Friday, May 23, 2014

Friday of the Fifth Week of Easter

(Acts 15:22-31; John 15:12-17)

In "Peter Pan," the captivating story about coming of age, children are taught a lesson on wish-making. When Tinker Bell offers to grant any worthy wish, the tots ask for frivolous things like candy and toys. They seem perplexed when their requests are dismissed. Then they catch on. They should seek noble qualities, like happiness and peace. This is the kind of request that Jesus has in mind in the gospel today.

Jesus tells his disciples, whom he now regards as friends, that they have developed a new level of consciousness. They will no longer be thinking in the ways of the world; that is, they will not be looking out primarily for their own welfare. No, from now on they will pursue God's will above all.

Some Christians will trivialize faith by praying that their baseball team win the pennant or for some other frivolous thing. But faith has an infinitely higher purpose. It is to connect us to God so that we might have the way to eternal life. Of course, we have to God to meet our real needs, but may our petitions always be in line with His plan for us. Let us ask for patience to take good care of our children and for courage to face pain and death. Such requests, Jesus assures us, the Father always honors.

Thursday, May 22, 2014

Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter

(Acts 15:7-21; John 15:9-11)

In his encyclical "Ut Unum Sint" Blessed John Paul II expressed the willingness to envision a new form of papal leadership. In a significant outreach to Orthodox and Protestant Christianity the pope asked for suggestions to change his office to accommodate non-Catholic Christians without compromising truth. His offer is reminiscent of the concession that the first followers of Christ are making in the readings from the Acts of the Apostles today.

In the beginning Judaism was as much a part of Christianity as Mother's Day is part of Americanism. God chose the Jews to be His own people, and, as Jesus says in the Gospel of John, "Salvation is from the Jews." But this does not mean that one has to become a Jew to be saved. Peter proclaims what Jesus' disciples know instinctively: salvation does not come from Jewish ritual and the Jewish diet but from the grace of the particular Jew, Jesus Christ.

The great ecumenical question for us is not how much change in the papacy we are willing to accept but how much personal renewal we are willing to make. Some Catholics may harbor prejudices against non-Catholics which surely have to go. Most of us need to emulate the virtues of other kinds of Christians - like the Baptists’ serious study of the word of God or Orthodoxies’ devotional prayer. Finally, all of us must pray more determinedly with Christian brothers and sisters for unity.

Wednesday, May 21, 2014

Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Easter

(Acts 15:1-6; John 15:1-8)

An orthodox Jewish woman writes of her ordeal to keep her head covered at all times.  According to Jewish law married women must never show their hair in public.  It was a bit difficult until the woman started to wearing wigs.  Then she had the best groomed hair of all without infringing the law a bit.  Her trial gives us a sense of the dilemma facing the Jesus movement in today’s reading from Acts.

Surprisingly the text describes Pharisee’s who believe in Jesus.  With reason they say that to be Jesus’ disciples, people have to keep the Jewish law.  After all, Jesus always obeyed the law and taught his followers to do likewise.  Nevertheless, expecting Gentiles to eat kosher, as Paul fully realizes, will severely hamper the outreach of the gospel.  The issue begs for wisdom as everyone realizes when the matter is taken to Jerusalem.

Many people today leave the Church because of what they perceive as unreasonable rules.  It seems rigorist to them that one cannot remarry after entering a frivolous marriage in their youth or that they commit a mortal sin when they use artificial contraception to prevent a pregnancy that would threaten a woman’s life.  We should realize that such positions are not arbitrary regulations but truths born of study and prayer.  We need also to pray for those who depart from our ranks for these reasons – that they sincerely search for God’s will and do not balk at every sacrifice God demands of them.

Tuesday, Msy 20, 2014

Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter

(Acts 14:19-28; John 14:27-31a)

In the third century the priest Arius exploited a clause in today’s gospel reading.  He claimed that when Jesus said, “…the Father is greater than I,” he was admitting that he was not God.  The argument was eventually rejected by the bishops at Nicea, who believed that in this passage Jesus was referring to his humanity, not his divinity.  Much later, the bishops assembled for the Second Vatican Council criticized the use of Scripture as a tool to prove different theological positions.  In their view, the purpose of Scripture is to facilitate the human encounter with God. 

It is wise to be aware that, as Shakespeare wrote, “The devil can cite Scripture for his own purpose.”  The sacred writing should not be used as a sword to tear apart another’s argument.  Rather we read it to know God.  Its message assures us of his care for us.  As Jesus indicates in the selection at hand, God’s care brings us true peace.

Monday, May 19, 2014

Monday of the Fifth Week of Easter

(Acts 14:5-18; John 14:21-26)

Trolling is a word that has taken new meaning since the Interne came into widespread use.  At one time it referred to fishing with a moving line.  Now it is commonly used to describe the insidious practice of posting negative comments on Internet sites to provoke discord.  Trolling exemplifies the nasty world that Jesus shuns in today’s gospel.

Jesus tells his disciples that he will reveal himself to those who love him, but not to the world.  Of course, anyone can read the gospel to learn the content of Jesus’ revelation.  But unless one practices Jesus’ commandment of love, the revelation will go unfulfilled.  It is like the proverbial tree falling in a forest with no one to hear it.  There cannot be revelation in the first case as there is not sound in the second.

Nevertheless, Christ sends us into the world to proclaim his resurrection.  We meet it and greet it.  We will note hints of openness that beg dialogue which may even enrich us.  Nevertheless, we need to proceed with care.  The world has its snares that may lead us astray perhaps with more likelihood than we will be able to lead it to Christ.