Monday, May 24, 2010

THANK YOU!

Another chapter in the Fifty Days of Easter Journal
is closed. The writers, some new, some here before, have done a wonderful job putting into their own words what Scripture tells us about the Resurrection of Jesus, his appearances on earth before ascending to his Father and finally the gift of the Holy Spirit he promised to us on Pentecost. So much inspiration, so much love and so much dedication on the part of people who simply live and love their faith. Thank you to all who participated!

Stop back here from time to time as it is our hope to continue with some inspirational lessons in the not too distant future.

May the Lord continue to bless and keep you in his care as you continue on your journey of faith.

Sunday, May 23, 2010

PENTECOST

Jesus knew He was returning to his Father. Now, His disciples had to continue Jesus' work. In Acts 1:4-5, Jesus said "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit." As believers we are also able to preach the Gospel and become baptized with the Holy Spirit through faith. God can use us through a simple "hello" or prayer. If we allow Him, the Holy Spirit will always guide us. Like Jesus, all believers are one with the Father and we have His glory within us.

Maria Edwards

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Saturday of the Seventh Week of Easter

Jn 21:20-25

Just before this reading we find Jesus telling Peter about the way he is going to glorify God, in other words, Jesus is telling Peter how he is going to die. Peter asked Jesus what about John. And Jesus seems to say; how John is going to die is no concern of yours, "what if I want him to remain until I come?"

Jesus gives Peter a gift; he tells him how he is to die. Instead of Peter asking himself, how am I to use this information to bring about the kingdom of God, Peter asked a question that has nothing to do with his mission. "what about John?"

Now, we can put ourselves in Peter's place. If we were being told how we are going to die it would be shocking and frightening. So I can see my self turning the attention to John. Many of us would do the same in a similar situation, instead of asking God what can I do to accomplish my mission we look around to see who can take the pressure and the attention from us.

The truth is that my mission is a personal call from God which I could only answer. In a book called, Voices of the Martyrs, it says that Jesus' first and last word to Peter are "follow me". These are the same words that Jesus says to us and each day is an opportunity to answer this call. Peter comes to love his mission and in his death he glorified God to the point that when crucified he asked to be upside down because he did not feel worthy to be crucified in the same manner as Jesus.

"follow me".

Nelson Torres

Friday, May 21, 2010

Friday of the Seventh Week of Easter

Acts of the Apostle: Chapter 25: 13b – 21
Psalm 103: 1-2, 11-12, 19-20a,b
John 21 15-10

In today’s readings we continue to learn about the early church and the timelessness of these lessons for us as descendants of the Apostles.

The first reading describes how Paul’s arrest in Jerusalem for testifying to Jesus’ Resurrection to the authorities, serves as amusing dinner conversation for Festus, the Roman governor, and his guests, King Agrippa and wife, Bernice. Festus does not know how to settle this case since he views it as a Jewish religious dispute. He is happy when he is relieved of making a decision by Paul’s appeal to the emperor. Paul will be dispatched to Rome where he will plead his case in front of the ancient world’s highest temporal authority. With the benefit of historical perspective, we all know that this will eventually lead to Paul’s death but the consequence will be that Christianity will become firmly rooted in Rome, the center of the world at that time, and eventually spread throughout the Roman Empire.

In the Gospel, we have the post Resurrection passage of Jesus gathering with a select group of His apostles and engaging in an intimate conversation with His hand- picked earthly successor Peter. He asks Peter thrice if Peter loves Him and Peter replies that He does. Jesus’ response each time is to feed His lambs or sheep. The first two inquiries Our Lord directs to Peter use the Greek verb agape, which means total love to the point of sacrificing your life. Since Peter has not yet been strengthened by the Holy Spirit he responds with the verb philios, which is rendered as brotherly love. Jesus realizes that at this point Peter can not give more than this and meets him where his level of dedication to the apostolic mission is at, by also responding with philios at the third inquiry. Jesus warns Peter that the price of fulfilling the mission of spreading God’s kingdom, the love Jesus has come to initiate, will be his life. The parallel between Paul and Peter’s ultimate sacrifice is obvious.

These reading raise some disturbing questions. The response to the Psalm proclaims, “The Lord has established his throne in heaven”. Will God’s plan demand my life as a sacrifice to further His kingdom of heaven in our earthly existence? I pray that the Holy Spirit will give me the courage to do His will.

Barbara Grau

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Thursday of the Seventh Week of Easter

In today’s Gospel John 17:1-11a, we see that Jesus understands there are many people who do not believe that he has been sent by God. Even knowing this his love is unconditional . . . just as God's love towards him has been.

Reflecting on this passage, brings comfort and inspiration to our daily lives . . . keeping Jesus in our hearts…trying to be the best we can be. This passage shows us that loving and caring for the people around us whether or not they believe in the greatness of Jesus’ love will keep us one with Him.

Pat Lee

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Wednesday of the Seventh Week of Easter

Both of today’s readings show Jesus and Paul sharing their concerns for their followers. They want them to stay strong in their faith, united as a community and faithful to the Word of God. Both Jesus and Paul share their hopes for their disciples through prayer. Jesus prayed for His apostles, but we are included in those prayers as his future disciples.

Jesus’ mission on earth was motivated by love…love for the Father and for each of us. He trusted in God the Father to help him through his trials and tribulations, leading to his death. He trusted in the Father to give him the strength to face his ultimate challenge.

As we face each new day’s challenge, we need to remember our faith and love of God. Just as the Holy Spirit gave strength and courage to the disciples, we too have received these gifts. Do we truly know God’s mission for us here on earth? Perhaps not. But each of us has a purpose, a special way in which we are called to serve God. We may not fully know it or understand it in this lifetime. As Jesus did, we must trust in God’s love for us and allow ourselves to live as signs of God’s goodness, love and wisdom. We need to allow the Holy Spirit into our lives, to help us live faithfully and keep true to the message of Jesus.

The key to our future as a church and as a community relies on the Holy Spirit. As we prepare for Pentecost, pray for the Holy Spirit to renew in us our faith in God, our closeness to Jesus. We need renewed strength to face the world’s challenges and a renewed sense of community to keep Jesus’ message alive. As we all know, nothing is possible without prayer.

Debbie Wagner

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Tuesday of the Seventh Week of Easter

In today’s Gospel John 17: 1-7 Jesus gives a priestly prayer for unity. He acknowledges that He glorifies the Father by faithfully accomplishing His mission. But He also glorifies Him by raising humanity to a state where we can glorify God both here and in heaven. To this end the Father has given all power over humanity to Jesus, to open for all a way to eternal life. “ They belonged to you, but you gave them to me”.

We draw comfort in our lives knowing that Jesus knows each of us personally. He cares about what we do and how we do it. By giving ourselves to His love the door is opened to eternal life. Only in this way can we realize true freedom.

Al Lipovsky

Monday, May 17, 2010

Monday of the Seventh Week of Easter

In Acts 19:1-8 Paul continues on his journey and upon finding some of the disciples in Ephesus ask them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?" They replied, "We have never even heard that there is a Holy Spirit."John had baptized them with a baptism of repentance, telling them to believe in the one who was to come after him, Jesus. When Paul laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. When we are Baptized the following words are spoken " I baptize you in the name of the Father, and the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.". We are now cleansed of Original Sin, and receive sanctifying grace, and the life of God within our souls. As the disciples had done before us , we now begin our journey as Christians . We will study about our Faith and observe others as they practice the teachings of God. In our daily lives we will be guided by our God to do his will and know that he is always with us.

The Gospel of John 16: 29-33 " Now you are taking plainly, and not in any figure of speech. Now we realize that you know everything and that you do not need to have anyone question you. Because of this we believe that you came from God." The disciples now have a better understanding of the things Jesus has spoken to them. In our own daily lives, we will be challenged by family issues, work, school, immigration, the poor, the homeless, the homebound. As Christians we need to ask ourselves, what path do you wish to take in doing Gods work? After some prayer and reflection you will be guided by the Holy Spirit to continue to do God’s work here on earth.

Babs Newman

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Seventh Sunday of Easter

Today’s readings from Acts of the Apostles, the Book of Revelation & John’s Last Supper Discourse speak of forgiveness, the Alpha & the Omega, & ‘oneness’ with the Father that awaits us.

In the first reading Stephen’s death resembles that of the Passion of our Lord, except that it happened pretty quickly. He died and asked the Lord to not hold the sin against those who stoned him. Just think; we carry on our grudges from those who offend us for long periods of time, sometimes saying that you forgive the person, but it’s not a total forgiveness. Stephen forgave on the spot, unconditionally, as he lay dying.

The second reading spells out very effectively that we will be judged on our entire life as John heard the voice saying, “I bring with me the recompense I will give to each according to his deeds.” Will the compensation be to our liking? Have we done enough? The voice John heard goes on to say, “I am the Alpha & the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning & the end.” He has been with us from the foundation of time and He will always be there at the end, waiting for us. The question is, will we be?

In John’s Gospel, Jesus prays for all of us so that we may achieve that ‘oneness’ with Him, and he asks the Father, “that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them.” So, we have his love, what more do we need? He loves unconditionally, and when we fall, he picks us up and forgives us. He makes it uncomplicated for us to achieve that “oneness.” We just have to make sure that we don’t complicate matters.

Bob McLaughlin

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Saturday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Jn 16:23b-28

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Amen, amen, I say to you,
whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.
Until now you have not asked anything in my name;
ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.
“I have told you this in figures of speech.
The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures
but I will tell you clearly about the Father.
On that day you will ask in my name,
and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you.
For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me
and have come to believe that I came from God.
I came from the Father and have come into the world.
Now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.”

I think that it means that; whatever you ask of Jesus, God will answer. But whatever you ask in need of, you will gain, because God loves you, and hopes that you will be rejoicing of him for this forever. On the day Jesus dies he will tell you everything about his father. On that day, when you pray for him, he will be praying for you. Since I love Jesus and believe that he is the son of God, God loves me for that, and for anyone else who does the same.

Nellson Torres

Friday, May 14, 2010

Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter

An often-heard complaint about Catholicism is that there are just too many rules. The Church tells us what we should and should not do. Who can receive the sacraments and who can’t. When we should avoid eating meat and when we should fast. And if we break the rules, there are clear-cut instructions on who we should tell, how we have to say it and what it takes to repair our infraction.

But the next time you hear someone say that the Catholic Church is too wrapped up in policies, procedures and regulations, just point them to today’s reading from the Gospel of John.

Despite all the lengthy documents that exist to outline the rules of Catholicism, Jesus sums everything up for his disciples in one basic rule that trumps all others:

“This I command you: love one another.”

Now, if you are having a feeling of déjà vu, you’re not alone. We heard this same passage from John’s Gospel just one week ago, and Jesus delivered the same message in another Gospel reading on the first Sunday of May.

And no, this doesn’t mean that someone made a mistake in compiling the Lectionary or that they were short on Gospel passages to choose for the readings. In this case, the repetition of the passage is due to its importance. After all the pages upon pages of detailed laws recorded in the Old Testament, Jesus breaks things down into one simple, easy-to-digest statement that covers everything we as Christians are called to do.

But the beauty of this commandment isn’t in what Jesus tells his disciples. The most important teaching here lies in what Jesus doesn’t say.

Aside from telling us that we should mirror the love he has shown us, Jesus does not attach any qualifiers to his commandment. He doesn’t say “love those who always agree with you.” We aren’t asked to “love others who aren’t different from you.” There’s no caveat to “love others as long as they show you their appreciation.” And I’m certain Jesus never said “love one another, but be sure to check for proper documentation of legal status first.”

A lot of people – including some Catholics – have pointed fingers at Church leaders over their social justice policies. The U.S. bishops have been accused of being too liberal and in some cases, they’ve even been labeled as socialists. One of the most outrageous examples came last year when the bishops’ Catholic Campaign for Human Development – an organization that gets down in the trenches to help the poorest of the poor – was attacked by a coalition of other Catholic groups because of the people it associated with in the process of trying to bring God’s love to those most in need.

At the root of such divisions and name-calling is often an over-emphasis on some set of rules. In the case of CCHD, it was one organization claiming that another had worked with a third who may or may not have at one time in their history violated the rules of the Church. And in the battle over immigration, we’ve gone beyond actions alone being “illegal” if they violate the law; now, it is the people themselves who are given that label simply because their being in a certain place is against someone’s rules.

But in the eyes of Jesus, it doesn’t matter if a person has violated the rulebook of their society, their country or even their church. As long as they’ve kept that one commandment – “love one another as I love you” – they’re still okay in his book.

And really, that’s the only book that counts.

Scott Alessi

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Ascension Thursday

Jesus' miracles have helped us to better understand what it is that Jesus asks us to do in our lives. That is he asks us to follow the Beatitudes and help others when needed. To give whatever time you can to a cause is far greater then the time not given.

Jesus' ascension into heaven shows us what it it is that we need to do, to follow him to where he has now gone. So on this Ascension Thursday do whatever you can to follow the Beatitudes.

Mike Rizzi

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Paul proclaims in today’s first reading that divinity is not an image fashioned from human art and imagination but rather firm belief in the one who gives life and breath to all, the one who made the whole human race, since we are all the offspring of God. Paul further states that God demands that all people repent as he has established a day on which he will “judge the world with justice” working through our Lord, Jesus Christ. When the Athenians heard these things some turned away, some put off Paul for a more favorable time and some joined him and became believers.

God is not far from any of us, many stand distant often because the truth is neither fashionable nor favorable, as did the people of Athens.

Jesus offers help to his disciples through the coming of the Holy Spirit which will guide to all truth, with glory to the Father and to the Son. All that is from God is given to Jesus and in turn given for all to share in truth and love.

Mark Kiszkiel

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

FORTUNATE CRISES

The personalities in the first reading are quite a contrast. First, it presents Paul and Silas in a dire predicament. They are attacked, stripped, beaten and thrown into prison. In an era of persecution, this should have been a hopeless plight. Yet, the reactions of Paul and Silas are perplexing. They are in a serene state of prayer and singing hymns to God. Their actions demonstrate the overwhelming peace attributed to their faith and hope in God.

Along side Paul and Silas's calmness and unruffled peace, is the jailer. At first, while the prison is secured, he is asleep and unconcerned about the prisoners. After the shock of the earthquake he becomes unsettled and disturbed to the point of becoming suicidal.

These two scenarios portray how we cope with tragedy and adversity in our lives. The options laid out are clear. Paul and Silas convey to us that even in great times of trouble or crises good things will come from suffering if we have faith, hope and listen to the Holy Spirit. As a result, their trials and suffering became the source of conversion for the prisoners, the suicidal jailer and his family. In comparison, the jailer's dilemma was minor. His perception was warped by the stress and anxiety of losing the prisoners. It took Paul and Silas's example of faith to convince the jailer to believe in the Lord Jesus and calm his fears. Even for the jailer, what he perceived as a misfortune became the opportunity for growth once he believes in Jesus and allows to be guided by the Holy Spirit.

Arcides Cruz

Monday, May 10, 2010

Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Acts 16: 11-15
John 15:26-16:4a

In this passage of the gospel Jesus speaks of the Advocate, “the spirit of truth that proceeds from the father.” Is it this Advocate, this spirit, working to “open the heart of the woman, Lydia, listening to Paul preach described in the other reading for this day?

Today the Church honors Joseph Damien de Veuster, a Belgian priest who ministered to the Leper colony on Molokai where he contracted leprosy and died. He was, like Lydia in the Acts of the Apostles, moved and opened by the Holy Spirit to do his work. I imagine him feeling the presence of the Holy Spirit every day, every day as he worked among the lepers.

I sometimes wonder, as I get ready for work in the morning do I feel the presence of the Holy Spirit? Is it the Holy Spirit that moves me to not get stressed by traffic delays? Is it the Holy Spirit that moves me to be patient with difficult clients? Is it the Holy Spirit that causes me to listen, really listen, when someone asks for my help?

Chris Kokoszka

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Sixth Sunday of Easter

John 14:23

The resurrection of Jesus has occurred.

Jesus has appeared to his disciples a number of times which brought them great joy and happiness for ... DEATH HAD NO HOLD ON HIM ...

But Jesus is longing to return to his father's house. So before he leaves, Jesus wants to console his disciples. He knows that when he finally leaves that they will feel lost, abandoned, frightened, distressed and sorrowful. He tells them he would like them to feel his happiness that he will be with his FATHER in heaven and to be joyful with him and have faith in his teaching.

His disciples are scared for THEIR TEACHER WILL NO LONGER BE WITH THEM. They don't want to leave ... the PLEAD that they can't carry on without him. It will be too hard ...JESUS DON'T LEAVE!! I am sure they say.

Jesus wants his teaching to be carried on ... he knows that the spirit is weak and that fear and doubt will fill their souls.

Jesus informs them that his FATHER will send an advocate and that advocate will be the HOLY SPIRIT which will bring them enlightenment and graces that will help them to convey his teaching and to carry on his good works.

This brings to mind the sacrament of Confirmation. In that sacrament we ask the Holy Spirit to come into our hearts so that we too may carry on with Jesus' teaching to be his advocate. We can do this with little things such as helping people in need, being a good neighbor and friend. Spreading the word of God through our actions and deeds. Just think a little kindness goes a long way and it is always remembered. I'd like to think that the HOLY SPIRIT is in our hearts guiding us in our daily lives.

Martha Arpad

Saturday, May 8, 2010

Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Acts 16:1-10, Jn 15:18-21

In Acts 16:1-10, Paul continues his mission to spread the gospels over all the earth. By dint of his dedication and zeal while working with Timothy, we hear that "day after day the churches grew stronger in faith and increased in number".

This reading also reveals that the Holy Spirit was very much guiding their journeys, preventing them from entering some places in Asia and leading them to others. By way of a dream, the Spirit also led them to Macedonia where they would ultimately meet Lydia and have a jail experience that would result in even more dramatic conversions.

The gospel from John 15:18-21, Jesus reminds us that as children of God, we do not belong to this world, but rather to God who has chosen us. But this belonging to God forbodes difficulty for us, as Jesus says, because the world will hate us and persecute us. He says that "they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know the one who sent me."

As believers and children of God, we are on our own journeys to glorify Him and to do His will. Fortunately, the Spirit is a gift to us, too, to help us find our way and to fathom God's plan for us. Sometimes we just have to quiet the static in our lives and turn away from the attractions of this world so that we can hear and be guided by the Spirit, just as Paul and Timothy were.

Our journeys will not be easy, however, because of the world's hatred, and we can be persecuted in smaller ways for the witness we give to God's glory. But if we ask for it, we will be strengthened by the Spirit and we can show love for those who hate us. In so doing, we will be united with Jesus and our focus on the life He has in store for us beyond this world will be renewed.

Ellen Maughan

Friday, May 7, 2010

Friday of the Fifth Week of Easter

John 15: 12-17

Jesus says: “Love one another as I love you.” How does Jesus love us? We only have to look to the Gospels. He provides wine to a wedding party; He heals the blind, the lame, the sick and dying. He gives food to the hungry, living water to all that thirst and then he gives us his Body and Blood, He gives of himself completely, He lays down his life for us. All our needs are taken care of. What an example He gives us. Do we help take care of others' needs? Do we Love as Jesus Loves?

He goes on to say we are no longer slaves we are friends. Slaves do as they are told without understanding, but we are His friends. He has told us everything about Our Father which is – LOVE –This is a unique and personal relationship. It’s a knowing of each other, the good, the bad, the ugly and the beauty in us and we are still loved. We are called to do the same.

In Jesus' day the rabbi didn’t go looking for those to teach, the student would search out the rabbi. But not with Jesus, he calls, chooses us to be his disciples. How great is that, that he would love us so much that He goes in search and calls us by name. What love that is. Now with this love we are to go and bear fruit. Spread that love, unconditional love, the love from Our Father. And Jesus says: “This I command you: love one another.”

Marilyn Harmyk

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter

National Day of Prayer
Acts 15:7-21; Psalm 96:1-2; John 15:9-11

Acts 15:7-21 is a very powerful passage which strongly urges us to praise Jesus for his Grace, reminding us it was his Precious Blood shed on Calvary which freed us from our sins. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ, believing in this loving act of the Son of God, Our Savior.

We are to be very careful to follow the commands of Christ and Sacred Scripture in our practices and beliefs to demonstrate our love for Jesus and to be good witnesses to both believers and non-believers at our workplace, school and everyday interaction with others along with loving and respecting others as Jesus did.

Psalm 96:1-2: This Psalm/hymn needs to be a reminder each day for all Christians to Praise God always for sending His only son to die on the Cross, shedding his Precious Blood for us so our sins would be forgiven and no more remembered against us. What a pure, beautiful, loving gift, to think that Our Savior would come down to earth, become one of us in all ways except sin, to experience all the trials we face everyday including a horrible death on the Cross. All in obedience to his Father’s Will. What a loving God we serve, may we Praise Him, the source of our salvation and all our good gifts. Glory and Praise to His Name Forever!

John 15:9-11: Jesus wishes our obedience that we keep open our personal relationship with Him. When we give our hearts to Jesus, we desire to follow Jesus out of love. After doing this, when we sin, we immediately confess it keeping the lines of communication (prayer) open. We then desire to spend special prayer and devotional time with Jesus each day (try for early morning as Jesus did) and Scripture reading; first asking the Holy Spirit for His guidance and wisdom. We joyfully wish to worship in fellowship and keep the Sabbath each week and serve and love one another as He loves us!

As we pray for our nation’s needs and our government officials on this National Day of Prayer, may we always remember 2 Chronicles 7:14: “If my people who are called by my name, humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and will heal their land.”

Have a Blessed Day!

Harry Hagerman, Jr.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Easter

In today’s reading, we get a glimpse of how the apostles and early Christians struggled with what I guess one might call the formalities of being a believer. The problem of having standards or expectations, and how those should be enforced. You have the well-meaning and enthusiastic efforts of many to spread the word, and welcome newcomers to the Church. Yet at the same time you have the old guard, the traditionalists; who have perhaps a stricter interpretation of what is required to be saved. Ultimately, after much debate Peter finally asserts that:

"My brothers, you are well aware that from early days God made his choice among you that through my mouth the Gentiles would hear the word of the gospel and believe.

And God, who knows the heart, bore witness by granting them the holy Spirit just as he did us.

He made no distinction between us and them, for by faith he purified their hearts.

Why, then, are you now putting God to the test by placing on the shoulders of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear?

On the contrary, we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they."

The point is that God makes no distinction among the faithful. It is by our hearts that we have demonstrated worthiness by God’s standard. All are welcome.

Matt Funk

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter

In the first reading (Acts 14:19-28) Paul was stoned for his belief. We can only pray for the courage to be able to stand up for what we believe. This can only be reached by spending quiet time in prayer. Always keeping our focus on God and his will in our lives.

This is evangelization. Here’s where God’s Grace is poured out upon us. We then are molded and transformed into who He wants us to be. Real changes are made and we begin to experience a true transformation only by the power of the Holy Spirit!

John 14: 27-31a: We can only receive real peace from God. People think that if we have money then we will have peace. And all will be alright. But peace comes from God only. No other way. Things will not give us peace.

Jesus loved his Father so he gave up his life for each one of us. We have an awesome God who will stop at nothing to get our attention. Always nurturing us, and yes, when we move away from Him waits for our return.

Carmela Cavezza

Monday, May 3, 2010

Monday of the Fifth Week of Easter

Faith can be elusive. Sometimes we feel it fully, and sometimes it feels weak and vulnerable. I like the words of these readings, because they feature both aspects of faith.

This is a Gospel that is very accessible to someone born 2000 years after it took place. Probably everyone has had the experience of being with someone for years and then realizing that they have missed something fundamental about them. They may not believe that what they missed about the person is true. I learned only on his death that a friend with whom I had spent many hours had been present at the exorcism that was catalogued in the book, The Exorcist. When I learned this, I found it really hard to believe, because it did not seem to fit the vision I had constructed of him.

Philip had been close to Jesus, and traveled with Him for years. Though he was an apostle and followed Him as a teacher and healer, the clarity of Jesus’ divinity was just becoming manifest. As this Gospel unfolds, Jesus is making increasing references to being One with the Father, and Philip is having difficulty “coming along”. He wants more proof of what Jesus is saying. Addressing his difficulty, Jesus tries repeatedly to use the matters of experience and reason to point to a matter of faith.

On the other hand, we are shown a completely opposite response from the Gentiles in the Acts of the Apostles. Peter is finding seemingly leagues of people, who did not even share the Jewish traditions, and who did not have the benefit of knowing Jesus, who want to be included in this new covenant. They listen to Peter, are drawn to his words, and seem to accept the divinity of Jesus easily. They are eager to hear of the teaching and works of Jesus and partake of the Eucharist.

Throughout my life, I have always wondered how I would have reacted had I known Jesus. I am usually reticent, and a little skeptical, when encountering charismatic leaders. I am invariably drawn to the dynamism and words which ring true to me. When something is said, however, that is not entirely evident to me, I pull back and try to study, reflect, and either accept or reject what has challenged me. As I read Philip, asking for something concrete, I see myself. I am so glad that Jesus was patient with him!

Susan Schroeder-Barda

Sunday, May 2, 2010

Fifth Sunday of Easter

As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.

This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

My question is this, Have we loved one another as he has loved us? It was one of the last things he asked us to do, yet have we done it? Not to love one another in the easy way, but the way he loves us. The go for broke, no holds barred, leave nothing behind kind of love. Think about how much he loves you, and what he has done for you. What he’s willing to do for you. Think about how deep and wide that love is, and ask yourself if you have been able to follow his commandment. Do you, like Mother Teresa, see the face of Jesus in everyone you see? I know that I fall short, but the good news is that I get to keep trying, and when I fail, which I inevitably will do, he will be there to pick me up, and brush me off, and show me once again how much he loves me. Maybe someday I’ll get there, maybe someday we all will, but the important thing to remember is that he’ll be waiting for us however long it takes.

Carol Dellatore

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Saturday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Whenever I read about the disciples and their interactions with Jesus I often think, "Why would they say that? Didn't they understand?" But I am sure that Jesus thinks that about me on a daily basis! He must be saying, "Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Carla.? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?"

I like to think of each day as a journey. We start the day by spending some quiet time with Jesus, so we can start the day hand-in-hand, looking out at all the beauty and adventure that lay ahead. Each step is a decision, a choice. Do we cling to Christ's hand seeking his way for us and trusting him with our lives, or do we forge off on our own thinking that we know where we want to go? I know too often I get caught up in my own agenda and to-do-list and go my own way. That's where I find frustration, discontent, greed, shallowness, and selfishness.

Thankfully, something during my day will usually make me pause...a thought of Jesus, a song on the radio, the smile of a loved one, the breathtaking beauty of nature. These reminders of Christ's love stop me in my tracks and remind me of where I should be. All it takes is a whisper of his name, and we are hand-in-hand again safe with our Lord for He never left us, we just let go of his waiting hand.

Brothers and sisters, let's walk this day, hand-in-hand with our Lord. Let's believe in Him and do His works as he calls us to do. Each day I pray for four things...Joy, Peace, Trust, and Thanksgiving. I pray that you will trust the Lord this day and thank Him for his many blessing, and He would bring you a day full of Joy and Peace in His presence!! May God Bless you and your families!

Carla Lynch