Even when we turn from his presence, he remains present to us and will work with us as we strive to proclaim the gospel by our lives. In todays gospel reading two followers of Jesus are walking in the opposite direction to pilgrims, away from Jerusalem. As the Father has sent me, so I send you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit. He was immersed into the risen life of Jesus. A little later the Ethiopian asked Philip to baptize him and Philip responded to that request too. We can never underestimate the ways that the Lord can touch the lives of people today, if we allow him to work through what we have, even if what we have seems very insignificant at times. Daily Homilies. The church now had two Popes, one in Rome and one in Avignon, a situation that was to last for several decades. When Jesus spoke of himself as the gate in that sense, he was thinking of the gate of a sheepfold. Seven suitable people were chosen, allowing the Twelve to focus on what was important in their calling. Most days in this part of the world we have a damp wind from the west. All others who have come In various ways, calls are made upon our time, upon our gifts, upon our energies. the usability. Click on the underlined name below for the daily reflections. Just as we can be like the fearful disciples, so we can often be like the sceptical Thomas. Philip and Andrew were very sceptical about Jesus ability to feed the crowds. When he spoke, it was to place their sad, hopeless, story in a whole new light. Nicodemus was a Pharisee; he lived by the Jewish Law. For us as Christians, obedience to God is obedience to his Son, Jesus, our risen Lord, because as todays gospel declares, he whom God has sent speaks Gods own words. If you are the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus replied: I have told you, but you do not believe. He had been prompted by the Spirit to go to the pagan home of Cornelius, a Roman centurion. They were trying to put words on the experience. The temptation is always to relate to people for what they might be able to give to us rather than relating to them for who they are. She was deeply involved in what was happening in Europe and in the church in her time. Saul or Paul, while in the very act of persecuting the church, came to see the Son and believe in him and received the gift of eternal life. These cookies are necessary to let our website work. She began gathering a group of followers about herself, men and women, priests and religious. The Mark that Peter refers to may well be the author of the first gospel. It is as a mystic that John is known as a 'Doctor of the Church'. The hunger of the crowd was satisfied and there was food left over. While listed as an optional Memorial, today's liturgy honors the Blessed Mother in her role as patroness of the Carmelite tradition. The risen Lord is the living sign of Gods enduring love. We also know that people can be stolen. The Lords faithfulness to us prompts us to keep faith with each other, especially with those who are close to us. In the case of infants, it is the faith of the parents and family and the faith of the believing community that is presupposed. Putting words on the events that have caused us such grief can help us to find some meaning in what has transpired. God is always drawing us towards his Son and if we come to Jesus, Gods Son, it is because we have responded to the drawing of God the Father. Normally, the Lord comes to us in much more ordinary ways. and has entrusted everything to him. In todays gospel reading, John the Baptist says of Jesus, He whom God has sent speaks Gods own words. We first come to Jesus in faith before we come to him in the Eucharist. Yet, the story we have just heard relating to that road is a good news story. There can be times in life when we find ourselves walking in the wrong direction. The proclamation of the word leads to baptism and then in the gospel reading Jesus speaks in language that is clearly Eucharistic, the bread that I shall give is my flesh for the life of the world. Our fundamental call is to be a loving and caring people, with a mind through which the good Shepherd thinks, a heart through which he loves, a voice through which he speaks and hands through which he works. They set out that instant and returned to Jerusalem. We can become limp before it all. We have asked Creighton faculty, staff and administrators to reflect upon the daily readings each day. In this mornings gospel reading, Jesus declares, I have come so that they may have life, and have it to the full. May 2, 2023 Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Easter Saint Athanasius, Bishop and DoctorMemorial, Monday, May 1, 2023 Optional Memorial of Saint Joseph the Worker, April 30, 2023 Fourth Sunday of Easter (Year A)Good Shepherd Sunday, April 29, 2023 Saturday of the Third Week of Easter Saint Catherine of Siena, Virgin and Doctor of the Church, April 28, 2023 Friday of the Third Week of Easter Saint Peter Chanel, Priest and Martyr Saint Louis Grignon de Montfort, Priest, April 27, 2023 Thursday of the Third Week of Easter, April 26, 2023 Wednesday of the Third Week of Easter, Tuesday, April 25, 2023 Feast of Saint Mark, April 24, 2023 Monday of the Third Week of Easter, April 23, 2023 Third Sunday of Easter (Year A). On our pilgrimage of life, the Spirit is always at our back. AnalyticalOur website uses analytical cookies to make it possible to analyze our website and optimize for the purpose of a.o. Indeed, both can often reside in the same person. To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here:Cookie Policy. Yet, in Marks gospel the risen Jesus remains faithful to his disciples. We can make the mistake of thinking that how we talk about something is all that there is to it. 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. The story of Pauls transformation is one of the founding stories of our Christian faith. Jesus speaks about the wind in this mornings gospel reading. The Ethiopian was not reading silently to himself; he was reading aloud. The Lord is always with his church in the various storms that will assail it. what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Sometimes a conversation about a loved one who has just died can have laughter as well as sadness in it. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, Peace be with you. Then he said to Thomas, Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe. Thomas answered and said to him, My Lord and my God! Jesus said to him, Have you come to believe because you have seen me? We need to come to Gods Son, to come out into the light, in the words of gospel reading. Jesus came among us, full of Gods grace and truth, full of Gods gracious love and faithfulness, and we are invited to keep receiving from this fullness of God in Jesus. The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon. Then they told their story of what had happened on the road and how they had recognised him at the breaking of bread. Just as God became flesh in Jesus, so the Spirit of God can become flesh in our lives. It seems that it wasnt possible to lock the Lord out. AdvertisingOur website places advertising cookies to show you 3rd party advertisements based on your interests. We are always trying to listen to the Lords voice so as to discern where he is leading us, the new directions that he is taking us in. Give me your hand; put it into my side. She was convinced that the wound in the body of Christ could only be healed by great sacrifice. It is quite usual just to have an opening in the front wall, for a car to park. They wanted to get out of the city where Jesus had been crucified as quickly as possible. Barnabas inspires us to keep listening to what the Lord may be saying to us in and through the circumstances of our daily lives. In the first reading we have a good example of someone who bears witness to Jesus by his works. Yet, Jesus as the gate has something important to say to us. Philip answered, Two hundred denarii would only buy enough to give them a small piece each. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peters brother, said, There is a small boy here with five barley loaves and two fish; but what is that between so many? Jesus said to them, Make the people sit down. There was plenty of grass there, and as many as five thousand men sat down. 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. The way the risen Lord related to tthem is how he relates to us all. Today is vocation Sunday. They are portrayed as failing to understand Jesus teaching, especially when he speaks of himself as the Son of Man who must be rejected, suffer and die. He wanted to listen to their story in all its sadness and despondency. He wanted them to know that he was at peace with them, in spite of the fact that they had abandoned him in the hour of his passion and death. 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. On one occasion he stood up to his fellow Pharisees and challenged them to give Jesus a proper hearing, declaring that this would be in keeping with the spirit of the Jewish Law. The Father and I are one.. Life has triumphed over death!, and our own present experience. (iii) Monday, Fourth Week of Easter (Year A), In the gospel reading Jesus draws a striking contrast between the good shepherd and the hired man. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. Very ancient tradition suggests that Marks gospel was written in Rome and that Mark was a disciple of Peter. The first reading suggests that no human power can block the preaching of the gospel, not even the imprisonment of the apostles, Jesus closest associates. Perhaps, like the people of Galilee, our expectations are too small. At a young age, she decided to give herself to the Lord, and she resisted the attempts of her family to find her a good husband. Catherine stood out as a beacon of light in a dark time in Europe and in the church. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. This is the will of my Father, that all who see the Son may have eternal life. Many believers can be troubled by their sense that the light of Easter does not seem to have penetrated their lives sufficiently. However, when Jesus goes on to say, the bread that I shall give is my flesh for the life of the world, the term bread begins to acquire a Eucharistic meaning. In Johns version of this episode, which we have just heard, he is first referred to by Andrew, Simon Peters brother, but he is referred to in a way which suggests his relative insignificance, There is a small boy here with five loaves and two fish; but what is that between so many? However, Jesus does not consider the presence of this small boy with his meagre resources to be insignificant. Light exposes wrong doing. Having told the story to each other, the two disciples told it to the stranger who joined them on the road. Discerning where the Holy Spirit is leading us is central to our lives as followers of Jesus. Yet, the Lord had wonderful plans for this almost helpless figure. When we pray, we open ourselves to the coming of the Holy Spirit upon us and to the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Yet, the light of Easter is not like the light of the interrogation room. 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. Our calling is to come out into the light, in the words of the gospel reading. because I have come from heaven, not to do my own will, The risen Lord walked with the two disciples, even though they were heading in the wrong direction. That is why he goes on to say, I have come that they may have life and have it to the full. In response to this preoccupation with Jesus as the provider of physical bread, Jesus speaks of the food that endures to eternal life which he is offering. Please check your email now and click the confirmation link to confirm your request. However, the Lord recognizes that only a small group of disciples will see and believe, and, so, he addresses a beatitude to the many future disciples who will believe without seeing. The risen Lord is present in the crucible of doubt, drawing us to himself, calling out to us as he called to Thomas, Doubt no longer but believe. Barnabas continued to listen to what the Lord was saying to him. One of my favourite depictions of this scene is by an artist called Caravaggio. In the words of the gospel reading, he leads us to a place where we may life and have it to the full. He invites us to be honest with him, to share what is in our hearts, what is on our minds. but may have eternal life. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him. He calls us to lead us a place of pasture, to a place where our deepest hungers and thirsts are satisfied. Yet the two disciples on the road to Emmaus opened up to the stranger; perhaps they were feeling so desperate that they were glad of any opportunity to tell their story. In the gospel of Luke, Zacchaeus goes looking for Jesus in broad daylight, even climbing a sycamore tree to see him. However, Jesus offers himself to them as someone who can satisfy not just their material hunger, but the deep, spiritual, hunger within them. I remember some people saying recently when they heard this very familiar gospel story again that prior to this they hadnt really paid much attention to the presence of the small boy. Our Lady of Mount Carmel is one of numerous titles of Mary that enable all kinds of ministry groups to honor her as friend, mother, sister, guide and exemplar of the life of faith. We listen to him, we follow him, in the confidence that his devotion to us and to our ultimate well-being is unconditional. Barnabas brought Paul from Tarsus to Antioch. The Lord calls each of us in accordance with our own particular nature. He pours the Spirit afresh into our hearts so that we can go forth in the strength of his Spirit to reveal his faithful love to all we meet. He comes to recreate us through the Holy Spirit. As a Pharisee, Paul could never have envisaged the way he would spend the last thirty years of his life, but the Lord was able to envisage it. There are places to which Christians have been going on pilgrimage for a very long time. 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 always going to be some tension between the Easter cry, Christ is risen! Many of us will have had more personal experiences of loss, with the death of a close relative or of a good friend. The Lord can work powerfully through our own rather limited resources, if we are generous with those resources and place them at the Lords disposal. Yet, Luke, who wrote the Acts of the Apostles, highlights that this experience of persecution was actually a blessing for the church. However, he was just as concerned, if not more concerned, with peoples spiritual hungers. According to the Book of Genesis, God created Adam by breathing into his nostrils the breath of life. Then they said to each other, Were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us? So they set out at once and returned to Jerusalem where they found gathered together the eleven and those with them who were saying, The Lord has truly been raised and has appeared to Simon! Then the two recounted what had taken place on the way and how he was made known to them in the breaking of bread. Mark portrays Jesus as the suffering Son of Man who came not to be served but to serve, and who was ready to lay down his life in the service of all. The story they told ended in death, but the full story ended in life. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Please see our cookies page for further details or agree by clicking the 'Accept all cookies' button. Indeed, he invites each of us to become such a person. The story of the stranger can have a lot to say to us. The two disciples were struggling with a deep sense of loss. We live our lives in response to calls of all sorts. In that sense, we all find ourselves in the situation of Nicodemus. Jesus appeared to the Eleven and said to them: Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. God sent his Son into the world so that everyone may have eternal life. He was being the good Pharisee that he believed God wanted him to be. The one who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of earthly things. 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 movement was from God and no human authority could destroy it. This can happen all too easily as we know. The Jews gathered round him and said, How much longer are you going to keep us. Whenever two people share a significant experience together, they invariably talk about it together afterwards; they each tell their own story about what happened. Through his life, death, resurrection, he has befriended us and he calls out to us to entrust our lives to him as we would to a friend, including the pieces and fragments of our sometimes shattered lives. It is evident that Jesus is not speaking literally. In this mornings gospel reading, Jesus declares, I have come so that they may have life, and have it to the full. What are we looking to him for? However, shortly after his return to Rome, Gregory died. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. In their own words, their hearts began to burn within them. When the Ethiopian reflects on a passage from Isaiah, he begins to ask questions, Is the prophet referring to himself or someone else? He needed the help of a person of faith to answer this question, the help of the deacon Philip. Leading and driving are two very different activities. In the gospel reading, Jesus says, no one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me. The old Catechism definition of prayer was the raising up of our minds and hearts to God. We are more used to thinking of Jesus as the shepherd than the gate. And so the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven: there at the right hand of God he took his place, while they, going out, preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word by the signs that accompanied it. People who are going through a similar grieving experience can give great strength to each other. New book for 2021 'You Have the Words of Eternal Life' ~ Weekday Reflections for Liturgical Year 2020/21 at messenger.ie & @veritas.ie Fr. Just click on the month of interest and scroll to the day required. That is why he taught us to pray, Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. They bring us hope in our despondency and strength in our weakness. Our calling is to allow the Spirit of God to be the driving force of our life, as it was the driving force of Jesus life. Far from rebuking Thomas for his refusal to believe, the Lord accommodated himself to Thomas demands and, as a result, out of the mouth of the sceptic came one of the greatest confessions of faith in the gospels, My Lord and my God. but to do the will of the one who sent me. Yet, when the Lord came to them, he offered them his peace, the gift of reconciliation. This was a very small and powerless movement and, yet, the Lord was working powerfully in and through it. what is born of the flesh is flesh; They were missing the most important bit of the story. In this mornings gospel reading we find Nicodemus struggling to understand when Jesus tells him that he must be born from above, born of the Spirit. The speech of Gamaliel in todays first reading is thought-provoking.

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