First reading Acts 2:14,22-33
God raised this man Jesus to life, and all of us are witnesses to this
On the day of Pentecost Peter stood up with the Eleven and addressed the crowd in a loud voice: ‘Men of Israel, listen to what I am going to say: Jesus the Nazarene was a man commended to you by God by the miracles and portents and signs that God worked through him when he was among you, as you all know. This man, who was put into your power by the deliberate intention and foreknowledge of God, you took and had crucified by men outside the Law. You killed him, but God raised him to life, freeing him from the pangs of Hades; for it was impossible for him to be held in its power since, as David says of him:
I saw the Lord before me always,
for with him at my right hand nothing can shake me.
So my heart was glad
and my tongue cried out with joy;
my body, too, will rest in the hope
that you will not abandon my soul to Hades
nor allow your holy one to experience corruption.
You have made known the way of life to me,
you will fill me with gladness through your presence.
‘Brothers, no one can deny that the patriarch David himself is dead and buried: his tomb is still with us. But since he was a prophet, and knew that God had sworn him an oath to make one of his descendants succeed him on the throne, what he foresaw and spoke about was the resurrection of the Christ: he is the one who was not abandoned to Hades, and whose body did not experience corruption. God raised this man Jesus to life, and all of us are witnesses to that. Now raised to the heights by God’s right hand, he has received from the Father the Holy Spirit, who was promised, and what you see and hear is the outpouring of that Spirit.’
Responsorial Psalm 15(16):1-2,5,7-11
Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
Alleluia.
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;
I say to the Lord, “My Lord are you.”
O Lord, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot.
Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
Alleluia.
I bless the Lord who counsels me;
even in the night my heart exhorts me.
I set the Lord ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
Alleluia.
Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,
my body, too, abides in confidence;
Because you will not abandon my soul to the nether world,
nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo corruption.
Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
Alleluia.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
or:
Alleluia.
Sequence
Victimae Paschali Laudes
Christians, to the Paschal Victim
offer sacrifice and praise.
The sheep are ransomed by the Lamb;
and Christ, the undefiled,
hath sinners to his Father reconciled.
Death with life contended:
combat strangely ended!
Life’s own Champion, slain,
yet lives to reign.
Tell us, Mary:
say what thou didst see
upon the way.
The tomb the Living did enclose;
I saw Christ’s glory as he rose!
The angels there attesting;
shroud with grave-clothes resting.
Christ, my hope, has risen:
he goes before you into Galilee.
That Christ is truly risen
from the dead we know.
Victorious king, thy mercy show!
Gospel Matthew 28:8-15
Tell my brothers that they must leave for Galilee: they will see me there
Filled with awe and great joy the women came quickly away from the tomb and ran to tell the disciples.
And there, coming to meet them, was Jesus. ‘Greetings’ he said. And the women came up to him and, falling down before him, clasped his feet. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers that they must leave for Galilee; they will see me there.’
While they were on their way, some of the guard went off into the city to tell the chief priests all that had happened. These held a meeting with the elders and, after some discussion, handed a considerable sum of money to the soldiers with these instructions, ‘This is what you must say, “His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.” And should the governor come to hear of this, we undertake to put things right with him ourselves and to see that you do not get into trouble.’ The soldiers took the money and carried out their instructions, and to this day that is the story among the Jews.
________________________________________________
Easter joy
“…as David says of him, ‘I saw the Lord before me always, for with him at my right hand nothing can shake me. So my heart was glad and my tongue cried out with joy…You have made known the way of life to me, you will fill me with gladness through your presence” (1st reading). Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, proclaimed these words to the crowd in Jerusalem. He and the rest of Jesus’ disciples went from being scared to joyful witnesses for the Risen Christ. In the first reading, Peter quoted Psalm 16, expressing the profound joy they had because of the presence of Jesus with them. Even though they were still filled with uncertainty, they rejoiced.
In the gospel, we see the women filled with great joy after receiving the news of the empty tomb. Their joy increased even more after they met the risen Jesus and were given the mission of sharing the good news with the rest of His disciples. Today, let us allow joy to fill our hearts and bear witness to Jesus and all that He stood for: love, forgiveness, peace, and justice.
Reflective question:
How can I share my joy with others today?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year C” by Sr Maria Jose FMVD.
