We need the same courage or boldness to proclaim the gospel of the Lord today. The Father reveals the Son to those who become like little children, those who, like Catherine, are deeply aware of their dependence on God and are completely open to all that God can give us. When it comes to the Lord we are not just one of a crowd, lost in a sea of faces. The Ethiopian on that road is a seeker. Putting words on the events that have caused us such grief can help us to find some meaning in what has transpired. so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost In todays gospel reading Jesus declares, the sheep that belong to me listen to my voice. He had been through the darkness of Good Friday, with all its pain, confusion and disillusionment. The circumstances of our own lives can make it very difficult for us to sing the Easter Alleluia with any conviction. Ananias heard the Lord speak to him, directing him to where Saul lived. We find it very hard to get started. Martin Hogan continues to write many books on the Gospel Readings for each day of the Catholic Liturgical Year. This faithfulness of the Lord is well expressed in todays gospel reading, the Lord working with them confirming the word by the signs that accompanied it. It is a city that no longer holds any attraction for them, because it is the city where their hopes have been dashed, where the perosn they have left everything to follow had been cruelly put to death. We are all called to be mystics in action, people who are called into an intimate relationship with God and his Son and then sent to live out of that relationship by bringing Gods rest and loving presence to all who are in need of it. There is a striking statement in todays first reading, Saul then worked for the total destruction of the church. Thomas, called the Twin, who was one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. She prayed that she might atone for the sins of the church, and shortly afterwards collapsed and died. In the gospel reading Jesus offers himself to us as the one who offers us the food that endures to eternal life. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. but may have eternal life. Indeed, both can often reside in the same person. AnalyticalOur website uses analytical cookies to make it possible to analyze our website and optimize for the purpose of a.o. The Lord considers anyone who is a seeker and who wishes to believe as a believer already. Are they working for food that cannot last or for food that endures to eternal life? though all who do accept his testimony What do we expect from him? A rule of life was given to the early Carmelites by St Albert Avogadro, Patriach of Jerusalem between the years 1206 - 1214. One of my favourite depictions of this scene is by an artist called Caravaggio. Certainly, Jesus did come that we may have life to the full beyond this earthly life, a sharing in his own risen life. When something traumatic happens to us, we feel the need to talk about it to someone we trust, whom we know will listen to us with care and attention. For the one whom God sent speaks the words of God. The Lords faithfulness to us prompts us to keep faith with each other, especially with those who are close to us. We hear that bigger story, Gods story, in the Scriptures. Each one of them is at the core of what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Lectio Divina - Carmelites We do not take the Spirit where we want it to go; the Spirit takes us where God wants us to go. There are forces in the world that seek to undermine that relationship and even destroy it. Supplied by the Madonna Magazine. The Jews gathered round him and said, How much longer are you going to keep us in suspense? It was then that they saw Jesus coming towards them, speaking words of reassurance, It is I. "Lectio Divina", a Latin term, means "divine reading" and describes a way of reading the Scriptures whereby we gradually let go of our own agenda and open ourselves to what God wants to say to us.In the 12th century, a Carthusian monk called Guigo, described the stages which he saw as essential to the . The Lord is always calling on us to grow in our relationship with him, to deepen our relationship with him. The natural phenomenon of the wind can speak to us of the spiritual phenomenon of the Holy Spirit. the anger of God stays on him.. they are forgiven; This Barnabas proceeded to do, urging the whole church to remain faithful to the Lord. We need to listen to the strangers in our midst. - 5:00 pm Registration. unless a man is born through water and the Spirit, Daily Reflection Archives - Ordinary Time Weeks 9-16 - Creighton University I am the gate of the sheepfold. If we invite the Lord to stay with us, in response to the many ways he touches our lives, he will lead us to the Eucharist too, where his communion with us is deepened further. Yet, the church will never disappear because, although very human, it is from God, and the risen Lord is always among us. The prayer of Jesus created a space for him to be present to his disciples in a very troubling moment. Gates have become more of a feature of our urban landscape than they used to be. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.. Subscribe to our Daily Gospel Reflections via Email! Jesus said to the crowds: No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day. In response, Nicodemus asks How can that be possible? Nicodemus is an example of someone who struggled to come to faith; he struggle to become a disciple of Jesus. His gospel is the shortest of the four, but, nonetheless, it is a very powerful telling of the Jesus story. John was very aware that none of those things could be said about himself. We begin to have hope again. Mark, in a way, produced a new kind of literature, what became known as a gospel. Our communion with the Lord in the Eucharist calls us to this ongoing form of communion. Our union with Christ through baptism is thereby strengthened in the Eucharist. The Lord can work powerfully through the members of the church, even when they seem few in number and increasingly frail, especially in the Western world. When we are faced with a challenge or a problem the way we speak about it can be very important. This work of Barnabas allowed the risen Lord to continue his work. However, that doesnt seem to have been true of the conversation the two disciples were having on the road to Emmaus. In referring to the wind, Jesus was really speaking of the Holy Spirit. He calls and he waits for us to respond to his call. In todays gospel reading we find two disciples heading away from Jerusalem having shared a very significant experience. They will all be taught by God, Josephs faithfulness to his task created the space for Jesus to be faithful to his calling. He is described as a Pharisee and a leading Jew. His investment in us will always be greater than our investment in him. He wants people to go in and out through him. He had a profound appreciation of the uniqueness of Jesus, which is why he could say, he must increase, but I must decrease. The Lord journeys with us at such times, as he walked with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus, whose spirits were certainly drooping. Jesus answered: I tell you most solemnly, We can resist for various reasons. In the words of todays responsorial psalm, we are invited to taste and see that the Lord is good. Lectio Divina is a reflection based on the daily Gospel. 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. All of a sudden it is bright beyond 7.00 pm. At such times of great discouragement, very often we can only see what went wrong. and the Son of Man must be lifted up The Lord was moving the young church in a new direction and Barnabas recognized this and supported it. When Cleopas had finished telling the stranger their story, the stranger began to tell a different story about the person and the events that were at the centre of Cleopass story. He blesses God his Father, as one who knows the Father in a way no one else does, just as his Father knows him as no one else does. Gods love revealed in the death and resurrection of Jesus had triumphed over human wickedness. The gate was the opening to safety at night and to nourishment by day, and it was the shepherd who led the sheep through the gate to safety and to nourishment. Yet, whereas the wind is an impersonal force, the Spirit is a personal force. The opening up of the Scriptures for the two disciples led them to the recognition of the Lord in the breaking of bread, the Sacrament of the Eucharist. The risen Lord can transform our lives too, making us more hopeful people. In taking him into ourselves in this very intimate way, we are taking in all that he stands for, all that he lived and died for. God is always drawing us towards his Son, who says of himself in the gospel reading, I am the bread of life. Jesus presents himself as the one who can satisfy this spiritual hunger. As they say to the religious authorities in that first reading, Obedience to God comes before obedience to men. Yet, we ourselves need to take our own steps towards the Lord, the kind of steps the Ethiopian took, if the drawing of the Father is to bear fruit in our lives. We take a tentative step in his direction and the Lord calls on us to take a more generous step. When they drew near to the village to which they were going, he made as if to go on; but they pressed him to stay with them. Then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God. Like the Lord, we carry our own wounds, some of them arising out of the crisis we are all going through, but, just as the Lords wounds were transformed by his rising from the dead, the risen Lord can transform our wounds too, recreating them as channels of new life for others. We recognize him in the Eucharist as the bread of life, in the language of todays gospel reading. These cookies may track your personal data. We all have something to receive from someone else. Now while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. In a sense, Jesus is calling on them to get their priorities right, to put most energy into what is ultimately important. The life which flowed from the side of Jesus as he hung from the cross, symbolized by the blood and water, is conveyed personally to each of us when we eat his body and drink his blood. Coming to his home town, Jesus taught the people in their synagogue in such a way that they were astonished and said, Where did the man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers? No-one has gone up to heaven except the Son of Man who has come down from heaven. When the Lord speaks about life to the full, we might be inclined to think only in terms of eternal life, life beyond this earthly life. We are very dependent on each other on this communal journey. Yet, the gospel reading also states that people need to be open to this light, to come out into the light, to love the light of Gods enduring love. God's blessings! There are no lengths to which the Lord will not go to hold onto us, to keep us in relationship with him. In reality, if the event in question is a complex and significant one, especially if it is somewhat mysterious, there are many stories that could be told about it. There is a need for different groups of people to take responsibility for different ministries. According to Luke, the public ministry of Jesus wasnt the time for the Samaritans to respond to the gospel (contrary to the gospel of John!) The gospel reading says that they were talking together about all that happened. Yet, it is clear from what Jesus has been saying that there isnt a sharp distinction between the earthly and the heavenly realm. If we are open and honest, the Lord will draw us to himself in time, in his time and in ours. Daily Homilies. Sometimes, we seem to hear that call more loudly than at other times. In his absence they found themselves struggling with a strong wind and a rough sea. At the beginning of todays gospel reading, we find the disciples closed off in a room out of fear. Whenever we share our experience with someone else it often takes the form of a story of some kind. According to the reading, when the risen Lord appeared to Paul, there came a light from heaven all around him. myself draw life from the Father, The graces never stop flowing. I know them and they follow me. Like Nicodemus, we all need to keep opening our lives more fully to the Spirit whom the risen Lord is always offering us, so that we can boldly proclaim by our lives the good news of his life, death and resurrection. His last appearance in the gospel is alongside Joseph of Arimathea, as they both arrange for Jesus to have a dignified burial. Like Thomas, they may find it difficult to identify fully with those believers who acclaim with conviction, We have seen the Lord, and whose faith seems so much more assured than theirs. He calls on us, as he called on Nicodemus, to allow ourselves to be born of the Spirit, to surrender more fully to the movement and working of the Spirit within us. They were supporting each other. The evangelist is perhaps indicating to us that serious doubt and great faith can reside in one and the same person. He journeys with us as a shepherd and a guardian to bring life out of our various experiences of death, to heal our brokenness, and, in the words of todays Responsorial Psalm, to revive my drooping spirit. Your fathers ate the manna in the desert Up until then, the story of Jesus live had been passed primarily by word of mouth. The Lord always meets us where we are; he comes to us, as we are. We may be especially conscious of our weakness in these anxious times. She prayed that she might atone for the sins of the church, and shortly afterwards collapsed and died. As we allow the Lord to touch our lives through others, through his word, through the Eucharist, we will be strengthened to continue on our pilgrim way with fresh hope in our hearts, just as the two disciples returned joyfully to Jerusalem after meeting the Lord. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. and the sheep do not belong to him, The hunger of the crowd was satisfied and there was food left over. Just as shepherd will not allow any of his flock to be stolen, because he is so protective of them, the Lord will not allow us to fall away from him, because he is so protective of us, as long as we want to remain a member of his flock and do not deliberately walk away from him. He comes at night, without drawing attention to himself. That is how it is with all who are born of the Spirit.. Jesus will do all in his power to keep us united with himself and to prevent us from being taken away from him or falling away from him. as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, In his own way, he tries to give us the fuller picture, he helps us to see the crucial bit of the story we may be missing, and, in that way, he prompts us to take a different direction, to take a different road, one that will be more life-giving for us and for others. At the beginning of our gospel reading, Jesus speaks of himself as the Son of Man who must be lifted up. During this special year focus will be placed on the vocation of all Christians as expressed by witness, love and service and as lived out in the specific call of marriage, ordained priesthood, religious life and the single life. Yet, the life that the Lord talks about there is not just a future reality, life beyond death; it is also a present reality. He can satisfy the deepest hungers and thirsts in our hearts. No one group within the church can do everything. Lectio Divina is a traditional way of praying the Scriptures so that the Word of God may penetrate our hearts and that we may grow in an intimate relationship with the Lord. The Jews gathered round him and said, How much longer are you going to keep us. He recognized that there was a boy present who had five loaves and two fish, but he realistically asked, What is that among so many people? Jesus, however, saw the rich potential of those meagre resources and immediately began to take control of the situation, Make the people sit down. We struggle to believe that Jesus could want to be as close to us as he is to his heavenly Father. There is a wonderful painting of the scene in todays first reading, the call of Paul, in a church in Rome by the artist Caravaggio. Enter your email to receive notifications of new Daily Reflection Posts. Peace be with you he said. When Jesus says in todays gospel reading that, as the good shepherd, I lay down my life for my sheep, he is saying that he lays down his life for each one of us individually. As he did with Thomas, he accommodates himself to our doubt. For on him the Father, God, has set his seal. So they said to him, What can we do to accomplish the works of God? Jesus answered and said to them, This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent.. These cookies may track your personal data. When we step into this light, there is a sense in which our sins are exposed. However, Jesus knew that this impulse was not from God and he fled from it, and the impulse passed away for the moment, even though the impulse to make the church an earthly kingdom would rear its head more than once in the following centuries. Philip and Andrew were very sceptical about Jesus ability to feed the crowds. That is what Jesus was asking of Nicodemus when he called upon him to be born of water and the Spirit. We recognize in the words of todays gospel reading that he is above all others, including all human authority, be it religious or political. A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. That is one of the purposes gates can serve. That is why he could say in his letter to the Philippians, a little written from prison, from a very unpromising situation, I can do all things through him who strengthens me. We never stand still; we are always looking for more. It is a statement worth reflecting upon. The sequence for us has been a little different, because it began with baptism. He listens to and respects the stories we tell, but he is always trying to open us up to that bigger story of Gods life-giving work among us. We have compiled a comprehensive set of reflections on the readings, covering the entire year. That beatitude embraces all of us gathered here this morning. Jesus told them this parable but they failed to understand what he meant by telling it to them. Something of a storm was brewing in this young church, which became the mother church, because it was from the church in Jerusalem that the other churches were founded. The way the risen Lord related to tthem is how he relates to us all. The death of Jesus had destroyed their hope. Having listened to the Lords story from the Scriptures, they pressed him to stay with them, because he appeared to be going on, It is nearly evening they said and the day is almost over. He had a sense of the Lord coming to him in the sound of a gentle breeze. Having told the story to each other, the two disciples told it to the stranger who joined them on the road. Our point of view, like that of the two disciples, can be limited. Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News. One thing we can be sure of is that, whatever the Lords personal call to each one of us is, it will always be a call towards life. When Jesus stood among them, he first said to them, Peace be with you. he cannot see the kingdom of God.. People who are going through a similar grieving experience can give great strength to each other. In this mornings gospel reading, Jesus declares, I have come so that they may have life, and have it to the full. This is why he draws attention so strongly in todays gospel to the importance of working for the food that endures to eternal life. Many of us are concerned about break-ins at the moment. It seems that in the course of Jesus public ministry he gradually grew in his relationship with Jesus; he allowed himself to be drawn to Jesus more fully. The evangelist declares that Jesus, Gods Son, reveals Gods love for the world and for each of us individually. He calls to us as someone who knows us and cares about us. One thing we can be sure of is that, whatever the Lords personal call to each one of us is, it will always be a call towards life. We gather to celebrate the Eucharist so that we can draw life from the Lord. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. Nicodemus was a teacher of Israel and he related to Jesus as a fellow teacher, we know that you are a teacher who comes from God. Daily Life of a Secular Carmelite The foundation and essence of our vocation is prayer. Jesus invites us to imagine a shepherd who will stop at nothing to prevent any would-be thief from stealing even one sheep from his flock. After Jesus had fed the five thousand, his disciples saw him walking on the water. We come before him because we know he has a fullness from which he wants us to receive, so that our deepest hungers and thirsts can be satisfied. Saint Paul had that same conviction which he expressed in his letter to the Romans when he said, If God is for us, who is against us? God is for us in and through Jesus our good shepherd. These cookies may track your personal data. so that it may be plainly seen that what he does is done in God.. This is how the Spirit continues to shape the life of the church. Yet, the Lords part in our relationship with him is always so much greater than ours. The Lord comes to us in the Eucharist to draw us to himself so that he can live in us and through us. Catherine stood out as a beacon of light in a dark time. In this moment of communion, heaven comes to earth and eternal life breaks into this earthly life. Jesus is concerned when people are physically hungry, when their basic physical needs are not being met, but he always leads us beyond the level of the physical, the material, to more ultimate realities. It is important that people feel safe in their own homes, but all the security can leave us a little bit more cut off from our neighbours and friendly visitors than we would like. abandons the sheep and runs away There is always a sense in which we can say with John the Baptist he must increase and I must decrease. In receiving Jesus in the Eucharist, we are inviting him to live out in us his life towards God and towards others. Ever since, the church has repeated the actions and words of Jesus at the last supper. That may have been the experience of many during these Covid times. Catholic Daily Reflections My Catholic Life! In calling us to himself he also sends us into the world afire with the flame of his love. The story of the Ethiopian shows that if we seek the Lord we will find him, because the Lord is always seeking us. Yet, all we can do is stay with our questions and be faithful to our search. Do Not Be Afraid April 22, 2023 - Saturday of the Second Week of Easter Superabundance April 21, 2023 - Friday of the Second Week of Easter - Saint Anselm of Canterbury, Bishop and Doctor of the ChurchOptional Memorial The Meaning of Love April 20, 2023 - Thursday of the Second Week of Easter In other words, it is in giving that we receive; it is in giving life to others that we receive life and become fully alive ourselves. That is why we treasure the books of the gospels so much, because if Jesus bears witness to God, the gospels bear witness to Jesus. The Father loves the Son Earlier in that gospel reading, Jesus spoke about the intimate relationship he has with God his Father, No one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son. The Lord calls us to a fullness of life now, and hereafter. The bread that we break, is it not a communion in the body of Christ? This was the faith of the early church and of the church ever since. The second stage is meditatio (reflection) where we think about the text we have chosen and ruminate upon it so that we take from it what God wants to give us. Philip and Andrew were both at a loss. As Peter declares in that first reading, we have a sure hope. Do not be surprised when I say: we speak only about what we know These cookies may track your personal data. The story the stranger told the two travellers ended in the triumph of new life over death, Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer and so enter into his glory? This was the bigger story which the stranger told from the Scriptures and which complemented and completed the story of the two disciples. Indeed, Jesus describes the good shepherd as one who is prepared to give nothing less than everything, his own life. We can always slip back into the mood of Good Friday, tentative about our relationship with the Lord, fearful of making it known. Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.. In that image Jesus paints in the gospel reading, the shepherd does not lead the sheep to pasture one at a time, but together as a flock. It was St Irenaeus, one of the early theologians of the church, who said that the glory of God is the human person fully alive. The Spirit may be mysterious but when the Spirit takes shape in a human life we recognize the Spirits attractiveness. The hired man, since he is not the shepherd but so that through him the world might be saved. Jesus identifies himself as the gate in this sense. Divine Office the usability. In todays gospel reading Jesus declares that our coming to Jesus is in response to the drawing of the Father, no one can come to me unless they are drawn by the Father who sent me. When they find him, Jesus reveals to them what it is that motivates their seeking. The tendency of Philip and Andrew in the gospel story was to complain about the hopelessness of the situation, Two hundred denarii would not buy enough What is that between so many? We are all prone to throwing our hands up to the heavens in exasperation and even despair at the perceived extent of some problem. As they approached the village to which they were going, he gave the impression that he was going on farther. The Lord calls each of us in accordance with our own particular nature. Sometimes we need someone else, perhaps even a stranger, to show us what we have failed to see. Gates can be understood as both barring the way and opening up a way. The sea was stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. He had just fed the people in the wilderness with bread and fish; he was very aware that peoples physical hunger needed to be satisfied. Now the risen Lord, through Philip, preaches the gospel to the Samaritans and this time they welcome the gospel. When the Lord speaks about life to the full there, we might be tempted to think only in terms of eternal life, life beyond death. OtherOur website places 3rd party cookies from other 3rd party services which aren't Analytical, Social media or Advertising. Jesus said to the crowds, I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst. Jesus knew that something could be done and he involved his disciples in doing what could be done, calling on them to make the people sit down and then asking them to collect the pieces that were left over when everyone had eaten. Todays gospel reading suggests that the Lord walks with us through life and listens when we share deeply with him. We often feel the call to move beyond where we are, to reach for a different shore. In the case of infants, it is the faith of the parents and family and the faith of the believing community that is presupposed. He comes from above, from heaven, and bears witness to what he has seen and heard there.
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