First Reading
Acts of the Apostles 3:13-15,17-19
Peter preaches that Jesus has been raised from the dead and calls upon
the people to repent.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 4:2,4,7-8,9
A prayer seeking God's favor
Second Reading
1 John 2:1-5a
Those who know God keep his commandments.
Gospel ReadingJesus appears again to his disciples and shares a meal with them.
LUKE 24:35-48
The two disciples recounted what had taken place on the way,
and how Jesus was made known to them
in the breaking of bread.
While they were still speaking about this,
he stood in their midst and said to them,
"Peace be with you."
But they were startled and terrified
and thought that they were seeing a ghost.
Then he said to them, "Why are you troubled?
And why do questions arise in your hearts?
Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself.
Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones
as you can see I have."
And as he said this,
he showed them his hands and his feet.
While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed,
he asked them, "Have you anything here to eat?"
They gave him a piece of baked fish;
he took it and ate it in front of them.
He said to them,
"These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you,
that everything written about me in the law of Moses
and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled."
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
And he said to them,
"Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer
and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,
would be preached in his name
to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things."
BACKGROUND ON THE GOSPEL READING
On the third Sunday of Easter, we continue to hear Gospel accounts of
Jesus' appearances to his disciples following his Resurrection. Today's
reading, taken from the Gospel of Luke, follows immediately after the
report of Jesus' appearance to his disciples on the road to Emmaus. This
is the event being recounted by the disciples in the opening verse of
today's Gospel.
Consistently in the reports of Jesus' post-Resurrection appearances,
Jesus greets his disciples with the words, "Peace be with you." This is
a most appropriate greeting. The disciples have witnessed the death of
someone they loved, and they now fear for their own lives as well. Peace
is what they need more than anything else. Jesus often connects this
greeting of peace with another gift--forgiveness. In today's Gospel,
this connection is made in the final verses.
Even as they hear Jesus' greeting of peace, the disciples are startled
and terrified. They are uncertain about what to make of the figure
before them and, quite understandably, they mistake Jesus for a ghost.
Yet the figure before them is not a ghost; Jesus invites them to
experience his resurrected body with their senses, to look and to touch.
The figure before them is flesh and bone, still bearing the marks of
crucifixion. Although the disciples cannot forget his suffering and
death, peace begins to take root in their hearts, as their fears turn to
joy and amazement.
As further proof of his identity and of his resurrected body, Jesus eats
with his disciples. The disciples have known Jesus best through the
meals that he has shared with them. Descriptions of these meals are a
defining element of Luke's Gospel. By eating with his disciples after
his Resurrection, Jesus recalls all these meals, and most importantly,
he recalls the Last Supper.
Luke's report of the Last Supper and the meals that Jesus shared after
his Resurrection unveil for us the significance of the Eucharist. Having
shared a meal with his disciples, Jesus now uncovers for them the
significance of what was written about him in the Scriptures. So, too,
our celebration of the Mass is an encounter with Jesus, through the Word
and the Sacrament of the Eucharist. As Jesus commissions his disciples
to be witnesses to what Scriptures foretold, our celebration of the
Eucharist commissions us. Like the disciples, we are sent to announce
the good news of Jesus' forgiveness of sins.
FAMILY CONNECTION
Family life is strengthened through storytelling and shared meal times.
In a similar way, Christian life is sustained by God's word in Scripture
and by Christ's presence in the Eucharist. We are especially sustained
in our faith through our weekly celebration of Mass. Today's Gospel
reading reminds us that the Scripture and the Eucharist are given to us
so that our acts of bearing witness to Christ might be strengthened.
As you gather as a family, ask each person to share their favorite story
about your family. Talk about the importance of these memories about
your family life and the importance of the meals you have shared
together as a family. Recall that these stories and meals strengthen the
love you share. In a similar way, our Christian life is strengthened by
sharing God's Word and the Eucharist at Mass. Read together today's
Gospel, Luke 24:35-48. Discuss the mission that Jesus gave to his
disciples after their shared meal. The Eucharist also sends us to be
Christ's witnesses in the world today. Conclude by praying together that
we will be strengthened by God's word and by Jesus' presence in the
Eucharist to be witnesses to Christ. Pray together Tantum Ergo or
today's psalm, Psalm 4.
Sources: Loyola Press; Sunday Readings
The two disciples recounted what had taken place on the way,
and how Jesus was made known to them
in the breaking of bread.
While they were still speaking about this,
he stood in their midst and said to them,
"Peace be with you."
But they were startled and terrified
and thought that they were seeing a ghost.
Then he said to them, "Why are you troubled?
And why do questions arise in your hearts?
Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself.
Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones
as you can see I have."
And as he said this,
he showed them his hands and his feet.
While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed,
he asked them, "Have you anything here to eat?"
They gave him a piece of baked fish;
he took it and ate it in front of them.
He said to them,
"These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you,
that everything written about me in the law of Moses
and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled."
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
And he said to them,
"Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer
and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,
would be preached in his name
to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things."
BACKGROUND ON THE GOSPEL READING
On the third Sunday of Easter, we continue to hear Gospel accounts of
Jesus' appearances to his disciples following his Resurrection. Today's
reading, taken from the Gospel of Luke, follows immediately after the
report of Jesus' appearance to his disciples on the road to Emmaus. This
is the event being recounted by the disciples in the opening verse of
today's Gospel.
Consistently in the reports of Jesus' post-Resurrection appearances,
Jesus greets his disciples with the words, "Peace be with you." This is
a most appropriate greeting. The disciples have witnessed the death of
someone they loved, and they now fear for their own lives as well. Peace
is what they need more than anything else. Jesus often connects this
greeting of peace with another gift--forgiveness. In today's Gospel,
this connection is made in the final verses.
Even as they hear Jesus' greeting of peace, the disciples are startled
and terrified. They are uncertain about what to make of the figure
before them and, quite understandably, they mistake Jesus for a ghost.
Yet the figure before them is not a ghost; Jesus invites them to
experience his resurrected body with their senses, to look and to touch.
The figure before them is flesh and bone, still bearing the marks of
crucifixion. Although the disciples cannot forget his suffering and
death, peace begins to take root in their hearts, as their fears turn to
joy and amazement.
As further proof of his identity and of his resurrected body, Jesus eats
with his disciples. The disciples have known Jesus best through the
meals that he has shared with them. Descriptions of these meals are a
defining element of Luke's Gospel. By eating with his disciples after
his Resurrection, Jesus recalls all these meals, and most importantly,
he recalls the Last Supper.
Luke's report of the Last Supper and the meals that Jesus shared after
his Resurrection unveil for us the significance of the Eucharist. Having
shared a meal with his disciples, Jesus now uncovers for them the
significance of what was written about him in the Scriptures. So, too,
our celebration of the Mass is an encounter with Jesus, through the Word
and the Sacrament of the Eucharist. As Jesus commissions his disciples
to be witnesses to what Scriptures foretold, our celebration of the
Eucharist commissions us. Like the disciples, we are sent to announce
the good news of Jesus' forgiveness of sins.
FAMILY CONNECTION
Family life is strengthened through storytelling and shared meal times.
In a similar way, Christian life is sustained by God's word in Scripture
and by Christ's presence in the Eucharist. We are especially sustained
in our faith through our weekly celebration of Mass. Today's Gospel
reading reminds us that the Scripture and the Eucharist are given to us
so that our acts of bearing witness to Christ might be strengthened.
As you gather as a family, ask each person to share their favorite story
about your family. Talk about the importance of these memories about
your family life and the importance of the meals you have shared
together as a family. Recall that these stories and meals strengthen the
love you share. In a similar way, our Christian life is strengthened by
sharing God's Word and the Eucharist at Mass. Read together today's
Gospel, Luke 24:35-48. Discuss the mission that Jesus gave to his
disciples after their shared meal. The Eucharist also sends us to be
Christ's witnesses in the world today. Conclude by praying together that
we will be strengthened by God's word and by Jesus' presence in the
Eucharist to be witnesses to Christ. Pray together Tantum Ergo or
today's psalm, Psalm 4.
Sources: Loyola Press; Sunday Readings
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment