Alleluia! Join The CatholicTV Network for the full Daily Catholic Mass celebration on this Monday of the Third Week of Easter. We gather as a community of faith to celebrate the victory of Jesus over death and to ask for the grace to live as Christ did.

In today’s reverent Homily, Father Chris Bae reflects on our motives for seeking the Lord, asking the poignant question: "Do you pray to God only when you need something?". Drawing from the crowd’s search for Jesus after the multiplication of the loaves and the witness of St. Stephen, we explore the difference between "food that perishes" and the "food that endures for eternal life". We are encouraged to follow the example of St. Thomas Aquinas by desiring "nothing except God himself," finding our deepest union with Him through the gift of the Holy Eucharist. This Mass is a powerful invitation to "put off our old self" and to believe in the One whom the Father has sent.

The Scriptures highlight the courage of the first martyr and the true work of God:
-The First Reading (Acts 6:8-15): Stephen, a man "filled with grace and power," works great wonders among the people, leading to a debate with members of the Synagogue of Freedmen who cannot withstand his wisdom. When they instigate false witnesses to charge him with blasphemy against Moses and God, the Sanhedrin looks intently at Stephen and sees that his face is "like the face of an angel".
-The Responsorial Psalm (Ps 119): A commitment to the divine way: "Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord".
-The Holy Gospel (John 6:22-29): The crowd follows Jesus to Capernaum, prompting Him to reveal their true motive: they seek Him because they "ate the loaves and were filled". Jesus commands them to work for the food that endures for eternal life and identifies the definitive work of God: "that you believe in the one he sent".

May the healing Paschal remedies we receive today conform us more closely to the nature of Christ, our Good Shepherd.

Mass Chapters for Navigation

-Introductory Rites / Penitential Act: 0:58
-Collect (Opening Prayer): 2:15
-First Reading: 2:43
-Responsorial Psalm: 3:57
-Gospel: 6:41
-Homily: 8:41
-Prayers Of The Faithful: 12:51
-Liturgy of the Eucharist Begins: 13:53
-Eucharistic Prayer / Consecration: 16:01
-The Lord's Prayer: 22:52
-Communion: 25:07
-Concluding Rites / Final Blessing: 26:50

Theological & Liturgical Context
-Season: Monday of the Third Week of Easter.
-Gospel Focus: The Bread of Life Discourse; Jesus begins to pivot the crowd's focus from physical hunger to spiritual necessity, teaching that the "victory of Jesus over death" provides a sustenance that never perishes and that true faith is the foundational "work" of the Christian life.
-Homily Key Message: We are called to receive "God himself in the Eucharist"; by moving beyond prayers of petition for earthly things, we enter into a "real and tangible" relationship with the Lord, allowing His presence to be our greatest reward.

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