Announcing:
Saint Mary's Press winner for the week of May 14, 2012

Congratulations to Avelina Villarreal

Avelina will receive a copy of The Catholic Youth Bible®, a $26.95 value.

The Catholic Youth Bible®
General Editor: Virginia Halbur, MA

The Catholic Youth Bible® will be a true companion, helping you find the answers you seek and helping you make connections to Catholic beliefs and traditions.

Over 700 lively articles help you….
• Pray It! Use the Bible for personal prayer.
• Study It! Understand and make sense of what the Bible says.
• Live It! Apply the Bible to real-life situations you're facing now.

This New Edition Features:
•New 40 expanded "Catholic Connection" articles that provide a more complete presentation of those Catholic teachings that are scripturally based
• New 28 articles that address the seven principles of Catholic social teaching
• New 40 pages of 4-color inserts that help you pray, study, and live the Bible and Catholic teachings
• New Illustrations throughout to provide a visual context for the biblical stories
• New Over 275 articles updated to reflect contemporary issues and biblical scholarship

Plus:
• Introductions to the major sections of the Bible and all the books of the Bible
• Biblical connections to many different cultures, illustrating the universality of the Catholic Church
• Insights into how the Church has interpreted key Scripture passages throughout history
• A glossary of Scripture-related terms
• Five special indexes; Sunday readings for cycles A, B, and C; 10 color maps; a four-page color timeline; and three pages of full-color biblical art

The Catholic Youth Bible®
ISBN: 978-1-59982-141-2, paper, 1802 pages

"Pentecost"

In a few weeks we will celebrate Pentecost Sunday. Pentecost is one of my favorite liturgical remembrances, and not just because I look good in red. Throughout the Easter season, we celebrate the salvation we receive as a result of Jesus’ death and Resurrection. At Pentecost we are reminded that we each are commissioned to share this Good News and to play our part in the building of the Kingdom. Not only that, Pentecost reminds us that we do not enter into this commissioning alone. God sends his Spirit to empower us in our mission and strengthen his Church. In his reflection on Pentecost (43.3), Saint John Baptist de La Salle writes the following about the commissioning of the disciples, the power of the Holy Spirit, and the importance of the Spirit in the lives of educators:

An amazing thing: that these men, up to then so earthly-minded that they could not grasp the sacred truths that Jesus Christ taught them, were all at once so enlightened that they could now explain clearly and with all imaginable accuracy the words of Holy Scripture! As a result, those present were completely surprised and filled with amazement, and in little time they converted a very great number of them, because, as Saint Peter told them, the Spirit of God had been poured out upon them.

You carry out a work that requires you to touch hearts, but this you cannot do except by the Spirit of God. Pray to him to give you today the same grace he gave the holy apostles, and ask him that, after filling you with his Holy Spirit to sanctify yourselves, he also communicate himself to you in order to procure the salvation of others.

Pentecost is the perfect time to recommit ourselves to the mission of touching the hearts of youth with the Good News of Jesus Christ. One resource you might want to utilize with your community is this prayer service for Pentecost, which is available on the Christian Brothers of the Midwest’s Web site. As we approach Pentecost Sunday, I hope you experience a renewal in your ministry, and as always, I pray that God will continue to bless you and your ministry.

Peace,
Steven McGlaun

    
Click Here for More Information

“A Study of the Holy Spirit"
From The Catholic Youth Bible®, Third Edition, Leader Guide

Acts of the Apostles
“Confirmation,” Acts 2:1–13, CYB

Finding the many references to the Holy Spirit in Acts allows the students to look at the varied manifestations of the Spirit.

1. Invite several students to read Acts of the Apostles, chapter 2, and the article “Confirmation” from the CYB aloud to the class. Discuss the powerful effects of the Spirit’s presence in the Scripture account.

2. Divide the class into five groups and assign each group one of the following sections of the Bible:
• Acts of the Apostles, chapters 1–4
• Acts of the Apostles, chapters 5–8
• Acts of the Apostles, chapters 9–11
• Acts of the Apostles, chapters 13, 15–16, 19
• Acts of the Apostles, chapters 20–21, 23, 28

Ask the groups each to find references to the Holy Spirit in their assigned chapters and to write down the qualities and powers of the Holy Spirit. Explain that the groups should then devise a creative way of presenting the Spirit’s characteristics, such as through a short résumé, job description, advertisement, or commercial.

3. Invite the groups to share their finished plans for the scene. Elicit their reflections, based on their plans, about the power of the Ascension for Jesus’ followers. Also help them recognize what their choices in life reveal about their perception of Jesus and his followers, miraculous events, personal transformation, and so on.

4. Ask the students to write a short reflection about a time that they experienced the Holy Spirit or experienced some of the gifts or fruits of the Spirit. Invite the students to share their stories as they are comfortable.

5. Conclude by pointing out that it was by powerful lived experience that the early church first recognized the activity of the Spirit as the presence of God.

Living Models of the Trinity
Acts of the Apostles, chapter 2

The students create life-size models of the Trinity as a way of reflecting on the nature of God.

1. Allow the students to form groups of four and tell them to read Acts of the Apostles, chapter 2, in their groups.

2. Discuss the description of Pentecost given in the reading. Point out the following things in your own words:

• At Pentecost, Jesus’ followers experienced the fullness of the Trinity. As Jews, they had experienced God the Father from their earliest years. Then they met Jesus and experienced him as God through his life, death, and Resurrection. Now, they also experienced the divine presence of the Spirit. The Trinity is a mystery that Christians have tried to explain for centuries.

3. Direct the students, in their groups, to develop a model of the Trinity,using their own bodies to represent the “threeness” and “oneness” of God. Explain that the model should reflect something of the nature of the three persons of the Trinity as well as their relationship with one another. Note that the fourth member of each group should describe the model to the rest of the class.

4. Invite the groups to present their models. After the presentations, ask questions to help the students reflect on their understanding of God. Summarize the insights about the Trinity that emerge.

Variations. To promote further discussion, in step 3, direct the groups to add to their model a human and address the question “How do human beings relate to God as Trinity?” To explore another avenue of reflection, in step 4, conduct a discussion about how the belief in God as Trinity affects the way that Christians relate with one another in everyday life.

The Ascension of Our Lord
May 17, 2012
Mark 16:15-20

This week the Gospel e-news reflection you use will depend on decisions made by the bishops in your area. In some parishes, on May 20 you will observe the Ascension of our Lord and will read the Gospel of Mark 16:15-20. For those dioceses that observe the Ascension of our Lord on Thursday, May 17, you will celebrate the seventh Sunday of Easter and will read the Gospel of John 17:11b-19.

Opening Prayer
Jesus, before you ascended into heaven and took your place at the right hand of the Father, you commissioned your disciples to go into the world and proclaim what you had taught them. We gather today in our "YES!" group as Jesus's disciples who share your Word with one another. Send your Spirit to be with us so we can continue to proclaim your Gospel in the world today. We ask this with confidence that you, Jesus, will be our constant companion on this journey of faith and life. Amen.

Context Connection
Jesus, the only Son of the Father, God from God, came in the flesh to live on earth as a human being through the mystery of the Incarnation. Jesus also returned in a similar manner to the Father after having fulfilled his mission. We celebrate the event of his return to the Father as the Ascension of Jesus into heaven. A quick read of the Ascension accounts of Jesus in the Bible reveal that the event happened at different times according to different authors. In the account from Mark, the Ascension seems to have taken place on the same day as the Resurrection, and we assume this occurred in Jerusalem. In Matthew, Jesus tells the disciples to go to a mountain in Galilee he had pointed out to them. The account ends there with no mention of the Ascension. In the Gospel of John, on Easter Sunday, we have Jesus asking Mary Magdalene to stop holding on to him (John 20:17) because he had not yet ascended to the Father. Jesus tells Mary that he is going to the Father. This passage suggests that Jesus was in the process of ascending to the Father when Mary encountered him. Later that day, Jesus appears to the disciples and allows them to touch him. In the Gospel of Luke, we have Jesus ascending on Easter Sunday from Bethany (Luke 24:50-51). However, in the Acts of the Apostles, whose authorship is attributed to Luke, the Ascension happens forty days after Easter (Acts 1:3). Catholics continue to observe this traditional time frame of Jesus's Ascension.

For the authors of the various accounts of the Ascension of Jesus, the when and the where were not as important as the truth that the event revealed. Also important is that just before Jesus ascended, he commissioned the disciples to go forth and preach the Good News to the very ends of the earth. In Mark's version, which we'll hear this Sunday, he tells the disciples to preach the Good News to every creature.

The disciples are not to keep these events and their experiences of Jesus to themselves, but they are to tell everyone about them. This commission applies to you and me as disciples of Jesus today. Jesus tells us to tell everyone the Good News that he is the Christ. It is news that is so good that we cannot stop from telling everyone we meet.

Tradition Connection
Mark states that Jesus was taken up into heaven and that he took his seat at the right hand of God (Mark 16:19). Each Sunday we profess this truth in the Nicene Creed when we say, "He [Jesus] ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, p. 49).

Have you ever wondered why it specifically says that Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father? It may help us understand this idea better if we look at a few scriptural references that refer to being seated at God's right hand.

In Psalm 110, the psalmist portrays God inviting the King of Israel to take his throne at God's right hand. It is from this position that God gives the one who sits upon the throne the power to judge nations. So Jesus, who knows the human condition because he had taken on human form and had been crucified for our sake, has been given the power to judge humankind.

In Romans 8:34, we gain understanding that Jesus, at the right hand of God, intercedes for us with the Father. So, often at Mass you will hear the priest say, "We ask this through our Lord, Jesus Christ . . ." or something similar. Jesus is the great intercessor of prayer, meaning we pray to God the Father through Jesus Christ the Son for all of our needs. Further, in Hebrews 1:3, we have the proclamation of Jesus taking his seat at the right hand of God as a messianic enthronement. The kingdom that Jesus came to establish was the messianic Kingdom. Because of his position seated at the right hand of God, we come to know Jesus as the true Messiah, the great intercessor of prayer, and the one who will judge all humankind. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, number 664, states that Jesus's "being seated at the Father's right hand signifies the inauguration of the Messiah's kingdom." It also states in number 667 that "Jesus Christ, having entered the sanctuary of heaven once and for all, intercedes constantly for us as the mediator who assures us of the permanent outpouring of the Holy Spirit."

Wisdom Connection
Mark's account of the Ascension has Jesus returning to the Father from where he came and taking his seat at the right hand of the Father. In that proclamation we come to understand Jesus as the true Messiah, who now acts as intercessor for our prayers, at the right hand of God the Father. Jesus personally places all prayer that is prayed in his name before God the Father. Jesus is our direct prayer line to God. Being seated at the right hand of God, Jesus will judge the living and the dead. Jesus, God made human, is the one to whom the Father has given this power, the one who knows intimately what it is like to be a human being. God has given this responsibility to the Son because of his Son's compassion and wisdom and his sacrificial death on the cross, and it will be Jesus who will call us to accountability for our lives.

Mark also gives us an account of Jesus's commissioning of the disciples just before he ascended. Jesus implores the disciples to go out now into the world, to go to the ends of the world, and to preach his Gospel. This commissioning also applies to all today who proclaim themselves disciples of Jesus through their Baptism. We do not have to do this alone; Jesus himself will be our companion in the venture of sharing his Gospel.

Key Terms
Intercessor. One who intercedes or is the go-between for two people. We believe that Jesus--in a special way because of his full knowledge of being human--presents all prayers offered in his name to God the Father. Because of the close relationship between Jesus, the Son of God, and God the Father, these prayers receive a favorable hearing.

Incarnation. The Son of God assumed human nature and became a human being. This was done to accomplish salvation for all people. Jesus is both truly divine and truly human.

Nicene Creed. The profession of the articles of faith for Catholics. This creed evolved from the first two ecumenical councils, the Council of Nicaea (AD 325), from which the Creed gets its name, and the Council of Constantinople (AD 381).

Messianic Kingdom. A kingdom of righteousness and justice. A kingdom that is everlasting and eternal.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Seventh Sunday of Easter
May 20, 2012
John 17:11b-19

Opening Prayer
We gather as a group of friends today with the desire to support one another and come to a deeper understanding of your Word. Jesus, thank you for your example in the Gospel for this Sunday, of the importance of praying for our friends. You prayed for your disciples, your closest friends, and asked God the Father to keep them safe. We now take time to pray for our closest friends and ask you, Jesus, to protect them and keep them safe. We pray this in your name. Amen.

Context Connection
To understand this passage, we need to look at the context in which these verses from John were written, both what is written before and after chapter 17. Before chapter 17, Jesus washed the feet of the disciples. He also shared his last Passover meal with his disciples. After chapter 17, Jesus and his disciples cross the Kidron Valley to a garden on the Mount of Olives, where Jesus will be betrayed by Judas and then arrested. When we look at chapter 17, then, we see Jesus offering a prayer to the Father on behalf of his disciples. Jesus's words are those of a friend asking God the Father to care for the friends Jesus was going to be leaving behind very shortly. This prayer contains both words of love and concern but also a request to the Father to give his friends safety and protection when he leaves them and when they are alone in the world.

Jesus's prayer has three parts:
Part I (verses 9-11a)--Jesus prays for his disciples in the world because he knew he was departing soon and they would remain behind.
Part II (verses 11b-16)--Jesus asks the Father to be a "father" to the fragile disciples, to keep them safe and to protect them.
Part III (verses 17-19)--Jesus prays that the Father will make the disciples holy.

In the Gospel of John, you will not find a traditional rendering of the Our Father as in Luke and Matthew. Some commentaries, however, compare this prayer of Jesus in chapter 17 with the Our Father in Luke 11 and Matthew 6.

To complete the fullness of Jesus's prayer, we must include verse 20. In this verse, Jesus offers his prayer not only for his disciples but also for those who will come to believe through the preaching of the Gospel. Jesus was praying for his followers down through the years to the present time and into the future. This prayer includes you and me as persons who profess belief in Jesus as God.

Tradition Connection
Jesus's example of prayer in this passage is powerful. He shows us that we can communicate with God the Father! And like Jesus, we should turn to God the Father in prayer at all times, but especially when we are making big decisions. If we do this regularly, and most of us are making big decisions every day, we will find it to be a life-giving practice.

In Scripture, the source or voice of our prayer to God is sometimes credited to the soul or the spirit, but most often Scripture says that it is the heart that prays (Catechism, number 2562). Throughout the Old Testament, the prophets called for a conversion of heart away from other gods or idols and toward Yahweh. The prophets called for them to pray with their hearts to Yahweh.

In the New Testament, Jesus calls for a conversion of the heart. One of the most profound examples of this can be found in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-10 or Luke 6:20-26). In these verses, Jesus invites us to ongoing conversion of the heart throughout our lives, because that's what it takes to live his teaching.

In Matthew 7:7, Jesus tells us that if we ask, it will be given, that if we seek, we will find, and that if we knock, the door will open. What is particularly striking about Jesus's prayer in chapter 17 of John is his humility. Even though he is about to be arrested and crucified, Jesus's prayer to the Father is focused on others. Jesus asks the Father to care for and protect his disciples once he is gone. Jesus does not ask the Father to take his disciples out of the world and have them live in a secluded place, but rather that they remain in the world to give witness to the truth. He asks the Father to protect them from evil as they proclaim the Word of God.

Wisdom Connection
In chapter 17, John gives us an intimate glimpse into Jesus, the divine person. Jesus had been traveling for three years with his band of disciples, preaching and healing, and he had become close friends with the disciples. In the prayer that John recorded for us, we can easily relate to Jesus because his words are so human, they speak to the great friendships he's made. Jesus wants the Father to keep his friends safe and holy and yet still connected to him in some way. How often have you prayed for the well-being of your friends? Perhaps you pray daily for your friends.

The other insight we learn about Jesus in this chapter is how he was able, through prayer, to keep his priorities focused. Even though he was about to be betrayed and arrested, Jesus was still able to keep his prayer focused on the welfare of his friends and on the welfare of all those who will believe in him in the future.

The challenge of this passage for us is to continue to allow Jesus into our hearts and to be open to the ongoing process of conversion. We must also strive to have a heart of compassion that is directed toward others rather than just toward ourselves.

When you pray, do you ask God for things for yourself or do you always place a priority on praying for others and their needs? See the article "A Prayer for Friends," near John, chapter 17, in The Catholic Youth Bible®. You might wish to say this prayer for your friends each day.

Acknowledgments
The scriptural quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Catholic Edition. Copyright © 1993 and 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. All rights reserved.

The quotations labeled Catechism are from the English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for use in the United States of America, second edition. Copyright © 1994 by the United States Catholic Conference, Inc.--Libreria Editrice Vaticana. English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church: Modifications from the Editio Typica copyright © 1997 by the United States Catholic Conference, Inc.--Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with permission.

The Lord's Prayer is taken from Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers. Copyright © 1988 by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Inc., Washington, DC. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2009 by Saint Mary's Press, 702 Terrace Heights, Winona, MN 55987-1318, www.smp.org. All rights reserved. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced by any means without the written permission of the publisher. Thank you.

Saint Bernadine of Siena

May 20 is the memorial for Saint Bernadine of Siena.

Saint Bernadine was a renowned preacher and peacemaker. He was noted for working to navigate the tension between secular life and Christian ethics. Today he is recognized as the patron saint of, among other things, advertising and public relations work.

For more information on Saint Bernadine of Siena, go to http://saints.sqpn.com/saint-bernadine-of-siena/.