Celebrating the Eucharist-Priesthood and Liturgy and our humble beginnings!
The liturgy that begins today, Holy Thursday, is a single liturgy which continues until we reach Easter. We are at the start of a three-day celebration of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. We journey from the Last Supper to Gethsemane tonight, from there to Calvary tomorrow, and from the tomb to resurrection and new life at the Vigil of Easter Sunday. But today is a journey which begins in joy, in festivity.
Holy Thursday is one of the truly marvellous days in our faith community. We celebrate the gift of the love of Jesus, given to us for our nourishment - given to us as an example of self-less love. Today as Disciples of the Divine Master, we celebrate many things. We allow the words of Blessed Timothy Giaccardo, our first Pauline priest, to bring us back to the founding charism for our Institute which burned in the heart of Bl. James Alberione.
He writes:"It was April 3, 1947 and it was Holy Thursday. In the great church of St. Paul in Alba the rite of the canonical erection of the Pious Disciples as an autonomous Institute was held on that day. Since the Founder could not be present, Fr. Timothy read aloud: "In memory of his Passion, today, the Divine Master in his immense and infinite love instituted the Eucharist and the Priesthood. In this priestly day, and in the same love, he brings to you a new, full and independent juridical life, and he calls you to offer to his Priesthood a contribution of prayer and apostolate, in accordance with your conditions and filled with love."
That evening he wrote the following prayer in his diary: "Blessed Jesus, in this holy day, in this birth of the Eucharist, of the Priesthood and of the Liturgy, you granted me the gift to receive, like St. Joseph, from the womb of the Virgin Church, your Pious Disciples in their juridical and mystical birth. They are born of your love, in your love, for your love to a new, full, and independent life for the devotion to the Divine Master, to be sisters of the Eucharist, of the Priesthood and of the Liturgy. Amen!". Our Founder, Fr. Alberione writes: "Fulfill with respect to the Priesthood the role of Mary with respect to Jesus priest. Live a Eucharistic life, the intelligence and love of the liturgy. These are three parts of a single vocation and life. They are three parts of one apostolate; by which you are living and active members in the Church."
Today we are in communion with our sisters throughout the world and our brother priests on this, their special day! In our prayer today, we let our Lord wash our feet - love us unconditionally -
and we let Jesus be broken and given for us. We pray that we might be faithful to the one commandment of Jesus - that we might love others in the same way that we have been loved.
Where charity and love are found, there is God. Ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est!
Holy Thursday is one of the truly marvellous days in our faith community. We celebrate the gift of the love of Jesus, given to us for our nourishment - given to us as an example of self-less love. Today as Disciples of the Divine Master, we celebrate many things. We allow the words of Blessed Timothy Giaccardo, our first Pauline priest, to bring us back to the founding charism for our Institute which burned in the heart of Bl. James Alberione.
He writes:"It was April 3, 1947 and it was Holy Thursday. In the great church of St. Paul in Alba the rite of the canonical erection of the Pious Disciples as an autonomous Institute was held on that day. Since the Founder could not be present, Fr. Timothy read aloud: "In memory of his Passion, today, the Divine Master in his immense and infinite love instituted the Eucharist and the Priesthood. In this priestly day, and in the same love, he brings to you a new, full and independent juridical life, and he calls you to offer to his Priesthood a contribution of prayer and apostolate, in accordance with your conditions and filled with love."
That evening he wrote the following prayer in his diary: "Blessed Jesus, in this holy day, in this birth of the Eucharist, of the Priesthood and of the Liturgy, you granted me the gift to receive, like St. Joseph, from the womb of the Virgin Church, your Pious Disciples in their juridical and mystical birth. They are born of your love, in your love, for your love to a new, full, and independent life for the devotion to the Divine Master, to be sisters of the Eucharist, of the Priesthood and of the Liturgy. Amen!". Our Founder, Fr. Alberione writes: "Fulfill with respect to the Priesthood the role of Mary with respect to Jesus priest. Live a Eucharistic life, the intelligence and love of the liturgy. These are three parts of a single vocation and life. They are three parts of one apostolate; by which you are living and active members in the Church."
Today we are in communion with our sisters throughout the world and our brother priests on this, their special day! In our prayer today, we let our Lord wash our feet - love us unconditionally -
and we let Jesus be broken and given for us. We pray that we might be faithful to the one commandment of Jesus - that we might love others in the same way that we have been loved.
Where charity and love are found, there is God. Ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est!
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