1st READING
Acts 11:1-18
There must have been a big debate in the Early Church about the validity of the Gospel mandate – namely whether it was for the Jews alone or if it could extend to the Gentiles. The Scriptures make it clear in many places that while God elects to work with the Jews regarding bringing the Messiah into the world, ultimately the work of the Messiah will encompass all peoples of the world. The mandate given at the end of the Gospel is one example of this where Jesus sends out His disciples to the ends of the earth, telling them to Baptize the converts in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
1 The apostles and the brothers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles too had accepted the Word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem the circumcised believers confronted him, 3 saying, “You entered the house of uncircumcised people and ate with them!” 4 Peter began and explained it to them step by step, saying, 5 “I was at prayer in the city of Joppa when in a trance I had a vision, something resembling a large sheet coming down, lowered from the sky by its four corners, and it came to me. 6 Looking intently into it, I observed and saw the four-legged animals of the earth, the wild beasts, the reptiles, and the birds of the sky. 7 I also heard a voice say to me, ‘Get up, Peter. Slaughter and eat.’ 8 But I said, ‘Certainly not, sir, because nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ 9 But a second time a voice from heaven answered, ‘What God has made clean, you are not to call profane.’ 10 This happened three times, and then everything was drawn up again into the sky. 11 Just then three men appeared at the house where we were, who had been sent to me from Caesarea. 12 The Spirit told me to accompany them without discriminating. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. 13 He related to us how he had seen [the] angel standing in his house, saying, ‘Send someone to Joppa and summon Simon, who is called Peter, 14 who will speak words to you by which you and all your household will be saved.’ 15 As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them as it had upon us at the beginning, 16 and I remembered the Word of the LORD, how he had said, ‘John baptized with water but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 If then God gave them the same gift he gave to us when we came to believe in the LORD Jesus Christ, who was I to be able to hinder God?” 18 When they heard this, they stopped objecting and glorified God, saying, “God has then granted life-giving repentance to the Gentiles too.”
P S A L M
Psalms 42:2-3; 43:3, 4
R: Athirst is my soul for the living God.
1 [2] As the hind longs for the running waters, so my soul longs for you, O God. 2 [3] Athirst is my soul for God, the living God. When shall I go and behold the face of God? (R) 43: 3 Send forth your light and your fidelity; they shall lead me on and bring me to your Holy Mountain, to your dwelling-place. (R) 4 Then will I go in to the altar of God, the God of my gladness and joy; then will I give you thanks upon the harp, O God, my God! (R)
G O S P E L
John 10:1-10
There is one thing for sure – no one will be saved except through the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus. He is the only ‘gateway’ to the Father; it is through Him that all must pass to be saved. How this Grace is applied to those who have never heard the Gospel I do not know. This is something that I am happy to leave to the mercy of God, who, in His Wisdom, I am sure will be capable of thinking of something. What I know is that I should attend to the more immediate concern of making sure that I walk through the right gate and help others through it as well.
1 “Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever does not enter a sheepfold through the gate but climbs over elsewhere is a thief and a robber. 2 But whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice, as he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has driven out all his own, he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him, because they recognize his voice. 5 But they will not follow a stranger; they will run away from him, because they do not recognize the voice of strangers.” 6 Although Jesus used this figure of speech, they did not realize what he was trying to tell them. 7 So Jesus said again, “Amen, amen, I say to you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who came [before me] are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the Gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. 10 A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.”
my reflections
think: There is one thing for sure – no one will be saved except through the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus.
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God’s special verse/thought for me today________________
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T O D A Y ’ S BLESSING LIST
Thank You Lord for: ____________________________________
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READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Nehemiah 11-13
GETTING TO KNOW THE SAINTS
Saint Stanislaus
Saint Stanislaus was born on July 26, 1030 near Krakow. He was educated in the
cathedral schools of Gniezno in
Poland and later in Paris. He was ordained priest then appointed preacher and
archdeacon to the bishop of Krakow. He too became a bishop in 1072.
The bishop was an outspoken and eloquent speaker. He was responsible for the
conversion of both clergy and laity.
He even got involved in the political situation in Poland. He attacked the evils
of the peasantry and the king, especially
the unjust wars and the immoral acts of King Boleslaus II. The king initially
showed penance but relapsed into his old
ways. Thus, Stanislaus continued in his opposition, resulting in the king s
excommunication. King Boleslaus was enraged.
He ordered his soldiers to kill the bishop but they refused. As a result, the
king himself killed Saint Stanislaus in 1073.
http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintOfDay/?id=1350>
Saint Julius I
Julius I was successor of Pope Mark in the pontificate. He was elected pope on February 6, 337 A.D.
The new pope was known for his firm intervention in the Arian controversies. Eusebius of Nicomedia opposed the return of Saint Athanasius to the see of Alexandria. After investigations, Julius decided that the accusations of Eusebius were not true. Thus, he assembled a synod in Rome where Athanasius and other orthodox bishops participated, but which the Arians and semi-Arians did not attend. In response to this, Eusebius and his followers created the council of Antioch, making George patriarch of Alexandria. The Arians, on the other hand, elected Pistus for the same see. Thus, there were three bishops of Alexandria. Pope Julius, however, remained firm in his decision. He declared and reinstated Athanasius as the rightful bishop of the see. This reflected the firm authority of the Church.The pope also served as a model of charity and wisdom. He built several basilicas and churches in Rome before his death on April 12, 352.
http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/0412.htm
