Contemplating today's Gospel
Today's Gospel + homily (in 300 words)
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 elders, 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’».
May the nations be glad and exult because you rule the peoples in equity; the nations on the earth you guide.
May the peoples praise you, o God; may all the peoples praise you! May God bless us, and may all the ends of the earth fear him!
“I have told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you. 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.”
“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”
Fr. Francesc CATARINEU i Vilageliu (Sabadell, Barcelona, Spain)Today, before celebrating the Ascension and Pentecost, we reread the words known as the Sermon of the Last Supper, in which we must see diverse ways of presenting a single message, since everything springs from the union of Christ with the Father and from God's will to associate us with this mystery of love.
One day, Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus was offered various gifts to choose from, and she—with great determination, despite her young age—said: "I choose all." As an adult, she understood that this choosing all had to be realized in wanting to be love in the Church, for a body without love would be meaningless. God is this mystery of love, a concrete, personal love, made flesh in the Son Jesus, who goes so far as to give all: He himself, his life, and his deeds are the highest and clearest message from God.
It is from this all-encompassing love that "peace" is born. This is a yearned-for word today: we want peace, and all we see are alarms and violence. We will only achieve peace if we turn to Jesus, for it is He who gives it to us as the fruit of his total love. But He does not give it to us as the world does (cf. Jn 14:27), for the peace of Jesus is not stillness and carefreeness, but quite the opposite: solidarity that becomes brotherhood, the ability to look at ourselves and others with new eyes, as the Lord does, and thus forgive one another. From this is born a great serenity that allows us to see things as they are, and not as they appear. Following this path will lead to happiness.
"The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you" (Jn 14:26). In these final days of Easter, let us pray to open ourselves to the Spirit: we received him when we were baptized and confirmed, but it is necessary that—as a further gift—he may sprout within us again and lead us to places where we would not dare.
Thoughts on Today's Gospel
“If you shut the door of your mind, you shut out Christ. Though he can enter, he does not want to force his way in rudely, or compel us to admit him against our will” (Saint Ambrose)
“In the whole of the history of salvation, in which God has made himself close to us and patiently waits for us to take our time. He understands our infidelities, he encourages our commitment and guides us. We learn in prayer to see the signs of this merciful plan” (Benedict XVI)
“The traditional form of petition to the Holy Spirit is to invoke the Father through Christ our Lord to give us the Consoler Spirit. Jesus insists on this petition to be made in his name at the very moment when he promises the gift of the Spirit of Truth. But the simplest and most direct prayer is also traditional, ‘Come, Holy Spirit’” (Catechism Of The Catholic Church, Nº 2671)