Easter season is a celebration that lasts 50 days and ends with the second most important feast of the year, Pentecost. It was at the first Pentecost the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles and poured out His spiritual gifts upon them. We, too, receive these gifts in the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation, and choose to accept (or reject) them the rest of our lives.

The fifth gift is Counsel

The gift of counsel helps guide our consciences in making moral choices throughout our daily lives.

Counsel is also known as right judgment. It involves considering Church teaching and Scripture when making choices. The choices may involve changing jobs, what music to listen to, which TV show to watch, how to behave on a date, and countless decisions we make each and every day. Whatever the decision may be, no matter how important nor how insignificant it may seem, making a good choice is imperative. The gift of counsel helps us succeed in that endeavor.

These lovely candles are  available for purchase through Wolfe's Baldwin Brass Center Ordering candles from this link  financially supports this site. Thank you!

Use your red candle on Thursday, and your white candle the rest of the week to celebrate the season of Easter

• Sunday, May 10 - Happy Mother's Day!
  
• Wednesday, May 13 is the 92nd anniversary of the first apparition of Our Lady in Fatima (1917). For more information on the apparitions of Fatima, click here to see the Catholic Information Services pamphlet from the Knights of Columbus.
   
• Thursday, May 14 use a red candle for the feast of St. Matthias, the apostle who replaced Judas Iscariot as one of the twelve. Matthias had been a companion of Jesus since His baptism by St. John, and received the gifts of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, just like the other apostles. He was martyred for his faith.
   
• Friday, May 15 use a white candle for the memorial of St. Isidore, the simple Spanish man who is the patron saint of farmers. St. Isidore made every part of his life a prayer. He is a perfect example of this quote by his fellow Spaniard, St. Teresa of Avila, "The Lord does not look so much at the magnitude of anything we do as at the love with which we do it."

A solemnity is a day of greatest importance. The celebration starts the evening before the actual solemnity. Easter is our most important solemnity. A feast is the next most important day. It commemorates Mary, the apostles, martyrs and other saints, and the events associated with them. Mass readings often reflect the special feast day. A memorial is a special day, but often an optional celebration. The scripture readings for Mass may or may not be specially selected for the memorial.

Our Master Gardener

Spring is definitely in the air! Trees are flowering, bulbs are blooming, and the stores are filled with growing seedlings. Our readings this week tell us, through metaphors of a vine and its branches, that it is through love and unity that we are saved.

Throughout the Easter season the first reading is from Acts of the Apostles. This week we hear the fear and chaos that Saul's presence brings. When the apostles realize that Saul, who will become St. Paul, is truly evangelizing in the name of Jesus Christ, they take him into their fold. As the Church grows and prospers, unity and peace reign among its members.

The letter from John is summarized in the very first sentence, "...let us love not in word or speech but in deed and truth." It is one thing to say we love one another, but another to truly live in love. St. John dealt with plenty of people who felt that faith alone was sufficient. He tells us again and again that it is through both faith and works that we live out the commandment to love God and neighbor. Together, loving and supporting one another, we can be saved. Alone we are empty, nothing but broken branches.

In this week's Gospel Jesus instructs us to be united, nourish each other, and bear fruit, just like branches firmly rooted to the vine. In Confirmation we receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We now bear the fruits of the Spirit: charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, and chastity.

1. Acts 14:5-18
   We're reading most of the New Testament book, Acts of the Apostles, during the seven weeks of the Easter season. This book is the second volume of Luke's writings. Volume 1, of course, is the Gospel according to Luke.
   
   In Monday's first reading we find out that Paul and Barnabas are being worshipped like pagan gods after Paul cures a crippled man. Paul patiently explains to the people that he is simply a messenger. It is only through God that his miracles occur.
   
   How often do we get credit when it is God who deserves the praise? How often do we acknowledge God's constant presence in our lives? Do we freely speak of His presence to other people? A friend of mine no longer refers to consequences in her life. Instead she considers them "God-sequences." God is always in our lives, waiting patiently for us to acknowledge His presence and accept the joy His presence brings.
    
2. John 14:27-31a
   Peace - Jesus' last gift to us. He was not referring to the lack of war, of course. He was talking about the peace that comes from living a Catholic life. When we embrace Tradition, Church teaching, and Scripture, and use them to guide our lives, we can have peace in any situation, no matter how difficult. It is when we get caught up in the worries of the world that our perspective becomes cloudy and our lives become stressful.
   
   Bringing prayer into our family life has given us a new appreciation for peace. There have been times when we have left prayer out, and we look back and realize how that lack of prayer meant greater emotional pain. Getting back to the basics and letting God into our lives has brought us the peace we sorely needed.