Fear limits our world view and life’s infinite possibilities. Fear can take away our confidence and trust in God and create a sense of doubt in the power of our Almighty God. When we find ourselves in a difficult situation, fear can blind us to most possibilities. And fear can rob us of our ability to reason correctly and warp our thinking.

“The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, ‘How can this man give us his flesh to eat?’” From the beginning, the Eucharist has been a source of controversy. Some people have always found the teaching difficult to accept. But as Catholics, the Blessed Sacrament is at the heart of our worship and our spirituality; we go to Mass to share in the holy sacrifice of Jesus’ body and blood, and we receive spiritual nourishment from partaking of this heavenly food. As Jesus himself tells us in today’s Gospel, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.”

The Lectionary took us to John 3 this past Sunday and to the passage that includes John 3:16. It's a verse that I can remember saying in a Sunday school class as I was growing up. It's probably the verse I have referred to more than any other so far in ministry.

Today, I prefer to use such Biblical translations as the Common English Bible and the NIV.

"Whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

“And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself”(Jn 12:32). The lifting up of Jesus on the cross signifies and announces Christ lifting up by his Ascension into heaven and indeed begins it.

Our Lord’s Ascension into heaven helps explain the present condition of his risen body. Christ’s Ascension into heaven signifies his participation, in his humanity, in God’s power and authority. Jesus Christ is Lord: he possesses all power in heaven and on earth. As Lord, Christ is also head of the Church, which is his Body (Rom.14:9). Taken up to heaven and glorified after he had thus fully accomplished his mission, Christ dwells on earth in his Church (Eph 1:20-22).

The first reading of today’s liturgy, taken from the Acts of Apostles, tells us how Philip took the gospel message to Samaria and proclaimed the Christ to them and the people welcomed the message. In the second reading, Peter encourages us never to give up our faith due to the persecution and challenges we may encounter since Jesus first suffered for us and left us an example to follow. Then in the Gospel, Jesus said to his disciples; “If you love me, you will keep mycommandment.”

Have you ever received a gift that you didn't know how to use? It was a gift that you wanted and needed, so you really need to figure out how to use it. Or maybe you ordered something and when it came in, it needed to be assembled and the instructions were too confusing to understand. When this happens, what do you do? In both cases, we would get help putting it together or get someone to teach us how to use the gift. For me, the gift I got was a new, updated, full of options that I couldn't live without, cell phone. My family insisted that I update my old, simple to use, limited cell phone for a new, packed with options I will probably never use, phone. Now, I have a gift that is filled with features that are beyond my abilities to master. I now need help on how to use it to make a call. Thank God I still have a teenager in my household. I am learning that in order to get my phone to do what I need it to do, I must follow the procedures set up in the phone. Just one wrong click on an icon and I am asking my daughter, "How did I get here and how do I get back to where I wanted to go? Even though I will always find my gift, my cell phone, difficult, confusing, and frustrating, I still see the advantages and the potential this gift can have if I just learn and obey how to use it properly.

We often hear it said, "Nobody is perfect" or, we say with a chuckle, "I'm no saint." We will admit that we have faults. We even admit that we are sinners. But then, where do we go from there? What do we do next?

The first reading today from the Acts of the Apostles is a continuation of last Sunday's first reading. Peter is standing up publicly with the other Apostles and calling out to the Jews and others in Jerusalem to announce to them the horrible sin in which they have participated, mainly, the mock trial and murder of the innocent man Jesus of Nazareth. No doubt the people were all uncomfortable with the incident. Very probably they were sad and disturbed. Perhaps they even regretted it deeply. But, now that it was over and in the past, people were just trying to get on with their daily lives. So, Peter stands up and calls out that a proper fear of God requires them to face their involvement rather than forget it. He deliberately and publicly reminds them of something they are trying to forget. They are guilty of murdering God's chosen man.

The first and second readings draw our attention to the need to have recourse to the Scriptures if we want to understand what happened to Jesus and what happens to us every day.

Peter offered a testimony of the Resurrection, the divinity of Christ, and His Salvific Mission by explaining how Christ fulfilled the messianic prophecies of the Old Testament. His newfound insights into the mysteries of salvation and his courageous preaching clearly show the power of the Holy Spirit (Mt.16:16-23; Is.53:10-12).

Christ commanded us to speak to God as Father in prayer, signifying that His redemption has brought us to the level of children of God. Therefore, our judgment in both the Old and New Testaments is based upon our thoughts, words and deeds (Jn.1:1; 1 Jn.5:1).

Today's feast is unique because it is believed to be the only feast based on "A Divine Revelation" to a single individual, one person. When our Lord, for seven years, continually appears to a Polish woman named Helen Kowalska. At the age of about twenty, Helen enters a congregation of nuns known as "Our Lady of Mercy". They cared for and educated troubled young girls. The nuns rename Helen Faustina now known as St. Faustina.

God throughout "Our Salvation History" consistently sends messengers to us; because of His great love for us. St. Faustina is such a messenger. From 1931 to 1938 Jesus appears to her, with the "Hope" that she can rekindle in the hearts of all of us who fall; a renewed and stronger love for the "Crucified Christ". It is through our love for Jesus that we will never waiver or loose our trust, in God's "Infinite Mercy" and "Divine Goodness".

Dear Parish Family,

Today, we celebrate not only an empty tomb, but the One who opened the tomb and left it empty.Jesus the Christ destroyed death; His death and our death. Fear of death may once have hadpower over us. But, for Jesus’ disciples, then and now, faith in Jesus Christ conquers that fear. Itis His gift of faith that brought us here today to celebrate His victory and worship Him as Lord ofthe world.

This is the day the Lord has made let us rejoice and be glad. (Psalm 118:24). Today we can againsing “Halleluiah” that we have not sung all through Lent. Today we begin again to sing Glory be toGod in the highest because the Lord has indeed risen.

We rejoice today because Christ has risen from the dead, he has conquered death and the enemy ofdeath and taken the victory over sin and death. What does this rising from dead mean for us? Itmeans that death no longer has the final power. It means that despair began to give way to hope,darkness began to give way to light, hatred began to give way to love and sorrow began to give wayto joy. We are no longer afraid because Jesus rising from dead has liberated us from fear.

Dear Parish Family,

Today we carry palms. We wave them to welcome Jesus the messiah to take his throne in Jerusalem. Let us not miss how close we are to those who first waved these palms. We share thesame human nature and have the same need for this messiah to save us from our failings. In fact,we wave our palms together with them to welcome the same Jesus and proclaim him king of ourworld.