Lectionary: 56
Is-Sitt Ħadd tal-Għid
Reading 1 Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48
When Peter entered, Cornelius met him and, falling at his feet, paid him homage. Peter, however, raised him up, saying, "Get up. I myself am also a human being." Then Peter proceeded to speak and said, "In truth, I see that God shows no partiality. Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him." While Peter was still speaking these things, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who were listening to the word. The circumcised believers who had accompanied Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit should have been poured out on the Gentiles also, for they could hear them speaking in tongues and glorifying God. Then Peter responded, "Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit even as we have?" He ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
QARI 1 mill-Ktieb tal-Atti tal-Appostli 10:25-26,34-35,44-48
Xħin daħal Pietru fid-dar ta’ Kornelju, dan mar jilqgħu u ntefa’ f’riġlejh jagħtih qima. Imma Pietru qajmu u qallu: “Qum. Jien bniedem ukoll”. Pietru qabad jitkellem u qal: “Issa tassew qiegħed nifhem li Alla ma jħares lejn wiċċ ħadd, imma jilqa’ lil kull min għandu l-biża’ tiegħu u jagħmel is-sewwa, ikun minn liema poplu jkun”. Meta Pietru kien għadu qiegħed jgħid dan, l-Ispirtu s-Santu niżel fuq dawk kollha li kienu jisimgħuh. Dawk li kienu marru ma’ Pietru, Lhud li kienu emmnu, stagħġbu kif Alla sawwab id-don tal-Ispirtu s-Santu fuq il-pagani wkoll. Għax semgħuhom jitkellmu bl-ilsna u jfaħħru l-kobor ta’ Alla. Imbagħad Pietru qal: “Jista’ xi ħadd jiċħad l-ilma tal-magħmudija lil dawn in-nies, li ħadu l-Ispirtu s-Santu bħalma ħadnieh aħna wkoll?”. U ordna li jitgħammdu fl-isem ta’ Kristu. Imbagħad huma talbuh jibqa’ għal ftit jiem magħhom. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or: R. Alleluia.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or: R. Alleluia.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or: R. Alleluia.
SALM RESPONSORJALI Salm 97(98):1,2-3ab,3ċd-4
R/. (ara 2b): Il-Mulej wera l-ġustizzja tiegħu lill-ġnus.
jew - R/. Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah.
Għannu lill-Mulej għanja ġdida,
għax għamel ħwejjeġ tal-għaġeb.
Ġibitlu r-rebħa l-leminija tiegħu,
u d-driegħ imqaddes tiegħu. R/.
Għarraf il-Mulej is-salvazzjoni tiegħu,
f’għajnejn il-ġnus wera l-ġustizzja tiegħu.
Ftakar fit-tjieba u l-fedeltà tiegħu
mal-poplu ta’ Iżrael. R/.
L-art kollha, minn tarf għall-ieħor,
rat is-salvazzjoni ta’ Alla tagħna.
Għajtu bil-ferħ lill-Mulej fl-art kollha,
infexxu fil-hena, ifirħu u għannu! R/.
Reading 2 1 JOHN 4:7-10
Beloved, let us love one another, because love is of God; everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God. Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love. In this way the love of God was revealed to us: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might have life through him. In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.
QARI 2 mill-Ewwel Ittra ta’ San Ġwann Appostlu 4:7-10
Għeżież, ejjew inħobbu ’l xulxin, għax l-imħabba ġejja minn Alla, u kull min iħobb hu mwieled minn Alla u jagħraf lil Alla. Dak li ma jħobbx ma għarafx lil Alla, għax Alla hu mħabba. B’dan dehret l-imħabba ta’ Alla fina, għax Alla bagħat lil Ibnu l-waħdieni fid-dinja, biex ngħixu bih. U hawn qiegħda l-imħabba; mhux għax aħna ħabbejna ’l Alla, imma għax ħabbna hu u bagħat lil Ibnu biex ikun ta’ tpattija għal dnubietna. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej.
Gospel JOHN 15:9-17
Jesus said to his disciples: "As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and remain in his love. "I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy might be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you. This I command you: love one another."
EVANĠELJU Qari skont San Ġwann 15:9-17
F’dak iż-żmien, Ġesù qal lid-dixxipli tiegħu: “Kif ħabbni Missieri, hekk ħabbejtkom jiena. Ibqgħu fl-imħabba tiegħi. Jekk tħarsu l-kmandamenti tiegħi, intom tibqgħu fi mħabbti, kif jiena ħarist il-kmandamenti ta’ Missieri u qiegħed fi mħabbtu. Għedtilkom dan biex il-ferħ tiegħi jkun fikom, u biex il-ferħ tagħkom ikun sħiħ. Dan hu l-kmandament tiegħi: li tħobbu lil xulxin kif ħabbejtkom jien. Ħadd ma għandu mħabba akbar minn din: li wieħed jagħti ħajtu għal ħbiebu. Intom ħbiebi, jekk tagħmlu dak li jiena nikkmandakom. Ma nsejħilkomx aktar qaddejja, għax il-qaddej ma jafx x’jagħmel sidu; sejjaħtilkom ħbieb, għaliex kulma smajt mingħand Missieri jiena għarrafthulkom. Mhux intom għażiltu lili, imma jien għażilt lilkom, u ħtartkom biex tmorru tagħmlu l-frott u l-frott tagħkom jibqa’, ħalli kulma titolbu lill-Missier f’ismi, huwa jagħtihulkom. Dan hu li qiegħed nikkmandakom: li tħobbu lil xulxin”. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej.
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An 8-minute Reflection on Sunday's Readings by Fr Anthony Kadavil
Introduction:
Sunday’s Scripture passages declare the profound truth that those who believe in Christ are to obey his commandment of love – “Love one another as I have loved you.” When we celebrate Mother’s Day, let us remember with gratitude that it is generally our mothers who practice the agápe love of Jesus.
Scripture Lessons summarized:
In the first reading, Peter teaches us that God shows no partiality in His love and that there are no boundaries to abiding in love. God loves everyone, both the Jews and the Gentiles, and He wants everyone to be saved through His son, Jesus. That is why God welcomed the Roman centurion Cornelius as the first non-Jew to become a Christian.
The reading tells us how God also allowed the Gentiles who heard Peter’s speech to receive the same Holy Spirit and His gifts that Peter’s Jewish audience had received on the day of Pentecost. Today’s Responsorial Psalm (Ps 98) also directs our attention toward God’s marvellous love and kindness in offering salvation to the whole world.
In the second reading, John defines God as love and explains that He expressed His love for mankind by sending His son to die for us humans “as expiation for our sins.” This Divine love gives us the command, and so the duty, to love one another as we have been loved by God. Since God has loved us first, we can and should love God in return, love ourselves properly, and love one another.
After telling the parable of the vine and branches, Jesus, in Sunday’s Gospel, teaches the disciples that they are to obey his commandment of love just as Jesus has obeyed his Heavenly Father’s will by fulfilling His commandments and remaining inseparably bonded with his Father. Jesus’ unconditional, forgiving, selfless, sacrificial love for us must be the criterion of our love for others.
The highest expression of this love is our willingness to lay down our lives as Jesus did, for people who don’t deserve it. The goal and result of our abiding in love, in God, will be perfect joy. Jesus no longer calls us slaves but now calls us “friends.” He tells us that he has chosen us, and that, if we use Jesus’ name, we can ask the Father for anything.
Life messages:
# 1: We need to cultivate an abiding and loving friendship with Jesus. We need to express this love in our relationships with others by loving them and offering them trust, faithfulness, equality, forgiveness, joy, and sacrifice.
#2: We need to be persons for others: Jesus demonstrated the love of God, his Father, for us by living for us and dying for us. Hence, as Jesus’ disciples, we are to be persons for others, sacrificing our time, talents, and lives for others. This is what parents spontaneously do, sacrificing themselves, their time, talents, health, and wealth for their children, or in other words, by spending themselves for their children.
The most effective way of communicating God’s love to others is by treating everyone as a friend, giving everyone the respect he or she deserves. Let us remember that Christ’s own love was not limited to the people he liked and, hence, that we should close our minds to thoughts of revenge.
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