This week’s Gospel message for Sunday, June 2, 2024 is from Mark 14:12-16, 22-26.
While they were eating, [Jesus] took bread, said the blessing, broke it, gave it to [his disciples], and said, “Take it; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, gave it to them, and they all drank from it. He said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many.”
Reflection
“At the Last Supper, Jesus gave thanks to his Father before breaking the bread and sharing the cup. Indeed, the word eukharistia means ‘thanksgiving.’ During periods of time when we cannot receive the Eucharist, we become aware of a gift that we often take for granted. It is a gift, given freely and continually by God to all who believe. We give thanks by accepting this gift and resolving to use this life-giving meal to sustain us in our discipleship.” SOURCE: Pastoral Patterns, Summer 2024
DAILY READINGS FOR THE WEEK
Monday 2 Peter 1:2-7; Mark 12:1-12
Saint Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs (Memorial) – Twenty-two martyrs of Uganda died on June 3, 1886, and were canonized in 1964. Charles Lwanga and his companions had become Christians through the Catholic missions of the Missionaries of Africa.
Tuesday 2 Peter 3:12-15a 17-18; Mark 12:13-17
Wednesday 2 Timothy 1:1-3, 6-12; Mark 12:18-27
Saint Boniface, Bishop and Martyr (Feast) – Born in England, Wynfrid was raised in Benedictine monasteries. Pope Gregory II gave him the name Boniface, along with a commission to preach to non-Christians, and he was made bishop of Germany. In 754, he and thirty companions were killed by non-Christians while preparing to confirm converts.
Thursday 2 Timothy 2:8-15; Mark 12:28-34
Friday Hosea 11:1, 3-4, 8c-9; Ephesians 3:8-12, 14-19; John 19:31-37
The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus (Solemnity) – The heart of Jesus is adored as a symbol of his threefold love: human, spiritual, and divine. By the Middle Ages, the Sacred Heart of Jesus was an object of personal devotion, and in the late seventeenth century the devotion became a liturgical celebration. In modern times, the image of the Sacred Heart in the home is a sign that the love of Jesus rules over the family.”
Saturday 2 Timothy 4:1-8; Luke 2:41-51
The Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Memorial) – Devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is closely linked with that of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Popular devotion began in the seventeenth century, and, in 1805, permission was given for a local feast of the Pure Heart of Mary. In 1944, the feast was extended to all the western Church. Mary’s Immaculate Heart signifies her sanctity and love as the Mother of God.