‘Do not fear’, ‘Do not be afraid…’ Jesus recognises that there will be much that will cause his disciples to be afraid but tries to get them to distinguish appropriate from inappropriate fear. There is a false fear and a true fear. Disciples need not fear those who can kill the body, because their entire physical existence is held within the hands of God and is precious in God’s sight: if God values the life of sparrows sold two for a penny, marking when they fall to the ground, how much more does the heavenly Father value and protect the lives of believers, worth more than hundreds of sparrows! Those who stand firm in witness to the Gospel and the values it enshrines, even to the point of death, can be confident that their ultimate fate lies in the hand of God and will one day be vindicated.The only valid fear for disciples should be that of falling out of God’s favour and so of losing, not one’s body, but one’s soul. This is a Gospel which illustrates the adage that Christianity is comforting but not comfortable. Matthew presents Jesus as insisting that the Gospel is not something to be talked about and lived behind closed doors. It – and the values it enshrines – demands public witness and proclamation.
Mission and reconciliation are prominent topics in the readings. The people of the Old Covenant received their mission through Moses. We, the people of the New Covenant receive our mission through Jesus. What is our mission? We are commissioned and sent to proclaim loud and clear to all and sundry that the kingdom of God has come.The gospel passage reminds us that Jesus chooses some of his disciples for specific tasks. That is not to say that the others have nothing to do. The whole Church is missionary. Each of the baptised is duty bound to spread the Gospel to the best of his or her ability. There are many ways of doing that. But the basic and most important contribution which we can make is to live a deep Christian life
The apostles worked many miracles. In our day the miracles may not be as frequent or as evident but the power is there in the Church. Every Christian is called upon to be an influence for good in society. The presence of the kingdom is announced, Christ’s mission is continued and extended when we bring the compassion of Jesus into the lives of others. Through our ordinary daily contacts with people, especially with the lonely and those on the margins, we can and ought be instruments of acceptance, reconciliation and healing. We don’t have to go on the foreign missions in order to do that. For most Christians the home, the parish, the work-place are the mission territories where we spread the Gospel message as best we can.
As is typical in the writings of St John, this week’s Gospel can be read on two levels. The words spoken by Jesus would have been shocking to those who heard them. For the Jewish people, to eat flesh and drink blood was unthinkable; it was abhorrent. Jewish dietary laws forbade the eating of flesh with its blood in it. Blood was the symbol of the life of the creature. At the end of the flood story in Genesis, God gives to humans all the plants and animals of the earth as food for them, ‘with this exception: you must not eat flesh with life, that is to say blood, in it’ (Genesis 9:4). Now here is Jesus saying that his followers must eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to have life. In the continuation of this gospel passage, many turn away from Jesus at hearing him say this. Jesus then asks the disciples if they too will leave him. Peter answers on their behalf with a wonderful acclamation of faith: ‘Lord, who shall we go to? You have the message of eternal life and we believe; we know that you are the Holy One of God.’
The giving of Jesus’ flesh and blood for the life of the world is a reference to the salvific nature of his death and the inauguration of a new covenant through his sacrifice. In the Old Testament, a sacrifice was not complete unless it was also eaten; the Eucharist is our participation in Calvary, where we truly consume the once-for-all sacrifice under the species of bread and wine. Under that veil, Christ is present, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity.
This weekend we celebrate the mystery of the Godhead, that God is a Trinity of distinct, yet undivided, persons – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. These three are not three Gods but One. God is One but not solitary. A community of persons, each equal in substance, in majesty, and power. The Church reminds us that the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of our Christian faith and life, because it is the mystery of Godself. This mystery of the triune God models for us what the human community ought be – a community of love. God our Father created our world out of love and continues to hold it in existence because of love. Jesus Christ, the Beloved Son, came into the world for love of humanity and gave his life in obedience to the Father, and as a evidence of his love for humanity (John 15:13). The Holy Spirit, who is the very dynamic of love between the Father and the Son, animates the world and pours God’s love into our hearts (Romans 5:5). When we love sincerely, we are manifesting God’s presence in our lives, as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Coming to faith is not so much acquiring a new set of beliefs about God as it is discovering God’s existence within the realities of our daily lives. The gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit help us to be more attuned to the actions of God in our lives and in our world. At baptism, the Spirit comes upon the newly initiated Christian, and at confirmation, the Spirit of God is renewed and confirmed in the faithful.The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are: wisdom, understanding, counsel (right judgment), fortitude (courage), knowledge, piety (reverence) and fear (awe) of the Lord. The Church lists twelve fruits of the Spirit: charity (love), joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control and chastity. These gifts and fruits are still very much in need in our world today.
Whether we realise it or not we are commissioned to go out to the world at the end of every liturgy, ‘Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.’ This changes our worship. We are not here just for ourselves. Mass, which comes from a word meaning ‘to be sent’, indicates that our liturgy is about celebrating what God has done in the world in and through us, and is a preparation for what God still wants to accomplish. Finally, we continue to experience the abiding presence of Christ in our daily lives or else we wouldn’t be here. God, as revealed in Jesus Christ, is not distant to our lives or impervious to our needs; we believe in a Companion-God who seeks our company as much as we need his. In this Mass, then, let’s thank God for the mountain top of Christ’s Ascension that lifts us up out of our everyday life to celebrate that we are creatures, not the Creator. Let us hear again Christ’s call to each of us to move away from the complacency of a spiritual cafeteria to a church moving out to change the world. And let’s rejoice in Christ’s presence which abides before us, behind us, over and in us, within and without, now and forever. Amen.
The coming of the Holy Spirit is Jesus’ promise to all of us who have faith in him. The word that Jesus uses here for the Holy Spirit, paraclete (in Greek), means advocate, defender or consoler and is often used to describe a helper or witness in a court of law. Just as Peter tells his readers to be ready for whenever they are called to make a defence for themselves, Jesus promises a defender who will always be with them. The Holy Spirit is an advocate and witness for our faith. The Holy Spirit also testifies to Christ’s saving work in our lives, including times of doubts, trials and shortcomings. In a world that sometimes seems devoid of God’s presence and action, the Holy Spirit dwells within us to help us “sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts.”
When the world rejects Christ and his good news, we have the Holy Spirit to help us follow Christ, loving as he loved, suffering as he suffered, and living in unity with the Father as he has made possible. And when we do this, God himself, in the fully divine person of the Holy Spirit, advocates for us, defends us and comforts us.
Brothers and sisters, this Word is a source of consolation, and it is a source of hope for us. Jesus did not separate himself from us, but rather opened the way for us, anticipating our final destination: the encounter with God the Father, in whose heart there is a place for each one of us. So, when we experience fatigue, bewilderment and even failure, let us remember where our life is headed. We must not lose sight of the destination, even if today we run the risk of overlooking it, of forgetting the final questions, the important ones: where are we going? Where are we headed? What is worth living for? Without these questions, we flatten our life only into the present. We think we must enjoy it as much as possible and end up living day by day, without purpose, without a goal. Instead, our homeland is in heaven (cf. Phil 3:20); let us not forget the greatness and the beauty of our destination! – Pope Francis.
In the Gospel of John, we do not find parables in the traditional sense. They are not a literary device that John employs, but this text is as close an approximation to a parable as we have. The contrast he draws between the shepherd who enters the fold by the gate and the thieves and brigands who seek to enter another way is really about leadership. There are good leaders and bad leaders. The good leader of God’s people must come to them through Jesus, who is the gate. The thieves and brigands will only lead the people to fear and confusion, where they will be scattered. Perhaps John is addressing a situation in his community where those who are seeking leadership are not following the voice of Jesus but seeking their own aggrandisement or following their own agenda. Such people will ultimately lead the flock to destruction, but Jesus gives life in abundance to all who know his voice and follow him as shepherd.
These two men give me great heart. Like them I find myself sometimes full of ‘had hopes’ Jesus explains in this journey that God’s plan wasn’t the same as the disciples, that in fact their ‘had hopes’ were unreal. God’s plan went way beyond mere political freedom which his disciples had wanted.
They know of Jesus’ death, they have heard about the empty tomb and the declaration that, ‘he is alive’. But intellectual information is not the basis of faith. Jesus comes to these two men, unrecognised. They could not see God in the recent events. Jesus opened their eyes to the possibility that God could be present even in suffering and death. They shift from intellectual information, to an inner conversion of heart. This change of heart is the basis of faith, and in this new faith perception, their eyes were opened to see that the stranger was Jesus.
It is not easy to let go ‘had hopes’ and to surrender what I want for what God wants, and yet this is the transformation or conversion that is needed if we are to walk within God’s path. What heartens me in this story is that while disciples may walk out on Jesus, but he doesn’t give up on them(us). Jesus joins these two deserters and gradually in mulling things over in his presence they are able to let go their plans and turn around towards Jerusalem to re-join the salvation story.