April 26 - Fourth Sunday of Easter: To carry each other on our shoulders

 First Reading 
Acts of the Apostles 4:8-12
Peter announces an act of healing in the name of Jesus Christ.
Responsorial Psalm 
Psalm 118:1,8-9,21-23,26,28,29
A prayer of thanksgiving to God for his kindness
Second Reading 
1 John 3:1-2
God revealed his love for us by calling us children of God.
Gospel ReadingJohn 10:11-18
Traditionally, this fourth Sunday of Easter is
known as “Good Shepherd Sunday,” because each year the Church presents us with
our Lord’s beautiful description of himself as a shepherd who has tender,
merciful love for his sheep. For many years now, the Church has also designated
this Sunday as World Day of Prayer for Vocations. So we pray today in a special
way in this Holy Mass that God will call many more men to the great adventure
of being shepherds for his flock. Jesus the Good Shepherd carrying us on his
shoulders is symbolized in a beautiful way by the Pallium which archbishops
wear over their shoulders while celebrating Mass. The Pallium is made from
lamb’s wool. During the Mass for the inauguration of his Pontificate on Sunday
April 24th 2005 Pope Benedict explained the significance of the Pallium when he
said that the Pallium is an invitation to carry one another, we are all to be
shepherds to each other, to carry each other on our shoulders.

April 19 - Third Sunday of Easter: With God everything makes sense

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 favour Second Reading  1 John 2:1-5a
Those who know God keep his commandments. Gospel ReadingLuke 24:35-48   In today’s Gospel we see how Jesus trys to help
the disciples understand that all that had taken place—his suffering, death and
resurrection—made sense. That was something that took the disciples a
while to get their heads around, as suffering never makes sense to any of
us.  So Jesus had to help them understand not only that he was alive, but
that all that had taken place was meant to happen. They were meant to happen
and they fitted into God’s plan for the world. All of us are continually
faced with difficult situations of suffering. So often we cannot make
sense of why we have to suffer and we may even see it as a punishment. Even
though we don’t have a direct answer to this question, what Jesus says to his
disciples in this Gospel is a help, because it reminds us that everything that
happens fits into God’s bigger plan. The point is that God can bring good
out of every situation, even turning the evil work of people into good. 
But for the most part we cannot see that.  We are just faced with each
individual situation of suffering and that is hard.  However, the Lord is
telling us that there is a bigger picture which makes sense of everything that
happens.  When we die we will then see that picture and it will all make
sense to us. 

April 12 - Second Sunday of Easter : Peace, Forgiveness and Faith

First Reading  Acts of the
Apostles 4:32-35
The first Christian community shared their possessions, and no one was needy.Responsorial Psalm  Psalm
118:2-4,13-15,22-24
The Lord's mercy endures forever.
Second Reading  1 John 5:1-6
Those who love God keep his commandments.
Gospel ReadingJohn 20:19-31
Thomas does not  refuse the proclamation of the resurrection of Jesus
but simply insists that the risen Jesus must fulfil all his expectations. The following
Sunday Thomas is challenged by Jesus himself to come to the true peace which
only authentic faith can produce. Like Thomas, are we sometimes 'not there'
when Jesus comes, or, again like Thomas, do we want God to behave int he way
that might suit us best? The story of Jesus was written for us, so that we
might deepen our belief that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. such belief
is life-giving.