May 2014

VI Sunday of Easter – “A” – May 25, 2014

From the Pastor /

It’s the night of the Last Supper. Jesus’ heart is filled with fear and foreboding: in just a few hours’ time He will face that most gruesome of fates – death by crucifixion. And yet His thoughts are centered not on himself but on His disciples, “my friends,” He calls them. He knows how devastating His death will be for them. And so He reassures them with the promise, “I will not leave you orphans,” and says, “I shall ask the Father and He will give you another Advocate to be with you for ever.” The Greek word for advocate is rich in meaning – a comforter, a consoler, a counsellor. Jesus has been all these to His friends, and now He assures them that someone will continue His work. This special helper, joint gift of Father and Son, is of course the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of love and truth; the Spirit who, as love, is at the heart of the Church. Today’s other readings give us glimpses of the Holy Spirit in action. In the first reading the Spirit enables Philip to proclaim, to announce fearlessly, the good news of Christ to the people in Samaria. And then, through the coming of the Holy Spirit in the Sacrament of Confirmation, the newly baptized are strengthened in their faith and their desire to share it with others. The second reading suggests that gentleness accompanies the gift of joy.

The need of the Holy Spirit has not dimnished with the passing of the decades. The word “Advocate,” used of the Holy Spirit seldom gatecrashes: the Spirit normally waits to be called in, waits to be invited. Of course, the Holy Spirit has been with us since baptism; and so what we are really praying for is that we may open our hearts and respond ever more generously to our divine guest. In that way we shall be renewed both as individuals and as Church.

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V Sunday of Easter – “A” – May 18, 2014

From the Pastor /

In today’s Gospel the song of trouble and heartbreak is about to erupt in the life of Jesus. Here, in His final conversation with His disciples, Jesus seeks to strengthen his friends in the face of the coming darkness. Very soon His own heart will be greatly troubled, as He prays in the garden of Gethsemane, knowing that His enemies are closing in. Nobody escapes trouble and heartbreak. Nobody escapes from fear. And yet there is a way out of these dark places. That heavenly place is the presence of God, and Jesus now tells us how to find our way. As His disciples are thrown into confusion, they begin to ask Him questions. Two very important questions emerge: “Lord, where are You going?” and “How can we find the way there?” He is going to God, His Father, and in following Jesus we will find our way there too.

Trouble and heartache come to everyone in this world, and in many different guises. There are issues of injustice, where people do not receive their share of bread in this world; issues of violence, where people’s lives are torn apart by bloodshed, issues of human relationship; issues of bereavement, where people suddenly lose the ones they love. The word of Jesus, spoken first to His disciples at the Last Supper, are repeated to us today: “Do not let your heart be troubled.” The Lord himself is the reason why we are not to lose hope. Today we hear what St. Peter has to say about the importance of others, about the importance of the Church. The Lord is a living stone, and we can set ourselves close to Him. It is only by being set next to one another in the Lord that we can be strong. It is this precious love in our lives that will enable us to have a care for one another, and as a Church to have a care for everyone. To rescue the human heart from trouble is the great work that we can do.

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IV Sunday of Easter – “A” – May 11, 2014

From the Pastor /

Today’s redings do not speak of mighty warships, but take us rather to the other extreme – towards a flock of frail sheep. No single image can convey all that Jesus means to us. As the first reading makes clear, this Good Shepherd of ours who was crucified is Lord and Christ; He is the long-awaited Messiah; He is God in our midst. He is not only our shepherd, says the Gospel, but the gateway that leads to life in all its fullness. “Listening” is a favorite word in St. John’s Gospel: it appears more than 50 times. Today’s reading very appropriate draws our attention to the way in which sheep listen for the voice of their shepherd; and then, they “hear” it, are ready to respond. We live in a world where many alluring voices are raised, where it’s so easy to hear and be swayed by what the Gospel calls “the voice of strangers” – the powerful voices of the media, of politicians, of celebrities, of our own peer group, even when they promote ideas and aspirations that are quite contrary to those of our Shepherd. Today we are invited once again to listen carefully for the voice of our Good Shepherd: on the one hand, not allowing it to be drawned out by other voices; on the other, recognizing that it is to be heard in many, and even in some unlikely situations.

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III Sunday of Easter – “A” – May 4, 2014

From the Pastor /

They…recognized Him at the breaking of bread. Twe depressed, half-believeing disciples on the road to Emmaus recognized the risen Lord in a setting with which you and I are instantly familiar. We are tempted to say, “There is something magic about the Mass,” but that is not right: magic has no place in Christianity. When we first met them in today’s Gospel, these two travellers on the road to Emmaus could not believe in the resurrection of Jesus. They had been His followers, and that made it worse. Jesus had to spend the whole day walking with them, explaining the psalms and prophecies of the Old Testament, to prepare them for the blinding moment of recognition.

As soon as they recognized the risen Lord, They set out that instant and returned to Jerusalem. Their joy was so great that it couldn’t wait till morning. They ran the seven miles back to the city to bring the stunning news. Jesus is alive. Their depression was lifted, their despair had disappeared. If Christ is risen, all things can be hoped for. As men and women of trust, we are oddballs in our secular world, which is grim, sarcastic, sad, expecting the worst, pooh-poohing virtue and unselfishness. We are the opposite. We can bring each day with hope in our heart, because we know that the risen Christ is with us, helping us interpret everything that may happen, casting His light on every encounter, every problem.

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