The church has been grieving this past week since the death of the Pope. However, all Jesus needed was a little generosity on the part of a small boy to feed the crowd. In one of his encyclicals, Faith and Reason, Pope John Paul II stated that the church remains profoundly convinced that faith and reason mutually support each other they offer each other a purifying critique and a stimulus to pursue the search for a deeper understanding. Jesus identifies himself as the gate in this sense. In todays gospel reading, Jesus does not say, Come to my teaching, but Come to me. Unspectacular Beautiful Fidelity Now while he was with them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and handed it to them. Help us to support Carmelite projects around the world. As a result of that initiative they came to recognize the stranger as Jesus at the very moment when he took, blessed, broke and gave the bread to them. The thief comes We also know that people can be stolen. Unfortunately, we know very little. We can all find ourselves asking a similar kind of question to Andrew, What is that between so many? We see some need or other and we recognize that our own personal resources or those of the group are not sufficient to meet the need. This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. He had a vision of himself as the shepherd of one flock, one community of disciples from a whole variety of backgrounds. So, according to Luke, great good came from the persecution of the church in Jerusalem. As the shepherd calls his sheep one by one, so the Lord calls his followers one by one; he calls them by name; he calls them in a way that respects their individuality and uniqueness. There are no lengths to which the Lord will not go to hold onto us, to keep us in relationship with him. They were missing the most important bit of the story. However, Jesus offers himself to them as someone who can satisfy not just their material hunger, but the deep, spiritual, hunger within them. Jesus immediately challenges him to take a much bigger step towards him; he calls on Nicodemus to allow himself to be born from above, to be born of water and the Spirit. We all know from our own experience that liturgical time doesnt always correspond to where we are on our own lifes journey. The evangelist, John, suggests that Jesus needed to be alone with God the Father who had sent him into the world. One of the features of Marks gospel is its very negative portrayal of Jesus first disciples, including Peter, those who were closest to him. As we listen, we are gradually transformed from within. He wanted to be with them, as they were. Clearly the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd that we find in todays gospel reading spoke to Christians from the earliest days of the church. The Lord calls each of us to be a good shepherd in some shape or form to others. In the gospel reading Jesus declares that no one will steal his disciples from him. I am the good shepherd: No one takes it from me; As Peter puts it in todays second reading, You did not see him, yet you love him. The Lords faithfulness to us prompts us to keep faith with each other, especially with those who are close to us. Jesus comes to his disciples as God in human form. and to hear the teaching of the Father, God alone endures; he is the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end. Others followed his example, leaving us with four gospels altogether. The question What must we do? is as valid a question for us today, as it was for the people of Jerusalem two thousand years ago. The Eucharist is a privileged moment when we come before the Lord as the Bread of Life and open our hearts to all he can offer us. Seven suitable people were chosen, allowing the Twelve to focus on what was important in their calling. These reflections are the fruit of prayer, spiritual reading and Lectio Divina of these Nuns, and are a wonderful way to become acquainted with the vitality and freshness of Carmelite spirituality. In that gospel reading, Jesus declares that the sheep who belong to me listen to my voice they follow me. Zacchaeus heard Jesus invite himself to his home. One by one, according to the gospel reading, the shepherd calls his own and leads them out. Here at the very early days of the church we have a good example of how the church must function in every age. Born in 1347, Catherine entered the Dominican Third Order at the age of eighteen and spent the next three years in seclusion, prayer, and austerity. It was while he was at table with the two disciples and broke bread with them that they finally came to recognize fully the stranger who had shared their journey. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they began to be afraid. However, for the good shepherd, the role is not just a job; it is a loving commitment. Then he spoke to Thomas, Put your finger here; look, here are my hands. God will stop at nothing to ensure that the world of humanity hears the gospel of Gods saving love for all. There was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. Gods work will not ultimately be derailed. No one has gone up to heaven His last appearance in Johns gospel is much less tentative; along with Joseph of Arimathea, he sees to it that Jesus is given a dignified burial. There are a number of similarities between the story of the Ethiopian in todays first reading, from the Acts of the Apostles. He had touched their hearts and they didnt want to let him go. The Lord does not take an initial no to him as final. The Ethiopian eunuch was journeying away from Jerusalem when Philip, one of the missionaries of the early church, joined them and opened up the Scriptures for him. Yet, the light of Jesus is not primarily a condemnatory light whose primary purpose is to expose evil. Another member of the church there, Ananias had a vision of the Lord in which the Lord asked him to go to Saul and to heal Sauls blindness. However, he knew those who met Jesus and, in particular, he knew Peter. It is written in the prophets: They will all be taught by God; everyone who, Copyright 2020 The Jesuits | All Rights Reserved | Powered by, Easter 4th Week : Sunday 30th April, 2023, Easter 3rd Week : Saturday 29th April, 2023, Easter 3rd Week : Friday 28th April, 2023, Easter 3rd Week : Thursday 27th April, 2023. We cannot control the Spirit, no more than we can control the wind. The Lords light is not in any way threatening. But he said to them, It is I. It is often the way that our interpretation of some experience does not do justice to the richness of that experience. That new hope can generate new energy within us, moving us to take initiatives we might not otherwise have taken. It was St Irenaeus, one of the early theologians of the church, who said that the glory of God is the human person fully alive. When we have suffered a great loss we often feel the need to talk about the loss with someone. They looked for him as the giver of bread; Jesus wanted them to look for him as the giver of food that endures to eternal life. He was a Pharisee and, yet, he somehow was looking for more. Seeing the risen Lord was enough to dispel his doubt. To whom is the prophet referring, himself or someone else? His questions arising from his reflective reading of the Scriptures were the means through which God was drawing him to his Son. We are called to encourage one another in the faith, to help one another to grow in our relationship with the Lord, to enable one another to be faithful. Fear and anxiety is much more prevalent than it used to be. That is closer, perhaps, to how Jesus uses the image of the wind in this mornings gospel reading. Heavenly things can be viewed through earthly things. Because we only live in hope of such a meeting, there will always be some element of doubt in our own faith. Jesus is portrayed as a young beardless man with a sheep draped around his shoulders. My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. Jesus said to Nicodemus that he had to be born from above; he had to be born of water and the Spirit. However, such stormy moments can be times of grace, opportunities for the Spirit in work in new ways in the church. Elsewhere in the gospels, Jesus says, Give and it will be given to you. Yet, is spite of this resistance, the Lord insisted all the more on the need, not only to eat his flesh, but to drink his blood also. She was born into tumultuous times (1347-1380). This was a moment of new creation. In his doubting, Thomas may be like many other disciples today. Yet, we can put a damper on the Lords work, a bit like Philip and Andrew, or we can create a space for the Lord to work, like the small boy. Healing Mass card. Even though most of us like the light, the gospel reading declares that people have shown they prefer darkness to light. When we engage in it, it helps us to appreciate more fully both the sacrament of baptism and of the Eucharist. Come to me, Jesus says, and through me come to the Father. In this mornings gospel reading Jesus speaks to Nicodemus of a different kind of birth. He comes at night, without drawing attention to himself. he has seen the Father. Here and now they already share in the life of God which Jesus brings us. As Peter puts it in todays second reading, You did not see him, yet you love him. We can always slip back into the mood of Good Friday, tentative about our relationship with the Lord, fearful of making it known. She prayed that she might atone for the sins of the church, and shortly afterwards collapsed and died. God gives him the Spirit without reserve. We simply rest in the Word of God. His meeting with Jesus convinced him that Jesus was alive, risen from the dead. Then they said to each other, Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?. The effect of his light was to make Paul temporarily blind, Even with his eyes wide open, he could see nothing at all. I am the living bread which has come down from heaven. It is evident that Jesus is not speaking literally. Andrew recognized that one of the crowd had a small amount of food but he dismissed this small resource as of no value. The one whom they had been following, and in whom they had put so much hope, had been crucified by the Romans. The words of the stranger rekindled the hope of the disciples, as they said, Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road?. Difficult times for the church can often be moments of renewal, of new and unexpected growth. If the wind is mysterious and beyond our control, the Spirit of God is even more mysterious and beyond our control. Jesus also speaks as one who invites all who are overburdened to come to him for rest. The attitude of the apostles shows us what is at the heart of our own lives as Christians. The door of the church here is open from about 9.00 in the morning to 6.00 or 7.00 in the evening every day of the week. In todays gospel reading Jesus declares both everybody who believes has eternal life and anyone who eats this bread will live for ever. since he whom God has sent His own reasoning did not allow him to believe that life had triumphed over death, that the crucified Jesus was now the risen Lord. Then, having taken and blessed wine, he gave it to his disciples and said, This is my blood. The works I do in my Fathers name are my witness; In the case of the two disciples, when their hearts began to burn within them with new hope, they took the initiative to invite the stranger to their table. There was a time when people could leave their doors unlocked because they trusted everyone in the community. they are dead, All who seek the truth are already standing in the light of Christ, even though they may not be aware of it. When Jesus spoke of himself as the gate in that sense, he was thinking of the gate of a sheepfold. The role of the shepherd was to give life to his flock, to protect them form harm and to lead them to pasture. Jesus is concerned when people are physically hungry, when their basic physical needs are not being met, but he always leads us beyond the level of the physical, the material, to more ultimate realities. He had a profound appreciation of the uniqueness of Jesus, which is why he could say, he must increase, but I must decrease. he cannot enter the kingdom of God: The Lord accommodated himself to Thomas doubt, meeting Thomas demand to put his hand into the wounds of the crucifixion. In the words of todays gospel reading, the Lord was working with them (the disciples) and confirming the word by the signs that accompanied it. Some are asked by Jesus; others are asked by those who meet with Jesus. She insisted that the Popes place was beside the bones of the martyrs. not to condemn the world, Jesus came among us, full of Gods grace and truth, full of Gods gracious love and faithfulness, and we are invited to keep receiving from this fullness of God in Jesus. He says, the wind blows where it pleases. For 4 weeks, the Carmelite Sisters will be guiding you through each section of the treatise. He first of all breathed on them, saying, Receive the Holy Spirit. Then we will indeed have life and have it to the full. There tends to be a restlessness in all of us. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. These two disciples were not alone in their grief. It has been the language of the church since its very earliest days. The Lord will always be calling us to give of ourselves in some way to others, to give life to others. We are all concerned about the church today. Your sister in Babylon is the church in Rome. There were two other reactions in the story. but you do not believe, A mystic, she involved herself as a peacemaker and a reconciler in the great affairs of church and state of the day. I know them and they follow me. Because it is a time of communion with the Lord, the church has always understood the Eucharist as the anticipation of eternal life. Our Lady of Mount Carmel is one of numerous titles of Mary that enable all kinds of ministry groups to honor her as friend, mother, sister, guide and exemplar of the life of faith. The works I do in my Fathers name testify to me. As I, who am sent by the living Father, We thank God for all those who are responding to that call in these days. but work for food that endures to eternal life, A woman who was part of the nativity scene placed a lamb across Pope Franciss shoulders. We meet every Friday at 10am (Australian Eastern Daylight Time) [You are welcome to join from other time zones, eg. He walked with them with a view to getting them to change direction, but before he could do that, he had to walk with them in the wrong direction for a while. Even though we are an Easter people, we never stop being a Good Friday people, at least on this side of eternity. Yes, he desperately wants us to have life and to have it to the full. His small income allowed him to support his family, from day to day. Thomas stood in the light of Easter, yet that light did not dispel his darkness. He stands ready to pour afresh the Spirit of his love into our hearts, so that we can be recreated, empowered to share in his mission in the world. To this end, the website features regularly updated elements such as talks on Carmelite themes, reflections on the spiritual life from a Carmelite perspective, and words of wisdom from contemporary and classic Carmelite figures. However, the womens subsequent report of what they had seen and heard made no impression on the two disciples. that whoever sees the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life,