Year C

5TH SUNDAY
OF EASTER

► Text of Sunday Reflection

“Opening the door of faith”
by Sr Sarah O’Rourke FMA

As our world continues to face the upheavals of war, migration and economic crises our feelings can be troubled and our faith challenged. Therefore it is encouraging to read that Paul and Barnabas “ put fresh heart into the disciples”. How did they do this? It involved two things “reporting what God has done” and “opening the door of faith.” Everything depends on God, that is the essential meaning of creation but how often we fall into the trap of thinking that it is we who achieve results.

We might smile when we hear Woody Allen’s quote “ If you want to make God laugh tell himabout your plans.” Yet, how often are we disappointed or overwhelmed when things don’t seem to fit into our agendas or way of doing things. We need to be ever mindful “that we are workers, not master builders, ministers not messiahs” and trust that God the master builder has greater plans than we could ever imagine or organise.

St. Mary Mazzarello co foundress of the Salesian Sisters understood this well when she wrote to a Sister “If you are humble, you will have confidence in Him: He will do the rest”.   It is important for us to remember that faith in the Lord, while personal is not a private affair.  Faith formation for the early Christians had its communal dimension – together they learned and found faith in the Lord.

Pope Benedict reminds us that the “door of faith is always open for us ushering us into a lifeof communion.”  The King of Sunday is also the King of Friday whose limbs were stretched on the Cross. Faith that forgets or ignores the wounds that the cross brings is shallow and will not sustain. The love of Christ embraces suffering while looking forward with hope to the Resurrection. Faith is not founded on ideas, but on an encounter with Christ. His parting instruction to his followers is about “ a new commandment of love” which  exhorts  us to “love one another just as I have loved you.” It is important that we do not gloss over the second part of this instruction “just as I have loved you”. Before uttering these words Jesus has given us example, as he has just washed his disciples’ feet. He is the one who came among us as one who serves. Jesus the Servant has room for all. His service was not from a distance but hands on. Loving like Jesus opens the door to faith.

May our faith and actions this week give “fresh hearts” to those who might need a lift.

► Readings, Reflections & Prayers

Scripture readings: Association for Catholic Priests
– www.associationofcatholicpriests.ie
Reflections and Prayers by Fr Jack Finnegan SDB

1st Reading – Acts 14:21-27

After Paul and Barnabas had proclaimed the good news to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, then on to Iconium and Antioch. There they strengthened the souls of the disciples and encouraged them to continue in the faith, saying, “It is through many persecutions that we must enter the kingdom of God.” And after they had appointed elders for them in each church, with prayer and fasting they entrusted them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.

Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. When they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia. From there they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work that they had completed. When they arrived, they called the church together and related all that God had done with them, and how he had opened a door of faith for the Gentiles.

Reflection

On their way home from their first missionary journey Paul and Barnabas revisit the communities they had earlier established. Antioch is significant. It was the third largest city in the Roman Empire after Rome and Alexandria. Unfortunately, there were many places also called Antioch and two of them are mentioned here. Paul and Barnabas are particularly concerned for two things: (a) the faith and spirit of the communities and for the quality of ministry in them; (b) to support and strengthen their apostolic foundation. Notice as well how, when they returned to Antioch, they reported all that God had done with them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. They did not talk about themselves. They talked about God. There is a spiritual challenge here for all of us. Is our faith built on firm apostolic foundations? Do we recognise what God is doing in our day? Are we ready to talk about it? Are we ready to commend each other to the loving grace of God?

Prayer

Lord, sow loving kindness in our hearts. Like Paul and Barnabas grant us the courage to speak of your compassion to our brothers and sisters, especially in their times of need. Open your heart to those who seek your face. Open the doors of faith to people everywhere. Strengthen the spirits of your disciples and raise up good men and women to teach and lead us. You are wonderful! You are extraordinary! May we be true to you now and forever. Amen. Alleluia!

Psalm 145:8-13

Reflection

Once again we sing a song of exuberant joy, determined to sing God’s praise forever! We rejoice in the wonderful splendour of God’s kingdom which has been firmly planted in the world-changing ministry of Jesus. He is our Shepherd-King who came to serve and not be served, who reveals to us the greatness, goodness and mercy of God. There is a real challenge here for us and the faith community in our day: are we ready to serve, to be active for God in our own localities? Are we ready to share the blessings of the kingdom? It is good to share God’s love! It is good to bless the Lord in prayer and worship! It is good to serve the glory of God’s name among the people! Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised! Remember: praise expresses loving admiration, respect and gratitude, especially in song. Are we ready to sing?.

Prayer

LORD, Adonai, let me praise your name forever! How gracious you are and merciful! Slow to anger, rich in love! How good you are and compassionate! Teach me how to speak of your glory! Give me the courage to share the wonders of your presence in prayer and service! Sow seeds of praise deep in my heart, songs of joy and songs of glory. Wonderful God, grant me the courage to be active in praise of your name. Give me the grace to share your blessings with my sisters and brothers. Now and forever. Amen. Alleluia!

2nd Reading: Revelation 21:1-5

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.” And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Reflection

Today we celebrate John’s vision of the new heaven and the new earth, of the radical transformation of the cosmos and all the implications that has for the state of the planet today. We are called to rejoice in the new things brought into being by the Risen Lord. But we are also called to bring the new earth into being. Nevertheless, God now dwells with us in the splendour of the sacraments and the beauty of the living word. In them we are offered a foretaste of the fullness of joy that awaits us in the New Jerusalem! Even though we still mourn and weep, our tears are wiped away. Strengthened by word and sacrament, with the eyes of faith we are empowered to see all things made new in the resurrection of Jesus. This is the deep cause of our joy.

Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, Lamb of God, John rejoiced over the new heaven and the new earth. He gloried in the presence of the New Jerusalem. We too glory in the wonderful things you bring into being. Most of all we rejoice that you dwell among us. How lavish you are! You shower us with grace upon grace. You share your life with us in word and sacrament. You make all things new. And when we have to find our way through valleys of tears and darkness you, our Shepherd-King, wipe our tears away. O Risen Saviour, you truly are the cause of our joy! Help us work for a new earth. Help us heal the damage we have done and are still doing. Help us take responsibility for all living beings. Lift us beyond the grasping cruelty and greedy callousness of our times. Help us create new harmony. Help us be servants of renewed balance in all of creation. And may that be now and forever. Amen. Alleluia!

Gospel Reading: John 13:31-33,34-35

When Judas had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come.’

I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Reflection

Scholars suggest that these are probably lines from an early Christian hymn glorifying God and Jesus. The Father is glorified in the revelation given us by Jesus and Jesus is glorified in the paschal mystery: his birth, life, passion, death, resurrection and ascension into glory. Every time we celebrate Eucharist, every time we meditate on the living word, we are drawn into this place of luminous glory. This is the place in which we begin to grasp Jesus’ new commandment of love: glory and love are all of a piece. In our conscious embrace of both we become true disciples. When love is present the burden of suffering is eased and many of its causes overcome. But there is the rub. Have we the courage to reach out in radical love? And what about the glorification spoken of in our gospel today? What does it mean? Glory refers to God’s Shekinah presence in the Temple. It now refers to the radiant beauty revealed in the blazing love of Christ. Glory allows us to glimpse something of the inner nature of our God: beauty and love becoming one in an outpouring of mercy. For Jesus, love is the radical way for every Christian who seeks to walk with him into unity. Beauty tells us of the fulfilment of love and they both embody unity. If we are truly enlightened we will see them.

Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, Lamb of God, John rejoiced over the new heaven and the new earth. He gloried in the presence of the New Jerusalem. We too glory in the wonderful things you bring into being. Most of all we rejoice that you dwell among us. How lavish you are! You shower us with grace upon grace. You share your life with us in word and sacrament. You make all things new. And when we have to find our way through valleys of tears and darkness you, our Shepherd-King, wipe our tears away. O Risen Saviour, you truly are the cause of our joy! Help us work for a new earth. Help us heal the damage we have done and are still doing. Help us take responsibility for all living beings. Lift us beyond the grasping cruelty and greedy callousness of our times. Help us create new harmony. Help us be servants of renewed balance in all of creation. And may that be now and forever. Amen. Alleluia!

► Lectio Divina

From “Word of God and Salesian Life”

by Fr Juan José Bartolomé SDB

Introduction to Lectio Divine

This gospel passage speaks of an exceptional moment in the life of Jesus. As his death was drawing near, Jesus revealed his last wish to his disciples – the commandment to love one another. Since he had little time left to spend with them, he limited himself to the bare essentials of what he wanted to say to them: the glory of God is linked to the glory of his Son, and this is achieved when Jesus’ disciples are recognised among people by the love they have for one another. On that last night of sharing and intimacy, Jesus said to his disciples that the world would come to know him as the Son of God, if they came to be recognised as his disciples. People would give glory to God, if the disciples were distinguished by their love for one another. These last words of Jesus should be for us, as they were for the first disciples, a source of consolation, and at the same time, a cause for concern.

Read: understand what the text is saying, focussing on how it says it

This text is a very short extract from Jesus’ long farewell discourse (Jn 13, 1-14, 31). To understand it, we need to keep in mind the context:  the traitor had just left the upper room. The words now spoken by Jesus were addressed to his intimate disciples, who had not yet proved themselves faithful. Jesus confided three ideas: his hour of glory had come, his time to stay with them was short, and love for one another was obligatory. Each of these three ideas had separate consequences.

  1. The hour of glory concerns Jesus and God, but not in the same way. The disciples were witnesses, at most. The Father’s task is to glorify the Son and to be glorified in him. The glory of both comes through death on the cross. The bloody death on the cross is here an “event” that touches God, and fills God with glory. What a strange way to see the cross!
  2. The fact that Jesus’ stay with his disciples is drawing to an end means that they are soon to become orphans. The disciples who know that Jesus is going to die and be glorified will have to get used to living without him. This theme will be taken up again later. Here it is simply anticipated. Jesus’ glory requires the abandoning of his disciples. The glorified Jesus is the Jesus who leaves his disciples – this is a reality that is right at the heart of the paschal mystery.
  3. Love is the task imposed on the disciples orphaned by Jesus. When he has abandoned them, they must love one another ­(love the fellow disciple who feels lonely at the absence of Jesus) and love in the same measure that they have been loved (giving their life for the people they love). Brotherly love is the duty of all Christians who no longer share their life with the Lord.  It is obligatory. In his absence they must love one another in the same way that Jesus loves them, by giving his life for them. The obligation is not limited to loving one another – it extends also to the way they must love. By commanding them to love one another, Jesus tells them whom they must love – his intimate friends who are now orphans – and the manner of their love: to the end, by giving one’s life.

Meditate: apply what the text says to life

As soon as the traitor had left the intimate circle, Jesus could disclose to those who remained faithful that his time had come and that it was necessary for him to leave them.  The one who was to hand him over was not worthy to hear the reasons for his offering. The glory of God and the love of the disciples for one another become possible the moment he offered himself. God’s glory and the love of the disciples for one another coincide. God will be glorified… when Jesus dies! The disciples will be able to, and will be obliged to, love one another, to give their lives for one another, because Jesus has given his life out of love.

It must not be forgotten, if we do not want to weaken the commandment of mutual love, that Jesus entrusted this commandment to his intimate friends, to those who remained faithful to him to the end. He entrusted it to them when he had already been handed over by one of them and when he was getting ready to offer himself for all who would be his disciples. Only one who has loved to the end and made it possible can demand that his disciples love one another. Only one who has first been faithful to his Lord can try to love his brothers.

The traitor was not able to love. He was unable to give himself. Anyone who does not give Christ to others, will not be able to give himself to them in body and soul. The glory of God and brotherly love are not a matter of sentiment but an offering of one’s life. It is important to note that only his most intimate friends received the new commandment, those who kept vigil with him the night before he died, sharing the last meal and his last words spoken in confidence. Only the disciples who had the courage to stay with him when he was already being sought and had already been betrayed, were told that they were to love one another if they wanted to be recognized as his disciples. The evangelist notes that Judas, the traitor, was not with Jesus and it seems obvious to him that Jesus would have revealed his last wish only to those who remained faithful. Those who know Jesus’ last command can count themselves among his intimate followers. Knowing that they are to love one another means that they know they are his intimate friends. Only those who are loved by Jesus know that they must love their brothers. The commandment to love one another is the secret that Jesus reserves for those he loves.

We should not forget this. Instead of feeling frustrated at our inability to obey his commandment, and complaining about the impossible burden it imposes, we should be comforted by the knowledge that we are intimate friends of Jesus. If Jesus imposed this precept of brotherly love only on those who stayed with him that night, and if we know now that it applies to us, it means that we are more than just disciples, we are friends beloved by Jesus. Knowing that we are to love one another means that we know we are loved by Jesus. He gave us this commandment only after he had first given us his love and given his life as proof of his love. Jesus asks of us only what he has given us.

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another even as I have loved you.Jesus asks of us only what he has made possible. If he asks us to love one another, it is because he has already loved us. He makes demands of us because he loves us with a special love. He commands us to love one another, because he loves us. The proof that he loves us is that he obliges us to love one another. It is true that he could have chosen another way to show his love, that might have been a bit less painful and a bit more pleasing for us, but the one who loves first is the one who chooses the manner and the object of his love.  Instead of complaining about being loved, let us think about doing his will. It is no mere coincidence that the more we find it impossible to really love others, the less we feel loved by God.

Christians should not deceive themselves into thinking they can become intimate with God if they do not make an effort to love their neighbour. If we don’t feel that God loves us, and if we do not sense his caring presence, it is not because he no longer loves us, but because we have stopped loving others and no longer want to care for them.  It will be hard for us to feel the love that God has for us, if we are not committed to loving one another, as he has commanded us. We should not expect that God love us, when we do not accede to his request to love one another. The love that God has for us is gratuitous, freely given, but this does not mean that it has no consequences. Only those who try to love their brothers will feel that they are loved by God. Love for our neighbour is the counterpart, the obligation to be fulfilled, in order to experience the love that God has for us.  The fact that it is so difficult, does not excuse us. It cost much more for God to love us – he had to give his only Son for us.

It is possible for us, then, to know that we are intimate friends of Jesus. Love for one another is the way we must go to obtain the love of God. It continues to be our comfort, even if it is extremely difficult. But on it depends whether or not God is known and glorified! Love for one another is the sign that Jesus chose to leave to the world before his departure. The proof that he still loves us is that, even in his absence, he wants us to love one another. He gave it as a commandment to his disciples when he was leaving the world. The fact that he left us with the obligation to love one another is the best proof that he did not wish to abandon us. Love for one another is something rare in our world, so rare that it becomes impossible to believe, but it is the best proof that God still cares for his people. Who but God could compel us to love one another? We should be struck by the fact that people’s ability to glorify God depends on our ability to love one another. The sign that Jesus has left for people to know God depends on our effort to love one another – nothing more, nothing less!

Instead of lamenting the state of the world, it would be better if we were to pay heed to today’s passage of the Gospel. The ignorance of God in the world is not caused by those who do not know him, and if God is not adored, it is not because of those who do not frequent the places of worship. Atheists do not deny God. It is not the people who never had any interest in God who forget him. The problem is with us who say we are disciples of Jesus but do not obey him, because we do not love one another. We live thoughtless lives, not caring whether or not we are recognized as his disciples, and so we do not make an effort to love one another as he loved us, and as he commanded us. Have we ever really thought seriously about this?

If we go through life unnoticed, because we live just like everybody else, ignoring in our hearts what we have heard from his lips, then God too will be unnoticed in our world. If we, the  disciples of Christ, do not try to love one another, who will give glory to God? Precisely because it is unusual, and goes against what we see every day, love for our brother is proof of the triumph of the love of God. Where there is someone who truly loves, Christ has not died in vain, and God is being glorified. God’s glory is revealed, better than in the most beautiful dawn, in the life of a Christian who gives himself or herself in love for others.

If indeed God still speaks to us, if we are still interested in making God known, and if we are concerned that God is being forgotten, then we need to do something. Let’s try today what in the past we may have thought useless or impossible – to judge kindly, to appreciate better, to love more those with whom we share our faith and the love of Christ. When others see that we really love one another, they will come to realize that only God could have worked that miracle. They will know that God still loves his people, when they see the efforts we make to love one another. It depends on us whether or not God is glorified.