Fifth Sunday of Easter
3 May 2026
How do we live our Easter faith in Eastertide? The Church wants us in these days to remain with the Lord in quiet contemplation; to put aside our worries, and fears, and doubts; to look up, and look forward.
Heaven lies ahead of us; but also for those who belong to Jesus, it’s already a present reality. Of course heaven utterly exceeds our imagination. In that respect, with the Apostle Thomas, we can rightly say: we do not know where you are going.
Yet already we touch heaven, we know it, we simply find ourselves in it, in our prayer. We are in heaven when we are with God, and he with us.
We touch heaven too when we assist at Holy Mass, and come to Holy Communion, and know that Jesus is with us, and in us; when we rejoice in that and resolve never to be parted from him.
Jesus said to his disciples: Do not let your hearts be troubled. That is: God will seem to be absent from what is to come, but he won’t be. On the contrary, precisely he will be working out his purposes, in a most wonderful way, for our good, and his own glory.
And this will remain true in every situation in life, however apparently meaningless or terrible. If we belong to Jesus, we have good reason not to be troubled.
Abide with Jesus in the love of his Father. Be conformed to him in self-giving love. Be modelled after his pattern of humility and obedience, and a life of ceaseless intercession.
Then you will also be able to endure with him your cross and so share in his resurrection.
pluscardenabbey.org
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Sixth Sunday of Easter
10 May 2026
We are only a little under three weeks now from the feast of Pentecost, which we celebrate on Sunday two weeks. It is hard to believe we are already more than halfway through the seven-week season of Easter.
As we get closer to the feast of Pentecost, we will begin to hear more references to the Holy Spirit in the readings that are proclaimed at Mass. In this morning’s gospel reading Jesus says to his disciples, ‘the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I have said to you.’
It is the evening before Jesus is put to death; his disciples are aware that Jesus is taking his leave of them. In that highly charged hour Jesus assures them that his leaving them, his death, will not be the end of his relationship with them.
He will send the Holy Spirit from the Father who will remind them of all Jesus said to them. Jesus’ relationship with them will endure in and through the Holy Spirit.
Jesus is present to all of us, within all of us, in and through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit brings Jesus to us today and brings us to Jesus.
That is why we need to keep on praying, ‘Come Holy Spirit, fill my heart.’ We keep asking the Spirit we have already received to keep on filling us more and more, filling our thoughts, words, deeds, filling our very being, so that our relationship with the Lord will continue to deepen.
Fr Martin Hogan is curate in the parish of
Finglas, Finglas West and Riverbank
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The Ascension of the Lord
17 May 2026 • World Communications Day
A disciple is a learner – a student – a person committed to learning what the master has to teach. A modern parallel would be an apprentice – or a student musician asking a master musician to be his/her teacher.
The disciple is expected not only to learn what the master teaches, but also to put it into practice. Making disciples is about bringing others to embrace a new way of living, to become devoted followers of Jesus, and to imitate his way of life.
This is a slow process that cannot be rushed, a process that requires patience and personal involvement [accompaniment] on the part of the teacher.
The commission of the Risen Lord to his still fearful and confused disciples must have seemed overwhelming, impossible even. But Jesus assured them that they will not be alone.
To enable his disciples to carry out his commission, he assures them of his continuing presence with them. Jesus remains Emmanuel – God with us – as much after his ascension as before.
Yes, his physical presence among them ceases. This was limited to the period of his earthly life. Now, as Risen Lord, he is present to them through his Spirit, a presence without limitation.
Significantly, Jesus did not say, ‘I will be with you’ but rather ’I am with you,’ promising an always-current presence. And so, the disciples of Jesus will not be overwhelmed, but rather emboldened and empowered to carry out the commission they have received.
And we, too, his disciples today, struggling to continue his mission in these uncertain and difficult will not be overwhelmed, for he who has sent us remains with us ‘until the end of time.’
Michael McCabe
SMA sma.ie
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Pentecost Sunday
24 May 2026 • Day of Prayer for the Church in China
Imagine yourself in that upper room: doors bolted, hearts pounding, shame and fear swirling after the chaos of the cross. The disciples have every reason to shrink back, unsure if they even belong in the presence of their Lord. And then, suddenly, Jesus is there. Not with words of blame, but with a message that lands like a soft blanket: ‘Peace be with you.’
He doesn’t ask for explanations or apologies. He shows them his wounds; proof that love survived the grave. Their fear melts into joy, because in that moment, forgiveness is not just a concept. It’s a person. It’s Jesus, alive and loving them as fiercely as ever.
This is not just a story for that one locked room. It’s for every one of us who’s ever felt ashamed, unworthy, or afraid to stand before God. Jesus says, ‘Peace be with you,’ not as a suggestion, but as a gift.
You don’t need to be a perfect person for the Spirit to work wonders through you. The disciples were ordinary people: full of doubts, regrets, and rough edges.
But when the Holy Spirit comes, those locked doors open wide. The Spirit meets us as we are, and gives us courage, the words, and the love we need to build up the Church and the world around us.
The Spirit’s gifts aren’t just for a chosen few. Each of us receives them in unique ways: through our personalities, our strengths, even our weaknesses. Some of us build up the body of Christ with patience, others with kindness or faithfulness, still others with gentleness or self-control. These are the fruits of the Holy Spirit, growing quietly within us.
David Tonaszuck
thesimplecatholic.blog
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The Most Holy Trinity
31 May 2026
God’s very nature is in relationship, among three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. They are (and God is) a community of love, showing us how to love.
That can seem like heady stuff. So what does that insight have to our daily lives?
To begin with, it can encourage us to enter more deeply into relationships with one another. Notice how many passages in St Paul’s letters are about the relationships within the early Christian communities. In most cases, Paul is primarily talking not about private religious practices but about interpersonal relationships.
Now much of this has to do with the fact that these communities often were dealing with internal conflicts. But it is also reflective of the fact that if we are to live like the Father, Son and Holy Spirit – that is, like the Trinity – it will mean that we find God through relationships.
So Paul tells us how to be relational: ‘Mend your ways, encourage one another, agree with one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.’
All this serves as a reminder against the kind of Christianity that is just about ‘me and God.’ Why do I need other people for my salvation when they annoy me so much?
Why do I need a community when it’s so imperfect? Why do I even need the church, when some of its members are so homophobic, or misogynistic or just plain sinful? Because we are, even in the face of all those annoyances, imperfections and sins, called to be in relationships, called to love and called to sacrifice. Called to be relational. Called to be, in a word, like the Trinity.
Fr James Martin SJ
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