Marvels of Mass

We begin our liturgy with the singing of the refrain from “Gather the People”:

Gather the people! Enter the feast!
All are invited, the greatest and least.
The banquet is ready, now to be shared.
Join in the heavenly feast that God has prepared.

Our Mass this weekend, begins with the refrain to the song “Sing a New Song.”

Sing a new song unto the Lord;

let your song be sung from mountains high.

Sing a new song unto the Lord, singing alleluia.

This text is echoed in the end of our first reading from Jeremiah where the Prophet entrusts us to “Sing to the Lord, praise the Lord.”

Juliana of Liège, a 13th century canoness from Liège, Belgium, had a vision of the Church under a full moon with one dark spot on it, signifying the absence of a feast dedicated to the Body and Blood of Christ. After having visions of Christ for over 20 years, she finally told her Bishop about it, upon which he instituted the celebration of Corpus Christi to be held in the diocese each year thereafter on the Thursday after Trinity Sunday.

The following excerpts are taken from the Catechism of the Catholic Church regarding the Church’s teaching on the Most Holy Trinity:

The formation of the Trinitarian dogma

Happy Birthday! The Church celebrates its beginning today on Pentecost Sunday, when the Holy Spirit filled the hearts of the faithful, sending them out to spread the Gospel, and the Church was born. In the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, we hear of how the Holy Spirit came to rest on all of the gathered disciples, and people from across the nations could hear and understand all that was being pro-claimed in their native tongue – even though all the speakers were from Galilee.

The upcoming weeks are sure to be full of new information and opportunities at the parish. Please remember, the best place to find the most current information is at www.popolathe.org/covid-19-resources .

With the re-opening of church this weekend, I thought I would address a few changes that are being implemented in accordance with the Archbishop’s directives.

There are times like now when I really don’t want to do this reflection. BUT, I also know that it’s times like this where I MUST lean on our faith and open my heart to hear God in my life. There’s nothing better to do than to read the Gospel for this Sunday and reflect. As I read this Gospel once again, I realize how God puts scrip-tures before us that have an uncanny way of speaking to some aspect of our lives just when we need it. The opening line: “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” (John 14:1) Just what I need today.

The 4th Sunday of Easter is often referred to as ‘Good Shepherd’ Sunday as we always have a Gospel reading referencing the ‘good shepherd’, (ironically enough, I know). In Cycle A readings, the reference is a bit different from the regular: ‘I know my sheep and mine know me.’ and ‘A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.’ This year, we hear of images of a gatekeeper, and sheep following him through the gate, of hearing a voice and recogniz-ing that voice. Our music leads us also to these teachings.