So let's talk about today's readings 4/13/10

[cheeto1]

Reading 1
Acts 4:32-37
The community of believers was of one heart and mind,
and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own,
but they had everything in common.
With great power the Apostles bore witness
to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus,
and great favor was accorded them all.
There was no needy person among them,
for those who owned property or houses would sell them,
bring the proceeds of the sale,
and put them at the feet of the Apostles,
and they were distributed to each according to need.

Thus Joseph, also named by the Apostles Barnabas
(which is translated “son of encouragement”),
a Levite, a Cypriot by birth,
sold a piece of property that he owned,
then brought the money and put it at the feet of the Apostles

Ps 93:1ab, 1cd-2, 5
Responsorial Psalm
R. (1a) The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD is king, in splendor robed;
robed is the LORD and girt about with strength.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.
And he has made the world firm,
not to be moved.
Your throne stands firm from of old;
from everlasting you are, O LORD.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Your decrees are worthy of trust indeed:
holiness befits your house,
O LORD, for length of days.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Jn 3:7b-15
Gospel
Jesus said to Nicodemus:
“‘You must be born from above.’
The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes;
so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Nicodemus answered and said to him,
‘How can this happen?”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“You are the teacher of Israel and you do not understand this?
Amen, amen, I say to you,
we speak of what we know and we testify to what we have seen,
but you people do not accept our testimony.
If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe,
how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?
No one has gone up to heaven
except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”

 

[cheeto1]

“The community of believers was of one heart and mind”
– That probably wasn’t exactly true, or why would Greeks complain that their
widows were being overlooked? And why would St. Paul say that people
were being shown preference at the Lord’s supper? And I bet that Ananias
and Sapphira weren’t the only ones who just pretended to give all they had
to the Lord. But it’s just like today: we are all of one heart and mind, but we
have to keep working at it. Starting new religions hasn’t worked. There has
never been a new church that has solved all the problems and disagreements.
God has given the power to the Catholic Church, and we must work at being
of one heart and mind. That is the only answer.

“holiness befits your house”
– Today’s psalm contains an example of disagreements possible in our
Catholic Church. What is holiness? People do disagree about what to
wear, how to behave in a liturgy, the order of the heirarchy of the church
and individual parishes. We can disagree on what shows holiness, but we
can be of one mind that “holiness befits your house”.

"The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes;
so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
– This is so mysterious. Why didn’t He say, “that’s how it is with the Holy
Spirit”? Instead, He said that’s how it is with the people who are born of
the Spirit. How does it apply to physical people, even if they are born of
the Spirit? They do not become like the wind. You can always see them,
and know their history. I haven’t seen where the power of the Holy Spirit can
make a person invisible.

So what struck you about today’s readiangs? :bible1::twocents: