VI SUNDAY OF EASTER
LOVE AND JOY, SIGNS OF FAITH
By our Pastor, Fr. Carmelo Jiménez
The past few Sundays we heard how Jesus tried to convince his friends that even though he had died, he was no longer dead because he had risen. He assured them that he was not a ghost, that he had flesh and bones. He showed them the wounds on his hands and his side, and he ate with them. Little by little the Apostles believed, trusting in Jesus and trusting themselves to him and they were happy to see him. Thomas took the risk, at the invitation of Jesus, to verify if it was true or not that he had risen; finally he touched Jesus and exclaimed: “My Lord and My God.”
Today the first reading tells us of the first “pastoral problem” of the primitive Church, which later brought them to the first Council. Peter, the first Pope, needed to resolve it. Cornelius, a pagan, a roman citizen, prominent captain of the battalion in Caesarea, man of prayer and charity, felt seduced by the Resurrected One. He desired to be baptized and to enter into the community of Christians. Would this be possible for a pagan? Peter said: “Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit even as we have?” (Acts 10:47) Finally, moved by the Spirit, they baptized Cornelius. Later, Peter, needed to inform Jerusalem of his decision. There he said: “If then God gave them the same gift he gave to us when we came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to be able to hinder God?” (Acts 11:17)
The decision of Peter, motivated by the Spirit of Pentecost, inaugurates an Easter Church, an open Church, a Church which goes out, a people for all, as Pope Francis likes to say. This invitation seems very strong for me in our times, because it seems like our Church has closed itself into its churches, and today, Pope Francis, inspired like St. Peter, invites us to go out, and to look for the Church.
I love the affirmation from the first reading that we hear, and how the Holy Spirit works and inspires Peter. We can confirm that in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles, the protagonists are not Saint Peter or Saint Paul or the other apostles, but rather Jesus is proclaimed and the Spirit guides this proclamation through the Apostles. We need to recuperate this lesson of Peter’s in the Church in which we are all brothers and sisters. We must open our minds and hearts because many times those of us who are in front, the priests and leaders (coordinators) act as if it were our Church. And the invitation is to open the doors to let in the fresh air as Pope Saint John Paul II would say.
The second reading continues the theme of love that began with last Sunday’s reading. The love expressed by Jesus on the Cross is not only a model to imitate but rather the cause and the root that makes possible the love that gives even the gift of life for the other. Saint John, in his letter, as a good eagle soars the heights but launches the heart from reality. It is only possible to be willing to give other things if we are willing to give our own lives. Only a heart open to receive love is able to give love, and to give one’s life. And this attitude is impossible without discovering that this is what the Teacher did. Amidst a selfish world that is often governed by the interchange of invoices and receipts, where everything, absolutely everything is paid for, it is very difficult to understand the way of charity that Jesus Christ invites us to live. We will only make it if we truly let ourselves be loved and then to serve.
In the spirit of Easter it is necessary to extend the consoling expressions of Jesus. Let us remember the expressions of Jesus: so that my joy may be in you. It is important to understand which joy he’s speaking of: the one Jesus enjoys forever because he is risen. The joy that overflows from the heart of Jesus because he has completed his mission. The joy that shines because he has always done the Father’s will. The joy of being among mankind. Jesus finds his delight in being with the sons of men. Above all, Jesus lives immersed in joy. And he desires this same joy for his followers. The world needs witnesses of hope, and Saint Paul affirms: “hope is the source of joy.” (Rom. 12:12)
This Sunday we can conclude our reflection with a prayer, first of all for our Church, that the Holy Spirit continues to guide it and that we may have the courage to go out and seek out our brothers and sisters. Secondly, that we may know that we are loved and welcome to unite ourselves with Christ. And as the good Christians that we are, live joyfully, because you and I have our hope placed in Jesus Christ, who has risen and who lives forever with the Father. May God grant us love and joy always. Amen.