6th Sunday of EasterActs 15:1-2, 22-29 Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23 John 14:23-29 Sunday of the sick and their helpers (officially in the Church in Spain ’10). The Gospel this weekend will be this; John 14:23-29 Jesus said to his disciple "Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me. 25 "I have told you this while I am with you. 26 The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name--he will teach you everything and remind you of all that (I) told you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. 28 You heard me tell you, 'I am going away and I will come back to you.' If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father; for the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you this before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe. The first reading will be this: Acts 15:1-2, 22-29 Some who had come down from Judea were instructing the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the Mosaic practice, you cannot be saved." 2 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… 22 Then the apostles and presbyters, in agreement with the whole church, decided to choose representatives and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. The ones chosen were Judas, who was called Barsabbas, and Silas, leaders among the brothers. 23 This is the letter delivered by them: "The apostles and the presbyters, your brothers, to the brothers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia of Gentile origin: greetings. 24 Since we have heard that some of our number (who went out) without any mandate from us have upset you with their teachings and disturbed your peace of mind, 25 we have with one accord decided to choose representatives and to send them to you along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, 26 who have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 So we are sending Judas and Silas who will also convey this same message by word of mouth: 28 'It is the decision of the holy Spirit and of us not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities, 29 namely, to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols, from blood, from meats of strangled animals, and from unlawful marriage. If you keep free of these, you will be doing what is right. Farewell.'" The second reading will be this: Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23 He took me in spirit to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God. 11 It gleamed with the splendor of God. Its radiance was like that of a precious stone, like jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It had a massive, high wall, with twelve gates where twelve angels were stationed and on which names were inscribed, (the names) of the twelve tribes of the Israelites. 13 There were three gates facing east, three north, three south, and three west. 14 The wall of the city had twelve courses of stones as its foundation, on which were inscribed the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb… 22 I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God almighty and the Lamb. 23 The city had no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gave it light, and its lamp was the Lamb. MEDITATION: This 6th Sunday of Easter has Jesus telling of his plan to depart which will be followed by the arrival of the Holy Spirit (next Sunday will be Ascension Sunday and the next will be Pentecost). The first reading today speaks of the challenge of establishing unity of rules and regulations once the door was opened between Jews and 'gentiles'. It's relevant because Pentecost will celebrate the fact that the Spirit unites people. The second reading speaks of a vision of the 'New Jerusalem'. That's relevant because our 'spiritual’ lives will lead to a happy ending! Some may think that if the love of Jesus is genuine, then he wouldn't have left us on earth, but he did so in order to be more with us! Incarnated in flesh and blood, he was in a certain place with certain people at a certain time, but God wants to be within all of us at all times! That's the role of the Spirit. He wants us to be his 'dwellings'! That's why the Easter ceremonies involved a renewal of our Baptism. I liked when I saw a priest once genuflect before a newly baptised infant, as if God himself were inside! Man often sullies the dwelling with mundane things, but God doesn't give up and leave. In a way, every time we go to communion at mass, we're offering ourselves anew to be his dwellings. I like the way in the Old Testament, as King David planned building a temple in which to house the Ark of the Covenant, the prophet Nathan told him that it's within his people that God wants to live. He said that David's heir would eventually do the building (2 Sam 7:4+), and that's a prophecy of Christ. Christ establishes us ourselves as his dwellings. So Psalm 132 is relevant for us: “I will not enter my house or give myself rest until I have found a dwelling for the Lord” (Ps 132:3-5). However, this isn't a 'dwelling' that we must build, but rather we should wake up to the fact that God has already built us and he 'knocks on the door' asking if we'll let Him in! When we say “Hosanna in the highest” in the 'Holy, Holy' at mass, the word 'Hosanna' actually means 'open the door'. So it's a preparation for Christ coming to the hosts on the altar – and, of course, to the little hosts that we are! He wants to dwell in us in a way that will allow people around us to see Him! But can people see Christ in you? That's more important than any fancy statue in our Churches. Perhaps you'd like to dwell in God, but the marvel is that God wants to dwell in you! He even goes to Calvary to open the door of our hard hearts. As St Paul writes: 'Don't you realize that you're temples which have been well bought?'. God wants to get the message across. It makes me think of a night in London when I saw a guy punch a hole in the window of a bar because he saw someone kissing his girlfriend inside! It may seem far-fetched, but one part of the Old Testament actually describes God's love with the image of a guy punching a door open in order to be with his girl (Songs 5:5). The young man in London ended up with some blood on his hands, but Christ gets nails driven into his! Christ goes through that because he longs to dwell in us. Your dwelling means more to God than Buckingham Palace, the Louvre or the White House! The second reading describes a 'New Jerusalem' coming down from heaven like a Jewel with 12 gates in it's wall and the names of the twelve tribes of Israel inscribed. That obviously links with the fact that Jesus chose 12 Apostles to build his Church. And the 'temple' in this 'new Jerusalem' is the Lamb, which means is Christ himself. The first reading describes Paul and Barnabas having problems getting people to agree with each other in Judea, so they arrange for the Apostles in Jerusalem to decide for them. There lies the role of our Church in defending our unity. Some don't like the way the Church proposes guidelines for religious practice and morals, but they're not an imposition. They're guidelines. They're there to help us on our journey through life. Jesus knows that many are put-off by a Church of 'rules and regulations', so he responds: "I give you a new commandment: love one another as I have loved you." (Jn 14:34). The modern world can't criticize. In 1902 New York State introduced a bill to outlaw flirting in public! Also in 1925 Authorities in the state of Tennessee, USA, forbade the teaching of Darwinian theory in schools! The Church doesn't want to be 'authoritarian', but simply to offer advice for living in the world. The word 'authority' actually comes from the Latin 'Augheo' which means 'to promote and organize growth'. Also, it's important to realize that living the faith, isn't a matter of fulfilling 'rules'. It's a matter of personal relationship with God. St Paul was a teacher of Jewish law, but Jesus improved on that, and Paul then wrote this: 'Circumcision doesn't mean anything, nor does un-circumcision, but only a new creation.' (Gal 6:15). It's relevant that there are places where Jesus obeys the rules of the Jewish leaders but he also manages to mock their rules! He says this: "So that we may not offend the temple tax collectors, go to the sea, drop in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up. Open its mouth and you will find a coin worth twice the temple tax. Give that to them for me and for you." (Mt 17:27). But the 'guidelines' of the Church, are there to help us arrive at a good relationship with God – and to ensure that we don't let things slip. I think that the 'catecisms' that we are given, should really begin with an article on the love of God and his beautiful ideal for us to be his happy family. From there, 'instructions' and 'commandments' can be better seen as gifts – as Gods way of defending his ideal. God actually allows us be tempted as a way of training us - of building his dwelling. It's relevant that the serpent appears in the Garden of Eden before the sin of Adam and Eve. God created the serpent. So why does God allow temptations to come our way? I think that it's because that's part of our training. We need to be challenged in order to grow in love. There is a 'natural law' – and it's good, but it's not enough to guide us in life. God gives us 'consciences' that do much more. It's up to us, though, to nurture our conscience – or let it be nurtured! In Islam, there's a very 'absolute' law which has to be obeyed and that's it, but in our faith there's Christ. And He's it! He's an unending and infinitely variable leader. He guides us all together, and He guides each person individually. That's why a personal life of prayer is so important. The Old Testament deals with love of God very much in terms of fulfilling rules and regulations, while the New Testament deals much more with it as a deep attitude of heart. He's much more interested in stimulating us to do things than in forbidding. The Church is here to guide us positively much more than to slow us down with 'legalism'. Rules are there to guard our base, but that's only a prologue to a great adventure. Christ draws us forward with the promise of pleasant fruits, rather than obliging us like a dictator. The Muslims (Islamic) have a very 'absolute' law which has to be obeyed and that's it, but in our faith there's Christ. And He's it! He's an unending and infinitely variable leader. He guides us all together, and He guides each person individually. That's why a personal life of prayer is so important. It's relevant that Jesus taught using parables. Parables stimulate man to think about situations in life. That's different to simply giving instructions or cold ethics. We're not machines programmed to obey. We're children of God trying to get born!. Jesus corrected the way the Jews had given religious 'rules' too much importance. 'He said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath." (Mk 2:27). Reducing religion to a matter of obeying rules is actually one of the reasons for which the Jewish leaders condemned Jesus! The Holy Spirit isn't a book of instructions, but a heart-mover! We worship our God who gives his life voluntarily on a cross because He wants to give us the Holy Spirit and move our hearts. So lets make sure that the dwelling for Him is in good condition for Pentecost! ..........Dara. En Español: 6° Domingo de Pascua: Hechos 15:1-2, 22-29. Apoc 21:10-14, 22-23. Jn 14:23-29 Este 6° Domingo de Pascua nos presenta a Jesús hablando de su plan de partir y de la llegada del Espíritu Santo (El Domingo que viene será el Domingo de la Ascensión y el siguiente es Pentecostés). La primera lectura hoy habla del trabajo de establecer una unidad de reglas y regulaciones, una vez que la puerta está abierta entre Judíos y gentiles. Es relevante, porque en Pentecostés celebraremos el hecho de que el Espíritu une a la gente. La segunda lectura habla de una visión de la 'Nueva Jerusalén'. ¡Esto es importante para que la vida 'espiritual' puede llegar a un destino feliz! Podrían pensar algunos, que si el amor de Jesús es auténtico, entonces no nos hubiera dejado en la tierra, ¡pero lo hizo para estar con nosotros aún más! Encarnado en carne y sangre, estaba en un lugar concreto con gente concreta en un tiempo concreto, pero ¡Dios quiere estardentro de todos nosotros siempre! Este es el papel del Espíritu. ¡Quiere que seamos sus 'moradas'! Por esto las ceremonias de la Pascua tuvieron una renovación de nuestro Bautismo. Me gustó ver una vez un sacerdote haciendo la genuflexión delante de un niño recién bautizado, ¡como si estuviera Dios mismo dentro! ¡Pues está! El hombre muchas veces ensucia la morada con cosas mundanas, pero Dios no la abandona. Al comulgar en la misa, estamos ofreciéndonos de nuevo a ser sus moradas. Me gusta como en el Antiguo Testamento, cuando el Rey David planeaba la construcción de un templo para el Arca de la Alianza, el profeta Natán le dijo que es dentro de su gente donde Dios quiere estar. Profetizó que más tarde, un descendente de David cambiaría corazones para que fueran la morada de Dios dentro (2°Sam 7:4+), y esto es una profecía de Cristo. Cristo nos establece a nosotros mismos como sus moradas. Entonces el salmo 132 tiene relevancia para nosotros: “No descansaré hasta que encuentre una morada para mi Señor!” (Salmo 132:3-5). Sin embargo, no nos toca construir la morada sino despertar al hecho de que Dios ya nos ha construido y ¡llama a la puerta pidiendo que le dejemos entrar! Cuando rezamos “Hosanna en las alturas” en la misa, la palabra 'hosanna' significa 'abre la puerta'. Es pedir que entre Cristo en las ostias sobre el altar - y, claro, ¡en las pequeñas ostias que somos nosotros! Quiere morar en nosotros de una forma que la gente alrededor de nosotros pueda ver. Pero ¿puede la gente ver a Cristo en ti? Esto es más importante que cualquier estatua bonita en las iglesias. Quizás te gustaría morar en Dios, ¡pero la maravilla es que Dios quiere morar en ti! Aún va al Calvario para abrir las puertas de nuestros corazones duros. Como escribe San Pablo: '¿No os dais cuenta de que sois templos bien comprados?'. Dios quiere que nos demos cuenta. Recuerdo una noche en Londres cuando vi a un hombre romper el cristal de la ventana de un bar de un puñetazo ¡al ver a alguien por dentro besando efusivamente a su novia! Puede ser que sea distinto, pero una parte del Antiguo Testamento describe el amor de Dios con la imagen de un novio esforzándose en abrir la puerta para estar con su amada (Cantares 5:5). El chaval en Londres acabó con las manos un poco sangrientas, pero Cristo si que acaba con las suyas muy sangrientas - ¡clavadas! Cristo aguanta aquello porque anhela morar en nosotros. Para Dios, tu morada vale más que el Palacio Real de Madrid o el de Buckingham o la Casa Blanca! La segunda lectúra habla de 'la Nueva Jerusalén'bajando del Cielo como joya con 12 puertas en sus paredes y los nombres de las 12 tribus de Israel escritas allí. Se vincula con el hecho de que Jesús escogió a 12 Apóstoles para construir su Iglesia. Y 'el templo' en esta 'Nueva Jerusalén' es 'el Cordero' - que significa Cristo mismo. La primera lectúra habla de los problemas de Pablo y Bernabé a causa de las divisiones en los creyentes de Judea. Entonces decidieron que los Apóstoles en Jerusalén les digan sus opiniones. Allí está el papel de nuestra Iglesia en defender nuestra unidad. A alguna gente no les gusta como la Iglesia intenta guiar a la religión y a la ética, pero la Iglesia no impone. Son guiones. Nos ayudan en el camino de la vida. Jesús sabe que una lista larga de reglas no ayuda, entonces dice esto: “Os doy un mandamiento nuevo: amaos como yo os he amado.” (Jn 14:35). Tampoco el mundo moderno puede criticar. Por ejemplo, en 1902, el Estado de Nueva York introdujó una ley que ¡prohibía a las parejas besarse en público! En 1925, el estado de Tenessee en los Estados Unidos no permitía que los profesores de escuela hablaran de la teoría de Darwin en clase (sobre la evolución). Muy distinto de esto, la Iglesia no quiere ser autoritaria sino ofrecer consejo para el camino de la vida. De hecho, la palabra 'autoridad' viene de 'augheo' que significa 'ayudar a crecer'. También es importante darse cuenta que vivir la religión no es cuestión de 'obedecer reglas'. Es cuestión de una relación personal con Dios. San Pablo era maestro de la ley Judía, pero Jesús le convirtió y después Pablo escribió esto: 'La circuncisión no importa nada, sino una nueva creación.' (Gal 6:15). Es relevante que haya sitios donde Jesús logró obedecer a las reglas Judías y a la vez burlarse de ellas. Dice esto: “Para no molestar a los cobradores de los impuestos del templo, propongo que os vayáis al mar, cogáis un pescado, y al abrir su boca, veréis monedas para pagar el doble del impuesto. Paga a los del templo para mi y para vosotros.” (Mt 17:27). 'Los consejos' de la Iglesia son para ayudarnos a tener una buena relación con Dios - y para evitar caídas. Creo que los catecismos que se nos dan, deberían empezar con un artículo sobre el amor de Dios y su querer vernos como familia muy feliz. Desde allí se puede ver las instrucciones de la Iglesia como regalos - como Dios defendiendo a su ideal. De hecho, creo que Dios permite las tentaciones como una forma de entrenarnos. Es relevante que la serpiente aparezca en el jardín del Edén antes del pecado de Adán y Eva. ¡Dios creó a la serpiente! Entonces ¿porqué Dios permite que nos vengan tentaciones? Creo que es para entrenarnos a amar muy bien. ¡Hacen falta desafíos! Hay una ley natural, y está bien, pero no basta como guía total. Dios nos da 'conciencias' que nos guían más. Pero nos toca a nosotros dejarles ser nutridas! El Islam tiene una ley muy 'absoluta' que pide obediencia a 'la ley' y nada más, pero en nuestra religión está Cristo. ¡Y Él es el cumplimiento! Es un líder sin fin y que guía por una gran variedad de caminos. Nos guía a todos unidos y también a cada uno personalmente. Por esto es importante que cada uno tenga una vida de oración personal. El Antiguo Testamento pide un amor a Dios de cumplimiento de reglas y regulaciones, mientras que el Nuevo anima mucho más a una actitud profunda de corazón. Cristo quiere estimularnos a avanzar, más que darnos una lista de prohibiciones. El Cuerpo de Cristo (la Iglesia) quiere organizar saltos adelante más que estar 'prohibiendo'. Las reglas protegen a nuestro fundamento, pero es solamente un prologo y después viene la aventura del camino de Cristo. Cristo nos anima diciendo que unidos a Él, daremos mucho fruto (Jn 15). Es muy distinto de un dictador obligando. Es relevante que Jesús enseñaba usando parábolas. Las parábolas nos estimulan a reflexionar sobre situaciones en la vida. Aquello es distinto a dar instrucciones o una ética fría. No somos máquinas programadas a obedecer. ¡Somos hijos de Dios intentando nacer! Jesús quiso corregir como los Judíos querían un cumplimiento frío de reglas de religión. Les dijo, “el sábado es para el hombre, no el hombre para el sábado” (Mc 2:27). ¡Una reducción de la religión a un asunto de obediencia a reglas, de hecho llegó a la condenación de Jesús! ¡El Espíritu Santo no presenta un libro de instrucciones, sino mueve corazones! Alabamos a un Dios que se entrega voluntariamente en una cruz y derrama su sangre, pero es para derramar el Espíritu Santo y estimular nuestros corazones. Entonces, ¡conviene tener la morada en buena condición para Pentecostés!
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