals to pagan gods Paul notices one that bears the inscription, 'To An Unknown God'. Using this inscription he preaches powerfully and makes known to them the God that they were groping for in the dark. 

Beloved, You have given us the fullness of the Holy Spirit at our Baptism, and He has been stirred into life when hands were laid on us at our Confirmation. Unleash this power once again in us, in the Church, and in the world so we may experience a New Pentecost and set the world on fire with the love of God. Evil has had its hour, Lord, now we pray, hasten the eternal day of Your victory and triumph over sin and death. Crush finally and forever the head of Satan under the delicate heel of Mary our Immaculata - Your Mother and ours. Amen.

PSALM 148:1-2,11-14 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Today's psalm reminds us that we must praise You, our Lord and our God, with every breath we breathe. Everything we do must be preceded and concluded with praise and everything in between as well. Praise is the engine that fuels our spiritual life in the Holy Spirit. When we praise we recall God's infinite goodness and our entire beings fill with gratitude, thanksgiving, and love for all that God has done for us in and through You.

Thank You, Beloved, for filling the earth with Your Beauty, Truth, Goodness, and Love keep our senses aware and alive to Your Holy Presence which is immanent all around us. Amen.   

Your glory fills all heaven and earth.

Praise the Lord from the heavens,
praise him in the heights.
Praise him, all his angels,
praise him, all his host.

He exalts the strength of his people.
He is the praise of all his saints,
of the sons of Israel,
of the people to whom he comes close.

JOHN 16:12-15 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

You have sent us Your Holy Spirit and with His Coming we now live under His reign. Human understanding is incapable of understanding eternal truths, we need divine aid and this is why You have sent us the Helper, the Spirit of Truth who leads us into the whole truth.

The Holy Spirit dwells in fullness in the Church You founded on Peter, the Rock. On him, You have built Your Church and You assure us that the gates of hell shall not prevail against her. She is invincible because her Head is God, her Gate is God, her Deliverer is God, and her sanctifier is God. She is espoused to the Son of God and You shelter her in Your Sacred Heart for You have redeemed and saved all the members of Your mystical body, the Church.

As the Church prepares to celebrate the Feast of the Pentecost, Beloved, grant to all who are praying earnestly as Mary, the Apostles, and the disciples did in the Upper Room, a New Pentecost. Send the fire of the Holy Spirit anew on the Church, on her members, and set the whole world on fire with Your love. Let Your love blaze O Lord and consume all evil, all strife, all division, all hatred, all malice, and grant us an age of peace and tranquility as the world prepares joyfully for Your Second Coming in glory. Maranatha! Lord Jesus, Maranatha!

TUESDAY OF THE SIXTH WEEK OF EASTERTIDE - 2023

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 16:22-34 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Thank You for today's first reading. It teaches us the power of docility, surrender, humility, and obedience to the Word of God. True freedom is the gift we receive when we allow the Holy Spirit to have complete dominion over our lives.

Every martyr, beginning with the Apostles, early disciples, and Christians through the ages to this day rejoices when they receive the privilege of sharing in Your sufferings. Paul and Silas are witnesses to this amazing grace. Envy is often the reason for the rage and hate that roils the hearts of the enemies of Truth.  We see this plainly in our own times and in every place in the world. There is no country where Christians do not suffer some form of persecution either overt or covert. Visible or hidden in subterfuge and guile.  

If, however, we like Paul and Silas remain unperturbed and joyful even in our suffering, we will witness the power of God and the power of our witness to the Good News in every instance and without exception. They were stripped, flogged with many lashes, thrown into the inner prison and their feet in the stocks and they prayed late into the night singing hymns of praise to God. When we are able to trust God in all the circumstances that we will face in our lives we are invincible for God will move the heavens and the earth to aid us.

In this instance, we are told

Suddenly there was an earthquake that shook the prison to its foundations. All the doors flew open and the chains fell from all the prisoners. When the gaoler woke and saw the doors wide open he drew his sword and was about to commit suicide, presuming that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted at the top of his voice, ‘Don’t do yourself any harm; we are all here.’ 

The fruit of the power of unwavering faith in You O Lord, is visible to those who like the jailer are witnesses to it and it stirs the soul and awakens a response. The jailer cries out: ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ They told him, ‘Become a believer in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, and your household too.’ Then they preached the word of the Lord to him and to all his family. Late as it was, he took them to wash their wounds, and was baptised then and there with all his household. Afterwards he took them home and gave them a meal, and the whole family celebrated their conversion to belief in God.

Thank You, Lord, for the power of the Gospel and the witness of the blood of martyrs that abounds to a bountiful harvest of souls for the Kingdom of God. 'The blood of martyrs is indeed the seed of Christians'.

PSALM 137(138):1-3,7-8 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

When sorrow, anxiety, and a lack of faith in Your unconditional, infinite, overwhelming love oppresses my soul, the confidence of the psalmist in every line lifts up my spirit and renews and increases my faith, hope, and love in Your never failing love for me.

I thank you, Lord, with all my heart:
you have heard the words of my mouth.
In the presence of the angels I will bless you.
I will adore before your holy temple.

I thank you for your faithfulness and love,
which excel all we ever knew of you.
On the day I called, you answered;
you increased the strength of my soul.

You stretch out your hand and save me,
your hand will do all things for me.
Your love, O Lord, is eternal,
discard not the work of your hands.

Thank You my soul's beloved, for Your words of tender compassion and assurance of Your loving presence in my life.


JOHN 16:5-11 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

We are only finite, mortal, sinful, creatures who do not see the whole picture of our lives as You do. We are so easily demoralized, and overcome with doubt because we lack a robust faith, concupiscence is the lot of our fallen nature and we are prone to giving in at the first obstacle rather than having a childlike faith in the love of our Father in heaven.  

Today we learn of Your own disciples' despondency when they become aware that You are leaving them and they will no longer be able to see You, touch You, talk with and to You, and fellowship with You. This is because they lacked the divine vision - the great and necessary Gift of the Holy Spirit that would make it possible for every believer in the Gospel to be empowered just as they were when You breathed the Holy Spirit on them.

‘......it is for your own good that I am going
because unless I go,
the Advocate will not come to you;
but if I do go,
I will send him to you.
And when he comes,
he will show the world how wrong it was,
about sin,
and about who was in the right,
and about judgement:
about sin: proved by their refusal to believe in me;
about who was in the right: proved by my going to the Father and your seeing me no more;
about judgement: proved by the prince of this world being already condemned.’

Thank You for Holy Mother Church for in her dwells the fullness of the Holy Spirit. Thank You for the Holy Sacraments through them we are nourished and given all we need on our pilgrim journey from here to eternity. Thank You for the Holy Eucharist, for the Sacrament of Reconciliation, and above all for the gift of the Sacrament of Holy Orders, the priesthood without which we would not have any of the Sacraments. All glory and praise to You Lord Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Savior and redeemer of the world who is espoused to Your Church, Your Bride. We long for the day of Your return when You will present her without wrinkle or stain to Your Father. Thank You, Holy Spirit for helping us to strive to be holy and perfect as our Heaven Father is holy and perfect.