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  Friday - 6 th Week of Easter Gospel – John16:20 - 23 I’ve Got Joy, Joy, Joy Down in My Heart Outside the Old City of Jerusalem   This is a rather short Gospel today but it actually has 2 different threads running through it. The first is a continuation of yesterday’s theme – in the midst of our pain, there will come joy.   Jesus uses the image of a woman going through the pain of giving birth which transforms into the joy of a new life.   While I was there right by Ginger’s side for the entire process of bringing our daughter Jaime into the world, my only remembrance of pain was Ginger’s crushing grip as I held her hand throughout the contractions.   But the emotion of holding Jaime in my arms for the first time – indescribably joyful and beyond words!   And the joy that awaits us in the Kingdom?   Way beyond anything we can imagine! The second thread reminds us of the importance of prayer.   “Whatever you ask of the Father in My name...
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  Thursday – St. Matthias, Apostle Gospel – John 15:9-17 A Roll of the Dice Anointing Stone, Church of Holy Sepulchre We celebrate today the Feast of St. Matthias, Apostle.   And here is what we know about Matthias – he was selected by lot to take Judas’ place as one of the Twelve.   That’s it; that’s all we know.   No background!   No info on his missionary work or even his death, nothing!   All we have is a roll of the dice!   So was that all just a matter of chance?   Sheer blind luck?   Today’s Gospel tells us that was not the case. Jesus tells His Apostles “It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you”.   Luck had nothing to do with it!   It was divinely inspired.   God was at work as He always is.   We like to think our parents made this conscious decision to have us baptized.   Or we believe that we make this choice to receive the Sacraments.   But in reality, it wasn’t our choice at all. ...
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  Wednesday - 6 th Week of Easter Gospel – John 16:12-15 The Spirit of Truth Sea of Galilee Yesterday I watched one of my all-time favorite movies for probably the 20 th time (conservative guess).   Kingdom of Heaven !!   A medieval Crusade epic directed by Ridley Scott! Of course, the Director’s cut which runs for about 3 ½ hours, but so worth it! Filled with quotable dialog throughout, there is one that resonates with me in light of today’s Gospel. Early in the film, a dying Sir Godfrey is ‘knighting’ his son with this oath: Be without fear in the face of your enemies. Be brave and upright that God may love thee. Speak the truth always, even if it leads to your death. Safeguard the helpless and do no wrong! In today’s Gospel, Jesus promises to send the Spirit of Truth, to guide us in all things.   We all need guidance; we all need to listen and hear the truth.   We all need a helping hand.   A simple but powerful message for all of us; so ...
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