April web

Prayer of Pope on Good Friday
1. As is custom on Good Friday evening, the
Holy Father joined the Roman faithful at the
Colosseum for the traditional Way of the Cross.
At the end of the Way Pope Francis prayed this
powerful and special prayer:
O Cross of Christ, symbol of divine love and of
human injustice, icon of the supreme sacrifice
for love and of boundless selfishness even unto
madness, instrument of death and the way of
resurrection, sign of obedience and emblem of
betrayal, the gallows of persecution and the
banner of victory.
Cartoon: Internet
O Cross of Christ, today too we see you raised up
in our sisters and brothers killed, burned alive,
throats slit and decapitated by barbarous blades
amid cowardly silence.
O Cross of Christ, today too we see you in the
faces of children, of women and people, worn
out and fearful, who flee from war and violence
and who often only find death and many Pilates
who wash their hands.
O Cross of Christ, today too we see you in those
filled with knowledge and not with the spirit,
scholars of death and not of life, who instead
of teaching mercy and life, threaten with
punishment and death, and who condemn the
just.
O Cross of Christ, today too we see you in
unfaithful ministers who, instead of stripping
themselves of their own vain ambitions, divest
even the innocent of their dignity.
O Cross of Christ, today too we see you in the
hardened hearts of those who easily judge
others, with hearts ready to condemn even to
the point of stoning, without ever recognizing
their own sins and faults.
O Cross of Christ, today too we see you in
expressions of fundamentalism and in terrorist
acts committed by followers of some religions
which profane the name of God and which use
the holy name to justify their unprecedented
violence.
O Cross of Christ, today too we see you in those
who wish to remove you from public places
and exclude you from public life, in the name
of a pagan laicism or that equality you yourself
taught us.
O Cross of Christ, today too we see you in the
powerful and in arms dealers who feed the
cauldron of war with the innocent blood of our
brothers and sisters.
Dates to Remember
7 th - Rwanda Genocide Day
21 st - World Book & Copyright Day
22 nd - World Earth Day
25 th - World Maleria Day
Religious Days
5 th - Palm Sunday
10 th - Good Friday
12 th - Easter Sunday
PRAYER IN TIMES OF TRIBULATIONS
God Our Father, you too
carried a heavy cross, and
yet you persevered. Be at our
side, and let us understand
that by looking to you, we will
obtain the wisdom and love
that will complete us.
Amen
Saint of the Month
ST. MARK THE EVANGELIST
Saint Mark the Evangelist is the traditionally
ascribed author of the Gospel of Mark. He is said
to have founded the church of Alexandria, one
of the most important episcopal sees of early
Christianity. According to Christian tradition,
Mark held a close relationship with St. Peter, who
referred to Mark as ‘his son’ in his letter addressed
to a number of churches in Asia Minor (1 Peter
5:13). Clement of Alexandria, Irenaeus and Papias
all indicate that Mark was an interpreter for Peter.
Although Papias states that Mark had not
personally heard the Lord speak firsthand and,
like Luke, Mark was not one of the twelve apostles,
some believe Mark was likely speaking of himself
when he wrote the description of Jesus’ arrest in
Gethsemani. “Now a young man followed him
wearing nothing but a linen cloth about his body.
They seized him, but he left the cloth behind and
ran off naked” (Mark 14:51-52).
St. Mark lived for years in Alexandria, where he
died as a martyr while being dragged through
the streets. His feats day is celebrated on April
25 th , and his symbol is a winged lion.