1. The healing of the Centurion's Boy.
2. The answering of the Rich Young Ruler.
3. The raising from the dead of Lazarus.
4. The Last Supper.
5. The Kiss of Judas.

St Michael Archangel,
defend us in this day of battle.
Be our safeguard
against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray.
Do thou, prince of the heavenly host,
by the power of God thrust down to Hell
Satan, and all wicked spirits
who wander the world
for the ruin of souls.

---

The Healing of the Centurion's boy [Mat 8: 5-13; Lk 7:1-10; Jn 4:46-54]

1. How much the officer loved his young batman. Now, the youth was near death and he was desperate. Perhaps the wonder working Rabbi would help?
2. But why should a Pharisee condescend to help a gentile and an officer of the Roman Occupation at that? Why should he heal a pagan catamite?
3. Still, the centurion would do anything for his boy, even if it risked humiliation at the hands of a Jew. Moreover, the Rabbi had a reputation for compassion as well as for miracles.
4. The God of Israel was just and kind and could not refuse a request made for the sake of love. The Centurion plucked up his courage and decided that he would ask in confidence! "Lord, my boy is paralysed, in terrible distress."
5. Touched by the officer's appeal, Jesus said: "Don't be upset any more, everything will be all right. I will come and cure him."
6. The Centurion, knowing his ritual impurity protested: "Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof: but say only the word and my boy will be healed."
7. And the Master said: "Truly, I have never met faith like this in the whole of respectable Israel. Go, your boy is healed."
8. Now, the prayer of the Centurion is at the heart of the Roman Mass: the prayer of a gay man, whom Jesus commended as having more faith than any other He had met!
9. Jesus reaches out to the despised and unlovely, the hated and feared: because God loves all that He has made. His arms are open to heal all kinds of his creatures and gather them to His Sacred Heart.
10. Let us have faith that there is no unlovely part of our lives that His grace cannot touch and sanitize. Let us only ask in confidence, knowing that He inspires, hears and answers all our prayers.

The Answering of the Rich Young Ruler [Mt 19:16-30; Mk 10:17-22; Lk 18:18-30]

1. The young man had been meaning to go and see what the new Rabbi was all about for some time. Although he was a good man and a faithful observer of Moses' Law, he felt an unsatisfied hunger for righteousness in his soul.
2. Now Jesus had come into his neighbourhood, and the urge to hear his answer to the unspoken question was impossible to deny.
3. He fell before the Rabbi. "Good teacher! What must I do to inherit Eternal Life?"
4. The Rabbi reached out to him and drew him to his feet. Almost wistfully, He asked "Why do you call me good? Are you ignorant of the fact that only One is truly good?"
5. The young man blushed at the accusation of idolatry, but somehow didn't regret the passion that welled up in his soul. Now he had met the Rabbi, he was sure this was the Messiah: the Promised King of the House of David.
6. Jesus spoke again into the silence. "You know Moses' commandments. Keep them and you shall have Life, as is promised."
7. The youth knew there was more to it than that. "Rabbi, I have kept them all since my childhood." Jesus turned to him, saw his integrity, and loved him.
8. Jesus disclosed to him the council of perfection that was for his ears and all those who would love with gay abandon. "Go and sell all that you own and give the money to the poor, then come and follow me."
9. The young man was shocked and went away grief stricken, for he was very rich.
10. We do not know the final outcome of this encounter. The young man was close to the Kingdom, that is for sure. May we never fail to respond to Jesus' vocation to love Him in the poor folk of this world and in the Passion of His Sacred Heart.

The Raising from the Dead of Lazarus [Jn 11:1-44]

1. Mary and Martha sent a message to Jesus: "The one you love is ill." Later, Jesus said to his disciples: "Our friend has fallen asleep. Lazarus is dead. For your sake, I am glad that I was not there to prevent it, but now I must go to him."
2. Thomas, ever the realist, said: "Let us also go with the Master, that we may at least die with him!"
3. When Jesus arrived at Bethany, Lazarus had been in the Tomb for three days: his spirit had finally quit his body.
4. Martha remonstrated with The Lord: "If you had been here, Lazarus wouldn't have died! You loved him, and you are the Messiah. Please ask God, your Father, to return my brother to me and your beloved to you."
5. Jesus replied "I am the Resurrection and the Life, whosoever believes in me, even though they die, will live: and so living and believing they will never die again."
6. Then Mary met with The Lord:  "If you had been here, Lazarus wouldn't have died!" she also said, then broke down in tears.
7. Jesus whispered, "Show me where you have laid him." As they led Him to the tomb, Jesus broke down in tears.
8. The mourners said: "See how much He loved him!" Jesus groaned aloud then said: "Lazarus, come out!" The dead man came out, his hands and feet still bound with strips of cloth. Jesus said: "Unbind and free him."
9. Love calls the beloved to come out of the tomb. Love without hope still does not give up on love. Love abides all things and perseveres through all adversity.
10. Love is Eternal Life and the darkness of hatred and ignorance and bigotry can neither understand nor conquer it.

The Last Supper [Mt 26:26-30; Jn 13:1-35]

1. Jesus washed His disciple's feet to show them the beginnings of what friendship meant. Peter misunderstood and thought he was witnessing the institution of a sacramental ritual.
2. Jesus said: "The servant is not greater than his Master, yet I no longer call you servants, but friends: for I have told you all the business that I am about, for my Father."
3. Jesus was troubled, for He knew that the time of His betrayal and Passion was at hand, and that He had so much to tell His disciples, and that they were so unready to hear it.
4. Jesus said: "Truly, I say that one of you will betray me! I tell you this now, so that when it happens, you will know Who I Am,"
5. John, the beloved disciple, was sharing Jesus' couch: lying with his head on his Master's breast. Peter, full of self doubt, motioned him to ask Jesus who it was that would betray Him.
6. John did so, and Jesus confided: "It is my friend, who sits on my right hand: whom I honour with this morsel of bread."
7. Jesus gave the bread to Judas and said: "Do quickly that which you must." Judas went out into the night. None of the disciples, except John understood why.
8. Jesus said: "This is my Body, and this is my Blood: poured out in love for you, and for the love of the whole world. A New Commandment, I give to you: Love each other just as I have loved you, by this will the world know that you are my Apostles and that you are sent by Love."
9. Later, Jesus and His eleven friends followed Judas out into the darkness.
10. In the beginning was the Word of Love. The Word spoke in the darkness, bearing witness to the Truth of Love, and in spite of itself, the darkness could not resist being seduced.

The Kiss of Judas [Mt 26:47-56; Lk 22:47-53; Jn 18:1-14; Acts 1:18,19]

1. Jesus, praying in the Garden of Gethsemene, saw the cohort led by Judas approach. He said to his disciples: "Get ready to go. Look, my betrayer is upon us!" Jesus stepped forward to welcome Judas.
2. Judas said: "Greetings, Master." He kissed Him. In much pain, Jesus said: "Friend, do what you are here to do."
3. When his disciples realized what was going on they struck out to defend their Lord, but Jesus stopped them.
4. Jesus said to the cohort: "Why have you come out with swords and clubs, as if to arrest a bandit? Whom do you think you are looking for, after all"
5. "Jesus of Nazareth" their officer replied. Jesus said: "I Am He", and the whole cohort fell to the ground in terror.
6. Jesus said: "Get up, there is no harm for you here. Let my friends go, there is no harm in them either." The disciples all deserted their Master and fled.
7. The soldiers, their officer and the Jewish police arrested The Messiah, bound him, and bundled Him away to be condemned by the High Priest.
8. We do not know why Judas betrayed his friend. We are told it was for money. Matthew says that he repented and threw the silver back before the priests who had paid him, but also that he hanged himself. Luke tells us that Judas did no such thing, but bought a field with the silver and later died there mysteriously.
9. Love hurts. Love costs everything. Love that doesn't experience pain and betrayal is no Love. Judas' kiss must have seared Jesus' soul.
10. God so loved the world, that He gave up His Only Begotten: who trampled down the powers of death by His death, so that His friends might not perish, but have Everlasting Life.

Hail Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy.
Hail our life, our sweetness and our hope!
To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve.
To thee do we send up our sighs,
mourning and weeping in this vale of tears.
Turn then, most gracious advocate,
thine eyes of mercy towards us,
and after this our exile,
show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb,
Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.