Easter 2nd Week: Apr 8-13
April- 8 Mon THE ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD:
The Solemnity of the Annunciation is celebrated
nine months before the Nativity of the Lord, a feast which came about earlier
historically. The Annunciation recalls the day when the Archangel Gabriel
appeared to Mary and revealed God’s will that she become the Mother of the Son
of God, and she accepted. At that moment, the “Word became Flesh and
dwelt among us” (John 1: 14). It is called “Little Christmas” because
it commemorates the great day when God entered our world through the
incarnation. This is a joyful annunciation because it is aimed towards our
salvation. Fulton J Sheen in his book ‘Life of Christ’ says, “Divinity is
always where one least expects to find it” (Life of Christ: page 27). It was
mother Mary’s humility and sincere heart that made her worthy to be the mother
of the creator. Every day, similar annunciations happen. Usually, doctors make
an announcement of pregnancy of would be mothers. Then, mothers will announce
them to their husbands and other relatives. Usually, it is a moment of joy and
excitement.
Historical note: The Eastern Church started
celebrating the feast of annunciation in the 5th century, probably about the
time of the Council of Ephesus in AD 431. It is mentioned between AD 530 and
533 by Abraham of Ephesus. In the Western Church the first authentic reference
is found in the 7th century, fixing it on March 25th, exactly nine months
before Christmas.
Today’s readings explain how God began to keep
the promise to a send a redeemer He made to Adam and Eve (Gen 3-15) and His
promise to King David through prophet Nathan (II Sam 7: 1216) about his
descendant ruling the world in an everlasting kingdom and the promise made to
King Ahaz through prophet Isaiah (Today’s I reading: Is 7: 10-14, 8:10) about a
virgin bearing a son whose name would be Emmanuel. The second reading (Heb 10:
4-10) explains the purpose of incarnation as doing the will of God in the most
perfect way by Christ’s perfect obedience to God his Father’s will, leading to
his death by crucifixion and to his glory by his resurrection. The gospel
explains the annunciation scene and Mary’s obedient “yes” to the will of God.
Life messages: 1) We need to be doers of God’s
will as Mary did: This feast is a reminder to us of the importance of following
God’s will. It is His will which should prevail more than anyone’s will. God
knows the best for us. Just like Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, following of God’s
will, we should do the same. St. Augustine reflecting on the annunciation event
reminds us that ‘God created us without our permission, but He will save us
only with our consent and permission by cooperating with His Holy will.’ 2) We
need to be grateful to God as Mary was, for His love and Mercy: As we are
created in the image and likeness of God, and further we became his adopted
children through Jesus Christ at the time of baptism. So let us be humble
enough to thank God for this great privilege and live like the children of God.
3) We need to be humble instruments in the hands of God by allowing Jesus to be
reborn in us and radiate him all around us as agape love and by saying a
generous and courageous “yes” to God in our everyday choices and by
appreciating God’s plan for us in every event of our life.(Revised in 2024)
9 Tue Jn 3:7b-15: Jn 3: 7-15:
The context: Today’s Gospel is the continuation
of the night visit of Nicodemus with Jesus. Nicodemus was a rich Jewish rabbi
and one of the seventy members of Sanhedrin. He wanted to clarify whether the
obeying of the Mosaic Law and the offering of prescribed sacrifices were enough
for one’s eternal salvation. But Jesus used the occasion as a teachable moment,
showing Nicodemus the necessity for a spiritual rebirth through the action of
the Holy Spirit by means of the water of Baptism as an essential condition for
one’s salvation.
Jesus teaches Nicodemus the effects the Holy Spirit produces
in the souls of the baptized. We know the presence, force, and direction of
wind by its effects. It is so with the Holy Spirit, the Divine “Breath” (pneuma),
given us in Baptism. In Hebrew and Aramaic, the scholars tell us, the same
word pneuma means “spirit,” “breath,” and “wind.” We do not
know how the Holy Spirit comes to penetrate one’s heart. But He makes His
presence felt by the change in the conduct of one who receives Him. Jesus
further explains that he himself comes from Heaven, and, hence, his teaching is
credible. Then, by comparing how God saved the snake-bitten Israelites through
the symbol of the bronze serpent, Jesus tells Nicodemus that “the Son of Man”
is going to save mankind by his death on the cross.
Life message: We need to adjust our lives,
recognizing and making full use of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our
lives: 1) We need to begin every day by asking for His Divine strength and
guidance and end every day by asking His pardon and forgiveness for our sins.
2) We need, as well, to pray for His daily anointing and for His gifts, fruits,
and charisms so that we may live as children of God. 3) We also need to throw
open the shutters and let the Spirit enter the narrow caves in which we bury
ourselves.
Fr. Tony((https://frtonyshomilies.com/)
10 Wed: Jn 3:16-21:
The context: Jesus explained God’s plan of
salvation to Nicodemus by declaring that the story of Moses and the brazen
serpent was a sign pointing to the Good News that God would show His love for
mankind by subjecting His own Son to suffering and death in order to save them
all: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that
everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life” (Jn
3:16). This is the summary of the Gospel message of salvation through
Christ Jesus. This is the Good News in the Gospels.
Today’s Gospel passage teaches us that our salvation is the
free gift of a merciful God, given to us through Jesus, His Son. It explains
that Jesus, the Incarnate Son of God, became the agent of God’s salvation, not
just for one sinful nation, but for the sins of the whole world from the
beginning through the end. Through Jn 3:16, the Gospel teaches us
that God has expressed His love, mercy, and compassion for us by giving His
only Son for our Salvation. This tells us that the initiative in all Salvation
is God’s love for man. St. Augustine of Hippo describes a dream message received
by his mother, Monica, who prayed and wept unceasingly, fearing Augustine would
be damned because of the life he was leading. This message convinced her that
she had to live with him, not cut him off as she had been doing, for God still
loved him even in his present condition. Augustine’s example also explains to
us the universality of the love of God. God’s motive is Love and God’s
objective is Salvation. Those who actually receive eternal life must believe in
the Son and express that love in deeds.
Life message: 1) We need to respond to God’s
love for us by loving and serving Him in others in whom He dwells. God’s love
for us is unconditional, universal, forgiving, and merciful. Let us make an
earnest attempt to include these qualities in sharing our love with others
during this Easter season. “In the evening of life you will be examined on
love,” said St. John of the Cross
11 Thu Saint Stanislaus, Bishop and Martyr;
The context: In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus
explains his Divinity to Nicodemus and his relationship with God the Father and
God the Holy Spirit. It is Jesus’ Divinity which gives authority and veracity
to his teachings and credibility to his promise of eternal life for his
followers.
Jesus’ claims: 1) Jesus claims that, as Son of
God, he “comes from Heaven.” Hence, he can speak of God and Heaven from his own
experience, just as the native of a town can speak authoritatively and reliably
about his town. 2) While the Jews believed that prophets were given only a
small share in God’s Spirit, Jesus, as God’s only Son, shares the fullness of
God’s Spirit and, hence, all his teachings and promises are always reliable. 3)
Further, Jesus gives eternal life to his followers: “He who believes in the
Son has eternal life; he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the
wrath of God rests upon him” (Jn 3:36).
Life messages: 1) We need to seek the daily
guidance and strengthening of the Holy Spirit living within us because it is He
Who reveals Divine truths to us and Who gives us a better and clearer
understanding of Scriptural truths taught by the Church. 2) Since our destiny
depends on our own free daily choices, we need to choose Christ and his
teachings and stand for Christ’s ideas and ideals. 3) We need to choose Jesus
in order to choose Life. Before his death, Moses challenged Israel: “See
I have set before you this day life and good, death and evil…. Therefore,
choose life that you may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying His voice, and
cleaving to him” (Dt 30:15-20). Joshua repeated the challenge in Jos
24:14-15. We face that challenge every day.
Fr. Tony((https://frtonyshomilies.com/)
12 Fri: Jn 6:1-15: John 6:1-15:
The context: Today’s Gospel describes one occasion
when Jesus tried in vain to withdraw from the crowds at Capernaum. He traveled
by boat to the other side of the Sea of Galilee to a remote village called
Bethsaida Julius, where there was a small grassy plain. But when Jesus stepped
ashore, He was faced with a large crowd of people. This was the scene of the
miraculous feeding of the five thousand as described in today’s Gospel. This is
the only miracle, other than the Resurrection, that is told in all four
Gospels, a fact that speaks of its importance to the early Church.Today’s
Gospel passage invites us to become humble instruments in God’s hands by
sharing our blessings with our brothers and sisters. We may regard
the incident in which Jesus multiplied loaves and fish in order to feed his
hungry listeners, both as a miracle of Divine Providence and as a Messianic
sign. The lesson for every Christian is that, no matter how impossible one’s
assignment may seem, with Divine help it can be done: “For with God
nothing shall be impossible” (Lk 1:37). Jesus used as his starting
point for the miraculous meal a young boy’s generous gift of all the food he
had, perhaps to remind us that love is the prime requirement for salvation, and
selfishness blocks the life-giving action of the grace of God in us. The early
Christian community especially cherished this story because they saw this event
as anticipating the Eucharist.
Life message: 1) As Christians we need to commit
ourselves to share all we have and are, and to work with God in communicating
His compassion to all. God is a caring Father, but He wants our co-operation.
That’s what the early Christians did, generously sharing what they had with the
needy. 2) We, and others in our time, need to ask for the courage to share,
even when we think we have nothing to offer. Whatever we offer through Jesus
will have a life-giving effect in those who receive it. 3) We are shown two attitudes
in the Gospel story: that of Philip and that of Andrew (Jn 6:7-9). Philip said,
in effect: “The situation is hopeless; nothing can be done.” But Andrew’s
attitude was: “I’ll see what I can do; and I will trust Jesus to do the rest.”
We need to have Andrew’s attitude. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)
13 Sat [Saint Martin I, Pope and Martyr]
The context: The event presented by today’s
Gospel is the scene immediately following Jesus’ miraculous feeding of the five
thousand with five small loaves of bread and two fish. Sensing the danger of
having the people seize him and make him leader of a revolt, Jesus promptly
instructed the apostles to leave the place by boat and, after dispersing the
crowd, went by himself to the mountain to pray.
A double miracle in the sea: When the apostles in the boat
were three to four miles away from the shore, they faced an unexpected storm,
caused by the hot wind of the desert rushing into the Sea of Galilee through
the gaps in the Golan Heights. Recognizing the danger, Jesus went to the boat,
walking on the stormy sea. Jesus calmed the frightened disciples as he
approached the boat, and as soon as he got into the boat it “reached land they
were heading for.”
Life messages: 1) We need to approach Jesus with
strong Faith in his ability and availability to calm the storms in our lives
and in the life of the Church. Church history shows us how Jesus saved his
Church from the storms of persecution in the first three centuries, from the
storms of heresies in the 5th and 6th centuries, from the storms of moral
degradation and the Protestant reformation movement in the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries, and the storms of ongoing Clerical sex abuse scandals,
particularly those beginning in the twentieth century. 2) We need to ask Jesus
to protect us when we face storms of strong temptations, storms of doubts about
our religious beliefs, and storms of fear, anxiety, and worries in our personal
lives. 3) Experiencing Jesus’ presence in our lives, we need to confess our
Faith in him and call out for his help and protection. (https://frtonyshomilies.com/)