＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊

Acts 10: 34a, 37-43

 Peter then spoke to them,

“Truly, I realize that God does not show partiality,   No doubt you have heard of the event that occurred throughout the whole country of the Jews, beginning from Galilee, after the baptism John preached. You know how God anointed Jesus the Naza­rean with Holy Spirit and power.

He went about doing good and healing all who were under the devil’s power, because God was with him;   we are wit­nesses of all that he did through­out the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem itself. Yet they put him to death by hanging him on a wood­en cross.

 But God raised him to life on the third day and let him manifest himself,  not to all the people, but to the witnesses that were chosen beforehand by God – to us who ate and drank with him after his resurrection from death.  And he commanded us to preach to the peo­­ple and to bear witness that he is the one appointed by God to judge the living and the dead. All the prophets say of him, that everyone who believes in him has forgiveness of sins through his Name.”

 

Ps 118: 1-2, 16-17, 22-23

This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad.

 

＊＊＊ 2nd Reading ＊＊＊

Colossians 3: 1-4 (or 1 Corinthians 5: 6b-8)

 So then, if you are risen with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.  Set your mind on the things that are above, not on earthly things.  For you have died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ, who is your life, reveals himself, you also will be revealed with him in Glory.

 

＊＊＊＊ Gospel ＊＊＊＊

John 20: 1-9 (or Luke 24: 13-35)

Now, on the first day after the Sabbath, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark and she saw that the stone blocking the tomb had been moved away. She ran to Peter and the other disciple whom Jesus loved. And she said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb and we don’t know where they have laid him.”

 Peter then set out with the other dis­ciple to go to the tomb. They ran to­gether but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down and saw the linen cloths lying flat, but he did not enter.

 Then Simon Peter came following him and entered the tomb; he, too, saw the linen cloths lying flat. The napkin, which had been around his head was not lying flat like the other linen cloths but lay rolled up in its place. Then the other disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in; he saw and believed. Scripture clearly said that he must rise from the dead, but they had not yet understood that.

 

Gospel Reflection：

Read:

All the readings of this day speak of one thing: the glory of God that has now been revealed through the vindication of Jesus risen from the dead. Everything that Jesus did everything he said, everything he taught had been to manifest the Father’s fidelity to his promise, not just to his Chosen People, but to all of humanity that had been burdened by the weight of sin and the fear of death.

Reflect:

There’s almost a giddiness in the Gospel’s description of what Mary, Peter and the beloved disciple did after Mary saw that the stone blocking the tomb had been moved. They ran together, but one “outran” the other. Imagine what must have been like! It is the same kind of unbelievable joy that awaits all who believe. Jesus himself has promised it. And it isn’t something that awaits us just at the end; in fact, it is something we can encounter, again and again, here and now – when, as Paul tells us, we “set our minds on things that are above.” The joy of Easter can be found, here and now, when our hearts, minds, bodies and souls, are anchored firmly in Christ.

Pray:

Lord, give me the grace to remain rooted in your promise of life eternal, so that I may live it, here and now, and experience its fullness when I see you face to face in your kingdom.

Act:

Remind yourself that Christ alone remains, and the watch the worries and anxieties of life melt away. Choose to be happy, choose to be joyful. Live the joy of Easter every day!