DEACON TOM ANTHONY

Sunday, May 5, 2024

 

Sixth Sunday of Easter

Lectionary: 56

Reading 1

Acts 10:25-26, 34-35, 44-48

When Peter entered, Cornelius met him
and, falling at his feet, paid him homage.
Peter, however, raised him up, saying,
"Get up. I myself am also a human being."

Then Peter proceeded to speak and said,
"In truth, I see that God shows no partiality.
Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly
is acceptable to him."

While Peter was still speaking these things,
the Holy Spirit fell upon all who were listening to the word.
The circumcised believers who had accompanied Peter
were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit
should have been poured out on the Gentiles also,
for they could hear them speaking in tongues and glorifying God.
Then Peter responded,
"Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people,
who have received the Holy Spirit even as we have?"
He ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 98:1, 2-3, 3-4

R. (cf. 2b) The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Reading 2

1 Jn 4:7-10

Beloved, let us love one another,
because love is of God;
everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God.
Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love.
In this way the love of God was revealed to us:
God sent his only Son into the world
so that we might have life through him.
In this is love:
not that we have loved God, but that he loved us
and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.

Alleluia

Jn 14:23

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord,
and my Father will love him and we will come to him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

Jn 15:9-17

Jesus said to his disciples:
"As the Father loves me, so I also love you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father's commandments
and remain in his love.

"I have told you this so that my joy may be in you
and your joy might be complete.
This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.
No one has greater love than this,
to lay down one's life for one's friends.
You are my friends if you do what I command you.
I no longer call you slaves,
because a slave does not know what his master is doing.
I have called you friends,
because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father.
It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you
and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain,
so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you.
This I command you: love one another."

 

 

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

 

 

I was having a conversation with one of my inmate friends the other day. We were talking about recovery and the challenges of making adjustments in one’s life so as to have a transformative experience. He mentioned that it is better to interact with people who do not judge and who do not, “Talk down at an angle to you.” In other words, not from a pedestal of judgement, thinking one has all the answers while never having any of the problems. This is not only the key to recovery from addiction but is also the key to redemption. In the Scripture Reading today, Cornelius fell to the feet of Peter to pay homage. Peter responded by saying, "Get up. I myself am also a human being." This was a humble statement. Peter understood where he came from and where he was now was only because of what Jesus had given him through the Holy Spirit. Jesus reminded his disciples of this when He sat with the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s Well: “I sent you to reap what you have not worked for; others have done the work, and you are sharing the fruits of their work.” No one should feel superior to another just because they might know more. No one is better than anyone else just because they might find themselves in a better position in life. This might be the way of society, but it is not the way of Jesus Christ. Instead, a relationship with Jesus Christ and the Christian Way has a leveling affect that humbles the proud while elevating those who are broken. Time and time again, the treasures of the Church are mentioned throughout history as being the poor, the sick, and the broken. It is through the needy and the sinner that the Glory of God can be seen.

 

This was most evident in the martyrdom of Saint Lawrence. Saint Lawrence was one of the seven Deacons of Rome. Pope Sixtus II was just executed by order of the emperor Valerian. The emperor then demanded that Lawrence turn over all the treasures of the Church to him. In response, Lawrence gave everything to the poor and then proceeded to walk, followed by a large throng of the poor and unwashed. He then declared, “Here are the treasures of the Church.” Our conduct must be the same, being reminded that nothing we have or will have has been earned, nor does it give us special status. We are merely vessels of Jesus Christ, commissioned to build up the Kingdom of God here on this earth. When we interact with someone who is perceived to be of a lower estate, we thus lower ourselves to that state, just as Jesus lowered himself to the level of a slave so that we could be redeemed and saved. It is through lowering ourselves that we are raised to the highest of heights, taking everyone we interact with along with us.

 

We as Christians, engaging in a relationship with Jesus, are definitely at odds with a secular world that values all things that we have been taught to minimize. Instead of focusing on earthly things, we are told to focus on one thing: love. It is through loving and being loved that we encounter God. From it comes proper Christian conduct, forgiveness, empathy, and the experience of joy. The Apostle John, who Jesus loved, reminds us that love is from God and that God remains in us when we remain in His love. All actions and thoughts should begin and end in love. If put into practice, no ill can come of it. It is impossible to do evil or encounter evil when we are loved and are loving. Jesus told His disciples that He no longer calls then slaves, but friends. This is an intimacy that we can also have with Jesus. We just have to be open to it. In fact, the answer to all ills is an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Once we are open to His love, we must then realize that we are worthy to be loved. This means asking for forgiveness of our sins then going forward with a commitment to enjoy that forgiveness as new creations through Jesus Christ.

 

The power of Jesus’ love cannot be overestimated. It is through this love that we have been saved. We have the capability of claiming our birthright as Children of God. Jesus has chosen us and each of us are indeed special because of that choice He made this choice when we were created. How then can we not be joyful of that fact and not spread this good news to everyone. As the Apostle Paul said, “ Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, love is not pompous, it is not inflated, it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury, it does not rejoice over wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.” If we believe this, then why would we ever want to be without God’s love and why would we ever not want to love and be loves?

 

Deacon Tom

 

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