Easter

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(Usus Antiquior) Low Sunday (I Classis) – Sunday, 24 April 2022 : Offertory, Secret Prayer of the Priest, Communion and Post-Communion Prayer

Liturgical Colour : White

Offertory

Matthew 28 : 2, 5, 6

Angelus Domini descendit de caelo, et dixit mulieribus : Quem quaeritis, surrexit, sicut dixit, Alleluja.

English translation

An angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and said to the women, “He whom you seek is risen as He said.” Alleluia.

Secret Prayer of the Priest

Suscipe munera, Domine, quaesumus, exsultantis Ecclesiae : et, cui causam tanti gaudii praestitisti, perpetuae fructum concede laetitiae. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

Receive, we pray to You, o Lord, the gifts of Your exultant Church, and as You have afforded her cause for such great joy, grant her the fruit of unending gladness. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who with You lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.

Preface of Easter

Vere dignum et justum est, aequum et salutare : Te quidem, Domine, omni tempore, sed in hac potissimum die (in hoc potissimum) gloriosus praedicare, cum Pascha nostrum immolatus est Christus. Ipse enim verus est Agnus, qui abstulit peccata mundi. Qui mortem nostram moriendo destruxit et vitam resurgendo reparavit. Et ideo cum Angelis et Archangelis, cum Thronis et Dominationibus cumque omni militiae caelestis exercitus hymnum gloriae Tuae canimus, sine fine dicentes :

English translation

It is truly meet and just, right and profitable, to extol You indeed at all times, o Lord, but chiefly with highest praise to magnify You on this day (in these days) on which for us Christ, our Paschal Lamb, was sacrificed. For He is the true Lamb who had taken away the sins of the world, who by dying Himself had destroyed our death, and by rising again had bestowed a new life on us. And therefore with the Angels and Archangels, with the Thrones and Dominions, and with all the array of the heavenly host we sing a hymn to Your glory and unceasingly repeat.

Communion

John 20 : 27

Mitte manum Tuam, et cognosce loca clavorum, Alleluja : et noli esse incredulus, sed fidelis, Alleluja, Alleluja.

English translation

Put in your hand and know the place of the nails, Alleluia. And be not incredulous but believe! Alleluia, Alleluia.

Post-Communion Prayer

Quaesumus, Domine, Deus noster : ut sacrosancta mysteria, quae pro reparationis nostrae munimine contulisti; et praesens nobis remedium esse facias et futurum. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

We beseech You, o Lord, our God, that You make the sacred mysteries which You have given for the bulwark of our redemption, to be unto us a healing both in the present and in the future. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who with You lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.

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(Usus Antiquior) Low Sunday (I Classis) – Sunday, 24 April 2022 : Holy Gospel

Liturgical Colour : White

Sequentia Sancti Evangelii secundum Joannem – Continuation of the Holy Gospel according to St. John

John 20 : 19-31

In illo tempore : Cum sero esset die illo, una sabbatorum, et fores essent clausae, ubi erant discipuli congregati propter metum Judaeorum : venit Jesus, et stetit in medio, et dixit eis : Pax vobis. Et cum hoc dixisset, ostendit eis manus et latus. Gavisi sunt ergo discipuli, viso Domino.

Dixit ergo eis iterum : Pax vobis. Sicut misit me Pater, et ego mitto vos. Haec cum dixisset, insufflavit, et dixit eis : Accipite Spiritum Sanctum : quorum remiseritis peccata : remittuntur eis; et quorum retinueritis, retenta sunt.

Thomas autem unus ex duodecim, qui dicitur Didymus, non erat cum eis quando venit Jesus. Dixerunt ergo et alii discipuli : Vidimus Dominum. Ille autem dixit eis : Nisi videro in manibus ejus fixuram clavorum, et mittam digitum meum in locum clavorum, et mittam manum meam in latus ejus, non credam.

Et post dies octo, iterum erant discipuli ejus intus, et Thomas cum eis. Venit Jesus, januis clausis, et stetit in medio, et dixit : Pax vobis. Deinde dicit Thomae : Infer digitum tuum huc et vide manus meas, et affer manum tuam et mitte in latus meum : et noli esse incredulus, sed fidelis.

Respondit Thomas et dixit ei : Dominus meus et Deus meus. Dixit ei Jesus : Quia vidisti me, Thoma, credidisti : beati, qui non viderunt, et crediderunt. Multa quidem et alia signa fecit Jesus in conspectu discipulorum suorum, quae non sunt scripta in libro hoc. Haec autem scripta sunt, ut credatis, quia Jesus est Christus, Filius Dei : et ut credentes vitam habeatis in Nomine Ejus.

English translation

At that time, when it was late that same day, the first day of the week, and the doors were shut where the disciples were gathered together, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, “Peace be to you.” And when He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. The disciples therefore were glad, when they saw the Lord.

He said therefore to them again, “Peace be to you, as the Father had sent Me, I also send you.” When He had said this, He breathed on them and He said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit, those whose sins you shall forgive, they shall be forgiven, and those whose sins you shall retain, their sins shall be retained.”

Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, who is called the Twin or Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Except that I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”

And after eight days, again His disciples were within a room, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be to you.” Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger in here, and see My hands, and bring your hands here, and put it into My side, and do not be faithless but believe!”

Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God.” Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, Thomas, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet believed.” Many other signs Jesus had also done in the sight of His disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written, so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing, you may have life in His Name.

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(Usus Antiquior) Low Sunday (I Classis) – Sunday, 24 April 2022 : Alleluia

Liturgical Colour : White

Matthew 28 : 7 and John 20 : 26

Alleluja, Alleluja.

Response : In die resurrectionis meae, dicit Dominus, praecedam vos in Galilaeam.

Alleluja.

Response : Post dies octo, januis clausis, stetit Jesus in medio discipulorum suorum, et dixit : Pax vobis. Alleluja.

English translation

Alleluia, Alleluia.

Response : In the day of My resurrection, I will go before you into Galilee.

Alleluia.

Response : Eight days after, the doors being shut, Jesus stood in the midst of His disciples, and said, “Peace be unto you.” Alleluia.

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(Usus Antiquior) Low Sunday (I Classis) – Sunday, 24 April 2022 : Epistle

Liturgical Colour : White

Lectio Epistolae Beati Joannis Apostoli – Lesson from the Epistle of Blessed John the Apostle

1 John 5 : 4-10

Carissimi : Omne, quod natum est ex Deo, vincit mundum : et haec est victoria, quae vincit mundum, fides nostra. Quis est, qui vincit mundum, nisi qui credit, quoniam Jesus est Filius Dei? Hic est, qui venit per aquam et sanguinem, Jesus Christus : non in aqua solum, sed in aqua et sanguine.

Et Spiritus est, qui testificatur, quoniam Christus est veritas. Quoniam tres sunt, qui testimonium dant in caelo : Pater, Verbum, et Spiritus Sanctus : et hi tres unum sunt. Et tres sunt, qui testimonium dant in terra : Spiritus, et aqua, et sanguis : et hi tres unum sunt.

Si testimonium hominum accipimus, testimonium Dei majus est : quoniam hoc est testimonium Dei, quod majus est : quoniam testificatus est de Filio suo. Qui credit in Filium Dei, habet testimonium Dei in se.

English translation

Dearly beloved, whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world, and that is the victory which overcomes the world, that is our faith. Who is he that overcame the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? This is He who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ; not by water only but by water and blood.

And it is the Spirit which testifies that Christ is the truth. And there are three who give testimony in heaven, that is the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit, and these three are One. And there are three that give testimony on earth, that is the Spirit, the water and the blood, and these three are one.

If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God which is greater, because He had testified of His Son. He who believes in the Son of God has the testimony of God in himself.

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(Usus Antiquior) Low Sunday (I Classis) – Sunday, 24 April 2022 : Introit and Collect

Liturgical Colour : White

Introit

1 Peter 2 : 2 and Psalm 80 : 2

Quasi modo geniti infantes, Alleluja : rationabile, sine dolo lac concupiscite, Alleluja, Alleluja, Alleluja.

Exsultate Deo, adjutori nostro : jubilate Deo Jacob.

Response : Gloria Patri et Filio et Spiritui Sancto, sicut erat in principio, et nunc, et semper : et in saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

As newborn babes, Alleluia, desire the rational milk without guile, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.

Rejoice to God our Helper, sing aloud to God of Jacob.

Response : Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Collect

Praesta, quaesumus, omnipotens Deus : ut, qui Paschalia festa peregimus, haec, Te largiente, moribus et vita teneamus. Per Dominum nostrum Jesum Christum Filium Tuum, qui Tecum vivit et regnat in unitate Spiritus Sancti Deus, per omnia saecula saeculorum. Amen.

English translation

Grant, we beseech You, o Almighty God, that we who have completed the observance of the Paschal festival, may keep it, by Your bounty, in our life and behaviour. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who with You lives and reigns in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen.

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Saturday, 23 April 2022 : Saturday within Easter Octave (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we are reminded again of our obligation as Christians, as those who believe in the Lord’s resurrection and triumphant victory over sin and death, to be His witnesses and missionaries in our world today, in proclaiming His truth and love among all the people, continuing the many good works that His Apostles and disciples had begun, in all that we have heard in the past one week of this holy Easter Octave, the works of the Apostles in the Acts of the Apostles.

In our first reading today, at the conclusion of the narrative of the events that happened due to the miraculous healing of a crippled beggar at the gate of the Temple of Jerusalem by St. Peter and St. John, in the past few readings we heard how the Apostles had courageously spoken up and preached about the Risen Lord to all the people who witnessed the miracle and then later on to all the members of the Sanhedrin who opposed the Lord and His Apostles. We heard today in our first reading of the reaction of the Sanhedrin upon listening to the words that St. Peter had spoken courageously before them, revealing the folly and error of their actions in having persecuted the Lord and His disciples.

In their discussion and debate with each other, the members of the Sanhedrin could not agree on how to deal with the Apostles and their actions in preaching about the Resurrected Christ and the miracles that they had performed in His Name. They wanted to stop them and to order them not to do it again, but at the same time, they knew that what the Apostles had performed, all the miraculous occasions and healings performed had been witnessed by so many people that it would have been impossible for the Sanhedrin to refute and deny that the miracles had occurred.

We see here the bitter stubbornness of many of the members of the Sanhedrin who were still adamant in their refusal to listen to the Lord and believe in His truth. Many of them, members of the Pharisees and the Sadducees, the teachers of the Law and elders had witnessed the miracles of the Lord themselves, heard Him and His wisdom, and yet, they still refused to believe in Him. All these despite them being supposedly the most educated and best people among the community of the people of God, many of whom were knowledgeable of the Scriptures and the teachings of the prophets.

They should have been the first ones to believe in the Lord and to welcome Him and His disciples. Yet, most of them except some like Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea chose to ignore the truth, hardened their hearts and minds, preferring to continue in their prejudices and in their judgmental attitudes towards the Lord. They saw the Lord as a great rival and threat to their power, influence and privileges in the community, and hence, they tried their best to curb the spread of the news and the truth behind the Resurrection, but they could not stop the Apostles and the other disciples from speaking up despite the threats and other efforts they made. And that was because the Lord was with His servants, and His Spirit strengthened them, giving them the courage to go up against even the opposition from the powerful Sanhedrin and others.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the Lord appearing to His disciples after He had risen to the dead, revealing that He had indeed risen and triumphed over sin and death just as He had predicted to His disciples and followers. The Lord had appeared in the flesh and communicated with His disciples, which became truly tangible evidence of His truth, and those same disciples had seen themselves the undeniable truth of the Lord’s risen glory. And they therefore proclaimed courageously this same truth, and would not be silenced by those who opposed the truth of God. Many of them were willing to endure sufferings and persecution in the midst of their works of evangelisation.

Brothers and sisters, now that we have heard these readings from the Scriptures, and if we have been following the readings in the past few days during the Easter Octave, we are all reminded that we have also been part of this same Church, the Church that the Lord had established and built on the foundation of His Apostles, especially that of St. Peter. All the saints, the holy men and women of God, the many people who had dedicated themselves, their time and efforts and even their lives, for the sake of the Lord, His glory and for the salvation of His people, all of them had shown us what it means for us to be true Christians, in proclaiming the Risen Lord, Our Lord and Saviour.

There are still plenty of areas and opportunities for us to carry on the great works and deeds that the Apostles had begun, in reaching out to those who have not yet known the Lord or have not yet discovered the truth. And if we are not sure of what we can do or should do in this matter, we often do not have to worry about it. And we have to realise that God does not call the extraordinary and the powerful to do His will. In fact, it was all those qualified ones who had ironically rejected the Lord and decided to oppress His truth and persecute His faithful ones. Instead, the Lord called the ordinary ones and made them to be extraordinary in His presence.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, what matters is our faith and also the grace of humility in our lives. Let us all allow the Lord to work through us and with us, and let us walk faithfully in His path, doing our very best to be good role models for our fellow brothers and sisters, for all those who have not yet seen the Lord’s truth or known about His salvation and grace. May all of us be the beacons of the Light of our Risen Lord and Saviour, and may He strengthen us all to walk ever more dedicatedly in His presence, now and always. Amen.

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Saturday, 23 April 2022 : Saturday within Easter Octave (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Mark 16 : 9-15

At that time, after Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary of Magdala, from whom He had driven out seven demons. She went and reported the news to His followers, who were now mourning and weeping. But when they heard that He lived, and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.

After this He showed Himself in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. These men also went back and told the others, but they did not believe them. Later Jesus showed Himself to the Eleven while they were at table. He reproached them for their unbelief, and stubbornness, in refusing to believe those who had seen Him after He had risen.

Then He told them, “Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News to all creation.”

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Saturday, 23 April 2022 : Saturday within Easter Octave (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : White

Psalm 117 : 1 and 14-15, 16ab-18, 19-21

Alleluia! Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, His loving kindness endures forever. The Lord is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation. Joyful shouts of victory are heard in the tents of the just : The right hand of the Lord strikes mightily.

The right hand of the Lord is lifted high, the right hand of the Lord strikes mightily! I shall not die, but live to proclaim what the Lord has done. The Lord has stricken me severely, but He has saved me from death.

Open to me the gates of the Just, and let me enter to give thanks. “This is the Lord’s gate, through which the upright enter.” I thank You for having answered me, for having rescued me.

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Saturday, 23 April 2022 : Saturday within Easter Octave (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : White

Acts 4 : 13-21

The Jewish leaders, elders and teachers of the Law were astonished at the boldness of Peter and John, considering that they were uneducated and untrained men. They recognised also, that they had been with Jesus, but, as the man who had been cured stood beside them, they could make no reply.

So they ordered them to leave the council room while they consulted with one another. They asked, “What shall we do with these men? Everyone who lives in Jerusalem knows that a remarkable sign has been given through them, and we cannot deny it. But to stop this from spreading any further among the people, let us warn them never again to speak to anyone in the Name of Jesus.”

So they called them back and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the Name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered them, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s eyes for us to obey you rather than God. We cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

Then the council threatened them once more and let them go. They could find no way of punishing them because of the people who glorified God for what happened.

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Friday, 22 April 2022 : Friday within Easter Octave (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are all reminded of the trials and challenges that we will often have to face as Christians, as those who believe in the Lord and His Resurrection. We believe in the Risen Lord and like the Apostles, we may have to endure opposition and trials for our faith in His truth. Yet, we must never waver from our faith and from the commitment that we have to show in our daily lives, as those who have been entrusted with the same mission as that of the Apostles and disciples of the Lord, in proclaiming His Good News and salvation to all the peoples.

In our first reading today, we heard of the account from the Acts of the Apostles telling us of the opposition that St. Peter and St. John, two of the Lord’s Twelve Apostles had to face due to their proclamation of the Lord Jesus and His salvation before the assembled people. At that time, based on our earlier readings from the Acts of the Apostles, the two Apostles had just miraculously healed a beggar who had been paralysed since birth, and whom everyone knew and recognised as being crippled. That this miracle had happened right by the gate of the Temple where the beggar usually lingered at, showed us how the chief priests and the members of the Sanhedrin could quickly find out about what had happened.

The Sanhedrin, or the Jewish High Council, composed of the most influential members of the Jewish community at that time, had been firm in their opposition against the Lord, as most of its members had refused to listen to the Lord and His teachings, with some of them even branding the Lord as a blasphemous and heretical Man, Who was swaying the people to His side with His teachings and popularity. And that was why they judged and condemned the Lord in the first place, arresting Him and handing Him over to the Romans, that He might be condemned to death and crucified.

That was why they were still adamant in their opposition against the Lord even when they heard that the Lord had risen from the dead just as He Himself had predicted and revealed. They spread false news that the disciples had stolen His Body and preached falsehoods in His Name, and expressly ordered that anyone who spoke in the Name of the Lord Jesus or supported His teachings would be arrested and persecuted. That was the obstacle facing the Apostles, who had to endure the opposition from the powerful members of the community, those who refused to believe in the Lord and His truth. But that did not stop the Apostles and the many other disciples from doing their best to proclaim the Good News whenever they could.

St. Peter courageously spoke before the whole assembly of the Sanhedrin just as he had done so earlier before the people in Jerusalem. He spoke fearlessly regarding the Saviour, Jesus Christ, the Son of God Who had been rejected by those to whom St. Peter was speaking to, right there and then, the same Sanhedrin and its members also condemned Christ to death and giving Him up to the Romans to be crucified. It was to these people that St. Peter testified again about the Lord, His truth and His resurrection. He proclaimed the truth courageously as he himself had seen and witnessed the Risen Lord as we heard in our Gospel passage today.

St. Peter had witnessed the Lord’s Passion, suffering and death, and how He revealed Himself after His resurrection on several occasions. As highlighted in our Gospel passage today, the Lord revealed Himself to His disciples in Galilee just as the disciples went there and were in the midst of catching fish in the lake. They had not been successful in gaining any fish when the Lord told them to do as He said, and immediately a huge number of fishes ended up in their catch, and they almost could not handle the entire catch of fishes. And St. Peter himself was the first one to recognise that it was the Lord Who was there with them.

Having witnessed the Risen Lord, the disciples, and having also been strengthened by the Holy Spirit, as shown by the examples of St. Peter, they stood up for their faith, and while many among them suffered, as the Apostles themselves had endured for a long time, and how many of their successors had also suffered, but these did not stop them from continuing to speak up and to proclaim the Good News of the Lord’s salvation. The Lord has called them all to His service and they had answered His call with great faith. They rejoice greatly in His Resurrection, and they had passed down this great joy and truth to all of us.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us all realise that each and every one of us are the inheritors of the Lord’s mission which He has entrusted to us, to be the ones to bear the Good News of His salvation to the whole world. There are still many people out there who have not believed in God and who have been lukewarm in their faith. We are called here to be the ones to bring forth the light of our faith and the wonders of the Lord’s saving grace to them. Like the Apostles, St. Peter and many other holy men and women of God, all of us have been entrusted with the same truth and message that the Lord wants us to proclaim in our world today much as how St. Peter had proclaimed it that day before the people and before the whole Sanhedrin.

Are we willing and able to follow in the footsteps of St. Peter and the many other holy men and women of God, many of whom had suffered trials and persecutions, opposition and oppressions for the sake of their faith in God? Are we willing to contribute our time and effort to glorify the Lord by our lives and by our actions? Each and every one of us should listen to the Lord calling on us to action, and to follow Him wholeheartedly from now on. Let us seek the Lord with a new spirit and commitment from now on. May God be with us all and may He bless us in our every actions and good works, all for the greater glory of His Name. Amen.