SECOND SUNDAY OF EASTER – 2018
« The readings offer to us different moments in the life
of the community of Jesus followers
o
In the first
reading Luke describes the life of the small, poor and simple community of the
disciples, a community that shares everything.
o
In the second
reading John speaks of one of his communities.
o
And the Gospel
presents the apostolic community after the resurrection of the Lord.
FIRST READING – Acts 10: 4,32-35
« Luke in this section of the Acts gives a second
description of the first community, the church which is still very small and
poor.
« Luke speaks here of the sharing of goods in that
community. The community experiences a problem of poverty in some of its
members, and as a community of the followers of Jesus it looks for solutions. The members respond with courage, enthusiasm
and fidelity to the words of Jesus “love one another as I have loved you.”
« What Luke says of this community, invites us to
think:
o They had one heart and one soul.
o Nobody considered that what they had was theirs, since
they gave their possessions for the good
of all.
o There were no needy among them.
o The Apostles witness to the resurrection with great
power.
« This word which we will listen to during next Sunday’s
liturgy questions us.
o The first followers of Jesus took very seriously the
words of Jesus “love one another…”
o This love moved them to look for solutions to the
sufferings of others.
o I ask myself if we feel that
the distribution of the goods of creation, so unfair as ours, is
something we can tolerate with peace,
each one of us taking care of his/her our own business.
o Or on the contrary the strength of the resurrection
which removed the stone of the tomb, stirs our heart in front of so much
injustice, destruction of creation and above all destruction of the human
being.
« One conclusion
that can be drawn from these
readings is that, as we have said above, the first community had taken very seriously the words of Jesus “Love one
another as I have loved you.”
« Certainly, and we cannot deny it, and we have to give
thanks to the risen Lord, in the Church many sisters and brothers through the
centuries and also today have taken very seriously these words of Jesus, and in
spite of their limitations and poverty, they have striven and continue striving
to make these words true, sometimes to
the price of their life.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM Ps
118:2-4,13-15,22-24
The response repeats like
a background music “Give
thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.”
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.
Let the house of Israel say,
"His mercy endures forever."
Let the house of Aaron say,
"His mercy endures forever."
Let those who fear the LORD say,
"His mercy endures forever."
R. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.
I was hard pressed and was falling,
but the LORD helped me.
My strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
The joyful shout of victory
in the tents of the just:
R. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.
The stone which the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
By the LORD has this been done;
it is wonderful in our eyes.
This is the day the LORD has made;
let us be glad and rejoice in it.
R. Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.
SECOND
READING 1 Jn 5:1-6
« Let us see some aspects of the letter:
o The community is from Asia Minor, disciple of John.
Its members are Christians who belong to the second or third generation.
o They are new Christians, far from those first
witnesses, and even from the members of the first generation.
o Their behavior is based on the witnesses who saw and
heard and touched the Word of Life.
o They are faced with a heresy about Jesus: devaluation
of the historical Jesus and denial of the redemption by blood
o The author helps his sisters and brothers in the
following way:
§ Makes the community aware of the demands of the
Christian life
§ He offers some criteria to discern
about what is a Christian behavior and
what is not.
« Let us meditate on the message for next Sunday:
o The Reading is taken from the conclusion of the First
Letter of John
o He who believes that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of
God is a son of God.
o He who loves the Father loves also the Son
o He goes further and says: if we love God and fulfill
his commandments, we know that we love the children of God also.
o
John says:
§ The commandments are not a burden
§ Faith overcomes the world (world considered here as
the realm of sin)
§ Faith in Jesus the Son of God who came through water
and blood.
§ Water , baptism? Blood,
Eucharist? Or they mean the water and blood that flowed from the side of the
crucified Lord? Or does he want us to think about the reality of the
incarnation of the Word?
GOSPEL OF JOHN 20:19-31
The liturgy of
this second Sunday of Eastern narrates the manifestation of Jesus to the eleven
on the evening of the Resurrection day
Jesus comes in
the midst of them, so that all can see Him
o His greeting as always is “Shalom=Peace. ” The Risen Christ is our peace, his presence
fills us with an overwhelming joy and we experience his profound peace which
nobody can take from us.
o He makes them understand that they are his visibility,
that the work he has begun when he was sent by the Father, has to be continued
by them
§ What work, what
mission? With the
power of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus, they receive the power and the
mission to forgive, to tie and untie, with the same authority of Jesus, who
accepts their decision
o One of them Thomas is not there with the community,
why? we do not know, maybe he was discouraged, sad, disappointed? He moves away
from the community when he needs it the most. When he needs to share with his
companions and friends his sadness, his fears, his disappointment.
Jesus comes back
the following week, he does not leave one of his close friends without his
manifestation.
o Jesus, who continues to love without measure and
without conditions, is going to offer to Thomas a great gift, and with Thomas
to us all too.
o Thomas, look at me, I am Jesus, whom you love, once
you wanted to go to Jerusalem to die with me.
o Do not allow temptation and sadness overcome you, do
not leave your community of friends, who suffer like you.
o Touch my hands, and introduce your hand into my side, which will be always open for you.
o You know that now, by the power of the resurrection we
are not only friends, but brothers.
o “My Lord and my God.” I love you my Lord, forgive my
mistrust.
§ BLESSED ARE THOSE WHO HAVE NOT SEEN AND HAVE
BELIEVED.” Thank you Lord for these
words, because we belong to the group of those who struggle every day
·
To believe
without seeing
·
To seek you in
the midst of our darkness
·
To allow
ourselves to be encountered by your love that forgets and forgives our
doubts.
·
WE BELIEVE LOR,
BUT HELP OUR UNBELIEF, INCREASE OUR FAITH.
CLARETIAN CORNER
“The Principal
aim of the religious of this order is to work with all diligence in the Lord,
in keeping God’s law and the
utmost fulfilment of the evangelical counsels, and, in imitation of the Holy
Apostles, to work until death in teaching every creature the holy Law of the
Lord.
Our form and manner of life:
- requires
that all those persons who wish to be enrolled
be crucified to all the things of
the world.
- our
Institute also requires daughters stripped of all their disordered affections
and passions, so that they can follow the footsteps of Christ our highest good..(Venerable Maria Antonia Paris - Foundress, Aim
and Goal – first part. (Constitutions)
Ever since I lost the desire to become a
Carthusian--which God had used to uproot me from worldliness--I not only
thought about becoming holy myself, but I was continuously trying to imagine
what I could do to save the souls of my neighbors. Hence I prayed continuously
to Jesus and Mary, offering myself to them for this purpose. The lives of the
saints, which we read daily at table, and my own spiritual reading all
contributed to this. But what moved and stimulated me most was reading the Holy
Bible, to which I have always been very strongly attracted. (Saint Anthony Mary Claret – Founder, Autobiography 113.)
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