Daily Liturgy
Wednesday April 14
you loved the world – that is us – so much
that you gave us your only Son
to save us from ourselves
and to give us eternal life.
Do not condemn us Lord,
do not leave us to ourselves
and to our little schemes,
but give us your Son now to stay with us
and to make love, justice and peace
ever new realities among us,
your people reborn in your Son,
Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Reading 1: ACTS 5:17-26
The high priest rose up and all his companions,
that is, the party of the Sadducees,
and, filled with jealousy,
laid hands upon the Apostles and put them in the public jail.
But during the night, the angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison,
led them out, and said,
“Go and take your place in the temple area,
and tell the people everything about this life.”
When they heard this,
they went to the temple early in the morning and taught.
When the high priest and his companions arrived,
they convened the Sanhedrin,
the full senate of the children of Israel,
and sent to the jail to have them brought in.
But the court officers who went did not find them in the prison,
so they came back and reported,
“We found the jail securely locked
and the guards stationed outside the doors,
but when we opened them, we found no one inside.”
When the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests heard this report,
they were at a loss about them,
as to what this would come to.
Then someone came in and reported to them,
“The men whom you put in prison are in the temple area
and are teaching the people.”
Then the captain and the court officers went and brought them,
but without force,
because they were afraid of being stoned by the people.
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. (7a) The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
or:
R. Alleluia.
I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Let my soul glory in the LORD;
the lowly will hear me and be glad.
R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Glorify the LORD with me,
let us together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,
and your faces may not blush with shame.
When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,
and from all his distress he saved him.
R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The angel of the LORD encamps
around those who fear him, and delivers them.
Taste and see how good the LORD is;
blessed the man who takes refuge in him.
R. The Lord hears the cry of the poor.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia: JN 3:16
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might have eternal life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel: JN 3:16-21
God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world might be saved through him.
Whoever believes in him will not be condemned,
but whoever does not believe has already been condemned,
because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God.
And this is the verdict,
that the light came into the world,
but people preferred darkness to light,
because their works were evil.
For everyone who does wicked things hates the light
and does not come toward the light,
so that his works might not be exposed.
But whoever lives the truth comes to the light,
so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.
Intercessions
– That like God, the Church may love the world so as to make Jesus known to all and him to all peoples far and near, we pray:
– That those who cannot believe in God because life is very hard to them, may see God’s love reflected in good people, we pray:
– That we may not condemn anyone, but accept people the way God accepts us, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord, our God,
as your Son, Jesus Christ, is present here
and shares himself with us at his table,
may he also be present in our lives
and be the meaning of all we do.
May we learn from him
to do what we are incapable of when left to ourselves:
to forget injuries and to pardon enemies,
to be patient with those who do not understand,
to bring freedom to those who do not appreciate it.
Let Jesus work all this in us,
for he is our Lord for ever.
Prayer after Communion
Lord, you hear the cry of the poor,
you sent your Son into the world
not to condemn it but to save it.
Give us the strength not to condemn
but to build up,
not to judge, but to heal and help,
not to curse, but to bless.
And when our clumsy efforts fail us,
remind us that your Son stays with us
and that he can do better, even through us,
than we could ever dare to expect.
We ask you this through Christ, our Lord.
Blessing
God did not send Jesus into the world to condemn it. With Jesus and through him, we are part of that plan. May the Almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Commentary
We continue to read from the 3rd chapter of the gospel of John. Even if you fail to remember any other verse from the Gospel, today we got one to learn by heart, that would form the heart of our faith in Jesus. John 3:17: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him may not be lost, but may have eternal life.” The passage speaks of the great breadth and width of God’s love. God’s love is not for just a few nor for any particular group of people, rather, it is an unconditional love that embraces the whole world, and a personal love for you and me whom God has created.
Do parents keep an account of all the sacrifices they make for their children? True love does not count the cost; It leads one to make sacrifices, willingly and joyfully. A true lover gives his or her beloved everything he has and the best he has to offer. God proved his love for us by giving us the best — his only Son – Jesus Christ. And in return He accepted the most cruel death to show his love for us.
God’s giving of his only Son to the world carries a sense of hope and trust on God’s part. It has the sense of entrusting the most precious gift to the often violent and murderous world. God’s gentleness is not dependent on how the world responds. This trust of God also illustrates his readiness to face the vulnerability of loving.
God is a loving Father who cannot rest until his wandering children have returned home. Saint Augustine had said, God loves each one of us as if there were only one of us to love. God gives us the freedom to choose whom and what we love. We can love the darkness of sin and unbelief or we can love the light of God’s truth, beauty, and goodness. While writing the Gospel over 60 years after the death and resurrection of Jesus, John was aware of the reality that not many people could recognize the love of God the Father and they preferred to stay in the darkness of their sins. Like Nicodemus who came from darkness into light, but could not accept the light of truth and therefore disappeared into the darkness.
And that is a reality today as well. Do we love God above everything else? Does God take first place in our life, in our thoughts, and actions?