Jun 6, 2025 | DAILY BREAD
Friday of the 7th week of Eastertide
First Friday: Let’s entrust ourselves to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
or Saint Norbert, Bishop
First reading – Acts 25:13-21
As the Church lingers in the expectant silence between Ascension and Pentecost, she is invited to reflect on what it means to be truly guided by the Holy Spirit—a life in which every choice, great or small, flows from divine inspiration rather than human calculation. In Acts 25:13–21, we see Paul’s path shaped not by convenience or fear, but by a steadfast obedience to the Spirit’s prompting. Though falsely accused and unjustly detained, he remains firm, because his direction is not his own; it is God who charts the course. In this time of waiting, we are reminded that the Christian life is not a self-directed journey, but a vocation lived in attentive surrender to the Spirit’s voice. The Holy Spirit does not merely assist our plans but calls us to yield our will so that we may discern and follow God’s purpose with clarity and peace. As Pentecost approaches, may we cultivate a listening heart—ready to choose, act, and speak only as the Spirit leads, trusting that true freedom lies in such loving obedience. Let’s reflect: This is a time to surrender our choices to the Holy Spirit, learning to be guided not by our own will but by God’s purpose revealed through His Spirit.
Don Giorgio
Jun 5, 2025 | DAILY BREAD
Saint Boniface, Bishop, Martyr
Thursday of the 7th week of Eastertide
First reading Acts 22:30,23:6-11
The time between Ascension and Pentecost is a season of deep interior preparation, in which the Church waits not in fear or uncertainty, but in trustful expectation of the Spirit who strengthens and sends. In Acts 22:30–23:11, as Paul stands amid hostility and confusion, the Risen Lord appears to him with a word of comfort and commissioning: “Courage! You have borne witness for me in Jerusalem, now you must do the same in Rome.” This moment reveals the essence of the Spirit we await—the Spirit of courage, who transforms fear into bold testimony and uncertainty into unwavering purpose. As the apostles gathered in the Upper Room, they did not yet know the form their witness would take, but they knew the promise: the Spirit would come. So too in our waiting, we are called to open ourselves to the Spirit who fortifies hearts, emboldens speech, and sustains witness in every place the Lord sends us. The same Spirit who gave Paul the courage to face Jerusalem and Rome is ready to strengthen us for our own mission—if only we wait with prayerful hearts, ready to say yes. Let’s reflect: This is a time of prayerful waiting in which the Church opens itself to the Spirit of courage, who transforms fear into bold witness and prepares each heart to say yes to the mission ahead.
Don Giorgio
Jun 4, 2025 | DAILY BREAD
Wednesday of the 7th week of Eastertide
First reading Acts 20:28-38
“There is more happiness in giving than in receiving” (Acts 20:35) beautifully encapsulates the spirit of this waiting time between the Ascension and Pentecost—a time when the Church is called to rediscover the joy of selfless service. As Paul bids farewell to the elders of Ephesus, he reminds them that every role in the Church is a gift of the Holy Spirit, entrusted not for personal advantage but for the good of others. This period of anticipation becomes, therefore, a sacred opportunity to purify our intentions, to embrace again the truth that authentic Christian leadership is marked by generosity, not status. In giving of ourselves—our time, our gifts, our love—we participate more deeply in the life of Christ, who gave everything for our salvation. As we await the fire of Pentecost, let us prepare our hearts to receive the Spirit by choosing the path of joyful sacrifice, remembering that it is in self-giving that we most resemble the Lord we serve.
Don Giorgio
Jun 3, 2025 | DAILY BREAD
Saints Charles Lwanga and his Companions, Martyrs
Tuesday of the 7th week of Eastertide
First reading Acts 20:17-27
The time between the Ascension and Pentecost is a sacred interval marked by both anticipation and interior preparation, a moment when the Church, like the apostles, gathers in prayerful stillness, waiting to be clothed with power from on high. In the reading from Acts 20:17–27, we encounter the figure of Saint Paul, who, guided by the Holy Spirit, journeys forward in humility, fully aware of the trials that await him yet unwavering in his commitment to the mission the Lord Jesus entrusted to him. Paul’s words to the elders of Ephesus are not merely a farewell, but a testimony of a life poured out—he has not withheld anything that would build up the People of God, offering both his teaching and his very self with apostolic courage. This is a time to deepen our surrender, to ask not for comfort but for the boldness to serve with humility, to be faithful stewards of the Gospel, and to prepare our hearts for the fire of Pentecost, which transforms waiting into witness and prayer into power. Paul’s example challenges us during this liturgical waiting: are we, too, ready to be led by the Spirit into the unknown, to live with open hands and fearless hearts, to speak the truth in love, and to carry out the mission of Christ without compromise?
Don Giorgio
Jun 1, 2025 | DAILY BREAD
Monday of the 7th week of Eastertide
Saints Marcellinus and Peter, Martyrs
First reading Acts 19:1-8
The days between the Ascension and Pentecost are marked by a sacred expectancy—an interior waiting that is not passive but prayerful, echoing the experience of the early disciples. In Acts 19:1–8, we are reminded that repentance, while essential, is not complete without the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The disciples in Ephesus had turned their hearts toward God, but it was only when the Holy Spirit came upon them that their faith became fully alive, bearing the fruits of bold proclamation and interior transformation. Likewise, in this in-between time, the Church is called to wait not with anxiety but with desire: to open herself anew to the gift of the Spirit who alone completes the work of conversion, fills the soul with divine life, and empowers the mission of Christ in the world. Let’s reflect: This period is a sacred time of expectant prayer in which repentance opens the heart to receive the transforming gift of the Holy Spirit.
Don Giorgio
