† Quote of the Day "The works of God are not accomplished when we wish them, but whenever it pleases Him." — St. Vincent de Paul Today's Meditation "One can well imagine St. John watching in stunned silence as Judas rose from his place after receiving the morsel from Jesus [at the Last Supper] and started to leave. As he passed through the doorway, John caught a glimpse of the darkness that seemed to envelop Judas like a cloak. The outer darkness contrasted sharply with the light of the supper room. John is evidently struck by the contrast, because he adds: "It was night." This brief sentence of John's makes a profound impression." —Fr. Ralph Gorman, C.P.
An excerpt from The Last Hours of Jesus - From Gethsemane to Golgotha Daily Verse "In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also must love one another. No one has ever seen God. Yet, if we love one another, God remains in us, and his love is brought to perfection in us." — 1 John 4:10-12 | St. John The Evangelist St. John the Evangelist (1st c.) was one of the Twelve Apostles, and one of the three in Jesus' inner circle, along with his brother, James, and Simon Peter. St. John was the disciple who reclined on the breast of Jesus at the Last Supper, and the only one of the twelve to not forsake Christ during His crucifixion and death. John stood faithfully at the foot of the Cross alongside the other holy women, and therefore he was the disciple to whom Jesus entrusted the care of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In addition to being called "The Evangelist" he is also known as the "Beloved Disciple." After the death and resurrection of Jesus, St. John was an important leader of the Church in Jerusalem. He lived to a very old age and composed the fourth Gospel that bears his name, three epistles, and the book of Revelation. He is the only one of the Twelve Apostles who was not martyred, instead being exiled to the island of Patmos in the Aegean Sea under the persecution of Roman Emperor Domitian. St. John the Evangelist's feast day is December 27th. | Feast of Saint John, Apostle and evangelist Reading 1 1 Jn 1:1-4 Beloved:
What was from the beginning,
what we have heard,
what we have seen with our eyes,
what we looked upon
and touched with our hands
concerns the Word of life —
for the life was made visible;
we have seen it and testify to it
and proclaim to you the eternal life
that was with the Father and was made visible to us—
what we have seen and heard
we proclaim now to you,
so that you too may have fellowship with us;
for our fellowship is with the Father
and with his Son, Jesus Christ.
We are writing this so that our joy may be complete. Responsorial Psalm Ps 97:1-2, 5-6, 11-12 R. (12) Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
The LORD is king; let the earth rejoice;
let the many isles be glad.
Clouds and darkness are around him,
justice and judgment are the foundation of his throne.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,
before the LORD of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his justice,
and all peoples see his glory.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
Light dawns for the just;
and gladness, for the upright of heart.
Be glad in the LORD, you just,
and give thanks to his holy name.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just! Alleluia See R. Alleluia, alleluia.
We praise you, O God,
we acclaim you as Lord;
the glorious company of Apostles praise you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Jn 20:1a and 2-8 On the first day of the week,
Mary Magdalene ran and went to Simon Peter
and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them,
"They have taken the Lord from the tomb,
and we do not know where they put him."
So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb.
They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter
and arrived at the tomb first;
he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in.
When Simon Peter arrived after him,
he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there,
and the cloth that had covered his head,
not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place.
Then the other disciple also went in,
the one who had arrived at the tomb first,
and he saw and believed.
| Daily Meditation: 1 John 1:1-4 What we looked upon and touched with our own hands . . . (1 John 1:1) How difficult life would be without our senses! God gave us bodies that can see, hear, smell, taste, and feel so that we can appreciate and delight in the world that he has created for us. In today's first reading, St. John, whose feast we celebrate today, uses the language of the senses to speak about his relationship with Jesus, "the Word of life" (1 John 1:1). He talks about how he and his fellow apostles had "seen," "looked upon," "heard," and "touched" Jesus. He marvels that God had "made visible" the One who was "life" himself (1:1, 2). He makes it clear that he is not just repeating a story he heard or describing a character from a myth or a fable. He is reflecting back on his own life and the way that he came to know Jesus—a real person, who was fully human and fully divine—so that we could come to know Jesus as well and share in his joy (1:4). Imagine what it must have been like for John to have traveled with the Son of God! Think about all the miracles he saw with his own eyes. Think about what it must have been like to hear Jesus tell the parable of the prodigal son or to proclaim the Beatitudes. Even better, try to wrap your mind around how amazing it must have been for John to see the risen Jesus—not a spirit, but Jesus with a real body. John might have bowed before him out of great reverence, but it's likely that he also threw his arms around the Lord and wept on his shoulder. You can't do that to a spirit! How blessed we are that our faith in Jesus is founded on the testimony of eyewitnesses like St. John! This is why we proclaim that we believe in "one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church." The testimony of these apostles, reflected in the Gospels and handed down from generation to generation, can sustain us in times of difficulty and reassure us in times of doubt. It's really true! The story of our salvation is solid and reliable—because real people like John saw and heard and touched the Son of God! "Jesus, thank you for coming in the flesh to be our Savior!" Psalm 97:1-2, 5-6, 11-12
John 20:1-8 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: |  Click to hear Audio | In the Holy Scripture we hear today: "So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb.
They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter
and arrived at the tomb first;
he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in.
When Simon Peter arrived after him,
he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there,
and the cloth that had covered his head,
not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place.
Then the other disciple also went in,
the one who had arrived at the tomb first,
and he saw and believed....." end Gospel quote, word of the Lord. | From Bishop Barron:
"Friends, today we celebrate the feast of St. John the Apostle and Evangelist. St. John is, of course, a spiritual master, but he is a literary master as well. We can see his skill throughout his Gospel, but perhaps especially in the stories dealing with the resurrected Jesus. We can find them in the twentieth and twenty-first chapters of his Gospel. Our passage for today is from chapter twenty, and it contains, in short compass, the whole of Christianity, if we have the eyes to see it.
"On the first day of the week." Easter Sunday is the new creation day. On the first creation day, God had said, "Let there be light," and now, on Easter day, the one who said "I am the light of the world" has returned from the dead. And this means that everything has changed, and everything has been recreated. ........" End quote from Bishop Barron.
From the book of Saint John the Evangelist, chapter 1:14-18;
"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John testified concerning him." What is the dwelling pace of God? Where is it? He said it is among us. Did you know that the Jew, our ancestors of faith always believed in the "bread of the presence". He is in the temple, our Catholic Church, in the Holy Presence of the Eucharist.
He wants to make His dwelling among us, and in us all.
For this, He had to be born, and for this, He had to die, in order that the Holy Spirit could make this be forever.
If we cannot love Him in who we can see, how can we love Him in whom we cannot see?
These are all words from Saint John the Evangelist, from whom we have the best discourse on the bread of life in the Holy Bible.
Saint John saw everything, the miracle bread, the miracle resurrection. And then had to live with that as He was not martyred, that is murdered, like the rest of the disciples, but lived banned from the land until he was allowed to return to Ephesus.
His visions have left us with books, including the book of Revelation.
And all of this to reveal to us the light that he saw. Christ Himself.
Saint John ran to the empty tomb. He didn't see the body of Christ until the breaking of the bread. And all between He knew Christ was alive. He knew, he believed. He knew His Presence. He knows God is Emmanuel, that God is with us.
For this He was born. No longer is He contained only in a temple, but in the temple of our bodies. He will come at the moment we invite Him to dwell. To live out His Holy will among us.
Lord, make Your Home in Me.
I want to make my home in You forever. |  audio | Random Bible Verse 1
John 6:37 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
