FAUSTI - Those who do not love Jesus do not observe His words. For this reason he ignores the Son sent by the Father to reveal His Love for us. The period in which He has dwelt with us is the centre and summit of time. Through the proclamation of the Gospel, each time enters that time, in which God reveals Himself in a definitive and normative way. The Spirit of Love will teach us and imprint the Son in our hearts. God, who was with us first in the Law and then among us in the flesh of the Son, will be in us through His Spirit. The Holy Spirit, Who is Love, will make us understand all that the Son has told us. Love, as it makes us understand, thus makes us remind, carry in our hearts, all that Jesus said, because we can live of it. Jesus said and gave everything. The Holy Spirit will not add anything to what He has revealed and given; instead, He will make the mystery of the Son and the Father enter ever more deeply into us, with a Love that makes us know and a knowledge that makes love. Peace is the gift that contains every other gift. Peace is only for those who have found what they seek and obtained what they desire. Jesus, leaving, leaves us peace, gives us His peace, it is Messianic peace, the fullness of every blessing. Peace for the world is the interval between two wars. It lasts until the winner can impose himself and the conquered cannot rebel. It is the pax romana, fruit of weapons, that the world has always known, and it seems that it does not yet know a different one.
This is not the peace that Jesus leaves to us. But it is not even the peace of the Stoic, who remains courageous even if the world collapses on him. Nor is it the pernicious pax of those who live peacefully as slaves of selfishness, either their own or those of others. The peace of Jesus is born of a love stronger than death; it is the peace of the Risen Crucified One, which makes us co-citizens of the Saints and family members of God. The leaving of Jesus does not leave a void full of fear and discouragement; it is in fact His being forever in us with His Love. "I leave and come to you": Jesus once again reassures His own, saying that His leaving is a coming to us in a new way. Whoever loves Jesus rejoices for His return to the Father. He sees the Cross as the fulfillment of Love. Jesus enters into darkness to enlighten it. He gives His Life to those who steal it from Him. So "the world" that rejects Him because has not seen Him or known Him, can finally know how much God loves all and be drawn to Him. Father's command for the Son is to expose, dispose and lay down one's Life for the benefit of one's brothers and sisters. Jesus says: "No one takes it away from me, but I lay it away from myself. I have the power to lay it down and I have the power to take it again. This command taken from my Father"(10,18). The cross, now imminent, is the free action of the Son, who carries out the command of Love of the Father and reveals the glory of God. "Awake, let us go from here" are the same words that Jesus says before being arrested (Mark 14:42). The Lord tells the disciples to awaken. Through the command of love, He associates them with His leaving from this world to the Father. With these words, Jesus' speech symbolically comes out of Cenacle and is projected out, into space and time. It is addressed to the future community which, as a branch united to the vine, will prolong in the world the fruitful Presence of its Lord. "The Father is greater than Me". The Son and the Father are equal. The Father is greater in two ways: first because He is the origin of the Son, second because He Who loves considers the Beloved more than Himself. Here, being the Son who speaks, He affirms the greatness of the Father. The Word of Jesus anticipates the event because, when it happens, we can read it in Its Light. Then we will believe that He is the Lord of history: He knows what He does and does what He knows, directing everything according to His Love for us. (Ez 33:33).
A reading from the Book of the Acts of the Apostles 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.
Gospel of the day From the Gospel according to John 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.”
The words of the Popes Today the Gospel offers us the moment in which Jesus introduces himself as the true vine and invites us to abide in him so as to bear much fruit (cf. Jn 15:1-8). The vine is a plant whose branches form the whole; and the branches are only fruitful insofar as they are joined with the vine. This relationship is the secret of Christian life and John the Evangelist expresses this with the word ‘abide’, which is repeated seven times in today’s passage. “Abide in me”, says the Lord; abide in the Lord. It means abiding in the Lord in order to find the courage to step outside of ourselves, from our comfort zone, from our limited and protected spaces, in order to cast ourselves into the open sea of the needs of others and to give a wide range to our Christian witness in the world. This courage to step outside ourselves and to advance the needs of others is born from faith in the Risen Lord and from the certainty that his Spirit accompanies our history. One of the ripest fruits that springs from communion with Christ is, in fact, the commitment to charity for our neighbour, loving brothers and sisters with self-sacrifice, to the point of the final consequences, as Jesus loved us. (Pope Francis, Regina Caeli, 29 April 2018)
FAUSTI - Those who do not love Jesus do not observe His words.
RispondiEliminaFor this reason he ignores the Son sent by the Father to reveal His Love for us.
The period in which He has dwelt with us is the centre and summit of time.
Through the proclamation of the Gospel, each time enters that time, in which God reveals Himself in a definitive and normative way.
The Spirit of Love will teach us and imprint the Son in our hearts.
God, who was with us first in the Law and then among us in the flesh of the Son, will be in us through His Spirit. The Holy Spirit, Who is Love, will make us understand all that the Son has told us.
Love, as it makes us understand, thus makes us remind, carry in our hearts, all that Jesus said,
because we can live of it.
Jesus said and gave everything. The Holy Spirit will not add anything to what He has revealed and given; instead, He will make the mystery of the Son and the Father enter ever more deeply into us, with a Love that makes us know and a knowledge that makes love.
Peace is the gift that contains every other gift.
Peace is only for those who have found what they seek and obtained what they desire.
Jesus, leaving, leaves us peace, gives us His peace, it is Messianic peace, the fullness of every blessing.
Peace for the world is the interval between two wars. It lasts until the winner can impose himself and the conquered cannot rebel.
It is the pax romana, fruit of weapons, that the world has always known, and it seems that it does not yet know a different one.
This is not the peace that Jesus leaves to us. But it is not even the peace of the Stoic, who remains courageous even if the world collapses on him.
Nor is it the pernicious pax of those who live peacefully as slaves of selfishness, either their own or those of others.
The peace of Jesus is born of a love stronger than death; it is the peace of the Risen Crucified One, which makes us co-citizens of the Saints and family members of God.
The leaving of Jesus does not leave a void full of fear and discouragement; it is in fact His being forever in us with His Love. "I leave and come to you": Jesus once again reassures His own, saying that His leaving is a coming to us in a new way.
Whoever loves Jesus rejoices for His return to the Father.
He sees the Cross as the fulfillment of Love. Jesus enters into darkness to enlighten it. He gives His Life to those who steal it from Him.
So "the world" that rejects Him because has not seen Him or known Him, can finally know how much God loves all and be drawn to Him.
Father's command for the Son is to expose, dispose and lay down one's Life for the benefit of one's brothers and sisters. Jesus says: "No one takes it away from me, but I lay it away from myself. I have the power to lay it down and I have the power to take it again. This command taken from my Father"(10,18).
The cross, now imminent, is the free action of the Son, who carries out the command of Love of the Father and reveals the glory of God.
"Awake, let us go from here" are the same words that Jesus says before being arrested (Mark 14:42).
The Lord tells the disciples to awaken. Through the command of love, He associates them with His leaving from this world to the Father.
With these words, Jesus' speech symbolically comes out of Cenacle and is projected out, into space and time. It is addressed to the future community which, as a branch united to the vine, will prolong in the world the fruitful Presence of its Lord.
"The Father is greater than Me". The Son and the Father are equal. The Father is greater in two ways: first because He is the origin of the Son, second because He Who loves considers the Beloved more than Himself.
Here, being the Son who speaks, He affirms the greatness of the Father.
The Word of Jesus anticipates the event because, when it happens, we can read it in Its Light.
Then we will believe that He is the Lord of history: He knows what He does and does what He knows, directing everything according to His Love for us. (Ez 33:33).
A reading from the Book of the Acts of the Apostles
RispondiEliminaActs 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.
Gospel of the day
From the Gospel according to John
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.”
The words of the Popes
Today the Gospel offers us the moment in which Jesus introduces himself as the true vine and invites us to abide in him so as to bear much fruit (cf. Jn 15:1-8). The vine is a plant whose branches form the whole; and the branches are only fruitful insofar as they are joined with the vine. This relationship is the secret of Christian life and John the Evangelist expresses this with the word ‘abide’, which is repeated seven times in today’s passage. “Abide in me”, says the Lord; abide in the Lord. It means abiding in the Lord in order to find the courage to step outside of ourselves, from our comfort zone, from our limited and protected spaces, in order to cast ourselves into the open sea of the needs of others and to give a wide range to our Christian witness in the world. This courage to step outside ourselves and to advance the needs of others is born from faith in the Risen Lord and from the certainty that his Spirit accompanies our history. One of the ripest fruits that springs from communion with Christ is, in fact, the commitment to charity for our neighbour, loving brothers and sisters with self-sacrifice, to the point of the final consequences, as Jesus loved us. (Pope Francis, Regina Caeli, 29 April 2018)