DAILY LITURGY

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GOSPEL Reading and Reflections for the days below.

Thursday, May 14:
Feast of Saint Matthias, Apostle

Red vestments

First Reading: Acts 1: 15-17, 20-26
Psalms: Psalm 113: 1-8
Gospel Reading: John 15: 9-17

      Known as the "After" Apostle, Saint Matthias won out over fellow disciple Barsabbas to take the place of the defector Judas after Jesus' Ascension into Heaven. Matthias had been a devoted disciple of Our Lord since being present when John the Baptist baptized the Messiah. Needing to make the number twelve again in accordance with the needs of the new Church, the Apostles gathered in the same upper room where Christ had instituted the Holy Eucharist and then appeared to them after the Resurrection. There, they decided on two candidates and left the rest up to the Spirit of Christ, Which was, of course, the Holy Spirit. The Divine light shone upon Matthias through the method of casting lots. It was a precursor of the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost Sunday where Matthias, now one of the twelve, was instilled with the gifts and strength of the Holy Ghost, the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. Matthias preached the Gospel and the virtues of self-denial wherever he was sent, ultimately ending up in Ethiopia in Africa where he was martyred for his beliefs in the city of Colchis. Though little is truly known about this "last" Apostle, he was renowned for his virtues, chief among them the mortification of the flesh.

Friday, May 15:
Friday in the Fifth Week of Easter and
Feast of Saint Isidore the Farmer, married man

White vestments

First Reading: Acts 15: 22-31
Psalms: Psalm 57: 8-12
Gospel Reading: John 15: 12-17

      Not to be confused with Saint Isidore of Seville who lived six centuries before, this Saint Isidore was born in Madrid, Spain and farmed the fertile land of a wealthy Madrid nobleman. From his early days Isidore was devoted to God and never missed a day of Mass, often being accused of neglecting his work. However, Isidore replied to his employer, "I know, sir, that I am your servant but I have another Master as well, to Whom I owe service and obedience." The nobleman employer was understanding for he beheld two strangers helping Isidore plough and understood them to be angels to make up the work Isidore missed while at Mass. He grew to love Isidore and offered him riches, but Isidore gracefully declined, asking that the money go to the poor to whom he had a great love, often bringing food to those less fortunate. He tended all the livestock with love for they, too, were God's creatures. He died peacefully on May 15, 1130 and since his canonization has been revered as the Patron of Farmers.

May 14, 1998       volume 9, no. 94
LITURGY
DAILY CATHOLIC