As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love.

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter | USCCB

In our gospel for today's mass from John 15 we hear Jesus talk about the love of the Father and Jesus' love for us. He's asking us to remain in His love. This is the central teaching of our Lord: To love God with our whole mind, heart and soul and to love our neighbor as our selves. 

On the Carmelite calendar for today we celebrate the feast of Saint Joachina de Vedruna de Mas who understood this love that Jesus is talking about. She was born in Barcelona in 1783. She married and had 9 children. In 1816 she became a widow and felt a call to form the Congregation of Carmelite Sisters of Charity. 

In one of her writings she says, "If only we were all on fire with love for God! If we were, we should preach love, proclaim love, and yet more love, until we had set the whole world on fire. We must have great desires: then God will give us whatever is best for us." I'm sure during her lifetime she reflected on this gospel from John 15 and applied it to how she lived her life and how she developed her congregation. She knew that God is love and his love for us is all important as to how we live out our lives here on earth. 

In our daily lives we meet many people, whether in our families, or just going about our daily routine. It is in these daily encounters that we are to bring the love of God into the world to transform it into a place that is pleasing to God. 

She concludes in this writing on love, "Love, love, and yet more love-love that is never satisfied! The more we love God, the more we shall long to love him And when we have Jesus in our hearts, we shall have everything else in him and with him."

Let us, through the help of Saint Joachina, remember to love God always and to live out our lives with love towards everyone we meet. Saint Joachina, pray for us.

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Friday of the Fourth Week of Easter | USCCB

This gospel is often used at either wakes or funerals to give comfort to the family and friends of the dearly departed. I find these words most comforting. Our life can be full of troubles, whether it’s over the loss of a loved one, or just dealing with family problems that arise in our relationship with each other. Life is full of anxiety and problems. But in these words, Jesus is reminding us that we need to have faith in the Father and in Him, and they will be present to us in our cares and worries.  

Then the Lord goes on to promise a special dwelling place for each one of us. It’s comforting to know that the Lord is so concerned for us and loves us so much that he is preparing a special place for each one of us to go to be happy with him for all eternity.

It’s at this point that St. Thomas asks the question, "Master, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?" (John 14:5) Thomas is always asking these great questions. And as a result, we learn who Jesus is. Jesus says, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)

In this gospel for today, it is reminding us to always keep focused on Jesus no matter what our problems happen to be. As we go throughout our day and face the different challenges, let us pray often the familiar words of St. Faustine, “Jesus I trust in thee.”

"Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Friday of the Third Week of Easter | USCCB

Our readings for today's mass have a lot to reflect upon. In our first reading from Acts, chapter 9:1-20 we hear of Saul (who would go onto become Paul) persecuting the early Christians. In today's reading he was on his way to Damascus, with letters from the high priests, giving him permission to arrest and bring back to Jerusalem those Christians who were followers of Jesus Christ. Then something amazing happens. A bright light knocks Saul to the ground and the voice of the Lord Jesus asks, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?" (Acts 9:4).  Saul would go on to find out that by persecuting the early Christians he is also persecuting the Lord Jesus. Once he arrives in Damascus one of the followers of Jesus, Ananias, with great fear of Paul, but with the prompting of Jesus, goes to Saul, and Saul is baptized and then goes on to preach about salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. All were amazed that this persecutor and murderer of the early Christians was now proclaiming faith in Jesus Christ. 

The Lord Jesus heard the prayers of the early Christians, including the prayers of the first martyr (and deacon), St. Stephen who, as he was being stoned by Saul and the others, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them." (Acts 7:60) This example of prayer for others who may not believe as we do and may be attacking us for our beliefs gives us hope that prayers we have for those we know who do not believe will be effective. Paul's conversion was extraordinary, but a lot of conversions happen in small and unexpected ways. We are, like Stephen and the other early Christians, called to pray for those people we know that may not believe in salvation through Jesus. Then, in His own way, Jesus will enter into the hearts of those we are praying for. 

Then in the gospel we hear Jesus teach on the Eucharist. He says, "Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood has eternal life." (John 6:54).  Many of the Jews had problems accepting and believing in this and left. This teaching of Jesus is central to our belief in His real presence int the Blessed Sacrament. Once the priest says the words of consecration, the bread and wine BECOME the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. Jesus really meant what he said in his promise that he would feed us with His body and blood.

That's why it's important to approach Holy Communion worthily. St. Paul teaches us, "Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord.* (1 Corinthians 11:27) 

Before Mass, as we anticipate receiving the Lord in Holy Communion, we need to examine our conscience. If we find ourselves unworthy, then as soon as possible, we need to go to confession before we receive Holy Communion. 

The message in today's readings is first: pray for those who may not believe or accept Jesus as their savior, and second: to make sure we approach the blessed sacrament in a worthy manner by the frequent use of confession. Living out our lives in a way that pleases the Lord is the best way to bring others to Christ. They will see our way of life and try to come to Jesus as well. 

This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world

 

Scripture readings for today's reflection can be found at Memorial of Saint Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church | USCCB

In our gospel for today we hear of the familiar story of Jesus feeding 5,000 people. These were people that were following Jesus and seeing him heal their sick. They were naturally attracted to Jesus due to the good he was doing among them. Jesus was showing them the love God has towards all of them and was helping them to develop a deeper relationship with the Father.

Then, seeing their hunger and having concern for their welfare, Jesus decided to feed the crowd. He knew how he was going to do this but was putting the apostles to the test. They really didn’t know how to resolve such an issue. They saw the vast crowd and couldn’t figure out how to feed all of them with such a small amount of food that the boy had.

Jesus took control. After everyone sat down, Jesus gave thanks for the food and had the apostles distribute it. As a result, there was plenty of food left over once everyone was fed.

We see really two things in Jesus feeding the five thousand: first, we should expect to have our faith tested. Second, we should look to the Lord and expect him to provide for us abundantly.

In our own day-to-day lives, we have many different struggles that we don’t know how to resolve. Instead of trying to solve these problems alone, we need to learn from the apostles: turn to Jesus in prayer and he will help us in whatever situation we’re facing. This gospel is teaching us that Jesus is always present to us, whether we’re sick, or hungry, or facing difficult situations. We may not get the resolution to our problems in a way that we want, but the Lord will respond to our problems in a way that we need. Jesus is always present to us in all our needs. We just need to go to Him in prayer to help us through all our issues and problems. Jesus will always be there for us. Our prayer to Jesus should always be, “Jesus, I trust in you!”

“Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.”

 

Scripture for this reflection can be found at Saturday in the Octave of Easter | USCCB

On this Saturday within the Octave of Easter, we continue with the Acts of the Apostles in our first reading and another resurrection account in the Gospel.

In the gospel, Mary Magdalene encounters the risen Jesus and overjoyed, ran to tell the apostles. They found it hard to believe her. Then the Lord appeared to the 11 and rebuked them for not believing Mary and the others for their experience of the risen Lord. It was at this time they came to truly know and believe that the Lord has indeed risen from the dead. He gives them the instructions, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.” (Mark 16:15). Jesus then ascends into heaven and then they go forth to proclaim salvation in the Risen Lord.

In the Acts of the Apostles for today (Acts 4:13-21) we see the boldness of Peter and John in proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ. They weren't afraid when the Sandhendrin warned them not to preach about Jesus. Their response was, “Whether it is right in the sight of God for us to obey you rather than God, you be the judges. It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:19) It was through the power of the Holy Spirit that they received this courage to share the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ.

We, as followers of Jesus, are called to be as bold as the apostles in sharing our faith in the Risen Lord. Like the apostles, we'll run into obstacles in sharing our faith. There will be those who will not accept the fact that Jesus not only died on the cross but rose again on the third day. We are to be not afraid to share our faith with them. There will always be those who may reject faith in Jesus Christ, but we are to share our faith with them, nonetheless. Then, after sharing our faith with them, we are to pray for them to receive the gift of faith in Jesus Christ. Prayer is a powerful tool in our sharing our faith with others. 

Let us obey the words of Jesus by going into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. 

"Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me."

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Wednesday of Holy Week | USCCB

On this "Spy Wednesday" we hear of Judas betraying the Lord for 30 pieces of silver. This was something that Judas would go on to regret once he realizes that the scribes and pharisees were planning on killing our Lord. 

I often reflect on the grief of Judas after he realized what was to happen to our Lord. He was filled with grief, so much so that he committed suicide. Had he not been so self-centered in his grief and recall the teachings of Jesus that he most certainly must have heard, he would have realized that Jesus would have forgiven him for this sin.

Comparing him with St. Peter, who denied Jesus three times, we hear that Peter, once Jesus rose from the dead, was able to reconcile himself with the Lord. As you recall, the Lord asks him three times, "Do you love me" and Peter says, "Lord, you know I love you." It was in this three-fold admission of his love for Jesus that he received forgiveness. 

Had Judas not committed suicide and stayed to see the Lord rise from the dead, he, too, would have received the gift of forgiveness. 

How many times do we hold onto the sins of our past, thinking that the Lord will never forgive us of them? We all have something in our "closets" that we are ashamed of and may need the forgiveness of Jesus. 

During the next few days as we hear of Jesus being turned over to the authorities and die for our sins on the cross, let us place our sinfulness at the foot of His Cross and ask to be healed. And if you haven't done so yet, at first opportunity, go to confession and place your cares, worries and sins into the loving embrace of the Lord, who is there for you to forgive you your sins. 

O God, be merciful to me a sinner

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Saturday of the Third Week of Lent | USCCB

We have in our gospel for today the parable about the proud Pharisee and the humble tax collector. The Pharisee was busy telling God how great he was! He's not greedy, dishonest, adulterous, plus he fasts twice a week. How nice! He's saying to God, "Look at how great I am!"  But there's one thing he is that he fails to recognize: He's judgmental. He reads off all the things he does for God and then goes on to say that he's happy he's not like that tax collector. 

The tax collector, on the other hand, realizes his sinfulness and pleads, "O God, be merciful to me a sinner." (Luke 18:13). He's not concerned about the Pharisee or anyone else in the temple near him. He's more concerned with asking God to have mercy on him and to help him develop a closer relationship with His Creator. He knows his shortcomings and is turning to God for help.

How many of us go before God, whether at church or in private prayer, and tell Him about all the great things that we have done? We have to remember that God knows us better than we know ourselves. During Lent we are called to fast and pray and try to review how we are living our lives according to God's will. But we are not to brag about it. It's about being humble before God.  It's all about how we are to become better Christians. During Lent (and always) we are not to worry about how other people may or may not be falling short in their relationship with God. 

Between now and Easter Sunday let us reflect upon what our Lord is telling us: "... everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:14)