MAY 13, 2012 : SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER

Sixth Sunday of Easter
Lectionary: 56

Reading 1 Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48

When Peter entered, Cornelius met him
and, falling at his feet, paid him homage.
Peter, however, raised him up, saying,
"Get up. I myself am also a human being."

Then Peter proceeded to speak and said,
"In truth, I see that God shows no partiality.
Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly
is acceptable to him."

While Peter was still speaking these things,
the Holy Spirit fell upon all who were listening to the word.
The circumcised believers who had accompanied Peter
were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit
should have been poured out on the Gentiles also,
for they could hear them speaking in tongues and glorifying God.
Then Peter responded,
"Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people,
who have received the Holy Spirit even as we have?"
He ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 98:1, 2-3, 3-4

R. (cf. 2b) The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Reading 2 1 Jn 4:7-10

Beloved, let us love one another,
because love is of God;
everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God.
Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love.
In this way the love of God was revealed to us:
God sent his only Son into the world
so that we might have life through him.
In this is love:
not that we have loved God, but that he loved us
and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.

Gospel Jn 15:9-17

Jesus said to his disciples:
"As the Father loves me, so I also love you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father"s commandments
and remain in his love."

"I have told you this so that my joy may be in you
and your joy might be complete.
This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.
No one has greater love than this,
to lay down one's life for one's friends.
You are my friends if you do what I command you.
I no longer call you slaves,
because a slave does not know what his master is doing.
I have called you friends,
because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father.
It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you
and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain,
so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you.
This I command you: love one another."

Scripture Study

May 13, 2012 Sixth Sunday of Easter

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Happy Easter! Yes, it is still Easter. We are not quite through celebrating the central event of our faith. This weekend the Church celebrates the Sixth Sunday of Easter. Thursday of next week is the celebration of the Ascension of the Lord in most of the world. In several ecclesiastical provinces of North America, however, this celebration is transferred to the following Sunday. In those places, the second reading and the gospel reading for the Seventh Sunday of Easter may be substituted for the second reading and gospel reading of this Sunday. If you live in one of those place, as I do, be flexible. For the purposes of this Scripture Series I will use the readings given for this Sunday (the Sixth Sunday of Easter) this week and those for the Ascension, next week because those are the readings that will be used at St. Raymond Parish.
The first reading is a look at the Spirit's action in drawing people into the church from the ranks of "outsiders." The church must follow where the Spirit leads. In the second reading, John indicates that all love originates in God and that the ultimate expression of that love was God sending Jesus. The Gospel tells us that we must remain in Christ's love and that our status as His friends demands that we act accordingly. We must live out the love of Jesus if we are truly to be friends of God.

 NOTES on First Reading:

* The portions of the text shown above in brackets are not included in the reading. I included them to make the reading easier to follow for those who are unfamiliar with the story.

* 10:25 In the ancient world there was a very thin line between religion and superstition even with a man like Cornelius. In spite of his religious experience and apparent faith in the God of Israel he treats Peter as if he were divine. 

* 10:28 This is a reference back to the vision of Acts 10:9-16 which he understands in the light of the angelic visitation recounted in 10:22. 

* 10:34-43 Peter's speech to the household of Cornelius is probably fairly typical of early Christian preaching to Gentiles. 

For this speech Luke has taken material that was already part of the Christian tradition and reworked it to some extent. It is full of Luke's universalist themes and language. 

* 10:35 God's choice of Israel to be the people of God so that He might reveal Himself did not mean that he withheld Divine favor from all the other peoples of the earth. All the peoples of the world are loved by God. 

* 10:36-43 This speech has the ring of Luke speaking more directly to his Christian readers rather than Peter speaking to the household of Cornelius, as is indicated by the opening words, "You know." The speech traces the continuity between the preaching and teaching of Jesus of Nazareth and the proclamation of Jesus by the early Christians. The emphasis on this divinely ordained continuity (Acts 10:41) is meant to assure Luke's readers of the fidelity of Christian tradition to the words and deeds of Jesus. 

* 10:38 The early church saw the ministry of Jesus as an integral part of God's revelation. For this reason they were interested in conserving the historical substance of the ministry of Jesus. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit this tradition lead to the writing and preservation of the four gospels. The passion and urgency in the tone of the remaining verses (up to 44) of this speech clearly show this desire to pass on the teaching of Jesus. 

* 10:44 The Gentiles receive the Gift of the Spirit just as the Jewish Christians did. This is but one of the several Pentecost-like events related in Acts. The Spirit's action is presented here as being unmediated and therefore a complete gift without dependence even on Baptism. 

* 10:45 The Spirit's power was greater than the religious divisions of the day. God still acts without regard to the limitations we attempt to place on Him. 

* 10:46 They are described as doing the same thing that the Jewish Christians did when they received the Spirit (Acts 2:4). 

* 10:47-48 This is one of the main points of the story. The spirit of God is in charge of the action. The Spirit has moved; the institution (church) can only follow as He has led.

NOTES on Second Reading:

* 4:7-12 These verses present a theological reflection on love as a central attribute in the nature of God and as a primary means of experiencing God's presence. We show that we are children of God by our love for others. The depths of God's love is expressed in the free gift of his Son for us, given so that we might share life with God. The love we have for one another must be modeled after this love of God. In this unique Christian love we know God and can "see" the invisible God. 

* 4:8 Because love is so central to God's nature, one who is without love is without God. 

* 4:9 God's love was shown in the gift of Jesus. That love is revealed even now in us by the continuing action of the body of Jesus (the Church).

* 4:10 The depths of God's love is expressed in the free gift of his Son for us, given so that we might share life with God. Any love we have for one another is but a pale reflection of the love of God for us.

NOTES on Gospel:

* 15:9 This mutual love is grounded in the fact that both Jesus and the disciples keep the commands of love and abide in the love of the Father as expressed in Jesus. 

* 15:13 The words "for one's friends" can also be translated as "those whom one loves." In John 15:9-13a, the Greek words used for love are related to the Greek word, "agapao." In John 15:13b-15, the Greek words for love are related to the Greek, "phileo." Here in John, the two roots seem synonymous and mean "to love." See also John 21:15-17. Here the word, philos, is used. 

Wisdom 7:27 speaks of the "wise" as God's friends. Here that tradition is expanded to include all those who believe rather than only a select few. 

* 15:15 Moses (Deut 34:5), Joshua (Joshua 24:29), and David (Psalm 89:21) were all called "servants" or "slaves of Yahweh." Abraham (Isaiah 41:8; 2 Chron 20:7; see also James 2:23) is the only one who was called a "friend of God." 

* 15:16 In the earlier parts of John's Gospel, salvation was linked to believing. Here the stress is on "bearing fruit" as the result of having received the new status as "friends."

 (st-raymond-dublin.org)

Meditation: "I have called you friends, for all that I have  heard from my Father I have made known to you"

What is the greatest act of love – of self-giving for the sake of another? Jesus defines friendship, the mutual bond of trust and affection between two or more people, as the willingness to give totally of oneself even to the point of dying for one's friends. How is such love possible or even desireable? God made us in love for love. That is our reason for being, our purpose for living, and our goal in dying. God is love and everything he does flows from his love for us. He loved us so much, some might even mistakenly say too much, by giving us the best of all gifts, the offering of his beloved Son who gave his life as the atoning sacrifice for our sins. God gave up his Son so that we might become his sons and daughters, his adopted children (Romans 8:14-17).

Paul the Apostle tells us that we can abound in hope because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given us (Romans 5:5). God's love has power to transform and change us so that we can be like him – merciful, kind, gracious, and forgiving. In God's love we find the fulness of grace, peace, life and joy. That is why Jesus came to give us abundant life through the gift and working of the Holy Spirit. Jesus gave his disciples a new commandment – a new way of loving and serving one another. Jesus' love was wholly directed toward the good of others. He love them for their sake and for their welfare. That is why he layed down his own life for us to free us from sin, death, fear, and every thing that could hold us back from the love of God. We are to love others as Jesus has loved us. What is the essence of this new commandment? True love is sacrificial. It gives all to the beloved. It holds nothing back. It is wholly directed towards the good of another. There is no greater proof in love than the sacrifice of one's life for the sake of another. Jesus proved his love for his disciples by giving his life for them, even to death on the cross. We prove our love for God and for one another when we embrace the way of the cross. What is the cross in my life? When my will crosses with God's will, then God's will must be done. Do you know the joy and contentment of a life fully surrendered to God and consumed with his love?

Jesus called his disciples his friends. Jesus not only showed his disciples that he cared for them. He enjoyed their company. He ate with them, shared everything he had with them – even his most intimate thoughts. And he spent himself doing good for them. To know Jesus is to know God and to understand the love and friendship God offers each one of us. One of the special marks of favor shown in the scriptures is to be called the friend of God. Abraham is called the friend of God (Isaiah 41:8). God speaks with Moses as a man speaks with his friend (Exodus 33:11). Jesus, the Lord and Master, in turn, calls the disciples his friends rather than his servants. What does it mean to be a friend of God? Friendship with God certainly entails a loving relationship which goes beyond mere duty and obedience. Jesus' discourse on friendship and brotherly love echoes the words of Proverbs: A friend loves at all times; and a brother is born for adversity (Proverbs 17:17). The distinctive feature of Jesus' relationship with his disciples was his personal love for them. He loved his own to the end (John 13:1). His love was unconditional and wholly directed to the good of others. His love was also sacrificial. He gave the best he had and all that he had.  He gave his very life for those he loved in order to secure for them everlasting life with the Father.

True love is costly. Those who truly love give the best they can offer and are willing to sacrifice everything they has for the beloved. God willingly paid the price for our redemption – the sacrifice of his only begotten Son. That's the nature of true friendship and love – the willingness to give all for the beloved. True friends will lay down their lives for each other. Jesus tells us that he is our friend and he loves us whole-heartedly and unconditionally. He wants us to love one another just as he loves us, whole-heartedly and without reserve. His love fills our hearts and transforms our minds and frees us to give ourselves in loving service to others. If we open our hearts to his love and obey his command to love our neighbor, then we will bear much fruit in our lives, fruit that will last for eternity. Do you wish to be fruitful and to abound in the love of God?

"Teach us, good Lord, to serve you as you deserve, to give and not to count the cost, to fight and not to heed the wounds, to toil and not to seek for rest, to labor and not to ask for any reward, save that of knowing that we do your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord."  (Prayer of Ignatius Loyola)

(This reflection is courtesy of Don Schwager, whose website is located at: http://www.rc.net/wcc/readings/)

The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power

‘I have loved you just as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love.’
Peter may not have understood fully what these words meant when he was a disciple of Jesus. But there’s no doubt the post-resurrection Peter not only understood, but lived out the message and proclaimed it fearlessly. In today’s reading from Acts the power of Peter’s faith and the strength of his words ring out confidently.

I love this post-Easter time when we read from Acts. The early church must have faced the same hostility and opposition that Jesus faced but it didn’t dim their faith. It inspired them and they in turn inspire me. God’s love empowered Jesus and he invites us to do the same, to be loving communities. God’s Word does work wonders. Let us give thanks and be glad that we hear it today!

MINUTE MEDITATIONS 

Complementary Union
God made my wife fully woman and made me fully man, and he made us both fully complementary, for love and procreation. We are equal but not the same, and that is his grand design.
— from The Catholics Next Door  OUR LADY OF FATIMA

Between May 13 and October 13, 1917, three Portuguese children received apparitions of Our Lady at Cova da Iria, near Fatima, a city 110 miles north of Lisbon. (See February 20 entry for Blessed Jacinta and Francisco Marto). Mary asked the children to pray the rosary for world peace, for the end of World War I, for sinners and for the conversion of Russia. The third visionary, Lucia dos Santos, became a Carmelite nun and died in 2005 at the age of 97.

Mary gave the children three secrets. Since Francisco died in 1919 and Jacinta the following year, Lucia revealed the first secret in 1927, concerning devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The second secret was a vision of hell.
Pope John Paul II directed the Holy See's Secretary of State to reveal the third secret in 2000; it spoke of a "bishop in white" who was shot by a group of soldiers who fired bullets and arrows into him. Many people linked this to the assassination attempt against Pope John Paul II in St. Peter's Square on May 13, 1981.
The feast of Our Lady of Fatima was approved by the local bishop in 1930; it was added to the Church's worldwide calendar in 2002.

Comment:

The message of Fatima is simple: Pray. Unfortunately, some people—not Sister Lucia—have distorted these revelations, making them into an apocalyptic event for which they are now the only reliable interpreters. They have, for example, claimed that Mary's request that the world be consecrated to her has been ignored. Sister Lucia agreed that Pope John Paul II's public consecration in St. Peter's Square on March 25, 1984, fulfilled Mary's request. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith prepared a June 26, 2000, document explaining the “third secret” (available at www.vatican.va).

Mary is perfectly honored when people generously imitate her response “Let it be done to me as you say” (Luke 1:38). Mary can never be seen as a rival to Jesus or to the Church's teaching authority, as exercised by the college of bishops united with the bishop of Rome.

Quote:

“Throughout history there have been supernatural apparitions and signs which go to the heart of human events and which, to the surprise of believers and non-believers alike, play their part in the unfolding of history. These manifestations can never contradict the content of faith and must, therefore, have their focus in the core of Christ's proclamation: the Father's love which leads men and women to conversion and bestows the grace required to abandon oneself to him with filial devotion. This too is the message of Fatima which, with its urgent call to conversion and penance, draws us to the heart of the Gospel” (The Message of Fatima, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, June 26, 2000).

OUR LADY OF FATIMA

SUNDAY, MAY 13, 2012

May 13 is the anniversary of the apparition of Our Lady to three shepherd children in the small village of Fatima in Portugal in 1917.  She appeared six times to Lucia, 9, and her cousins Francisco, 8, and his sister Jacinta, 6, between May 13, 1917 and October 13, 1917.

The story of Fatima begins in 1916, when, against the backdrop of the First World War which had introduced Europe to the most horrific and powerful forms of warfare yet seen, and a year before the Communist revolution would plunge Russia and later Eastern Europe into six decades of oppression under militant atheistic governments, a resplendent figure appeared to the three children who were in the field tending the family sheep. “I am the Angel of Peace,” said the figure, who appeared to them two more times that year exhorting them to accept the sufferings that the Lord allowed them to undergo as an act of reparation for the sins which offend Him, and to pray constantly for the conversion of sinners.

Then, on the 13th day of the month of Our Lady, May 1917, an apparition of ‘a woman all in white, more brilliant than the sun’ presented itself to the three children saying “Please don’t be afraid of me, I’m not going to harm you.” Lucia asked her where she came from and she responded,  “I come from Heaven.”  The woman wore a white mantle edged with gold and held a rosary in her hand. The woman asked them to pray and devote themselves to the Holy Trinity and to “say the Rosary every day, to bring peace to the world and an end to the war.”

She also revealed that the children would suffer, especially from the unbelief of their friends and families, and that the two younger children, Francisco and Jacinta would be taken to Heaven very soon but Lucia would live longer in order to spread her message and devotion to the Immaculate Heart.

In the last apparition the woman revealed her name in response to Lucia’s question:   “I am the Lady of the Rosary.”

That same day, 70,000 people had turned out to witness the apparition, following a promise by the woman that she would show the people that the apparitions were true. They saw the sun make three circles and move around the sky in an incredible zigzag movement in a manner which left no doubt in their minds about the veracity of the apparitions.  By 1930 the Bishop had approved of the apparitions and they have been approved by the Church as authentic.

The messages Our Lady imparted during the apparitions to the children concerned the violent trials that would afflict the world by means of war, starvation, and the persecution of the Church and the Holy Father in the twentieth century if the world did not make reparation for sins. She exhorted the Church to pray and offer sacrifices to God in order that peace may come upon the world, and that the trials may be averted.

Our Lady of Fatima revealed three prophetic “secrets,” the first two of which were revealed earlier and refer to the vision of hell and the souls languishing there, the request for an ardent devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the prediction of the Second World War, and finally the prediction of the immense damage that Russia would do to humanity by abandoning the Christian faith and embracing Communist totalitarianism.  The third “secret” was not revealed until the year 2000, and referred to the persecutions that humanity would undergo in the last century: “The good will be martyred; the Holy Father will have much to suffer; various nations will be annihilated'”.  The suffering of the popes of the 20th century has been interpreted to include the assassination attempt on Pope John Paul II in 1981, which took place on May 13, the 64th anniversary of the apparitions. The Holy Father attributed his escape from certain death to the intervention of Our Lady: “... it was a mother's hand that guided the bullet's path and in his throes the Pope halted at the threshold of death.”

What is the central meaning of the message of Fatima? Nothing different from what the Church has always taught: it is, as Cardinal Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict the XVI,  has put it, “the exhortation to prayer as the path of “salvation for souls” and, likewise, the summons to penance and conversion.”

Perhaps the most well known utterance of the apparition of Our Lady at Fatima was her confident decalaration that  “My Immaculate Heart will triumph”. Cardinal Ratzinger has interpreted this utterance as follows: “The Heart open to God, purified by contemplation of God, is stronger than guns and weapons of every kind. The fiat of Mary, the word of her heart, has changed the history of the world, because it brought the Saviour into the world—because, thanks to her Yes, God could become man in our world and remains so for all time. The Evil One has power in this world, as we see and experience continually; he has power because our freedom continually lets itself be led away from God. But since God himself took a human heart and has thus steered human freedom towards what is good, the freedom to choose evil no longer has the last word. From that time forth, the word that prevails is this: “In the world you will have tribulation, but take heart; I have overcome the world” (Jn 16:33). The message of Fatima invites us to trust in this promise.