Sunday Mass for the 3rd Sunday of Easter 2021 - Year B

00:07 - Our celebrant today is Jesuit Fr. Russell Pollitt SJ.

00:37 - In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

00:40 - [Amen. ] The grace and the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

00:46 - [And with your spirit. ] Welcome as we come together to celebrate this third Sunday of Easter.

00:55 - We come before the risen Lord, knowing that he gives us new life despite our weaknesses, our faults and our sinfulness.

01:02 - Let’s bring our lives before the risen Lord, asking him for mercy, but most of all forgiveness, and courage to be faithful disciples of Jesus.

01:19 - Lord Jesus, you are Son of God and Son of Mary.

01:21 - Lord, have mercy. [Lord, have mercy. ] Christ Jesus, you are word made flesh and splendour of the Father.

01:28 - Christ, have mercy. [Christ, have mercy. ] Lord Jesus, you will come again in glory to judge both the living and the dead.

01:35 - Lord, have mercy. [Lord, have mercy. ] May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins and bring us to life everlasting.

01:44 - [Amen. ] Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will.

01:50 - We praise you, we bless you, we adore you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great glory, Lord God, heavenly King, O God, almighty Father.

02:04 - Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son, Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us; you take away the sins of the world, receive our prayer; you are seated at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us.

02:24 - For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father.

02:37 - Amen. And let’s pray: May your people exult for ever, O God, in renewed youthfulness of spirit, so that rejoicing now in the restored glory of our adoption, we may look forward in confident hope to the rejoicing of the day of resurrection.

03:00 - We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

03:09 - [Amen. ] A reading from the Acts of the Apostles.

03:28 - In those days: Peter said to the people, “The God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him.

03:46 - But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead.

03:57 - To this we are witnesses. “And now, brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance, and did also your rulers.

04:08 - But what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled.

04:16 - Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out. “ The word of the Lord.

04:23 - [Thanks be to God. ] Lift up the light of your face on us, O Lord.

04:31 - [Lift up the light of your face on us, O Lord. ] I called, the God of justice gave me answer; from anguish you released me, have mercy and hear me! [Lift up the light of your face on us, O Lord. ] Know that the Lord works wonders for his faithful one; the Lord will hear me whenever I call him.

04:56 - [Lift up the light of your face on us, O Lord. ] “What can bring us happiness?” many say.

05:05 - Lift up the light of your face on us, O Lord.

05:09 - [Lift up the light of your face on us, O Lord. ] In peace I will lie down and fall asleep, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.

05:22 - [Lift up the light of your face on us, O Lord. ] A reading from the first letter of Saint John.

05:41 - My little children, I am writing this to you so that you may not sin; but if any one does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the expiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.

06:10 - And by this we may be sure that we know him, if we keep his commandments.

06:18 - He who says “I know him” but disobeys his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps his word, in him truly love for God is perfected.

06:43 - The word of the Lord. [Thanks be to God. ] Alleluia! Lord Jesus, open the Scriptures to us; make our hearts burn with love when you speak to us.

07:14 - Alleluia! The Lord be with you. [And with your spirit] The reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke.

07:43 - [Glory to you, O Lord. ] At that time: The two disciples told what had happened on the road, and how Jesus was known to them in the breaking of the bread.

07:56 - As they were saying this, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace be with you”.

08:03 - But they were startled and frightened, and supposed that they saw a spirit.

08:09 - And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do questionings rise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; handle me, and see me; for a spirit has not flesh and bones as you see I have. ”And when he had said this he showed them his hands and his feet.

08:34 - And while they still disbelieved for joy, and wondered, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it before them.

08:47 - Then he said to them, “These are my words which I spoke to you, while I was with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the psalms must be fulfilled. ” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that the repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.

09:21 - You are witnesses of these things. The Gospel of the Lord.

09:30 - [Praise to you, Lord, Jesus Christ. ] Friends, in these days – and perhaps weeks after Easter – the disciples gather in that upper room where the doors are locked.

09:50 - We are told this many times. And that room must have been a strange place – haunted by absence, full of bittersweet memories – it was there that the master had washed their feet, it was there that the master had eaten with them – there too that they had sworn loyalty at that Last Supper.

10:19 - ‘We will never leave you, Lord. ’ And now they realise, that in that same room, that they have failed dismally.

10:28 - They couldn’t even see through that fateful night of Holy Thursday.

10:35 - So the Gospel today tells us about wounded people – they are individually wounded – wounded perhaps by guilt, wounded by despair, wounded by the grief of the death of Jesus.

10:55 - And as a group they are wounded too, they are collectively wounded, the unity has been broken.

11:02 - Two of their original gang are no longer present.

11:06 - Judas is dead, and Thomas has run away, he has fled because he is having some sort of crisis.

11:14 - They have erected this barrier around them.

11:20 - They do this, like most people who are struggling and in pain tend to do.

11:28 - Last week we noted how Jesus used the appearance to Thomas as a moment of healing.

11:37 - And he continues, it seems to me, that in today’s text.

11:43 - Because I want to suggest that Jesus’ appearances to his disciples are not really about saying “ Hey guys, here I am, I’ve come back!” but rather to bring about a healing that they need.

11:59 - He came to them while they were still fearful, while they were still guilt ridden, while they were still grieving, while they were still perhaps dwelling in their own cowardice and betrayal of Jesus himself.

12:15 - And notice that in all these appearances, Jesus doesn’t scold them, he doesn’t rub salt in their wounds, he doesn’t tell them that they got it wrong.

12:27 - He simply comes among them and says the words, ‘Peace be with you. ’ I wonder what the invitation to us is as we hear these stories of resurrection, and how might we apply the Word of God to our own context, to our own lives at this time? The disciples, we are told in the Gospel today, retell the story, they talk about it among themselves.

13:04 - We cannot but talk about, examine the things that are happening around us.

13:12 - It seems to me the one thing the Gospel invites us to do today is to enter into conversation with one another, to talk about the things in our own lives, in the life of our communities and societies, that astound us, that shock us, that surprise us, that give us joy.

13:33 - Those disciples are astounded on the road to Emmaus, they go back to the group, and they talk about it, they talk about what was perhaps shocking for them, but also about the joy that they come to realise when Jesus breaks the bread.

13:56 - It seems to me, for us today, we need more and more spaces and places where we can talk about the things that are happening in our lives.

14:08 - Not in the media, where things are hypersensitive, where things are often blown out of proportion, but where we can really share the content of our lives and our faith, in our homes, with our children in ways that are appropriate.

14:27 - Because the talking is not only retelling the story, but part of the healing process if you watch carefully, that these disciples enter into as they share their stories.

14:42 - The second invitation is to notice how Jesus breaks through the barriers that the disciples have built.

14:50 - Jesus goes through barriers, he doesn’t wait for the disciples to come to him but rather he goes to them.

15:00 - He takes the initiative. And he always says, “Peace be with you”, not condemning, as I said, and not blaming.

15:11 - I wonder if the invitation for us is to take the initiative, to break through the barriers, the walls that we have built and that others have built.

15:23 - It seems to me that barriers are a real plague in our society and our world.

15:31 - And the disciple of Jesus today is invited to break down those barriers and speak the same words as Jesus, to say to others “Peace be with you”.

15:43 - You know it’s much easier to condemn and to judge – Christian groups sadly do this very well all the time.

15:55 - I’m not sure that I often hear on Twitter, people saying to each other “Peace be with you” to those who are in desperate need of peace.

16:08 - And notice how many times Jesus says that, not once, not twice, but over and over, because he wants those words to sink in to those disciples.

16:22 - It seems to me that in those words of peace that Jesus speaks, there are also sentiments of forgiveness.

16:33 - And notice how they begin to change when they hear those words of peace that are spoken to them.

16:40 - They believe that a fresh start is possible.

16:47 - And that’s another invitation, an invitation to a fresh start.

16:54 - From utter collapse and failure – the gloom which seemed to dominate their lives – the hopelessness that they experienced– something new begins to arise – they believe in Jesus eventually, but they believe too in themselves.

17:15 - That’s the story of the Acts of the Apostles that we have been following in these last weeks.

17:22 - When they come to believe in the risen Jesus, they come too to believe in themselves.

17:31 - The humble Jesus with his gentle approach, with no harshness, and with words of peace – gives courage to those crushed disciples, heals their wounds, renews their hope, gives them life and empowers them to do that for others.

17:48 - So, from collapse and failure, we see a fresh new start.

17:58 - How do we start again, how do we rekindle our own hope when we feel crushed by corruption and by politics that is rotten? How do we afford others a fresh start – how do we empower others who feel crushed by whatever has happened in their lives, those who have lost hope? Can we do the same as Jesus? Can we speak words of peace, and can we help others to believe in him and also in themselves? And the final invitation is that last line of the Gospel, “You are witnesses.

” It’s the toughest part of the Gospel – the bit that I think we struggle with and we don’t quite get– “you are my witnesses”.

18:53 - You see, disciples go out and, for weeks now, we hear in the Acts of the Apostles how they witness to Jesus.

19:02 - They don’t offer a catechism, they don’t offer a doctrine, but they simply go and share their own experience of Jesus with others.

19:13 - And that experience is what brings others to faith in Jesus.

19:21 - It is ultimately the witness of our lives, and the stories that we dare to share with others, that empowers them to live the Gospel, that brings them to belief in Jesus.

19:36 - We might ask ourselves today, where do I find myself? In the upper room of fear, and guilt, grief, despair, or rather a witness wanting to say to others “Peace be with you” so that they feel empowered? You see, the power of the resurrection lies in how we choose to live it out.

20:31 - So I’m going to invite you now as we continue to celebrate this Easter season to make a profession of faith, and let’s pray together the Apostle’s Creed: I believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; he descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

21:18 - I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting.

21:29 - [Amen. ] So dear friends, we have heard God’s word, it has been spoken to us, we’ve been invited into that word.

21:42 - Let’s now bring our prayers, our needs, our own and those of the world, before the risen Lord.

21:59 - For the Church: that the Spirit will open our minds to understand the Scriptures and empower us to share the message of God’s love and forgiveness with all whom we encounter.

22:16 - Lord, hear us. [Lord, graciously hear us. ] For our local Christian communities: that we would create places and spaces where we can share our stories and in so doing authentically share and walk the journey of life together in mutual faith, hope and love.

22:45 - Lord, hear us. [Lord, graciously hear us. ] For the grace of forgiveness: that we will be open to God’s free and generous forgiveness, and strive to forgive others as we have been forgiven.

23:07 - Lord, hear us. [Lord, graciously hear us. ] For all who are broken and wounded: that they may find healing in Christ and that God will help us recognize them as our brothers and sisters through the wounded Christ.

23:28 - Lord, hear us. [Lord, graciously hear us. ] For healing of the wounds of racism and prejudice: that God will help us to recognize the dignity of each person and work to heal the wounds and divisions that exist.

23:51 - Lord, hear us. [Lord, graciously hear us. ] For our own needs.

24:01 - Let us spend a moment in silence, bringing our needs before the Lord.

24:13 - Lord, hear us. [Lord, graciously hear us. ] For all who have died: that they may touch Christ and be one with Him for all eternity.

24:30 - Lord, hear us. [Lord, graciously hear us. ] Lord our God, these are our needs these are our prayers.

24:41 - We ask you to hear them as you know best through Christ Jesus, your Son, and our risen Lord.

24:46 - [Amen. ] Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have this bread to offer: fruit of the earth, work of our human hands, it will become for us the bread of life.

25:23 - [Blessed be God for ever. ] Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have this wine to offer: fruit of the vine, and work of our human hands, it will become for us our spiritual drink.

25:47 - [Blessed be God for ever. ] Let’s pray, sisters and brothers, that our sacrifice and the sacrifice and efforts of all our lives may be acceptable to God, our almighty Creator.

26:09 - [May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands for the praise and glory of God’s name, for our good and the good of all God’s holy Church. ] Receive, O Lord, we pray, these offerings of your exultant Church, and, as you have given her cause for such great gladness, grant also that the gifts we bring may bear fruit in perpetual happiness.

26:31 - We ask this through Christ, our Lord. [Amen] The Lord be with you.

26:39 - [And with your spirit. ] Lift up your hearts.

26:42 - [We lift them up to the Lord. ] Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

26:46 - [It is right and just. ] It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation, at all times to acclaim you, O Lord, but in this time above all to laud you yet more gloriously when Christ our Passover has been sacrificed.

26:59 - Through him the children of light rise to eternal life and the halls of the heavenly Kingdom are thrown open to the faithful; for his Death is our ransom from death, and in his rising the life of all has risen.

27:12 - Therefore, overcome with paschal joy, every land, every people exults in your praise and even the heavenly Powers, with the angelic hosts, sing together the unending hymn of your glory, as together we acclaim: Holy, Holy, Holy [Lord God of hosts.

27:31 - Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest.

27:35 - Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

27:39 - Hosanna in the highest. ] You are indeed Holy, O Lord, the fount of all holiness.

27:46 - Make holy, therefore, these gifts, we pray, by sending down your Spirit upon them like the dewfall, that they may become for us the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, at whose command we celebrate this Eucharist.

28:00 - At the time he was betrayed and entered willingly into his Passion, he took bread and, giving you thanks, he broke the bread, and gave it to his disciples, saying: TAKE THIS, ALL OF YOU, AND EAT OF IT, FOR THIS IS MY BODY, WHICH WILL BE GIVEN UP FOR YOU.

28:29 - In a similar way, when supper was ended, he took the cup, and once more giving thanks, he gave the cup to his disciples, and said: TAKE THIS, ALL OF YOU, AND DRINK FROM IT, FOR THIS IS THE CUP OF MY BLOOD, THE BLOOD OF THE NEW AND ETERNAL COVENANT, WHICH WILL BE POURED OUT FOR YOU AND FOR ALL FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS.

28:48 - DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME. The mystery of faith.

29:04 - Save us, Saviour of the world, for by your Cross and Resurrection you have set us free.

29:11 - Therefore, as we celebrate the memorial of his Death and Resurrection, we offer you, Lord, the Bread of life and the Cup of salvation, giving thanks that you have held us worthy to be in your presence and minister to you.

29:22 - Humbly we pray that, partaking of the Body and Blood of Christ, we may be gathered into one by the Holy Spirit.

29:28 - Remember, Lord, your Church, spread throughout the world, and bring her to the fullness of charity, together with Francis our Pope and Buti our Bishop and all the clergy, and all who minister to your people.

29:42 - Remember also our brothers and sisters who have fallen asleep in the hope of the resurrection, and all who have died in your mercy: welcome them into the light of your face.

29:52 - Have mercy on us all, we pray, that with the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, with Saint Joseph her spouse, with the blessed Apostles, and all the Saints who have pleased you throughout the ages, we may merit to be coheirs to eternal life, and may praise and glorify you through your Son, Jesus Christ.

30:13 - Through him, and with him, and in him, O God, almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honour is yours, for ever and ever.

30:24 - [Amen. ] It was the Lord Jesus who said to his apostles, peace be with you, who taught us to call God, Our Father, and so we pray: Our Father, [who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

30:50 - Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. ] Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, and graciously grant peace in our days.

31:07 - That by the help of your mercy, we may be always free from sin and safe from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.

31:16 - [For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours now and for ever. ] Lord Jesus Christ, you said to your Apostles: Peace I leave you, my peace I give you, look not on our sins, but on the faith of your Church, and graciously grant her peace and unity in accordance with your will, who live and reign for ever and ever.

31:35 - [Amen. ] The peace of the Lord be with you always.

31:40 - [And with your spirit. ] Let’s take a moment now to pray for peace, that peace that Jesus gives when he says ‘Peace be with you’, in our own hearts, in our families, friend groups, in our local communities, our country and our world.

32:11 - And we pray together: Lamb of God, [you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.

32:19 - Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.

32:25 - Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, grant us peace. ] Behold, Jesus, the risen Lamb of God, the one who takes away the sin of the world, how blessed are we who are called to share in the supper of the Lamb.

32:45 - [Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed. ] May the Body and Blood of Christ bring all of us, our family, our friend, and all people to life everlasting.

33:00 - [Amen. ] Although you cannot receive physical communion with us now, we invite you into a moment of spiritual communion.

33:16 - The great medieval theologian, St. Thomas Aquinas, defined spiritual communion as: “an ardent desire to receive Jesus in the Holy Sacrament”, and “a loving embrace as though we had already received him. ” His words are echoed by the great mystic, and fellow doctor of the church, St. Teresa of Avila, who wrote: “When you do not receive Communion, and do not attend Mass, you can make a spiritual communion which is a most beneficial practice.

33:48 - By it, the love of God will be greatly impressed on you. ” At this moment we invite you to focus on Christ, and your longing for union with him.

34:02 - Express your desire to feel his grace coursing through you, giving you strength and courage, particularly in these difficult times.

34:12 - In your desiring union you are united with us, and to Christ.

34:18 - In this moment we experience the reality that is already here.

35:54 - Let us pray. Look with kindness on your people, O Lord, and grant, we pray, that those you were pleased to renew by eternal mysteries may attain in their flesh the incorruptible glory of the resurrection.

36:11 - Through Christ our Lord. [Amen. ] The Lord be with you.

36:15 - [And with your spirit] And may almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

36:21 - [Amen. ] Go now in the peace, glorifying the Lord by your life.

36:24 - [Thanks be to God. ].