DAILY GOSPEL: 08/04/2010
«Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.» John 6,68
Easter Thursday
Acts of the Apostles 3:11-26.
As the crippled man who had been cured clung to Peter and John, all the people hurried in amazement toward them in the portico called «Solomon's Portico.»
When Peter saw this, he addressed the people, "You Israelites, why are you amazed at this, and why do you look so intently at us as if we had made him walk by our own power or piety?
The God of Abraham, (the God) of Isaac, and (the God) of Jacob, the God of our ancestors, has glorified his servant Jesus whom you handed over and denied in Pilate's presence, when he had decided to release him.
You denied the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you.
The author of life you put to death, but God raised him from the dead; of this we are witnesses.
And by faith in his name, this man, whom you see and know, his name has made strong, and the faith that comes through it has given him this perfect health, in the presence of all of you.
Now I know, brothers, that you acted out of ignorance, just as your leaders did;
but God has thus brought to fulfillment what he had announced beforehand through the mouth of all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer.
Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away,
and that the Lord may grant you times of refreshment and send you the Messiah already appointed for you, Jesus,
whom heaven must receive until the times of universal restoration of which God spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old.
For Moses said: 'A prophet like me will the Lord, your God, raise up for you from among your own kinsmen; to him you shall listen in all that he may say to you.
Everyone who does not listen to that prophet will be cut off from the people.'
Moreover, all the prophets who spoke, from Samuel and those afterwards, also announced these days.
You are the children of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your ancestors when he said to Abraham, 'In your offspring all the families of the earth shall be blessed.'
For you first, God raised up his servant and sent him to bless you by turning each of you from your evil ways."
Psalms 8:2.5.6-7.8-9.
O LORD, our Lord, how awesome is your name through all the earth! You have set your majesty above the heavens!
What are humans that you are mindful of them, mere mortals that you care for them?
Yet you have made them little less than a god, crowned them with glory and honor.
You have given them rule over the works of your hands, put all things at their feet:
All sheep and oxen, even the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air, the fish of the sea, and whatever swims the paths of the seas.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 24:35-48.
The disciples of Jesus recounted what had taken place along the way, and how they had come to recognize him in the breaking of bread.
While they were still speaking about this, he stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you."
But they were startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a ghost.
Then he said to them, "Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts?
Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have."
And as he said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.
While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed, he asked them, "Have you anything here to eat?"
They gave him a piece of baked fish;
he took it and ate it in front of them.
He said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled."
Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures.
And he said to them, "Thus it is written that the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.
As the crippled man who had been cured clung to Peter and John, all the people hurried in amazement toward them in the portico called «Solomon's Portico.»
When Peter saw this, he addressed the people, "You Israelites, why are you amazed at this, and why do you look so intently at us as if we had made him walk by our own power or piety?
The God of Abraham, (the God) of Isaac, and (the God) of Jacob, the God of our ancestors, has glorified his servant Jesus whom you handed over and denied in Pilate's presence, when he had decided to release him.
You denied the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you.
The author of life you put to death, but God raised him from the dead; of this we are witnesses.
And by faith in his name, this man, whom you see and know, his name has made strong, and the faith that comes through it has given him this perfect health, in the presence of all of you.
Now I know, brothers, that you acted out of ignorance, just as your leaders did;
but God has thus brought to fulfillment what he had announced beforehand through the mouth of all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer.
Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away,
and that the Lord may grant you times of refreshment and send you the Messiah already appointed for you, Jesus,
whom heaven must receive until the times of universal restoration of which God spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old.
For Moses said: 'A prophet like me will the Lord, your God, raise up for you from among your own kinsmen; to him you shall listen in all that he may say to you.
Everyone who does not listen to that prophet will be cut off from the people.'
Moreover, all the prophets who spoke, from Samuel and those afterwards, also announced these days.
You are the children of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your ancestors when he said to Abraham, 'In your offspring all the families of the earth shall be blessed.'
For you first, God raised up his servant and sent him to bless you by turning each of you from your evil ways."
Psalms 8:2.5.6-7.8-9.
O LORD, our Lord, how awesome is your name through all the earth! You have set your majesty above the heavens!
What are humans that you are mindful of them, mere mortals that you care for them?
Yet you have made them little less than a god, crowned them with glory and honor.
You have given them rule over the works of your hands, put all things at their feet:
All sheep and oxen, even the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air, the fish of the sea, and whatever swims the paths of the seas.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 24:35-48.
The disciples of Jesus recounted what had taken place along the way, and how they had come to recognize him in the breaking of bread.
While they were still speaking about this, he stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you."
But they were startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a ghost.
Then he said to them, "Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts?
Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have."
And as he said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.
While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed, he asked them, "Have you anything here to eat?"
They gave him a piece of baked fish;
he took it and ate it in front of them.
He said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled."
Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures.
And he said to them, "Thus it is written that the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.
Lc 24,35-48
Saint Anthony of Padua (c.1195-1231), Franciscan, Doctor of the Church
Sermons for Sundays and feasts of the saints
"Touch me and see"
«See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself.» I think there are four reasons why our Lord showed his side, hands and feet to the apostles. First of all to prove he was truly risen and remove from us any cause for doubt. Secondly, so that the «dove» – that is to say, the Church or the faithful soul - might make its nest in those wounds as in «the crevice of the rock» (Sg 2,14) and find refuge there from the eye of the bird of prey. Thirdly, to imprint as an emblem the marks of the Passion in our hearts. And in the fourth place as a warning, asking us to show him pity and not pierce him anew with the nails of our sins.
He shows us his hands and his feet: «Behold,» he says, «the hands that have fashioned you (cf. 119[118],73); see how the nails have pierced them. Behold my heart - the heart where you my faithful, you my Church, were born as Eve was born from Adam's side: see how the lance has opened it so that the door of Paradise, held shut by the fiery Cherubim, might be opened to you. The blood that flowed from my side has driven aside that angel and blunted his sword; the water has extinguished the fire (cf Jn 19,34)... Listen carefully, take these words to yourself, and peace will be with you.»
He shows us his hands and his feet: «Behold,» he says, «the hands that have fashioned you (cf. 119[118],73); see how the nails have pierced them. Behold my heart - the heart where you my faithful, you my Church, were born as Eve was born from Adam's side: see how the lance has opened it so that the door of Paradise, held shut by the fiery Cherubim, might be opened to you. The blood that flowed from my side has driven aside that angel and blunted his sword; the water has extinguished the fire (cf Jn 19,34)... Listen carefully, take these words to yourself, and peace will be with you.»
Bl. Augusto Czartoryski, Priest (1858-1893)
Blessed Augusto Czartoryski
Priest of the Salesians of Don Bosco
(1858-1893)
Priest of the Salesians of Don Bosco
(1858-1893)
Augusto Czartoryski was born on 2 August 1858 in Paris, France, the firstborn son to Prince Ladislaus of Poland and Princess Maria Amparo, daughter of the Duke and Queen of Spain. The noble Czartoryski Family had been living in exile in France for almost 30 years, in the Lambert Palace. Here, with the hope of restoring unity in Poland, they continued to direct activities between their fellow Polish countrymen and the European chancellery.
Plans for a future Prince
It was already planned that Augusto would be a future "reference point" for this restoration and would carry on the "Czartoryski" name. God's designs, however, were to unfold differently.
When Augusto was 6, his mother died of tuberculosis; the disease was also transmitted to him, and for the rest of his life he would be plagued by ill health. Although he had to make "forced pilgrimages" with his father to Italy, Switzerland, Egypt and Spain in search of a cure, he never regained his health.
When Augusto was 6, his mother died of tuberculosis; the disease was also transmitted to him, and for the rest of his life he would be plagued by ill health. Although he had to make "forced pilgrimages" with his father to Italy, Switzerland, Egypt and Spain in search of a cure, he never regained his health.
As he grew up, Augusto felt that he was not meant for the life of nobility, and one day, when he was 20 years old, he wrote to his father: "I confess to you that I am tired [of all the parties]; they are superficial entertainments that cause me anguish and I feel myself "forced' to make acquaintances with others at these banquets".
Augusto already received spiritual direction from his tutor, Joseph Kalinsowski, who would later become a Carmelite, and who, before leaving for Carmel in 1877, wrote to Prince Ladislaus to suggest that it would be wise, considering the boy's love for God, to entrust him to the direction of a priest.
Encounter with Don Bosco
Prince Ladislaus accepted the counsel given by Augusto's tutor, and Fr Stanislaus Kubowicz began to guide him. Augusto was already feeling more and more called to religious life and was hoping for a clearer indication of what God wanted from him: this "decisive event" took place when he was 25 and met Don Bosco, founder of the Salesians.
When Don Bosco came to Paris and celebrated Mass in the family chapel of the Lambert Palace, Augusto saw in this holy founder and teacher the "father of his soul" and guide for his future. While Augusto remained quiet and withdrawn in the face of matrimony plans made for him by his father, he had no intention of continuing the "noble line". Indeed, after his first encounter with the Salesian saint, he was more resolute than ever to answer God's call by becoming a Salesian.
When his father gave him permission, Augusto would travel to Turin to meet with Don Bosco and participate in spiritual retreats. He became comfortable with the "poverty" of the Salesian Oratory and was not disturbed by his frequent ill health or his father's opposition; he instead saw God's hand in all these circumstances.
He would say: "If God wants this, all will go well since he can take away every obstacle. If he does not want this, then neither do I".
A "Prince' for God's Kingdom
Don Bosco was somewhat reluctant to accept Augusto into the Salesian community: it took Pope Leo XIII to remove his doubts when he gave Augusto this message: "Tell Don Bosco that it is the Pope's will that he receives you among the Salesians".
Don Bosco replied: "Well then, my dear son, I accept you. From this moment, you are a part of the Salesian Family and I desire that you belong here until you die".
In 1887 he began his novitiate under the guidance of Don Giulio Barberis. The young man had to overcome many "habits" and adjust to community life, schedule, frugal meals and other sacrifices. All this he did with great serenity and abandonment to God.
When his father came to try to convince him to return home and accept his nobility as "Prince", he refused. On 24 November 1887, the day of his vesting in the hands of Don Bosco, the holy founder whispered into Augusto's ear: "Courage, my prince! Today we have conquered, and I can also say with great joy that one day when you become a priest you will do much for your Country".
One year as Christ's priest
Don Bosco died two months later. Augusto's health was also worsening and his father continued to try to dissuade him from becoming a priest, using his ill health as an "excuse".
When Prince Ladislaus asked the "help" of Cardinal Parocchi to dismiss him from the Salesians, Augusto wrote: "In full liberty I made my vows and I did this with great joy of heart. From that day I continue to live in the Congregation with an immense peace of spirit, and I thank the Lord for allowing me to know the Salesian Family and for having called me to become a Salesian".
On 2 April 1892 he was ordained a priest by the Bishop of Ventimiglia. Although Prince Ladislaus was not present at the Ordination, a month later, joined by the entire family in Mentone, he reconciled himself with his son's decision and renounced his own dreams of prestige and nobility for Augusto.
Fr Augusto died on 8 April 1893 in Alassio, where he lived his year as a priest, occupying a room which looked out onto the courtyard where the children of the Oratory played. He was 35 years old.
He was beatified on April 25, 2004 by John Paul II.
