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| "The Ecstasy of St Catherine of Siena" by Pompeo Batoni, 1743. |
Reading 1: Acts 8:1b-8
There broke out a severe
persecution of the Church in Jerusalem
and all were scattered
throughout the countryside of
Judea and Samaria
except the Apostles.
Devout men buried Stephen and
made a loud lament over him.
Saul, meanwhile, was trying
to destroy the Church;
entering house after house
and dragging out men and women,
he handed them over for imprisonment.
Now those who had been
scattered went about preaching the word.
Thus Philip went down to the
city of Samaria
and proclaimed the Christ to
them.
With one accord, the crowds
paid attention to what was said by Philip
when they heard it and saw
the signs he was doing.
For unclean spirits, crying
out in a loud voice,
came out of many possessed
people,
and many paralyzed and
crippled people were cured.
There was great joy in that
city.
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Commentary
on Acts 8:1b-8
This selection describes the first concerted effort to eradicate
Christianity. Following the death of St. Stephen, we are told
that: “all were scattered … except the Apostles.” This
is pointed at by many scholars as implying that it was the Hellenists (Greek)
Jews only who were scattered (recall that St. Stephen and the other deacons
were appointed to minister to that community). It was St. Stephen who had
enraged the Sanhedrin and was buried in this passage.
As the main force in this persecution, Saul (later St. Paul)
clearly sees the threat by Christianity to the Jewish tradition that has
evolved. He leads the persecution of the Church which has the unintended
effect of spreading the Good News outside of the Jewish community in
Jerusalem. As if providing an example, St. Luke tells the story of St.
Philip who takes the Gospel of Christ to Samaria with good results.
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 66:1-3a, 4-5, 6-7a
R. (1) Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Shout joyfully to God, all
the earth,
sing praise to the glory of
his name;
proclaim his glorious praise.
Say to God, "How
tremendous are your deeds!"
R. Let all the earth cry
out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
"Let all on earth
worship and sing praise to you,
sing praise to your
name!"
Come and see the works of
God,
his tremendous deeds among
the children of Adam.
R. Let all the earth cry
out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has changed the sea into
dry land;
through the river they passed
on foot;
therefore let us rejoice in
him.
He rules by his might
forever.
R. Let all the earth cry
out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
-------------------------------------------
Commentary
on Ps 66:1-3a, 4-5, 6-7a
Psalm 66 is a
hymn of praise and thanksgiving. In the first part, presented here, the
psalmist praises God for his salvation, recalling the exodus from Egypt and the
great signs he gave the people.
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Gospel: John 6:35-40
Jesus said to the crowds,
"I am the bread of life;
whoever comes to me will
never hunger,
and whoever believes in me
will never thirst.
But I told you that although
you have seen me,
you do not believe.
Everything that the Father
gives me will come to me,
and I will not reject anyone
who comes to me,
because I came down from
heaven not to do my own will
but the will of the one who
sent me.
And this is the will of the
one who sent me,
that I should not lose
anything of what he gave me,
but that I should raise it on
the last day.
For this is the will of my
Father,
that everyone who sees the
Son and believes in him
may have eternal life,
and I shall raise him on the
last day."
-------------------------------------------
Commentary
on Jn 6:35-40
St. John’s “Bread of Life”
discourse continues with the repetition of the great eucharistic pronouncement
– “I am the Bread of Life.” The Lord states that in spite of their lack
of belief, his presence with them is part of God’s revelatory plan (“I came
down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me”),
and that all who come to believe in the Son of God, the Bread of Life, will be
welcome (“I will not reject anyone who comes to me”).
The selection concludes with the
promise of eternal life for those who believe in Jesus, the Son of God. They
will be raised with him in glory on the “last day.”
-------------------------------------------
Reflection:
Heavenly Father, we humbly pray that those
suffering from the coronavirus be returned quickly to full health by the power
of your Son’s healing presence, and those in fear be calmed through the Holy
Spirit.
In Christ’s name we pray. – Amen.
As we still marvel at the
Easter event, scripture from the Acts of Apostles shows us how God’s plan moves
ahead in unexpected ways. St. Stephen’s martyrdom at the hands of the Jewish community
– enraged because Stephen, a Greek, had the audacity to
tell them they did not understand Moses and how he pointed to Jesus as the
Messiah – precipitates the first real attempt to blot out
Christianity. The Hellenistic Christians are scattered and driven out of
Jerusalem by the members of the Sanhedrin, headed up by the ultra-conservative
Saul.
What took place next must
have confounded the evil one, whose influence can be so clearly seen in these
events. Instead of destroying the work the Son of God began, this scattering
only served to provide the Good News with a broader audience. The Apostles, unmolested
probably because, as Hebrews, they did not represent a “foreign” threat, must
have cheered when news of Philip’s success in Samaria
We look at the Gospel
proclaimed today and see the message these displaced Christians took into the
world. From the great “Bread of Life” discourse we hear God’s promise and gift.
The scattering Christians told anyone they stayed with, their friends,
families, and even strangers, about the wonderful promise. Jesus had offered
himself, not just for the Hebrews, but for all. It was he who came to fulfill
all of what God had told them through the Law and the Prophets.
The Lord’s message was that,
through the great love of God for all people, he would accept anyone who came
to him. Jesus would not only accept them, but extend to them the same promise
he offered to all he had met before he rose from the dead and went back to his
Father, our Father. He said,“this is the will of my
Father, that everyone who sees the Son
and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last
day.”
The promise and the example
of the early Church provide us with new zeal to take the message into the world
as well. We rededicate ourselves to providing the invitation to any we meet, to
come to the Lord. He offers his love, and his body, the Bread of Life.
In this strange year where
many of us will not be able to receive the Blessed Sacrament or celebrate as a
community in our houses of worship, we must be prepared to receive spiritual
communion in prayer:
My Jesus,
I believe that You
are present in the Most Holy Sacrament.
I love You above all things,
and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot at this moment
receive You sacramentally,
come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You
as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to
be separated from You.
Amen.
Pax
[1]
The picture is "The Ecstasy of St Catherine of Siena" by Pompeo
Batoni, 1743.
[3]
The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the
psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for
English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is
for private use only.
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