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In the Scripture Readings for today’s Mass, we hear two accounts of the Pentecost. The more dramatic of the two   occurs in our First Reading from the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 2:1-11) where the Holy Spirit descends upon the  Apostles, empowering them to speak in different tongues so that the Jews from different lands who had gathered in Jerusalem could hear the message of Jesus proclaimed in their own language. The second, and perhaps less dramatic account is found in today’s Gospel (John 20:19-23) where the Risen Jesus, himself, appears to the Apostles on Easter Sunday, breathes the Holy Spirit upon them, empowers them to forgive sins in his name, and commissions them to go forth and continue the mission of announcing the coming of the Kingdom of God.      

With hindsight and the benefit of the Bible, as well as 2000 years of Church teaching, we are able to understand the progression from Resurrection to Ascension to Pentecost. This understanding was not so easy for the early disciples of Jesus as they experienced these events.    

Today’s Second Reading, from the First Letter of Peter  (1 Peter 3:15-18), tells us to sanctify Christ as Lord in our hearts, but what does that mean? In our relationship with God, how do we accomplish this? “If you love me, you will keep my commandments,” Jesus says in today’s Gospel (John 14:15-21). That is how he will know that we love him. What he asks of us is not always easy, but Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit to help us.

Join us in the Church at 4:00 PM from May 4th though May 12th as we pray a Novena to Our Lady of Fatima.

We would like to invite everyone who has received sacraments at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church this Easter Season to join us for cake in Fatima-Gallagher Hall this Sunday, May 7, 2023 after the 10:00 AM Mass. 

Running through all of the Scripture Readings in today’s Mass, is a strong sense of action, of movement by the Church and within the Church. The First Reading (Acts 6:1-7) tells of how certain widows were not being taken care of “in the daily distribution.” What was the “daily distribution”?