May 14, 2017

 5th Sunday of Easter A Acts 6: 1-7; 1 Peter 2: 4-9; John 14: 1-12 The readings from the Acts of the Apostles give us a wonderful insight into the early church and the growing pains it went through. Growing is not easy. It’s wonderful being a parent. When kids start school, they begin to see that their parents/adults aren’t the ‘god’ they used to be because they make mistakes, forget and are afraid. Somehow how it happens that as youth, we want to stretch our limits and learn more, investigate more, prepare ourselves for ‘freedom’. We want it…parents are reluctant to give it…and often problems arise. Graduation, military service, jobs, college come and open up wide vistas. And the cycle continues. What is the one constant? Hopefully our parents and special people in our lives continue to support and help us. The constant is that God is always present. God cares, loves, supports and helps us be in touch with His constant presence. When do we discover that we need God, that we even want Him in our lives? This is a little bit of the dilemma we hear about in the readings today: the over riding point is that we need to keep our Lord God near. As the young Church continued to grow in numbers, they realized they had to expand the ministries they had never imagined. People needed help. This new church of believers, originally called ‘The Way’ were happy in expanding and reaching out but they realized only too quickly that the ones with huge needs were the poor, the less fortunate, the diseased and crippled. The first converts to this new religion came from two group of Jews: The Hellenists and the Hebrews. The Hellenistic Jews were Greek-speaking, and had returned to Jerusalem from all over the Mediterranean area. The Hebrews were native Palestinian Jews who spook Aramaic. Both of these groups belonged to the Jerusalem Jewish community. Today we are brought into the tensions that arose: The Hellenistic groups complained that their widows were not receiving food from the central bank of donations. They had to restructure their community resource program. It gave Luke the chance to introduce Stephen and the new apostolate of deacons. Their importance is seen in the qualifications needed: “…they must be reputable, filed with the Spirit and wisdom.” This would enable the apostles to devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the word. Most importantly, all are called to serve. We are called to be Jesus by the way we live, our concern and example for others and in being ‘servants’. Peter zeroes in on this in todays second letter. When we are faithful to our obligations as Christians to God and to other people we are living Christ in our lives. How can people believe unless they first see God in us and if they don’t see God in us, where will they see Jesus? The bottom line that Peter reminds us is that we can’t really participate in spreading the faith or any spiritual message about Jesus without first growing in personal holiness. This can only happen in our lives when we let Jesus become the foundation stone of our life. A wonderful daily reminder prayer can be seen in today’s Responsorial Psalm. “Lord, let you mercy be on us, as we place our trust in You.” Though we are from all different cultures, and nationalities, from all sorts of societal backgrounds, it is God who unites us. We are called to be a follower of Christ: a Christian. It is good to ask ourselves: What does it mean for me to be a Christian today? Paul states it beautifully in his letter to the Galatians, “…I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me; insofar as I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who has loved me and given Himself up for me.” So if God lives in me, my life is a life of involvement. It is a sharing in a life which calls me beyond myself. It is a life realizing that I am loved so that I can love. The gospel today tells us what it means to live to the fullest in love. This is a part from Jesus’ farewell discourse and He starts off telling this, “Do not let your heart be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.” Moments before, Jesus was deeply troubled and had announced that one would betray Him. Judas wondered if it was he, it was. Then Jesus gives them the New Commandment: “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” Then Jesus predicts that Peter will deny Him three times. This certainly is an interesting and necessary gospel for us to hear today. The early Church was in it's growing pains. How are they to cope? Will new persecutions come along? And they are called to remember Jesus’ advice to them. It is the Last Supper and Jesus is giving His final thoughts just before He is to suffer and die. He is saying goodbye to them and they are confused and upset. What’s going to happen to us? Where is God? Jesus is telling them that it is the wrong question? We are never lost to God. God finds us. God is with us in Christ. He is in our midst, continuing to bring us away from ourselves and to Himself. We don’t have to figure out where God is. God is already here. John a Devotional Commentary shares these reflective thoughts: “Jesus promise to His first disciples is just as true for us. By believing in the risen Lord, we become participants in the union between the Father and Son. Therefore, whatever we ask in Jesus’ name He will do. As we listen to Jesus, we accomplish the work of the Father and glorify both the Father and the Son. Every act of love, service and humility done in the name of the Lord brings great glory to Jesus and advances His kingdom in the hearts of His people. Every time we turn away from sin in repentance, share the good news with someone, or choose to obey God rather than our fallen desires, the Father is glorified and the world receives yet another witness of the power of the gospel. We can do mighty works in the name of the Lord because Christ is in us and longs to work through us. Nothing is inconsequential. Our actions have eternal significance. We are called, just as Jesus was, to accomplish the Father’s work in the world by proclaiming the good news and advancing God’s kingdom.” So I reflect on: • Do I realize that I have to recharge my identity as Christ’s chosen one when it is needed? When and how do I do this? • How am I continuing to nourish God’s growth within me? • Do I ever reflect at the end of the day on how God has used me to bring His love? Was I grateful? Was I neglectful of this? Sacred Space 2017 says: “Jesus sees how the disciples do not understand Him and asks for their trust, inviting them not to let their hearts be troubled. Jesus looks on me with the same compassion, recognizing my hesitation, my doubts, my questions. He says to me, ‘Peace!’ reminding me that I have a place in His heart now, a place there forever. Philip says, ‘We will be satisfied’; it sounds like a prayer that begins, ‘All I want is…’ Help me, Lord, to seek Your will and not my own.”