« Sunday, April 19 »
Second
Sunday of Easter
(or
Sunday of Divine Mercy)
Lectionary:
43
It-Tieni
Ħadd tal-Għid
(jew
il-Ħadd tal-Ħniena Divina)
Reading
1 ACTS 2:42-47
They
devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to
the breaking of bread and to the prayers. Awe came upon everyone, and many
wonders and signs were done through the apostles. All who believed were
together and had all things in common; they would sell their property and
possessions and divide them among all according to each one’s need. Every day
they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking
bread in their homes. They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of
heart, praising God and enjoying favour with all the people. And
every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
Qari
I mill-Ktieb tal-Atti tal-Appostli
2, 42-47
F’dak
iż-żmien, id-dixxipli kienu jżommu sħiħ fit-tagħlim tal-appostli u fl-għaqda
ta’ bejniethom, fil-qsim tal-ħobż u fit-talb. Waqa’ mbagħad il-biża’ fuq
kulħadd għax ħafna kienu l-mirakli u s-sinjali li kienu jsiru permezz
tal-appostli. Dawk kollha li kienu jemmnu kienu ħaġa waħda, u kienu jaqsmu
kollox bejniethom, ibigħu ġidhom u kull ma kellhom u jqassmu d-dħul bejn
kulħadd, skond il-ħtieġa ta’ kull wieħed. U kuljum kienu jmorru fit-tempju
flimkien, jaqsmu l-ħobż fi djarhom, u jissieħbu fl-ikel bi qlub ferħana u
safja; u kienu jfaħħru lil Alla, u l-poplu kollu kien iġibhom. U minn jum għal
ieħor il-Mulej kien iżidilhom magħhom lil dawk li jkunu salvi. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
Responsorial
Psalm PSALM
118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24
Let the
house of Israel say,
“His mercy
endures forever.”
Let the
house of Aaron say,
“His mercy
endures forever.”
Let those
who fear the LORD say,
“His mercy
endures forever.”
R. Give
thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.
I was hard
pressed and was falling,
but the
LORD helped me.
My
strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has
been my savior.
The joyful
shout of victory
in the
tents of the just:
R. Give
thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.
The stone
which the builders rejected
has become
the cornerstone.
By the
LORD has this been done;
it is
wonderful in our eyes.
This is
the day the LORD has made;
let us be
glad and rejoice in it.
R. Give
thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.
Salm
Responsorjali Salm 117 (118),
2-4.13-15.22-24
R/. (1): Faħħru lill-Mulej, għaliex hu
tajjeb, għax għal dejjem it-tjieba tiegħu
Ħa jgħidu wlied Iżrael:
“Għal
dejjem it-tjieba tiegħu”.
Ħa tgħid
dar Aron:
“Għal
dejjem it-tjieba tiegħu”.
Ħa jgħidu
dawk li jibżgħu mill-Mulej:
“Għal
dejjem it-tjieba tiegħu”. R/.
B’saħħithom
kollha imbuttawni biex naqa’;
imma
l-Mulej tani l-għajnuna.
Qawwa
tiegħi u għana tiegħi l-Mulej;
hu kien
għalija s-salvazzjoni tiegħi.
Għajat ta’
ferħ u rebħ fl-għerejjex tat-tajbin:
il-leminija
tal-Mulej għamlet ħwejjeġ ta’ ħila! R/.
Il-ġebla
li warrbu l-bennejja
saret
il-ġebla tax-xewka.
Bis-saħħa
tal-Mulej seħħ dan:
ħaġa
tal-għaġeb f’għajnejna.
Dan hu
l-jum li għamel il-Mulej;
ħa nifirħu
u nithennew fih! R/.
Reading
2 1 PETER 1:3-9
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his
great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of
Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled,
and unfading, kept in heaven for you who by the power of God are safeguarded
through faith, to a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the final time. In
this you rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer
through various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious
than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire, may prove to be for
praise, glory, and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Although you have not seen him
you love him; even though you do not see him now yet believe in him, you
rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, as you attain the goal of your
faith, the salvation of your souls.
Qari II mill-Ewwel Ittra ta’ San Pietru Appostlu
1, 3-9
Ikun imbierek Alla u Missier Sidna Ġesù
Kristu, li fil-ħniena kbira tiegħu raġa’ wilidna għal tama ħajja bil-qawmien
ta’ Ġesù Kristu mill-imwiet u għal wirt li la jitħassar, la jittabba’, u lanqas
jinxef. Dan il-wirt hu merfugħ għalikom fis-sema għax intom tinsabu taħt
il-ħarsien tal-qawwa ta’ Alla fil-fidi tagħkom li twassal għas-salvazzjoni li
lesta biex tidher fl-aħħar taż-żminijiet.
Għalhekk għandkom għax tifirħu mqar jekk issa, għal ftit żmien ieħor,
jeħtiġilkom titnikktu taħt ħafna provi. Bħalma d-deheb, li jintemm, jgħaddi
mill-prova tan-nar, hekk tgħaddi mill-prova l-fidi tagħkom, li tiswa aktar
mid-deheb, biex ikun jistħoqqilha tasal għat-tifħir, għall-glorja, u għall-ġieħ,
meta jidher Ġesù Kristu. Lilu, għalkemm ma rajtuhx, intom tħobbuh; fih, għad li
issa m’intomx tarawh, intom temmnu; fih intom tifirħu b’ferħ glorjuż, li ma
jistax jitfisser, waqt li tiksbu l-għan tal-fidi tagħkom, li hu s-salvazzjoni
tagħkom. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
Gospel
JOHN 20:19-31
On the
evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the
disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and
said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his
hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said
to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And
when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy
Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are
retained.” Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when
Jesus came. So the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he
said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my
finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” Now
a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus
came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace
be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and
bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but
believe.” Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to
him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who
have not seen and have believed.” Now, Jesus did many other signs in the
presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. But these are
written that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and
that through this belief you may have life in his name.
Evanġelju Qari skond San Ġwann 20, 19-31
Dakinhar
fil-għaxija, fl-ewwel jum tal-ġimgħa, meta d-dixxipli kienu flimkien imbeżżgħa
mil-Lhud, bil-bibien magħluqa, ġie Ġesù u qagħad f’nofshom; u qalilhom:
“Is-sliem għalikom!”. Kif qal hekk, uriehom idejh u ġenbu. Id-dixxipli ferħu
meta raw lill-Mulej. Imbagħad Ġesù tenna jgħidilhom: “Is-sliem għalikom! Kif
il-Missier bagħat lili, hekk jien nibgħat lilkom”. Kif qal hekk, nefaħ fuqhom u
qalilhom: “Ħudu l-Ispirtu s-Santu. Dawk li taħfrulhom dnubiethom ikunu maħfura,
u dawk li żżommuhomlhom ikunu miżmuma”. Tumas, wieħed mit-Tnax, jgħidulu
t-Tewmi, ma kienx magħhom meta ġie Ġesù. Għalhekk id-dixxipli l-oħra qalulu:
“Rajna lill-Mulej”. Iżda hu qalilhom: “Jekk ma narax f’idejh il-marka
tal-imsiemer u ma nqigħedx sebgħi fuq il-marka tal-imsiemer u idi fuq ġenbu,
jien ma nemminx”. Tmint ijiem wara, id-dixxipli reġgħu kienu ġewwa, u Tumas
magħhom. Il-bibien kienu magħluqa, imma Ġesù daħal, qagħad f’nofshom, u
qalilhom: “Is-sliem għalikom!”. Imbagħad qal lil Tumas: “Ġib sebgħek hawn u ara
idejja, u ressaq idek u qegħedha fuq ġenbi; tkunx bniedem bla fidi, iżda emmen”.
Wieġeb Tumas u qallu: “Mulej tiegħi u Alla tiegħi!”. Qallu Ġesù: “Emmint għax
rajtni! Henjin dawk li ma rawx u emmnu”. Hemm ħafna sinjali oħra li Ġesù għamel
quddiem id-dixxipli tiegħu u li m’humiex imniżżla f’dan il-ktieb. 1Iżda dawn
inkitbu sabiex intom temmnu li Ġesù hu l-Messija l-Iben ta’ Alla, u biex
bit-twemmin tagħkom ikollkom il-ħajja f’ismu. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej
////////////////////////////////////
“Unless I Put My
Hand Into His Side …”
Gospel
Commentary for 2nd Sunday of Easter
by Fr Raniero Cantalamessa, OFM Cap, the
Pontifical Household preacher.
The first
of the two appearances of Christ described in today’s Gospel occurs Easter
evening, “the first day after the Sabbath,” and the second appearance, the one
in which the episode with Thomas takes place, occurs “eight days later,” that
is, again on the first day after the Sabbath.
The
insistence on the chronological date of the two appearances shows the
Evangelist John’s intention to present Jesus’ meeting with his followers in the
cenacle as a prototype of the Church’s Sunday assembly. Jesus is present among
his disciples in the Sunday Eucharist too; he gives them peace and the Holy
Spirit; at communion they touch, indeed they receive, his wounded and risen
body, reciting the Creed they proclaim, like Thomas, their faith in him.
The
designation “first day of the week” is very soon replaced by the other
designation “day of the Lord” (Revelation 1:10), whose exact corresponding
phrase in Latin is “dies dominica.” “Dominica” very soon passes from being an
adjective to being a noun and this is how our Italian word “Domenica” (“Sunday”)
came about.
A
distinctive trait of Sunday in the epoch of the Fathers is joy. We already see
it anticipated in today’s Gospel: “The disciples rejoiced in seeing the Lord”
(John 20:20). Sunday is regarded as the “little Easter,” or “the weekly
Easter.” By extension, the verse of Psalm 118 in which the Jews and Christians
referred to the Passover, is applied to Sunday: “This is the day the Lord has
made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it” (118:24).
Naturally,
the liturgical assembly is the heart of Sunday. What the Sunday celebration of
the Eucharist represented for Christians in the time of persecution is shown to
us by the North African martyr Saturnius and his companions, who died under the
persecution of Diocletian in A.D. 305. To the Roman judge who accused them of
transgressing the emperor’s order not to hold meetings, the martyrs said: “The
Christian cannot be without the Eucharist and the Eucharist cannot be without
the Christian.” “The Eucharist is the hope and the salvation of Christians.”
A line spoken
by these martyrs is often cited thus: “We cannot live without Sunday.” But this
translation is not very exact. Taken literally, it does not make much sense.
The word that is translated as “Sunday” here (“dominicum”) actually means “the
Lord’s meal,” that is, the Eucharist. The title of the congress, therefore,
must be understood, if at all, in the sense of: “We cannot live without the
Sunday celebration of the Eucharist.”
We need to
rediscover what Sunday was for the first centuries, when it was a special day,
not because of external supports but by its own internal force. The obligation
to attend Sunday Mass by itself does not seem to be sufficient to bring
Christians to Church on Sunday. We must emphasize the need that the Christian
has to receive the body and blood of the Lord over his obligation to receive
it. “[S]haring in the Eucharist,” John Paul II wrote in “Novo Millennio
Inuente,” “should really be the heart of Sunday for every baptized person. It
is a fundamental duty, to be fulfilled not just in order to observe a precept
but as something felt as essential to a truly informed and consistent Christian
life.”
No
Catholic should return home from Sunday Mass without feeling, in some measure,
“reborn to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the
dead” (1 Peter 1:3). When one returns home from encountering the risen Lord,
Sunday acquires a new taste and colour: Everything is more beautiful, even
sitting at table at home or at a restaurant, even the game at the stadium. [Translation by
Joseph G. Trabbic]
* * * * *
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