Type to search

Catholic Daily Liturgical Guide 19.04.2022

Latest Religion

Catholic Daily Liturgical Guide 19.04.2022

Share

ACTS 2: 36 – 41

[On the day of Pentecost,] Peter said to the Jews, “Let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptised every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children and to all that are far off, every one whom the Lord our God calls to him.” And he testified with many other words and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So those who received his word were baptised, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.

The Word of the Lord

RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 33: 4 – 5, 18 – 20, 22 (R.) 5b

R/. His merciful love fills the earth.
Or:
Alleluia

The word of the Lord is faithful,
and all his works to be trusted.
The Lord loves justice and right,
and his merciful love fills the earth. R/.

Yes, the Lord’s eyes are on those who fear him,
who hope in his merciful love,
to rescue their souls from death,
to keep them alive in famine. R/.

Our soul is waiting for the LORD.
He is our help and our shield.
May your merciful love be upon us,
as we hope in you, O LORD. R/.

ALLELUIA
Psalm 118: 24

Alleluia.
This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice in it and be glad.
Alleluia

GOSPEL
JOHN 20: 11 – 18

At that time: Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” Saying this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “woman, why are you weeping? Whom do you seek?” supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means teacher Jesus said to her, “Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brethren and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” Mary Magdalene went and said to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

The Gospel of the Lord
REFLECTION: Holding On to Jesus
April 19, 2022

Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” She thought it was the gardener and said to him, “Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him. Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni,” which means Teacher. Jesus said to her, “Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.” (John 20:15–17)

Mary Magdalene had been outside Jesus’ tomb weeping because she didn’t know what had happened to His sacred body. Jesus appears to her suddenly in her grief and she is overwhelmed, crying out “Rabbouni!” Jesus tells her to stop holding on to Him. Why would Jesus say this? What did He mean?

As we can imagine, this was a very emotional moment for Mary. She had been there watching the entire Crucifixion. She knew Jesus well and loved Him dearly. She watched Him die and now, all of a sudden, Jesus was alive and in her presence. Her emotions must have been overwhelming.

Jesus was not being critical of Mary when He told her not to hold on to Him. He was actually giving her beautiful advice and direction in her spiritual journey and in her relationship with Him. He was telling her that His relationship was now going to change, and deepen. He told her not to hold on to Him because He had “not yet ascended to the Father.” At that moment, Mary’s relationship with Jesus was primarily on a human level. She had spent much time with Him, been in His physical presence, and loved Him with her human heart. But Jesus wanted more. He wanted her, and all of us, to now love Him in a divine way. He was soon to ascend to the Father, and from His heavenly throne He could descend to begin a new relationship with Mary, and with all of us, that was far more than one on a human level. From His throne in Heaven He could now enter Mary’s soul. He could enter into a new and much deeper communion with her and with all of us. He could live in us and we in Him. He could become one with us.

By letting go of the more human and emotional aspects of her relationship with Jesus, Mary could soon cling to Him in a way that she couldn’t do through her human interaction with Him. This is the divine marriage, the divine communion to which we are all called.

Reflect, today, upon your own clinging to Jesus. He is now fully resurrected and ascended and we can experience the full fruits of the Resurrection as a result. We, with Mary, can now hold on to Him in our souls because He is primarily the one holding on to us.

PRAYER:
My exalted Lord, may I cling to You as You cling to me. May my heart, mind and soul be Yours. Come live in me so that I may live in You. I give my life to You, dear Lord, help me to offer You all that I am. Jesus, I trust in You.https://masvingomirror.com/

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

error

Enjoy our stories? Please spread the word: