Note: In some dioceses, the liturgy for the Ascension of the Lord is celebrated on this Sunday.
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles
(Chapter 7:55-60)
This passage reports the martyrdom of Stephen, one of the first deacons in the Church. None of us are likely to suffer the kind of violence he endured because he was outspoken about his faith in Jesus Christ. We are more likely to confront indifference, incredulity, and even ridicule in an increasingly secular and egocentric society. One detail Luke mentions in these verses, might resonate with us: he writes that the crowd attacking Stephen “covered their ears.” They did not want to hear what he was proclaiming. We were baptized into the same mission that Stephen was carrying out and, while they probably won’t stone us, many people we encounter have closed their ears to the gospel. As Pope Francis frequently told us, we can best encourage such folks to listen to the gospel by letting them see the peace and joy it brings to our lives and the hospitality and generosity it inspires in us and perhaps blesses them.
Responsorial Psalm
(Psalm 97)
“The LORD is king; let the earth rejoice; let the many islands be glad.” Pope Francis said that evangelizer should not look as if he just left a funeral. That’s another way of saying what the psalmist sang about. Do we look to others as if we rejoice in the Lord?
A reading from the book of Revelation
(Chapter 22:12-14, 16-17, 20)
In one of his mystical experiences, the author of this book heard the risen Jesus say, “Behold, I am coming soon. I bring with me the recompense I will give to each according to his deeds.” That might conjure up Michelangelo’s terrifying image of the last judgment with Jesus, with a wave of his arm, consigning the condemned to hell. But our faith isn’t about avoiding judgment; it’s about living as Jesus taught us to live and when we falter, as we will, going to him in penance and starting anew. We are an Easter people. We are not about falling. We are about falling and rising again.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to John
(Chapter 17:20-26)
“I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one, …” Most Catholics attending Mass today don’t remember when the liturgy did not include a “sign of peace.” When that gesture was added to the ritual in the aftermath of the Second Vatican Council, many people found it awkward and were reluctant to take part in it. Some no doubt still feel that way. But the simple act of turning toward the person next to you instead of staring straight ahead should be a powerful sign of the theme of Jesus’ prayer in this gospel passage—“that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, …” The formality of the Mass shouldn’t distract us from the nature of what we are doing. We are becoming one body with each other and with Jesus Christ and, through him, with the Holy Trinity. We are one in the sense that we have assembled in the church to pray together, but that is only the surface. We are becoming one in a much more intimate way by opening our hearts to each other, regardless of our individual backgrounds, and then, by sharing in the Eucharist, we are all, together, becoming one with God in Christ. It is not symbolic; it is real. And because it is real, we should approach it, not as an exercise we practice by rote. It is not an obligation that we fulfill mechanically or even reluctantly. Rather, it is an unparalleled gift that we are eager to receive and to share.
†††
Painting: St. Stephen, detail from a painting by Giacomo Cavedone, 1601. Public domain.
Excerpts from the English translation of the Lectionary for Mass © 1969, 1981, 1997, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation (ICEL). All rights reserved.
Charles Paolino is managing editor at RENEW International. He is a permanent deacon of the Diocese of Metuchen.