God's Word for the weekdays from 30th April

 Amen, amen, I say to you,
whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.

Saturday of the Sixth Week of Easter

June 4, 2011
Reading 1

Acts 18:23-28
After staying in Antioch some time,
Paul left and traveled in orderly sequence
through the Galatian country and Phrygia,
bringing strength to all the disciples.
A Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria,
an eloquent speaker, arrived in Ephesus.
He was an authority on the Scriptures.
He had been instructed in the Way of the Lord and,
with ardent spirit, spoke and taught accurately about Jesus,
although he knew only the baptism of John.
He began to speak boldly in the synagogue;
but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him,
they took him aside
and explained to him the Way of God more accurately.
And when he wanted to cross to Achaia,
the brothers encouraged him
and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him.
After his arrival he gave great assistance
to those who had come to believe through grace.
He vigorously refuted the Jews in public,

establishing from the Scriptures that the Christ is Jesus.

Our knowledge of Jesus and his message is always subject to growth. A personal experience of and response to Jesus is the heart of our faith. There are many people who have ‘met Jesus’ in their life and have put their faith in him but know little or nothing of the other truths Jesus taught. This is due to the circumstances of their life. Apollos was one such. He know receives further instruction from Priscilla and Aquila and he becomes a great asset to the Christian community in its work of bringing the gentile world to the faith. When our knowledge of the faith is built upon a burning love for Jesus then it will set others too on fire.

47:2-3, 8-9, 10

Responsorial Psalm

R. (8a) God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
All you peoples, clap your hands;
shout to God with cries of gladness.
For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome,
is the great king over all the earth.

Jn 16:23b-28

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.
Until now you have not asked anything in my name;
ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.

“I have told you this in figures of speech.
The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures
but I will tell you clearly about the Father.
On that day you will ask in my name,
and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you.
For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me
and have come to believe that I came from God.
I came from the Father and have come into the world.
Now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.” 

Jesus talks about the intimate relationship we have with the Father because we have accepted him, Jesus. The Father loves us his children so much that he will grant us anything we ask. Many think only of things of this world, health, income, peace etc. Though this is not wrong we are so close to the Father that we should ask for mighty gifts. We should ask for the Holy Spirit to take possession of us and for a growing capacity to receive and surrender to him. We should ask for the gifts of the Holy Spirit as Jesus had them, wisdom, understanding, counsel, knowledge, fortitude, piety and fear of offending the Lord. We should ask to experience the fruit of the Spirit’s indwelling – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, humility, generosity and self-control. These our Father will not refuse but increase day by day. With these we have everything.

June 3, 2011
Memorial of Saint Charles Lwanga
and his companions, martyrs

Reading 1

Acts 18:9-18
One night while Paul was in Corinth, the Lord said to him in a vision,
“Do not be afraid.
Go on speaking, and do not be silent, for I am with you.
No one will attack and harm you,
for I have many people in this city.”
He settled there for a year and a half
and taught the word of God among them.
But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia,
the Jews rose up together against Paul
and brought him to the tribunal, saying,
“This man is inducing people to worship God contrary to the law.”
When Paul was about to reply, Gallio spoke to the Jews,
“If it were a matter of some crime or malicious fraud,
I should with reason hear the complaint of you Jews;
but since it is a question of arguments over doctrine and titles
and your own law, see to it yourselves.
I do not wish to be a judge of such matters.”
And he drove them away from the tribunal.
They all seized Sosthenes, the synagogue official,
and beat him in full view of the tribunal.
But none of this was of concern to Gallio.
Paul remained for quite some time,
and after saying farewell to the brothers he sailed for Syria,
together with Priscilla and Aquila.
At Cenchreae he had shaved his head because he had taken a vow. 

From secular sources we know that Gallio was there in the year 52 AD. Before the persecution of Nero in 64 Christians were considered by the Romans as Jews and had special treatment. That is why the governor would not get involved in a religious question.

47:2-3, 4-5, 6-7

Responsorial Psalm

R. (8a) God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
All you peoples, clap your hands,
shout to God with cries of gladness,
For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome,
is the great king over all the earth.
Jn 16:20-23

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn,
while the world rejoices;
you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.
When a woman is in labor, she is in anguish because her hour has arrived;
but when she has given birth to a child,
she no longer remembers the pain because of her joy
that a child has been born into the world.
So you also are now in anguish.
But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice,
and no one will take your joy away from you.
On that day you will not question me about anything.
Amen, amen, I say to you,

whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.” 

Jesus is present as much and in fact more now than when he walked this earth. Through faith we experience him. We are in the process of being prepared for the world of vision. Like a child in the womb we are in the world of darkness where nothing is visible. Because we live by faith in a world hostile to belief in Jesus we suffer. But this is only a transitional period. When we enter into life we will live with God and the citizens of heaven in vision. We may well look back then on this life as we look back on life in the womb. Like a woman in the pain of childbirth forgets this pain later so will we forget the struggles and pain of this life suffered for and with Jesus. The joy of life will be overwhelming.  Does joy in Christ give you courage?

June 2, 2011
Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 18:1-8
Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.
There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus,
who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla
because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome.
He went to visit them and, because he practiced the same trade,
stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade.
Every sabbath, he entered into discussions in the synagogue,
attempting to convince both Jews and Greeks.
When Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia,
Paul began to occupy himself totally with preaching the word,
testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus.
When they opposed him and reviled him,
he shook out his garments and said to them,
“Your blood be on your heads!
I am clear of responsibility.
From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”
So he left there and went to a house
belonging to a man named Titus Justus, a worshiper of God;
his house was next to a synagogue.
Crispus, the synagogue official, came to believe in the Lord
along with his entire household, and many of the Corinthians
who heard believed and were baptized.

Corinth was a cosmopolitan city with some 600,000 inhabitants of whom some 400,000 were slaves. It was a commercial, cultural and religious centre. It was famous for its luxury and corruption. Paul did not rely on his converts but always earned his own keep and so he works at the trade of tent-making. The constant opposition of the Jews makes Paul turn to the gentiles who are more open to the message of salvation. How many converts did he make? Some reckon he left about a hundred converts when he left. Few were rich and most would have been ex-slaves.

98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4

Responsorial Psalm

R. (see 2b)  The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:       
R. Alleluia.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.

Jn 16:16-20

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“A little while and you will no longer see me,
and again a little while later and you will see me.”
So some of his disciples said to one another,
“What does this mean that he is saying to us,
‘A little while and you will not see me,
and again a little while and you will see me,’
and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?”
So they said, “What is this ‘little while’ of which he speaks?
We do not know what he means.”
Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them,
“Are you discussing with one another what I said,
‘A little while and you will not see me,
and again a little while and you will see me’?
Amen, amen, I say to you,
you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices;
you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.”

This is the end of Jesus natural life. The disciples will see him no more. That does not mean that he has left them. But now his presence which is as real as before will be different. They will ‘see’ him by faith. The disciple will always suffer ‘the pain of loss’ because as Paul says ‘while we are in the body we are exiled from the Lord’. The death and departure of Jesus will also be the source of our joy because Jesus is glorified. He has achieved his victory in which those who believe in him will also one day share. Meanwhile life with him continues through faith which makes us certain of that which we cannot see (Heb 11:1). The experience of Jesus is not something emotional or a matter of feeling. We know he is present and by fidelity to prayer we can experience his peace.  

May 31, 2011
Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Reading 1

Zep 3:14-18a
Shout for joy, O daughter Zion!
Sing joyfully, O Israel!
Be glad and exult with all your heart,
O daughter Jerusalem!
The LORD has removed the judgment against you,
he has turned away your enemies;
The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst,
you have no further misfortune to fear.
On that day, it shall be said to Jerusalem:
Fear not, O Zion, be not discouraged!
The LORD, your God, is in your midst,
a mighty savior;
He will rejoice over you with gladness,
and renew you in his love,
He will sing joyfully because of you,
as one sings at festivals.

God rejoices over Mary when he sees her faith, her love and generosity. May we also imitate her in her love for God and our generous service to our brothers and sisters. May we be a cause of joy to God who is our Father.

or                                                                         
Rom 12:9-16
Brothers and sisters:
Let love be sincere;
hate what is evil,
hold on to what is good;
love one another with mutual affection;
anticipate one another in showing honor.
Do not grow slack in zeal,
be fervent in spirit,
serve the Lord.
Rejoice in hope,
endure in affliction,
persevere in prayer.
Contribute to the needs of the holy ones,
exercise hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you,
bless and do not curse them.
Rejoice with those who rejoice,
weep with those who weep.
Have the same regard for one another;
do not be haughty but associate with the lowly;
do not be wise in your own estimation.

Mary is the first member of the Church and she is the model for us all. She goes to Elizabeth out of love to help her in her need. The Church and each member in the Church should have this same attitude of generous love towards others.

Isaiah 12:2-3, 4bcd, 5-6

Responsorial Psalm

R. (6)  Among you is the great and Holy One of Israel.
God indeed is my savior;
I am confident and unafraid.
My strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
With joy you will draw water
at the fountain of salvation.

Lk 1:39-56

Gospel

Mary set out
and traveled to the hill country in haste
to a town of Judah,
where she entered the house of Zechariah
and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting,
the infant leaped in her womb,
and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit,
cried out in a loud voice and said,
“Most blessed are you among women,
and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
And how does this happen to me,
that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears,
the infant in my womb leaped for joy.
Blessed are you who believed
that what was spoken to you by the Lord
would be fulfilled.”

And Mary said:
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.

He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.
He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever.”

Mary remained with her about three months
and then returned to her home.

Mary is the true Ark of the Covenant and the Holy of Holies since the Son of God lives in her womb. She has been made the worthy Temple of God. God has come into the world through her and now she takes him to Elizabeth and John. Mary’s life is centred on Jesus whom she magnifies and she recognizes her own nothingness before God. In this she is the perfect human being and a model to us all. She goes in haste. She has had an overwhelming experience of God in her life. The New Covenant has come about in her. The only one who can understand her is Elizabeth who has also had such an experience. The encounter is a moment of grace for Elizabeth and for John. Both are filled with the Holy Spirit and with joy. Has Mary come into your life bringing Jesus?

May 30, 2011
Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 16:11-15

We set sail from Troas, making a straight run for Samothrace,
and on the next day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi,
a leading city in that district of Macedonia and a Roman colony.
We spent some time in that city.
On the sabbath we went outside the city gate along the river
where we thought there would be a place of prayer.
We sat and spoke with the women who had gathered there.
One of them, a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth,
from the city of Thyatira, a worshiper of God, listened,
and the Lord opened her heart to pay attention
to what Paul was saying.
After she and her household had been baptized,
she offered us an invitation,
“If you consider me a believer in the Lord,
come and stay at my home,” and she prevailed on us.

Paul lived in a male dominated society in which women were very much relegated to the last place. However we notice that Paul had many women among his collaborators. Here we see Lydia who was a woman of means become a believer and an important person in the new community. In his other letters he sends greetings to his many women helpers as for instance in Romans 16.

149:1b-2, 3-4, 5-6a and 9b

Responsorial Psalm

R. (see 4a)  The Lord takes delight in his people.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Sing to the LORD a new song
of praise in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel be glad in their maker,
let the children of Zion rejoice in their king.

Jn 15:26—16:4a

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the Father,
the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father,
he will testify to me.
And you also testify,
because you have been with me from the beginning.

“I have told you this so that you may not fall away.
They will expel you from the synagogues;
in fact, the hour is coming when everyone who kills you
will think he is offering worship to God.
They will do this because they have not known either the Father or me.
I have told you this so that when their hour comes
you may remember that I told you.”

In countries with atheistic governments Christians are openly persecuted, with prison sentences, deprivation of property and in so many other ways. They have to go underground. In other countries they are misunderstood and marginalised. In others they are mocked and people openly work against what they hold so dear. Jesus tells us it is because they do not know either him or his Father. They may be sincere but they are unenlightened somewhat like Saul was before he met Jesus near Damascus. Persecution in one way or another will happen to us. Jesus has forewarned us. We are not to be afraid because we are not alone. Jesus has given us his Spirit who stands beside us supporting us in every way. To receive him we need a living faith and union with Jesus. The presence of Jesus needs to be real to us through constant prayer. Jesus is victorious.

God's Word for the 6th Sunday of Easter A

Whoever has my commandments and observes them
is the one who loves me.
And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father,
and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”
 

May 29, 2011
Sixth Sunday of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 8:5-8, 14-17

Philip went down to the city of Samaria
and proclaimed the Christ to them.
With one accord, the crowds paid attention to what was said by Philip
when they heard it and saw the signs he was doing.
For unclean spirits, crying out in a loud voice,
came out of many possessed people,
and many paralyzed or crippled people were cured.
There was great joy in that city.

Now when the apostles in Jerusalem
heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God,
they sent them Peter and John,
who went down and prayed for them,
that they might receive the Holy Spirit,
for it had not yet fallen upon any of them;
they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Then they laid hands on them
and they received the Holy Spirit.

Philip is not one of the Twelve but one of the Greeks chosen by the Christian community because he was full of wisdom and the Holy Spirit. He preaches and baptises but the leaders from Jerusalem go and lay hands on the new converts. They receive the Spirit as in the Sacrament of Confirmation. There are three Sacraments of Christian Initiation: Baptism by which we are born again, sanctified and become the Children of God, Confirmation by which we receive the Holy Spirit and his Gifts so that we can become mature and witnessing Believers and the Holy Eucharist. The Holy Eucharist being the Body and Blood of the Risen Christ nourishes the Life of God within us till we grow to the full stature of Christ.

Ps 66:1-3, 4-5, 6-7, 16, 20

Responsorial Psalm

R.  (1) Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.

or:

R.  Alleluia.

Shout joyfully to God, all the earth,

sing praise to the glory of his name;

   proclaim his glorious praise.

Say to God, “How tremendous are your deeds!”

1 Pt 3:15-18

Reading 2

Beloved:
Sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts.
Always be ready to give an explanation
to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope,
but do it with gentleness and reverence,
keeping your conscience clear,
so that, when you are maligned,
those who defame your good conduct in Christ
may themselves be put to shame.
For it is better to suffer for doing good,
if that be the will of God, than for doing evil.

For Christ also suffered for sins once,
the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous,
that he might lead you to God.
Put to death in the flesh,
he was brought to life in the Spirit.

We are to enthrone Christ in our hearts. He is to be the Lord of our Life and everything we do is to be done because it is his will. By accepting Jesus as Lord we surrender our own will to him. We are to be his person in this world. We live by his values and do only what is pleasing to him. All we do is to further his cause. 

Jn 14:15-21

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
And I will ask the Father,
and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always,
the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot accept,
because it neither sees nor knows him.
But you know him, because he remains with you,
and will be in you.
I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.
In a little while the world will no longer see me,
but you will see me, because I live and you will live.
On that day you will realize that I am in my Father
and you are in me and I in you.
Whoever has my commandments and observes them
is the one who loves me.
And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father,
and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”

Jesus shows himself now.

In today’s Gospel Jesus makes the firm promise that after his departure we will not be left alone. “The Father will give you another Advocate to be with you forever, the Spirit of truth”. Jesus says I will not leave you orphans, but I will come back to you”, “You will see me”. This return of Jesus is not just being with us but “you in me and I in you”. Then he makes the supreme promise that if we love him and keep his commandments then both he and the Father will love us and that he, Jesus, will show himself to us.

We will have another Advocate, Jesus will come back to us, he in us and we in him, we will see him and he will reveal himself to us. Is it true?

Our faith and our religion are not just words, not just some kind of imagination, a hope based on make-believe. These promises are to become real in our life. They are to be an experience.

The question is: have I experienced the presence of Jesus? Have I seen Jesus? Do I feel the strength of the Holy Spirit?

            First and foremost, we need to want to know Jesus. Nothing happens unless we want it and the more we want it the more it will happen. This means we will give time to getting to know him. We won’t leave it to the last moment of the day when we are exhausted. It won’t be something extra. We will make it a priority in our life. The more we make him a priority then naturally the more Jesus will come to us. We will give time to reading his Gospel and meditating on his Word and so come to know him. Through our prayer we will come to love him and by keeping his commandments we will prove our love. His commandment is that we love others as he has loved us. It is a love that has no limit and by loving as Jesus does then we fulfil all the other commandments since if we love then we will never do any kind of harm. Then in our prayer we will experience the presence of Jesus and in others, particularly those in need, we will see Jesus and minister to him in them.

            This experience of Jesus and the Holy Spirit is not something that we create by our imagination but it is the peace and realization of Jesus’ presence which wells up in our hearts. He becomes our inspiration in times of trouble and in persecution our strength and consolation. We experience all these and enjoy his peace.

            Finding Jesus is finding the treasure hidden in the field. Are you looking for this treasure?

Father may we who know Jesus by faith come to love and serve him so that he may reveal himself to us.

God's Word for the Weekdays from May 23rd 2011

If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first.
If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own
 

May 28, 2011
Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 16:1-10

Paul reached also Derbe and Lystra
where there was a disciple named Timothy,
the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer,
but his father was a Greek.
The brothers in Lystra and Iconium spoke highly of him,
and Paul wanted him to come along with him.
On account of the Jews of that region, Paul had him circumcised,
for they all knew that his father was a Greek.
As they traveled from city to city,
they handed on to the people for observance the decisions
reached by the Apostles and presbyters in Jerusalem.
Day after day the churches grew stronger in faith
and increased in number.

Although Paul would write that circumcision means nothing – whether we have it or not – for the sake of the feelings of Jews he has Timothy circumcised. This is an act of kindness and sensitivity.

They traveled through the Phrygian and Galatian territory
because they had been prevented by the Holy Spirit
from preaching the message in the province of Asia.
When they came to Mysia, they tried to go on into Bithynia,
but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them,
so they crossed through Mysia and came down to Troas.
During the night Paul had a vision.

The missionaries have some false starts and interpret as the Holy Spirit wishing them to go elsewhere. When we look back we can often see the hand of God in our lives.

A Macedonian stood before him and implored him with these words,
“Come over to Macedonia and help us.”
When he had seen the vision,
we sought passage to Macedonia at once,
concluding that God had called us to proclaim the Good News to them.

100:1b-2, 3, 5

Responsorial Psalm

R. (2a)  Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful song.

Jn 15:18-21

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first.
If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own;
but because you do not belong to the world,
and I have chosen you out of the world,
the world hates you.
Remember the word I spoke to you,
‘No slave is greater than his master.’
If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you.
If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.
And they will do all these things to you on account of my name,
because they do not know the one who sent me.” 

Jesus came ‘from above’ and  proclaimed the truth without fear. He was hated because of it. He was the Lamb of God and “roaring lions open their mouths against me” (Ps 22:13) and hated him without cause (Ps 69:4). Jesus sends his disciples out “like lambs among wolves”. We carry the Word of God and must proclaim the truth to men who see things in their own way. We will be despised and even persecuted because of it. If we are true disciples of Jesus and live up to what we believe among people who see us as different and even as opposed to their views and practices, is it surprising that they will hate us as they hated Jesus. To be persecuted for the truth of Jesus is a gift, but let it not be because we are wealthy, powerful, political, or bearers of an alien culture.

May 27, 2011
Friday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 15:22-31

The Apostles and presbyters, in agreement with the whole Church,
decided to choose representatives
and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas.
The ones chosen were Judas, who was called Barsabbas,
and Silas, leaders among the brothers.
This is the letter delivered by them:
“The Apostles and the presbyters, your brothers,
to the brothers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia
of Gentile origin: greetings.
Since we have heard that some of our number
who went out without any mandate from us
have upset you with their teachings
and disturbed your peace of mind,
we have with one accord decided to choose representatives
and to send them to you along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,
who have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
So we are sending Judas and Silas
who will also convey this same message by word of mouth:
‘It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us
not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities,
namely, to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols,
from blood, from meats of strangled animals,
and from unlawful marriage.
If you keep free of these,
you will be doing what is right. Farewell.’“
And so they were sent on their journey.
Upon their arrival in Antioch
they called the assembly together and delivered the letter.
When the people read it, they were delighted with the exhortation.

Despite all the deep feeling and love for the Law of Moses and the Jewish traditions the leaders of the Church were open to the leading of the Spirit and see that it is purely by faith in Jesus that we are saved and the Old Covenant is now fulfilled in Christ Jesus. As the new gentile Christians would be living and having fellowship with the Judaic Christians the apostles, sensitive to the deep feeling of Jewish converts, asked the new gentile Christians to refrain from all that was an abomination to their Jewish brothers and sisters.

57:8-9, 10 and 12

Responsorial Psalm

R. (10a) I will give you thanks among the peoples, O Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
My heart is steadfast, O God; my heart is steadfast;
I will sing and chant praise.
Awake, O my soul; awake, lyre and harp!
I will wake the dawn.

Jn 15:12-17

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.
No one has greater love than this,
to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
You are my friends if you do what I command you.
I no longer call you slaves,
because a slave does not know what his master is doing.
I have called you friends,
because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father.
It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you
and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain,
so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you.
This I command you: love one another.”

How did Jesus love? Although God he became a man and lived among us. His love goes beyond emotional attraction. It makes us whole. It  makes us like God, sharing his life. His love made him pour himself out for our good, dying on a Cross for us while we were still his enemies. “He loved me and gave himself for me”. His love desires communion. Each of us is precious to him. His love makes him share himself with us in intimate dialogue, “I stand at the door and knock”, “We will dine together”. He commands that we love in the same way. With the Holy Spirit we can do so. His love shares his our own mission with us. “I chose you”. We are to live in deep love, with him and then as he inspires with his love for others and we will bear much fruit.

May 26, 2011

Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter. Memorial of Saint Philip Neri, priest

Reading 1

Acts 15:7-21

After much debate had taken place,
Peter got up and said to the Apostles and the presbyters,
“My brothers, you are well aware that from early days
God made his choice among you that through my mouth
the Gentiles would hear the word of the Gospel and believe.
And God, who knows the heart,
bore witness by granting them the Holy Spirit
just as he did us.
He made no distinction between us and them,
for by faith he purified their hearts.
Why, then, are you now putting God to the test
by placing on the shoulders of the disciples
a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear?
On the contrary, we believe that we are saved
through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they.”
The whole assembly fell silent,
and they listened
while Paul and Barnabas described the signs and wonders
God had worked among the Gentiles through them.
After they had fallen silent, James responded,
“My brothers, listen to me.
Symeon has described how God first concerned himself
with acquiring from among the Gentiles a people for his name.
The words of the prophets agree with this, as is written:
After this I shall return
and rebuild the fallen hut of David;
from its ruins I shall rebuild it
and raise it up again,
so that the rest of humanity may seek out the Lord,
even all the Gentiles on whom my name is invoked.
Thus says the Lord who accomplishes these things,
known from of old.
It is my judgment, therefore,
that we ought to stop troubling the Gentiles who turn to God,
but tell them by letter to avoid pollution from idols,
unlawful marriage, the meat of strangled animals, and blood.
For Moses, for generations now,
has had those who proclaim him in every town,
as he has been read in the synagogues every sabbath.”

We see in this passage how the Spirit was guiding the Church. The problem the members of the community faced was deep seated and highly emotional. Peter argues from his experience of how gentiles had been transformed by the Holy Spirit and James argues from the Scriptures. The final verdict of James takes into consideration the sensitivities of  the Jewish converts among whom the gentile converts will be living. We can trust in the Holy Spirit to guide the Church today since Jesus promised to send another Paraclete (Helper, Advocate, Counsellor, Consoler, Guide, Teacher, etc) who will “be with you always”. In this meeting in Jerusalem the Church’s leaders were able to recognize the new direction in which the Spirit was leading the community. The Church was breaking out of the religious and cultural atmosphere in which it was born.

96:1-2a, 2b-3, 10

Responsorial Psalm

R. (3)  Proclaim God’s marvelous deeds to all the nations.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all you lands.
Sing to the LORD; bless his name.

Jn 15:9-11

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“As the Father loves me, so I also love you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father’s commandments
and remain in his love.

“I have told you this so that
my joy might be in you and
your joy might be complete.”

The Son is the perfect image of his Father and the Father sees himself in his Son. They are so perfectly one that they are one Being. There can be no closer union of two distinct yet identical Persons. Jesus loves us in the same way as his Father loves him. Though distinct he wants us to be one being with him. What must we do? We must open ourselves to his desire, for this is the purpose of our being born. It is here that we find the meaning of our life. It is to become the perfect image of Jesus the Christ and become one being through the indwelling of the Spirit. To be one being is to be one in action. In everything we become the manifestation of Jesus. This is to fulfil his every command. We become whole and so full of joy.

May 25, 2011
Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 15:1-6

Some who had come down from Judea were instructing the brothers,
“Unless you are circumcised according to the Mosaic practice,
you cannot be saved.”
Because there arose no little dissension and debate
by Paul and Barnabas with them,
it was decided that Paul, Barnabas, and some of the others
should go up to Jerusalem to the Apostles and presbyters
about this question.
They were sent on their journey by the Church,
and passed through Phoenicia and Samaria
telling of the conversion of the Gentiles,
and brought great joy to all the brethren.
When they arrived in Jerusalem,
they were welcomed by the Church,
as well as by the Apostles and the presbyters,
and they reported what God had done with them.
But some from the party of the Pharisees who had become believers
stood up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them
and direct them to observe the Mosaic law.”
The Apostles and the presbyters met together to see about this matter. 

If the first major problem faced by the early Church was the cultural difference and difference in approach to the Temple between Hebrew Christians and Hellenist Christians then an even more serious dispute arose about whether gentiles should be circumcised and follow the Law of Moses or not. This was a problem about which both sides felt very strongly and it was likely to split the Church. Jewish converts and especially the Hebrew Christians felt that gentile converts should become Jews if there were to become Christians. Fortunately there were those who argued strongly that faith in Jesus was alone necessary for salvation. Paul will be the champion of freedom.

122:1-2, 3-4ab, 4cd-5

Responsorial Psalm

R. (see 1) Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
I rejoiced because they said to me,
“We will go up to the house of the LORD.”
And now we have set foot
within your gates, O Jerusalem.

Jn 15:1-8

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower.
He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit,
and everyone that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit.
You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you.
Remain in me, as I remain in you.
Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own
unless it remains on the vine,
so neither can you unless you remain in me.
I am the vine, you are the branches.
Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit,
because without me you can do nothing.
Anyone who does not remain in me
will be thrown out like a branch and wither;
people will gather them and throw them into a fire
and they will be burned.
If you remain in me and my words remain in you,
ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you.
By this is my Father glorified,
that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.”

We stand around a dying man. He is still there. He smiles. We hold his hand and we hold him. Then he’s gone. You hold his body. It’s not him any more. So it is with Jesus. If you live in him and he in you, then he is you. People touch him in you. People touched Jesus in Mother Teresa, in Padre Pio. Do they in you? We are to be the living body of Jesus as the branch is the living vine. How tragic for the world when through our sin Jesus is gone and people just hold a corpse. Unless we live in Jesus we cause irreparable damage to the world. Although they may not realise it, people long for the incarnation of Jesus among them in you and me. Only you and I can make it possible. “Remain in me and my words in you”. How?

May 24, 2011
 

Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Acts 14:19-28
Reading 1

In those days, some Jews from Antioch and Iconium
arrived and won over the crowds.
They stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city,
supposing that he was dead.
But when the disciples gathered around him,
he got up and entered the city.
On the following day he left with Barnabas for Derbe.
After they had proclaimed the good news to that city
and made a considerable number of disciples,
they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch.
They strengthened the spirits of the disciples
and exhorted them to persevere in the faith, saying,
“It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships
to enter the Kingdom of God.”
They appointed presbyters for them in each Church and,
with prayer and fasting, commended them to the Lord
in whom they had put their faith.
Then they traveled through Pisidia and reached Pamphylia.
After proclaiming the word at Perga they went down to Attalia.
From there they sailed to Antioch,
where they had been commended to the grace of God
for the work they had now accomplished.
And when they arrived, they called the Church together
and reported what God had done with them
and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.
Then they spent no little time with the disciples.

The persecution is meant to stop the spread of the Gospel but in fact it is the cause of the Gospel being brought to new people and places. It is necessary to undergo many hardships to enter the Kingdom. The two apostles could speak from personal experience, but they were not depressed. Jesus had overcome the world. Though the elders they appointed may not be like the Church leaders we have today – bishops, parish priests etc, yet nonetheless since Paul and Barnabas were travelling missionaries, it was necessary to have leaders appointed in each community. Otherwise the community would have no focus and other leaders would surface who may not be suitable to lead the community in the way of the Gospel. Paul and Barnabas belonged to the community in Antioch and had been sent on mission by them and so they gave a report to them too. Missionaries are to be sent by a community to carry the Gospel.

145:10-11, 12-13ab, 21

Responsorial Psalm

R. (see 12)  Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Let all your works give you thanks, O LORD,
and let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might.

Jn 14:27-31a

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives do I give it to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.
You heard me tell you,
‘I am going away and I will come back to you.’
If you loved me,
you would rejoice that I am going to the Father;
for the Father is greater than I.
And now I have told you this before it happens,
so that when it happens you may believe.
I will no longer speak much with you,
for the ruler of the world is coming.
He has no power over me,
but the world must know that I love the Father
and that I do just as the Father has commanded me.”

Jesus in John’s Gospel calls for a religion of intimacy with himself. Church structures are no doubt necessary but the heart and only lasting ‘structure’ is our personal relationship with Jesus. In this life it will always have a touch of pain because Jesus is not visible – he has gone away. He has come back but now under the cloak of faith. We can meet Jesus but only through faith. It is not a meeting face to face and the true disciple longs for this. But we can be at peace because though we do not see him, we know he is always present to us. When he is present to us then we need have no fear or anxiety about anything. All we need is trust in him. What is the heart of your religion?

May 23, 2011
Monday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 14:5-18

There was an attempt in Iconium
by both the Gentiles and the Jews,
together with their leaders,
to attack and stone Paul and Barnabas.
They realized it,
and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe
and to the surrounding countryside,
where they continued to proclaim the Good News.

At Lystra there was a crippled man, lame from birth,
who had never walked.
He listened to Paul speaking, who looked intently at him,
saw that he had the faith to be healed,
and called out in a loud voice, “Stand up straight on your feet.”
He jumped up and began to walk about.
When the crowds saw what Paul had done,
they cried out in Lycaonian,
“The gods have come down to us in human form.”
They called Barnabas “Zeus” and Paul “Hermes,”
because he was the chief speaker.
And the priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the city,
brought oxen and garlands to the gates,
for he together with the people intended to offer sacrifice.

The Apostles Barnabas and Paul tore their garments
when they heard this and rushed out into the crowd, shouting,
“Men, why are you doing this?
We are of the same nature as you, human beings.
We proclaim to you good news
that you should turn from these idols to the living God,
who made heaven and earth and sea and all that is in them.
In past generations he allowed all Gentiles to go their own ways;
yet, in bestowing his goodness,
he did not leave himself without witness,
for he gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons,
and filled you with nourishment and gladness for your hearts.”
Even with these words, they scarcely restrained the crowds
from offering sacrifice to them.

As Peter continued the ministry of Jesus among the Jews in healing the lame man outside the Temple so Paul continues this ministry by healing the lame man among the gentiles. Filled with the Spirit the apostles continue the work and ministry of Jesus. Paul and Barnabas in no way claim the honour for themselves. The Church is called to continue the same ministry of Jesus today throughout the world.

115:1-2, 3-4, 15-16

Responsorial Psalm

R. (1ab)  Not to us, O Lord, but to your name give the glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Not to us, O LORD, not to us
but to your name give glory
because of your mercy, because of your truth.
Why should the pagans say,
“Where is their God?”

Jn 14:21-26

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Whoever has my commandments and observes them
is the one who loves me.
Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father,
and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”
Judas, not the Iscariot, said to him,
“Master, then what happened that you will reveal yourself to us
and not to the world?”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.
Whoever does not love me does not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me.

“I have told you this while I am with you.
The Advocate, the Holy Spirit
whom the Father will send in my name
he will teach you everything

 and remind you of all that I told you.”

How does the world give peace? We’ll give you money, position,  acclamation. You can have everything. What more do you want? But what about your heart? Can it give you joy, contentment, a happiness that radiates to everyone you meet? Only Jesus gives this and he promises it to ‘his disciples’. Are you one?  How to get joy and peace? There’s no well to draw from. There is no peace ‘out there’. There is only your peace and my  peace. There is no substitute for resting in the arms of a beloved. There is no substitute for falling in love with Jesus. Only then will you experience his peace, of having no fear of anything or anyone. He is with you. How to fall in love? The Spirit works from the inside. Get to know him. He can make it happen. That’s his task.

God's Word for the 5th Sunday of Easter A

Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
 

May 22, 2011
Fifth Sunday of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 6:1-7

As the number of disciples continued to grow,
the Hellenists complained against the Hebrews
because their widows
were being neglected in the daily distribution.
So the Twelve called together the community of the disciples and said,
“It is not right for us to neglect the word of God to serve at table.
Brothers, select from among you seven reputable men,
filled with the Spirit and wisdom,
whom we shall appoint to this task,
whereas we shall devote ourselves to prayer
and to the ministry of the word.”
The proposal was acceptable to the whole community,
so they chose Stephen, a man filled with faith and the Holy Spirit,
also Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas,
and Nicholas of Antioch, a convert to Judaism.
They presented these men to the apostles
who prayed and laid hands on them.
The word of God continued to spread,
and the number of the disciples in Jerusalem increased greatly;
even a large group of priests were becoming obedient to the faith.

There were two groups of believers – the Hebrew speakers and the Greek speakers. The latter had come from the Diaspora. Peter decides that the Greek speakers, the Hellenists, should have their own leaders to conduct their affairs. These seven are more leaders than deacons in the way we use the word today. All leadership in the church is a ministry. There are to be no lords and people of power but only servants. The Hellenists will be the ones who carry out the first missionary wave brining the Gospel to the gentiles.

Ps 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19

Responsorial Psalm

R. (22) Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
or:
R.  Alleluia.
Exult, you just, in the LORD;
praise from the upright is fitting.
Give thanks to the LORD on the harp;
with the ten-stringed lyre chant his praises.

1 Pt 2:4-9

Reading 2

Beloved:
Come to him, a living stone, rejected by human beings
but chosen and precious in the sight of God,
and, like living stones,
let yourselves be built into a spiritual house
to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices
acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
For it says in Scripture:
Behold, I am laying a stone in Zion,
a cornerstone, chosen and precious,
and whoever believes in it shall not be put to shame.
Therefore, its value is for you who have faith, but for those without faith:
The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone, and
A stone that will make people stumble,
and a rock that will make them fall.
They stumble by disobeying the word, as is their destiny.

You are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood,
a holy nation, a people of his own,
so that you may announce the praises” of him
who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

This is figurative language trying to describe how believers are in Christ and Christ is in them. We are one with him and thereby share in his one great act of praise of his Father by which the world is saved. Being part of Christ we are called to the holiness of Christ. As Christ is the image of the Father so the believer should be the image of Jesus (Gospel)

Jn 14:1-12

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not let your hearts be troubled.
You have faith in God; have faith also in me.
In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.
If there were not,
would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?
And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come back again and take you to myself,
so that where I am you also may be.
Where I am going you know the way.”
Thomas said to him,
“Master, we do not know where you are going;
how can we know the way?”
Jesus said to him, I am the way and the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.
If you know me, then you will also know my Father.
From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
Philip said to him,
“Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.”
Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time
and you still do not know me, Philip?
Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?
The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own.
The Father who dwells in me is doing his works.
Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me,
or else, believe because of the works themselves.
Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever believes in me will do the works that I do,
and will do greater ones than these,
because I am going to the Father.”

You have a home you haven’t seen

It is the love that welcomes us that makes a home and we all need one. That is where we belong, where we can relax and be our selves. Life is a journey to our home. God has manifested himself in the man from Nazareth. Jesus is God living among us. ‘I and the Father are one’ he said and in today’s Gospel he says, ‘To have seen me is to have seen the Father’.  The God of the Universe is humble. One of us, a man, he invites us to trust in him and become his friend. It is unbelievable but true. We are given this life here as the time to choose him by word and deed. He will take his friends to his home and as members of the family – the family of God – they will live forever. He wants his friends to be where he is.

            Jesus is the way to the home of God because it is our friendship, our relationship, with him, which is heaven. Friendship with Jesus is the way to God. He is a man and through him we go to the Father who is pure Spirit. The Father and Jesus are one God. By being one with Jesus now, we are already with God but in the darkness of faith.

            Jesus tells his disciples this but they are bewildered as is revealed by the questions of Thomas and then of Philip. May be you feel bewildered too. Jesus and his Father are one in the Holy Spirit who is the Love between them. The Holy Spirit knows the depths of God and he comes to us. He will reveal everything about God to us. Understanding is not so important. Loving Jesus in faith is crucial.

            The Father lives in Jesus and Jesus lives in us. Jesus is now with his Father and equal in every way with Him and he is in us. It is Jesus who works through us and so Jesus has promised that we will do the same works as he did. When we hear this we often think of miracles but the greatest miracle we can perform for people is to love them with a love that is sincere and comes from our heart. May we allow Jesus to love people through us.  This more than any sensational miracle will touch the hearts of men and women who haven’t yet known Jesus.

            Do you see Jesus as a real person who invites you to look for him in faith? How do you respond in faith to his call for friendship? Do you experience Jesus in you when you deal with others? Does he love others through you?

Father give me the grace to search for Jesus, because he who searches will always find.

God's Word for the Weekdays from May 16th 2011

   Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
 

May 21, 2011
Saturday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 13:44-52

On the following sabbath
almost the whole city
gathered to hear the word of the Lord.
When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy
and with violent abuse contradicted what Paul said.
Both Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said,
“It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first,
but since you reject it
and condemn yourselves as unworthy of eternal life,
we now turn to the Gentiles.
For so the Lord has commanded us,
I have made you a light to the Gentiles,
that you may be an instrument of salvation
to the ends of the earth.”
The Gentiles were delighted when they heard this
and glorified the word of the Lord.
All who were destined for eternal life came to believe,
and the word of the Lord continued to spread
through the whole region.
The Jews, however, incited the women of prominence who were worshipers
and the leading men of the city,
stirred up a persecution against Paul and Barnabas,
and expelled them from their territory.
So they shook the dust from their feet in protest against them
and went to Iconium.

The disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.

The apostles preached to the Jews and so did Paul. It was only the Jews in town after town rejected them that they turned to the gentiles and the Christian religion  became a gentile Church. In this way God’s plan was fulfilled.

98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4

Responsorial Psalm

R. (3cd)  All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.

Jn 14:7-14

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“If you know me, then you will also know my Father.
From now on you do know him and have seen him.”
Philip said to Jesus,
“Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.”
Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time
and you still do not know me, Philip?
Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.
How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?
The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own.
The Father who dwells in me is doing his works.
Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me,
or else, believe because of the works themselves.
Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever believes in me will do the works that I do,
and will do greater ones than these,
because I am going to the Father.
And whatever you ask in my name, I will do,
so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
If you ask anything of me in my name, I will do it.”

‘Nothing grows under the banyan tree’. Many leaders do not allow others to grow for fear that they will surpass them. Jesus is not like that. As the Father is Love so Jesus is Love. He wants us to grow. He wants us to surpass him in doing mighty works for his Father. The works we do and which are greater than those of Jesus are for the glory of the Father and not for our name and fame. We are not to cultivate our ego. Our work must be according to the mind of the Father and done with the pure intention of bringing people to him. He must increase and we must decrease. We should have no desire but the glory of God. Who are you working for? Can you forget your ego and surrender yourself to him and so only do what he wants you to do?

May 20, 2011
Friday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 13:26-33

When Paul came to Antioch in Pisidia, he said in the synagogue:
“My brothers, children of the family of Abraham,
and those others among you who are God-fearing,
to us this word of salvation has been sent.
The inhabitants of Jerusalem and their leaders failed to recognize him,
and by condemning him they fulfilled the oracles of the prophets
that are read sabbath after sabbath.
For even though they found no grounds for a death sentence,
they asked Pilate to have him put to death,
and when they had accomplished all that was written about him,
they took him down from the tree and placed him in a tomb.
But God raised him from the dead,
and for many days he appeared to those
who had come up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem.
These are now his witnesses before the people.
We ourselves are proclaiming this good news to you
that what God promised our fathers
he has brought to fulfillment for us, their children, by raising up Jesus,
as it is written in the second psalm,
You are my Son; this day I have begotten you.”

The proclamation that Paul makes is the same as that of Peter on Pentecost Day. It is the heart of our Faith. The Christian Faith and Religion is Jesus. He is not dead but alive and through our faith we can meet him. To know, love and serve Jesus is our Christian Religion.

2:6-7, 8-9, 10-11ab

Responsorial Psalm

R. (7bc) You are my Son; this day I have begotten you.
or:
R. Alleluia.
“I myself have set up my king
on Zion, my holy mountain.”
I will proclaim the decree of the LORD:
The LORD said to me, “You are my Son;
this day I have begotten you.”

Jn 14:1-6

Gospel

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not let your hearts be troubled.
You have faith in God; have faith also in me.
In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.
If there were not,
would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?
And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come back again and take you to myself,
so that where I am you also may be.
Where I am going you know the way.”
Thomas said to him,
“Master, we do not know where you are going;
how can we know the way?”
Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.”

“There are many rooms in my Father’s house.” Jesus is ‘from above”. He doesn’t have the words to describe his Father’s house to us who are “from below.” But that is our true home. We have been chosen from before the foundation of the world to be holy and perfect in Christ Jesus in order to live with God the Father. We are now on the way home. “We don’t know the way” says Thomas. “I am the Way”. Once again, to live in intimacy with Jesus now is to live with God. In as far as we live with Jesus now, we have reached home. Like St. Paul, to make Jesus our life is to give meaning to our life. We will not find true peace unless in Jesus. Do you want to cultivate intimacy with Jesus now? “Now” is so important. It is all we have.

May 18, 2011
Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 12:24—13:5a

The word of God continued to spread and grow.
After Barnabas and Saul completed their relief mission,
they returned to Jerusalem,
taking with them John, who is called Mark.
Now there were in the Church at Antioch prophets and teachers:
Barnabas, Symeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene,
Manaen who was a close friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said,
“Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul
for the work to which I have called them.”
Then, completing their fasting and prayer,
they laid hands on them and sent them off.
So they, sent forth by the Holy Spirit,
went down to Seleucia
and from there sailed to Cyprus.
When they arrived in Salamis,
they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. 

Antioch was the second centre of the Christian community. In Jerusalem were the Twelve. In Antioch there were prophets. Paul has not yet come into his own. He is named last. It is when they go on mission that he will become the great apostle of Jesus. The Church is not yet very structured and the members are sensitive to the inspirations of the Spirit. Barnabas and Paul are set aside for the work of proclaiming the Gospel and blessed and prayed over they set out.

Ps 67:2-3, 5, 6 and 8

Responsorial Psalm

R. (4) O God, let all the nations praise you!
or:
R. Alleluia.
May God have pity on us and bless us;
may he let his face shine upon us.
So may your way be known upon earth;
among all nations, your salvation.

Jn 12:44-50

Gospel

Jesus cried out and said,
“Whoever believes in me believes not only in me
but also in the one who sent me,
and whoever sees me sees the one who sent me.
I came into the world as light,
so that everyone who believes in me might not remain in darkness.
And if anyone hears my words and does not observe them,
I do not condemn him,
for I did not come to condemn the world but to save the world.
Whoever rejects me and does not accept my words
has something to judge him: the word that I spoke,
it will condemn him on the last day,
because I did not speak on my own,
but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and speak.
And I know that his commandment is eternal life.
So what I say, I say as the Father told me.”

No one has seen God. He lives ‘in unapproachable light’. We have seen God because ‘the Word became a human being’ Jesus is the visible likeness of the God no human can see. So now there is only one way to know God, we must look at Jesus. No one is without fault who deliberately refuses to look at Jesus and study his Word. We find the image and Word of Jesus in the Gospels. By looking at Jesus we can see what God does and how he acts. We can see his likes and dislikes. We can discover his attitudes towards the problems of daily life. Jesus in his words and actions is the perfect manifestation of God. If I refuse to study him, how can I be without blame?  Do you want to make the effort to know the human Jesus through the Gospels and so know God?

May 17, 2011
Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 11:19-26

Those who had been scattered by the persecution
that arose because of Stephen
went as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch,
preaching the word to no one but Jews.
There were some Cypriots and Cyrenians among them, however,
who came to Antioch and began to speak to the Greeks as well,
proclaiming the Lord Jesus.
The hand of the Lord was with them
and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.
The news about them reached the ears of the Church in Jerusalem,
and they sent Barnabas to go to Antioch.
When he arrived and saw the grace of God,
he rejoiced and encouraged them all
to remain faithful to the Lord in firmness of heart,
for he was a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith.
And a large number of people was added to the Lord.
Then he went to Tarsus to look for Saul,
and when he had found him he brought him to Antioch.
For a whole year they met with the Church
and taught a large number of people,
and it was in Antioch that the disciples
were first called Christians.

Peter had under divine pressure welcomed a gentile into the fellowship of the believers. Now in Antioch we see how the Hellenist Christians who had fled Jerusalem because of the persecution began to preach and proclaim Jesus to Greek speaking gentiles. A great mission to the gentiles is now beginning. Though of a different culture from the Hebrew Christians in Jerusalem, they preach the same Lord and share fellowship. The Christian leaders in Jerusalem come to hear of what is going on in Antioch and they send Barnabas to check on it. He is ‘a good man, full of the Hoy Spirit’ and he approves. He encourages them to continue. He then does one of the most important things in the history of the Church. He goes in search of Paul and brings him in out of the cold. Paul will be the one chosen by God to really establish the Church among the nations both numerically and theologically. It was in Antioch we learn that the follows of Jesus were called Christian, the name they will be called throughout the ages.

Ps 87:1b-3, 4-5, 6-7

Responsorial Psalm

R. (117:1a) All you nations, praise the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
His foundation upon the holy mountains
the LORD loves:
The gates of Zion,
more than any dwelling of Jacob.
Glorious things are said of you,
O city of God!

Jn 10:22-30

Gospel

The feast of the Dedication was taking place in Jerusalem.
It was winter.
And Jesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon.
So the Jews gathered around him and said to him,
“How long are you going to keep us in suspense?
If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe.
The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me.
But you do not believe, because you are not among my sheep.
My sheep hear my voice;
I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
No one can take them out of my hand.
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all,
and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand.
The Father and I are one.”

Jesus is our Saviour. We do not and cannot save ourselves. We cannot keep free from the influence of Satan, evil and sin, just as we cannot keep free from bodily sickness. Only Jesus can heal us and save us. What must we do? We must be his sheep. We must allow him to lead us. We need then to surrender to him in love. He will teach through his Church and his Holy Spirit. .Then no one can pluck us from his hand. We are safe. If we want to stay close to Jesus we must spend time with him each day and we must have him in our hearts throughout the day and night. He must become our ever present companion through prayer. Because it is through faith, then it takes effort. Do you make the effort to be his sheep and spend time daily with him?

May 16, 2011
Monday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 11:1-18

The Apostles and the brothers who were in Judea
heard that the Gentiles too had accepted the word of God.
So when Peter went up to Jerusalem
the circumcised believers confronted him, saying,
‘You entered the house of uncircumcised people and ate with them.”
Peter began and explained it to them step by step, saying,
“I was at prayer in the city of Joppa
when in a trance I had a vision,
something resembling a large sheet coming down,
lowered from the sky by its four corners, and it came to me.
Looking intently into it,
I observed and saw the four-legged animals of the earth,
the wild beasts, the reptiles, and the birds of the sky.
I also heard a voice say to me, ‘Get up, Peter. Slaughter and eat.’
But I said, ‘Certainly not, sir,
because nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’
But a second time a voice from heaven answered,
‘What God has made clean, you are not to call profane.’
This happened three times,
and then everything was drawn up again into the sky.
Just then three men appeared at the house where we were,
who had been sent to me from Caesarea.
The Spirit told me to accompany them without discriminating.
These six brothers also went with me,
and we entered the man’s house.
He related to us how he had seen the angel standing in his house, saying,
‘Send someone to Joppa and summon Simon, who is called Peter,
who will speak words to you
by which you and all your household will be saved.’
As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them
as it had upon us at the beginning,
and I remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said,
‘John baptized with water
but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’
If then God gave them the same gift he gave to us
when we came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ,
who was I to be able to hinder God?”
When they heard this,
they stopped objecting and glorified God, saying,
“God has then granted life-giving repentance to the Gentiles too.”

This is the first major problem in the history of the Church which could have wrecked the Church even in its very beginning. Jesus and the disciples were Jews and wedded to the Law of Moses and the Israelite culture. Even after believing in Jesus they had continued to be Jews. But what of gentiles who became believers. The first Jewish Christians thought that they should become Jews first and then be baptised. God has other designs and it needs a vision to persuade Peter. He then accepts Cornelius, the Roman centurion. He needs to explain himself to Jewish believers. When he describes the existential situation of his vision and the coming of the Spirit the opposition is silenced for the time being. It will become a burning issue in the early Church.

Ps 42:2-3; 43:3, 4

Responsorial Psalm

R. (see 3a) Athirst is my soul for the living God.
or:
R. Alleluia.
As the hind longs for the running waters,
so my soul longs for you, O God.
Athirst is my soul for God, the living God.
When shall I go and behold the face of God?

Jn 10:11-18

Gospel

Jesus said:
“I am the good shepherd.
A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
A hired man, who is not a shepherd
and whose sheep are not his own,
sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away,
and the wolf catches and scatters them.
This is because he works for pay and has no concern for the sheep.
I am the good shepherd,
and I know mine and mine know me,
just as the Father knows me and I know the Father;
and I will lay down my life for the sheep.
I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold.
These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice,
and there will be one flock, one shepherd.
This is why the Father loves me,
because I lay down my life in order to take it up again.
No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own.
I have power to lay it down, and power to take it up again.
This command I have received from my Father.”

Jesus alone is the key to human life. Without him we don’t really live. We live but not fully. To have abundant life, we need Jesus. Of ourselves we are like sheep wandering around here and there. But Jesus is ever present and calls us by name. We need to listen and answer. We listen to something in life – the cravings of our hearts for things or persons, the call of the world to seek the ‘good life’, the invitations of other spiritual teachers, but Jesus alone is the Way. It is through him alone that we will find the happiness that our soul longs for. But how are we to find him? We must believe his Word, that he alone gives abundant life. Then we must search for him daily in the Gospel and in prayer. Jesus responds to our earnestness. How earnest are you to find him?