Tuesday of the Third week of Easter

Acts of the Apostles

7,51-60.8,1a.

Stephen said to the people, the elders, and the scribes: "You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always oppose the Holy Spirit; you are just like your ancestors.
Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They put to death those who foretold the coming of the righteous one, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become.
You received the law as transmitted by angels, but you did not observe it."
When they heard this, they were infuriated, and they ground their teeth at him.
But he, filled with the holy Spirit, looked up intently to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God,
and he said, "Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."
But they cried out in a loud voice, covered their ears, and rushed upon him together.
They threw him out of the city, and began to stone him. The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.
As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."
Then he fell to his knees and cried out in a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them"; and when he said this, he fell asleep.
Now Saul was consenting to his execution.

Psalms

31(30),3cd-4.6ab.7b.8a.17.21ab.

Be my rock of refuge,
a stronghold to give me safety.
You are my rock and my fortress;
for your name's sake you will lead and guide me.
Into your hands I commend my spirit;
you will redeem me, O LORD, O faithful God.
My trust is in the LORD;
I will rejoice and be glad because of your mercy.
Let your face shine upon your servant;
save me in your kindness.
You hide them in the shelter of your presence
from the plottings of men.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John

6,30-35.

The crowd said to Jesus: "What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? What can you do?
Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"
So Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven.
For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."
So they said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always."
Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst."

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St. Engratia(Virgin and Martyr, and the Eighteen Martyrs of Saragossa (+ 304))

THE EIGHTEEN MARTYRS OF SARAGOSSA and ST. ENCRATIS, or ENGRATIA Virgin and Martyr (+ 304) During the persecution of Diocletian in 304, St. Optatus and seventeen other holy men received the crown of martyrdom on the same day at Saragossa. Two others, Caius and Crementius, were also martyred after a second persecution, dying from torture. Today, the Church also celebrates the victory of St. Encratis, or Engratia, a native of Portugal. Her father had promised her in marriage to a man of quality in Roussillon, but fearing the dangers and despising the vanities of the world, she preserved her virginity in order to be more available to Jesus and serve Him without hindrance. Engratia stole away from her father's house and fled privately to Saragossa, where the persecution, under Governor Dacian, raged. Engratia reproached Governor Dacian for his barbarities, upon which he ordered her to be tortured: Her sides were torn with iron hooks and one of her breasts was cut off, so that the inner parts of her chest were exposed, and part of her liver was pulled out. In this condition, she was sent back to prison, where she died from her wounds. The relics of all these martyrs were recovered in Saragossa in 1389.

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St. Bernadette Soubirous (of Lourdes)()

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St. Bernadette Soubirous (of Lourdes)Religious and Visionary (1844-1879) Bernadette was born in Lourdes, France, on January 7, 1844, the daughter of Francis and Louise Soubirous. Hard times had fallen on France and the family lived in extreme poverty. Bernadette was a sickly child. She contracted cholera as a toddler and suffered severe asthma for the rest of her life. Bernadette attended the day school of the Sisters of Charity and Christian Instruction from Nevers. By the time of the events at the grotto, her family's financial and social status had declined to the point where they lived in a one-room basement, formerly used as a jail, called le cachot. On February 11, 1858, Bernadette was granted a vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary in a cave on the banks of the Gave River near Lourdes. She was placed in considerable jeopardy when she reported the vision; and crowds gathered when she had futher visits from the Virgin, from February 18 of that year through March 4.The civil authorities tried to frighten Bernadette into recanting her accounts, but she remained steadfast. On February 25, Our Lady revealed a spring, hidden below mud and debris in the cave, and the waters were discovered to miraculously heal the sick and lame.On March 25, Bernadette announced that in the vision Our Lady stated that she was the Immaculate Conception, which served as proof to the local priest of the veracity of her account. Our Lady asked that a church should be erected on the site, and for prayer and penance. Many authorities tried to shut down the spring and delay the construction of the chapel, but the influence and fame of the visions reached Empress Eugenie of France, wife of Napoleon III, and construction went forward. Crowds gathered, free of harassment from the anticlerical and antireligious officials. Disliking the attention she was attracting, Bernadette went to the hospice school run by the Sisters of Charity of Nevers where she finally learned to read and write. Although she considered joining the Carmelites, her health precluded her entering any of the strict contemplative orders.On July 29, 1866, with forty-two other candidates, she took the religious habit of a postulant and joined the Sisters of Charity at their motherhouse at Nevers. She became a member of the community, but faced harsh treatment from the mistress of novices. The mistreatment ended when it was discovered that Bernadette suffered from a painful, incurable illness. On her deathbed, as she suffered from severe pain and in keeping with the Virgin Mary's admonition of "Penance, Penance, Penance," Bernadette proclaimed that "all this is good for Heaven!" Her final words were, "Blessed Mary, Mother of God, pray for me! A poor sinner, a poor sinner-" She passed away in Nevers on April 16, 1879. Lourdes became one of the major pilgrimage destinations in the world, and the spring has produced 27,000 gallons of water each week since emerging during Bernadette's visions. She was not involved in the building of the shrine, as she remained hidden in her monastic enclosure at Nevers. Bernadette was beatified in 1925 and canonized in 1933 by Pope Pius XI.

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