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7th Sunday of Easter, Year C, 29 May 2022 Note: Homilies & Angelus / Regina Caeli of Pope Saint John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI & Pope Francis I had been compiled for you after the Mass Readings below. Happy Reading! Liturgical Colour: White.
Readings at Mass: EWTN, USCCB or see below. See our compilation with Pictures in Encouragements-242. 8-)
First Reading: Acts 7:55-60 The stoning of Stephen
Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand. ‘I can see heaven thrown open’ he said ‘and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’ At this all the members of the council shouted out and stopped their ears with their hands; then they all rushed at him, sent him out of the city and stoned him. The witnesses put down their clothes at the feet of a young man called Saul. As they were stoning him, Stephen said in invocation, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ Then he knelt down and said aloud, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them’; and with these words he fell asleep.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 96(97):1-2,6-7,9 Response: The Lord is king, most high above all the earth. or Alleluia!
The Lord is king, let earth rejoice, the many coastlands be glad. His throne is justice and right.
The skies proclaim his justice; all peoples see his glory. All you spirits, worship him.
For you indeed are the Lord most high above all the earth, exalted far above all spirits.
Second Reading: Apocalypse 22:12-14,16-17,20 Come, Lord Jesus
I, John, heard a voice speaking to me: ‘Very soon now, I shall be with you again, bringing the reward to be given to every man according to what he deserves. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. Happy are those who will have washed their robes clean, so that they will have the right to feed on the tree of life and can come through the gates into the city.’
I, Jesus, have sent my angel to make these revelations to you for the sake of the churches. I am of David’s line, the root of David and the bright star of the morning.
The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come.’ Let everyone who listens answer, ‘Come.’ Then let all who are thirsty come: all who want it may have the water of life, and have it free.
The one who guarantees these revelations repeats his promise: I shall indeed be with you soon. Amen; come, Lord Jesus.
Gospel: John 17:20-26 Father, may they be completely one
Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said: ‘Holy Father, I pray not only for these, but for those also who through their words will believe in me. May they all be one. Father, may they be one in us, as you are in me and I am in you, so that the world may believe it was you who sent me. I have given them the glory you gave to me, that they may be one as we are one. With me in them and you in me, may they be so completely one that the world will realise that it was you who sent me and that I have loved them as much as you loved me. Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, so that they may always see the glory you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. Father, Righteous One, the world has not known you, but I have known you, and these have known that you have sent me. I have made your name known to them and will continue to make it known, so that the love with which you loved me may be in them, and so that I may be in them.’
Acknowledgment: We thank the Publisher for allowing us to publish the Mass Readings to be used as reference for Homilies & Angelus / Regina Caeli of Pope Saint John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI & Pope Francis I as a source of God’s encouragements to all of us around the World.
Important note: @Michael65413248 informed us on 26 May 2022 18:45 SGT that their Twitter account has been gravely disrupted, so our compilation of Homilies and Regina Caeli/Angelus of Pope Saint John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis I could not be published in Twitter, see here for details. We thank you for all your Retweets and Likes. May God Bless All!
COVID-19 Protection in Singapore. New!
1. Criminal Investigation Department, Singapore Police Force harassed Law-abiding Citizen. Latest! https://twitter.com/Michael65413248/status/1510086218851270658 (2 April 2022) #Singapore Police Force harassing the same law abiding business owner again from 92298844, 97397514, 83487591, 96645914, 63914706, 82825465, 97378102, 90360045, 92981234! They can’t perform to contain COVID, so they bully to appear busy? Shameless? You decide! 2. See another Police case to frame against the Innocent! Please spread the News to help them who commit no crime. Many Thanks. Till this day, the harassment continues and there is no apology from the Rulers and no compensation paid for damages inflicted. 3. See the Bloggers went MISSING before / after the Singapore General Election on 10 July 2020. Please pray for their safety as we search for them actively. Many Thanks. 4. Please pray for this elderly Catholic Lady who has been victimised & harassed by her sister (also a Catholic) & her sister’s husband. Many Thanks.
Homilies, Angelus / Regina Caeli
1. Today, in Italy and in other countries, is the liturgical Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, which shows how the humanity that Christ assumed and redeemed was raised by him to full communion with God.
On this same Sunday we are celebrating the World Day of Social Communications. The Church closely and fondly regards those who work in this vast sector and is eager to develop a frank and open dialogue with them, in order to foster their commitment to humanity's authentic progress.
2. This year the theme on which we are invited to reflect is: The Media and the Family: a Risk and a Richness. Thanks to the modern technologies, many nuclear families are able to have direct access to the vast resources of communications and information and make use of them for education, cultural enrichment and spiritual growth. Yet the media also have the capacity to seriously damage families when they present an inadequate or even distorted outlook on life, on the family, on religion and on morality.
It is therefore vital to learn how to use them wisely and prudently. This duty primarily concerns parents, who are responsible for giving their children a healthy and balanced education. It likewise involves the public Authorities, who are required to implement suitable regulations which ensure that the media always show respect for the truth and for the common good.
3. In these days prior to Pentecost, let us invoke with Mary the gift of the Holy Spirit, so that he may help all who work in the sector of social communications to carry out their work with authentic apostolic zeal. Pope Saint John Paul II (Regina Caeli, 23 May 2004)
A further motive for reflection and prayer that the annual occasion of the World Communications Day offers today is the theme: "Children and the Media: A Challenge for Education". The educational challenges of today's world are often compared to the influence of the mass media, which compete with school, Church and even the family.
In this context, an adequate formation in the correct use of the media is essential: parents, teachers and the Ecclesial Community are called to collaborate to educate children and youth to be selective and to develop a critical attitude, cultivating a taste for what is aesthetically and morally valid. But the media must also bring their contribution to this educational commitment, promoting the dignity of the human person, marriage and family, and the achievements and aims of civilization. Programmes that instil violence and anti-social behaviour or vulgarize human sexuality are unacceptable, all the more so if they are proposed to minors.
I therefore renew the appeal to those responsible in the media industry and to social communications workers to safeguard the common good, respect the truth and protect the dignity of the person and the family.
Dear brothers and sisters, the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, which the liturgy recalled last Thursday, is celebrated in some countries today. The Risen Jesus returns to the Father; he thus opens for us the passage to eternal life and makes the gift of the Holy Spirit possible.
Like the Apostles then, we too, after the Ascension, gather in prayer to invoke the outpouring of the Spirit in spiritual union with the Virgin Mary (cf. Acts 1: 12-14). May her intercession obtain a renewed Pentecost for the whole Church. Pope Benedict XVI (Regina Caeli, 20 May 2007)
Today in Italy and in other countries we celebrate the Ascension of Jesus into Heaven which occurred on the 40th day after Easter. Likewise, on this Sunday we are also celebrating the World Day of Social Communications on the theme: "The Priest and Pastoral Ministry in a Digital World: New Media at the Service of the Word". In the Liturgy it narrates of the episode of the final departure of Jesus from his disciples (cf. Luke 24: 50-51; Acts 1: 2, 9); but it is not an abandonment, because he remains always with them with us but under a new form. St Bernard of Clairvaux explains that Jesus' Ascension into Heaven is accomplished in three steps: "The first is the glory of the Resurrection; the second is the power to judge; and the third is sitting at the right hand of the Father" (Sermo de Ascensione Domini 60, 2: Sancti Bernardi Opera, t. vi 1, 291, 20-21). Such an event is preceded by the blessing of the disciples, whom he prepares to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, in order that salvation is proclaimed everywhere. Jesus himself says to them: "You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you" (cf. Luke 24: 47, 49).
The Lord draws the gaze of the Apostles our gaze toward Heaven to show how to travel the road of good during earthly life. Nevertheless, he remains within the framework of human history, he is near to each of us and guides our Christian journey: he is the companion of the those persecuted for the faith, he is in the heart of those who are marginalized, he is present in those whom the right to life is denied. We can hear, see and touch our Lord Jesus in the Church, especially through the word and the sacraments. In this regard, I call on children and young people who during this Easter Season are receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation, to remain faithful to the Word of God and to the doctrine learnt, and also to assiduously approach Confession and the Eucharist, conscious of having been chosen and constituted to witness to the Truth. I renew my particular invitation to my Brothers in the Episcopate, that "in their life and actions they distinguish themselves by a powerful evangelical witness" (Letter proclaiming the Year for Priests) and know also how to use the means of communication wisely to make known the life of the Church and help the men of today to discover the Face of Christ (cf. Message for the 44th World Day of Social Communications, 24 January 2010).
Dear Brothers and Sisters, the Lord opening the way to Heaven, gives us a foretaste of divine life already on this earth. A 19th-century Russian author wrote in his spiritual testament: "Observe the stars more often. When you have a burden in your soul, look at the stars or the azure of the sky. When you feel sad, when they offend you... converse... with Heaven. Then your soul will find rest" (N. Valentini L. Zák [editor], Pavel A. Florenskij. "Non dimenticatemi. Le lettere dal gulag del grande matematico, filosofo e sacerdote russo, Milan 2000, p. 418). I thank the Virgin Mary, whom I was able to venerate at the Shrine in Fatima in these past days, for her maternal protection during the intense pilgrimage to Portugal. To her, who watches over the witnesses of her beloved Son, let us address our prayer trustingly.
See our compilation with pictures in Encouragements-243. 8-)
At the end of this celebration I would like to greet all of you who have come to pay homage to the new saints and in particular the official delegations from Italy, Colombia and Mexico. May the martyrs of Otranto help the beloved Italian people to look with hope to the future, trusting in the closeness of God who never abandons us, even in difficult moments. Through the intercession of Mother Laura Montoya may the Lord grant the Church a new missionary and evangelizing impetus and, inspired by this new saint’s example of harmony and reconciliation may the beloved sons and daughters of Colombia continue to work for peace and for the just development of their homeland.
Let us place in the hands of St Guadalupe García Zavala all the poor, the sick and those who care for them. Let us also commend to her intercession the noble Mexican nation so that all violence and insecurity may be eradicated and that it may continue to advance on the path of solidarity and brotherly coexistence.
I am now glad to recall the beatification, yesterday, in Rome, of the priest Luigi Novarese, Founder of the International Confederation of the Volunteers of Suffering Centers and of the Silent Workers of the Cross. I join in the thanksgiving for this exemplary priest, who was able to renew the pastoral care of the sick by giving them an active role in the Church. I greet the participants in the March for Life which took place this morning in Rome. I ask everyone to continue to pay special attention to this most important issue of respect for human life from the moment of conception. In this regard I would also like to remember the collection of signatures being made today in Italian parishes in support of the European project “One of Us”. The initiative aims to guarantee embryos legal protection, safeguarding every human being from the very first moment of his or her existence. Evangelium Vitae Day will be a special event for those who have at heart the defence of the sacred nature of human life. It will be held here in the Vatican, in the context of the Year of Faith, next 15 and 16 June.
I greet with affection all the parish groups, families, schools and young people present. Let us now turn with filial love to the Virgin Mary, Mother and Model of all Christians.
Pope Francis I (Regina Caeli, 12 May 2013)
Note: As we are still busy caring for those who have been badly affected by the COVID virus in Singapore and finding ways to repair the damage, we can only do the extracts later. Remember to put on your facemask and maintain safe distancing, because we want to see you well as we love you! 8-) DIVINE LITURGY WITH THE BEATIFICATION OF 7 GREEK-CATHOLIC MARTYR BISHOPS
Note: This webpage has many hyperlinks to the Vatican Webpage. The above extracts were compiled for your easy reading. This Publication is aimed to encourage all of Goodwill around the World. It is not for business or profit purposes but it is our way to thank our Creator for His continuous blessings!
Compiled on 1 June 2019, 6am (SGT) Last updated: 30 May 2022, 08:00 SGT
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