Daily TV Mass Thursday May 7, 2026

Fr. Henk van Meijel, S.J.

Transcript

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From the St. Ignatius Chapel at the Manresa Jesuit Spiritual Renewal Center in Pickering, Ontario. The National Catholic Broadcasting Council presents the Daily TV Mass.

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Welcome to the celebration of the Daily TV Mass. I'm Father Hank van Meyle. The televising of this Mass is made possible by the contribution from the estate of Margaret O'Brien. This Mass is offered in memory of Margaret Mary Rita O'Brien and for the intentions of her family. May your soul and the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen. The peace of the Lord be with you.

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And with your spirit.

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And as we have placed ourselves before the Lord on this Thursday, again recalling our own weakness, our own need for God's guidance. You were sent to heal the contrite of heart. Lord have mercy. You came to call sinners, Christ have mercy. You are seated at the right hand of the Father to intercede for us. Lord have mercy. May Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life. And let us pray. O God, by whose grace, though sinners, we are made just and true, pitable, and pitiable, made blessed, stand we pray by your works, stand by your gifts, and those justified by faith may not lack the courage of perseverance. True, O Lord, Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for ever and ever. Amen.

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A reading from the Acts of the Apostles. The Apostles and the elders met together to consider the conversion of the Gentiles. After there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, My brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you that I should be the one through whom the Gentiles would hear the message of the good news and become believers. And God, who knows the human heart, testified to them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us. And in cleansing their hearts by faith, he has made no distinction between them and us. Now, therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing on the neck of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear? On the contrary, we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus just as they will. The whole of the assembly kept silence and listened to Barnabas and Paul as they told of all the signs and wonders that God had done through them among the Gentiles. After they finished speaking, James replied, My brothers, listen to me. Simeon has related how God first looked favorably on the Gentiles to take from among them a people for his name. This agrees with the words of the prophets as it is written, After this I will return and I will rebuild the dwelling of David which has fallen. From its ruins, I will rebuild it, and I will set it up so that all other peoples may seek the Lord, even all the Gentiles over whom my name has been called. Thus says the Lord, who has been making these things known from long ago. Therefore I have reached the decision that we should not trouble those Gentiles who are turning to God, but we should write to them to abstain only from things polluted by idols and from fornication and from whatever has been strangled and from blood. For in every city, for generations past, Moses has had those who proclaim him, for he has been read aloud every Sabbath in the synagogues. The word of the Lord.

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Sing to the Lord a liv to the Lord bless his name. Proclaim God's marvelous deeds to all the nations. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples. Proclaim God's marvelous deeds to all the nations.

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During supper, Jesus said to the disciples, As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Above it, abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you, so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete. The Gospel of the Lord. And Philip actually, just before this gospel reading, questions show show us the Father, and we will be satisfied. Show us, and so Jesus answers, abide in my love. And that love it's very simple, and when when our hearts are really touched by God's love, then it is not very hard work. But to live out, and he says, if you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love. And if we have to keep the commandments, and if we just have to do it out of unity to stay in the relationship, then yes, we still abide in this love, but it's not a real true deep love. Love should come by itself. And it's a little bit like in relationships. We can have a marriage and a couple can be married, and they're just doing their thing just to keep the marriage together. But it's not a marriage of real love. There is a relationship, but it's it's not a deep love. But in a deep love, it comes organic. We don't have to work at it, it just comes natural, and we don't have to quote behave and to keep everyone happy. It is just something very natural. And a love, a love with God can be a little bit compared to a good marriage. If a couple is just married, and there can be that deep love, and it just is really touching our hearts, and it goes very deep. You just don't want to be anywhere else with a person. But when a marriage grows, it just is not anymore as as uh touchy-feely, it grows in a deep, deep friendship. The one knows from the other one what is happening. There does not have to be much conversation. And this is also with God on our spiritual journey. When God is the first mover, when God touches our heart, it can be very deep, and it literally can put us to tears. But as our relationship grows with God, it becomes usually a little bit more quieter. We don't have uh there's no deep movements, it's kind of flat, but it's good, and there's a peace. And just like in a good marriage, there is a real peace, a deep peace between the couple. And it does not uh and so that's that peace of Christ. When we grow in the spirit, and as we just over the years it becomes uh fairly flat, and there's a real peace. But even though if there's peace, that does not mean that there's no misunderstandings or conflicts and so on, and but there is a uh a way of resolving this and mutual appreciation and understanding, and that really brings us also to our uh uh uh our first reading of Acts at the Council of Jerusalem and it was about 48, so the year 48, so about 15 years or so after uh the crucifixion of Jesus, where there's differences of understanding. You have the Jewish Christian community who was very much in touch with the Old Testament and salvation history, and you have the Gentile community who is uh who is just new and who does not have that history, and who are also culturally different. And so the community comes together trying to find a middle ground. How are we gonna be united in God? In that God who loves each one of us in our own unique way. And so the actually it's interesting how there is a quote in the first reading from it says the prophet, but and they mean Amos, the prophet Amos, who was about eight centuries before Christ, and who talks about the renewal of the kingdom of David. And so, of course, Jesus, as we know, is really in the line of David, and it's interesting that they use his quote during the council, but they come to that mutual understanding and mutual appreciation. Does not mean that there's no deep discussions and misunderstandings and so on, but they come to the decision that the Gentiles do not have to be circumcised, that they don't have to follow that the Mosaic law. And of course, to stay away from improper sexual relationships and the offering of food to gods. Just very simple, and to stay in that loving relationship, and it it and it worked obviously, but it was something that came out of the church at Antioch, where the early Christian Jewish community, Antioch, had a large Jewish dysphoria there, and you had all these Christians coming together, and it had to be worked out, and it had to be worked out by the apostles to have proper directions from higher up, just like today we rely on our people in Rome, on the Vatican, to give us directions for a worldwide church which is so diverse, culturally diverse, and so on, that there is a certain guideline we follow. And so wherever we go in the church in the world, the mass will everywhere be the same. But there's a great variation in how it is done, the different parts of the mass. So I know I've been, uh I had the privilege to be in Jamaica, uh, in West Kingston. If the harmlit in in our culture, if it is 10 minutes, it's probably usually already too long, and people are looking at the clock. When I was there, an hour and a half, anything less, it's then they're not going to be satisfied. Culturally different. But we are united in one, and it's so important that we keep talking and keep working it out. And this is also, of course, on the political scale, where Christians are fighting Christians in the world. And it is it is really deplorable of Christians and Muslims fighting. Well, we have we praise the same God, and it's so important that we that there's dialogue and that we keep talking, and that we don't use missiles and bombs and whatever to force our views and our wills on others. It is good stuff to pray with, especially in these times where there's so much disturbance in the world, where there's so much need for peace in the world, and it is coming back to the core of our faith. And we can have a good example for in the Council of Jerusalem, where they really were looking for peace, and uh and where we uh where they came to a peaceful solution instead of a lot of infighting. Amen. So let us bring our prayers before the Lord. We pray for those in the Daily TV Mass Prayer Intention Book. We pray to the Lord.

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Lord, hear our prayer.

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Throughout this month of May, our community prays to follow the example of Mary by offering joy, compassion, and mercy, especially to mothers, grandmothers, and all who lovingly serve those in need. We pray to the Lord.

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Lord, hear our prayer.

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With Pope Leo, we pray this month that everyone, from large producers to small consumers, be committed to avoid wasting food and to ensure that everyone has access to quality food. We pray to the Lord.

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Lord, hear our prayer.

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We pray for siblings who are in conflict with one another, that they will be open to God's love and guidance and healer of relationships. We pray to the Lord.

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Lord, hear our prayer.

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And for these prayers and the prayers in the silence of our own hearts, we lift them up to you, Lord. Amen. Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for your goodness. We have received the bread we offer you, fruit of the earth and work of human hands. It will become for us the bread of life.

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Blessed be God forever.

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By the mystery of this water and wine, may we come to share in the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity. Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have received the wine we offer you, fruit of the vine, and work of human hands. It will become our spiritual drink.

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Blessed be God forever.

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Humble spirit and contrite heart, may we be accepted by you, O Lord, and may our sacrifice in your sight this day be pleasing to you, Lord God. Wash me, O Lord, for my iniquities, cleanse me of my sins. Thank you. Pray, my sisters and brothers, that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God the Almighty Father.

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May the Lord accept the sacrifice in your hands for the praise and glory of God's name, for our good and the good of all, his holy church.

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O God, who by the wonderful exchange effected in this sacrament have made us partakers of the one supreme Godhead. Grant, we pray, that as we have come to know your truth, we may make it ours by worthy way of life. Through Christ, O Lord. Amen. The Lord be with you. And with your spirit. Lift up your hearts.

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We lift them up to the Lord.

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Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right and just it is truly right and just our duty and our salvation at all times to acclaim you, O Lord, but in this time above all to Lord You yet more gloriously, when Christ or Passover has been sacrificed. Through him the children of light rise to eternal life, and the halls of the heavenly kingdom are thrown open to the faithful, for his death is a ransom from death, and in his rising the life of all has risen. Therefore, overcome with paschal joy, every land, every people exalts in your praise, and even the heavenly powers with the angelic hosts sing together the unending hymn of your glory as they acclaim.

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Holy, holy, holy God of host. Heaven and heaven of your glory. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

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You are indeed holy, O Lord, the fount of all holiness. Make holy therefore these gifts we pray, by sending down your spirit upon them like the dew fall, so that they may become for us the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. At the time he was betrayed and entered willingly into his passion. He took bread and giving you thanks broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, Take this all of you, and eat of it, for this is my body, which will be given up for you. In a similar way, when supper was ended, he took the chalice and once more giving thanks, he gave it to his disciples, saying, Take this all of you, and drink from it, for this is the chalice of my blood, the blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in memory of me.

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We proclaim your death hold and profess your resurrection until you come again.

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Therefore, as we celebrate the memorial of his death and resurrection, we offer you, Lord, the bread of life and the chalice of salvation, giving thanks that you have held us worthy to be in your presence and minister to you. Humbly we pray that partaking of the body and blood of Christ we may be gathered into one by the Holy Spirit. Remember, Lord, your church spread throughout the world, and bring her to the fullness of charity, together with Leo or Pope, Francis or Bishop, the Order Bishops, the clergy, and the entire people you have called your own. Remember also our sisters and brothers who have fallen asleep in the hope of the resurrection, and all who have died in your mercy, welcome them into the light of your face. Have mercy on us all. We pray that with the blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, with Blessed Joseph, our spouse, with the blessed apostles and all the saints who have pleased you throughout the ages, we may merit to be co-heirs to eternal life, and may praise and glorify you through your Son, Jesus Christ. Through him and with him and in him, O God, Almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours for ever and ever. Amen. And at the Savior's command, informed by divine teaching, we dare to say, Our Father, who are in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day your daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespassed against us, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Deliver us, Lord, we pray from every evil. Graciously grant peace in our days that by the help of your mercy we may be always free from sin and safe from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.

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For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours now and forever.

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Lord Jesus Christ, who said to your apostles, peace I leave you, my peace I give you. Look not on our sins, but on the faith of your church, and graciously grant our peace and unity in accordance with your will, who live and reign for ever and ever. Amen. The peace of the Lord be with you always. And with your spirit. And let us offer each other a sign of peace.

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Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the wind. Have mercy on us. Lamb come you take away the sins of the wind.

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Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb. Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter into my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.

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My Jesus, I believe that you are present in this holy sacrament of the altar. I love you above all things, and I passionately desire to receive you into my soul. Since I cannot now receive you sacramentally, come spiritually into my soul, so that I may unite myself wholly to you now and forever. Amen.

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The Lord be with you. Father, Son, Holy Spirit. Amen. Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life. Thanks be to God.

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Our thanks to our donors for the gift of this month.