Daily Reading 30 April 2019

Reading 1

ACTS 4:32-37

The community of believers was of one heart and mind,
and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own,
but they had everything in common.
With great power the Apostles bore witness
to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus,
and great favor was accorded them all.
There was no needy person among them,
for those who owned property or houses would sell them,
bring the proceeds of the sale,
and put them at the feet of the Apostles,
and they were distributed to each according to need.

Thus Joseph, also named by the Apostles Barnabas
(which is translated Ason of encouragement"),
a Levite, a Cypriot by birth,
sold a piece of property that he owned,
then brought the money and put it at the feet of the Apostles.

Responsorial Psalm

PS 93:1AB, 1CD-2, 5

R.(1a) The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD is king, in splendor robed;
robed is the LORD and girt about with strength.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.
And he has made the world firm,
not to be moved.
Your throne stands firm from of old;
from everlasting you are, O LORD.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Your decrees are worthy of trust indeed:
holiness befits your house,
O LORD, for length of days.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Alleluia

JN 3:14-15

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Son of Man must be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him
may have eternal life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

JN 3:7B-15

Jesus said to Nicodemus:
"'You must be born from above.'
The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes;
so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."
Nicodemus answered and said to him,
'How can this happen?"
Jesus answered and said to him,
"You are the teacher of Israel and you do not understand this?
Amen, amen, I say to you,
we speak of what we know and we testify to what we have seen,
but you people do not accept our testimony.
If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe,
how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?
No one has gone up to heaven
except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."

Should The Vatican Sell Its Treasures to Help the Poor?

After the fire that devastated the Cathedral of Notre Dame, many people are criticizing the rebuilding of the Cathedral, stating that the best money destination would be for the people in the greatest need.

But then the question arises: Where were these "defenders of the poor" at the time of selling their own treasures or works of art belonging to their own faith?

If you added up all wealth and property of the Protestant churches and organizations it would FAR exceed that of the Vatican or all the individual dioceses around the world. Likewise, in countries of Buddhist majorities, there are huge numbers of Buddha altars and statues in massive gold, as well as richly ornate palaces. But no one suggests selling them and distributing the money among the poor. Since they both advocate the sale of Catholic treasures to end poverty, why do not they then sell their treasures and distribute them?

Instead, what we observe is that everything is admired and respected, including by Western tourists. But when it comes to Catholic treasures, like temples or money that goes to the rebuilding of Notre Dame, all of a sudden, everything must be sold! The Church is rich! The truth is that this is no more than a persecution of the Catholic Church by envious anti-Catholics.

The first thing to understand is that the Catholic Church is not an NGO, not a company, not a club. But we are people! And as such we like to take care of things that are sacred to us. That is why our Churches are always the target of envy of other peoples, especially our churches that are more richly ornamented.

Also, did you know that the Vatican is a country? The Vatican is the capital of the Catholic people. What do these envious people want? That the Vatican was in ruins? For the people who ask about the works of art, they were all given by people to God for about two thousand years. Now I ask, is it fair to sell gifts that are not yours and that we do not even know with what effort were obtained?

Now one thing is a fact, have you ever seen someone propose to sell the works of art of the Louvre to give money to the poor? Yes, it seems that in the eyes of the world Catholics have no right to maintain an artistic and architectural heritage. But instead, we should sell it ...

So it is better to tell your anti-Catholic friend that the land on which St. Peter's Basilica is built was "bought" by Christians with blood-river prices. In that place there once existed the dark Circus of Nero. So we are more in the right to build and maintain a richly ornate temple.

But come on, the cause is noble, "end the hunger of the world" Would not it be better to sell the effort of all the Churches? No. Because it will not work. That's not the way to do it. How many millions of dollars have been sent to the regions of extreme poverty, without success? Many, right? But corruption did not let anything be done...

However, Catholic-led institutions are able to reach out to these places and do much - as everyone should know - Catholics spend a lot of money on charity. Most people don’t realize that most of the Catholic Church’s “wealth” is in property, hospitals, schools, social services and churches. We are the largest health care provider in the world. 

Just to give three examples, among thousands, we have the Pastoralist Child Foundation, created by Dr. Zilda Arns, which dramatically reduces child mortality, wherever it goes. We have the Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) Foundation that provides relief to people in need in many countries. And we have Catholic Church work in health services and education in various regions in Africa. The Cor Unum president underlined the work of the Catholic Church: "When they come to meet the Pope, the African presidents recognize this," he said. 

Without the Church, I affirmed, a huge part of those afflicted with AIDS would be abandoned, because the Church, with its network of hospitals, is the organization that cares for the largest number of people affected by the virus.

Finally, if we sold everything we have, we would have no way to sustain this work and the money would end up going into the pocket of some politician. Even so, donations from the Holy See to the poor around the world are frequent and bulky. When there is a major disaster somewhere on the planet, it is almost always the Vatican that sends a considerable amount of money.

Just to finish, two more small examples, in 2013 when Harley Davidson donated two fantastic bikes for Pope Francis, one of the bikes stayed with the Vatican police (the Gandemeria) and the other was auctioned along with a jacket. The total collected was almost 300 thousand euros, entirely intended for charity work.

The same was done with a Lamborghini car that the Pope won in 2017 and that auctioned for 700 thousand euros. The amount collected for social projects. Among them is the reconstruction of private property and public buildings in the city of Nineveh and will also provide assistance to Italian associations that support victims of prostitution.

But why do atheists and Protestants want to make charity with Catholic Church money? Why do not the atheists propose to sell their beautiful works of art, such as those of Niemeyer, scattered throughout Brazil? Surely they will claim that they belong to the people!

Why do not the Protestants who so much accuse the Catholic Churches sell their television networks? I'm sure they'll say something like that. So why do they demand that our Catholic people let themselves be plundered and sacrificed alone? By the way, what have all these people already renounced or sold in the name of world hunger? Do you really want to know? Nothing! While Anti-Catholics make bravado here, our Church promotes human dignity and saves millions of lives in places that are really in need.

The envy ignores that the Pope could not sell the works of art of the Vatican, in addition to belonging to our Catholic people, the Vatican was declared by UNESCO as a patrimony of humanity.

n 1984, Vatican City was registered as a world cultural and natural heritage site in terms of the UNESCO Convention of November 16th, 1972, which guarantees the protection of such sites.

Vatican City State is also internationally recognized as the moral, artistic and cultural heritage site that merits respect and protection as a treasure that belongs to the whole of humanity. (Site do Estado do Vaticano)

So the next time your friend annoys you about it, tell him to give his iPhone to the beggar and stop making speeches about someone else's property! :)

More information:  https://www.catholicscomehome.org/

Source: 

https://www.catholicconvert.com/blog/2018/02/05/should-the-vatican-sell-its-treasures/

https://www.ocatequista.com.br/atitude-catolica/item/18139-sera-que-o-vaticano-deve-vender-seus-bens-e-dar-tudo-aos-pobres

https://revistaautoesporte.globo.com/Noticias/noticia/2018/05/lamborghini-do-papa-francisco-e-leiloado-na-franca-por-r-32-milhoes.html

http://www.vaticanstate.va/content/vaticanstate/en/stato-e-governo/note-generali/extraterritorialita.html

Daily Reading 17 April 2019

Reading 1

IS 50:4-9A

The Lord GOD has given me 
a well-trained tongue,
That I might know how to speak to the weary
a word that will rouse them.
Morning after morning
he opens my ear that I may hear;
And I have not rebelled,
have not turned back.
I gave my back to those who beat me,
my cheeks to those who plucked my beard;
My face I did not shield
from buffets and spitting.

The Lord GOD is my help,
therefore I am not disgraced;
I have set my face like flint,
knowing that I shall not be put to shame.
He is near who upholds my right;
if anyone wishes to oppose me,
let us appear together.
Who disputes my right?
Let him confront me.
See, the Lord GOD is my help;
who will prove me wrong?

Responsorial Psalm

PS 69:8-10, 21-22, 31 AND 33-34

R. (14c) Lord, in your great love, answer me.
For your sake I bear insult,
and shame covers my face.
I have become an outcast to my brothers,
a stranger to my mother's sons,
because zeal for your house consumes me,
and the insults of those who blaspheme you fall upon me.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
Insult has broken my heart, and I am weak,
I looked for sympathy, but there was none;
for consolers, not one could I find.
Rather they put gall in my food,
and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.
I will praise the name of God in song,
and I will glorify him with thanksgiving:
"See, you lowly ones, and be glad;
you who seek God, may your hearts revive!
For the LORD hears the poor,
and his own who are in bonds he spurns not."
R. Lord, in your great love, answer me.

Verse Before The Gospel

Hail to you, our King;
you alone are compassionate with our errors.

Or

Hail to you, our King, obedient to the Father;
you were led to your crucifixion like a gentle lamb to the slaughter.

Gospel

MT 26:14-25

One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot,
went to the chief priests and said,
"What are you willing to give me
if I hand him over to you?"
They paid him thirty pieces of silver,
and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over.

On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread,
the disciples approached Jesus and said,
"Where do you want us to prepare
for you to eat the Passover?"
He said,
"Go into the city to a certain man and tell him,
'The teacher says, "My appointed time draws near;
in your house I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples."'"
The disciples then did as Jesus had ordered,
and prepared the Passover.

When it was evening,
he reclined at table with the Twelve.
And while they were eating, he said,
"Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me."
Deeply distressed at this,
they began to say to him one after another,
"Surely it is not I, Lord?"
He said in reply,
"He who has dipped his hand into the dish with me
is the one who will betray me.
The Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him,
but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed.
It would be better for that man if he had never been born."
Then Judas, his betrayer, said in reply,
"Surely it is not I, Rabbi?"
He answered, "You have said so."

Daily Reading April 12 2019

Reading 1

JER 20:10-13

I hear the whisperings of many:
"Terror on every side!
Denounce! let us denounce him!"
All those who were my friends
are on the watch for any misstep of mine.
"Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail,
and take our vengeance on him."
But the LORD is with me, like a mighty champion:
my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph.
In their failure they will be put to utter shame,
to lasting, unforgettable confusion.
O LORD of hosts, you who test the just,
who probe mind and heart,
Let me witness the vengeance you take on them,
for to you I have entrusted my cause.
Sing to the LORD,
praise the LORD,
For he has rescued the life of the poor
from the power of the wicked!

Responsorial Psalm

PS 18:2-3A, 3BC-4, 5-6, 7

R. (see 7)  In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
I love you, O LORD, my strength,
O LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer.
R. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
My God, my rock of refuge,
my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold!
Praised be the LORD, I exclaim,
and I am safe from my enemies.
R. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
The breakers of death surged round about me,
the destroying floods overwhelmed me;
The cords of the nether world enmeshed me,
the snares of death overtook me.
R. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
In my distress I called upon the LORD
and cried out to my God;
From his temple he heard my voice,
and my cry to him reached his ears. 
R. In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.

Verse Before The Gospel

SEE JN 6:63C, 68C

Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life;
you have the words of everlasting life.

Gospel

JN 10:31-42

The Jews picked up rocks to stone Jesus.
Jesus answered them, "I have shown you many good works from my Father.
For which of these are you trying to stone me?"
The Jews answered him,
"We are not stoning you for a good work but for blasphemy.
You, a man, are making yourself God."
Jesus answered them,
"Is it not written in your law, 'I said, 'You are gods"'? 
If it calls them gods to whom the word of God came,
and Scripture cannot be set aside,
can you say that the one
whom the Father has consecrated and sent into the world
blasphemes because I said, 'I am the Son of God'? 
If I do not perform my Father's works, do not believe me;
but if I perform them, even if you do not believe me,
believe the works, so that you may realize and understand
that the Father is in me and I am in the Father."
Then they tried again to arrest him;
but he escaped from their power.

He went back across the Jordan
to the place where John first baptized, and there he remained. 
Many came to him and said,
"John performed no sign,
but everything John said about this man was true."
And many there began to believe in him.

Gospel Commentary - Priest Paulo Ricardo

The Judge who takes the punishment

In the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit.


Jesus' controversy with the Pharisees becomes sharper, and the eighth chapter finishes with the Pharisees picking up stones to shoot Jesus, but Jesus hid and went out of the temple area.

 It is important to note that the chapter begins when the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and they tested Jesus by saying: “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?

 Jesus says, "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her."
 Jesus forgives the woman and says: "Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”

We can see here the redeemed woman. The stones she deserved for her sin, she did not receive. Now instead, Jesus is the one who will be the object of stones. The contrast could not be greater, but here we can have the clearest idea of what redemption is.

 Redemption is just that. The stones that we deserve will be tossed into Jesus, He, in our place, will be crucified. What feelings must have crossed the heart of that woman, whom tradition identifies as Mary Magdalene, when she at the foot of the cross, saw an innocent person condemned to death, and she, guilty, living, she is seeing an innocent paying the price of her sin. The innocent dying in the sinner's place. What an extraordinary thing, because Jesus, who is the source of life, rushes into the abyss of death to rescue us.

 Here we recall the famous Psalm 23 of the Good Shepherd: "Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; For you are with me; Your rod and Your staff - they comfort me." Jesus, the good shepherd, who gives his life for the sheep, comes to seek us in the valley of the shadow of death. The sinner who was to be saved was saved from physical death, and moreover, we were saved from eternal death, which is the place where sinners go. Jesus saved us from eternal death, living our death on the cross, biological death, Jesus introduces us to eternal life.

This is the extraordinary phenomenon that is the object of our faith. Jesus himself wants to teach us this when he says, "Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever keeps my word will never see death." Of course, the Pharisees here do not understand anything, Jesus is talking about eternal death.

The Pharisees understand it as physical and biological death and say, You are crazy, " Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died?" Jesus with great Parresia says: I am yes, Jesus does not use these words but he says:  "Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM.". Notice that He does not say, "Before Abraham came to be, I was".  But He is again saying:" I am God Himself who revealed Himself to Moses in the Burning Bush, I am who I am. " So the Jews pick up stones to stone Jesus because they recognize it as blasphemy.

 If Jesus was aware that He was God Himself, He says it with all clarity. The Pharisees, who have no faith, take stones and become deicides there, that is, those who kill God himself. Let us prepare ourselves for the Holy Week which is about to be celebrated, entering into this great mystery, this marvelous commerce, the Innocent who died for us, so that we do not die the eternal death.



God bless you. In the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit Amen.

Source: https://youtu.be/Eb9-ssjCCTs

Portuguese version:

 https://portalfilhosdemaria.blogspot.com/2019/04/liturgia-comentada-11-abril-2019-padre.html

Daily Reading 11 April 2019

Reading 1

GN 17:3-9

When Abram prostrated himself, God spoke to him:
"My covenant with you is this:
you are to become the father of a host of nations.
No longer shall you be called Abram;
your name shall be Abraham,
for I am making you the father of a host of nations.
I will render you exceedingly fertile;
I will make nations of you;
kings shall stem from you.
I will maintain my covenant with you
and your descendants after you
throughout the ages as an everlasting pact,
to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
I will give to you
and to your descendants after you
the land in which you are now staying,
the whole land of Canaan, as a permanent possession;
and I will be their God."

God also said to Abraham:
"On your part, you and your descendants after you
must keep my covenant throughout the ages."

Responsorial Psalm

PS 105:4-5, 6-7, 8-9

R. (8a)  The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
Look to the LORD in his strength;
seek to serve him constantly.
Recall the wondrous deeds that he has wrought,
his portents, and the judgments he has uttered.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
You descendants of Abraham, his servants,
sons of Jacob, his chosen ones!
He, the LORD, is our God;
throughout the earth his judgments prevail.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.
He remembers forever his covenant
which he made binding for a thousand generations –
Which he entered into with Abraham
and by his oath to Isaac.
R. The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.

Verse Before The Gospel

PS 95:8

If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts.

Gospel

JN 8:51-59

Jesus said to the Jews:
"Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever keeps my word will never see death." 
So the Jews said to him,
"Now we are sure that you are possessed.
Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say,
'Whoever keeps my word will never taste death.'
Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? 
Or the prophets, who died?
Who do you make yourself out to be?" 
Jesus answered, "If I glorify myself, my glory is worth nothing;
but it is my Father who glorifies me,
of whom you say, 'He is our God.'
You do not know him, but I know him.
And if I should say that I do not know him,
I would be like you a liar.
But I do know him and I keep his word. 
Abraham your father rejoiced to see my day;
he saw it and was glad." 
So the Jews said to him,
"You are not yet fifty years old and you have seen Abraham?"
Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
before Abraham came to be, I AM."
So they picked up stones to throw at him;
but Jesus hid and went out of the temple area.

Daily Reading 10 April 2019

« April 9  |  April 11 

Reading 1

DN 3:14-20, 91-92, 95

King Nebuchadnezzar said:
"Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
that you will not serve my god,
or worship the golden statue that I set up?
Be ready now to fall down and worship the statue I had made,
whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet,
flute, lyre, harp, psaltery, bagpipe,
and all the other musical instruments;
otherwise, you shall be instantly cast into the white-hot furnace;
and who is the God who can deliver you out of my hands?"
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar,
"There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you
in this matter.
If our God, whom we serve,
can save us from the white-hot furnace
and from your hands, O king, may he save us!
But even if he will not, know, O king,
that we will not serve your god
or worship the golden statue that you set up."

King Nebuchadnezzar's face became livid with utter rage
against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual
and had some of the strongest men in his army
bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
and cast them into the white-hot furnace.

Nebuchadnezzar rose in haste and asked his nobles,
"Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?"
"Assuredly, O king," they answered.
"But," he replied, "I see four men unfettered and unhurt,
walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God."
Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed,
"Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
who sent his angel to deliver the servants who trusted in him;
they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies
rather than serve or worship any god
except their own God."

Responsorial Psalm

DANIEL 3:52, 53, 54, 55, 56

R. (52b)  Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever;
And blessed is your holy and glorious name,
praiseworthy and exalted above all for all ages."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you on the throne of your kingdom,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you who look into the depths
from your throne upon the cherubim;
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven,
praiseworthy and glorious forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!

Verse Before The Gospel

 LK 8:15

Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart
and yield a harvest through perseverance.

Gospel

JN 8:31-42

Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him,
"If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples,
and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
They answered him, "We are descendants of Abraham
and have never been enslaved to anyone. 
How can you say, 'You will become free'?"
Jesus answered them, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.
A slave does not remain in a household forever,
but a son always remains. 
So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free.
I know that you are descendants of Abraham.
But you are trying to kill me,
because my word has no room among you. 
I tell you what I have seen in the Father's presence;
then do what you have heard from the Father."

They answered and said to him, "Our father is Abraham." 
Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children,
you would be doing the works of Abraham. 
But now you are trying to kill me,
a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God;
Abraham did not do this.
You are doing the works of your father!"
So they said to him, "We were not born of fornication. 
We have one Father, God." 
Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me,
for I came from God and am here;
I did not come on my own, but he sent me."