Fifth Sunday After Easter; SAINT ANTONINUS Bishop and Confessor; SAINTS GORDIAN AND EPIMACHUS, Martyrs

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER

SAINT ANTONINUS

MARTYRDOM OF ST. GORDIAN

SAINT ANTONINUS
Bishop and confessor

SAINTS GORDIAN AND EPIMACHUS
Martyrs

DOUBLE / WHITE

The statement of Jesus to His Apostles is like a last will and testament. Jesus tells everyone that His bodily passing from this earth does not lessen the power of His sympathy or the readiness of His love to answer man's every need. The problem is to believe strongly enough in such divine goodness. The chief limit to what He will do for us is, pathetically, our lack of confidence in His readiness to do everything. His preaching told the world which essential things to ask for; but everyone must also ask God for his individual, daily necessities. If sincere, man's prayer will be infallibly answered -- in God's wise way.

  
INTROIT Isa. 48:20
Declare it with the voice of joy and let it be heard, alleluia! Announce it to th eends of the earth: the Lord has delivered His people, alleluia, alleluia!
Ps. 65:1-2. Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing a psalm to the glory of His name; proclaim His glorious praise.
V. Glory be . . .

 
GLORIA

COLLECT
O God, the source of all good, grant us Your inspiration that we may have proper thoughts, and Your guidance that we may carry them into practice. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT ANTONINUS
The Catholics of Florence have never forgotten their Archbishop Antoninus (1389-1459). Although christened "Anthony," the diminutive "Antoninus" clung to him all his life, partly because of his small stature, chiefly because of his lovable nature. as a youth he entered the Dominican Order, in which he soon gave evidence of exceptional gifts of mind and personality. Finally, in 1446, he was compelled to accept the archbishopric of Florence. Before long the Florentines were calling him "the father of the poor." During chronic earthquakes, epidemics, natural and political storms, and famine, he gave away everything he had, even his clothes, and anonymously supported thousands of "proud poor."
An illustrious canonist, he was consulted on all questions of Church and State, well deserving his title "the Counsellor." Pope Eugenius IV insisted upon receiving the Last Sacraments from him, dying in his arms. He was fellow novice and dear friend of the beatified artist Fra Angelico; and when he founded the Dominican convent of San Marco, he chose Fra Angelico to create the famous frescoes which are among the choicest treasures of Christian art.

O Lord, may the merits of Your holy confessor bishop Antoninus help us, so that while we sing Your praise for having manifested Your power through him we may also rejoice in the mercy You show to us.

Commemoration of SAINTS GORDIAN AND EPIMACHUS 
Gordian, a Roman judge, was converted by a Christian whom he had been ordered to condemn. Gordian was martyred about the year 360, and he was buried in the tomb where already lay the relics of the martyr St. Epimachus.

O Almighty God, may the intercessory power of Your blessed Martyrs Gordian and Epimachus aid us who celebrate their feast today. Through Our Lord . . .

LESSON James 1:22-27
Beloved: But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if a man be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his own countenance in a glass. For he beheld himself and went his way and presently forgot what manner of man he was. But he that hath looked into the perfect law of liberty and hath continued therein, not becoming a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work: this man shall be blessed in his deed. And if any man think himself to be religious, not bridling his tongue but deceiving his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Religion clean and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their tribulation and to keep one's self unspotted from this world.

Alleluia, alleluia!
V. Christ has risen and has given light to us, whom He redeemed with His Blood. Alleluia!
V. John 16:28. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again I leave the world and go to the Father. Alleluia!

GOSPEL John 16:23-30
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: "Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto, you have not asked any thing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive; that your joy may be full. "These things I have spoken to you in proverbs. The hour cometh when I will no longer speak to you in proverbs, but will shew you plainly of the Father. In that day, you shall ask in my name: and I say not to you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loveth you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father and am come into the world: again I leave the world and I go to the Father."
His disciples say to him: "Behold, now thou speakest plainly and speakest no proverb. Now we know that thou knowest all things and thou needest not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou camest forth from God."

 
CREED

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 65:8-9, 20
Bless the Lord our God, you nations; loudly sound His praise. he has given life to my soul, and has not let my feet falter. Blessed be the Lord who has not refused my prayer nor His mercy to me, alleluia!

SECRET
Accept the prayers and offering of the faithful, O Lord, and let our love and devotion lead us to the glory of heaven. Through our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT ANTONINUS
O Lord, may Your saints everywhere be a source of joy for us, and may we feel the power of their intercession with You as we solemnly recall the deeds of their lives. 
 
Commemoration of SAINTS GORDIAN AND EPIMACHUS
O Lord, graciously accept the gifts we offer You in honor of Your blessed Martyrs Gordian and Epimachus, and help us find in them unending assistance. Through Our Lord . . .
 
COMMUNION ANTIPHON Ps. 95:2
Sing to the Lord, alleluia! Sing to the Lord, and bless His name; announce His salvation day after day, alleluia, alleluia!

POSTCOMMUNION
Grant that we, who have been fed at Your Heavenly Banquet, O Lord, may desire only what is right and that we may fulfill these holy desires. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT ANTONINUS
O Almighty God, may the expression of our gratitude to You for all Your gifts bring us even greater benefits, through the intercession of Your blessed confessor bishop Antoninus.

Commemoration of SAINTS GORDIAN AND EPIMACHUS
Almighty God, we pray that the reception of this Bread of Heaven may strengthen us against all adversity through the intercession of Your blessed Martyrs Gordian and Epimachus. Through Our Lord . . .

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER; Saint Gregory VII (1085 A.D.); Saint Urban I (230 A.D.)

   

 

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER

 

ST. GREGORY VII

ST. URBAN

[Commemoration]

SAINT GREGORY VII
Pope and Confessor

SAINT URBAN I

Pope and Martyr

DOUBLE / WHITE
INTROIT Isa. 48:20
Declare it with the voice of joy and let it be heard, alleluia! Announce it to th eends of the earth: the Lord has delivered His people, alleluia, alleluia!
Ps. 65:1-2. Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing a psalm to the glory of His name; proclaim His glorious praise.
V. Glory be . . .

GLORIA

COLLECT
O God, the source of all good, grant us Your inspiration that we may have proper thoughts, and Your guidance that we may carry them into practice. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT GREGORY VII

O God, the strength of all who trust in You, it was from You that blessed confessor bishop Gregory drew courage and perseverance in defending the freedom of Your Church. May his example and intercession help us to face all adversity bravely. 

Commemoration of SAINT URBAN I, POPE AND MARTYR
Pope Urban I, one of the glorious early pontiffs of the Church, was martyred in A.D. 230.

O Eternal Shepherd, who appointed blessed Urban shepherd of the whole Church, let the prayers of this martyr and supreme pontiff move You to look with favor upon Your flock and keep it under Your continual protection.  Through our Lord . . .

 
EPISTLE James 1:22-27
Beloved: But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if a man be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his own countenance in a glass. For he beheld himself and went his way and presently forgot what manner of man he was. But he that hath looked into the perfect law of liberty and hath continued therein, not becoming a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work: this man shall be blessed in his deed. And if any man think himself to be religious, not bridling his tongue but deceiving his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Religion clean and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their tribulation and to keep one's self unspotted from this world.

Alleluia, alleluia!
V. Christ has risen and has given light to us, whom He redeemed with His Blood. Alleluia!
V. John 16:28. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again I leave the world and go to the Father. Alleluia!

GOSPEL John 16:23-30
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: "Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto, you have not asked any thing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive; that your joy may be full. "These things I have spoken to you in proverbs. The hour cometh when I will no longer speak to you in proverbs, but will shew you plainly of the Father. In that day, you shall ask in my name: and I say not to you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loveth you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father and am come into the world: again I leave the world and I go to the Father." 
His disciples say to him: "Behold, now thou speakest plainly and speakest no proverb. Now we know that thou knowest all things and thou needest not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou camest forth from God."

CREED

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 65:8-9, 20
Bless the Lord our God, you nations; loudly sound His praise. he has given life to my soul, and has not let my feet falter. Blessed be the Lord who has not refused my prayer nor His mercy to me, alleluia!

SECRET 
Accept the prayers and offering of the faithful, O Lord, and let our love and devotion lead us to the glory of heaven. Through our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT GREGORY VII

We have offered our gifts to You, O Lord. Let Your light graciously shine upon Your Church, so that this flock may everywhere prosper, and its pastors, under Your guidance, may be truly pleasing to You. 

Commemoration of SAINT URBAN
O Lord, graciously accept the gifts that we joyfully offer to You. May Your Church, through the prayers of blessed Urban, always live in peace and rejoice in the security of her faith.  Through our Lord . . .

COMMUNION ANTIPHON Ps. 95:2
Sing to the Lord, alleluia! Sing to the Lord, and bless His name; announce His salvation day after day, alleluia, alleluia!

POSTCOMMUNION 
Grant that we, who have been fed at Your Heavenly Banquet, O Lord, may desire only what is right and that we may fulfill these holy desires. Through Our Lord . . .

 Commemoration of SAINT GREGORY VII

O Lord, govern the Church, which You have been pleased to nourish with Your Heavenly Food. Guide her by Your powerful direction, so that she may enjoy greater freedom and remain unshaken in the fullness of faith. 

Commemoration of SAINT URBAN
O Lord, increase the spirit of grace which You have bestowed upon Your Church. let the prayers of Your Martyr and supreme pontiff Urban aid her so that she may never fail in obedience to her shepherd, and the shepherd may never be wanting in his care of the flock.  Through our Lord . . .

 

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER; SAINT PIUS V, Pope (1572 A.D.)

  

 

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER

 

[Commemoration]

SAINT PIUS V

Pope and Confessor

DOUBLE / WHITE
INTROIT Isa. 48:20
Declare it with the voice of joy and let it be heard, alleluia! Announce it to th eends of the earth: the Lord has delivered His people, alleluia, alleluia!
Ps. 65:1-2. Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing a psalm to the glory of His name; proclaim His glorious praise.
V. Glory be . . .

GLORIA

COLLECT
O God, the source of all good, grant us Your inspiration that we may have proper thoughts, and Your guidance that we may carry them into practice. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT PIUS V
Michael Ghislieri, who later became Pope Pius V (1506-72), entered the Dominican Order at the age of 15 and was made successively inquisitor bishop, cardinal, and then pope. When he became Vicar of Christ, the first care of Pius V was to translate the reforms of the Council of Trent into immediate action. Pius V revised the missal and the breviary. He strongly upheld the Catholic rulers and parties in the countries affected by Protestantism, and he was the soul of Christian resistance to the Moslem advance in Europe. Pope Pius V found his wisdom and strength in devotion to Christ Crucified.

O God, You chose blessed Pius as Pope to overcome the enemies of the Church and to restore the beauty of sacred liturgy. May his prayers protect us and help us to persevere in serving You, so that we may avoid the snares laid by our enemies and enjoy everlasting peace. Through Our Lord . . .  

 
EPISTLE James 1:22-27
Beloved: But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if a man be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his own countenance in a glass. For he beheld himself and went his way and presently forgot what manner of man he was. But he that hath looked into the perfect law of liberty and hath continued therein, not becoming a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work: this man shall be blessed in his deed. And if any man think himself to be religious, not bridling his tongue but deceiving his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Religion clean and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their tribulation and to keep one's self unspotted from this world.

Alleluia, alleluia!
V. Christ has risen and has given light to us, whom He redeemed with His Blood. Alleluia!
V. John 16:28. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again I leave the world and go to the Father. Alleluia!

GOSPEL John 16:23-30
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: "Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto, you have not asked any thing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive; that your joy may be full. "These things I have spoken to you in proverbs. The hour cometh when I will no longer speak to you in proverbs, but will shew you plainly of the Father. In that day, you shall ask in my name: and I say not to you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loveth you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father and am come into the world: again I leave the world and I go to the Father." 
His disciples say to him: "Behold, now thou speakest plainly and speakest no proverb. Now we know that thou knowest all things and thou needest not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou camest forth from God."

CREED

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 65:8-9, 20
Bless the Lord our God, you nations; loudly sound His praise. he has given life to my soul, and has not let my feet falter. Blessed be the Lord who has not refused my prayer nor His mercy to me, alleluia!

SECRET 
Accept the prayers and offering of the faithful, O Lord, and let our love and devotion lead us to the glory of heaven. Through our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT PIUS V
We have offered our gifts to You, O Lord. Let Your light graciously shine upon Your Church, so that this flock may everywhere prosper, and its pastors, under Your guidance, may be truly pleasing to You. Through our Lord . . .  

COMMUNION ANTIPHON Ps. 95:2
Sing to the Lord, alleluia! Sing to the Lord, and bless His name; announce His salvation day after day, alleluia, alleluia!

POSTCOMMUNION 
Grant that we, who have been fed at Your Heavenly Banquet, O Lord, may desire only what is right and that we may fulfill these holy desires. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT PIUS V 
O Lord, govern the Church, which You have been pleased to nourish with Your heavenly food. Guide her by Your powerful direction so that she may enjoy greater freedom and remain unshaken in the fullness of faith. Through our Lord . . . 

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER; SAINT BONIFACE OF TARSUS (306 A.D.) Martyr

  

 

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER

 

Boniface of Tarsus (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

SAINT BONIFACE

OF TARSUS 
Martyr

DOUBLE / WHITE
INTROIT Isa. 48:20
Declare it with the voice of joy and let it be heard, alleluia! Announce it to th eends of the earth: the Lord has delivered His people, alleluia, alleluia!
Ps. 65:1-2. Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing a psalm to the glory of His name; proclaim His glorious praise.
V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
O God, the source of all good, grant us Your inspiration that we may have proper thoughts, and Your guidance that we may carry them into practice. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT BONIFACE 
Boniface, a young Roman who lived the early years of the fourth century, was notorious for his dissipated life. But there was much good in Boniface, too; He was always extremely kind to the poor. The hour of grace struck for him when he was asked to journey to Asia Minor to recover the bodies of certain martyrs. At Tarsus Boniface rushed to join a group of Christians being tortured for their Faith, and then he himself was put to death with savage cruelty.

O Almighty God, may the prayers of Your blessed martyr Boniface aid us as we celebrate his feast today. Through Our Lord . . .

EPISTLE James 1:22-27
Beloved: But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if a man be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his own countenance in a glass. For he beheld himself and went his way and presently forgot what manner of man he was. But he that hath looked into the perfect law of liberty and hath continued therein, not becoming a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work: this man shall be blessed in his deed. And if any man think himself to be religious, not bridling his tongue but deceiving his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Religion clean and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their tribulation and to keep one's self unspotted from this world.

Alleluia, alleluia!
V. Christ has risen and has given light to us, whom He redeemed with His Blood. Alleluia!
V. John 16:28. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again I leave the world and go to the Father. Alleluia!

GOSPEL John 16:23-30
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: "Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto, you have not asked any thing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive; that your joy may be full. "These things I have spoken to you in proverbs. The hour cometh when I will no longer speak to you in proverbs, but will shew you plainly of the Father. In that day, you shall ask in my name: and I say not to you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loveth you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father and am come into the world: again I leave the world and I go to the Father." 
His disciples say to him: "Behold, now thou speakest plainly and speakest no proverb. Now we know that thou knowest all things and thou needest not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou camest forth from God."

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 65:8-9, 20
Bless the Lord our God, you nations; loudly sound His praise. he has given life to my soul, and has not let my feet falter. Blessed be the Lord who has not refused my prayer nor His mercy to me, alleluia!

SECRET 
Accept the prayers and offering of the faithful, O Lord, and let our love and devotion lead us to the glory of heaven. Through our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT BONIFACE 
Accept our offerings and prayers, O Lord. Cleanse us by this heavenly rite, and in Your mercy hear our petitions. Through Our Lord . . .

COMMUNION ANTIPHON Ps. 95:2
Sing to the Lord, alleluia! Sing to the Lord, and bless His name; announce His salvation day after day, alleluia, alleluia!

POSTCOMMUNION 
Grant that we, who have been fed at Your Heavenly Banquet, O Lord, may desire only what is right and that we may fulfill these holy desires. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT BONIFACE
We are refreshed by the reception of Your Sacred Gift, O Lord. May the prayers of Your blessed martyr Boniface make us feel the benefit of the Sacred Rite we have performed. Through Our Lord . . . 

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER; SAINT RITA OF CASCIA, Widow (1457 A.D.)

 

 

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER

 

SAINT RITA OF CASCIA

Widow

 

DOUBLE / WHITE
INTROIT Isa. 48:20
Declare it with the voice of joy and let it be heard, alleluia! Announce it to th eends of the earth: the Lord has delivered His people, alleluia, alleluia!
Ps. 65:1-2. Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing a psalm to the glory of His name; proclaim His glorious praise.
V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
O God, the source of all good, grant us Your inspiration that we may have proper thoughts, and Your guidance that we may carry them into practice. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT RITA

St. Rita died on May 22, 1457 at the age of 76. People flocked to the convent to pay their last respects. Innumerable miracles took place through her intercession, and devotion to her spread far and wide.

St. Rita's body was preserved perfectly incorrupt for several centuries, and at times it gave off a sweet fragrance. At the beatification ceremony, the body of the Saint raised itself up and opened its eyes.

 

O God, Who didst vouchsafe to confer on St. Rita so great grace that she loved her enemies and bore in her heart and on her brow the stigmata of Thy love and Passion, grant us, we beseech Thee, by her intercession and merits, so to spare our enemies and to meditate on the pains of Thy Passion that we may obtain the rewards promised to the meek and to them that mourn. Through Our Lord . . .

EPISTLE James 1:22-27
Beloved: But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if a man be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his own countenance in a glass. For he beheld himself and went his way and presently forgot what manner of man he was. But he that hath looked into the perfect law of liberty and hath continued therein, not becoming a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work: this man shall be blessed in his deed. And if any man think himself to be religious, not bridling his tongue but deceiving his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Religion clean and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their tribulation and to keep one's self unspotted from this world.

Alleluia, alleluia!
V. Christ has risen and has given light to us, whom He redeemed with His Blood. Alleluia!
V. John 16:28. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again I leave the world and go to the Father. Alleluia!

GOSPEL John 16:23-30
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: "Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto, you have not asked any thing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive; that your joy may be full. "These things I have spoken to you in proverbs. The hour cometh when I will no longer speak to you in proverbs, but will shew you plainly of the Father. In that day, you shall ask in my name: and I say not to you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loveth you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father and am come into the world: again I leave the world and I go to the Father." 
His disciples say to him: "Behold, now thou speakest plainly and speakest no proverb. Now we know that thou knowest all things and thou needest not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou camest forth from God."

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 65:8-9, 20
Bless the Lord our God, you nations; loudly sound His praise. he has given life to my soul, and has not let my feet falter. Blessed be the Lord who has not refused my prayer nor His mercy to me, alleluia!

SECRET 
Accept the prayers and offering of the faithful, O Lord, and let our love and devotion lead us to the glory of heaven. Through our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT RITA
Pierce our hearts, we beseech Thee, O Lord, by the merits of St. Rita, with the thorn of that sorrow which is from heaven that, being delivered by Thy grace from all sins, we may be able to offer to Thee the sacrifice of praise with pure hearts. Through our Lord . . . 

COMMUNION ANTIPHON Ps. 95:2
Sing to the Lord, alleluia! Sing to the Lord, and bless His name; announce His salvation day after day, alleluia, alleluia!

POSTCOMMUNION 
Grant that we, who have been fed at Your Heavenly Banquet, O Lord, may desire only what is right and that we may fulfill these holy desires. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT RITA

Regaled with heavenly delights, O Lord, we humbly entreat Thee that, by the intercession of St. Rita, we may bear in our souls the marks of Thy love and Thy Passion and constantly enjoy the fruit of perpetual peace. Through our Lord . . .

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER; SAINT GREGORY NAZIANZEN (389 A.D.) Bishop and Doctor of the Church

 

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER

SAINT GREGORY NAZIANZEN
Bishop and Doctor of the Church

DOUBLE / WHITE
INTROIT Isa. 48:20
Declare it with the voice of joy and let it be heard, alleluia! Announce it to th eends of the earth: the Lord has delivered His people, alleluia, alleluia!
Ps. 65:1-2. Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing a psalm to the glory of His name; proclaim His glorious praise.
V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
O God, the source of all good, grant us Your inspiration that we may have proper thoughts, and Your guidance that we may carry them into practice. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT GREGORY OF NAZIANZEN
Gregory, the chosen friend of St. Basil the Great, was born in Cappadocia about the year 325, and was made bishop of Nazianzus, his native town. When Gregory was 50 years old, he was chosen patriarch of Constantinople, where the Church was being desolated by various heresies. He rekindled the torch of the Faith in Constantinople, but then his enemies banded together against him. Hoping to restore peace to the city, Gregory resigned his see and retired to Nazianzus. Because of his profound knowledge of the sacred sciences and his inspired exposition of the mystery of the Trinity, he is called "The Theologian."


O God, may blessed Gregory intercede for us in heaven as he once instructed Your faithful on earth and directed them in the way of eternal salvation. Through Our Lord . . .


EPISTLE James 1:22-27
Beloved: But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if a man be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his own countenance in a glass. For he beheld himself and went his way and presently forgot what manner of man he was. But he that hath looked into the perfect law of liberty and hath continued therein, not becoming a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work: this man shall be blessed in his deed. And if any man think himself to be religious, not bridling his tongue but deceiving his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Religion clean and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their tribulation and to keep one's self unspotted from this world.

Alleluia, alleluia!
V. Christ has risen and has given light to us, whom He redeemed with His Blood. Alleluia!
V. John 16:28. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again I leave the world and go to the Father. Alleluia!

GOSPEL John 16:23-30
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: "Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto, you have not asked any thing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive; that your joy may be full. "These things I have spoken to you in proverbs. The hour cometh when I will no longer speak to you in proverbs, but will shew you plainly of the Father. In that day, you shall ask in my name: and I say not to you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loveth you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father and am come into the world: again I leave the world and I go to the Father." 
His disciples say to him: "Behold, now thou speakest plainly and speakest no proverb. Now we know that thou knowest all things and thou needest not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou camest forth from God."

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 65:8-9, 20
Bless the Lord our God, you nations; loudly sound His praise. he has given life to my soul, and has not let my feet falter. Blessed be the Lord who has not refused my prayer nor His mercy to me, alleluia!

SECRET 
Accept the prayers and offering of the faithful, O Lord, and let our love and devotion lead us to the glory of heaven. Through our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT GREGORY OF NAZIANZEN
O Lord, let the blessed Bishop and Doctor Gregory always help us, and through his intercession accept our offering and pardon our sins. Through our Lord . . .

COMMUNION ANTIPHON Ps. 95:2
Sing to the Lord, alleluia! Sing to the Lord, and bless His name; announce His salvation day after day, alleluia, alleluia!

POSTCOMMUNION 
Grant that we, who have been fed at Your Heavenly Banquet, O Lord, may desire only what is right and that we may fulfill these holy desires. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT GREGORY OF NAZIANZEN
O Lord, may this Sacrifice bring us closer to our salvation through the intercession of Your blessed Bishop and illustrious Doctor Gregory. Through our Lord . . .

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER; SAINT PASCHAL BAYLON (1592 A.D.) Confessor

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER

SAINT PASCHAL BAYLON
Confessor

DOUBLE / WHITE
The statement of Jesus to His Apostles is like a last will and testament. Jesus tells everyone that His bodily passing from this earth does not lessen the power of His sympathy or the readiness of His love to answer man's every need. The problem is to believe strongly enough in such divine goodness. The chief limit to what He will do for us is, pathetically, our lack of confidence in His readiness to do everything. His preaching told the world which essential things to ask for; but everyone must also ask God for his individual, daily necessities. If sincere, man's prayer will be infallibly answered -- in God's wise way.
 
INTROIT Isa. 48:20
Declare it with the voice of joy and let it be heard, alleluia! Announce it to th eends of the earth: the Lord has delivered His people, alleluia, alleluia!
Ps. 65:1-2. Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing a psalm to the glory of His name; proclaim His glorious praise.
V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
O God, the source of all good, grant us Your inspiration that we may have proper thoughts, and Your guidance that we may carry them into practice. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT PASCHAL BAYLON  
Until the age of 20, Paschal (1540-92) tended flocks on the hills of Aragon. He then became a Franciscan Brother and spent the rest of his years mainly as doorkeeper in various friaries of Spain. All through his life he was animated with a burning love for the Holy Eucharist, a love so intense that it enabled him to speak triumphantly to heretics about the most obscure mysteries of the Faith. Pope Leo XIII declared him patron of all Eucharistic confraternities and congresses.

O God, who didst adorn blessed Paschal Thy Confessor with a wonderful love for the holy Mysteries of Thy Body and Blood: mercifully grant that we too may be worthy to receive the rich spiritual graces which he received from this divine banquet; who lives and rules with God the Father . . .

EPISTLE James 1:22-27
Beloved: But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if a man be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his own countenance in a glass. For he beheld himself and went his way and presently forgot what manner of man he was. But he that hath looked into the perfect law of liberty and hath continued therein, not becoming a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work: this man shall be blessed in his deed. And if any man think himself to be religious, not bridling his tongue but deceiving his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Religion clean and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their tribulation and to keep one's self unspotted from this world.

Alleluia, alleluia!
V. Christ has risen and has given light to us, whom He redeemed with His Blood. Alleluia!
V. John 16:28. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again I leave the world and go to the Father. Alleluia!

GOSPEL John 16:23-30
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: "Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto, you have not asked any thing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive; that your joy may be full. "These things I have spoken to you in proverbs. The hour cometh when I will no longer speak to you in proverbs, but will shew you plainly of the Father. In that day, you shall ask in my name: and I say not to you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loveth you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father and am come into the world: again I leave the world and I go to the Father."
His disciples say to him: "Behold, now thou speakest plainly and speakest no proverb. Now we know that thou knowest all things and thou needest not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou camest forth from God."

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 65:8-9, 20
Bless the Lord our God, you nations; loudly sound His praise. he has given life to my soul, and has not let my feet falter. Blessed be the Lord who has not refused my prayer nor His mercy to me, alleluia!

SECRET
Accept the prayers and offering of the faithful, O Lord, and let our love and devotion lead us to the glory of heaven. Through our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT PASCHAL
In memory of Thy Saints, O Lord, we offer Thee the sacrifice of praise, by which we trust to be freed from both present and future evils. Through our Lord . . .


COMMUNION ANTIPHON Ps. 95:2
Sing to the Lord, alleluia! Sing to the Lord, and bless His name; announce His salvation day after day, alleluia, alleluia!

POSTCOMMUNION
Grant that we, who have been fed at Your Heavenly Banquet, O Lord, may desire only what is right and that we may fulfill these holy desires. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT PASCHAL
Refreshed by meat and drink from heaven, O God, we humbly entreat Thee, that we may be protected by the prayers of him whose memory we have partaken. Through our Lord . . .

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER; Saint Philip Neri (1595 A.D.); Saint Eleutherius (188 A.D.)

FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER

SAINT PHILIP NERI
Confessor

SAINT ELEUTHERIUS
Pope and Martyr

DOUBLE / WHITE
The statement of Jesus to His Apostles is like a last will and testament. Jesus tells everyone that His bodily passing from this earth does not lessen the power of His sympathy or the readiness of His love to answer man's every need. The problem is to believe strongly enough in such divine goodness. The chief limit to what He will do for us is, pathetically, our lack of confidence in His readiness to do everything. His preaching told the world which essential things to ask for; but everyone must also ask God for his individual, daily necessities. If sincere, man's prayer will be infallibly answered -- in God's wise way.
  
INTROIT Isa. 48:20
Declare it with the voice of joy and let it be heard, alleluia! Announce it to the ends of the earth: the Lord has delivered His people, alleluia, alleluia!
Ps. 65:1-2. Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; sing a psalm to the glory of His name; proclaim His glorious praise.
V. Glory be . . .

COLLECT
O God, the source of all good, grant us Your inspiration that we may have proper thoughts, and Your guidance that we may carry them into practice. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT PHILIP NERI
Philip Neri (1515-95), a native of Florence, settled in Rome. He thought of offering himself for the foreign missions, but a Benedictine friend told him that his apostolate was in Rome. Philip gathered some companions into a group that later became the renowned Congregation of the Oratory. In 1551 he was ordained to the priesthood. Philip's Oratory soon constituted the center of religious life in the Eternal City, and its founder fully deserved the title by which he was called: "Second Apostle of Rome." This lovable saint attracted the trust and affection of people in every walk of life by his abounding joy in the Lord.

O God, who didst exalt blessed Philip, Thy Confessor, with Thy Saints in glory, mercifully grant, that we who rejoice in his festival may profit by the example of his virtues. 

Commemoration of SAINT ELEUTHERIUS
This pope, a Greek by origin, became a deacon in Rome. He succeeded St. Soter as Vicar of Christ, ruling from A.D. 175 to A.D. 189, when he was executed.

O Eternal Shepherd, who appointed blessed Eleutherius shepherd of the whole Church, let the prayers of this Martyr and supreme pontiff move You to look with favor upon Your flock and to keep it under Your continual protection. Through our Lord . . .
 
LESSON James 1:22-27
Beloved: But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if a man be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he shall be compared to a man beholding his own countenance in a glass. For he beheld himself and went his way and presently forgot what manner of man he was. But he that hath looked into the perfect law of liberty and hath continued therein, not becoming a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work: this man shall be blessed in his deed. And if any man think himself to be religious, not bridling his tongue but deceiving his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Religion clean and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their tribulation and to keep one's self unspotted from this world.

Alleluia, alleluia!
V. Christ has risen and has given light to us, whom He redeemed with His Blood. Alleluia!
V. John 16:28. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again I leave the world and go to the Father. Alleluia!

GOSPEL John 16:23-30
At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: "Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father any thing in my name, he will give it you. Hitherto, you have not asked any thing in my name. Ask, and you shall receive; that your joy may be full. "These things I have spoken to you in proverbs. The hour cometh when I will no longer speak to you in proverbs, but will shew you plainly of the Father. In that day, you shall ask in my name: and I say not to you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loveth you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came out from God. I came forth from the Father and am come into the world: again I leave the world and I go to the Father."
His disciples say to him: "Behold, now thou speakest plainly and speakest no proverb. Now we know that thou knowest all things and thou needest not that any man should ask thee. By this we believe that thou camest forth from God."

OFFERTORY ANTIPHON Ps. 65:8-9, 20
Bless the Lord our God, you nations; loudly sound His praise. he has given life to my soul, and has not let my feet falter. Blessed be the Lord who has not refused my prayer nor His mercy to me, alleluia!

SECRET
Accept the prayers and offering of the faithful, O Lord, and let our love and devotion lead us to the glory of heaven. Through our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT PHILIP NERIWe beseech Thee, O Lord, graciously regard these present Sacrifices; and grant that the Holy Spirit may inflame us with that fire which miraculously pierced the heart of blessed Philip.  

Commemoration of SAINT ELEUTHERIUS
We have offered our gifts to You, O Lord. Let Your light graciously shine upon Your Church, so that this flock may everywhere prosper, and its pastors, under Your guidance, may be trully pleasing to You. Through our Lord . . .

COMMUNION ANTIPHON Ps. 95:2
Sing to the Lord, alleluia! Sing to the Lord, and bless His name; announce His salvation day after day, alleluia, alleluia!

POSTCOMMUNION
Grant that we, who have been fed at Your Heavenly Banquet, O Lord, may desire only what is right and that we may fulfill these holy desires. Through Our Lord . . .

Commemoration of SAINT PHILIP NERIDo Thou, O Lord, who hast filled our souls with heavenly delights, grant that through the merits and example of blessed Philip, Thy Confessor, we may ever hunger for that food by which we truly live. 

Commemoration of SAINT ELEUTHERIUS
O Lord, govern Thy Church, which you have been pleased to nourish with Your heavenly food. Guide her by Your powerful direction, so that she may enjoy greater freedom and remain unshaken in the fullness of faith. Through our Lord . . .