(John 14:15-21)
Dear Friends, During the Easter Season the first reading in the Mass is taken from the Acts of the Apostles. All the rest of the year, the first reading is from the Old Testament. The Acts is a book about the birth and growth of the Church. It also is a revelation of what happens to people when they understand and our committed to the Pascal Mystery, the Death and Resurrection of Jesus.
The Acts of the Apostles is a very fascinating story. There are two main characters, Peter and Paul. There are a few idyllic moments at the beginning where all are resting in harmony and peace. They are short lived. Quickly there is a shift to the reality so expressive of the human condition in the parable of the weeds and the wheat.
A couple holds back on giving all the proceeds of a sale of property to the common purse. They die on the spot. The Greek widows quickly find themselves the victims of prejudice in the not all perfect new Christian community. Both Peter and Paul find themselves questioned about their orthodoxy by the Jerusalem home office. In the opinion of many their openness to foreigners is dangerous to the faith.
This issue led to the major split in the early community. The volatile choice that confronts the new community in a very powerful way is this: Is the new reality of Jesus’ message simply and exclusively a fulfillment of the Mosaic Law or is it a completely new reality. This was a challenge to a cultural transformation that became painful, divisive, and violent. However, in the end it became totally liberating. Peter and Paul were challenged at every level by the explosiveness of this fundamental and formative issue that gave birth to the Church.
The results were frequent jail time, assassination attempts, constant conflict and truth squads who were destructive and brutal. Paul had to often escape in secrecy to save his life. More than once he was beaten to the point of death. He was lucky in this. Stephen and many other early Christians were not so lucky. They were martyred.
Yet in the midst of it all the decisions were made. The Gospel was proclaimed. The Church eventually embraced new cultures and new peoples. The journey was neither smooth nor straightforward. When both Peter and Paul died after decades of preaching the Gospel there were at most several thousand faithful Christians. Any Papal Mass on the road these days will have at least twenty to thirty times that many people in attendance.
Yet the seeds were sown in the lives and witness of Peter and Paul. They were true believers who walked their difficult journey with a sense of joy and wonder in the Risen Christ. They took to heart Christ’s words in today’s Gospel from John, “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you…whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. And whoever loves me, will be loved by my Father and I will love him and reveal myself to him.” (Jn 14:18,21)
For Peter and Paul the Resurrection was a consuming reality that filled their hearts with a fire of love that drove them to preach Christ in the midst of chaos, confusion and conflict. This preaching became a source of peace and guidance. It spread a sense of hope and faithfulness that grounded a new Church in truth and love.
We need to take to heart today’s Gospel passage and the message of this Easter season to discover the peace and strength that comes from the Risen Christ. Our Church today is not that much different. We have the scandal of sex abuse, the division the Christian denominations, the curse of clericalism and the fear of women and the beat goes on.
But we are not orphans. We need to turn to the Risen Chris and pray for the power to love one another above all else in our search for His direction and guidance. No doubt, we will find the way in loving one another!
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