9 April 2026 (Thursday) / Easter Thursday / Thursday in the Octave of Easter

9 April 2026 (Thursday)

Easter Thursday.
Thursday in the Octave of Easter.

Readings from the Bible of the Roman Catholic Church:

First Reading: Acts 3: 11-26
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 8: 2ab and 5, 6-7, 8-9
Gospel Acclamation: Alleluia: Psalms 118: 24
Gospel: Luke 24: 35-48
Liturgical year 2026 (Cycle A/II)
Liturgical color: White or Gold.

First Reading: Acts 3: 11-26
(Reader) A reading from the Acts of the Apostles.

11 And as he held Peter and John, all the people ran to them to the porch which is called Solomon’s, greatly wondering.
12 But Peter seeing, made answer to the people: Ye men of Israel, why wonder you at this? or why look you upon us, as if by our strength or power we had made this man to walk?
13 The God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus, whom you indeed delivered up and denied before the face of Pilate, when he judged he should be released.
14 But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you.
15 But the author of life you killed, whom God hath raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses.
16 And in the faith of his name, this man, whom you have seen and known, hath his name strengthened; and the faith which is by him, hath given this perfect soundness in the sight of you all.
17 And now, brethren, I know that you did it through ignorance, as did also your rulers.
18 But those things which God before had shewed by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.
19 Be penitent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out.
20 That when the times of refreshment shall come from the presence of the Lord, and he shall send him who hath been preached unto you, Jesus Christ,
21 Whom heaven indeed must receive, until the times of the restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of his holy prophets, from the beginning of the world.
22 For Moses said: A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me: him you shall hear according to all things whatsoever he shall speak to you.
23 And it shall be, that every soul which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.
24 And all the prophets, from Samuel and afterwards, who have spoken, have told of these days.
25 You are the children of the prophets, and of the testament which God made to our fathers, saying to Abraham: And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.
26 To you first God, raising up his Son, hath sent him to bless you; that every one may convert himself from his wickedness.

(Reader) The Word of the Lord.
(All) Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 8: 2ab and 5, 6-7, 8-9

R. (2ab) O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
or
R. Alleluia.
2ab O Lord our Lord, how admirable is thy name in the whole earth!
5 What is man that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man that thou visitest him?
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
or
R. Alleluia.
6 Thou hast made him a little less than the angels, thou hast crowned him with glory and honour:
7 And hast set him over the works of thy hands.
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
or
R. Alleluia.
8 Thou hast subjected all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen: moreover the beasts also of the fields.
9 The birds of the air, and the fishes of the sea, that pass through the paths of the sea.
R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
or
R. Alleluia.

Gospel Acclamation: Alleluia: Psalms 118: 24
Alleluia: Psalms 118: 24
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
24 This is the day the LORD has made; let us be glad and rejoice in it.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
(1. Alleluia! Give thanks to Yahweh for he is good, for his faithful love endures for ever.
2. Let the House of Israel say, 'His faithful love endures for ever.'
3. Let the House of Aaron say, 'His faithful love endures for ever.'
4. Let those who fear Yahweh say, 'His faithful love endures for ever.'
5. In my distress I called to Yahweh, he heard me and brought me relief.
6. With Yahweh on my side I fear nothing; what can human beings do to me?
7. With Yahweh on my side as my help, I gloat over my enemies.
8. It is better to take refuge in Yahweh than to rely on human beings;
9. better to take refuge in Yahweh than to rely on princes.
10. Nations were swarming around me, in the name of Yahweh I cut them down;
11. they swarmed around me, pressing upon me, in the name of Yahweh I cut them down.
12. They swarmed around me like bees, they flared up like a brushwood fire, in the name of Yahweh I cut them down.
13. I was pushed hard, to make me fall, but Yahweh came to my help.
14. Yahweh is my strength and my song, he has been my Saviour.
15. Shouts of joy and salvation, in the tents of the upright, 'Yahweh's right hand is triumphant,
16. Yahweh's right hand is victorious, Yahweh's right hand is triumphant!'
17. I shall not die, I shall live to recount the great deeds of Yahweh.
18. Though Yahweh punished me sternly, he has not abandoned me to death.
19. Open for me the gates of saving justice, I shall go in and thank Yahweh.
20. This is the gate of Yahweh, where the upright go in.
21. I thank you for hearing me, and making yourself my Saviour.
22. The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone;
23. This is Yahweh's doing, and we marvel at it.
24. This is the day which Yahweh has made, a day for us to rejoice and be glad.
25. We beg you, Yahweh, save us, we beg you, Yahweh, give us victory!
26. Blessed in the name of Yahweh is he who is coming! We bless you from the house of Yahweh.
27. Yahweh is God, he gives us light. Link your processions, branches in hand, up to the horns of the altar.
28. You are my God, I thank you, all praise to you, my God. I thank you for hearing me, and making yourself my Saviour.
29. Give thanks to Yahweh for he is good, for his faithful love endures for ever.)

Gospel: Luke 24: 35-48

(Reader) A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke.
(All) Glory to you, O Lord.

35 And they told what things were done in the way; and how they knew him in the breaking of the bread.
36 Now whilst they were speaking these things, Jesus stood in the midst of them, and saith to them: Peace be to you; it is I, fear not.
37 But they being troubled and frightened, supposed that they saw a spirit.
38 And he said to them: Why are you troubled, and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?
39 See my hands and feet, that it is I myself; handle, and see: for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as you see me to have.
40 And when he had said this, he shewed them his hands and feet.
41 But while they yet believed not, and wondered for joy, he said: Have you any thing to eat?
42 And they offered him a piece of a broiled fish, and a honeycomb.
43 And when he had eaten before them, taking the remains, he gave to them.
44 And he said to them: These are the words which I spoke to you, while I was yet with you, that all things must needs be fulfilled, which are written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
45 Then he opened their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures.
46 And he said to them: Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise again from the dead, the third day:
47 And that penance and remission of sins should be preached in his name, unto all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
48 And you are witnesses of these things.

(Reader) The Gospel of the Lord.
(All) Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

For our reflection today:

The Risen One appears to his friends – the disciples – and he does so with extreme discretion, without forcing the pace of their capacity for acceptance. His only desire is to return to communion with them, helping them to overcome the sense of guilt. We see this very well in the Upper Room, where the Lord appears to his friends who are enclosed in fear. It is a moment that expresses extraordinary power: Jesus, after descending into the abysses of death to liberate those who were imprisoned there, enters the closed room of those who are paralyzed by fear, bringing them a gift that no-one would have dared to hope for: peace. His greeting is simple, almost ordinary: “Peace be with you!”. But it is accompanied by a gesture so beautiful that it is almost disconcerting: Jesus shows the disciples his hands and his side, with the marks of the passion. Why show his wounds to those who, in those dramatic hours, had denied and abandoned him? Why not hide those signs of pain and avoid reopening the wound of shame?. The reason is profound: Jesus is now fully reconciled with everything he has suffered. There is not a shadow of resentment. The wounds serve not to reproach, but to confirm a love stronger than any infidelity. They are the proof that, even in the moment of our failure, God did not retreat. He did not give up on us. (Pope Leo XIV - General Audience, 1st October 2025)

Jonathan Fabian Ginunggil,
Pelayan Atasan Tertinggi / Most High Servant,
Yesus, Maria, Yusuf Pelayanan Kasih / Jesus, Mary, Joseph Ministry of Love 
(Blessed and Saints and the Nine Choirs of Angels)

My vocation is Blessed and Saints.

"I am the most humble of all the Saints in Heaven" Mary, Mother of God."

"I am the handmaid of the Lord, said Mary ‘let what you have said be done to me."

Mother Mary is the most humble Saint in Heaven and she is also the Mother of God for us all
(Luke 1:38)