Sixth Sunday of Easter

May 9, 2010

The church faced perhaps its greatest crisis in its teaching authority when it was confronted with the question of deciding whether Gentile Christians were to act like Jews, to be circumcised, and to follow Jewish dietary and religious laws. The church leaders, through the Holy Spirit, relaxed its membership regulations, which left Jewish questions wondering why they too would be bound by the law. Heated debates and dissension were resolved through the pastoral ways of skillful leadership. The content of debates of the past may differ from our present challenges, but the relational and interpersonal ways of dealing with conflict remain the same. As we face the many disheartening crises today in our church, we can learn from the style and manner of our early leaders in resolving disputes and discerning the will of God.

Notice the dynamics of the early church’s debates: differing cultural contexts and hermeneutics, uncertainty, deep dissension, harsh debates, digging into entrenched positions, those who wrongly usurp teaching authority and threaten exclusion from membership, appeal to a higher authority for resolution and clarity. Even in a community based on love, deep divisions can occur. Love is essential, but it is difficult to govern a community based solely on love, but a loving concern by the authorities can make all the difference in the world. Notice now how the leaders respond: they have compassion and sympathy for each group, they listen openly to the arguments, their love is outwardly manifested rather than defensively entrenched, they recognize the striving for the good and the deep faith of those struggling to live well, they spend abundant time in prayer and wrestle with their own cultural contexts, and they pay attention not to their own concerns about law, status or their own authority, but to the movement of the Spirit in the lives of others. Though their views are challenged, they make it possible for others to serve the Lord in freedom and joy. Surely the Spirit is able to be operative when leadership wrestles and strives in this manner. Good things surely come to those who believe in Christ Jesus.

In the Gospel we know that Jesus is nearing the end of his ministry and he has compassion of those he is leaving behind. Besides giving his very self to them through the washing of the feet and the last meal, he grants them a new type of peace that is both consoling and challenging. To live in peace and with love is not easy and we have to maneuver the complexities of human desires and intelligence. This type of peace begs that we serve each other in a loving way (whatever that looks like) and with a type of hospitality that tilts towards inclusion while maintaining the integrity of our beliefs. This is not easy to do, but this peace is a gift we learn to appreciate because when can act more and more like the one who gives it to us. What would happen if we and our religious leaders used this type of peace when striving to deal with our cultural contexts that threaten the unity of our community? I think we would rejoice.

Quote for the Week

From The Letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians, one of the second readings during the Liturgy of the Ascension of the Lord:

“May the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, give you a Spirit of wisdom and revelation resulting in knowledge of him. May the eyes of your hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belong to his call, what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones, and what is the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe, in accord with the exercise of his great might, which he worked in Christ, raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens, far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things beneath his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.”

Themes for this Week’s Masses

First Reading: Paul sets out on his journey and encounters Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth, in Philippi who prevails upon him to stay at her home. Paul and Silas were imprisoned beat and imprisoned, but they were freed by an angel of the Lord. Seeing this, the jailer bathed their wounds and was baptized into the faith. Paul preached in Athens with modest success, but Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, and Damaris and others joined him. Paul left for Corinth and met Aquila and Priscilla, fellow tent-makers. After preaching, Titus Justus, Crispus, a synagogue official, and other Corinthians came to believe. Aquila and Priscilla heard Apollos preaching and gave him clearer details about the life and significance of Jesus.

Gospel: As we near the end of Easter, John’s Gospel tells us why Jesus had to physically leave us so that he could be invisibly present to us. He tells us that he has to go so that the consoling Advocate can come among us. This Advocate will be the Spirit who will guide us to all truth. With sensitivity, Jesus realizes that we will experience real grief and he reassures us that our grief will be transformed into joy when the Spirit comes. As Matthias is chosen to complete the Twelve Apostles, we are reminded that our faith is a gift because it is Jesus who chooses us, we did not choose him, and we are rewarded because the Father loves us because we have loved his son, Jesus, and believed in him as the Messiah.

Saints of the Week

Monday: Damien Joseph de Veuster, priest, is a recently canonized saint who contracted leprosy after years of service to a leper colony. He was a Picpus Father from Belgium who was sent to the Hawaiian Islands in the 1860’s to be a pastor and soon volunteers as a chaplain to the lepers on Moloka’i. He died in 1889 twenty-six years into his service in which he brought respect and dignity to the plight of the lepers.

Wednesday: Nereus and Achilleus, martyrs, were 1st century soldiers in the Roman army who became Christians and refused to sacrifice to idols in the early 2nd century. They left the army after their conversion and were martyred during the reign of Emperor Trajan. The Syrian, Pancras, martyr, converted to the faith with his uncle and was beheaded at age 14 during the Diocletian persecution. His remains were sent to the King of Northumbria in England where six churches were dedicated to his memory.

Thursday: Ascension of the Lord is celebrated in some U.S. dioceses today. The Ascension celebrates Jesus’ visible absence while recognizing his invisible presence to the world. It is the event in the life of Christ when his physical appearances came to an end so he could resume his place at the right hand of the Father in heaven. Otherwise, Our Lady of Fatima is remembered on this Thursday for Mary’s appearance to the three shepherd children in Portugal from May 13-October 13, 1917. Through the daily praying of the rosary, Mary preached the repentance and conversion of one’s heart to her son.

***Please note that the Ascension is celebrated in Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Newark, Hartford, and Omaha on Thursday. Most of the world celebrates Ascension on Sunday.

Friday: Matthias, Apostle, is memorialized on each May 14th as he was chosen to replace Judas as the 12th Apostle. He was with Jesus from the beginning of his ministry, at his baptism, and was a witness to the Resurrection. In fulfillment of Scripture, two names were put forward so the Holy Spirit could choose the one who would complete the Twelve, and that lot fell to Matthias.

Saturday: Isidore is the patron of farmers and of the people of Madrid. As farmers, he and his wife became widely known for their piety and generosity in the early 12th century and served as inspiration for many miracles. King Philip III in 1615 is said to have recovered from an illness through the intercession of Isidore.

This Week in Jesuit History

• May 9, 1758. The 19th General Congregation opened, the last of the Old Society. It elected Lorenzo Ricci as general.
• May 10, 1773. Empress Maria Teresa of Austria changed her friendship for the Society into hatred, because she had been led to believe that a written confession of hers (found and printed by Protestants) had been divulged by the Jesuits.
• May 11, 1824. St Regis Seminary opens in Florissant, Missouri, by Fr. Van Quickenborne. It was the first Roman Catholic school in USA for the higher education of Native American Indians
• May 12, 1981. A letter of this date, from Secretary of State, Cardinal Casaroli, speaks positively of Teilhard de Chardin in celebration of the centenary of his birth (May 1, 1881).
• May 13, 1572. Election of Gregory XIII to succeed St Pius V. To him the Society owes the foundation of the Roman and German Colleges.
• May 14, 1978. Letter of Pedro Arrupe to the whole Society on Inculturation.
• May 15, 1815. Readmission of the Society into Spain by Ferdinand VII. The members of the Society were again exiled on July 31, 1820.

Plans for the Week

I am in my final week of directing the Retreat in Daily Life to the faculty and staff of Xavier Catholic College in Hervey Bay. The time has passed quickly and I am moved by the good prayer and reflection of the retreatants. I am impressed with their generosity and attentiveness to God’s movements in their lives. Deo Gratias.

My growing cultural sensitivity

I realize that when I write these updates I am operating out of a North American bias. It is difficult to write for a world-wide context. Help me out by telling me how I can better respond to your needs.

Happy Mother’s Day

May the Lord abundantly bless our Mothers and Others who do their best to care for us so well in life. We pray for our biological mothers, our foster mothers, for those who have wanted to become mothers, for our aunts and grandmothers, spouses, partners and friends who have nurtured our lives and have brought us to be who we are. We pray for all those who have been a mother to us in some way. May God bless your lives and give you a deeper friendship with the Lord Jesus Christ.