April 19, 2026 Third Sunday of Easter Gospel: Luke 24:13-35
Today is the Third Sunday of Easter. The Gospel passage from St. Luke describes the account of Jesus walking with the disciples on their way to Emmaus.
As these two disciples journeyed toward Emmaus, they were talking together when Jesus drew near and walked with them. Yet their eyes were kept from recognizing Him (see: Lk 24:16). The reason they could not see Him was their confusion about the future, their disappointment in all that had transpired. They had longed for a Messiah to lead them in rebellion against the Roman Empire—they had placed great hope in Jesus, only to see Him crucified. When they heard from the women that Jesus had risen and appeared to them, they were even more astonished, for in their view, it seemed like an illusion, a mere mirage.
What happened to the two disciples at Emmaus can also happen to us. Our emotions are often swayed by the world around us; when this fickle world undergoes great upheavals, a desire to escape it stirs in our hearts. As this thought grows stronger, our actions will face the world with the same pessimism as the two disciples traveling from Jerusalem to Emmaus that day (see: Lk 24:13-17). When this pessimism and negativity reach a peak, we will, like Cleopas, pour out our sorrow through our words to those we live with day by day (see: Lk 24:18-24). In our minds, sharing our inner grief with others will bring some comfort to our troubled hearts.
Today, the Risen Lord Jesus met with them—and He will also come to us in a form accessible to our perception. He does not come to accuse, but to accompany, explaining all that has happened according to His holy will. When we choose to understand this under the illumination of God’s Word, we will recognize the Risen Lord in every moment of our lives, proclaim Him rightly to the world, and live worthily as the Risen Lord desires.
May your people exult for ever, O God, in renewed youthfulness of spirit, so that, rejoicing now in the restored glory of our adoption, we may look forward in confident hope to the rejoicing of the day of resurrection. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever
April 18, 2026 Saturday of the Second Week of Easter Gospel: John 6:16-21
Today is Saturday of the Second Week of Easter. The narrative taken from the Gospel of Saint John tells us the story of Jesus meeting His disciples amid a storm.
I wish to say: After Jesus had fed the five thousand, His disciples saw Him walking on the sea (cf. Jn 6:16-21). Indeed, this is a beautiful image. We know that the sea is the dwelling place of the devil, and the great waters always swallow life. John wants to tell us through this image: Jesus is the Lord of Life, who trampled the sea (the devil’s dwelling place) underfoot, thereby conquering death.
Christian life is often influenced by these technologies. Among the influences they bring, some disturb our innermost being and gradually cause us to lose our discernment of truth, goodness, beauty, and holiness. They lead us into an evil trend of thought, which causes our Church to deviate from the right course and fall into a dangerous situation. At such times, we often feel despair because we cannot perceive the presence of God.
Today, the merciful Lord Jesus Christ personally approaches the disciples amid the storm, comforts us with His Word, joins us willingly, aids us with His power to withstand all storms, and prevents the devil from overcoming us. For we know that where the Gospel of the Savior arrives, the devil cannot stand, but must flee far away.
O God, who willed that through the paschal mysteries the gates of mercy should stand open for your faithful,look upon us and have mercy,that as we follow, by your gift, the way you desire for us,so may we never stray from the paths of life.Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,God, for ever and ever
April 17, 2026 Friday of the Second Week of Easter Gospel: John 6:1-15
Today is Friday of the Second Week of Easter. The narrative taken from the Gospel of Saint John tells us the story of Jesus’ first multiplication of the loaves.
A dialogue between Jesus and Philip holds profound and lasting significance. Jesus said to Philip: “Where can we buy bread for all these people to eat?”Philip replied: “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to get even a little”(cf. Jn 6:5-7). This reminds us that in our daily lives, we should not, in certain matters, focus only on our own feelings without considering the common good, or even seek to solve difficulties arising from insufficient foresight through money.
Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to Jesus: “Here is a boy with five barley loaves and two fish; but what are these for so many?”(cf. Jn 6:8). Andrew spoke according to his fleshly nature, for he longed only for what belongs to this world and did not yearn for the inheritance of the Kingdom of Heaven.
The merciful Jesus generously accepted the mere five loaves and two fish, blessed them, and distributed them to the crowd through His disciples. He graciously accepts our inadequacies and limitations, filling us with His abundance and infinity. Moreover, this multiplication of the loaves prefigures the Holy Eucharist, when, on the eve of His Passion, He would take bread as His Body for the nourishment of our souls, and wine as His Blood for the drink of our souls.
Every time the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is celebrated, when the priest offers bread and wine on the altar, it reenacts the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves. When He consecrates the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ on the altar, it reenacts the gift of the Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ at the Last Supper out of love for us. Whenever we receive the Body and Blood of Christ under the appearances of bread and wine from the hands of the priest, Our Lord Jesus Christ comes to dwell in our hearts, uniting Himself with our mortal flesh, perfectly uniting our mortal bodies with the immortal Mystical Body of Christ. If, after receiving the Body and Blood of Christ, we completely surrender ourselves to God and fulfil His holy will in all things, we shall never hunger or thirst, for we have received from the fountain of Christ’s grace the heavenly Bread of Life, which nourishes our souls to fullness, and thus we remain forever with Christ.
O God, hope and light of the sincere, we humbly entreat you to dispose our hearts to offer you worthy prayer and ever to extol you by dutiful proclamation of your praise. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,God, for ever and ever
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