"If
you ever feel distressed during your day, call upon our Lady, just say this
simple prayer: 'Mary, Mother of Jesus, please be a mother to me now.' I must
admit, this prayer has never failed me."
-
Blessed Mother Teresa
"If you ever feel distressed during your day, call upon our Lady, just say this simple prayer: 'Mary, Mother of Jesus, please be a mother to me now.' I must admit, this prayer has never failed me."
- Blessed Mother Teresa
May 5, 2021
Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Easter
Lectionary: 287
Reading 1 Acts 15:1-6
Some who had come down from Judea were instructing the brothers,
“Unless you are circumcised according to the Mosaic practice,
you cannot be saved.”
Because there arose no little dissension and debate
by Paul and Barnabas with them,
it was decided that Paul, Barnabas, and some of the others
should go up to Jerusalem to the Apostles and presbyters
about this question.
They were sent on their journey by the Church,
and passed through Phoenicia and Samaria
telling of the conversion of the Gentiles,
and brought great joy to all the brethren.
When they arrived in Jerusalem,
they were welcomed by the Church,
as well as by the Apostles and the presbyters,
and they reported what God had done with them.
But some from the party of the Pharisees who had become believers
stood up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them
and direct them to observe the Mosaic law.”
The Apostles and the presbyters met together to see about this matter.
Responsorial Psalm 122:1-2, 3-4ab, 4cd-5
R. (see 1) Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
I rejoiced because they said to me,
“We will go up to the house of the LORD.”
And now we have set foot
within your gates, O Jerusalem.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Jerusalem, built as a city
with compact unity.
To it the tribes go up,
the tribes of the LORD.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
According to the decree for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the LORD.
In it are set up judgment seats,
seats for the house of David.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia Jn 15:4a, 5b
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Remain in me, as I remain in you, says the Lord;
whoever remains in me will bear much fruit.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Jn 15:1-8
Jesus said to his disciples:
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower.
He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit,
and everyone that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit.
You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you.
Remain in me, as I remain in you.
Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own
unless it remains on the vine,
so neither can you unless you remain in me.
I am the vine, you are the branches.
Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit,
because without me you can do nothing.
Anyone who does not remain in me
will be thrown out like a branch and wither;
people will gather them and throw them into a fire
and they will be burned.
If you remain in me and my words remain in you,
ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you.
By this is my Father glorified,
that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.”
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The Power to Overcome Evil
How healthy is your branch of the Church? I'm not talking about your parish. As we see in the Gospel reading today, all of us who belong to Christ are part of the same far-reaching vineyard. Jesus is the vine, and because we are all attached to him, we all share the same calling: to bear good fruit.
Why is there so much evil in the world? Why doesn't God raise his almighty hand against war, against abuse, against abortion, against criminals, or against any evil that's corrupting the world and our lives? It's a familiar question. The answer is: He does! But we forget one very important factor.
Jesus and the Bride -- the Church -- have become one body. He commissioned us -- all Christians everywhere -- to continue the work he began. He is the vine, and we are the branches that spread out across the earth. He feeds us with the life-blood of his divine vine to give us -- who are his earthly body -- the power to grow strong and large and bear abundant fruit.
If the branches do not bear good fruit, or enough good fruit, evil has room to grow and keep on going.
Or to put it into other terms: Jesus conquers evil through his presence in us. First, his body died on the cross for our sins and then conquered death, defeating the power of evil. Now, all those who join themselves to his risen body participate in this victory. (This happens in a very concrete way when we receive the Eucharist.) Connected to Jesus, like grape branches that are connected to their vine, we are strengthened and empowered by his Holy Spirit, which flows through all the healthy branches.
Consider any problem going on in your parish. How would things change if all the clergy and staff and members of ministries were to collaborate prayerfully and humbly in resolving this problem as one body, one huge, interconnected grapevine united to Christ?
There's no value in complaining that there are not enough healthy branches bearing good grapes. We each have a personal responsibility to stay closely connected to Christ and grow the best fruit that we possibly can. How healthy is your own connection to Christ? Are you doing whatever is necessary to prune away everything -- everything! -- that works against your joint mission in the Church to overcome evil?
Pruning requires, of course, relying on the Holy Spirit's discernment and the snipping power of our Father's sheers. The more we prune, the healthier our branch gets. Our grapes grow larger and more abundant. Sure it hurts when something gets cut from our lives, but ignoring the need to prune is exactly what allows evil to run rampant in the world. Why? Because it hinders the growth of the good stuff, which is the evil-defeating power of the holiness of Christ that we have flowing within us.
Today's Prayer
Thank You, Lord, for being with me in trials, for drawing me closer to You, and for helping me accomplish great things for the glory of the Father. Amen.
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God Bless You.....
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