Paul has demanded his citizen rights and shown us his complete break with the leaders of Israel, the people of the Lord. We are still the people of the Lord . These are the "Latter days", the time of the New Testament. The evangelists are busy remembering their days with Jesus and of understanding  the way taught by Him. The Evangelists are carrying God's message to the whole world as known by them. This New Testament, the record of the beginning of our new era is our guide for our journey through  life. Everything that has happened since then reinforces our belief or is dross to beware of. The anonymous disciples of those days hoped to see the "Second Coming". Are we even half ready yet?

Dear Lord it is only in moments that this human can withstand the immensity of even trying to know your Glory. Please help me to avoid sin and to strive to understand  how the Way, the Truth and the Life  is still in the Church that seems to be crumbling, Save us Lord Jesus.

We are somewhere iin first century Galilee. The resurrected Christ is spending time with his closest companions; the companions, who had deserted him during his agony, an agony that cannot be imagined as it was being undergone by both man and God. Their supposed  leader had completely denied his connections with the Lord and they were still not sure whether or not Jesus was to establish a kingdom of this world. It seems to be the height of perversity; but it  is what Jesus does. He appoints Peter, the thrice denier to continue to found and lead our Church the guide and guardian of all humanity from those days to to now. 

Dear Lord you founded your Church to be the conduit of your Sacraments; your Holy Eucharist.. May you and your Holy Mother still continue to guard us against the evil nonsense perpetrated by those who have no fear of man or God.

 All the readings for the day to be used at daily mass are repeated,  not often but sometimes. Today's is one of the sometimes. Thanks to modern technology it is possible for me to me to immediately check who was St Bernardino It is immediately obvious that he was no "anonymous Christian" being very well known in his place and time. Our Church teaches that as the Mystical Body all of us are connected by the Love that fuels the Trinity. So today our reading  has St Peter a fisherman filled with the Holy Spirit standing up and inspiring many in remembrance of a Franciscan who although not gifted with a beautiful voice was also able to inspire many to the extent that he is known as "The Apostle of Italy." Two thousand years after Jesus  walked the earth, I am able to see his Love connecting the Apostles, a monk of the fifteenth century and a sinner sitting at this machine. How can I say that I am not aware of the Holy Spirit?

Dear Lord show me your way to the Father, guide me with your Holy Spirit and let me have confidence in the Father's will for his Holy Church.

There is not much fudging in Jesus' words today. A total commitment is what is required if we are to follow him. Neither filial duty nor family fellowship can deter us from the road which is without  human comforts. Today we cannot meet Jesus on the open road but we do aspire to follow his teaching and example. Jesus tells us that we can find him in the homeless and deprived and it is to these poor that we must show the Love that Jesus has lavished on us all.

Dear Lord let my prayers be one with those of countless generations, known only to you, as  I pray that today I will follow your plough without turning back.

 The Church at Ephesus bade farewell to Paul well warned of the troubles that would be theirs. Problems that would come to pass because of the preaching of false doctrine by false prophets. Paul had expended three years in preparing them to be on their own. The church of the early centuries believes in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit but has to work out what is the huge Truth that small sentence contains . The apostles are still living and the Evangelists are in the process of completing their remembrances of  being with the Lord, witnessing his acts and listening to his words. St Paul's warnings however, do come to pass and they are only too evident today. One of the amazing things about our Catholic Church is that in spite of all the wranglings, disputes, persecutions internal wars etc St. Paul would still be able to recognise in her the teaching he fought so hard to instil into the Ephesians.

Dear Lord your Holy Spirit fortified your Apostles, Evangelists and the first congregations, let us too be guarded against divisions and let the teaching of Your Church withstand the blasting that is turned on her from every angle by today's world.

There are no two ways about it, the World is not a good thing, God-given human freedom can understand and  control matter even to the centre of the atom and this machine I am using can communicate in a fraction of a second with anywhere in the world. Our World is much more attractive than the World of the first century but it too must pass away. Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life; the Word  that will stand. We must use our human freedom be in the World but reject its values, The kingdom of the Lord is not of this world but is the eternal joy promised us by the Resurrections. This is the good thing that we must choose..

Dear Lord, let me not be seduced by the Modern World which has progressed so much since your days on earth. Let me grow in devotion to you so that I can avoid sin and live outside of the World which surrounds me. Send us holy priests as was St Paul  to guide us on our way to you.

 St Paul is confident that his conscience is clear. He is sure that he has known the Lord. He has completed his mission and the Churches are witness to that. He does not claim that he has never sinned but in regards to his mission from the Lord he has done all that the Lord required even in the face of all hardships and opposition. It does seem close to boasting but Paul is aware of this and speaks in all humility. He is not wasting words but proclaiming that God's purpose for us is to live holy lives as taught by Jesus with a conscience and supported by the Holy Spirit .

Dear Lord may my conscience become clear and let me avoid my daily sinfulness so that I too can become a temple for the Holy Spirit with all the love that comes from you and the Father,

St John's Gospel makes it clear that the primary purpose of the incarnation is not social justice but recognition that the Father is God . He does not want us to form "Friendly Societies" but to become a people united by our worship of the glory of God. The first Commandment is "Love God". When we do this all the rest become the light yoke that Jesus promised to us. Our neighbour is to be loved as ourselves so support of the poor of this world should be based on what we want for ourselves ; to know God and to love and  serve him in this world and to be happy with him in the nest. This is our daily mission It  never changes so we have The  Holy Spirit our support in living the Life of the Father directly taught by the Son.

Dear Lord, let what I have received this morning stay with me throughout this day so that my conscience may  not be stifled but speak in a clear and forthright way that I can follow.

 Is it because I don't believe properly that I don't see the manifestations of the Holy Spirit which must have been one of the reasons for the rapid rate of conversions experienced by the early church. When I hear of groups undergoing a Charismatic Revival I am sceptical  and prefer not to think about the gifts that I have not experienced in my life. I think that this turning off is probably wrong as I do believe that the Charisms described in the Acts were there then and that they thrust the Church forward like a ram-jet. I have criticized many for their "pick and  mix" attitude to religion but I must accept that here I am guilty of the same fault.

Dear Lord you know everything about me let not my preference for an interior witness of the Holy Spirit knowing that He is the Love that proceeds from You and Jesus, keep me from experiencing the Charisms of Your Holy Spirit. Thy will be done as it is in heaven.

It is certain that Jesus' mission was to the individuals that are collectively humanity. It is sure that he didn't preach just to  the rulers, to the celebrities, to the rich and powerful. He didn't want to organise a perfect human society but wanted to tell us that the most important thing for our lives is to devote ourselves to doing the will of God as he does with his own life. Jesus has conquered the World he tells us that each soul is more important than all the attractions and works of Man and his ally the Devil.

Dear Lord let your Holy Spirit strengthen our devotion to the Way, the Truth and the Life. Let us not be seduced in our Faith by clever quibbles, in our Hope by sinful leaders, and in our Love by self centered arrogance.

 Today is celebrated by many as the Ascension, the day that the  human form of the Son of God left this world and placed all in the hands of his Apostles. From this day on we have to rely on ourselves to  recognise the Truth and love one another in what we call the Church, Christ's Mystical Body where we have the guaranteed presence of Jesus to the end of time

Why do I read the mass readings for the day and write here what I think about them. It is not because I think that I have something worth saying but that if I don't write I am not sure how I am bearing witness to the truth of the Scriptures as transmitted by the Church.. I mean the Catholic Church which, even with all its faults and failings, is the result of those events and teachings recorded in the New Testament.

I know that Jesus is the Son of God born of the Virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is also human and was made thus in the womb of Mary where he was an unborn child for nine months exactly in the same way that I was carried by my mother. So Mary is truly Theotokos, the Mother of God. This is the teaching I have received from the Church and confirmed by reading and prayer throughout my lifetime. I am certainly closer to death than I was yesterday and so I record myself.

At the moment I am dissatisfied with the Church both local and universal. There is only one fault with her but many abuses, much backsliding, false teaching, sacrilege and rejection of God are the result.

                                            The Church does not follow her own rules. 

Dear Lord, let your clergy, your bishops and your Vicar on Earth lose their egos in the wonder of your Glory so that they teach what you reveal and do what they teach. As for me, You know I am a weak sinner desperately clinging to the promise revealed by your presence in the Holy Land 2000 years ago.

 He had only received the baptism of John. His name was Apollos and he came from Alexandria. he was important enough to be named in the Acts and mentioned in Paul's letters. Martin Luther attributed the letter to the Hebrews to him. There is little we know about him other than he had acquired John's baptism. There are many of these earliest Christians whose names have not come down to us who were active in the early church. Just as today there are many worthy pastors who are holy and dedicated to their missions. Their names are known to their flocks and to the Lord. The modern media know the corrupt abusers.

Dear Lord let not the signs of corruption blind me to the holiness that is still to be found in your church. let us all pray that "The Holy Spirit will fill our hearts with the Love that comes from you and the Father.

Even though Jesus speaks to us in plain words we still find it difficult to apply them to our lives in this modern age. And not just in m this modern age for I know that I am not the first one who has asked but not received. The whole Church throughout the ages has prayed for holiness and we are still doing so. Peace for Jerusalem is an  appeal that has rung out continuously since the First Century. 

Dear Lord let your Love bring peace to your beloved city and its lands. Let your Holy Spirit return to the land where Jesus paid the supreme sacrifice to bring us Your forgiveness and love.