Easter Season – Weekday Reflections

Easter 1 | Monday

Acts 2:14,22-32; Matthew 28:8-15

FIRST READING (Acts 2:14,22-32)

We begin today reading from the Acts of the Apostles. From now until the end of the Seventh Week of Easter the weekday First Readings will be from the Acts. The Sunday First Readings will also be from Acts.

Today’s reading follows immediately on the account of the Pentecost experience. The immediate result of that experience is for Peter, filled with the Spirit and as leader of the new community, to begin proclaiming the message about Jesus Christ as Saviour to the people gathered in Jerusalem for the Jewish festival of Pentecost.

It is the first of six such “kerygmas” (from the Greek kerux, meaning a ‘herald’) or proclamations in Acts about Jesus as Risen Lord and Messiah-King. Five of them are attributed to Peter and the final one to Paul (to the Jews at Antioch in Pisidia, 13:16-41). Peter’s address follows a pattern that became common in the early Church: 1, an explanation of what was happening; 2, the proclamation of the death, resurrection and glorification of Jesus the Christ; 3, an exhortation to repentance, a change of life and baptism.

Peter stood before the crowd, flanked by the Eleven (including Matthias, newly chosen to replace Judas as a witness who had been with Jesus “from the beginning”). Peter spoke, then, not just in his own name but in the name of the whole apostolic “college”. Right from the beginning, his special position in the group is recognised.

And he has “good news” (= gospel, Old English ‘god-spell’; Greek, euanggelion) to communicate to them. His words reflect the content of the earliest apostolic preaching:

1, He gives witness of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and his being raised to glory.

2, There are some general details of Christ’s ministry and how it was proclaimed in advance by John the Baptist, inaugurated by teaching and miracles, completed by appearances of the Risen Christ and the giving of the Spirit to his followers.

3, The story of Jesus is put in the wider context of the Old Testament prophecies while at the same time looking forward to a Messianic age. All – Jews and Gentiles alike – are called to a radical change of life in order to be ready for the Christ’s glorious turn – believed to be in the near future.

Peter, then, reminds them that Jesus had appeared among the people – as many of his hearers were well aware – and performed signs and wonders as the credentials of his real identity. But, in the inscrutable plan of God, he was “handed over” (again we have that term which goes like a refrain through the New Testament).

Sad to say, those who handed Jesus over were from among his own people, perhaps including some of those listening to Peter, and they had even delivered him into the hands of the Romans (“men outside the Law”) for crucifixion. There must surely have been some uneasy feelings among the crowd when he said that. (It would be like Irish Catholics handing over a fellow-Catholic to be executed by English rulers.)

But Jesus was liberated from the pain of death; death had no power over him. Peter sees in words spoken by King David their fulfilment in Jesus, his descendant. The words spoken of David, “You will not abandon my soul to Hades [Sheol, the place of the dead]” are seen as applying more appropriately to Jesus because David died, was buried and the place of his tomb was known to his hearers, while Jesus “is the one who was not abandoned to Hades, and whose body did not experience corruption”. Instead, “God raised this man Jesus to life and all of us are witnesses to that.”

We, too, are called to be witnesses to Jesus’ resurrection and his living presence among us by the way we live both individually and as a community.

GOSPEL (Matthew 28:8-15)

The women who had come to the tomb early on Sunday morning to embalm the dead body of Jesus were amazed to find the stone rolled back from the entrance and the tomb empty. Their reactions are a mixture of anxiety and joy. They are anxious that the body may have been stolen; but there is also an expectant joy. Could it be that he is alive? We may contrast that with Mark where he tells us that the women in their fear “said nothing to anyone” (Mark 16:8).

And, while still wondering what could have happened, they run to tell the “good news” (obviously they were having optimistic thoughts) to tell the disciples when they ran into Jesus who gave them the Easter greeting of “Peace!” (Shalom).

As they cling to Jesus’ feet (like Mary Magdalen in John’s gospel, they do not want to lose him again), they are told not to be afraid, an admonition that will be heard frequently during these days, but to go to the disciples and instruct them to go to Galilee where they will see Jesus.

There are various and, to some extent mutually conflicting, versions of the resurrection story and of how and where the Risen Jesus was seen and by whom. There are basically two types of experiences. Appearances to individuals (Mary Magdalen, Emmaus disciples, Peter and Thomas) help prove the fact of the resurrection. Appearances to several disciples together are accompanied by a mandate to continue the work of Jesus.

In today’s reading, the women are to instruct the disciples that they will see him in Galilee, their own place and that is where we will expect to see him, too. Galilee is their home ground, the place where they were born, grew up and work. That is where the Risen Jesus is to be found.

He is saying them same thing to us too. We do not have to go to Jerusalem or Rome or Lourdes or Fatima to find him. If we cannot find him in the place where we live and work, we won’t find him in those other places either.

As well as the distinction between individual and collective appearances, there are two other distinct traditions: 1, they take place in Galilee (in the north); 2, they are in Judea (at Jerusalem, in the south). Commentators have pointed out that these seeming inconsistencies provide a better witness than any artificial uniformity to the antiquity of the evidence and their historical value. The physical details are not that important; it is the meaning that is all-important.

Meanwhile the leaders of the Jews put another twist on what is happening. They also are reporting that the tomb is empty. All sides agree that the tomb was empty; the disagreement was over the why. Obviously, they are wondering what could have happened but cannot accept the possibility of resurrection. The guards are bribed and told to say that the disciples stole the body while they were asleep. Guards who sleep on the job should be punished not bribed. And, if they were asleep, how did they know what happened?

But when people do not want to believe something, reason and logic can often go out the window. We see such rationalisations frequently in those who find it inconvenient to continue living a Christian life.

Those who take the Gospel seriously and try to live according to its vision have all the confirmation they need that it is the recipe for a happy and fulfilled life.

Easter 1 | Tuesday

Acts 2:36-41; John 20:11-18

FIRST READING (Acts 2:36-41)

Today we see the first and immediate results of Peter’s proclamation of the Gospel message.

After Peter’s proclamation his hearers are “cut to the heart”, deeply moved and shaken, and sincerely ask what they should do. It reflects both their belief in what they have just heard about Jesus and regret over former rejection.

They are told to “repent”. Repentance was important in the message of the forerunner, John the Baptist (Mark 1:4; Luke 3:3), in the preaching of Jesus (Mark 1:15; Luke 13:3) and in the directions Jesus left just before his ascension (Luke 24:47).

‘Repentance’ implies not just regret for the past but, much more positively, a radical change to one’s way of thinking and behaving. It translates the Greek word metanoia of which the nearest English translation is something like ‘conversion’, a turning around to a completely new way of seeing life. This they pledge through being baptised and having their former sins forgiven and left behind, and receiving the gift of the Spirit.

Each of the great apostolic addresses in Acts finishes with a call to conversion leading to full reconciliation with God.

This is in fulfilment of the promises made by God in the past and extended not only to the Jewish people but also “for all those who are far away”. We are told that on that very day – the day of Pentecost – 3,000 people became followers of Jesus the Lord. Luke always likes to note the Church’s numerical growth and does so several times in the Acts.

A reading like this is a call for all of us to renew our own commitment and to make the necessary conversion (metanoia) to bring us closer to Christ and the Gospel. It is also a reminder for us to share the Easter message with others. We may not have the same response that Peter got but if we all brought one person to Christ what a difference it would make to their lives – and ours!

GOSPEL (John 20:11-18)

After going off to tell Peter and the other disciples about the empty tomb, it seems that Mary of Magdala went back there to grieve over her lost friend and master. She sees two angels sitting inside the tomb and asks where her Lord has been taken. When asked why she is weeping, she replies that her Lord has been “taken away” and she does not know where he has been put.

Then, as she turns round, there is Jesus before her but she does not recognise him. This is a common experience with those who meet Jesus after the resurrection. He is the same and he is not the same. In this transitional period they have to learn to recognise Jesus in unexpected forms and places and situations. He asks the same question as the angels: “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” A question we need to ask ourselves constantly. Like Mary, we may say we are looking for Jesus – but which Jesus?

She thinks the person in front of her is the gardener. How often we jump to conclusions about people, about their character and personality and true identity! Maybe this man has taken Jesus away and knows where he is. It is also another lovely example of Johannine irony. First, that the one she took to be the gardener should know where Jesus was to be found. Second, it is John who tells us that the tomb of Jesus was in a garden (19:41). All the world’s pain and sorrow began with the sin of the Man and the Woman in a garden (Eden) and now new life also finds its beginnings in a garden. Mary was unwittingly right – Jesus is a Gardener, the one who produces life from the earth, and is the Word of his Father, the Gardener of Eden.

Then Jesus speaks: “Mary!” Immediately she recognises his voice, the voice of her Master. It reminds us of the passage about Jesus the Shepherd. “The sheep hear his voice, as he calls his own sheep by name… the sheep follow him because they recognise his voice… I know my sheep and they know me” (John 10:3-4,15).

Immediately she turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni”. This is a more formal address than just “Rabbi” and was often used when speaking to God. In which case, Mary’s exclamation is not unlike that of Thomas in the upper room – “My Lord and my God!” We should also note that earlier she had already turned to face Jesus so this turning is different. It is an interior turning from strangeness to recognition, from sadness to joy, from a sense of loss to a close bonding, from doubt to faith.

With a mixture of joy and affection and partly out of fear of losing him again, she clings on to him tightly. But Jesus tells her to let him go, because “I have not ascended to the Father”. A sentence which may be better read as a rhetorical question: “Have I not ascended to my Father?” In John, the glorification of Jesus takes place on the cross at the moment of death. At that moment of triumph, Jesus is raised straight to the glory of the Father. In that sense, it is the glorified Jesus who now speaks with Mary not the Jesus she knew earlier. This Jesus cannot be clung to. In fact, there is no need. From now on “I am with you always.”

The phrase “I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God” echoes a sentence in the Book of Ruth (1:16): “Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.” The Father of Jesus now becomes the Father of his disciples as they are filled with the Spirit that is both in the Father and the Son. Thus they will be re-born (John 3:5) as God’s children and can be called “brothers” by Jesus.

Mary – and all the others – have to learn that the Risen Jesus is different from the Jesus before the crucifixion. They have to let go of the earlier Jesus and learn to relate to the “new” Jesus in a very different way.

So she is told to do what every Christian is supposed to do: go and tell the other disciples that she has seen the Lord and she shares with them what he has said to her. “I have seen the Lord.” She is not just passing on a doctrine but sharing an experience. That is what we are all called to do.

It is significant that it is a woman who is the first person in John’s gospel to see and to be spoken to by the Risen Jesus. Not only that, if she is the same person mentioned by Luke as one of Jesus’ women followers (Luke 8:2), she was formerly a deeply sinful woman from whom seven demons had been driven out. Often no one is closer to God than someone who has been converted from a sinful past. We think of people like St Augustine or St Ignatius Loyola. We remember the example of the sinful woman in the house of Simon the Pharisee (Luke 7:35-50). Of her Jesus said: “Seeing that she loved much, her many sins are forgiven. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little” (Luke 7:47).

So Mary, who (who with Mary, Jesus’ Mother, stood by the cross of Jesus to the very end – unlike the men disciples), is now rewarded by being the first to meet him risen and glorified. She is truly a beloved disciple.

Easter 1 | Wednesday

Acts 3:1-10; Luke 24:13-35

FIRST READING (Acts 3:1-10)

Today we see the first healing performed by Peter and John. By this they show that the work of Jesus is continuing in them. The fact that two of them are involved in the healing also indicates that the work of Jesus is being done not so much by individuals (although that may happen) but by the community which he left to carry on his mission.

Our reading is the beginning of a longer passage with a dramatic public healing which results in a large group of people gathering to hear Peter make a Gospel proclamation. Some Sadducees, taking exception to what is being said about the resurrection of Jesus (they denied any life after death), will have Peter and John, and apparently the cured man as well, arrested and brought before the Sanhedrin. There is also the matter of Peter and John teaching publicly in the Temple – something they had no authority to do. When Peter refuses to back down on the basis that he was speaking in a prophetic role, he and John should have been jailed but because the healing of the cripple, a well-known figure whose healing had been witnessed by many, the authorities backed down with just a warning.

We are told that Peter and John were on their way into the Temple in Jerusalem for the afternoon prayers. The three stated times of prayer for later Judaism were midmorning (third hour, 9 a.m.), the time of the evening sacrifice (ninth hour, 3 p.m.), and sunset. At this early stage in the Church’s life, the disciples maintained many of their former Jewish customs and practices. They did not see themselves as breaking away from their past, still less setting up a new religion.

Peter and John are among the most prominent of the apostles. Together with John’s brother, James, they formed an inner circle with Jesus (attending the healing of the daughter of Jairus, witnessing the Transfiguration, brought along to give support to Jesus during his agony in the garden). Peter and John will be arrested together and later we will see them evangelising in Samaria.

For them, Jesus was the continuation and the fulfilment of God’s promises to his people. Jesus was the Messiah long awaited by the Jewish people. Later, we will see how they began to realise that Jesus had come not just for the Jews but for people everywhere.

As they enter the Temple, they see a cripple being carried in. His friends brought him every day so that he could sit at the Beautiful Gate and collect alms from passers-by. This gate was the favourite entrance to the Temple court. It was probably the bronze-sheathed gate elsewhere called the Nicanor Gate. It seems to have led from the court of the Gentiles (open to everyone) to the court of the women on the east wall of the Temple building.

When the crippled beggar saw Peter and John, he naturally asked them for money. Peter and John both fixed their gaze on the man (as Jesus used to do). “I have neither gold nor silver to give you. But I have something else,” Peter told him. “In the name of Jesus Christ, the Nazarene, walk!” And Peter raised him to his feet (a symbol of resurrection, new life, also seen in Gospel healings). Again, we note that the healing is done not by Peter himself but in the name of Jesus. Jesus himself only healed in his own name.

The man gingerly tries out his “new” legs and the next thing is seen bounding his way into the Temple, giving praise and thanks to God for his healing. The onlookers, many of whom were familiar with the beggar, were struck speechless by what they saw. The miracle has a dramatic impact: it symbolises the saving power of Christ and leads the beggar to enter the temple, where he hears Peter’s proclamation of salvation through Jesus.

The story clearly indicates that the power of Jesus has, as promised, been transferred to his followers. “The one who believes in me will do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these” (John 14:12). The crippled beggar can also be seen, as in similar gospel stories, as symbolical of each one of us who are permanently in need of God’s help and who stumble in our efforts to follow him. But, once healed, we immediately join him on his Way.

GOSPEL (Luke 24:13-35)

One of the great passages of the New Testament. It encapsulates in a little over 20 verses the whole Christian life. It is Easter Sunday as the passage opens. In Luke all the resurrection appearances take place in the vicinity of Jerusalem and on Easter Sunday.

It begins with two disciples on the road leaving Jerusalem. For Luke the focal point of Jesus’ mission is Jerusalem – it was the goal to which all Jesus’ public life was headed and from there the new community would bring his Message to the rest of the world.

They are on their way to a place called Emmaus, about 7 miles (11 km) from Jerusalem, whose exact location is not now known. It does not really matter and that is the point. They were on the “road” – they are pilgrims on the road of life. Jesus is the Way, the Road. The problem is that at this moment they are going in the wrong direction.

The Risen Jesus joins them as a fellow-traveller. “Something” prevents them from recognising him. What was that “something”? Their presumption that he was dead? Was it their pre-conceived idea of what Jesus should look like?

Seeing their obvious despondency and disillusionment, he asks what they are talking about. With deliciously unconscious irony they say, “You must be the only person staying in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have been happening there these last few days.”

Jesus plays them out a little more with a totally innocent-sounding, “What things?” He wants to hear their version of what happened. To them the death was the failure of Jesus’ mission. They refer to him as a “prophet” as if, after the debacle of his death, they could not see in Jesus the Messiah they had earlier acknowledged. “We were hoping (elpizomen, sperabamus) that he would be the one to set Israel free.” Again the delicious irony of their own words is lost on them. For them, freedom meant liberation from the tyranny of foreign domination and perhaps the inauguration of the Kingdom of God as they understood it.

They are puzzled also by the stories of the women describing an empty tomb and angels – but there is still no sign of Jesus. More irony! They are addressing these very words to Jesus!

Jesus then gives them a lesson in reading the Scriptures and shows them that all that happened to Jesus, including his sufferings and death, far from being a tragedy was all foreordained. Luke is the only writer to speak clearly of a suffering Messiah. The idea of a suffering Messiah is not found as such in the Old Testament. Later, the Church will see a foreshadowing of the suffering Messiah in the texts on the Suffering Servant in Isaiah.

This story emphasises that all that happened to Jesus was the fulfilment of Old Testament promises and of Jewish hopes. All through Acts, Luke will argue that Christianity is the fulfilment of the hopes of Pharisaic Judaism and its logical development. In many respects, Matthew’s gospel has a similar theme.

As they reach their destination, Jesus makes as if to continue his journey. However, they extend their hospitality to the stranger. “I was a stranger and you took me in.” “It is nearly evening time and the day is almost over,” they say. So Jesus goes in to stay with them. Wonderful words. But it would not have happened if they had not opened their home to him.

As they sat down to the meal, Jesus, the visitor unexpectedly acting as host, took the bread, said the blessing over it, broke it and gave it to them. And in that very act they recognised him. This is the Eucharist. Where we recognise the presence of Jesus among us in the breaking of bread. Not just in the bread, but in the breaking and sharing of the bread and in those who share the broken bread.

Then Jesus disappears. But they are still basking in the afterglow. “Did not our hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?” In the light of all this experience, they turn round [conversion!] and go back along the road to the Jerusalem from which they had been fleeing. There they discover their fellow-disciples excited that the Lord is risen and has appeared to Simon. And they tell their marvellous story and how “they had recognised him at the breaking of bread”.

All the ingredients of the Christian life are here.

- Running away from where Christ is to be found. We do it all the time.

- Meeting Jesus in the unexpected place or person or situation. How many times does this happen and we do not recognise him, or worse mistreat him?

- Finding the real meaning and identity of Jesus and his mission in having the Scriptures fully explained. Without the Scriptures we cannot claim to know Jesus. Yet how many Catholics go through life hardly ever opening a bible?

- Recognising Jesus in the breaking of bread, in our celebration of the Eucharist. The breaking and sharing of the bread indicates the essentially community dimension of that celebration, making it a real communion with all present.

- The central experience of Scripture and Liturgy draws us to participate in the work of proclaiming the message of Christ and sharing our experience of it with others that they may also share it.

- The importance of hospitality and kindness to the stranger. “I was hungry... and you did/did not feed...” Jesus is especially present and to be found and loved in the very least of my brothers and sisters.

The scene is also a model of the Eucharist:

Those walking together on the Road gather together and meet Jesus, first, in the Liturgy of the Word as the Scriptures are broken open and explained, and, second, in the Liturgy of the Eucharist, where what Jesus did for us through his suffering, death and resurrection is remembered with thanksgiving and the bread that is now his Body and the wine that is now his Blood, is shared among those who are the Members of that Body to strengthen their union and their commitment to continuing the work of Jesus.

Easter 1 | Thursday

Acts 3:11-26; Luke 24:35-48

FIRST READING (Acts 3:11-26)

Immediately after the dramatic cure of the crippled beggar in the Temple, Peter takes the opportunity to address the crowds which had gathered round Peter, John and the healed beggar to explain the meaning of what they have just witnessed.

The scene takes place at “Solomon’s Portico”. This was a porch along the inner side of the wall enclosing the outer court, with rows of 27-foot high stone columns and a roof of cedar. So it was a roofed structure – somewhat similar to a Greek stoa. There was a common, but mistaken, belief that it dated back to Solomon’s time.

The message that Peter now gives the amazed crowd gathering around is similar to other addresses in the early Church: 1, an explanation of what is happening; 2, the Gospel of Jesus Christ – death, resurrection and glorification; 3, a call to repentance and change of life, symbolised by baptism.

First, Peter makes clear that the healing that has just taken place before their eyes is not by his own power or that of his companion, John. They are not to be gaped at as having supernatural powers. What has been done has been through the power of Jesus, who has been empowered by the God they all believe in, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

He is the one his hearers “handed over” to Pilate. Here again we have this “handing over”, a phrase which runs like a refrain through the Gospel. And him whom they handed over was the “Holy and Righteous One”, indicating Jesus’ special relationship to the Father and his sinlessness which are in stark contrast to the guilt of the murderous Barabbas.

Pilate was only too anxious to let Jesus go, being aware of his innocence, but he yielded to the demands of the crowd and yielded to their choice of a convicted murder, Barabbas. In a pregnant phrase – “the Author of life you put to death”. Barabbas had taken away life and is freed; Jesus will be the source of life by being condemned to death. As the sequence of the Easter Sunday Mass says: Dux vitae mortuus regnat vivus, which literally translated means: “The Leader of life, having died, reigns alive.”

Peter and his companions are witnesses that Jesus was raised again. And it was in the name of this same Jesus that the poor beggar has been restored to health and mobility.

God has “glorified” his servant through his resurrection and ascension. The word “servant” is reminiscent of the songs of the suffering servant in Isaiah (and which we read early in Holy Week), especially Is 52:13-53:12. Jesus himself spoke of being a servant when he washed his disciples’ feet and when he said that he had come to serve and not be served. All of this did not quite fit the image of the kind of Messiah the Jews were expecting.

And it is by faith in this very Jesus that the crippled beggar, a character well known to the crowds who came regularly to the Temple, has been “made strong” again. “Faith… has given him this perfect health in the presence of all of you.”

Peter excuses his hearers (as Jesus himself did), saying they did not fully realise at the time what they were doing. Yet, the sufferings of the Christ had long been foretold by the prophets. The early Christians saw the sufferings and death of Jesus clearly indicated in Old Testament prophecies. The Jews, however, did not expect a suffering and dying Messiah – quite the opposite. They saw in Isaiah’s Servant Songs their own suffering as a people.

Now it is not too late for them to ‘repent’ (there is that metanoia again), that is, radically to change their ways and thus have their sin taken away. To ‘repent’ is not just to express sorrow; it involves re-establishing one’s close relationship with God and submitting totally to his Way. The nearest English equivalent is ‘con-version’, a ‘turning round’, which means, of course, a ‘turning towards’.

Jesus, after all, is the prophet who was foretold by Moses, who, Peter tells the crowd, had said: “The Lord God will raise up a prophet like myself for you, from among your own brothers; you must listen to whatever he tells you.” This is a loose quotation from Deuteronomy (18:15). In fact, at the time of Jesus, some Jews expected a unique prophet to come in fulfilment of this text. So early Christianity applied this tradition and text to Jesus and used them especially where Christian teaching seemed to diverge from traditional Judaism.

And indeed, says Peter, every prophet from Samuel down predicted what is now taking place before their eyes. Samuel was one of the earliest of the prophets and the one who anointed David, Jesus’ ancestor, as king. So the Jews in his audience are the heirs of the prophets’ messages, they are the heirs to the covenant first made way back with Abraham: “in your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed”.

It is time now for the people to acknowledge this sacred covenant, made new through Jesus Christ, and they will do that by their accepting Jesus as their Saviour and abandoning their sinful ways to walk the Way of Jesus.

Exactly the same applies to us.

GOSPEL (Luke 24:35-48)

We pick up from yesterday’s story of the disciples going to Emmaus. Back in Jerusalem they share their experience of the risen Jesus with their comrades who have also heard that Jesus has appeared to Simon Peter.

Suddenly Jesus himself appears in their midst. The fact that he comes suddenly, although the doors were locked, indicates that his presence is now of a different kind.

He wishes them peace. It is the ordinary Jewish greeting of ‘Shalom’ but one which has special meaning in this Easter context. Before his Passion Jesus had told his disciples, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. Not as the world do I give it to you… ” (John 14:27). The peace of the Risen Jesus is fully of messianic blessings.

In spite of what they had heard, they are terrified and think they are seeing a ghost. “What are you afraid of?” Jesus asks them. He shows them his pierced hands and feet. The Greeks mocked at the idea of bodily resurrection but Luke emphasises the physical reality of Christ’s risen body, that is, the wholeness of the person of the risen Jesus.

He invites them to come and touch him. Ghosts do not have flesh and bones. As he shows them the wounds in his hands and feet their fear turns to a mixture of joy and utter astonishment. They can’t believe their eyes. Jesus has to ask them to give him something to eat. Ghosts don’t eat and Jesus is no ghost, he is no disembodied soul. There is also an emphasis that death is not an escape from the body but that the whole person goes into the next life.

Jesus then goes on to explain, as he did with the Emmaus disciples, how all that had happened to him was fully in harmony with and the fulfilment of the Law, the prophets and psalms. Mentioning the three constituent parts of the Old Testament Jesus indicates that the Messiah was foretold through the whole of the Hebrew scriptures.

And out of Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection comes the mission to proclaim reconciliation with God through Jesus to the whole word. “You are witnesses to this.” It is their mission to carry on the establishment of the Kingdom throughout the world. Or, as it is put here, “that repentance, for the forgiveness of sin, would be preached in the [Messiah’s] name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem”.

The Kingdom is being realised when people go through that process of radical conversion and change of life (‘repentance’ metanoia) which brings about a deep reconciliation of each one with God, with all those around them and with themselves, when all divisions fall away, when fear and hostility are replaced with a caring love for each other.

If we have not yet done so, let us become part of that great enterprise today.

Easter 1 | Friday

Readings      Acts 4:1-12; John 21:1-14

FIRST READING (Acts 4:1-12)

The next stage in the mission of the disciples now takes place: after the proclamation and healing comes the persecution and harassment, as promised by Jesus.

As in the Gospel, we see the contrasting reactions between the Jewish leaders and the people. The leaders, mostly Sadducees who did not believe in resurrection after death, are objecting to the apostles’ teaching about the resurrection of Jesus and put them under arrest (together with the man they had healed).

Those arresting them include the priests, the captain of the Temple guard and Sadducees. The priests were those responsible for the Temple liturgies. The temple guard were composed of Levites and their captain ranked next to the high priest. The Sadducees, among other things, were drawn from the priestly families and from the upper classes. The high priest was one of their number. They tended to be pro-Rome and hence found Jesus and his followers a dangerous element. The Sadducees were strongly opposed to and by the Pharisees.

As it is late in the day Peter and John are thrown into jail for the night. The evening sacrifices ended about 4 o’clock in the afternoon and the temple gates would be closed. Judgements involving life and death had to be begun and ended during daylight hours.

In spite of the religious authorities’ actions, many of the people who had heard Peter’s preaching did believe in his message and their numbers had swollen to 5,000, up from 3,000 on the day of Pentecost – an amazing number in such a short time.

On the following day Peter and John are made to stand before a meeting of the top leadership together with the high priest and members of his family. They are led by Annas. He was officially high priest from AD 6-15 but deposed by the Romans and succeeded by his son, Eleazar, and then by his son-in-law, Caiaphas (whom we meet during the account of Jesus’ passion). However, Annas was still recognised by the Jews as the real high priest. The John mentioned with him may be a son, while Alexander is otherwise unknown.

What strikes one in this scene is the boldness of Peter, when compared to his behaviour during the passion of Jesus. As Jesus had promised in his lifetime, Peter is filled with the Spirit which gives him both his courage and his eloquence to speak out boldly. What they have done, they tell their accusers, has been done in the name of Jesus, “the one you crucified, whom God raised from the dead. By this name and by no other...this man is able to stand up perfectly healthy, here in your presence today.”

Quoting from Psalm 118, Peter tells them that Jesus “is the stone rejected by you the builders, but which has proved to be the keystone”. In general, the fulfilment of Old Testament prophecies was important in early Christian preaching. This is especially the case with Matthew’s gospel. Jesus, himself, is quoted as using this text about himself.

“There is no salvation through anyone else nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved.” The message is very clear. In the Roman world in the time of the Acts, salvation was often attributed to the emperor, often hailed as a ‘saviour’ and a ‘god’. Peter, however, affirms that real salvation can only come from Christ.

A passage like this gives us encouragement. First, we ought not be surprised that we will be mocked and attacked for our faith in Christ and his Gospel, and, secondly, we will be provided with what we need when faced with hostility and even persecution.

GOSPEL (John 21:1-14)

Today we have a resurrection story which is unique to John and is in his final “extra” chapter, which may be a kind of appendix added on later by another author following the Johannine tradition. The text contains peculiarities which are closer to Luke’s style but others which are Johannine. It bears close resemblance to a similar story about a catch of fish in Luke (5:1-11) and another in Matthew where Peter gets out of the boat to go to Jesus (14:28-31). Although it seems added to the original text, the chapter appears in all extant manuscripts of John.

Like most of John’s accounts, it is a story full of symbolism.

We see a group of disciples, seven altogether, seemingly at a loose end with nothing to do. The seven are Simon Peter, Thomas the Twin, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, Zebedee’s sons (James and John) and two others of his disciples. Nathanael, who is only mentioned in John’s gospel, appears in John 1 as one who was called by Philip. This is the only mention of James and John in John’s gospel, although they have such a central role in the other three gospels. Some speculate John may be the second of the two disciples called by Jesus in John 1 (the one named is Andrew) but he could also be the Beloved Disciple, not yet ready to be so called. Of the two other disciples in the boat, one is presumed to be the Beloved Disciple who appears very soon in the story. The number seven suggests the fullness of the community. (John likes the number seven – seven signs performed by Jesus and seven ‘I AM’ statements.)

Peter, the leader, decides to make a move. “I’m going fishing.” It is what he knows best. The others go along with him. Is there an implication that the great enterprise that Jesus began is over and they return to their old way of living?

After a whole night on the lake they get nothing. (Aristotle tells us that night-time was favoured for fishing.) Is there also an echo of words spoken at the Last Supper, “without me you can do nothing” (John 15:5)?

As the light of dawn breaks Jesus is standing on the shore but, as usually happens in these post-resurrection scenes, they do not recognise him. He asks the question fishermen do not like to be asked, “Have you caught anything?” Reluctantly they have to admit, No. He then gives them some suggestions. On a natural level, it is possible he could see a movement of fish that was not visible from the boat but the real meaning is deeper. He will lead the fish to them as he will lead people to them later on.

After following Jesus’ instructions, they make a huge haul of fish, so many that they cannot be brought into the boat. The exact number is given: 153. Is that an actual memory or is there a special symbolism in the number? St Augustine thought the latter and made his own speculations. St Jerome saw it as an expression of the universalism of the Christian mission saying that the Greeks believed there were altogether 153 kinds of fish. The number is also the sum of the first 17 digits: 1+2+3...

The main point, however, is to emphasise God’s generosity, recalling the amount of water changed into wine at Cana, the amount left over after feeding the crowds in the desert, the abundance of life that the Good Shepherd gives and the fullness of the Spirit, life-giving water that guarantees we are never thirsty...

And the net was not broken. The net itself is, as in other texts, a symbol of the Kingdom of God.

This is all clearly a parable, a symbol of their future work as fishers of people, a work whose success will originate in the power of Jesus behind them and in their following what he tells them to do.

A similar incident had happened during Jesus’ earthly life and the “disciple Jesus loved” immediately saw the connection. He is the one with deeper insight into the presence and the ways of his Master. “It is the Lord!” he exclaims.

But if the “other disciple” was the one Jesus loved, it was Peter who was the one who loved Jesus. And it is Peter, the impetuous one, who reacts first. He was not wearing any clothes* so he throws something around himself and jumps into the water to get to Jesus, leaving the others to bring the boat and fish to the shore. Such is his anxiety to be close to his Lord. Says the New International Bible: “It is curious that he put on this garment (the word appears only here in the New Testament) preparatory to jumping into the water. But Jews regarded a greeting as a religious act that could be done only when one was clothed.”* Peter is responding to the call “It is the Lord” and hears it as pointing to Jesus as Someone special.

On the shore they find that Jesus has lit a fire. There is bread and some fish cooking. (Where did these fish come from? It is the kind of question we do not need to ask when reading a symbol-full passage like this.) “Bring the fish you have just caught.” “You”??? Yes, literally they had pulled the fish in but where had they originally come from? The same goes for much of what we claim to do. It is important to acknowledge God’s role in our actions, especially our “successes”.

In response to the command, it is Peter, the leader – now and in the future, who alone brings in the huge catch from the boat by the water’s edge. Peter alone dragging the net in is an image of the Kingdom coming (compare the parable in Matt 13:47ff). It also signifies the special position of Peter in the mission of the Apostles. Just now the whole group together could not haul the net into the boat.

Jesus then invites them to come and eat with him the meal he has prepared for them. Here, too, there are eucharistic overtones. Now as they stand close to the friendly stranger, no one dares to ask “Who are you?” because they know quite well it is the Lord, the risen Jesus. Again we are being taught to find the presence of the Lord in all those who are kind to us, who do good to us in any way and especially in those who share the eucharistic meal with us. Just as we are called to be Jesus to everyone that we encounter.

His identity in a way is now confirmed by his taking the bread and the fish and giving it to them to eat. He broke bread, he celebrated a Eucharist with them.

We have here then some central pillars of our faith:

- recognising Christ in the kindly stranger and playing that role ourselves;

- expressing our love and solidarity with each other through our celebration of the Eucharist and breaking bread together;

- working with the power of Jesus to fill the net that is the Kingdom, becoming truly fishers of people.

__________________________

‘Not wearing any clothes’, that is, naked. Some of our translations use all kinds of euphemisms (e.g. ‘lightly clad’ New American Bible) to express this. Does it shock us that the first pope could go around like this? Male nakedness was much more acceptable in Peter’s society. A redeemed people should have no problem with an unclothed body. It was only after their sin that Adam and Eve became ashamed of their nakedness. Jesus reversed that by dying naked on the cross. We need to remember, too, that Peter is still under a cloud after denying his Master three times. Nakedness is only for the innocent. So, the moment he hears the person on the shore is his Lord, shame and guilt make him cover himself. It is possible that all the others were naked also but had no reason to cover themselves. Very soon, however, there will be a reconciliation between Jesus and Peter.

Easter 1 | Saturday

Readings      Acts 4:13-21; Mark 16:9-15

FIRST READING

The second half of the “trial” of Peter and John before the members of the Sanhedrin.

They are astonished at the self-confidence of the two apostles, considering that they are uneducated fishermen. They had no training in rabbinic schools nor did they have any standing in recognised religious circles. They were, in the eyes of their judges, “only” lay people.

It is important to remember that faith and convictions do not depend on learning. It is clearly implied also that the source of their strength and confidence is Jesus. (“They recognised these men as having been with Jesus.”) Our Church consists of the highest intellectuals and complete illiterates: all have equal access to knowing and loving God, all have equal access to the highest levels of contemplation, mysticism and sanctity.

The apostles’ judges in this case are obviously intellectual snobs, a kind not unknown in Christian circles. Because they could not deny the extraordinary cure that had taken place in the full view of a large number of people, the Jewish leaders could only tell the apostles not to speak any more about Jesus. In matters of this kind it seems that the accused, unless they were rabbis, could not be jailed except for a second offence.

We can never be stopped from preaching the Gospel. Nor can we ever obey such an order. As Peter told his judges: “Whether it is right in the sight of God for us to obey your rather than God, you be the judges. It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.”

It reminds one of Thomas More’s words to his accusers: “The King’s good servant but God’s first.” The judges felt obliged to implement the law but there are situations where the law cannot be followed.

Of course, we have to be careful that it is not our own interpretation of it that we proclaim. At the same time, we are bound to follow our conscience and follow the truth as we know it. If we are wrong, it will be exposed. Real Truth will always come to the surface eventually.

GOSPEL (Mark 16:9-15)

This passage, known as the ‘Longer Ending’, is a kind of summary of all that we have been reading during the past week. It comes from the very end of Mark’s gospel, verses many commentators believe are not part of the original text. Most commentators believe the original text ends with 16:8. However, this ending is so abrupt that many feel the original ending was somehow lost and this ending was put in its place.

Although the style shows it was not written by Mark, it has long been accepted as a canonical part of the gospel and was defined as such by the Council of Trent. It was known to Tatian and to Irenaeus in the 2nd century, and is found in the vast majority of Greek MSS.

The text consists of brief summaries of longer stories which appear in the other gospels [Luke 24 and John 20] e.g. the appearance to Mary Magdalen, the disciples going to Emmaus, and the appearance in the upper room.

The common theme is the incredulity of the disciples who could not accept that Jesus was truly risen. Right to the very end of his gospel, Mark continues to be harsh on the disciples’ lack of understanding. It is, of course, not about them he is writing but us.

The passage seems directed at many of the early Christians’ contemporaries who would not accept the message of Christ risen. But, as we can see from the First Reading today, the disciples very soon not only found faith but were more than ready to suffer and die for it.

In our times of doubt, let us remember their experience and their example and the fruits of their work. It is a work that still urgently needs to be done.

Easter 2 | Monday

FIRST READING (Acts 4:23-31)

After they had been released by the Jewish leaders following their arrest and interrogation and had been given strict warnings not to continue what they were doing, Peter and John went back to their community and related all about their experience. This was possibly the same ‘upper room’ where the apostles had met before and where the community may have continued to assemble.

The whole community then prayed. They recalled the words of the psalmist who asks why the Gentiles and the princes of the world conspire against the Lord and his anointed. Here we see in the unbelieving Romans the ‘Gentiles’ and Herod and Pilate represented by the ‘kings’ and ‘princes’. They have gathered against the Lord and his anointed. ‘Anointed’ in Greek is ‘Christ’ (christos). The Herod in question is Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee and Perea from 4 BC to AD 39. He was the one who executed John the Baptist and before whom Jesus appeared during his trial. Acts will later describe his rather painful death. Pontius Pilate, of course, was the same Roman procurator who had Jesus crucified.

Yet they recognise that all of this had been foreseen by God. “They [that is, the Jesus’ enemies] have brought about the very things which in your powerful providence you planned long ago.” It was not that God forced them to act as they did but that their freely chosen decisions were foreseen by God and would become part of his plan of salvation.

They beg the Lord as persecution is extended to them too that God will be with them through “cures and signs and wonders to be worked in the name of Jesus, your holy Servant”.

It is good for us too to be aware that, when, as individuals or communities, we are true to the living of our Christian faith, we can expect to face criticism, opposition, abuse and ridicule. Then it is for us, too, to pray for the Lord’s assurance, protection and guidance. We do not necessarily expect those against us to change their minds but that we may have the strength to continue being faithful to our convictions and the search for truth and goodness.

Then, suddenly, the place they are in shakes and they are filled with the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of the Father and Jesus. Their prayer for strength and courage has been heard. “Ask and it shall be given to you...” “Whatever you ask the Father in my name he will grant...” It is a mini-Pentecost and enables them to go out and proclaim the Good News with renewed confidence, unafraid of the threats and dangers that await them.

GOSPEL (John 3:1-8)

Today we go back to the early part of John’s gospel and begin reading chapter 3. In the coming Easter weeks we will be going through John’s gospel more or less in order.

Today we see the encounter between Jesus and a Pharisee who was also a member of the Sanhedrin, the governing council of the Jews. He was, then, a very highly placed official.

Nicodemus came to Jesus by night. This, on the one hand, indicates his fear of being seen by others but, on the other, probably also has a symbolic meaning. Religious man though he was, when he came to Jesus he was in a kind of spiritual darkness. His virtue is that he comes to seek light. Jesus, of course, is the Light of the World. (On the other hand, in the following chapter, the Samaritan woman will meet Jesus in the full blaze of the midday sun.)

Nicodemus begins by praising Jesus. No man, he says, could do the things that Jesus did if he did not come from God. (Given the fact that at this stage of John’s gospel Jesus has hardly begun his public life, it is odd that Nicodemus can make this statement. But it shows that the events described in this gospel are not to be taken with a strict chronology. This gospel is rather a set of themes about the role of Jesus for us and the world.)

Nicodemus sees in Jesus a prophet, a man of God but has yet to recognise the full identity of Jesus. Jesus counters by saying that no one can see the rule, the kingdom, of God unless “he is born from above” (or “born again” – both readings are possible and the meaning is basically the same). Though very common in the other gospels, the term ‘Kingdom of God’ is only used here in John (vv. 3 and 5). Its equivalent in the rest of John’s gospel is ‘life’. To be truly in the Kingdom of God, to be fully integrated in the Reign or Rule of God is to be fully alive.

Nicodemus hears Jesus literally. “How can a man be born again when he is old? Is he to return to his mother’s womb and start life all over again?” His misunderstanding gives Jesus the opportunity to lead Nicodemus to a deeper understanding. To be born again is to be born of “water and the Spirit”, a clear reference to Christian baptism. Flesh only produces flesh (as in natural birth) but the Spirit gives birth to spirit and that is the second birth we all need to undergo.

“You must all be begotten from above.” A statement directed to all and not just to Nicodemus.

And, once we are reborn in the Spirit, we let ourselves be led to where God wishes. “The wind blows where it will. You hear the sound it makes but you do not know where it comes from, or where it goes.” The ‘wind’, ‘breath’ of the Holy Spirit is the sole Guide for our lives. He brings about our renewal in his own way. The word for “wind” here is a word which also means “breath” and “spirit” [Greek, pneuma].

Once we are guided by the Spirit we have put ourselves totally in God’s hands ready to be led wherever God wants us to go. This is the message which is being given to Nicodemus. He must be ready to move in a different direction from that which has guided his life up to this. This readiness will lead him to see in Jesus the Word of God.

We, too, wherever we happen to be right now must ever be ready for God, through his Spirit, to call us in a new direction and to follow his lead.

Easter 2 | Tuesday

FIRST READING (Acts 4:32-37)

A picture of the early Christian community

We Christians are sometimes accused of being socialists or even Marxists and Communists. It is not an accusation we should be altogether ashamed of. The socialist ideal is “To each according to their need; from each according to their ability”. If this is the essence of socialism, then it is hard to see how any follower of Christ could disagree with it.

What people often do is to confuse the ideals of socialism (and Communism) with the ways in which it was implemented, as well as the atheistic materialism which it proclaimed. As we saw so clearly during Communism at its height, justice without love does not work (and we Christians might also remember that there can be no true love without justice).

Today’s reading from the Acts is one of three portraits of the early Christian community. Probably it is more the expression of an ideal than a historic description but it is no less valid for all that. Today’s description emphasises the communal ownership and mutual responsibility of the community members for each other.

Four elements are mentioned in the first sentence:

- The believers form a community

- They are of one heart and mind, deeply united with each other

- No one claimed anything as belonging to themselves; everything was held in common

- They gave witness to the central element of their faith – the Risen Jesus – with great power, through signs and healings.

There were no rich or poor in this community. “Those who owned lands or houses sold them.” This was a voluntary sharing to provide for those who did not have enough for the essentials of living. Each one’s aim was to ensure that the needs (not necessarily the wants) of the others were met rather than each one looking only to their own needs.

It is important to note that this was possible because “the community of believers were of one heart and one mind”. Their material sharing was simply an expression of the care which they felt for each other at a much deeper level.

The passage concludes with a striking example. Joseph, also known as Barnabas (“son of encouragement”), sold property he had and put the proceeds at the feet of the apostles. He was a Levite from Cyprus. (Jews had been living there since the time of Maccabees.) Generally, Levites did not own inherited land in Palestine but the rule may not have applied in other areas. Or the property may have belonged to his wife. Barnabas, will later become a missionary partner with Paul.

Barnabas’ action will contrast with another couple, Ananias and Sapphira, who claimed to be doing the same but who in fact only gave part of their possessions and kept the rest for themselves. They were severely punished. One after the other, they both dropped dead. (Their story is told in the following chapter but is not part of our Easter readings.)

Do we find such sharing communities in our Church today? One obvious example are the many different communities of religious life whose misleadingly named “vow of poverty” is primarily not a vow of destitution but one of total sharing of resources coupled with a life of material simplicity. Clearly, some communities live this life more effectively than others.

There are also in our own time many other groups of lay people who try to implement this Christian vision, this version of Christian “communism”. One thinks for example of Jean Vanier’s ‘L’Arche’ movement.

We have to admit, though, that many Christians – including religious – can be caught up in the individualism, hedonism, consumerism and materialism that dominates so many of our prosperous societies today.

Perhaps today we could reflect on our own attitudes to material goods: how we acquire them, how we use them, to what extent we share our material blessings with those in genuine need and not just out of our surplus.

This is something we need to reflect on as individuals, as families, and in our parish community.

There should not be any people in real need in our parish communities; if there are, how can we speak of ourselves as a parish community?

GOSPEL (John 3:7-15)

We continue today Jesus’ night-time dialogue with the Pharisee Nicodemus. Nicodemus, while accepting in principle what Jesus has said about being born again in the Spirit, now wants to know how it can be brought about.

Jesus accuses Nicodemus and his fellow-leaders of a lack of spiritual insight and a refusal to accept his testimony as coming directly from God. “If you do not believe when I tell you about earthly things, how are you to believe when I tell you about those of heaven?”

Jesus does not speak simply on his own initiative. He speaks of what he shares with the Father. It is the Father’s words and teaching that he passes on to us – he is the Word of God. His is not just a speaking Word; it brings all things from nothing, calls the dead to life, hands on the Spirit, the source of unending life, and makes us all children of God. To experience all this we need to have faith in Jesus as truly the Word of God and to live our lives in love.

But the Word is not always easy to understand and it requires, above all, an openness to be received. It is this openness that Jesus is challenging Nicodemus to have. People respond to the Word in so many ways. Some believe fully, others go away disappointed in spite of the many signs. One is reminded of the parable of the sower. To which group do I belong?*

And, up to now, only the Son has been “in heaven”, that is, with God. (“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God...”). It is from there that he has come and “pitched his tent among us”. He is in a position, therefore, to speak about the “things of heaven”, that is, to speak of everything that pertains to and comes from God.

The only solution is to put all our focus on Jesus. “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that all who believe may have eternal life in him.” This is a reminder of the incident in the book of Numbers where, as a punishment for their sins, the Israelites were attacked by serpents. God told Moses to erect a bronze serpent on a pole and all who looked at the serpent were saved.

Jesus, in a much greater way, will also be “lifted up” both on the cross and into the glory of his Father through the Resurrection and Ascension. And he will be a source of life to all who commit themselves totally to him. Only then will we be washed clean by the water from the pierced side (cf. John 19:34 and Zechariah 13:1).

To what extent are we “looking at” Jesus? Is it merely a sideways glance when we think about him or at certain fixed times (e.g. Sunday Mass) or is he the centre of our attention in all that we do and say?

Let our constant prayer be: “Lord, grant that all my thoughts, intentions, actions and responses may be directed solely to your love and service this day and every day.”

*For many references from John cf. note in the New Jerusalem Bible on vv. 11-12 of this passage.

Easter 2 | Wednesday

FIRST READING (Acts 5:17-26)

In the passage immediately preceding today’s reading we are told that many signs and wonders were being performed by the apostles and more and more people joined their community. Even Peter’s shadow falling on the sick was enough to heal them. All this was causing great alarm among the religious leadership, who saw these men acting on the basis of a faith (a Saviour risen from the dead) which they regarded as heretical.

During the next three days (Wednesday, Thursday and Friday) we will be hearing a description of the leaders’ efforts to put a stop to the apostles’ work.

Specifically those upset were the high priest and the Sadducee party to which he belonged. As we saw earlier, Caiaphas was the high priest recognised by Rome but the Jews considered his father-in-law Annas still the high priest, because it was an office held for life. The Sadducees only accepted the first five books of the Bible (the Pentateuch) as inspired and rejected later teachings accepted by others. Nor did they believe in a personal Messiah but only in a Messianic age. They also were seen to some extent as collaborators with the Romans and it was partly because they feared the reaction of the Romans that they wanted to get rid of this new ‘movement’ which could arouse the suspicions of the Roman authorities. “It is better,” Caiaphas had said during Jesus’ trial, “that one man die for the people than that our whole nation be destroyed.” Here was a similar situation.

We are told that the main motive for their displeasure was jealousy. The apostles were attracting large crowds, apart from the fact that they were disseminating a doctrine which the Sadducees denounced. So they had the apostles arrested and thrown into the public jail.

But during the night an “angel of the Lord” opened the gates for them and told them to go back and continue preaching in the Temple. The phrase ‘angel of the Lord’ appears four times in Acts: Stephen, during his address to the Sanhedrin, speaks of an angel speaking to Moses near Mount Sinai (7:30-38); an angel guides the deacon Philip to seek out the Ethiopian eunuch (8:26); an angel frees Peter from prison (12:7-10); and it is an angel who strikes down Herod when he accepts being addressed as a god (12:23).

In today’s reading, was it really a divine intervention or was it the work of a secret but influential supporter? It does not matter; it is clear that Jesus is with his apostles. So the dawn finds them back in the Temple preaching about Jesus.

The same morning, the Sanhedrin, the ruling council of the Jews, was convoked and the prisoners summoned. The Sanhedrin was the supreme Jewish court, consisting of 70 to 100 men (the proper number was 71). They sat in a semi-circle, backed by three rows of disciples of the “learned men”, with the clerks of the court standing in front.

The temple guard found the jail locked, the guards at their posts but there was no sign of the apostles. They were dumbfounded and could not explain the situation. Then the council was amazed to hear that the apostles were back in the Temple teaching the people. They were re-arrested but with no show of force because the leaders feared the opposition of the crowd.

We have here again a pattern that recurs right through the history of the Church and indeed among all those who fight in this world for truth and justice. Untold numbers of Christians in every part of the world have found themselves in jail for their faith. There are Christians in detention and labour camps right now. They have experienced the protection of God who gives them courage and peace and a sense of liberation (even if they are not always miraculously released).

As in today’s case, those in power are aware that they often do not have the people on their side. Their only weapon is their power but not truth or justice. To keep their power and all that goes with it, they will not hesitate to suppress truth and act unjustly and often violently.

As with the apostles, we cannot acquiesce in a situation where truth and justice are being attacked. There must be dialogue and even resistance but never violence. Our own dignity and that of our opponents must be deeply respected. We oppose, not them, but their ideas and their actions. Gandhi was a wonderful exemplar of this and he was the inspiration for Martin Luther King’s anti-segregation campaign in the US. They both totally eschewed any form of violence but, not surprisingly, were themselves the victims of their opponents’ violence. Among our fellow-Catholics we think of people like Maximilian Kolbe or Bishop Oscar Romero. We might pray today to have even a modicum of their integrity and courage.

Tomorrow, we will continue with this story…

GOSPEL (John 3:16-21)

Today we continue reflecting on the meeting of Jesus with Nicodemus. The dialogue has given way to a theological reflection in which the words of Jesus and of the author cannot easily be distinguished.

The theme is the relationship between God and the world. A few very important statements are made:

- God loves the world. He loves it so much that he gave his only Son, who died a terrible death on a cross as proof of that love. God loves the whole world and not just the “good” parts. God’s love is total and unconditional for every one of his creatures. But to experience the life that comes from God through Jesus we have to believe in him, open ourselves to him, give our whole selves to him in deep faith and trust.

- God did not send his Son to condemn the world but that it might be saved through him. We must constantly remind ourselves of this. God’s first and only instinct is to love us and for us to experience that love. We have been made by him and for him. He made us to share his life and love forever.

- Whoever fully believes in Jesus – in heart, word and deed – avoids judgement. But whoever does not believe is already condemned. That does not contradict what we have just said above. Judgment does not come from God but rather from our own choice. As today’s Gospel puts it: “The light came into the world, but people loved darkness rather than light... All who practice evil hate the light; they do not come near it for fear their deeds will be exposed.”

It is not God who abandons or dumps us; it is we who abandon him. We are our own judges when we deliberately prefer darkness to light. We put ourselves beyond the reach of his love, which is there and only waiting for us to turn back. On the contrary, the one who “acts in truth comes into the light, to make clear that his deeds are done in God”.

It is not God’s judgment that we are to fear. Rather it is our own choices which can bring us closer to him or away from him; it is our own choice whether we wish to live always in the light or choose darkness.

It might be good for us to reflect today on those dark corners of our life – present and past – which we keep hidden from others. Why do we hide these things? The person who lives in the light, the person of integrity and wholeness, has nothing whatever to hide.

Easter 2 | Thursday

FIRST READING (Acts 5:27-33)

After having been miraculously released from jail and returned to the Temple to continue their preaching in the name of Jesus, the apostles were re-arrested and brought again before the 71-member Sanhedrin, the ruling council of the Jews.

They were accused of two things:

- they had continued to preach in “that name” (their accusers could not bring themselves even to mention the name of Jesus) all over Jerusalem, even though they had been strictly forbidden to do so; and

- they were blaming the Jewish leadership for Jesus’ death (a contentious issue in our own day, although we do need to remember that those against whom the accusations were being made were themselves all devoutly religious Jews and whose Lord and Saviour was a Jew).

The apostles were not in the least fazed by these accusations. The men who were so fearful at the time of Jesus’ death and immediately after now spoke out boldly. “It is better for us to obey God than men!” they told their judges.

“The God of our ancestors raised Jesus, though you had him killed by hanging him on a tree.” Their accusers were undoubtedly accomplices in the death of Jesus; their motives a mixture of religious narrow-mindedness and political self-interest. But the apostles believed that Jesus was now in glory as Ruler and Saviour “to bring repentance to Israel [that is, all their fellow-Jews] and forgiveness of sin”. The title they give to Jesus corresponds to ‘Prince and Redeemer’, applied to Moses, as a prefiguring of Christ, by Stephen in his address to the Sanhedrin, where he said that Moses too was rejected by his people (Acts 7:35). There is an implicit comparison here of Jesus with Moses, something that the apostles’ judges would certainly not have liked.

But they were witnesses to all that they were saying. They could not say or do otherwise, no matter what others might tell them. And the Holy Spirit was with them. Their testimony was directed and confirmed by the Holy Spirit, who is given to all those who respond to God with “the obedience that comes from faith”.

It reminds one of Thomas More in England who refused to recognise King Henry VIII as head of the Church in England. “The king’s good servant but God’s first,” he said. For refusing to compromise his faith and integrity he lost his life. For Thomas, too, there was no other choice. And there have been many others like him down the ages. Many Christians today languish in jails and camps for no other reason.

Not surprisingly, the stance of the apostles infuriated their judges who wanted them put to death for what seemed blasphemous language.

Tomorrow we will see the completion of this story…

GOSPEL (John 3:31-36)

In rather abstract language, the Gospel today contrasts Jesus with those who see the world with purely worldly eyes. Jesus is the One who comes “from above” although he lives in the world. The “one who is from the earth” can mean any of us but here seems to refer to John the Baptist, who spoke of “earthly things” in the sense that he spoke simply as a human being as opposed to Jesus as the Word.

But the “one who comes from heaven” is above all. He testifies “to what he has seen and heard”. What Jesus has seen and heard comes through direct communication with his Father.

But “no one accepts his testimony”. Not literally every single person (obviously not true) but all those who are entirely immersed in this material world.

Yet there are some who do listen and who do accept what Jesus is saying and they know that what God says is trustworthy. When anyone fully accepts Christ’s witness, he accepts that Jesus is truly from God and that God acted (and continues to act) through him for the establishment of the Kingdom and the salvation of the world.

“For the One whom God has sent – namely Jesus – speaks the words of God.” He is the Word of God. But the sentence can be understood to apply to everyone who has consciously become a disciple and apostle for Jesus and his message. Jesus is the Light of the world but his followers are also called to be the light of the world (Matt 5:14).

The Son, Jesus, is the perfect image of the Father and shares generously with us what he has received from his Father. Life without end awaits all those who believe in the Son, who believe his words and accept them as their way of life. “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life but must endure the wrath of God.” Notice that one who believes “has” eternal life. Eternal life begins now with the response of faith.

Nor must we must think that God takes vengeance on those who disobey Jesus. God can never be angry in our normal sense of the word. But rather those who choose to go another way, the way of darkness and evil can only expect to meet death. They are the victims, not of God’s anger, but of their own determination to live in darkness.

With God’s help, the choice is ours to make.

Easter 2 | Friday

FIRST READING (Acts 5:34-42)

At the end of yesterday’s reading we saw that the members of the Sanhedrin were so infuriated by the boldness of Peter and his companions that they wanted to put them to death.

It was at this point that Gamaliel, a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin, stood up and ordered that the accused disciples be put out of the chamber for a short time. Gamaliel was a teacher of Paul and belonged to the school of Hillel; he may have actually been a grandson of Hillel. He was a leading exponent of a more liberal and humane interpretation of the Law and obviously respected by the council members. What he was urging here was in line with the teaching of the Pharisees.

As soon as the apostles had left the chamber, he addressed the assembly. He warned his fellow council members not to be too hasty in their judgements. He gave two examples of leaders – Theudas and Judas the Galilean – who started rebellious movements and in both cases attracted quite a large following of supporters.

The Jewish historian Josephus mentions the revolts of Theudas and of Judas the Galilean. They must have taken place about the time Jesus was born. Judas apparently led a revolt against paying tribute to Caesar – a contentious issue, as we know from the Gospel. Although his revolt was crushed it is possible that it lived on in the party called the Zealots. (One of the apostles, Simon, is described as a Zealot – Mark 3:18 and Luke 6:15.)

However, in both cases the leaders died or were killed and then their movements fell apart and their followers scattered.

Gamaliel suggested that, on the basis of these experiences, this ‘Jesus’ movement should be left alone. Their leader had also died and what was happening now might be just a flash in the pan. “My advice is that you have nothing to do with these men. Let them alone. If their purpose or activity is human in its origins it will destroy itself. If, on the other hand, it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them without fighting God himself.”

This kind of phenomenon occurs constantly and is frequently seen in our Church and, like Gamaliel, we should have confidence in the principle that, in the long run, the truth will always prevail. We sometimes get very concerned about new ideas or new movements that surface in our Christian communities but the same principle applies.

In current debates about married priests, women priests, problems about marriage and sexuality we should be confident that in the long run the truth and justice here too will win out, whatever decisions are made.

The Sanhedrin was persuaded by Gamaliel’s argument but they still had to express their anger and – quite unjustifiably – had the apostles flogged. This would have been according to Jewish law, which meant 40 lashes minus 1 (the Romans, who scourged Jesus, had no such limitations). It reminds one of what happened to their Master. Although declared innocent by Pilate, he was still subjected to the scourging. The council then repeated their orders for the apostles to stop preaching.

Far from being cowed or depressed, Peter and his companions left the court “full of joy that they had been judged worthy of ill-treatment for the sake of the Name”.

They were experiencing the blessedness that Jesus had spoken of in the Sermon on the Mount: “Happy are those who are persecuted in the cause of right: theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Happy are you when people abuse you and speak all kinds of calumny against you on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven [that is, before God]” (Matt 5:10-12).

Since that time many have been happy and proud to suffer for the sake of the Gospel and its message. In recent times one thinks of the civil rights activists in the U.S., beaten and subjected to attacks from savage dogs, joyfully singing “We shall overcome” as they were carted away to jail in paddy wagons.

GOSPEL (John 6:1-15)

Today we begin the great chapter 6 of John with its strong eucharistic overtones. We are bypassing chapters 4 (the Samaritan Woman) and chapter 5, which we read earlier.

The stage is set by the story of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, a story we find in all four gospels but which, in John, has some characteristics of its own.

As Jesus crosses over the Sea of Tiberias large crowds follow him along the shore. This lake was more commonly known as the Sea of Galilee. Its Roman name came from the new town of Tiberias, named after the emperor and founded about AD 20, in Jesus’ lifetime.

The crowd’s motive in pursuing Jesus was because of the “signs he was performing for the sick”. The implication is that they were not following Jesus for his own sake or because of his teaching. They were not really disciples but, to some extent, people looking for something just for themselves. It is possible for us to come to Jesus in that frame of mind too, our prayers full of “Give me this and that” but with little real commitment to the mission of the Kingdom.

Jesus goes up the mountain and sits down with his disciples. There are echoes here of Moses on Mt Sinai; Jesus is the new Moses and his disciples are the nucleus of God’s new people. It is also close to the Passover, a time soon to be linked with the new Passover in the death and resurrection of Jesus and with the Eucharist, which is the new Passover meal. The whole of the chapter is linked to this.

Seeing the vast crowds approaching, Jesus teasingly asks Philip, always presented as being somewhat simple and naive, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” As Philip came from Bethsaida (1:44), which was nearby, it was logical to ask him as a ‘local boy’. If Philip had any insight into who Jesus really was, he might have given a different answer. As it was he sees no solution: “Not even with 200 days’ wages could we buy loaves enough to give each of them a mouthful.”

Then Andrew, Peter’s brother and sometimes seen as a companion of Philip (cf. John 1), mentions a small boy who has five barley loaves and a couple of dried fish. Barley bread was the food of the poor. Obviously, that would not go very far. In fact, it is all that Jesus needs.

The late Monsignor Ronald Knox in one of his books makes much of this small boy who was picked out of the crowd and was being asked to give up his precious lunch. Yet he plays a crucial role. It was his tiny contribution which made it possible for the whole crowd to be filled and satisfied. It is typical of Jesus to make use of someone, a very insignificant person, in the doing of his work. This is something which happens all the time. How many times have I been chosen to be an instrument of God’s work? How many times have I failed to recognise some person I regarded as being of no importance who was in fact bringing me something from God? How often have I not recognised God’s presence in what needed to be done?

Jesus now gets all the people – 5,000 men not counting women and children – to sit down on the grass. “In meadows of green grass the Lord lets me lie... [He] prepares a table for me” (Psalm 23).

Then, in a ritual reminiscent of the Eucharist, Jesus “took the loaves of bread, gave thanks, and passed them around those reclining there”.

All had enough and more than enough to satisfy their hunger and the disciples are instructed to gather up all that is left over and filled 12 baskets. The Jews regarded bread as a gift of God and it was required that any scraps that fell to the ground should be picked up. These were collected in small wicker baskets which were carried as part of one’s daily attire. Twelve represents a number of completeness and abundance – an indication of just how much there was from the original five loaves that the little boy offered.

He made the offering but the Lord gave the increase. Such is always the case. The 12 baskets may also represent the Twelve, the ones who actually did the distributing of the Lord’s largesse, still the role of the Church today.

The crowd became excited at the sign they had witnessed. “This is undoubtedly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” (John the Baptist - John 1:21 - was also asked if he was the ‘prophet’.) As we will see in the rest of the chapter, the sign was pointing to Jesus and the food for eternal life which he will give. But the people were thinking of the ‘Prophet’ mentioned in Deuteronomy 18:15 who would be like Moses. Through Moses, God had provided food (manna) and water (from the rock) for the people in the desert. The Prophet they were expecting would do more or less the same.

Jesus, realising that they wanted to make him their leader, fled to the mountains alone. This is an example of one of those temptations experienced by Jesus when fasting in the desert. “The devil showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour. ‘I will give you all these,’ he said, ‘if you fall at my feet and worship me’” (Matthew 4:8-9).

Jesus had come to win over the people to himself as Messiah and Lord and here was a glorious opportunity when the people were, literally, eating out of his hand. But Jesus knew that this was not the way he was to become king nor was he to be the kind of king that these people wanted him to be. So he fled. The time for establishing his own kind of kingship would come later on.

We, too, sometimes can be tempted to take steps which seem, at first sight, to bring people to Christ but, on reflection, they may be short-sighted and lead to results which are far from the Gospel vision. They tend to lead people to ourselves rather than to God.

Easter 2 | Saturday

FIRST READING (Acts 6:1-7)

As the new community grew so did its need to develop new structures. With its growth came a more complex membership. It is likely that some time had elapsed between today’s passage and those we were reading during the past week.

For the first time, the word ‘disciples’ is used to describe those who had become believers in Christ; up to this it had only been applied to those who had been with Jesus in the Gospel.

The issue in today’s reading is that the Greek-speaking Jewish members began complaining that their needs were being neglected by the Hebrew-speaking Palestinian members, from which the founding core came.

At this stage of its development, the Church was still entirely Jewish in its membership. However, they were divided into two distinct groups:

- There were the Hebraic Jews, who spoke the Aramaic and/or Hebrew languages of Palestine and kept strictly to Jewish culture and customs.

- The Greek speakers (or Hellenists) were “overseas Jews”, scattered over the Mediterranean lands and had often largely become culturally and linguistically Greek (in the way, for instance, overseas communities become assimilated in the U.S. or Western Europe). They would have had their own synagogues (which Paul used to visit on his missionary journeys) where the Bible would be read in Greek. Not surprisingly, it was from this group that the main missionary initiatives would come, e.g. the Jews from Antioch rather than those from Jerusalem.

However, it is possible that the Hellenists were not Jews from the diaspora but were Palestinian Jews who only spoke Greek. The Hebrews were Palestinian Jews who spoke Aramaic/Hebrew but may also have known some Greek. Both belonged to the Jerusalem Jewish Christian community.

In either case, it is possible that the Greek speakers were to some extent looked down on by Aramaic/Hebrew speakers. (Overseas Chinese, for instance, can have a similar experience when faced with their Chinese-speaking counterparts from the ‘homeland’.) This seems to be what was happening here. Even at this early stage in the life of the Church, we can see the ugly head of ethnic-cultural divisions surfacing.

From its very beginnings, the Church has consisted of flawed human beings. It should never cause us any surprise and it does not weaken the central message of the Good News.

In general, however, the purpose of the passage seems to be to introduce Stephen as a prominent figure in the community. We will meet him again in the readings of Monday and Tuesday next week.

In particular the Hellenists complained about the neglect of the widows in their group. Widows were among the most pitied group of people in Jewish society at that time. They were not necessarily old but they had lost their husbands and remarriage for nearly all of them was out of the question. In the absence of any kind of social welfare, their only means of support was the charity of their community.

The apostles felt that this kind of material responsibility was not really theirs. In the beginning, the apostles were responsible for church life in general which included both the ministry of the word (evangelising) and the care of the needy in the community. As the community grew, this clearly became more and more difficult a responsibility for such a small number of leaders. It was time for delegation and applying the principle of subsidiarity!

So it was suggested that the Greek-speaking community choose carefully selected people from among themselves to take care of these needs. This met with general approval and seven men were chosen. Not surprisingly all of them have Greek names and all, except for one, Nicholas of Antioch, who was a convert, were born Jews. It is significant that a proselyte was included in the number and that Luke points out his place of origin as Antioch, the city to which the Gospel was soon to be taken and which was to become the “headquarters” for the forthcoming Gentile missionary effort.

It is also worth noting that it was the community who chose the seven men but that it was the apostles who ‘ordained’ them by prayer and a laying on of hands. These are the first recorded ‘ministers’ appointed in the Christian community and the pattern of their formal initiation will become the norm: the apostles prayed and laid their hands on them – as we see in Acts and the letters of Paul.. This still is done in the conferring of ministries today. At this stage they are not actually called ‘deacons’ but the word diakonia (diakonia), meaning ‘service’ is used twice in the passage.

Finally, as was mentioned, we will be hearing more about Stephen next week and, later on, Philip also.

In the meantime, the number of Christians continued to increase enormously. Now, even some of the priests, probably Sadducees, were being converted to faith in the Risen Jesus. They were now prepared to give up the temple sacrifices and rituals around which their lives up to now centred to be replaced by the new liturgical celebration, centred on the community Eucharist, which would be celebrated wherever Christians gathered together.

Given the limited human and material resources of the early community, it is amazing how its message was wholeheartedly accepted by so many. The finger of God was certainly there.

GOSPEL (John 6:16-21)

We have today an epilogue to the story of the multiplication of the loaves for the 5,000.

Jesus had fled to the mountains to avoid the misdirected enthusiasm of the crowd. Before that (according to Mark’s version of this story) Jesus had packed the disciples off into their boats. Very possibly they were much more ready to receive the adulation of the crowd. They must have been quite excited to have been so closely linked with the sensational act which Jesus had just done and which had stirred up the excitement of the crowd.

The story that follows is much more than a mere account of a storm at sea. There is a good deal of symbolism.

“It was getting dark and Jesus had still not rejoined them.” They might have been feeling quite disgruntled at being sent off so unceremoniously when things seem to be going so well for their Master – and them. Life without Jesus is a kind of darkness.

The strong wind and the rough sea can also be seen as a symbol of the storms that can surround the Church and any Christian community. The boat with the little group inside represents a Christian community surrounded by a hostile sea which can be very threatening at times. It still happens.

Suddenly they see Jesus coming towards them; there is actually no mention here of walking on the water. Their first reaction is fear until they hear the comforting words: “It is I. Do not be afraid.” That “It is I” is not mere self-identification, like “It’s only me”. “It is I” or “I AM” (Greek ’ego ’eimi) here is reminiscent of the words spoken by God to Moses from the burning bush. It is a phrase regularly on the lips of Jesus in John’s gospel. It identifies Jesus as one with God.

The words “Do not be afraid” occur regularly from the lips of Jesus and in other parts of the Scriptures as well. With Jesus close by there is no need to be afraid. As the First Letter of John tells us: “Perfect love (agape) casts out fear.”

They wanted to take Jesus into the boat with them but all of a sudden they found they had reached the shore and safety. Some see a miracle in this. On the other hand, in their fear the shore seemed far away. With Jesus close by they find themselves there in no time. The storm was over, their fears evaporated – with the presence of Jesus. The peace that only Jesus can give has come.

We can have the same experience.

Easter 3 | Monday

Readings Acts 6:8-15; John 6:22-29

FIRST READING (Acts 6:8-15)

Today we begin the story of Stephen, who will be the first person to give his life for Christ. He is the first martyr, the first true witness to the Gospel. The passage follows immediately on yesterday’s reading on the appointment of the ‘deacons’, of whom Stephen was one and also following the conversion of some of the Temple’s priests.

We are told at the beginning that Stephen, “filled with grace and power”, was performing great signs and wonders among the people. Until now, we only heard of the apostles, especially Peter and John, working miracles. Now, after the laying on of hands, Stephen is given the same gifts and the same power. Soon, we will see the deacon Philip doing the same.

However, Stephen’s words and action aroused the displeasure of other Greek-speaking Jews. We are told that there were people from the Synagogue of Freedmen, who were probably descendants of Jews who had been carried off to Rome by Pompey when he attacked Jerusalem in 63 BC. They would have been sold into slavery but later released, hence their name. The Cyrenians came from Cyrene, which was the chief city in Libya and North Africa, half way between Alexandria and Carthage. It had a Jewish community. (We remember too that it was a Simon from Cyrene who was forced to help Jesus carry his cross, Matt 27:32.) Alexandrians, came from the city of Alexandria (named after the famous Macedonian emperor). It was the capital of Egypt and the second city of the Roman Empire. It also had a Jewish community. Cilicia was a Roman province in the southeast corner of Asia Minor, close to Syria. Tarsus, the birthplace of Paul, was one of its principal towns. Asia simply referred to just one Roman province in what is now western Turkey. Its capital was Ephesus, which would feature prominently in Paul’s ministry.

These men began debating with Stephen. It is an interesting theory that, since Paul was from Tarsus in Cilicia, he might have attended this synagogue and have been among those who were arguing with Stephen. He certainly was prominent in the stoning of Stephen.

The parallels between his experience and that of his Lord are strikingly similar. Like Jesus and because of Jesus he is “filled with grace and power” and he “worked great wonders and signs among the people”. He arouses the displeasure especially of his fellow Hellenist Jews who cannot deal with the Spirit-inspired power of his words.

As they could not better Stephen in debate, they began circulating distorted versions of what he was saying. They accused him of saying that the worship of God was no longer to be restricted to the Temple. The charges that Stephen depreciated the importance of the temple and the Mosaic Law and elevated Jesus to a stature above Moses were in fact true. And, as far as the Sanhedrin was concerned, no defence against them was possible. But the false witnesses that some Hellenists were bringing forward were actually distorting what Stephen was saying.

So they begin to throw false accusations against him leading to his incurring the hostility both of the people and the Jewish religious leaders. In the presence of the Sanhedrin, the ruling council of the Jews, they distort his words by claiming that Stephen claimed Jesus was going to destroy the temple and change the traditions of Moses.

In a sense, of course, it was true. The coming of Jesus made the Temple irrelevant and the teaching of Jesus would not abolish but would transcend and go far beyond the traditions of Moses.

All of this is very similar to the experience that Jesus went through. All through this, his enemies glared at him with hostility while Stephen’s face seemed like “that of an angel”. The face of an angel produces a feeling of awe. There are echoes here of the face of Moses as he came down from the mountain after being face to face with God and the appearance of Jesus at the Transfiguration. Here, too, the Sanhedrin members are witnessing a transfiguration, as Stephen has a vision of Jesus in glory. (This will occur in tomorrow’s reading.) And, whatever their feelings towards him, he had no hostile feelings towards them. This is the spirit of Jesus. “Love your enemies.”

With Stephen, who thus perceived the fuller implications of the teachings of Jesus, the difference between Judaism and Christianity began to appear. Luke’s account of Stephen’s martyrdom and its aftermath shows how the major impetus behind the Christian movement passed from Jerusalem, where the temple and law prevailed, to Antioch in Syria, where these influences were less pressing.

As Christians, we too can expect and should not be surprised to experience hostility and misunderstandings even from our fellow-Christians at times. We are called too to return love for hatred, peace for anger. An attitude which is a real stumbling block to some and utter nonsense to others.

We will see the rest of the story tomorrow.

GOSPEL (John 6:22-29)

Following on the feeding of the 5,000 and the walking on the water, we begin the long discourse of Jesus as the Bread of Life. It is presented as a replacement of the manna with which God fed his people during their long trek through the desert in the Old Testament. What we read today is really an introduction. The proper discourse will begin tomorrow. The last part of the discourse is about the mixed reaction of Jesus’ disciples and Peter’s profession.

The day following the feeding the people go in search of Jesus. First, they realise he did not cross the lake with his disciples but, when they go to the site of the feeding, they find he is not there either. Eventually they find Jesus and his disciples in the vicinity of Capernaum, Jesus’ principal base in Galilee.

They ask him: “When did you come here?” In typically Johannine fashion, the question is loaded with deeper meanings, of which those asking it are quite unaware. Jesus’ origin (where he comes from) is a constant source of misunderstanding both on the part of the crowds and of the Jewish leadership.

Jesus begins by telling the crowds that they are coming in search of him not because of the ‘signs’ that he is doing but because of the bread that they had been given to eat. They have missed the point of what Jesus was doing. They have seen the things that Jesus has been doing but have missed the ‘sign’, the deeper meaning behind them. The food they are looking for is not the food that counts. The real food brings a life that never ends and that is the food that Jesus is offering. It parallels the water “springing up to eternal life” which Jesus promised the Samaritan woman (John 4:14).

The source of this ‘bread’ is the Son on whom the Father has set his seal. This ‘seal’ was given at his baptism. It is the Spirit of the Father, who is the power of God working in and through Jesus.

In answer to the question what they are to do in order to do the works of God, they are told, “This is working for God: you must believe in the one he has sent.” For ‘works’ in the Jewish sense, external fulfilment of the Law’s requirements, Jesus substitutes faith in himself as the delegate of the Father.

And he asks us not just to ‘believe’ but to ‘believe in’. It is not just a question of accepting certain statements about Jesus and who he really is. ‘Believing in’ involves a total and unconditional commitment of the whole self to Jesus, to the Gospel and the vision of life that he proposes and making it part of one’s own self. This is where the real bread is to be found.

And we may add that Jesus is not just speaking of the Eucharistic bread but the deep-down nourishment of which the Eucharist is the sign and sacrament but which also comes from the Word of God in Scripture and the whole Christian community experience.

It is important in reading this whole chapter that we do not limit the truth of Jesus as the Bread or Food of our life simply to the Eucharist, which is the sacramental sign of something much larger – all that we receive through Christ and the whole Christian way of life.

Easter 3 | Tuesday

Readings Acts 7:51-8:1; John 6:30-35

FIRST READING (Acts 7:51-8:1)

We continue the story of Stephen, although most of his long discourse to the Sanhedrin on the history of the Jewish people has been omitted in our readings. Today’s reading describes the climax of the story.

He calls those who have arrested him “uncircumcised in heart and ears”. Although they are physically circumcised, their behaviour is more like the uncircumcised pagans around them. They were resisting the spirit of God, who spoke through Moses and the prophets. Paul will speak later on of the ineffectiveness of bodily circumcision if there is not a corresponding circumcision of the heart. It is not circumcision which makes the Jew but his commitment to following God’s will. (And might say that it is not just the pouring of water at Baptism that makes the Christian. To ‘be’ a Christian means a lot more.)

Stephen attacks his judges as doing what their predecessors did to the long line of prophets God sent to his people. Now they have killed Jesus, the greatest prophet of all. It is not Stephen but they, his judges, who are not keeping the Law.

This, not surprisingly, infuriated the council members but Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, now had a vision of God in glory and Jesus standing at his right hand. He told the court: “Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” This was the title that Jesus had used of himself to emphasise his links with Messianic prophecies and, in the New Testament, it is very unusual for anyone but Jesus himself to use this title. The Sanhedrin knew very well that the one he was speaking about was the one they had had executed for his own blasphemies. To say that this executed blasphemer was now sharing God’s own glory was beyond the beyond. In horror, they cried out, stopped their ears to prevent them hearing any more obscenities.

All thought of a proper trial went out the window. Stephen was driven beyond the walls of the city and stoned there and then, just as Jesus, too, was crucified outside the city on Golgotha. Almost as an aside, Luke tells us that the witnesses put their clothes at the feet of a young man called Saul, who looked on with approval. It was the right of the hostile witnesses in a case (here, perjured witnesses) to initiate the execution of a sentence.

Yet we can surmise that it must have been this experience which sowed the seeds of Paul’s future Christian faith. “The blood of martyrs is the seed of faith.” As he saw Stephen dying with such dignity and grace, he must have been deeply moved – and disturbed.

As he dies, Stephen follows the example of his Lord. He surrenders his life into God’s hands: “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” and he prays for his executioners and all their supporters: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”

So many elements in Stephen’s death resonate the experience of his Master:

- His performing wonderful signs among the people

- His uncompromising challenges to the authorities on their integrity (or lack of it)

- The inability of his opponents to best him in debate

- The throwing up of false witnesses to discredit him

- A trial involving these false witnesses

- The vision of God in glory totally accepting Jesus

- The total surrender of his life into God’s hands

- The forgiveness of his executioners.

All in all, Stephen is the paradigm of the perfect follower of Jesus and hence a model for our lives.

So we have here too the ingredients of a true Christian life:

- Total commitment to Jesus as Lord.

- Readiness to speak up for one’s faith in spite of hostility and opposition.

- Readiness to lose one’s physical life, one’s possessions for the sake of the Gospel vision.

- An unconditional love for all, including those who would hurt or destroy us.

- A policy of active non-violence whatever the provocation.

GOSPEL (John 6:30-35)

We continue the discussion of Jesus as the Bread of Life.

Again the Jews ask Jesus for a sign, a sign like the manna that their forebears enjoyed in the desert. They quote Scripture at him: “He gave them bread from the heavens to eat” (Exod 16:4-5; Numbers 11:7-9; Ps 78:24)

As a gift from God the manna was said to come from the sky (“from the heavens”). Some think it was identified with a natural substance which can still be found in small quantities on the Sinai peninsula. Here it is understood as something preternatural and Jesus sees in it a forerunner of the Eucharist. Also the manna, thought to have been hidden by Jeremiah, was expected to appear again miraculously at the Passover as a sign of the last days. “A popular Jewish expectation was that when the Messiah came he would renew the sending of manna. The crowd probably reasoned that Jesus had done little compared to Moses. He had fed 5,000; Moses had fed a nation. He did it once; Moses did it for 40 years. He gave ordinary bread; Moses gave ‘bread from heaven’” (New International Version Study Bible).

Jesus replies that the manna was not the real bread from God; it was only a sign or symbol. It fed the body but not the spirit. “God’s bread is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” They ask for that real bread “which gives life to the world”. Clearly they were speaking in a materialistic sense. It reminds one of the Samaritan woman at the well who asked for the water which would prevent her ever again being thirsty and spare her having to come to the well every day.

Jesus now tells them solemnly: “I AM the bread of life.” The “I AM” strongly identifies Jesus with God and this is the first of seven “I AM...” statements that appear in John’s gospel. The phrase – in Greek ego eimi – recalls the name of God revealed to Moses in the burning bush (Exod 3:14ff). Both the manna and the recent feeding of the 5,000 are action-parables of God [I AM] giving himself to his people.

And Jesus goes on to clarify the meaning of his statement: “Whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.” To “come to Jesus” is to bond oneself closely to him and all he stands for. And we have seen what “believe in” entails. It implies much, much more than just “receiving Jesus in Communion”.

To eat that bread of life we have to soak ourselves in the life of Jesus, to penetrate deeply into the Word of God that comes to us in the Gospel and the rest of the Scriptures, to assimilate his Way into our own lives. The Eucharist we celebrate is the sign of that bread of life which, in fact, is available all day long to those who are in close contact with Jesus.

Those who live in that close relationship with Jesus are the ones who are truly alive – here and now. Am I one of them? How deep is my faith? my Christianity? my knowledge of and commitment to the Gospel? my understanding of the place of the Eucharist in our Christian life?

Easter 3 | Wednesday

Readings      Acts 8:1-8; John 6:35-40

FIRST READING (Acts 8:1-8)

There is a saying that it is an ill wind that blows nobody any good. We can see an example of it in today’s reading.

The first half of today’s reading sets the stage for what is going to follow. First, it is linked to what has just gone before, the martyrdom of Stephen, followed by widespread persecution of Christians, which, in turn will lead up to the unexpected conversion of the chief persecutor, Saul.

The martyrdom of Stephen was followed immediately by a savage persecution of the infant community. A Pharisee named Saul was among the most dedicated attackers (in the name of God, of course), dragging people from their homes and tossing them into jail. It was the beginning of a phenomenon that has been the lot of Christians in many parts of the world ever since and down to our own day. Right now there are Christians in jail for no other reason than that they openly profess faith in Christ.

While the apostles remained in Jerusalem, many of the other Christians began to scatter to the countryside of Judea (the province in which Jerusalem was situated) and the neighbouring province of Samaria, just to the north. This was to inaugurate the second stage of the Church’s expansion; the third would begin with the establishment of Christian communities in Antioch in Syria.

The persecution seems to have mainly targeted the Hellenist Christians and it was this group, scattered by persecution, which gave the church its first missionaries. And we are immediately introduced to one of them – Philip. This, in fact, was the beginning of the great missionary outreach of the Church which has not yet come to an end in our own time.

The apostles, however, remained behind in Jerusalem. First, they would have been Aramaic-speaking Jews and, by staying behind, they gave encouragement to those in prison and would be a centre of appeal to those scattered. The Church in Jerusalem now effectively went underground – and not by any means for the last time.

However, the persecution in Jerusalem, we can see now, was a blessing in disguise. “It is an ill wind that blows nobody any good.” As a result of the persecution in Jerusalem, the scattered Christians were bringing their message to new areas. Eventually – often as the result of persecution – they would carry it to the very ends of the Roman world.

Among the fugitives was the deacon Philip. He was one of the Seven who, with Stephen, had been chosen for special ‘service’. He is now a full-blown evangelist, who preached the good news about the Messiah-Christ, healed the physically handicapped and drove out evil spirits. The result was that “the rejoicing in that town rose to fever pitch”.

Probably the reference is not to the town of Samaria, a Hellenistic city called at this time Sebaste, but to the whole province. And those who were being evangelised were ‘Samaritans’ in the Jewish sense of the word, that is, those related by blood and religion to but cut off from Israel’s community and deemed to be living in heresy. (See the scene between Jesus and the Samaritan woman in John 4:9ff.)

Again and again it has been demonstrated that it is when it is persecuted, when people want to wipe it out, that the Church finds new vitality and the courage to stand up for what it believes. It is when we are taken for granted and worse, even ignored, that we are in the greatest danger. It is then that we are in real peril of being marginalised and are no longer the salt of the earth or a city on a hill. That is what is happening in many prosperous parts of the world today.

What about the world and the society we are living in?

GOSPEL (John 6:35-40)

We continue yesterday’s reading by repeating its last words where Jesus tells his listeners very clearly that he is the Bread of Life. All those who partake of this Bread will never again be either hungry or thirsty. The whole life of Jesus – his actions and words and his relationships with those around him – are a rich source on which we can draw.

In a sense, of course, we will always hunger and thirst for this full life but, by approaching and imbibing him and his spirit, our hunger and thirst are ever being satisfied while we continue to hunger and thirst for more. There will never be a time when we will want to stop eating and drinking from this Source and when we do we will stop living.

Jesus reproves his listeners for their lack of faith in him. “Though you have seen me, you still do not believe.” The question is: how much of Jesus did they really see? How deep was their perception of who he truly was and is?

That may be our problem too. Without a deep trust and total commitment to Christ and all he stands for, we may find that we do not have full access to that Bread of Life which we need so much. The search for the full Christ is one that we will never complete in this life. We only hope that we never stop searching. There will never be a day on this earth when we will be able to say: “I know Christ fully.” Not even the whole Church can make that claim.

Yet Jesus intensely wants to share that Bread, that nourishment with us. “Indeed, it is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks upon the Son and believes in him, shall have eternal life.”

Let us open our hearts today so that Jesus can fill them with his life-giving love. For he says: “I will not reject anyone who comes to me.”

Jesus has a mission. “I came down from heaven [a phrase repeated six times in this chapter] not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.” And what is the will of the Father? “It is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me but that I should raise it [on] the last day.

This is a summary of what this whole chapter is about. God wants everyone to be with him “on the last day”. On our part, we have to learn how to “see the Son” and “believe in him”, so that one day we can say with St Paul: “I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). When that happens we know that we have truly been filled with the Bread that is Christ.

Easter 3 | Thursday

Readings      Acts 8:26-40; John 6:44-51

FIRST READING (Acts 8:26-40)

Again we meet the deacon Philip, whom we saw yesterday as a very successful preacher of the Gospel to the people of Samaria. The Samaritans were doing so well that Peter and John were now sent to baptise them in the Holy Spirit.

In today’s reading, Philip gets instructions from God to take the desert road to Gaza on the south coast of Palestine, the same place from which comes so much tragic news almost daily on our TV screens. The distance from Jerusalem to Gaza is about 80 km (or 50 miles).

On his way, Philip runs into an Ethiopian eunuch, the finance minister of the queen of Ethiopia, who was on his way back after a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Eunuchs were commonly used in positions of seniority and trust, especially where the women of the royal household were concerned. They often became powerful and very rich.

‘Ethiopia’ corresponded in this period to Nubia, from the Upper Nile region at the first cataract (Aswan) to Khartoum. It would now be part of the Sudan. Kandake (Candace) was the traditional title of the queen mother, who was responsible for performing the secular duties of the reigning king. He was thought to be too sacred to have to deal with such administrative chores.

As we are told the eunuch had gone to Jerusalem to worship, it is very likely he was a convert to Judaism or else a Gentile who believed in the God of Israel.

As Philip catches up with him, the man is reading a passage from the prophet Isaiah. It was Isaiah 53:7-8, from the Fourth Song of the Suffering Servant which is read at the liturgy on Good Friday and is a text long seen by the Church as pointing to Christ in his passion. It was also the usual practice at the time to read aloud and that is why Philip knew what he was reading.

Philip asked him if he understood the passage. “How can I,” the man replied, “unless someone explains it to me?” This is something we need to acknowledge too. We cannot really understand the meaning of the scriptures unless we have someone explain them to us. We cannot simply expect to know what they mean just by reading nor should we expect that God will directly inspire us. We have to take the natural means available to us, namely, the experience and the knowledge of experts and people of deeper wisdom. The texts are separated from us by language and centuries of custom and lifestyles. Like the eunuch, we need interpreters to help us understand.

Here, the eunuch was quite at a loss to know what the passage was about. “Tell me, if you will, of whom the prophet says this – himself or someone else?” And Philip proceeded to show the official how the words applied to Jesus in his suffering and death and this gave him the opportunity to proclaim the whole message of the Gospel.

So completely won over was the eunuch that, as they passed a stretch of water, he asked to be baptised there and then. In other words, he was expressing his total faith in Jesus as Lord and Saviour. Where was this stretch of water? There are several possibilities – a brook in the Valley of Elah (which David crossed to meet Goliath, 1 Sam 17:40) or the Wadi el-Hasi, just north of Gaza or it could have been any other suitable stretch of water.

As soon as the baptism was done, Philip disappeared but the eunuch continued on his journey home filled with happiness. This is typical of the joy which is associated in the Acts with salvation.

Meanwhile, Philip’s work of evangelising was not done. He found himself in Azotus. It was one of five Philistine cities about 30 km from Gaza. From there he proceeded north all the way to Caesarea in Syria, a distance of about 100 km. Caesarea had been rebuilt by Herod. With an excellent harbour on the Mediterranean it served as headquarters for the Roman procurators.

We now say goodbye to Philip but he will reappear again some 20 years later, still in Caesarea, still an evangelist and enjoying domestic bliss (21:8).

As we read this story we might reflect that there will be times when we will be given opportunities to share the Gospel with people who are searching for meaning in their lives. But will we be ready? If someone presents us with a question about a Bible passage or a belief of our Christian faith, will we have the answer? Will we be ready to go beyond the answer and lead our enquirer to a further level of understanding? If not, then, like the eunuch, it may be time for us to take steps to deepen our understanding of the scriptures and of our Christian beliefs.

GOSPEL (John 6:44-51)

We continue to read John’s sixth chapter about Jesus as the Bread of Life. Today’s passage largely repeats what has been said already but at the end a new element is introduced.

Jesus reminds us that it is not we who find Jesus but rather it is the Father who finds us and leads us to Jesus as the Way to God. Here Jesus quotes from the Old Testament: “They shall all be taught by God.” Words to be found in Isaiah (54:13) and reminiscent of Jeremiah: “I will place my law within them, and write it upon their hearts” (31:33-34).

We see a lovely instance of that in the First Reading today about the eunuch who was led to Jesus by Philip the deacon. What was important here was the readiness and openness of the eunuch to be drawn to the truth.

Jesus again repeats that he is the Bread of Life, using that formal expression ‘I AM’ which points to divine origin. Unlike the manna that the Jews’ ancestors ate in the desert, this Bread comes directly from God and whoever eats it will live forever. Jesus’ challengers were asking for a sign like manna but Jesus says that it did not give real life – those who ate it have all died. The Bread that Jesus will give will bring a never-ending life to those who eat it.

Jesus is the Living Bread because he is the very Word of God and because he offers up his Body and Blood in a sacrifice of love bringing life to the whole world.

And this Bread is his flesh, life-giving flesh. This flesh will be given for the life of the world – a looking forward to Calvary. Giving eternal life will cost the human life of the Giver.

With these words the chapter moves into its eucharistic meaning. The word ‘flesh’ (sarx) introduces the link between Eucharist and Incarnation. Jesus is the Word made flesh and that Word is the food that we all need to ‘eat’. To ‘eat’ here, while involving actual eating and drinking, really points to the total assimilation into oneself and into a gathered community of the very Spirit of Jesus.

The Eucharist, as we shall see tomorrow, is the great sign of the Christian community by which we both affirm and celebrate our union with Jesus. By our eating of the bread-that-is-flesh we affirm our total adhesion to all that Jesus is and stands for.

Easter 3 | Friday

Readings      Acts 9:1-20; John 6:52-59

FIRST READING (Acts 9:1-20)

Today’s reading touches on one of the major turning points in the development of the early Christian community and indeed for the future of the whole Church in centuries to come.

Luke gives three accounts (Acts 9:1-20; 22:5-16; 26:10-18) of this momentous event. The second and third accounts are given in Paul’s own words as parts of discourses he gave. Paul also speaks about the experience in the Letter to the Galatians (Gal 1:12-17). The incident took place probably in 36 AD, about 12 years before the council of Jerusalem, which cleared the way for Gentiles to be fully incorporated in the Christian community. The council was held in AD 49.

Saul, we are told, was still breathing “murderous threats” against the “disciples of the Lord”. We know that he was directly implicated in the killing of Stephen but there are hints, by Paul himself, that others died or came very close to it because of his actions (cf. Acts 22:4; 26:10).

His next target were the Christians in Damascus. For this he got letters of authorisation from the high priest, probably Caiaphas. The Sanhedrin had authority over Jews not only in Judea but elsewhere in the diaspora as well. The Romans recognised the high priest’s jurisdiction over the members of the Jewish communities even outside Palestine and, according to 1 Macc 15:21, this even included right of extradition.

Damascus was located in the Roman province of Syria and the nearest important city outside of Palestine. It was about 250 km (150 miles) north of Jerusalem and it would have taken four to six days to get there. It had a large Jewish population.

Saul’s mission was to find men and women who “belonged to the Way” and bring them back in shackles to Jerusalem, where they could be tried and perhaps even sentenced to death. “Followers of the Way” is a name for the early Christians and refers to the pattern of life peculiar to the Christians. The term occurs a number of times in the Acts and only there. Jesus, of course, we remember had said: “I am the Way: I am truth and life” (John 14:6).

On his way, Saul was suddenly surrounded by a bright light and fell to the ground. (We are told in Acts 26:13 that it was about noon.)

At the same time, he heard a voice saying, “Saul, Saul why do you persecute me?” To which Paul replied with another question, “Who are you, Lord?” In the rabbinic tradition, such a disembodied voice would have been understood as the voice of God himself. The solemn repetition of Saul’s name (“Saul, Saul… ”) and the bright light suggested to him that he was in the presence of a deity and hence his use of the address, “Lord” (kyrie).

The reply he gets is: “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting.” Here we have Jesus identifying himself fully with his followers. “As often as you do it to the least of my brothers and sisters, you do it to me” (Matt 25:40). And “Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me; and those who welcome me welcome the one who sent me” (Matt 10:40). And in the New Testament letters, it is specifically Paul who will later remind us that the Christian community is the Body of the Risen Christ. To attack the Body is to attack Christ himself. Saul is also told to go into Damascus, where he will be given further instructions.

Saul’s companions could hear what was being said but could not see anything. Saul, meanwhile, rose to his feet unable to see, although his eyes were open. His companions lead the sightless and helpless Saul to the city. The recently all-powerful official is reduced to near impotence. For three whole days he was unable to see and he observed a total fast. The symbolism seems very clear: Saul, who was so confident that he was in possession of the truth, is shown to be very deficient in his vision of the truth.

In the meantime, a Christian called Ananias is told to go to a house in Damascus where Saul will be found praying. He was told to go to Straight Street, which is probably the same long, straight street that still runs through the city from east to west and is in strong contrast to the other numerous winding streets of the city.

Not surprisingly, Ananias is rather reluctant to visit the man who has been arresting Christians right and left. “I have heard about this man… what evil things he has been doing to your saints in Jerusalem.” The term “saints” was originally applied to the people of Israel but later became the usual term for Christians. It occurs many times in Paul’s letters. Since God is the Holy One, those are consecrated to his service can be called ‘holy’ also.

But the Lord insists: “You must go! This man is the instrument I have chosen to bring my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I myself shall indicate to him how much he will have to suffer for my name.”

What an extraordinary turn of events! How strange are God’s ways! How often they go contrary to all our presumptions and expectations! The man, the committed Pharisee, who was so set on wiping out the Christian way is to become Jesus’ chosen instrument to spread his name among the non-Jews, hitherto seen as utter infidels. He will become one of the main pillars, together with Peter, as a founder of Christianity. Through his writings, his influence will be enormous in the centuries following, right down to our own. And, in the process, he will pay a high price in personal sacrifice and suffering.

Ananias then goes to the house. He addresses Saul, whom he had been so reluctant to see, as his “brother”. He says he has been sent by the Lord, the same one who appeared to Saul on the road. The Risen Jesus had actually appeared to Saul; it was not a mere vision. It is on this seeing that Saul would base his qualification to be an apostle.

Ananias then lays his hands on Saul giving him the gift of the Spirit of Jesus. Immediately the scales of blindness fall from Saul’s eyes and he could see again. But what he is seeing is now very different from before.

Saul rises up – hints of resurrection and new life – and is baptised. He begins eating again and regains his strength. And, almost immediately, the persecutor of Christians who had been breathing murderous threats, was going to the Jewish synagogues proclaiming Jesus as the Son of God.

Again, we see, the strange ways of God. Ananias, the man who “received” Paul into the Christian community, is someone who only appears here and never again. He was, in every other way, a very inconsequential member of the community. He is like most of us in that regard but, like him, God may send a Saul/Paul into our lives too and ask us – insignificant though we feel ourselves to be – to act as the agent to bring this person to God. In the life of every great Church leader or prophet are hundreds of unidentified people who played a crucial role in their becoming what they became.

Paul could now see, but not just physically. He could see the truth about Jesus and the inadequacy of his own previous ideas, however sincerely they may have been held. He was now ready for baptism and, for the first time since his experience on the road to Damascus, he broke his fast.

A completely new chapter in the development of the early Church was about to begin. There is obviously here a great deal for us to reflect on in our own lives, about our way of treating others, about our blindness and our constant need for conversion, and about our responsibility to share our faith with others.

GOSPEL (John 6:52-59)

The discussion of Jesus as the Bread of Life continues.

Understandably enough the Jews are deeply shocked at Jesus’ invitation to eat his flesh and drink his blood. It sounds like a primitive recipe for cannibalism. If we were to put ourselves in their shoes and hear those words for the very first time I think that we too would find them very strange, to say the least.

For the Jews it was even more shocking because they had the greatest reverence for, even a fear of, blood. It was the source of life and should never be touched. To come in contact with blood was immediately to become ritually unclean. In the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37), one of the reasons why the priest and the Levite did not come to the help of the injured man lying on the road between Jericho and Jerusalem was almost certainly because he was bleeding and they were on their way to the Temple to pray or offer sacrifice. The woman with the chronic bleeding problem (Mark 5:25-34) did not dare to reveal herself to the crowd or even to Jesus because she should not have been in such close proximity with people. She could have been lynched if they knew.

To this day Jews only eat meat from which the blood has been previously drained (kosher). And here is Jesus inviting, even telling, people to drink his own blood! We have heard these words so often that they have lost their impact.

Yet Jesus makes no apologies for what he has said. On the contrary, he tells his hearers that if they do not eat his flesh and drink his blood, they will not have life. Those who do eat and drink are guaranteed life. Because Jesus’ flesh is real food and his blood is real drink. “Whoever eats me will draw life from me.”

What are we to make of all this? What do the words mean? Obviously they are not to be taken literally. Rather, to eat Jesus’ flesh and drink his blood is to assimilate totally into our very being the whole way of thinking and acting of Jesus, the very Person of Jesus. To be able to say with Paul, “I live, no, it is not I, but Christ who lives in me.” “He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I live in him.”

Nor are the Body and Blood of Christ only to be understood in the context of ‘receiving communion’ in the Eucharist. Certainly there are Eucharistic references in what Jesus is saying but we need to understand the Eucharist as a sacrament or sign of a much wider relationship with Jesus. The Eucharist is primarily a community celebration of what we are – brothers and sisters who are the Body of Christ for each other and for the whole world. Jesus’ flesh and blood come to us through the Word that we hear during the Eucharistic Liturgy as well as during the sharing of the Bread and the Cup. But Jesus also comes to us through every loving experience that we have in community. The Eucharist is not the whole of our eating and drinking of the body and blood of Christ. It is the sacramental celebration pointing to our total experience of meeting Jesus in our lives. It is something which should be happening all through our day wherever we are, whatever we are doing.

Easter 3 | Saturday

Readings      Acts 9:31-42; John 6:60-69

FIRST READING (Acts 9:31-42)

Following the conversion of Saul, persecutions come to an end for the time being and the new Church enjoys peace all through Judea and Jerusalem, Galilee and Samaria. These were the places where, up to now, evangelisation have taken place. The communities experience the consolation of the Holy Spirit, in other words, the joy which their new faith brought to them. The work of the Spirit is constantly noted throughout the Acts. Which is why the book is sometimes called the Acts of the Holy Spirit.

We are then told of two miracles performed by Peter, another sign that the power of Jesus through the Spirit is working in him. The healing and whole-making and life-giving work of Jesus continues.

First, in the town of Lydda a paralytic is cured. Lydda was a town about 5 km (3 miles) north of the road connecting Joppa (Jaffa today) on the Mediterranean coast and Jerusalem, and about 20 km (12 miles) from Joppa.

In Lydda Peter found a man named Aeneas, bed-ridden with a form of paralysis. As Peter had gone there to visit the believers, it is likely that Aeneas was one of the Christians. With the power of Jesus and in a similar manner Peter orders the man to get up (rise, resurrect to new life) and make, that is, fold up his bed which he does not need now during the day.

We are told that all the inhabitants of Lydda and Sharon, after seeing what Peter had done, “turned to the Lord”. The fertile plain of Sharon runs about 80 km (50 miles) along the Mediterranean coast, roughly from Joppa to Caesarea. In the context, however, the reference here is more likely to a village in the neighbourhood of Lydda instead of to such a large district. An Egyptian papyrus refers to a town by that name in Palestine.

Then, in the town of Joppa a much loved woman, who spent her life doing good for others, dies.

In accordance with both Jewish and Greek custom her body was washed and purified and, awaiting burial, was laid out in an upstairs room. This laying out would happen if the burial was delayed. In Jerusalem, a body had to be buried on the day of death but outside Jerusalem three days could be allowed. (Given the hot climate this is understandable. Muslims today also bury their dead very quickly.)

Her friends then hear that Peter is in nearby Lydda. In answer to their urgent request, Peter comes. Whether they wanted his presence either for consolation or for a cure, he was urged to come quickly before the burial took place. They tell him of all the good she had done and the widows (the most insecure people of that time) show him the gifts she had donated to them.

As Jesus did with the daughter of Jairus, Peter tells all to withdraw from the room. Unlike Jesus, he kneels down and prays. The power he sought was not his own but his Lord’s. “Tabitha,” he told her, “Stand up.” Again, they are words summoning to new life as he helped her to her feet. Only then were the believers and the widows called in.

Not surprisingly, the news of this spread like wildfire through the whole town and was the cause for many to believe in Jesus and the Gospel.

Jesus’ healing and life-giving work continues among us still. The only condition for us to experience it is our faith and trust in Jesus. It might be good for us to realise that each one of us can, in our own way, be a source of healing for others.

The normal way for Jesus to act is through the agency of his brothers and sisters, the members of his Body.

GOSPEL (John 6:60-69)

Today we conclude the discussion of Jesus as the Bread of Life.

Not only the Jews who heard him but Jesus’ own disciples had great difficulties accepting his call to eat his flesh and drink his blood as a way to life. “This is intolerable language. How could anyone accept it?” And, certainly on the basis of the words by themselves, we can sympathise with them; if we had been there, we would surely have had problems also.

Jesus is fully aware of their difficulty. “Does this shake your trust in me?” he asks them. If they have problems with this, how will they react when he rises from the dead and ascends to his Father? This is an indication that the acceptance of the resurrection was very much a matter of faith. No one literally saw Jesus rise from the dead or ascend to the Father. There was a faith conviction that it had taken place.

Jesus then points out where the problem really lies. “It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is useless. The words I spoke to you are spirit and life.” The disciples are hearing Jesus’ words only in the “flesh” and not with the penetrating eyes of the Spirit. So there are some who cannot accept what he is saying. (John comments that Jesus knew who were those who would not believe and, particular, the one who would “hand him over”.)

To understand the real meaning of Jesus’ words comes from the gift, the grace of faith: “No one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.” And so, “after this, many of his disciples left him and stopped going with him”. Faith is a gift. It is a gift open to all but it is a gift to which one needs to be open to receive.

Jesus then turns to the Twelve, “What about you? Do you want to go away too?” Peter then, in the name of all, makes his profound act of trust and commitment: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the message of eternal life and we believe; we know that you are the Holy One of God.” In other words, they acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah, God’s chosen Messenger who is uniquely united with him.

“Believe” and “know” are in the perfect tense in the original Greek, meaning “We have come to know and have come to believe and continue to do so...” It indicates not just a momentary action but an ongoing state.

Actually, we have here John’s version of Peter’s confession which we find in a different form and context in the Synoptic gospels. Peter’s response to Jesus needs to become ours too. And, if we reflect more deeply on it, we know that Peter is right. There is really no viable alternative to the Way of Jesus, even when things happen which are difficult to understand or accept. The Way of Jesus is not just adherence to a religious sect. It is to see that the Way he proposes is the way for every human being to live. To assimilate Jesus into one’s life is not just to become a good Christian but a perfect human being on the model of Jesus, who is himself God in human flesh.

Yet, how many Christians stop believing and no longer walk Jesus’ Way? Perhaps we, too, have wavered more than once. Let us ask for the faith and strength to stay with him and experience the life that only he can give. Above all, help us to see our world with the eyes of Jesus. And to help others to do the same.

Easter 4 | Monday

Acts 11:1-18; John 10:1-10 (or, in Year A of the Sunday cycle, John 10:11-18)

FIRST READING (Acts 11:1-18)

We have now entered a momentous part of the Acts which describes the inauguration of the mission to the Gentiles. It may not seem a big deal to us but it involved a radical change in thinking for the first Christians who were all Jews and still felt like Jews and maintained many of the religious customs of Jews. It changed the whole complexion of the Christian ‘movement’ inaugurated by Jesus.

It opens with the conversion and baptism of Cornelius, a Gentile centurion in the Roman army. But it also involves a conversion on the part of Peter who becomes aware that God’s calling in Jesus is extended to people of all races and religions. All of this is contained in chapter 10 which we will not be reading. (The story of Cornelius is dealt with on the 6th Sunday of Easter, in the Year B.)

What we see in today’s reading is the reaction of the Christian leaders in Jerusalem to the news of a Gentile’s baptism. It involves a major breakthrough in the development of the Church’s awareness of its identity.

The apostles and their fellow Christians in Jerusalem had heard that the pagans were accepting the word of God. We will see here and elsewhere in the Acts that in matters of importance, the apostles did not act alone. Guidance came from the Spirit, the apostles interpreted and exhorted, but the consent of the whole church was then sought (“the whole group”, 6:5; “apostles and the brothers”, 11:1; “the church”, 11:22; “the church and the apostles and elders”, 15:4; cf. 15:22).

The Christians in Jerusalem seem to have received this news with mixed feelings because when Peter went up to Jerusalem the “circumcised believers”, that is, the Jewish Christians, criticised him for visiting the homes of the “uncircumcised” and even eating with them. (We remember how Jesus too was criticised for consorting with the ‘unclean’ and eating with them, which led to his speaking the three beautiful parables in Luke 15 about the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin and the Lost Son).

The “uncircumcised” were those Gentiles who did not observe the laws of clean and unclean food and hence were in violation of Jewish regulations concerning food preparation. At this stage it is clear that the Jewish Christians saw themselves, even in a religious sense, as Jews. We know that they continued to go to the Temple to pray and here they have not yet changed their attitude to non-Jews and see them as a source of contamination.

Peter then shares with them a dream which he had. In this dream there appeared every kind of living thing that could “walk, crawl or fly”. He was told to kill and eat. He recoiled in horror. As a devout Jew he had never touched food that was regarded as ‘unclean’. He was made to realise in no uncertain terms that “what God had made clean, he had no right to call unclean”. In case he did not get the message, this vision was repeated three times.

Just then he also got an invitation to join three men in going to a house in Caesarea. This house, as we were told in the previous chapter, belonged to Cornelius, a centurion in the Roman army. It seems that he was an out and out Gentile, with no connections whatever to Judaism. Peter went, together with six companions, under the guidance and the approval of the Spirit.

When they got there Cornelius said he had been told by an angel to summon Peter to his house. Peter had a special message for him to hear. Peter had barely begun to explain the message of Jesus when the Holy Spirit came down on all of the household just as the apostles themselves had experienced it (at Pentecost). The “household” (familia in Latin) included not only those related by blood (parents, children, other relatives) but also slaves and all who were under Cornelius’ authority.

It was perfectly clear to Peter that there was no way he could deny baptism and membership of the community to this Gentile, who up to this he had regarded as unclean and a person not to be mixed with. “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?”, he told the Christians in Jerusalem.

Peter could not deny the Gentiles the invitation to be baptised and to enjoy full fellowship in Christ with all believers. The Jewish believers were compelled to recognise that God was going to save Gentiles on equal terms with Jews. By divine action rather than by human choice, the door was being opened to Gentiles.

Peter explains why he allowed a pagan to be baptised. However, he does not answer the objection that he had lodged with the uncircumcised. According to Luke, Peter was considered to have been the first to receive pagans into the Church, in spite of the episode of the Ethiopian eunuch, which we read on Thursday of last week, and the date of the evangelisation of Antioch to which Luke does not refer till later (in fact, immediately after this incident). Against this background the council of Jerusalem (which we will see in the middle of next week) appears as a kind of sequel to, or repetition of, the discussion in today’s passage. It is clear that Peter’s leadership is being emphasised.

The people in Jerusalem accepted what Peter told them and gave thanks to God that even the Gentiles could experience “the repentance [metanoia, i.e. radical conversion] that leads to life”. Not just repenting the past but undertaking a complete turn-around in their life involving a total commitment to the Way of Christ.

This story is just one example to be repeated again and again in the life of the Church of how change does not come from the centre, which in fact is often resistant to change, but from the outer limits.

The same is true of our Church today. There is always this tension between the central institution and the more charismatic and prophetic elements which are often more in touch with the grass roots and with the changes which are taking place in society which call for changes too in the thinking and behaviour of the Church. This tension is a good thing and is necessary both for progress and continuity.

The Second Vatican Council is an excellent example of this process.

GOSPEL (John 10:1-10)

[for alternative Gospel see below]

“Two kinds of sheepfolds or corrals are mentioned in today’s reading. In the common town sheepfold, the shepherd makes his special call and his sheep follow him out confidently. Out on the range, however, the shepherd sleeps across the corral opening: his body is the protecting door. So we live, pray and are saved through Jesus our Good Shepherd.” (Vatican II missal)

We now jump from chap 7 to chap 10, omitting the whole episode linked with Jesus as the Light of the World and the dramatic healing of the man born blind, texts which we reflected on during Lent in relation to Baptism.

We begin today to consider two images that Jesus gives of himself: the first is that of a gate and the second that of a shepherd.

We have to imagine a sheepfold as an area surrounded by walls or wooden fencing but open to the sky, and with only one entrance. The walls kept the sheep from wandering and protected them from wild animals at night. Only a genuine shepherd enters the sheepfold through the single gate. Thieves and brigands will try to enter by another way, such as by climbing over the walls or breaking through the fence.

“All who came before me are thieves and robbers but the sheep do not listen to them.” Jesus is referring to all the “false shepherds”, including some of the Pharisees and religious leaders of his time who are quite unlike the true prophets of the past.

The real shepherd, however, enters by the gate and is recognised and admitted by the gatekeeper (the one mentioned above who sleeps across the entrance). There are many sheep in the sheepfold belonging to different shepherds so the shepherd calls his own sheep out one by one. He then walks ahead of them and they follow their shepherd because they know his voice. They never follow strangers. (This is quite different from the European or Australian custom where the sheep are driven from behind.)

We are told that his hearers failed to understand the meaning of what Jesus said. They failed to realise that the parable applied particularly to the religious leaders.

So he spoke more clearly: “I AM the gate of the sheepfold.” Here we have the second of the seven ‘I AM’ (’ego eimi, ’ego ’eimi) statements made by Jesus in this gospel. Again Jesus’ points to his divine origin by using the name of God which was given to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14).

On the contrary, Jesus, as the Gate, the Way, has come “that they may have life and have it to the full.” This is a constant theme we have heard many times already and especially in chapter 6 about Jesus as the food and nourishment giving us life.

ALTERNATIVE GOSPEL: John 10:11-18

Jesus gives two images of himself connected with sheep. First, he calls himself the Gate of the sheepfold. Only true shepherds pass through this Gate to reach the sheep. In today’s passage, he speaks of the second image, identifying himself solemnly as the true Shepherd of his people. “I AM the Good Shepherd.” This is the third ‘I AM’ statement. Jesus’ assertion that he is the Good Shepherd is tantamount to identifying himself as Messiah.

Of course, the image of God as shepherd of his people is found many times in the Old Testament. For instance, in the much-loved Psalm 23, “The Lord is my shepherd...” or in Ezekiel 34 where God speaks of himself as the shepherd of his people.

Jesus now takes that role on himself. He is the “good” shepherd because he is willing to lay down his life for his sheep. In this he is totally unlike a hired hand who, at the first sight of danger (such as the appearance of a wolf or armed robbers) will abandon the sheep. He is only being paid to do the job and has no personal commitment to the sheep. It seems that some of the religious leaders are being finger-pointed here. They are more interested in the literal observance of the Law than in the spiritual well-being of the people.

Jesus, on the other hand, is a good shepherd. “”I know my sheep and they know me... For these sheep I will give my life.” His death on the cross is the clear proof of that. This is what makes him stand out from other “shepherds”. And the “knowledge” here is not mere acquaintance or recognition but a deep mutual understanding of each other. A knowledge that is the fruit of experience and an intimate personal contact leading to love.

But not all sheep belong to Jesus’ flock and it is his deep desire that they too should belong to his fold. This, first of all, points to the Gentiles who were not yet among God’s people. For us today, it points to all those who have not yet come to know the Way of Christ as pointing to life.

Jesus’ goal is that there be “one flock and one shepherd”. It should be the dream of all Christians too. The Father loves Jesus because of his readiness to die for his sheep. But Jesus’ death is his own free choice, an act of pure love for his sheep. He has the power to lay down his life and to take it up again. Our Shepherd will die but will rise again in glory to take his sheep with him to the life that will never end.

But, though Jesus the Good Shepherd, will die for his sheep, he does so in perfect freedom. This is what gives his sacrifice such value. He willingly surrenders his life into the hands of his Father and in doing guarantees his presence with his sheep for all time and in every place.

Easter 4 | Tuesday

Acts 11:19-26; John 10:22-30

FIRST READING (Acts 11:19-26)

The results of the early persecution were to scatter the Jewish Christians to places like Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch.

Phoenicia was a country about 15 miles wide and 120 miles long stretching along the north-eastern Mediterranean coast (corresponding to the modern Lebanon). Its important cities were Tyre and Sidon, which are mentioned in the gospels. The Phoenicians were legendary seafarers.

Cyprus is an island in the north-eastern Mediterranean and was the home of Barnabas the Apostle.

Antioch, on the river Orontes, was the capital of the Roman province of Syria and the third city of the empire after Rome and Alexandria. It was 25 km (15 miles) inland from the northeast corner of the Mediterranean. The first mainly Gentile local church was located here. In many ways, it would become the headquarters for the mission to the Gentiles and from here Paul would launch his three missionary journeys. More about them later.

Today we have the story of the Church being founded in Antioch in Syria. It strictly speaking was an immediate sequel to the martyrdom of Stephen and the savage persecution which followed and scattered the Jerusalem Christians in many directions. However, in between we have been looking at the work of the deacon Philip and Peter’s involvement with the Gentiles. We also saw the conversion of Saul, which is presumed to have already taken place.

At first the refugees only evangelised their fellow-Jews. But then Jewish Christians from places like Cyprus and Cyrene, on the north coast of Africa, who were used to more pluralistic societies, also began to approach “Greeks”, people were not circumcised, in other words, non-Jews. These responded very well and many became disciples of the Lord Jesus.

They used the term “Lord Jesus” rather than “Christ”, which was a title more suited to Jewish audiences with messianic expectations. To the non-Jews Jesus was more usually called “Lord”. He is “Lord” because, elevated to God’s right hand, he now rules over the Kingdom which he inaugurated.

And the Lord’s hand was with the evangelisers, indicating God’s approval and blessing on their work, sometimes indicated by signs and wonders. It was the beginning of the “Church at Antioch”, one of many “churches” to be set up in the following years.

When all this came to the ears of the people in Jerusalem, who were still thinking primarily in terms of Christians only as Jews, they sent Barnabas to investigate. Jerusalem, where the apostles were centred, had a right of supervision over other churches. And so the sending of Barnabas was in keeping with Jerusalem’s policy of sending leaders to check on new ministries coming to their attention. As a Hellenistic Jew from Cyprus Barnabas was an obvious choice for this mission.

It is clear that Barnabas was very happy with what he came across. “He saw the grace of God… and encouraged them all to remain faithful to the Lord.” He saw clearly that the Gentile converts were very genuine and encouraged the local church to continue what it was doing. And Luke comments, “He was a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith”, words also used to describe Stephen.

Then, Barnabas went off to Tarsus, a city in the province of Cilicia, in what is now the south-eastern corner of Turkey, and brought Saul back to Antioch. (Saul had been forced to leave after his conversion because the Christians would not believe the genuineness of his conversion. They thought he was simply trying to infiltrate the Christian communities with the intention of destroying them).

All of this resulted in great numbers joining the Church community under the leadership and formation of Saul and Barnabas, who stayed on for a whole year in the city.

Once again we see innovation and new ground coming from the fringe rather than from the centre and how, after discernment, it is seen to be a valid development. In our Church today, it is still the fringe which pioneers, while the role of Rome is to consolidate.

It is also an example of the phrase: “The world writes the agenda for the Church.”. It was the influence of a local situation which led to new insights seen as a valid development of the Christian vision.

It was here, too, we are told that the “disciples”, that is, the followers of Jesus’ Way, were first given the nickname “Christians”. (It indicates that those who coined it took “Christ” to be a personal name rather than a title.) It is not certain whether the followers adopted the name themselves or whether it was used by enemies as a term of contempt. In either case, it is a fitting title for those who attach themselves to Jesus and his Way. We too should be proud of this nickname. It is not something we should hide nor, on the other hand, is it a name that we should dishonour by our behaviour. Still less wear lightly.

GOSPEL (John 10:22-30)

We continue the image of Jesus as the Shepherd. “It is winter” and the scene is Solomon’s portico on the east side of the Temple during the winter festival of Dedication or Hanukkah. This feast is the commemoration of the dedication of the temple by Judas Maccabeus in December 165 BC after it had been desecrated by the Syrian King Antiochus Epiphanes. It was the last great act of liberation which the Jews had experienced.

We are told that Jesus was walking in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon. This was a roofed-in structure not unlike the ‘stoa’ of the Greeks. It was commonly believed to date back to the time of Solomon (who built the original temple) but this was not the case.

Again Jesus is questioned very directly about his true identity. “If you really are the Messiah, tell us so in plain words.” The question indicates that they had understood the meaning behind many of the things he said and did. On the other hand, it was not a question that could simply be answered with a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ because of the many divergent ideas and expectations concerning the Messiah which were current at the time. And certainly none of them corresponded to the kind of Messiah that Jesus would turn out to be.

Once again Jesus says that he has already told them but they refuse to believe. Previous statements made it clear that he spoke as one with a mission from God. Perhaps he had not explicitly said he was the Messiah (except to the Samaritan Woman) but it should have been clear either from his statements or from the evidence of his whole way of life, including the signs he had given – all clearly done in his Father’s name.

The works he has done are a consistent testimony of his true origins “but you refuse to believe because you are not my sheep”.

He then lists the characteristics of true sheep or followers:

- they hear my voice

- I know them

- they follow me.

And, as we have said elsewhere, to “hear” in the Gospel means:

- to listen

- to understand

- to assimilate fully into one’s own thinking

- to carry out what one hears.

To these disciples Jesus gives “eternal life”. The security of the sheep is in the power of the Shepherd and no one will snatch them from his hand. And that is because they have been given to him by the Father, whose power is greater than any enemy.

Finally, in a clear and unequivocal answer to their original challenge, he tells his questioners: “The Father and I are one.” The power that the Son has is the same as the Father’s. This is not an unequivocal statement of divinity but points in that direction. And Jesus’ listeners hear it in that way.

(Significantly the Greek actually says, “The Father and I are one [thing, neuter gender]” and not “one [person]”. The Father and Son, with the Holy Spirit, are one in essence or nature but distinct as Persons.)

Easter 4 | Wednesday

Acts 12:24-13:5; John 12:44-50

FIRST READING (Acts 12:24-13:5)

There are three great missionary journeys of Paul described in the Acts of the Apostles and today we see the beginning of the first of these journeys. (Incidentally, he is still being called ‘Saul’ at this stage. The switch to ‘Paul’ is noted a few verses after the end of today’s reading – Acts 13:9.)

Saul and Barnabas had just returned to Antioch from Jerusalem where they had brought relief supplies to the brothers and sisters in Jerusalem who were suffering from famine. Such mutual support of brothers in need is an essential element of Christian community living. (This is surely what the Gospel means when Jesus tells his apostles that, after leaving all things for him, they will find a hundredfold mothers, brothers, sisters, houses... In a true Christian community, no one will be in want.)

With them they brought John Mark. Was he the young man who fled naked on the night of Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:51-52)? The writing of the second gospel is attributed to him and he accompanied Barnabas and Saul on part of their first missionary journey.

We are also told today of a number of people in the church at Antioch described as ‘prophets’ and ‘teachers’. These two terms have very specific meanings in the New Testament and refer to particular ‘charisms’ with which certain people were endowed.

It does not identify in the group which was which, although there could be an overlap. However, these two roles are usually regarded as distinct charisms. The role of the prophet was to have a deeper insight into where God was calling the community to serve. The prophet was a visionary and a pioneer and led the way into new ways of proclaiming the Gospel.

The charism of the ‘teacher’, (didaskalos), on the other hand, was his ability to instruct others on matters of morality and doctrine, instruction, usually based on the scriptures.

The role of the teacher was to communicate the common tradition in the community. The teacher conserves and hands on. Paul, in a way, had both charisms but was very much the prophet in the sense described. He was the great innovator in contrast to Peter, the keeper of the tradition.

The five prophets and teachers here named – Barnabas, Symeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (a friend of Herod the Tetrarch) and Saul – now represent the governing body of the church of Antioch. They all seem to be Hellenistic, Greek-speaking Jews and it is possible that the names are listed in order of importance with Barnabas at the head and Saul taking the last place. It seems he was still on probation.

It suddenly becomes clear to the community in their common prayer and fasting that God is calling Barnabas and Saul for a special evangelising work. Paul’s first missionary journey does not arise from his own initiative but is a response to the call of the Spirit made known as the community prays and fasts. Then, as a sign of missioning, all lay their hands on the two missionaries. They are to go and preach in the name of the community which has sent them.

[It is recommended that during the coming days one consult a map, often found in good bibles, to follow the course of the three missionary journeys and see just where the places mention are to be found.]

So they set off by going down to Seleucia and from there to Cyprus. Seleucia was the seaport of Antioch 27 km (16 miles) to the west and 8 km (5 miles) upstream from the mouth of the Orontes River. Cyprus was where Barnabas came from. There were many Jews on the island and the Gospel had already been preached there.

They landed at Salamis, a town on the east coast of the central plain of Cyprus, near present-day Famagusta. It is not to be confused with the more famous place in Greece where the Greeks had a famous victory over the Persians.

The first objectives of the two missionaries are the Jewish synagogues. This will become the pattern of all the mission journeys. The idea was always to approach the Jews first on the principle that they had the first claim to hear the Gospel. It would be only after their refusal to accept the message that Paul would turn to the local Gentiles.

From today’s readings we could ask ourselves:

- To what extent do I give spiritual and material help to those in need in my community?

- Am I a teacher or a prophet in my community? Or do I have some other charism by which I contribute to the wellbeing of my community?

- In what ways do I spread the word of the Gospel in my immediate environment? Am I known to be a committed and caring Christian?

GOSPEL (John 12:44-50)

Today we come to the end of what is called the “Book of Signs” (chaps 1-12) of John’s gospel. Through these signs – seven of them – Jesus clearly indicates who he is and what is mission is.

Today’s passage, which brings the “Book of Signs” to an end, is a recapitulation of all that has been said in the preceding chapters. The text says that Jesus “cried out” and spoke. This gives extra emphasis to what Jesus is proclaiming. It is once again a call to believe in Jesus where ‘believing in’ means much more than mere acceptance of the truth of his words. It implies that there is also a personal commitment to Jesus and to his mission.

And to believe in Jesus is also to believe, to surrender oneself entirely, to the One who sent him – the Father. All through this gospel Jesus emphasises the inseparability of the Father and the Son.

“I came into this world as light… ” This phrase implies Jesus’ pre-existence as the Eternal Word as well as indicating he came with a mission – to bring light into darkness.

To put one’s faith in Jesus is to put one’s faith in God the Father, from whom he comes. And whoever really has insight into Jesus knows that he is in touch with God himself. As he has said before, Jesus is a light taking away the darkness with which we are surrounded. He also spells out more clearly than before what happens if we reject him and prefer darkness to light. “It is not I who shall condemn him” because Jesus has come to bring salvation, to bring wholeness to the world and not to condemn it.

“He who rejects me and refuses my words has his judge already: the word that I have spoken will be his judge on the last day.” The sun’s role is to give light but when there are obstacles to that light we get shadows. That is not the sun’s doing. Jesus, too, is the Light of the world. But, because of certain behaviour on our part, there are shadows and even darkness.

The ‘word’ of Jesus is a challenge. It offers us a way of living and of inter-relating with God, with others and with ourselves. If we choose another way we have only ourselves to blame when our lives go downhill. But Jesus is always there to lift us up. We only need to stretch out our hand and he will take it into his own.

Jesus tells us that his Father’s commands – which he also observes – mean eternal life. Everything that Jesus did was the carrying out of his Father’s will. We are called to follow the same path. If only we could realise that to follow Jesus is not to fit ourselves into a straitjacket but is a way to total freedom.

Easter 4 | Thursday

Acts 13:13-25; John 13:16-20

FIRST READING (Acts 13:13-25)

Paul and Barnabas continue their first missionary journey. From Paphos on the north coast of Cyprus they set off for Perga, the capital of the province of Pamphylia. Pamphylia was a coastal province in Asia Minor, between provinces of Lydia and Cilicia on the south coast of modern Turkey. It was 8 km (5 miles) inland and 20 km (12 miles) east of the important seaport of Attalia.

At this point, John Mark, who had originally been one of the party, returned to Jerusalem, from where they had originally brought him. Later, this will lead to a dispute between Saul and Barnabas. John Mark was a cousin of Barnabas.

Why did John turn back? Various suggestions have been made, none of them certain:

- homesickness to get back to Jerusalem

- an illness of Paul which forced Paul to change his plans and go to Galatia

- a change in leadership from Barnabas to Paul

- or simply an inability to get on with Paul.

Later, Paul will express his dissatisfaction with John’s behaviour.

Paul and Barnabas (from now on Paul’s name is put first) do not seem to have stopped long in Perga but continued on to Antioch in the province of Pisidia (not to be confused with the Antioch in Syria where they had begun their missionary journey).

Pisidia was a district about 200 km (120 miles) long and 80 km (50 miles) wide, north of Pamphylia. Bandits were known to frequent the region. Antioch, its capital, had been named after Antiochus, king of Syria, following the death of Alexander the Great. It was about 185 km (110 miles) from Perga and was at crossroads of busy trading routes. The city had a large Jewish population. It was a Roman colony, which meant that a contingent of retired military men also settled there. They were given free land and made citizens of the city of Rome, with all the accompanying privileges.

As usual, on arriving in Antioch, the two missionaries went to the local synagogue on the sabbath. We saw yesterday Paul’s reasons for doing this. At the same time, he was not neglecting his mission to the Gentiles because Gentiles who believed in the God of the Jews were often among his audience. It was obvious, too, that the synagogue provided a readymade starting point with a building, regular meetings and people who were familiar with the Scriptures.

After the reading of the scriptures, as was the custom, they were invited by the synagogue officials to speak to the assembly. (We remember how Jesus, too, was invited to preach in the synagogue.) It was the responsibility of these officials to call on readers and preachers, to arrange the service and maintain order. As a rabbi and leading Pharisee, it was natural, too, to invite Paul to give a homily. This gave Paul the opportunity to give an outline of Jewish salvation history and to show that Jesus was the expected and promised saviour of Israel.

As he goes through the great events of the Old Testament, Paul shows how it was all part of God’s plans for his people. This discourse is typical of Paul’s preaching to a Jewish assembly. It falls into two parts, of which we have the first part in today’s reading (ending with v.25). It gives a summary of the history of salvation with an appendix recalling John the Baptist’s testimony.

Today’s reading ends half way through Paul’s speech with John the Baptist pointing to the “one who comes after me”, the thongs of whose sandals he was not worthy to loose. We will have the rest of the discourse in tomorrow’s reading.

It might be very profitable for each one us to look back over our own lives and see how God’s providence has been at work at various key points. Some of these experiences will bring back happy memories; others may be more painful.

Nevertheless, God was present there and leading us on to something higher. How did we respond? And now that we are where we are now, where is God leading us at this stage of our life?

GOSPEL (John 13:16-20)

Today we begin today the second part of John’s gospel, sometimes known as the “Book of Glory” (chaps 13-20), covering Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection. Today’s passage immediately follows on the washing of his disciples’ feet by Jesus.

It is in that context that he says, “No slave is greater than his master; no messenger outranks the one who sent him.” With these words Jesus clearly urges his followers to serve each other in the same way that he, their Lord and Master, served them by the symbolic act of washing their feet. It was an act only done by the slaves in the household.

Jesus has given service to others a dignity which is totally independent of the status that society confers on people, dividing them into served and server. Jesus’ whole raison d’etre for being among us was to serve. “Blessed will you be if you put this into practice.” It is a truth which many of us – clergy, religious and laity – do not always find it easy to practise consistently.

It would not be quite right to see Jesus washing his disciples’ feet as a humbling of himself. Service in the Gospel is primarily love in action. Love (agape) is the desire for the well-being of the other. That love is actualised by service, by the doing of acts for the good of the other. It is the act of brothers and sisters to and for each other. Status or position does not enter into it.

At the same time Jesus gives the first warning that there is one among them to whom these words will not apply. It is to prepare them for the prediction about his betrayal by one of the group. “The one who has shared my bread has raised his heel against me.” To share bread together was a mark of close fellowship and that is a primary meaning of the Eucharist which is a “breaking of bread” among the members of a close community. To ‘lift up the heel’ may refer a horse kicking or the shaking off of dust from one’s feet as sign of rejection.

Far from being shocked and disturbed by what is going to happen, they should be aware that everything that Jesus willingly undergoes in coming days is clear proof of his divine origin. “I tell you this now, before it takes place, so that when it takes place you may believe that I AM.”

For what is going to happen to Jesus is the ultimate act of service to his brothers and sisters. It is the greatest love that can be shown. Now they are being asked to hold on to Jesus’ identity as one with the Father even when they see him die in shame and disgrace on the cross.

In fact, their faith will be deeply shaken and will not be confirmed until after Pentecost.

Finally, anyone who accepts a disciple or messenger of Jesus, accepts both Jesus himself and the Father who sent him. There is a clear line of unity emanating from the Father going through the Son and passing through the disciple to others. There is just one mission – to bring about the Kingdom, the Reign of God in the world.

This acceptance is done by our sharing fully in Jesus’ own attitude of service, even to the giving of his life.

Easter 4 | Friday

Acts 13:26-33; John 14:1-6

FIRST READING (Acts 13:26-33)

Paul continues his discourse on salvation history and on how Jesus was handed over by the leaders of his people into the hands of the Romans and executed. He addresses his words both to the Jews in his audience (“children of the family of Abraham”) and the Gentile converts (“you who are God-fearing”).

Paul makes it clear that the Jerusalem leaders and the people in the city failed to recognise the true identity of Jesus as the expected Messiah. However, he does not in any way implicate his hearers.

In doing what they did, Jerusalem was only fulfilling the well-known words of the Old Testament prophets, prophets whose readings were heard every Sabbath in the synagogue and hence with which his hearers would be familiar. And, by handing over an innocent man unjustly into the hands of Pilate, they were simply accomplishing everything about Jesus that had been written in those same readings.

But it was not the end, for God raised Jesus up and the apostles are the witnesses to this fact over a period of several days (40 days according to Luke’s account).

Paul and his companions now are proclaiming this good news of what God has done for his people through Jesus Christ. And he emphasises that it is all the expected fulfilment of everything that was prophesied.

Jesus is no upstart. He is the expected climax to the history of God’s people. Paul quotes from the Psalm, “You are my son; this day I have begotten you.” The words clearly are pointing to Jesus as God’s Son. By his resurrection Christ was enthroned as Messiah, and from then on his human nature enjoyed all the privileges of the Son of God. Paul’s words are an unambiguous invitation to the Jews of Antioch to become believers and disciples.

Let us, too, renew our commitment to following with all our heart and soul in the steps of the dying and rising Jesus.

GOSPEL (John 14:1-6)

We begin today the long discourse, covering four chapters (14-17) of John, in which Jesus at the Last Supper says farewell and gives his final instructions to his disciples. Although it is, on the face of it, spoken in anticipation of what is going to happen, it clearly reflects some of the fears and anxieties of the post-resurrection community coping without the direct leadership of Jesus and often harassed by both Jews and Gentiles alike.

So it begins by Jesus telling his disciples “not to be troubled”. The immediate reason is the great threat that hangs over Jesus and his warnings to them of what is going to happen to him. The disciples are disturbed by the predictions of betrayal, of Jesus’ leaving them and betrayal by Peter.

But it is also directed to all those who, because of their following of Jesus, fall under threat of persecution or harassment. It is a time for faith, in the sense of a deep trust in Jesus’ desire to take care of us.

In face of this Jesus tells them to have faith in him and in his Father. Faith here means a deep trust that Jesus will take care of them and give them the strength to face any difficulties.

“In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places [i.e. places in which to stay permanently]... I am indeed going to prepare a place for you... I shall come back to take you with me, that where I am you also may be.” Jesus is about to leave his disciples but he will be back soon and taken them to the place which has been specially prepared for them. He will return very soon after his resurrection, although in a very different way, and he will come at the end to take them to himself forever. And, not to worry, there is plenty of room for everyone. In the end, we will be where he is and that is the only goal of our lives that matters.

And then he says, “You know the way that leads to where I go.” They – and we – certainly ought to know the way but we are glad that Thomas, characterised in the Gospel by his blunt speaking, asked his question which drew forth a famous answer.

“Lord,” said Thomas, “we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” To which Jesus replied: “I AM the Way. I AM Truth and Life.” Jesus does not only tell us where to go. He is himself the Way (Greek, hodos).

And Jesus is not a way but the Way. This is not to be understood in a narrow sectarian sense. The way of life that Jesus proposes is not just for a particular group of people; it is a way of life for every single person to follow. The heart of that Way is an unconditional love which sees every other person as a brother or sister and a love which gives itself unceasingly in service.

If we want to know where our lives, where any life, should be going, all we need to do is to identify ourselves totally with the attitudes, the values and the goals of life that Jesus lays down for us.

And, as the Way, he is Truth and Life. Jesus is Truth not just because the things he says are true. His whole life, everything he says and does, all his relationships, have the ring of truth and integrity.

And, of course, he is Life. When we unconditionally decide to walk his Way, we, here and now, begin to live in the fullest manner possible.

Thank you, Thomas, for asking that question. All we need now is to make the answer the centre of our living.

Easter 4 | Saturday

Acts 13:44-52; John 14:7-14

FIRST READING (Acts 13:44-52)

We are still with Paul and Barnabas in Asia Minor. They are still proclaiming the message about Jesus as Lord in Pisidian Antioch. They now have the whole city coming to hear them speak the word of God. But they now incurred the jealously of some Jews who hurled abuse at the apostles. Perhaps, they believed that the word of God was only for them and not for Gentiles. Pearls were not to be thrown to swine.

Paul and Barnabas (notice that Paul is now regularly mentioned first) took this as a sign to transfer their energies to preaching among the Gentiles, who responded enthusiastically. Paul’s fellow-Jews in Antioch had shown themselves unfit to hear the Gospel. “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first, but since you reject it and condemn yourselves as unworthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.” He had to speak to them first – and he will do this in other places as well – because the Gospel came and was intended for the Jews first. And Paul, of course, was himself a Jew and had great compassion for his people. This is expressed very well in his letter to the Romans (Rom 9:1-5; 10:1-3).

We are told that the two apostles spoke out these words “boldly”. The ‘courage’ and ‘confidence’ of the apostles has been already stressed by Luke on a number of occasions. Luke repeatedly attributes these qualities to Paul and Paul himself lays emphasis on them in a number of his letters. ‘Fortitude’ is one of the four cardinal virtues which should be the characteristic of every Christian.

On the other hand they turn to the Gentiles because the Lord had told them to be “a light to the nations [meaning the Gentiles]” and “a means of salvation to the ends of the earth”. This is a free rendering of the Septuagint (Greek) reading of Isaiah 49:6.

The words may be taken either as referring to Paul himself, apostle and teacher of the pagans, or to the risen Christ. Christ is the light of the pagans, he himself had said “I AM the Light of the World” but since only the apostles’ witness can spread this light, Paul considers this prophecy as a command that he must carry out. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus had told his disciples, “You are the light of the world” (Matt 5:14) – in the sense that they are being called to transmit the Light that is Christ.

The Gentiles responded enthusiastically. “They glorified the word of the Lord” (received though Paul and Barnabas) and “all who were destined for eternal life came to believe”. ‘Eternal life’ refers to the life of the world to come. These are the ones whose names are “written in heaven” (Luke 10:20) and in “the book of life”. Actually, “destined for the life of the world to come” was a common rabbinic expression. For Christians, the first and necessary condition for this predestination to glory is faith in Christ.

As a result of the Gentiles’ enthusiasm for the message, “the word of the Lord was carried throughout that area”. In other words well beyond the bounds of the city.

However, some of the Jews continued their harassments. They incited prominent women who were believers (though not necessarily Jews) and leading men to stir up attacks on the two missionaries. They eventually managed to drive the two apostles from the city.

Following the teaching of the Gospel, they shook the dust of the city from their feet (cf. Matt 10:14; Luke 9:5). In doing this, they showed the severance of responsibility and the repudiation of those who had rejected their message and had brought suffering to the servants of the Lord.

They now continued on to the town of Iconium, lying to the east of Antioch on the southern borders of the province of Galatia. Its modern name is Konya. In Paul’s time it was an important crossroads and an agricultural centre for the central plain of Galatia.

Far from being discouraged by their experience in Antioch, we are told that the two missionaries, “could not but be filled with joy and the Holy Spirit”. It teaches us a lesson we continually need to learn. The preaching of the Gospel, in spite of its message of love and forgiveness and justice and its rejection of all forms of violence, can incur vicious and violent opposition. We should neither be surprised nor discouraged at this.

On the contrary, like the apostles, we should rejoice that, with Jesus, we suffer for proclaiming the message of life and love. “Blessed are those who are persecuted in the cause of righteousness” (Matt 5:10). We think of the story of the three men, thrown into the fiery furnace by an angry King Nebuchnadnezzar, singing the praises of God or, in much more recent times (and with more historical validity) of the civil rights marchers under Martin Luther King singing ‘We shall overcome’ as they were carried off to jail.

GOSPEL (John 14:7-14)

Once again we have to be thankful for a disciple’s question. Jesus has just said that those who really know him also know his Father. In fact, he says, they have already seen him. But, after all this talk about the Father, Philip, the naive one, is puzzled. “Show us this Father you are always talking about. That is all we ask.” Perhaps, like some of the other Jews, he was expecting some dramatic sign, some striking manifestation of the Father.

“Philip,” Jesus replies patiently, “whoever has seen me has seen the Father... Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?... Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works I do.” Philip still lacked that faith that could see the Father clearly working in and through Jesus.

Of course, what Jesus says has to be understood properly. In a sense, when we see Jesus we do see the Father; but, in another sense, we do not see the Father, at least not fully. When Jesus speaks, the Father speaks; when Jesus forgives, the Father forgives; when Jesus heals, the Father heals; when Jesus gives life, it is the Father who gives life.

Jesus is the Word of God; he is the utterance of God; he is God expressing himself and communicating himself to us. In his person, Jesus is totally united with the Father. But in Jesus’ humanity, which is where we meet him, the Father only comes through in the dimmest fashion. As Paul wrote to the Christians of Corinth: “At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face. At present I know partially; then I shall know fully as I am known” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

The love that Jesus shows is the love of the Father but, limited by his human nature, it is only the faintest image of the full reality of that love. It is important for us to understand this. That is why Jesus calls himself the Way; he is the Way not the End. The Father is the end and goal of all living.

And so Jesus goes on to make a statement that at first seems strange. “The one who has faith in me will do the works I do, and greater far than these. Why? Because I go to the Father.” How can we possible do greater, far greater things than Jesus? Yet, in a way, it is very true.

Jesus, in his time here on earth, was very limited in what he could accomplish. He lived in one very small place, probably spoke only one language, although he might have picked up a smattering of Greek; he reached relatively few people and was only intimate with a small number.

There are many Christians today who with the means of travel and communications available to them can bring the message of Jesus to far greater numbers and often more effectively. The pope in a major address or at a Christmas Mass can reach a potential audience of billions through television, radio and the newspaper. Jesus could do none of these things.

Jesus, now in his risen Body, the Church, can indeed “do far greater things” and this was made possible by his going back to the Father and passing on his work into our hands. Given the instruments at our disposal, we have a great responsibility to do that “greater work”.

But to do that work we need, of course, to rely on the help and guidance of Jesus through his Spirit. As he says in conclusion today, “Anything you ask me in my name I will do.” He has left us but is still with us.

And to pray in his name is not just to use his name like a talisman or charm. In invoking Jesus’ name we also fully identify ourselves with his Way and his will. It is not an invitation to make any kind of arbitrary request to suit our own personal whims. Primarily, it is to ask his help in spreading his Gospel. That is a prayer which he will surely answer.

Easter 5 | Monday

Acts 14:5-18; John 14:21-26

FIRST READING (Acts 14:5-18)

Paul and Barnabas continue their first missionary journey of spreading the Gospel.

We last saw them in the Galatian town of Iconium. At first, they had great success with their preaching and we are told that “a large number of both Jews and Greeks” came to believe. But then, as happened in Antioch, some Jews who refused to accept their message managed to stir up some Gentiles, too, against the two apostles. Even so, they stayed on in the town “for a considerable period speaking out boldly for the Lord”. Their message was confirmed by signs and wonders being performed through their [healing] hands.

The result was that the people were divided in their opinion – those who a priori rejected what they had to say and those who were convinced by the actions which seemed to confirm the missionaries’ message. And that is the situation as we begin our reading today.

Again, as in Antioch, a conspiracy of Jews and Gentiles came together to attack the two apostles and to stone them to death. Stoning was the Jewish mode of execution for blasphemy. Earlier we saw the fate of Stephen for words that were taken as utterly blasphemous.

When Paul and Barnabas got wind of this they fled the town. They went on to the cities of Lystra and Derbe and the surrounding country in Lycaonia and continued proclaiming the Gospel in these places.

Lycaonia was a district east of Pisidia and north of the Taurus Mountains in south-eastern Turkey. It was part of the Roman province of Galatia. Lystra was a Roman colony and apparently the home town of Timothy, whom we will meet on the Second Missionary Journey. Derbe was about 100 km (60 miles) from Lystra. The events of today’s reading take place in Lystra; we will see Paul in Derbe tomorrow.

On arriving in Lystra, Paul saw a man there, who was crippled from birth, listening to his preaching. Seeing that he was a man of faith, Paul ordered him to stand up, which the man immediately did. He was totally healed of his disability.

The onlookers were utterly astounded and immediately saw the apostles as gods in human form: Barnabas as Zeus and Paul as Hermes (Latin, Mercury), the spokesman of the gods.

The New International Version of the Bible comments:

Zeus was the patron god of the city, and his temple was there. People who came to bring sacrifices to Zeus apparently decided to make an offering to Paul and Barnabas instead. The identification of Zeus with Barnabas may indicate that his appearance was more imposing and Paul was identified as the god Hermes (the Roman Mercury) because he was the spokesman.

This incident may have been occasioned by an ancient legend that told of a supposed visit to the same general area by Zeus and Hermes. They were, however, not recognised by anyone except an old couple. So the people of Lystra were determined not to allow such an oversight to happen again.

Even the priest of the local temple of Zeus, which was just outside the city gates, was preparing to offer sacrifices in their honour. Horrified, the apostles tore their garments, a sign of their displeasure and a Jewish way of expressing great anguish. They insisted they were ordinary human beings.

Paul then addresses the crowd and tells them that the mission of Barnabas and himself was precisely to lead the people away from such idolatrous superstitions to a belief in the “living God ‘who made heaven and earth and sea and all that is in them’ (Ps 146:6)”. In preaching against a belief in many gods (which most Greek-speaking peoples had), it was Paul’s custom to contrast the true God with the false, the living God with impotent idols, and to call for a change of heart.

Paul wants to tell them about the one living God, who is the source of everything in heaven and earth. While allowing Gentiles to go their own way, yet God gives them abundant witness of his presence – he gives “rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, and fills you with nourishment and gladness for your hearts”. Paul is now telling them of the true Source of all these good things.

But the people were not easily convinced and could barely be prevented from carrying out their plans to offer sacrifice to the two apostles.

Here we see two more elements in our work for Christ.

First, persecution in one place meant that the message was brought elsewhere. We see this happening frequently in the Acts.

Second, while persecution often is the lot of the worker for Christ and his gospel, an even more dangerous trap may be people’s adulation.

We see this in the life of Jesus himself, who sometimes fled from such situations (e.g. John 6:15). Here we see Paul and Barnabas firmly rejecting an apparently favourable situation which they could have been tempted to exploit. As we will see tomorrow, it was just as well they did not.

GOSPEL (John 14:21-26)

Jesus continues his farewell message to his disciples at the Last Supper.

Those who really love him are those who carry out the teachings he has given them.

Words alone will not be enough. Where there is real love from the disciple, Jesus will return that love and reveal himself to his disciple. He will do this by coming with his Father to dwell in that person.

Now it is Jude’s turn to ask a question. Jude is called “son of James” and listed among the Twelve in Luke 6:16. He appears again in a list in Acts 1:13 (also by Luke). He is believed to be the ‘Thaddaeus’ of Matthew 10:3 and Mark 3:18.

He wants to know why Jesus only reveals himself to his disciples and not to the world. Jesus is rather elliptical in his reply but basically he is saying that anyone who responds to Jesus with love will certainly experience the love of Jesus (which is always there). The ‘world’ by definition in John’s gospel consists of those who turn their back on Jesus, his message and his love. “He who does not love me does not keep my words.”

Again, Jesus reminds his disciples that everything he passes on to them comes ultimately from the Father and not from him alone. He is the mediator, he is the Way, he is the Word of God. And later, after he has gone, this role will be taken over by the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.

The word ‘paraclete’ (parakletes) has many meanings. It can mean a defence lawyer in a court of law, who stands beside the defendant and supports him in making his case. It means any person who stands by you and gives you support and comfort. (See 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 where, in one brief paragraph, the word parakletes in various forms is used 7 or 8 times in the sense of ‘comfort’ and ‘support’). The Spirit will play that role in the Church after Jesus has returned to his Father. And he continues in that role still.

His role is to help the disciples keep in mind all that Jesus has told them. He is the inner voice of God who will lead those who listen to the fullness of truth (something which no one possesses at any given time). He will help them to understand the full meaning of Christ for them and for the world. The Spirit will show them that Christ is the fulfilment of the Scriptures, will help them understand ever more deeply the meaning of Jesus’ life, his actions, his ‘signs’. All this the disciples barely understand at this stage and it is a process that continues on into our own day.

Easter 5 | Tuesday

Acts 14:19-28; John 14:27-31

FIRST READING (Acts 14:19-29)

We come today to the final description of Paul’s and Barnabas’ first missionary journey.

Yesterday we left them at Lystra in the embarrassing situation of being taken for gods because of the cure of a paralysed man. But their glory was to be short-lived; their enemies were on their tail.

Those Jews whose hostility they had incurred in the towns of Antioch and Iconium turned up and successfully stirred up the feelings of the people of Lystra against the two apostles. (We need to remember that there were other Jews in these towns who had become Christian believers.)

Reflecting the fickleness of crowds, the people who just now were treating the apostles as gods now had Paul stoned, leaving him for dead. It seems this was done within the city rather than at the usual place of execution outside the walls. This could indicate that it was a spontaneous outburst of mob violence rather than a formal execution. But Paul was what we would call a “tough cookie” and, as soon as his disciples gathered around him, he was suddenly back on his feet again. (Is there a hint of a miraculously quick recovery in Luke’s description?) It is also possible that his future companion, Timothy, was present. Timothy, as mentioned earlier, seems to have been a native of Lystra. Paul’s experience might have had the same effect on him as Stephen’s had on Saul (Paul).

With the courage that so often marks his actions, Paul went back into the town but the next day with Barnabas he moved on to Derbe, their last stop on this journey. Derbe was a border town in the south-eastern part of the Lycaonian region of Galatia. An inscription naming the city has been discovered about 50 km (30 miles) east of what was previously thought to be the city site. Here the two missionaries again proclaimed the Gospel and made “a considerable number of disciples”.

Paul must have been quite an impressive preacher, judging by his success in all the towns in which he spoke. One wonders if his being a Pharisee did not have an influence on his Jewish listeners, although it is clear that it also had a negative impact. If a devout Pharisee could be converted to the Way of Jesus, then maybe there was something in it. At the same time, others would see him as a total renegade to his Jewish faith.

Then they began their return journey going through each of the towns they had originally evangelised – Lystra, Iconium and Pisidian Antioch – and in which they had met such violent resistance. But one must remember that they had also made many Christian converts among both Jews and Gentiles. These would be the seeds of new churches in each place.

Paul “put fresh heart into the [newly-converted] disciples”. He preached and warned them of the trials and difficulties that they could expect to face – just as he did. This was a necessary condition to enter the kingdom.

In each church a pastoral structure was set up for the first time with the appointing of ‘presbyters’ (Greek, presbyteroi) or elders. With prayers and fasting, they were commended to the Lord. The ‘presbyters’ or ‘elders’ were community leaders chosen from among the communities by a laying on of hands. In this case, too, the elders were chosen by the apostles and not by the community. Our modern word ‘priest’ is a corruption of this word but they were not priests as we know the term now in the Catholic Church.

As the New Testament emphasises, we really have only one Priest, Jesus Christ who acts as Mediator and Bridge-builder (Pontifex) between us and God (cf. Letter to the Hebrews)

From Pisidian Antioch Paul and Barnabas retraced their steps through Pisidia, Perga in Pamphylia and down to the coastal town of Attalia, the main port of Pamphylia. From there they went by ship back to Antioch in Syria, the city from which they had originally set out.

On their return to Antioch, the two apostles gave a complete report of their mission experiences and told of how God “had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles” and how well they had accepted the message of the Gospel. In fact, Paul and Barnabas had left behind not just individual believers but functioning communities with their own leadership. After their return, they stayed on in Antioch and “spent no little time with the disciples”, probably a year at least. Paul now seems to be fully accepted into the community which had been so suspicious of him earlier.

In our work for the Church we also need to report to the community what we are doing. We also need to submit ourselves to their evaluation and their encouragement. The work of the Church is never that of just one person be it pope, bishop, priest, religious or lay person. Still less, is the church a ‘service station’ where I just go to fulfil my private needs.

Meanwhile, the way is being prepared for the next great event in the history of the infant Church – the Council of Jerusalem, the Church’s very first Council. It will also be a major turning point in the direction the new community is taking.

GOSPEL (John 14:27-31)

As Jesus prepares to leave his disciples, he knows that they are fearful and upset and they will be all the more so when they see what people will soon be doing to him.

His farewell, then, includes a gift of peace. ‘Peace!’ (Shalom) is the normal Jewish greeting and farewell and Jesus uses it when he appears to his disciples after the Resurrection. Originally it meant soundness of body but it came to signify perfect happiness and the liberation which the Messiah was expected to bring. This is the very wholeness which is the aim of Jesus’ mission.

But it is not the peace as the ‘world’ understands it. Peace for Jesus is not simply the absence of violence. It is something much more positive, much deeper. Paradoxically, it can exist side by side with times of great turmoil. It is something internal, not external. It comes from an inner sense of security, of a conviction that God is with us and in us and that we are in the right place. It is something which not even the threat of death can take away.

It is something that the going away of Jesus cannot remove. Jesus tells his disciples that, if they really loved him, they should be happy that Jesus is going away to his Father. It is always a sign of love when our first priority is the wellbeing of the other person. He says the Father is greater than he, in the sense that as Father he has a kind of priority and is the ultimate source of all that is, though the Son does share all that with the Father and the Spirit. The full divine glory of the Son in Jesus is also veiled behind his humanity for the time being but after the Cross he will pass into the full glory of the Father.

It is obvious that Jesus’ place is with his Father. His disciples, if they love him, will know that and not get in his way. Of course, as Jesus points out, it is also in the disciples’ own interest that Jesus go away for only then will the Spirit come down on all of them.

The end is near. “The prince of this world is at hand.” But they are not to worry. The powers of evil are limited in what they can do and all that happens to Jesus is simply a manifestation of his great love for his Father and his desire to follow his Father’s wishes. Because, by undergoing what faces him, Jesus will be communicating to the world the tremendous love of the Father for each one of us.

Easter 5 | Wednesday

Acts 15:1-6; John 15:1-8

FIRST READING (Acts 15:1-6)

We begin today an account of the very first Church council.

Scripture scholars find many conflicting difficulties in the structure of the narrative in chapter 15. All these difficulties may be explained by supposing that Luke has combined two distinct controversies in one text with their varying solutions. Paul distinguishes them more clearly in Galatians chap. 2. For our purposes here, we need not go into these textual problems.

As often is the case, the matter did not concern a central doctrine of faith but a tradition. Two issues are going to come up:

1, Should Gentile converts be obliged to observe the Jewish Law?

2, What should be done to assuage the mutual cultural sensitivities between Gentile and Jewish members of the Christian communities?

Then, as now, the community could be said to be divided between conservatives who saw the need for continuity with the past and those who saw the need for change with changing circumstances. The issue at stake was circumcision.

Many of the early Christians, especially those in Jerusalem, were converts from Judaism. And among these were Pharisees. They believed that Christianity was simply a development of their Jewish faith and not a renunciation of it and that they should continue observing their Jewish traditions.

Circumcision, like many of the other practices of the Jews, was, at least for men, a crucial identifying mark of God’s people, even though the original reason for the practice may well have been hygienic and preventive. (Nor was it by any circumstances a custom confined only to the Jews of ancient times.)

With the acceptance of Gentiles into the Christian community, the issue of circumcision became a delicate one. Should the new non-Jewish converts be forced to undergo such a painful (and perhaps in their view a disfiguring) operation? Was it really central to the Christian identity?

It seems that the Christians in Antioch were not enforcing it on their new Gentile converts and this was causing some concern among Jewish Christians in Jerusalem. They sent delegates to Antioch with the strong message: “Unless you are circumcised according to the Mosaic practice, you cannot be saved.” Although they were given a hearing, they may not have represented all the apostles and elders in Jerusalem but a more legalistic group within the church there.

It is clear from Luke’s account that there was a deep conflict between the Jerusalem delegates (who may have been predominantly Pharisees) and Paul and Barnabas who had seen how genuinely many Gentiles had accepted the Christian faith. They did not see that compulsory circumcision should be part of the package. It was, of course, a telling point that Paul himself, a Pharisee, was against compulsory circumcision for Gentiles.

As a result, a group from Antioch, including Paul and Barnabas and “some of the others”, went down to Jerusalem. Among those “others” could have been Titus, who was of mixed parentage, part Jewish, part Gentile. Paul mentions his presence in Galatians 2:1-3.

On the way they passed through the territories of Phoenicia and Samaria telling the Christians they met about their successes in evangelising the Gentiles in Asia Minor. This, in a way, was a clever public relations act because they picked up a great deal of support from those they met on their way. They therefore brought with them to Jerusalem a fairly considerable constituency of support.

When they reached Jerusalem they gave the same message about their great success in bringing Gentiles into the Christian communities. And it is clear that they were cordially received by the Jerusalem church.

But they were challenged by the conservatives of the day, converted Pharisees who again, as in Antioch, insisted on the absolute necessity of circumcision for all converts. Perhaps they had Titus in mind. Although his mother was a Jew and his father a Gentile, he had not been circumcised nor had Paul insisted on it.

The whole group then proceeded to discuss the matter in depth. Tomorrow we will see the outcome.

There is much for us to learn from this experience of the early Church. There is certainly a need for continuity if the Church is to retain its identity and its links with its origins. That is why the Scripture, both Old and New Testaments, is the foundation on which our faith is built and why we need to come back to it all the time.

At the same time, if the Church is to present its message in a way that is meaningful it must also be ready to make the necessary adjustments in areas which, though they may have a long tradition, are not central and have outlived their meaningfulness.

We see this happening both in situations where the Church is trying to make itself at home in cultures which are far removed from that of Europe and, even in Western areas where deep cultural changes are taking place. We see this happening especially today in the area of sexual morality and sexuality generally – artificial contraception, treatment of AIDS/HIV, married priests, women priests, homosexual priests, same-gender unions… Churches are being torn apart by these issues.

There will always be a measure of tension between these two movements, the conservative and the progressive. And both are necessary and a sign of a living church. As long as it is a matter of diversity and not division.

What is vital is that people on each side be open to frank and sincere dialogue. In spite of serious differences, we see that dialogue taking place in today’s reading.

GOSPEL (John 15:1-8)

Perhaps there are some of us who have never seen a vine (although we may be well versed in our wines!). But what Jesus says about the vine – a plant very common in Palestine – can be said about any fruit-bearing tree that we are familiar with and the message is clear.

The vine is an image we find elsewhere in the Old Testament. Jesus uses it as a symbol of the Kingdom of God; all who belong to the Kingdom are part of the vine. The fruit of the vine can also be understood of the Eucharistic celebration. It also represents a life lived according to the vision of Jesus, a life filled with unconditional love.

Jesus is explaining to us what our relationship with him can be like and indeed should be like. He compares himself to a tree, basically to the trunk of the tree. The cultivator of the tree, the one who gives it life, is the Father God. Jesus’ disciples are the branches.

It is the branches which bear the fruit.

If a branch does not bear fruit, it is simply cut off. It is no good; it is just draining life from the trunk without giving anything in return. It is very easy for us to be that kind of Christian. We come to church in search of “handouts” but give very little back to the community.

But, even the branches which do bear fruit, are pruned, have parts cut off, so that they will bear even more. Those who cultivate fruit trees or roses are familiar with this process and know how important it is.

What does this pruning consist of? Jesus explains: “You are pruned already, by means of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide, stay in me, as I abide and stay in you.” We are pruned, then, by our total identification with everything that Jesus stands for and by constantly cutting out of our lives everything that is contrary to the spirit of Jesus.

This involves a certain kind of asceticism, a denying of some of our natural appetites. This becomes easy as we are more and more overtaken by the vision of life that Jesus offers to us. We give up those non-Christlike things gladly and willingly. It becomes our deepest happiness and even pleasure to be always in Christ.

It is clear from what Jesus says that only those branches which are connected to the trunk can bear fruit. “Cut off from me you can do nothing.” Without fruit we are dead branches but, on the other hand, the fruit is not just of our own making. It is the sign that Christ is working in us and through us.

The most outstanding fruit of all is, of course, the love we reveal in our relationships with God and with people. “By this will all know that you are my disciples, that you have love one for another.”

Separated from Christ – always the result of our own choice – we are like a branch that has fallen from the tree. We wither. Such “branches are collected and thrown on the fire, and they are burnt”. Such separation is not physical. It is a separation of identity. It comes from rejecting or refusing to accept the Way of Jesus as our way of life. It is a rejection of life and the choice of alternatives which can only lead to decay and death.

Finally, there is the great promise. “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask what you will and you shall get it.”

This is not to be interpreted as some kind of blank cheque, such as asking to win the first prize in a lottery or to have one’s enemy wiped out or to be cured of a terminal sickness.

The promise is prefaced by an important and essential condition: we need to be IN Christ and to have our lives totally guided by his “words”, that is, his teaching, his vision of life. And, if we are with him, our prayer inevitably will be to be more deeply rooted in him. Because he is the Source of all life and all Meaning in life.

Easter 5 | Thursday

Acts 15:7-21; John 15:9-11

FIRST READING (Acts 15:7-21)

Today we have the second and final part of the “Council of Jerusalem”. The issue has been discussed in depth and we now are given the conclusions of the assembly. We will see the implementation of these conclusions in tomorrow’s reading.

It can be said to be divided into three parts: 1, the speech of Peter, head of the apostles; 2, the statement of James, the leader of the Jerusalem church; 3, an ‘encyclical’ letter [the first of many!] sent to the churches, which we will see tomorrow.

First, Peter speaks up. This is significant. One would have expected Paul to do so. But Paul has had his say and presented his case. Peter now speaks, first, as leader of the apostolic college but, secondly, because of his personal experience in this sensitive issue.

It is now for him to make the final decision. He has special credentials for doing so as leader of the apostolic group, the inner core of the Church’s leadership. But he was also the one to whom God had explicitly revealed that the Christian community should be opened to the Gentiles and that many of the ritual obligations of the Jews, such as those involving unclean foods, were no longer relevant. This happened when he had the vision of all the different kinds of animals in chapter 10:9ff. And it was Peter who had played a leading role in the baptism into the community of Cornelius, the first Gentile Christian.

Peter now tells the assembly how God had chosen him to be the instrument for bringing Christ’s message to the Gentiles and how they had received the gift of the Spirit just as the first Christians did. The receiving of the Holy Spirit was always taken as the irrefutable proof of being accepted by God. That was seen clearly in the case of Cornelius and his household. “He made no distinction between them and us,” says Peter.

It is only provoking God’s anger, then, by “placing on the shoulders of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear”. The ‘yoke’ here is the Mosaic law. “Freedom has set us free,” Paul writes to the Galatians, “Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit to a yoke of slavery.” (Gal 5:1) Paul has to say this because many Jewish converts were going back to full observance of the Mosaic law.

All that is needed is to “be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus”. Again from Galatians: “A person is justified not by the works of the Law but through faith in Jesus Christ… No one will be justified by the works of the Law” (Gal 2:15-16). This ‘faith’ is not just an intellectual acceptance but a total commitment of the self to the Way of Christ.

The Jewish way is not, says Peter, a specially privileged one and circumcision, by itself, means nothing. (Of course, for many Jews, if circumcision means total dedication in the service of God, that is quite a different thing.)

The assembly then fell silent after this presentation. Was that because they were overwhelmed by what Peter had said or was it that there had been some barracking from legalists while he spoke? In any case, Barnabas and Paul, on their part, confirmed all that Peter had said by describing their wonderful experience of evangelising the Gentiles and seeing God working so evidently among them. (We may note that here Barnabas’ name comes before that of Paul, perhaps because he had more status in the Jerusalem community.)

We now come to the second part. James, the leader of the Jerusalem community and a relative of Jesus himself, speaks. He clearly represents the Jewish members of the Christian community and so, like Peter, but in a different way, his words carry special weight. He will contradict the demands of some of his fellow-Jews in the community.

He endorses the words of Peter, confirming them with a passage from the prophet Amos (9:11-12): “I will rebuild the fallen hut of David...so that all the rest of mankind and all the nations that bear my name may seek out the Lord...” The text is quoted according to the Septuagint, the Greek version of the Old Testament, and the argument partly depends on variants peculiar to that version. It probably comes from Greek-speaking believers, although here it is ascribed to the leader of the Hebrew Christians.

In view of this statement that God wishes all to belong to him, James goes on to say that no unnecessary burdens should be put on Gentiles who wish to convert.

He does make a few exceptions however and says that a letter should be sent out to this effect. Although they are not bound by the Mosaic law in general – and especially circumcision – he lists four things Gentile Christians should avoid. These are:

1, Pollution from idols

2, Unlawful marriage

3, Meat of strangled animals

4, Blood.

1, This forbids the eating of food which had been offered to idols because it might imply some ambivalence about fidelity to one’s Christian beliefs. However, Paul, in writing to the Romans, says this does not bother him personally as he does not believe in those idols anyway. However, he would not eat such food if he was in the presence of a more scrupulous person who might misunderstand his action.

2, Many Gentiles – like many people today – took sexual behaviour rather lightly. Temple worship, too, sometimes involved sexual activities with temple prostitutes, male and female. Apart from the immorality involved, this latter could be a source of scandal.

3 and 4, Jews will only eat the meat of animals from which the blood has been drained and, as we see in the gospel, contact with blood was seen as a form of religious contamination.

This seems to contradict what has been said earlier but it should really be seen as a plea, at this stage in the church’s life, to respect the sensitivities of the more traditional Jewish converts. It is a matter of compromise in non-essentials. (Like agreeing to eating fish on Fridays when with Catholics who cannot bring themselves to change the old ways or not insisting that people take communion in the hand...)

Again, we can learn from this discussion. On the one hand, we have to be careful not to impose on people practices which are not central to our faith and, at the same time, to be willing to bend in areas which are not essential. This is a principle of mutual tolerance which should be observed by both conservatives and progressives alike. St Paul has many wise things to say about this. See especially the Letter to the Romans, chap 14.

GOSPEL (John 15:9-11)

Jesus continues speaking to his disciples at the Last Supper. After giving them the parable of the vine he now goes on to give its real meaning: the Father, the Son and his followers are all to be united in love. As the Father pours out his love on the Son, so the Son pours out his love on his disciples. They, in turn, are to pour out the same love on their brothers and sisters everywhere.

That is how we keep the “commandments” of Jesus; all his commandments can be summarised in that one word ‘love’ (agape).

As I heard someone once describe it, the love of Jesus is like electric current. If the current does not pass through you, it cannot enter into you. Similarly, if the love of Jesus does not pour through us to others, it is a sign that that love is not really in us. The love of God has to be recognised, responded to and passed on. It is not just a ‘given’.

And the fruit of that love is joy, the same joy that Jesus himself experiences. The normal situation of the Christian disciples should be joy and consolation. After all, as has been said, “a sad saint is a sad kind of saint”. It is a contradiction in terms. Some Christians are incredibly serious about their faith. One wonders if they have yet experienced the love of Jesus. If they did, it would be joyfully flowing out to others.

Easter 5 | Friday

Acts 15:22-31; John 15:12-17

FIRST READING (Acts 15:22-31)

Having decided that circumcision should no longer be imposed on non-Jewish converts, the community leaders together with the whole church gathered together in Jerusalem to promulgate their decision to the wider Church.

They sent a delegation to Antioch in Syria, which was effectively the centre of the Greek-speaking Christians (both Jews and Gentiles). Wisely, the delegation included representatives from the Jerusalem community. Among those from Jerusalem three leaders are mentioned: Judas, Barsabbas and Silas. It is not clear who Barsabbas is but in the first chapter of Acts we are told that a Joseph Barsabbas was one of the two candidates chosen to replace Judas Iscariot. But, as we know, “the lot fell on Matthias”. Silas became a missionary companion of Paul and we will meet him on the Second Missionary Journey. He is the same person known as Silvanus in some of the Pauline letters. At this time he was a leader in the Jerusalem church and called a ‘prophet’ (15:32) and, like Paul, was a Roman citizen (16:37).

But with them went Paul and Barnabas, who represented the outer limits of the Church and who had raised the issue in the first place. Apparently there was unanimous agreement with both the choice of messengers and the contents of the letter which they carried.

The letter comes from the “apostles and the elders (presbyteroi), your brothers” in Jerusalem and is addressed to the “brothers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia who are of Gentile origin”. Antioch was the leading city of the combined and adjoining provinces of Syria and Cilicia. It is significant that the Jerusalem leaders call themselves “brothers” of the Gentile converts, thus identifying all as belonging to the same family.

They speak apologetically of the Jewish Christians who had, apparently on their own initiative, gone to Antioch to complain about the non-circumcision of Gentile converts. That is why they are sending a delegation from Jerusalem together with Paul and Barnabas, who have their full endorsement. They are men who “have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ”.

They then make a significant statement: “It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us… ” Not only are they speaking unanimously in their own name but they know they have the full endorsement of the Holy Spirit in their decision. They then list the four exceptions mentioned above, Jewish practices which were still binding on all.

We should note the interesting process that is being described during the past three days’ readings.

The Spirit is with the whole Church and communicates its faith with the centre. The centre then discerns and recognises where the Spirit is working and issues an authoritative statement giving confirmation under the guidance of that Spirit.

The Church still works this way. The Pope is not the one who tells the Church what to believe; he tells the Church what it believes after listening to the faith of the whole Church. This listening process on the part of Rome is crucial for the growth and development of the Church in so many different areas with very different needs and aspirations.

There is another element in today’s reading which at first sight seems to be contradictory. Having ruled out the obligation to be circumcised, they still forbid eating meat sacrificed to idols, abstaining from blood, the meat of strangled animals and “illicit” sexual union.

Yet this shows the need for a sensitive balance between the feelings of the Gentiles and those of the Jews. Circumcision was a much more sensitive (in every sense!) issue, involving as it did mutilation of the body and in a particularly delicate area touching not only the body but the whole area of sexuality and generation.

The other Jewish traditions which were still being imposed could be lived with without great difficulty. In the course of time they too would fall away.

All of these issues concerning inviolable principles and acceptable areas of compromise are just as relevant in our Church today as they were at the beginning.

GOSPEL (John 15:12-17)

Jesus, speaking to his disciples at the Last Supper, continues to talk about the centrality of love. He expresses it in a central commandment: perhaps surprisingly to some, this commandment is not to love God, or to love Jesus, but to love one another. God does not need to be mentioned because that love is only possible when God is acting in and through us. That is the touchstone of the genuineness of our love for God. And the measure of that love is that of Jesus for us.

If that is not clear enough, he spells it out: the greatest possible love a person can have is to sacrifice one’s life for one’s friends. That may mean dying for others but it can also mean living for others; in either case our primary concern is concern for the need of the brother or sister. And it is the only path to demonstrate that we love God and that God’s love is in us.

Jesus shows that love by his own death for his friends. And who are his friends? They are those who do what he commands and what he commands is that we love each other to the same degree that he loves us.

Earlier Jesus told his disciples, after washing their feet, that he was their Lord and Master, but now he also calls them his friends and not servants. Jesus is our Lord but he is also our Brother and our Friend. Because of that he has shared with us all he has received from his Father. Obviously, it is for us to share all we know about Jesus with others too.

Finally, he reminds them that they are his followers, because he has chosen them; they have not chosen him. We do not confer any favour on Jesus by following him. We are only answering a call that has already come from him. And the response to that call is to “bear fruit”, lasting fruit. Our lives must be productive, productive in love, in caring, in justice, in compassion, in building up the world of the Kingdom.

And we need have no fear. God is with us and everything we need will be given to us to become fruitful. And once again he repeats the core commandment: Love one another.

How much of all this is descriptive of my life?

Easter 5 | Saturday

Acts 16:1-10; John 15:18-21

FIRST READING (Acts 16:1-10)

Today we find ourselves on the second missionary journey of Paul.

Just in case we think that quarrels and divisions in our church is something that only happened later in the Church’s history, we need to see how this second journey got under way. Sometime after the first journey, Paul suggested to Barnabas that they should go back and visit the places they had evangelised. However, Barnabas wanted to take John Mark, his cousin, along with them. However, Paul disagreed because he said that Mark had abandoned them early on at Pamphylia on the First Journey and he did not want him along this time.

Their disagreement was so strong that they decided to go their separate ways. Barnabas took Mark and they went off to his native Cyprus. Paul, however, with the blessing of the Antioch community, took Silas instead as his companion. They began by going through Syria and Cilicia, visiting the churches Paul had been to on his first journey.

It is at that point that our reading begins today. We find Paul back in places where he had proclaimed the Gospel before – Derbe and Lystra. As Paul is approaching this time from the east, the order of the towns is reversed.

It was in Lystra that Paul met Timothy, whom he invited to join him in his work. Timothy was to become one of his closest and most loyal companions and there are two letters of the New Testament dedicated to him. His mother was a Jew but his father was a Gentile Greek and because of that he had never been circumcised. (We saw how that could have been an issue during the meeting in Jerusalem.) Since Paul addressed him as a young man some 15 years later (see 1 Tim 4:12), he must have been only in his teens at this time.

On the basis of the decision that had been made in Jerusalem, there was now no need for Timothy to be circumcised but Paul, sensitive to the strong feelings of the Jews to whom they would be preaching, had him circumcised. In general, Paul opposed circumcision for converts from paganism but, because Timothy had a Jewish mother, he was an Israelite according to Jewish law. However, in the case of Titus Paul refused circumcision because it was being demanded by some people as a condition for salvation. All of this is an indication of how flexible Paul could be on non-essentials and it should not be seen as mere compromising with unreasonable people.

Paul himself was a totally free person but he was very aware that other people were not so liberated. As he says elsewhere, “with the weak I am weak”. Here he tolerates the weakness of some people. Circumcision was not necessary for baptism but, if it made some people happy and furthered the growth of the Kingdom, then have it. As Paul would say elsewhere, being circumcised or not makes no difference whatever.

At the same time, we are told today that Paul was disseminating the decisions made at Jerusalem about circumcision and the status of Christian Gentiles to all those he met. And the churches in these places were growing in faith and numbers. It was a very encouraging situation.

After visiting these places of the First Journey, Paul now began to penetrate new ground and visiting new places in Asia Minor (Turkey today). However, when he and his companions tried to go into the Roman province of Asia, they met some unspecified obstacles on the way which were seen as the guiding hand of the Spirit indicating that they should go in a different direction. Asia at this time was a Roman province in what is western Turkey today, and included the districts of Mysia, Lydia, Caria.

After leaving Iconium, it seems they had originally intended going west to Ephesus (on the west coast of Turkey) but instead began going in a northerly direction. The Spirit intervened and Paul and his companions turned north, then in a north-westerly direction. They found themselves going through the territories of Phrygia and Galatia (to the west and north of where they had been). Phrygia formerly had been Hellenistic territory but more recently had been divided between the Roman provinces of Asia and Galatia. Iconium and Antioch, where Paul had been during his First Journey, were in the Galatian part of Phrygia.

They found themselves headed for “Galatian country”. Here, where illness kept Paul for a time as we know from the letter to the Galatians (Gal 4:13-15), he preached the gospel and later would return later to visit the disciples he had evangelised there (Acts 18:23).

When they then tried to enter Bythinia, a province lying along the shores of the Black Sea, through Mysia, they were again blocked by unspecified obstacles. (Were they landslides, floods, earthquakes, civil unrest or the like...?)

Eventually they found themselves at Troas, which is just at the entrance to the Dardanelles. Troas was located just 16 km (10 miles) from ancient Troy. Alexandria Troas (to give it its full name) was a Roman colony and an important seaport between Macedonia and Greece to the west and Asia Minor. Paul would return there following his work in Ephesus on his Third Journey (see 2 Cor 2:12). At some point – on this journey or on the Third – a church was established there. We know that Paul ministered to believers in Troas when he returned from his Third Journey on his way to Jerusalem (20:5-12).

It was in Troas that Paul had a vision of a man from Macedonia, a Roman province since 148 BC, calling him to come over and help them. Paul immediately decided to respond to this call.

Macedonia was a province in what is now northern Greece. It was the place where the famous Alexander the Great was king. His father was King Philip, after whom the city of Philippi, to whose Christians Paul wrote one of his famous letters, was called. (Caesarea Philippi where Peter confessed Jesus as Messiah was also partly named after this Philip.)

Paul accepted the challenge and prepared to cross the Dardanelles. Christianity was coming to Greece, the hub of Mediterranean culture at that time, and from there to Rome and the world.

(Incidentally, it is at this point, too, that Luke begins to write in the first person plural. This seems to indicate that he was a member of Paul’s mission from then on.)

Probably, without anyone being aware of it at the time, what seemed a minor change of route actually represented a major step in the development and expansion of the young Church, with ramifications which would affect not only the Church itself but the whole of European history for centuries to come.

GOSPEL (John 15:18-21)

Jesus has been urging his disciples to love all those around them as a sign of their love of him. Today he warns them that there is no guarantee that they will be loved in return. If they hated such a loving person as Jesus so bitterly, his disciples cannot expect to be treated differently.

And the reason they will be hated is because they will refuse to identify themselves with the values and priorities of the secular world. They will reject materialistic greed and competitiveness, the scramble for status and power, the hatred, anger, violence and revenge which mark so many people’s lives.

The most terrible thing to happen to Christians is for them to be loved by that world; it is a sign they have become part of it. “No,” says Jesus, “I chose you out of the world.” Once again he reminds them that the servant is not greater than his master. “They will harry you as they harried me. They will respect your words as much as they respected mine.” That is, hardly at all.

Some of us may find it difficult to understand this. We feel that the Church should be honoured and respected. We can get upset when we hear ourselves or our leaders rubbished in the media or hear of Christians languishing in jail or suffering torture simply for living their faith. But we are rightly proud of our martyrs and our courageous witnesses.

But there is a fate we often undergo in modern society which is far worse – when we are simply ignored and go unnoticed altogether. Our local church may be filled every week but what goes on there may have become completely irrelevant to the surrounding society. It is as if we did not exist.

It is also tragic when we find hate and division within our own community, which can be a major source of scandal to outsiders. And, of course, all through the history of the Church there has been sinful behaviour at all levels. We should not be surprised at that but it is particularly reprehensible when it goes on behind a veneer of moral superiority – the whited sepulchres that Jesus speaks about. All of this compromises our witness to the love of God for his people everywhere.

When any of these things happen, then we know we have really failed the Gospel.

Easter 6 | Monday

Acts 16:11-15; John 15:26-16:4

FIRST READING (Acts 16:11-15)

Following on his vision of the young Macedonian man, Paul and his companions decide to cross over from Troas and head towards the town of Philippi.

On the way they passed through Samothrace (a place made famous by the magnificent marble sculpture of Victory on display in the Louvre at Paris) and Neapolis (= New City, a name it shares with Naples among other places).

Samothrace was actually an island in the north-eastern Aegean Sea, lying just half way between Troas and Neapolis. It was a convenient place for boats to anchor rather than risk sailing at night.

Neapolis was the seaport for Philippi, about 16 km (10 miles) away. Today it is known as Kavalla.

Philippi, as Acts tells us, was a major town in the principal district of the province of Macedonia; it had become a Roman colony and was a completely Latin city, its administration modelled on that of Rome. It was “a city… named after Philip II, father of Alexander the Great. Since it was a Roman colony, it was independent of provincial administration and had a governmental organisation modelled after that of Rome. Many retired legionnaires from the Roman army settled there, but few Jews.” (NIV) Its name was further enhanced by Paul writing one of his most beautiful letters to the Christian community of the town. Hence, a place, then as well as now, steeped in history, both secular and religious.

Paul and his companions spent some time in the city. On a sabbath day they went outside the city to find a place to pray. With so few Jews in the city, there was probably no synagogue so, as was not uncommon, they chose an outdoors venue near running water. In this case it would have been the bank of the Gangites River. By choosing such a place they could also carry out the necessary ablutions before prayer. (It is clear that Paul the Pharisee maintained many of his old religious customs.)

There they met some women and among them was one called Lydia, a dealer in purple goods from Thyatira. She may have been called Lydia because she came from the district of Lydia. Thyatira, situated in the Roman province of Asia, 33 km (20 miles) southeast of Pergamum (in the Hellenistic kingdom of Lydia), was famous for its dyeing works, especially royal purple (crimson). Later there was a Christian community there which is twice mentioned in the book of Revelation (1:11; 2:18). As purple-dyed goods were expensive and only worn by the wealthy, we can take it that this woman was fairly well off. And we remember that the rich man in the parable of ‘Dives and Lazarus’ was clothed in fine purple (Luke 16:19-31).

But Lydia was also a “worshipper of God”. In other words, though a Gentile she believed in the God of the Jews and followed the moral teachings of Scripture. She was not, however, a full convert to Judaism. But, being well disposed, she “opened her heart” to what Paul was saying and accepted the Gospel message. Like Cornelius before her, she and her whole household (family members and servants) were all baptised.

She then invited Paul and his companions to share the hospitality of her (probably large) house, if they truly regarded her as “a believer in the Lord”, and would brook no refusal. The wording suggests that Paul was not altogether willing to stay in such a place; in general, he tended to boast that he supported himself from what he earned by his work. In this case, he may have regarded Lydia’s place as too grand or he remembered the instruction of the Master about not moving from house to house but to stay in the first place which offered hospitality. But Lydia – as rich ladies can often be! – apparently was a woman who would not take ‘No’ for an answer. A place like hers, in fact, would make an excellent house church where the community could gather. So it seems that in this one case Paul did accept and it is a compliment to Lydia’s charity and of the other newly baptised Philippian Christians.

Philippi then shares the distinction of really being the first European centre to hear the Christian message. It was to be the beginning of a glorious history which was to transform the continent not only in the area of religion but also in culture, the arts (painting, sculpture, literature, music), social and political development – a movement which still continues.

Paul, of course, was not to know any of that. As he was to say himself, “One man sows and another reaps.” He saw himself primarily as a sower. The same is true of each one of us. But it is important that we sow the seed; otherwise there is nothing to reap.

GOSPEL (John 15:26-16:4)

We continue reading the discourse of Jesus to his disciples at the Last Supper.

Today he promises that the Paraclete, the Spirit of truth will come, sent both by the Father and by Jesus the Son. As we saw earlier, Paraclete (Gk parakletes) means a person who stands by one and gives support. It can be applied to a defence lawyer in a court of law. So the word is sometimes translated ‘Advocate’. It can be anyone who gives comfort, good advice or moral support. Various forms of the word are used about eight times in a short and beautiful passage at the opening of St Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians (2 Cor 1:3-7).

Here the Spirit that God bestows through Jesus on his disciples will be one who will comfort and strengthen them in the sometimes difficult days ahead and will guide them in their fuller understanding of what Jesus has taught them. The Spirit will confirm all that Jesus has said and done.

The disciples too are, with the help of the same Spirit, to give witness to all that Jesus has said and done.

And again he warns them that they will need all the help they can get from the support of the Spirit. “They will expel you from synagogues and indeed the hour is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is doing a holy duty for God.” A prophecy which was very soon to be fulfilled and continues to be fulfilled down to our own day.

And people will do this because they do not really know the Father or Jesus. If they did, they too would believe and would recognise the presence of Jesus in the Christian community and its message.

So, as has been mentioned several times already, we are not to be surprised if we find ourselves – as Christians – the object of attack, of slander, of abuse, of misunderstandings, of contempt. St Ignatius of Loyola is said to have prayed that the members of the order which he founded would always be persecuted. It was a sign that they were doing their job. It is a strange paradox but the message of Christian love and forgiveness, the message of peace and justice is found by many to be very threatening and must be attacked.

Easter 6 | Tuesday

Acts 16:22-34; John 16:5-11

FIRST READING (Acts 16:22-34)

Today we have part of one of the most dramatic events in the story of the Acts.

Paul is still in Philippi. We might wonder at the sudden attack on Paul and Silas with which today’s reading opens. It is such a change from the positive welcome they had been receiving up to this. In fact, the first part of the story and also the sequel are omitted in the reading but they are needed if we are to appreciate today’s passage fully.

One day on their way to the river for prayer, Paul had incurred the anger of the owners of a slave girl who had fortune-telling gifts. The text says literally “with a Python spirit”. The Python was the serpent or dragon that guarded the oracle at Delphi. It later came to designate a “spirit that pronounced oracles” and also a ventriloquist who, it was thought, had such a spirit in the belly.

This girl kept shouting after them calling them “slaves of the most high God, who proclaim to a you a way of salvation”. Even though what she was saying could be interpreted favourably, Paul became irritated by her pestering and exorcised the evil spirit from her. She immediately lost her psychic powers and, as a result, could no longer earn money for her masters. They were understandably not very happy about this and hauled Paul and Silas off to court. They accused them of being Jews who were disturbing the peace and breaking Roman laws. Basically they were accused of proselytising which was indeed against Roman law.

It is at this point that today’s reading takes up the story. By this time the crowds had been worked up so the magistrates sentenced Paul and his companion to a flogging with rods and had them thrown into an inner cell and had their feet put in stocks. Here they could be watched closely, could not escape or be rescued by their friends.

During the night while Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises to God (they rejoiced to suffer for the name of Christ), a severe earthquake (Greece is very earthquake-prone) struck. The prison building collapsed, the chains fell from the walls and the gates were thrown open.

The jailer, who was responsible with his own life for the security of his prisoners, presumed they must all have run away and was prepared to kill himself. To take his own life would remove the shame and distress and was preferable to public execution. It was then he heard Paul calling from inside: “Don’t do yourself any harm; we are all here.”

He went in to check and, on seeing Paul and Silas, fell trembling at their feet. He is beginning to realise that the people he was treating as dangerous criminals were in fact messengers of God.

In deep gratitude, the jailer asked what he should do to be saved. Perhaps he meant it in a more immediate sense vis-a-vis his superiors, who might blame him for the loss of the prisoners.

On the other hand, between the frightening earthquake and the possible escape of his prisoners, he had been close to death. He also realised he was in the presence of two very special people. All this obviously made him reflect. He very likely had heard that these men were preachers of a way of salvation. Now with the earthquake and his own near death, he wanted to know about their Way. Paul showed him where real salvation lay – by putting his faith in Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord.

And so it was that he and all his household were instructed in the word of the Lord. Late in the night though it was, the jailer had Paul’s and his companion’s wounds dressed after which the new converts were baptised.

He then brought them to his own house and shared a meal with them while the whole household joyfully celebrated their conversion to belief in God. Whatever form it took, it was truly a eucharistic meal, a meal of thanksgiving for all concerned.

(Incidentally, their accusers are nowhere in sight; they were probably too much concerned with the damage the earthquake had caused in the city to be bothered with a couple of wandering preachers.)

It is at that point that the reading ends but it is not the end of the story, which needs to be heard for completeness. On the next morning, the magistrates instructed the lictors with an order that Paul and Silas be released. Lictors were the equivalent of police officers, among whose duties were the arrest and punishment of criminals. The message was passed to Paul by the jailer. He told them they were free to go and he wished them well.

However, that was not good enough for Paul. He said: “They have beaten us publicly, even though we are Roman citizens and have not been tried, and have thrown us into prison. And now they are going to release us secretly? By no means. Let them come themselves and lead us out.”

There had been a very serious miscarriage of justice and the magistrates were alarmed that they had treated two Roman citizens in this way. Roman citizenship granted special privileges with regard to criminal process. Roman law forbade under severe penalty the beating of Roman citizens. This will not be the last time that Paul will cause alarm by revealing his citizenship, which granted privileges totally unknown to the ordinary resident of Roman colonies.

The magistrates humbly came along, led Paul and Silas out of the prison and begged them to leave the city. However, Paul and Silas first went to say farewell to Lydia, their host, and to the other Christian brothers and sisters and only then left the city.

This story once again indicates how God can write straight with crooked lines. Out of what seemed catastrophe for both the evangelisers (flogging and jail) and the jailer (the earthquake and its consequences) there came out something beautiful for all of them and in the midst of it all was the love of Christ. A thriving community was left behind who would be the recipients of one of Paul’s most beautiful letters. We, too, continue to benefit from this saga.

If only we could see Jesus at the heart of everything that happens in our lives!

GOSPEL (John 16:5-11)

The disciples are sad because Jesus is going to leave them. He now reassures them that, contrary to what they must be thinking at this moment, it is better for him to go. If Jesus does not go away, then the Spirit, the Paraclete, will not come.

As long as Jesus is with his disciples in his present form, he is actually very limited in his presence. It is fine as long as they are all together but what would happen if they were to be scattered in various places to do his work? And what of the many more disciples in distant places who would never have an opportunity to be in direct contact with Jesus?

It is through the Spirit of Jesus, the risen and ascended Jesus, that he can continue to be with his people at all times and in any place on earth. Yes, it is better that Jesus should go and come back through the Spirit.

And the Spirit “will show the world how wrong it was, about sin, about who was in the right, and about judgment”. That is, the Spirit will reveal the wrongness of the world, that world of the purely secular, in not putting its trust in the Way of Jesus.

The world’s sin is primarily one of unbelief, an unreadiness to open its mind to the vision of life that Jesus gives. The Spirit will clearly show the rightness of Jesus in his claims to come from God and to being the Word of God to the world. The Spirit will reveal the meaning of Christ’s death as the condemnation of all that is evil in the world, above all in its denial of love as the centre of living.

The New American Bible expresses it thus:

These verses illustrate the forensic character of the Paraclete’s role: in the forum of the disciples’ conscience he prosecutes the world. He leads believers to see (a) that the basic sin was and is refusal to believe in Jesus; (b) that, although Jesus was found guilty and apparently died in disgrace, in reality righteousness has triumphed, for Jesus has returned to his Father; (c) finally, that it is “the ruler of this world”, Satan, who has been condemned through Jesus’ death.

On which side am I? On that of the Spirit or that of the world?

Easter 6 | Wednesday

Acts 17:15,22-18:1; John 16:12-15

FIRST READING (Acts 17:15,22-18:1)

We continue to accompany Paul on his Second Missionary Journey.

After passing through Thessalonica (to whose Christians are addressed two of Paul’s earliest letters) and Beroea (both in Macedonia), Paul’s next destination was Athens, at that time still the cultural centre of the Mediterranean, although political power was now in Rome.

Our reading begins with Paul arriving in the city, with instructions for Silas and Timothy to follow on as soon as possible.

At this time, Athens was really only a shadow of its former self. Some five centuries before Paul it had been at the height of its glory in art, philosophy and literature with a culture which still influences modern life today. In the generations which followed, the city still had a reputation for philosophical thinking and in Paul’s day there was a leading university in the city.

While waiting for his companions to arrive, Paul was quite horrified at the level of idolatry he found in such a supposedly sophisticated city. He was engaged in discussions not only with Jews and other sympathisers but also got involved with Stoic and Epicurean philosophers who found his teaching rather strange. “What is this scavenger trying to say?” they asked. Because of his mention of someone called ‘Jesus’ and terms like ‘resurrection’, they said he sounded “like a promoter of foreign [i.e. non-Greek] deities”. Eventually they invited him to address the Council of the Areopagus, an indication of how seriously they took him even though they found his ideas outlandish.

It should have been a very important venue for Paul. If he could win the Athenians round to accepting the message of Christ, it could have far-reaching effects. The Greeks were famous for their intellectual interests and their love of discussion and debate. As Luke comments rather laconically, “The one amusement the Athenians and the foreigners living there seem to have, apart from discussing the latest ideas, is listening to lectures about them.”

Yet, in a way, it was this passion for discussion of ideas which made the Greeks so outstanding in philosophy and literature. (cf. Bernard Lonergan SJ on the Athenians’ gift for conversation, a source of great intellectual creativity.)

So Paul went to the Areopagus in the heart of the city and spoke to the people assembled there. And it is Paul’s address which forms the main part of today’s reading.

The Areopagus was a hill to the south of the Agora, the central market place of Athens where people gathered. Areopagus also referred to the Athenian supreme council which held its sessions there.

Paul chose as his topic the knowledge of God, a theme very popular in the propaganda of contemporary hellenistic Judaism. The pagans are accused of not knowing God, the proof being that they worship idols. This ignorance, Paul tells them, is culpable, since all are capable of knowing God as creator and controller of the cosmos.

Nevertheless, Paul’s address is in a totally different style from what he had been giving up to this. He makes no explicit mention of the Scriptures; he does not even mention the name of Jesus. He speaks of the Greeks as “scrupulously religious”, although the word he used could also mean “superstitious”, depending on the context. Paul’s meaning will emerge as he speaks. In the context, it is clear that Paul wanted to be complimentary in order to get a hearing.

He tries to go in their door by taking as his cue an altar he saw, dedicated to an “unknown” god. Polytheists (like the Greeks) used to dedicate altars to ‘unknown gods’, in case they incurred the vengeance of gods whose names they did not know. It was a kind of all-inclusive title. While it was a way to make sure that none of the many Greek gods was left unworshipped, it also indicated the level of superstition that co-existed with the Athenians’ much-vaunted intellectualism.

Paul uses the practice for his own ends and also turns back the charge of preaching about ‘outlandish’ gods which people had never heard of. And he goes on to spell out for them just who this ‘unknown’ God really is.

He is the God who made this world and all that lives in it. This idea was common in Greek thought and hellenistic Judaism; it is a form of the old biblical theme found in the prophet Amos (5:21ff) and in Psalm 50:9-13. Paul proclaims a personal Creator in contrast with the pantheistic God of the Stoics.

He is a Lord who pervades the heavens and the earth and is not confined to man-made sanctuaries. Nor does he need the help of any human. On the contrary, it is he who gives life and breath and everything with it.

He made from one the whole human race, meaning that all belong to one family (Athenians, Romans, Greeks, ‘barbarians’, Jews, Gentiles). A belief we assert every time we pray ‘Our Father… ’. Through his creation he made his presence evident all over the world, “so that people might seek God, even perhaps grope for him and find him, though indeed he is not far from any of us.” He is the Designer God where nothing is left to mere Chance, as the Epicureans thought.

He even gives two quotations from Greek poets to strengthen his argument.

- “In him [i.e. God] we live and move and have our being.” This quotation is attributed to the poet Epimenides (about 600 BC) who came from Knossos in Crete and is found in his work Cretica.

- “We are his [i.e. God’s] offspring” is from the Cilician poet Aratus (about 315 to 240 BC) in his Phaenomen and also found in Cleanthes’ Hymn to Zeus.

Paul also questions the practice of worshipping objects of stone or metal as gods. If we human beings have come from God, how can that God be contained in images of gold, silver or stone – materials which are on a lower level than ourselves? (It is a very different thing – as we have in the Catholic church – to have images representing our God or the saints. They play the same role as family photographs. No one believes that a picture of Uncle Joe is really Uncle Joe.)

Up to this, God had tolerated this practice which was done in ignorance but, with the coming of Jesus, all that has changed. It is time now to ‘repent’ (a word which, as we have already seen, implies a total conversion in our way of living) because God will ‘judge the world with justice’ through the “man he has appointed”, namely, Jesus. And all this, says Paul, is confirmed by Jesus having been raised from the dead.

But at the mention of ‘resurrection from the dead’ some of Paul’s listeners began mocking and others, perhaps with their interest whetted, said, “We must hear you on this topic some other time.” However, it seems clear that their interest was purely on the level of intellectual speculation and not at all on the spiritual or religious. Immortality of the soul was accepted by the Greeks (see Plato’s Dialogues) but not the resurrection of a dead body.

In the Greek world, even among Christians, the doctrine of the resurrection was strongly resisted, as we see in the First Letter to the Corinthians (15:12ff). The Jerusalem Sanhedrists also condemned and attacked this Christian dogma, whereas the Athenians of the Areopagus were content to mock.

Basically speaking, then, Paul’s mission to the Athenians was a dismal failure. From now on he refuses to use the arguments from Greek philosophy. So he writes later on to the Christians of Corinth: “When I came to you, brother and sisters, I did not come proclaiming the mystery of God in lofty words or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you, except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor 2:1-2) and a little before that, in the same letter, he had written,

Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. (1 Cor 1:20-24).

From now on he would rely only on the power of the Gospel message.

In spite of this, there were some converts made in Athens. Among these was Dionysius the Areopagite. The Jerusalem Bible notes: “Luke’s readers must have known him. He became the subject of legend, especially since the 5th century when an author (the ‘pseudo-Dionysius’) published various mystical writings under his name. Later legend identifies him with St Denys, the first bishop of Paris (3rd century)” or even that he was bishop of Athens.

Another convert mentioned was Damaris. The NIV notes: “Some have suggested that she must have been a foreign, educated woman to have been present at a public meeting such as the Areopagus. It is also possible that she was a God-fearing Gentile who had heard Paul at the synagogue.”

From Athens, Paul continued south to Corinth. He would have gone there either by land along the isthmus, a distance of about 80 km (50 miles) or else by sea from Piraeus, the port of Athens, to Cenchrea, the port of Corinth, on the eastern shore of the isthmus of Corinth.

Corinth had been rebuilt by no less a person than Julius Caesar and became capital of the Roman province of Achaia (southern Greece). Its population was largely Roman and Latin-speaking but it was a lively commercial centre which attracted people of all nations. There was also a considerable Jewish colony. The immorality of the city was proverbial even by the standards of the day.

Paul does not seem ever to have ever returned to Athens. But, once again, we see that God’s ways are not our ways. Once again we see how Paul is turned in a different direction from what seemed the obvious way to go. His next stop will be Corinth, a city, on the face of it, which – compared to sophisticated Athens – was not at all promising, given its reputation for lewdness and immorality.

On the positive side, we should look carefully at how Paul presented his message in a language that would make sense to his hearers. He did not dilute or compromise his message but he did try to express it in language that would give an opening to an audience totally unfamiliar with the Jewish scriptures. This is something we need to remember whether we are bringing our message to a culture which has never heard the message before or to one which has lost it.

Much of our preaching, it has to be said, is to the converted and not to those who have not heard the message or have only heard it in distorted forms.

GOSPEL (John 16:12-15)

Jesus continues to speak about the giving of the Spirit to his followers. “I have much more to tell you but you cannot bear it now.” They are still too raw in their understanding. It will take time for them fully to absorb the meaning of Jesus’ life and teaching. By then he will be long gone, so they will need the guidance of the Spirit to lead them to that fuller understanding. “He will guide you to all truth.”

The Spirit will guide them in their response to “the things that are to come”. Following on what Jesus has taught them, from their understanding of the meaning of Jesus’ death and resurrection, and from their Pentecost experience, a whole new order, a new way of looking at the world, will result of which they will be the inaugurators.

And that guidance still is much needed for we have not reached and we never will reach on this earth the fullness of the truth about God and Jesus. The establishment of the Kingdom has still a long way to go.

Once again Jesus reminds his disciples that everything they are learning comes originally from the Father through the Son and from the Son through the Spirit. These are not three separate revelations but one message that emanates from each one successively.

We too, as Church, as churches, as communities, as individuals need the constant guidance of the Spirit that we may remain faithful to the truth that is given us and be always open to understanding it more deeply so that we can pass it on to others with full integrity.

Easter 6 | Thursday

Acts 18:1-8; John 16:16-20

[Where the Ascension is transferred to the 7th Sunday of Easter.]

FIRST READING (Acts 18:1-8)

Paul now has moved to the city of Corinth in southern Greece. As we have already mentioned, compared to Athens, it did not at first sight seem a very promising missionary area, given its highly immoral reputation. But it did have a large Jewish community to which Paul – as was his custom – first directed his efforts. He always felt that, as God’s people, they should be the first to hear the message of the Gospel.

Soon after he arrived he met a Jew named Aquila. He was originally from Pontus, a province lying along the Black Sea between Bithynia and Armenia. But he had recently arrived from Italy with his wife, Priscilla, also a Jew. Priscilla is a diminutive form of Prisca, a name by which she is known in some of the Pauline letters. Since no mention is made of a conversion and since they immediately became partners with Paul in his missionary work we can presume they were already Christians. Very likely, they had converted while in Rome. Both of them were to become valuable assistants in his work.

They had had to leave Rome because the emperor Claudius (AD 41-54, around whom Robert Graves’ book I, Claudius is centred) had ordered all Jews to leave Rome around the year 49 or 50. The contemporary historian Suetonius gives as the reason “their [the Jews] continual tumults instigated by Chrestus” (a common misspelling of ‘Christ’). He presumably is referring to conflicts between Jews and those who had become Christians over Christ’s Messiahship. The order was effective but did not last. Once again, Providence was guiding people unknowingly in Paul’s direction.

Like Paul himself, Aquila was a tentmaker. Paul moved in with this couple and joined them in their tent-making work. Paul was always proud of his trade and boasted that he supported himself by his own hands. Even though Paul more than once insisted on the missionary’s right to be supported by those among whom he evangelised, he himself insisted on supporting himself. He said that he did not want to be a burden on anyone and it proved his singleness of purpose. He was no sponger. Only from the Christians of Philippi did he accept help. He recommended that his followers should imitate his example, supplying their own needs and taking care of the needy.

In the beginning, Paul went every sabbath day to the synagogue and entered into discussions about Jesus Christ and the message of the Gospel. “He tried to convince both Jews and Greeks.” ‘Greeks’ here presumably means Gentiles who were attracted to the Jewish faith and attended the synagogue.

It was at this point that Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia. When he was still in Athens, Paul had instructed them to join him there but it is likely he had then sent them back to check on the churches – perhaps Silas to Philippi and Timothy to Thessalonica. It would have been about this time, too, that Paul wrote his two letters to the Christians in Thessalonica. They are his earliest letters to churches (and historically the first books of our New Testament to be written).

As soon as Silas and Timothy arrived, Paul devoted his time entirely to preaching the Word and put aside his tent-making for a while. He was speaking mainly to Jews, proclaiming to them that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah. This was usually the main theme of Paul’s preaching to Jews.

However, as had happened in other places, they rejected his message and abused him. He symbolically then broke off relations by shaking out his garments in front of them. “Your blood be upon your heads”, said to them, using language found in the Old Testament and meaning that the Jews must take full responsibility for the consequences of their choice. He now felt free of his former responsibility to preach to them and would now devote his energies to the Gentiles. Among these he would have great success. The Gentiles in this seedy port town proved far more responsive than the intellectual centre that was Athens.

Paul now moved in with a man called Titus Justus, described as a “worshipper of God”, which would mean he was an uncircumcised Gentile who attended the synagogue. His house – ironically for Paul! – was next to the (now hostile) synagogue.

However, there was a surprise conversion when Crispus, who was no less than the president of the synagogue, together with all his household, became Christians. It was the beginning of many conversions among Corinthians.

As we read these lines we can see the hand of God working so clearly and so unexpectedly among many people. Corinth, the city of sin, proved a far more fertile soil for the Gospel than sophisticated Athens. And it was the persecution of Jews in faraway Rome that brought Paul to meet two of his most loyal assistants, Aquila and Priscilla. As we have said and seen so often in this story, God writes straight with very crooked lines.

May we be able to see God’s hand as clearly in our own daily experiences.

GOSPEL (John 16:16-20)

As Jesus continues to speak to his disciples at the Last Supper and briefs them on what is coming they are puzzled when he says, “In a short time you will no longer see me, and then a short time later you will see me again.” They start mumbling among themselves asking what on earth Jesus is talking about. Seeing and not seeing and seeing again and “a short time”. To us it is clear enough that Jesus is referring to his coming suffering and death and his resurrection.

Jesus still does not spell it out clearly but he does warn them that they will be “weeping and wailing” while others rejoice. Jesus’ passion, which will cause them to flee in fear of their lives, will be a traumatic experience. All their beliefs in Jesus as Messiah and Saviour turn to ashes. But there will be others who will be overjoyed over Jesus’ arrest and execution.

The disciples, though, are not to worry because their sorrow will be turned to joy with the dawn of the Resurrection and all that implies. In their own way, the disciples will share the Passion of Jesus as all their hopes and expectations are emptied and turn to dust – only to be revived with the realisation that their Master still lives as Lord and King.

All our sufferings can similarly be turned to joy when we totally unite ourselves with Jesus our Lord and suffer with him and for him, for his Gospel and for the sake of all our brothers and sisters.

Easter 6 | Friday

Acts 18:9-18; John 16:20-23

FIRST READING (Acts 18:9-18)

We pick up on yesterday’s reading and Paul is still in Corinth.

His missionary work is going well. He now receives encouragement in a vision in which the Lord tells him to keep speaking out. The Lord is with him, he has many friends in the city and no harm will come to him. This is just one of three visions of the Lord which Paul is said to have had. So Paul stays in the city for a year and a half preaching the Good News. It is possible that, during this time, he may have extended his evangelising work to other parts of the province of Achaia, where Corinth was situated.

However, as often was the case, during this time some Jews in the city who were opposed to him brought him to the civil court accusing him of telling people to worship in ways which were against the law. They brought their case to Gallio, the pro-consul of Achaia. Achaia was the Roman province in southern Greece in which Corinth was situated.

We know a certain amount about this Gallio, who was a brother of the famous Roman philosopher and tutor of the emperor Nero, Seneca. The NIV Bible notes: “Gallio was admired as a man of exceptional fairness and calmness. From an inscription found at Delphi, it is known that Gallio was proconsul of Achaia in AD 51-52. This information enables us to date Paul’s visit to Corinth on his second journey as well as his writing of the Thessalonian letters.”

The Jews accused Paul of breaking the law but did not specify whether it was Jewish or Roman law. But the Jews were claiming that Paul was advocating a religion not recognised by Roman law, as Judaism was. However, if he had been given the opportunity to speak, Paul could have argued that the message he was preaching arose from the faith of his fellow-Jews and thus was actually within the terms of Roman law.

After listening to their arguments, Gallio decided they were fighting over the interpretation of purely religious matters in which he personally had no competence or interest. If it had been a case of a crime or malicious fraud, he said he would have taken it more seriously. Instead, he summarily dismissed the charge.

The disappointed plaintiffs then set on a man called Sosthenes, a leader in the synagogue, and beat him up in the presence of the court. It is not clear whether it was the crowd in general who picked on Sosthenes as an excuse to attack the Jews or whether it was his own people beating their synagogue ruler for losing the case. Whatever the reason, Gallio showed no interest whatever in what was going on.

In the opening of the First Letter to the Corinthians Paul refers to “our brother Sosthenes”. If it is the same person, then he was the second ruler of a synagogue to become a Christian in Corinth as a result of Paul’s preaching.

When he felt the time was right, Paul, in the company of his friends and fellow-workers, Priscilla and Aquila, set off home for Antioch in Syria, the headquarters of the missionary church where they would report their experiences. Priscilla’s name is put first which may indicate either her more prominent role in the church or her higher social standing.

Finally, before embarking at the port of Cenchreae, Paul shaved his head because of a vow he had taken. The original Greek is not clear and it seems that it was Paul, not Aquila, took the vow. To take a vow was to be nazir for the period it covered, usually 30 days, and among other obligations it meant leaving the hair uncut during that time. (Samson was a Nazirite and we know what happened when Delilah gave him a haircut!) Different vows were frequently taken to express thanks for deliverance from grave dangers and indeed Paul’s time in Corinth had been relatively free from trouble.

It is not known whether the vow was taken by Paul at Cenchreae or whether it expired there. Later on in Acts, Paul will again perform the rite with four other Jews in fulfilment of a vow.

Perhaps contrary to his expectations, those 18 months had been extremely fruitful and many had found their way to Christ. We still have two wonderful letters, which are perhaps the condensation of four letters altogether, sent by Paul to his converts in the city. Letters which still have a great deal to say to us about following Christ.

In due course, we will be reading them during our Sunday and weekday Masses.

GOSPEL (John 16:20-23)

Today’s Gospel repeats much of yesterday’s about the sorrow the disciples will experience when Jesus goes away (in his suffering and death) and the joy they will experience when he soon returns (in his resurrection).

Jesus compares their experience to a woman about to give birth to a child. During the time of delivery she suffers greatly but is so happy once her child is born. The joy of seeing her newborn child face to face is worth any pain. The disciples will have to go through a similar experience as the new Jesus, the Risen Christ, enters his new life and the new People of God, his post-resurrection Body, comes to birth.

Today’s passage adds the promise that, when Jesus sees them again, they will experience a joy “no one can take from you”. And they will no longer have need to ask the questions they are asking now. It does not mean that there will not be more sufferings in the future. There will be and some of them will give their lives for their commitment to Jesus and the Kingdom. But, for those who are close to Jesus, pain and joy are not incompatible.

Let us pray that we, too, who have the enduring presence of the Risen Jesus with us at all times, wherever we happen to be, experience – in spite of inevitable trials and disappointments – the same kind of joy. In fact, we have reason to be concerned if there is not an underlying joy in our lives. It should make us wonder just how close we really are to Jesus.

Easter 6 | Saturday

Acts 18:23-28; John 16:23-28

FIRST READING (Acts 18:23-28)

Today we begin the Third, and final, Missionary Journey of Paul.

After leaving Corinth, Paul, accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila, crossed over to Ephesus on the west coast of present-day Turkey. He separated from them there and went to preach in the local synagogues. In spite of the unwelcome reception he so often got from his fellow-Jews, he always made a point of approaching them first when he arrived in a new place. He apparently did well there because they asked him to stay longer. However, he was clearly anxious to get back to Syrian Antioch but he promised that he would return – and he did.

On reaching Palestine, he landed at Caesarea where he greeted the local church before going on northwards to Antioch and it is at that point that today’s reading begins.

He stayed in Antioch for an unspecified length of time before setting out on his third – and final – missionary journey. He began by revisiting the places where he had planted the church almost 10 years previously. He followed the same route he had taken when beginning his second journey but in the reverse order. The only places mentioned are “the Galatian country and Phrygia” which are in the southern part of present-day central Turkey.

We are then introduced to Apollos, who had just arrived from Ephesus in Lydia, on the west coast. He was a Jew and a native of Alexandria, which was on the north coast of Egypt and, at the time, the second largest city of the Roman Empire. It also had a large Jewish population.

Apollos is spoken very highly of as a man of eloquence, well versed both in the Hebrew scriptures and in the “new way of the Lord”, as well as being a deeply spiritual person. Strangely enough, in spite of all that he knew about Jesus, he had not yet been properly baptised. “He only knew of John’s baptism”, that is, he had not been baptised in the name of Jesus. Basically, like John, he was still looking forward to the coming of the Messiah. His baptism was based on repentance for sin rather than full incorporation through the gift of the Spirit in the Christian community.

In Ephesus, he became an enthusiastic preacher and spoke fearlessly in the Jewish synagogue there. Here he drew the attention of Paul’s friends, Priscilla and Aquila, who took him to their house and gave him a deeper understanding of the new Way.

Perhaps because of what he had heard from Priscilla and Aquila, Apollos was anxious to go across to Achaia, in other words to Corinth, and letters were written to guarantee him a warm welcome. There he gave great encouragement to the believers while continuing to debate with his fellow-Jews, proving from the scriptures that Jesus was indeed the Messiah.

It is clear that Apollos had a very special charism for evangelisation, so much so that cliques began to form in the community where some were for Paul and others for Apollos. These developed into quarrelling factions. Paul would later deplore this development in one of his letters, 1 Cor 1:12ff; 3:4-11.

These remarks about Apollos have something in common with the description of what we find in the following passage where we are told that disciples there only knew of John’s baptism. Paul had all these people baptised in the name of Jesus.

All the same, we could do well to pray today to Apollos and ask him to share with us some of his insights into and his zeal for the Way of Jesus.

GOSPEL (John 16:23-28)

We are coming now to the end of John chapter 16 in Jesus’ discourse at the Last Supper.

Today Jesus makes a solemn promise that whatever his disciples ask the Father in Jesus’ name will be given to them. Up to this, of course, they have not been praying to God through Jesus. That will only happen after the resurrection and ascension. But then it will become the normal way for the Church to pray to the Father as we do in all the prayers in the liturgy of the sacraments.

“Ask and you shall receive, that your joy may be full.” As we have pointed out before, this is not a carte blanche for us to make any request that comes into our heads. It is understood that we will be praying, first of all, for what we genuinely need and not just for what we want.

And what we need most of all is to be close to our God and to be equipped with all those things and do all those things which will bring us closer to his will and which will enable us to work with him for the building of the Kingdom. Those prayers will be answered, although not always exactly in the way we might envisage. It may not be until much later that we will realise just how our prayers have been answered and often in very unexpected ways.

Jesus says a strange thing at this point. When his disciples ask for something in his name, “I do not say that I will petition the Father for you.” And the reason he gives is, “The Father already loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.” Our Father already knows all our needs and he wants to satisfy them for us in his love. He will not need the intercession of his Son.

And, when we are already closely related in love and faith with the Father and Jesus, mediation is hardly necessary: our relationship is the mediating factor. Our prayer through Jesus is not to tell God something he does not know already. Rather it is to help make us aware of what our real needs are and to go to where those needs will be answered.

Easter 7 | Monday

Acts 19:1-8; John 16:29-33

FIRST READING (Acts 19:1-8)

We are still with the Third Missionary Journey of Paul.

Apollos (to whom we were introduced last Saturday) has now left Ephesus for Corinth at the invitation of the Christians there. Later, he will return to Ephesus while Paul is still in the city. Meanwhile, Paul himself now reaches Ephesus. We are told that he travelled “through the interior of the country”. This means that he did not follow the lower and more direct route down the Lycus and Meander valleys but followed the upper route through Phrygia (where he had evangelised before) thus approaching Ephesus from the north.

Today Ephesus is only a heap of ruins but in its day it was one of the great cities of the region. The ruins of its great temple dedicated to the goddess Diana are still standing. The city was regarded, with Alexandria, as one of the finest cities in the empire, a religious, political and commercial centre of mixed population.

One of the finest letters in the Pauline canon is addressed to the Christians here. (Although it certainly reflects his thinking, its personal authorship by Paul is in some doubt and it is also thought to have been a kind of encyclical letter sent to a number of church centres, of which Ephesus was one.) It is also thought that, during his stay in the city, Paul wrote his letters to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians), the Galatians and, probably, the Philippians.

On arriving in Ephesus, Paul came across a number of disciples. As they are called ‘disciples’ they seem to have been followers of Jesus but only indirectly through John the Baptist or some of his followers. Or perhaps they had received their teaching from Apollos himself in his earlier state of partial understanding and so, like Apollos, had only a limited understanding of the Gospel.

On asking them if they had received the Holy Spirit, they replied that they had never even heard of a Holy Spirit and that they had been baptised with the baptism of John the Baptist. They were unaware, not that the Spirit existed (which would be evident from the Old Testament to even the most casual reader) but that the messianic promises had already been fulfilled and the Spirit was being poured out in abundance (cf. Acts 2:17-18,33).

Paul pointed out to them that John’s baptism was only a ritual of sorrow for sin. It was preparatory and provisional, stressing man’s sinfulness and thus creating a sense of need for the Gospel. John’s baptism looked forward to Jesus, who by his death would make possible the full forgiveness of sins and reconciliation with God. Baptism in the Holy Spirit involved faith in and total commitment to Jesus as Lord and Saviour.

After they were baptised in the name of Jesus and Paul had laid hands on them they immediately began to speak in tongues and to prophesy – a sure sign that the Spirit had come down on them. This was exactly the same experience the disciples had at Pentecost (2:4,11) and Cornelius and his household had in Caesarea (10:45-46).

We now pick up again the narrative of Paul’s mission which had been interrupted by the words about Apollos and the disciples who had only had the baptism of John. For three months, Paul preached the Gospel in the local synagogue. We are told that he “debated boldly with persuasive arguments about the Kingdom of God”. The establishment of the Kingdom on earth is the focal point of the Gospel message. It was the beginning, too, of the establishment of a vigorous Christian community Church in Ephesus. And Paul was again following his usual approach – Jews first and then Gentile Greeks.

In our own times, some Christians speak of being “born again”. They had gone through the ritual of baptism, perhaps as infants, and may have grown up with very little faith in their lives. Then they “discover” Christ through personal contact or participation in an active Christian group and they feel as though they have been “reborn”. Their baptism, which had lain dormant for such a long time, begins to exercise its effects.

It is an indication how the sacraments can never be separated from close contact with and involvement in a living community.

All of us, at whatever stage of commitment we find ourselves, can deepen our unity with Jesus and the way of life he invites us to follow. We can renew the pledges that we made (or that were made for us) when we were baptised. We might even make those pledges consciously for the first time!

GOSPEL (John 16:29-33)

The disciples now claim to understand exactly what Jesus is talking about, although it is doubtful that they really do. It will not be until later on that the full meaning of Jesus’ words will be grasped by them.

They are impressed that Jesus can answer their questions even before they are formulated. “Because of this we believe that you came from God.” Yet, perhaps they are speaking too soon.

Jesus questions the depth of their belief. Very soon, in spite of their protestations now, they will be scattered in all directions and leave Jesus alone and abandoned. Of course, Jesus will not be alone; the Father is always with him even at the lowest depths of his humiliation. Even when he himself will cry out: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”

He tells them all this, not to discourage them, but so that they can find peace. There will be many troubles facing them in the coming days and indeed in the years ahead. They are not to worry: Jesus has conquered the world, not in any political or economic sense but in overcoming the evil of the world. His disciples can share in that victory, as long as they stay close to him and walk his Way.

These words obviously have meaning for us especially if we are experiencing difficulties of any kind in our lives. The peace we seek is available if we put ourselves into Jesus’ hands. He knows; he has been through more than anything we are ever likely to have to experience.

Easter 7 | Tuesday

Acts 20:17-27; John 17:1-11

FIRST READING (Acts 20:17-27)

We are still with Paul on his Third Missionary Journey. A great number of exciting events happens during the latter part of the journey most of which, unfortunately, is omitted in our liturgy readings.

Paul spent two or three years in Ephesus altogether. Yesterday, we saw him vigorously preaching to the Jews in the synagogue over a period of three months. Eventually, however, the usual opposition arose from a number of Jews who refused to accept his message. So Paul withdrew from the synagogue and went instead to continue his preaching in a public hall. This continued for two years so that the Word was heard not only in Ephesus but through all the surrounding Roman province of Asia. Paul also revealed extraordinary healing powers so that even a piece of cloth which had been in contact with his skin would heal diseases and drive out evil spirits.

Following this, there is an incident involving wandering Jewish exorcists who tried to use the name of Jesus to drive out evil spirits but were themselves attacked by an evil spirit who shouted: “Jesus I recognise, Paul I know, but who are you?”

This is followed by the even more exciting riot by the silversmiths of Ephesus. They made their money by selling silver images of Artemis, the goddess of the great temple. They saw Paul and his disparaging remarks about man-made idols as a serious threat to their business. Paul wanted to confront them but his companions would not let him; he would almost certainly have been lynched. The whole affray was eventually brought to a peaceful conclusion by the city clerk who said the complainers on the one hand were exaggerating the effects of Paul’s preaching and, in any case, they could go to the courts if they had legitimate complaints (cf. Acts 19:23-40).

After this, Paul crossed over to Macedonia (Thessalonica and Philippi) meeting the Christians there and then moved south to Greece, where he stayed for about three months. He surely would have spent much of that time in Corinth. He then returned to Macedonia and took ship from Philippi for Troas (Troy). It was here that, while Paul was preaching in the upper room of a house, there were many lamps lighting, which would have made the place very warm. “As Paul talked on and on” a young man called Eutychus who was sitting by the window became drowsy and fell out on to the ground below. When he was picked up, they found him dead but Paul lay down on him and restored him to life. A consoling story for all preachers!

From Troas Paul moved southwards to Assos, which was quite near, and then by ship to Miletus, which lay south of Ephesus on present-day Turkey’s west coast. There he called for the elders (presbyteroi) or leaders of the church in Ephesus to give them final instructions and say farewell to them.

The importance of the leadership of elders is evident throughout Paul’s ministry. He appointed elders in each church on his first missionary journey and addressed the holders of this office later in Philippi, where they are called episkopoi, literally ‘overseers’ (Phil 1:1) – a word which would give us the term ‘bishop’. An ‘overseer’ seems to have been a presbyter with some executive authority in the community. In the letters to Timothy and Titus are listed the qualifications to become a presbyter (1 Tim 3; Tit 1).

Now, Paul is calling the Ephesian elders to meet with him on what is, for him, a very solemn and sad occasion. It is the third great discourse given by Paul in the Acts. Today and tomorrow we will read his words. In summary, it is the last testament of a pastor leaving his flock for what he believes is the last time.

Many of the details of this third discourse are found in his letters and its tone is that of the Pastoral Letters (1 and 2 Timothy and Titus). After referring to his mission in Asia, he speaks of this occasion as a final parting and seems to hint at his death. His last advice to the elders of Ephesus (and through them to all the pastors in every church) is vigilance, selflessness, charity. In all of this Paul appeals to his own example: the discourse therefore draws a faithful portrait of the apostle himself.

His words form one of the most touching passages in the New Testament. Paul was a tough man in many respects but he was also a very emotional one and this comes out very clearly in this moving discourse.

In summary he tells the elders:

Since the time he came to the region, his life has been an open book for all to read. He has nothing to hide

He has served the Lord faithfully with tears and trials arising from the opposition from some of his fellow-Jews

He has given testimony to both Jews and Gentiles about repentance (metanoia) before God and faith in the Lord Jesus. Being a follower of Jesus involves both total commitment in trust and a re-ordering of one’s life in accordance with the Gospel vision.

He describes himself as already “a prisoner in the spirit”. This can mean that he already anticipates his arrest or that he is being driven to Jerusalem by the Spirit of God, in spite of people’s pleas that he not go.

He is not sure what is going to happen to him but the Spirit has warned him of imprisonment and coming hardships.

But these warnings do not depress him. His life is not important to him. What is important is that he complete the mission entrusted to him, “that I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, namely, to bear witness to the gospel of God’s grace”. That is all that matters to him. As he tells the Philippians, compared to the sharing of the Gospel with others, life and death are secondary. All he ever wanted was to love and serve his Lord, Jesus Christ and to spread the Good News about him (cf. Phil 1:18-24 and also 1 Cor 9:23-27; Gal 2:19-20 for similar statements).

Paul concludes today’s passage by saying that he does not think that they will ever meet again in this world but his conscience is clear as far as the efforts he made to share the Gospel with them. At this time, Paul was intending to return to Jerusalem and then to visit Spain. Although it was his conviction that he would never see Ephesus again, there is evidence that he did return after his imprisonment in Rome.

Tomorrow we will continue the second part of this moving farewell.

In the meantime, we could perhaps look back on our own lives and ask what has been our commitment to Jesus and his Gospel, and what have we done to share it with others. Do we have any regrets about things we have done or not done? Is my life an open book? Do I regret now pain or sufferings, physical or emotional, which I experienced in doing what I believed was right and just? If I had my life to live again, what changes would I make? In the light of that, what changes can I make now?

GOSPEL (John 17:1-11)

Today we move on to the great chapter 17 of John. Jesus is still with his disciples at the Last Supper and this is the final part of his discourse. It consists of a long prayer, sometimes called the High Priestly prayer of Jesus.

The prayer can be said to be in three parts:

- Jesus prays for his own mission;

- he prays for his immediate disciples, who are with him as he prays;

- he prays for all those who in later times will become his disciples.

Jesus begins by praying for the success of his mission. He prays that, through his passion, death and resurrection, he may find glory. In John’s gospel Jesus’ glory begins with his passion and the high moment is the moment of his dying on the cross which is also the moment of resurrection and union with the Father. This glory is not for himself but to lead people to glorify God, of whom Jesus is the Revealer and Mediator.

In turn, he prays that all he does may lead to people everywhere sharing in the life of God. And what is that life? It is stated here in one of the key sayings of Jesus reported in the Gospel: “Eternal life is this: to know you, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”

To know God and to know Jesus is to acknowledge their unique place as the source and end of all we have and are. To know the Father and Jesus is to have as full as possible an understanding of Jesus’ message and to have assimilated it into one’s whole life. It is not just a knowledge of recognition but a mutual identification of vision and values. As the Jerusalem Bible comments: “In biblical language, ‘knowledge’ is not merely the conclusion of an intellectual process but the fruit of an ‘experience’, a personal contact. When it matures, it is love.” (Jerusalem Bible, loc. cit.)

It is to be aware of that, to accept that fully as the secret of life, not just in the world to come but here and now. Everything else – and it really means everything – is secondary to this. To put anything else, however lofty, in first place is to go astray.

Jesus has given glory to the Father by all that he has said and done. He now prays again that glory will be given to him, because by giving glory to him we give glory to his Father also. In fact, it is through Jesus, through our total identification with him, that we give glory to God.

Jesus now prays for his disciples, the “men you took from the world to give me”. Although it was Jesus who chose them, ultimately they are the gift of the Father to help Jesus continue his work on earth. Jesus thanks God that they have recognised that he comes from the Father and that they have accepted his teaching. And, because they belong to Jesus, they also belong to the Father and through them Jesus will receive glory.

Finally, they have been chosen from the world and yet will remain in the world, though not sharing in its values. In fact, they will give glory to Jesus precisely by challenging the values of that world and leading it to the ‘eternal life’ which they have discovered through Jesus and which they have already begun to enjoy.

We thank Jesus for his disciples. We thank them for handing on to us the secret of life.

We thank them for the giving of themselves, sometimes through a martyr’s death, to share that secret with us. We recognise that they, like us, had many weaknesses but Jesus still

worked through them and through them the world came to know Jesus.

Easter 7 | Wednesday

Acts 20:28-38; John 17:11-19

FIRST READING (Acts 20:28-38)

Just to remind ourselves – we are still with Paul on his Third Missionary Journey. And today we have the second part of his farewell discourse to the elders of the church at Ephesus. In the first part Paul had spoken mainly about himself.

In today’s reading he begins by reminding them that they are to carry out the responsibility implied in their title. As ‘elders’ (presbyteroi) they are called to watch over the flock entrusted to them. They have been appointed ‘overseers’. The “elders” are called “overseers” (episkopoi, from which come words like ‘bishop’ and ‘episcopal’) and told to pastor (“shepherd”) the flock – demonstrating that the same men could be called “elders”, “overseers” or “pastors” depending on how their role in the church was seen. This community is the “church of God”, acquired with his own blood. As God in himself does not spill blood, we can take it to mean that the work of the Father and of the Son are seen as one; what Jesus does, including the shedding of his blood, is an expression of everything his Father wills.

Paul envisages fierce attacks on the community after he has gone. “Savage wolves will come among you and they will not spare the flock.” Even from among themselves, people will arise who will “pervert the truth” and try to cause divisions among some of the Christians. So he begs them to take to heart all the teachings he gave them over a period of three years.

On the other hand, he is not in debt to them. He never asked for money or clothing from anyone. His needs and those of his companions were served by his own hands. This is something he has mentioned more than once with some pride and satisfaction. On the contrary his concerns have always been those who are weak and in need. And he quotes words of Jesus: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” A saying which, incidentally, is not quoted in any of the gospels but there must be many of Jesus’ sayings which did not get recorded in writing.

The passage concludes with the highly emotional departure scene with prayers and tears and much kissing and embracing. They believed they were never more to see the father of their church. In fact, they were to meet briefly once more.

There certainly is a good deal here for our own reflection. We have to be ready for our Christian communities today to come under attack, but hopefully without good reason. We have to admit, too, that there are often divisions among us and that we can twist the words of the Gospel to suit ourselves and our own interests.

We need to ask to what extent we really do take care of the weaker ones among us. We cannot separate the needs of the body from that of the spirit.

GOSPEL (John 17:11-19)

Today Jesus continues his prayer for his disciples. He prays for their continued loyalty to the gospel message and for unity among them. He has kept them true to his name. One was lost, although that was foreseen from all time.

They have accepted the message of Jesus and, because of that, they will be hated by the world as Jesus himself was hated. Because, like Jesus, they do not identify with the world and its values and priorities.

At the same time, Jesus makes it very clear that he is not asking that they be removed from the world’s environment, only that they be protected from its evil influences. It is only by being in the world that they will be able to communicate the Gospel message. Armed with truth, with the integrity of Jesus himself, he is sending them into the midst of the world. That is where they are to do their work. They were, as he said elsewhere, to be “the salt of the earth” and the “yeast in the dough”.

Jesus prays that they be consecrated in truth, the truth of God himself. This truth does not consist of a set of dogmas. Rather it consists in the living out lives of perfect integrity and wholeness, in perfect harmony with the will of the Father and the Way of Jesus and dedicated to bringing that truthfulness and integrity to the world. They do this by living lives of love, a love expressed in service to the well-being of all. They have the full backing of Jesus: “I consecrate myself for them, so that they also may be consecrated in truth.”

Let us then pray today:

- for the unity among us which Jesus prayed for in his disciples

- that we may be ready for the hostility and the indifference of the world

- that we may realise that, if we want to give witness to the Gospel, we must be fully inserted into the world by which we are surrounded. To be ‘holy’ is not to escape and distance ourselves physically from that world, which is what many are tempted to do or even think is the right thing to do.

- that we may be people of complete integrity, that we may be filled with truth and sincerity so that what people see in us is what we truly are and wish to be: disciples of Jesus.

Easter 7 | Thursday

Acts 22:30;23:6-11; John 17:20-26

FIRST READING (Acts 22:30; 23:6-11)

We are now coming to the end of the Third Missionary Journey. Events are moving very fast as we have to finish the Acts in the next three days! And a great deal is happening, much of which will have to be passed over. It might be a very good idea to take up a New Testament and read the full text of the last eight chapters of the book.

As we begin today’s reading let us be filled in a little on what has happened between yesterday’s reading and today’s. After bidding a tearful farewell to his fellow-Christians in Ephesus, Paul began his journey back to Palestine, making a number of brief stops on the way – Cos, Rhodes, Patara. They by-passed Cyprus and landed at Tyre in Phoenicia. They stayed there for a week, during which time the brethren begged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem. They knew there would be trouble. But there was no turning back for Paul and again there was an emotional parting on the beach.

As Paul moved south, there were stops at Ptolemais where they greeted the community. Then it was on to Caesarea where Paul stayed in the house of Philip, the deacon, now called an ‘evangelist’. (Earlier we saw him do great evangelising work in Samaria and he was the one who converted the Ethiopian eunuch.) Here too there was an experience in which Paul was warned by a prophet in the community of coming suffering. Again they all begged him not to go on but he replied: “I am prepared not only to be bound but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” They then accepted God’s will and let him go.

When they arrived in Jerusalem they received a warm welcome from the community there and went to pay a formal visit to James, the leader in the Jerusalem church. They were very happy to hear of all that Paul had done but they were also concerned (and their concern would seem to indicate that there were some in the city who had not fully accepted the non-application of Jewish law for Gentiles).

The local Jews (including, it seems, the Christians) would have heard how Paul, also a Jew, had been telling Jews in Gentile territory to “abandon Moses”, that is, not requiring them to circumcise their children or observe other Jewish practices. Some suggested a tactic for Paul to assuage the feelings of these people. On behalf of four members of the Jerusalem community, he was to make the customary payment for the sacrifices offered at the termination of the Nazirite vow (cf. Numbers 6:1-24) in order to impress favourably the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem with his high regard for the Mosaic Law. Since Paul himself had once made such a vow (when he was leaving Corinth, Acts 18:18), his respect for the law would be publicly known. Paul agreed with this suggestion and did as he was asked.

However, as the seven days stipulated were coming to an end, Paul was spotted by some Jews who had known him in Ephesus. A mob rushed into the temple and seized him, and might have harmed him, if the Roman commander had not seen the riot. He rescued Paul, then arrested him and put him in chains and thus out of the reach of those wanting to harm him.

It was only after the arrest that the commander realised the Greek-speaking Paul was not an Egyptian rebel. Paul then asked to be allowed to address the crowd and, in a longish speech, told the assembled Jews the story of his conversion on the road to Damascus (the second time the story is told in Acts; it will be told again in chap. 26). At the end of the speech, the crowd bayed for his blood and Paul was about to be flogged in order to find out why the Jews wanted him executed. At this point, Paul revealed to the centurion that he was a Roman citizen and that, unlike the garrison commander who had bought his citizenship, he had been born one. This created great alarm among his captors and he was released.

The Roman commander then ordered a meeting of the Sanhedrin to be convened so that Paul could address them. While those of the high priestly line were mainly Sadducees, the Sanhedrin also now included quite a number of Pharisees. This council was the ruling body of the Jews. Its court and decisions were respected by the Roman authorities. Their approval was needed, however, in cases of capital punishment (as happened in the case of Jesus). Paul being brought before the Sanhedrin was already foretold by Jesus to his disciples, Matt 10:17-18. Paul, in time, will appear before ‘councils’, ‘governors’ and ‘kings’.

He began by telling them that everything he had done was with a perfectly clear conscience. On hearing this, the high priest Ananias ordered that Paul be struck in the mouth. It was not unlike his Master being struck on the face during his trial. Paul hit back – verbally. “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall.” He said this because, although Ananias was supposedly sitting in judgement according to the Law, he was breaking the law by striking the accused. Josephus the Jewish historian tells us that Ananias was actually assassinated in AD 66 at the beginning of the First Jewish Revolt. When Paul is accused of reviling the high priest, he said he did not realise Ananias was the high priest and apologised.

It is at this point in today’s reading that one of the most dramatic scenes in the Acts, begins. Paul knew his audience and he decided at the very beginning to make a pre-emptive strike. He professed loudly and with pride that he was a Pharisee, knowing that his audience consisted of both Pharisees and Sadducees.

Addressing his words specially to the Pharisees, he said that he was on trial because “our hope is in the resurrection of the dead”. That was not quite the whole story, of course, as he made no mention of Christ but it immediately put him on the side of his fellow-Pharisees. As Paul had told the Corinthians in one of his letters, if Christ was not risen from the dead, neither could we rise and there would be no basis for our faith. The hope of a future life was at the very heart of his Christian preaching.

That, of course, is not what the Pharisees heard. They immediately latched on to the fact that Paul, as a fellow-Pharisee held a belief that was denied by the Sadducees. The Sadducees only accepted as divine revelation the first five books of the Bible, what we call the Pentateuch. The resurrection of the body (in 2 Maccabees) and the doctrine of angels (in the book of Tobit) did not become part of Jewish teaching until a comparatively late date. On both these issues, however, Paul (a Pharisee himself) and the Pharisees were full agreement

In the first five books of the Old Testament, there is no mention of a future resurrection, nor spirits, nor angels. It was on the basis of this belief that the Sadducees had challenged Jesus about the fate of a woman who had married seven brothers. If there is a resurrection, which of the seven would be her husband? For those who did not believe in life after death, the question was a nonsense.

Paul’s words on resurrection immediately diverted attention from him to this contentious dividing point between the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

All of a sudden the Pharisees make an about-turn: “We do not find this man guilty of any crime.” And, in a deliberate provocation to the Sadducees who did not believe in angels: “If a spirit or an angel has spoken to him...” This could be a reference to Paul’s account to them earlier of his experience on the road to Damascus.

All objectivity was forgotten and the Pharisees, despite their earlier protestations, sided with Paul, “their man”, and a brawl ensued. It got so serious – and, remember, these were all “religious” men! – that the tribune, fearing Paul would be torn to pieces, came to his rescue and put him back in the fortress.

That night Paul received a vision in which he was assured that he would be protected in Jerusalem because it was the Lord’s wish that he give witness to the Gospel in Rome.

Perhaps Paul’s behaviour in this situation is a good example of Jesus’’ advice to his disciples to be simple as doves and as wise as serpents! Paul was more than ready to suffer for his Lord but he was no pushover. While we, too, are to be prepared to give witness to our faith even with the sacrifice of our lives, and never to indulge in any form of violence against those who attack us, we are not asked to go out of our way to invite persecution or physical attacks. That is not the meaning of the injunction to carry our cross. Jesus himself often took steps to avoid trouble.

Joan of Arc defended herself as did Thomas More and, indeed as Jesus himself did during his trial: “If I have said something wrong, why do you strike me?”

But, like them, we will try never to evade death or any other form of hostility by compromising the central teaching of our faith.

GOSPEL (John 17:20-26)

In this final part of Jesus’ prayer during his discourse to his disciples at the Last Supper, Jesus now prays for all those who through the influence of disciples before us came to believe in Christ as Lord. Each one of us is among those Jesus is praying for here.

In this prayer Jesus prays above all for unity among his disciples as the most effective sign of witness. “By this will all know that you are my disciples, that you have love for one another,” he had told his disciples earlier on in the discourse.

He now prays that we may display the same unity among ourselves and with Jesus as that which binds Jesus and the Father. It is through the love that Christians, coming as they do from so many ethnic groups and all classes of people, show for each other that they give the most effective witness to the message of Christ. “May they be so completely one that the world will realise that it was you who sent me.”

It is said that, in the early Church, people marvelled, “See those Christians, how they love each other.” In a world divided along so many lines, people were amazed to see Jews and Greeks, men and women, slaves and freemen, rich and poor sharing a common community life in love and forgiveness and mutual support. It clearly would lead people to ask what was the secret of this group.

Is that the witness that we are giving today? What do people see when they look at our parishes? What do they see when they look at our families? What are they to think of the painful divisions of so many groups who claim Jesus as their Lord? How can we maintain such divisions in the face of these words of Jesus?

Obviously, we all have much to think and pray about regarding our “spiritual” life and the impact we make in drawing people to Christ (and that includes bringing back many who have left in confusion and disillusionment).

So let us make our own the last words of Jesus’ prayer today: “I have made your name known to them [his disciples] and will continue to make it known, so that the love with which you loved me may be in them, and so that I may be in them.”

Easter 7 | Friday

Acts 25:13-21; John 21:15-19

FIRST READING (Acts 25:13-21)

We are now moving rather quickly to the end of the Acts. We have to finish between today and tomorrow, which is the end of the Easter season. Next week we will return to what is called “Ordinary Time”.

After Paul was rescued from the uproar in the Sanhedrin, a group of Jews were determined to assassinate Paul and were concocting a plot to bring it about. However, Paul’s nephew got wind of it and passed the information to the Romans. So Paul was taken away from Jerusalem and sent under heavy guard to Governor Felix in Caesarea to await formal charges from his Jewish accusers. Both the Jews and Paul presented their case to Felix in the most flattering terms. Felix was rather sympathetic to Paul and was apparently aware of Christian beliefs. He kept Paul in custody for a further two years, because he liked discussing religion until Paul began to tell him about moral behaviour and the judgement to come. Feeling somewhat uneasy, he postponed further meetings indefinitely. He also hoped for a bribe from Paul to expedite his release. (Apparently not expecting Paul to practise what he preached!)

The next governor, Festus, was more favourable to the Jews. He again allowed them to come up to Caesarea to confront Paul in court. Knowing what the Jews wanted, Festus asked Paul if he would be willing to go to Jerusalem to be tried. Paul knew that was tantamount to a death sentence (indeed the Jews planned to murder him on the way), so he played his final trump card. He appealed as a Roman citizen to a Roman trial. The governor now had no choice. “You have appealed to Caesar; to Caesar you shall go,” he said.

We now enter today’s reading. We see King Agrippa and his sister Bernice come to pay a courtesy visit to Festus in Caesarea. It was customary for rulers to pay a complimentary visit to a new ruler at the time of his appointment. It was to the advantage of each that they get along. (We might compare the relationship of Herod Antipas with Pontius Pilate. See especially Luke 23:6-12)

Agrippa and Bernice were an interesting couple to say the least.

Agrippa, Bernice and Drusilla were children of King Herod Agrippa I. Herod Agrippa II was 17 years old at the death of his father in AD 44 (Acts 12:23). Being too young to succeed his father, he was replaced by Roman procurators. Eight years later, however, a gradual extension of territorial authority began. Ultimately he ruled over territory north and northeast of the Sea of Galilee, over several Galilean cities and over some cities in Perea. At the Jewish revolt, when Jerusalem fell, he was on the side of the Romans. He died about AD 100 – the last of the Herods.

Bernice, “when only 13, married her uncle, Herod of Chalcis, and had two sons. When Herod died, she lived with her brother, Agrippa II. To silence rumours that she was living in incest with her brother, she married Polemon, king of Cilicia, but left him soon to return to Agrippa. She became the mistress of the emperor Vespasian’s son Titus but was later ignored by him” (NIV Bible). Titus, as emperor, was responsible for the siege and destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in AD 70. The memory of that event is recorded on the sculptural reliefs of the Arch of Titus still standing in the Roman Forum.

The governor now took the opportunity for Paul to present his case to the king, who was a Jew. The governor gives a slightly distorted account of the proceedings held in his presence with the Jews from Jerusalem. In reply to the Jews’ demand to have Paul surrendered to them, Festus said that it was not in accordance with Roman law to hand someone over before he had a chance to speak in his own defence.

However, when the trial began in Festus’ presence, none of the charges he expected were brought forward. Instead they were arguing about matters concerning their own religion and there was talk of a Jesus who had died but whom Paul was claiming to be alive. Festus wanted the Jews to deal with this issue themselves but, because Paul had appealed to Rome, he had to be remanded in custody until he could be sent to Caesar. The emperor in question was Nero who reigned (if that is the appropriate word) from AD 54-68.

While every stage in this story can be understood as taking place in response to the various actions of the participants, they are also to be seen as factors which were to bring Paul to the heart of the empire in Rome. Rome would in time become the centre of Christ’s Kingdom on earth. It is the fulfilment of the words of Jesus before his ascension: “You will be my witnesses not only in Jerusalem but throughout Judea and Samaria, and indeed to the ends of the earth.”

Once again, we see the finger of God behind every action of every person in the story. His finger is in our life stories too. Can we see that? And where will we find him in today’s experiences?

GOSPEL (John 16:29-33)

The disciples now claim to understand exactly what Jesus is talking about, although it is doubtful that they really do. It will not be until later on that the full meaning of Jesus’ words will be grasped by them.

They are impressed that Jesus can answer their questions even before they are formulated. “Because of this we believe that you came from God.” Yet, perhaps they are speaking too soon.

Jesus questions the depth of their belief. Very soon, in spite of their protestations now, they will be scattered in all directions and leave Jesus alone and abandoned. Of course, Jesus will not be alone; the Father is always with him even at the lowest depths of his humiliation. Even when he himself will cry out: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”

He tells them all this, not to discourage them, but so that they can find peace. There will be many troubles facing them in the coming days and indeed in the years ahead. They are not to worry: Jesus has conquered the world, not in any political or economic sense but in overcoming the evil of the world. His disciples can share in that victory, as long as they stay close to him and walk his Way.

These words obviously have meaning for us especially if we are experiencing difficulties of any kind in our lives. The peace we seek is available if we put ourselves into Jesus’ hands. He knows; he has been through more than anything we are ever likely to have to experience.

Easter 7 | Saturday

Acts 28:16-20,30-31; John 21:20-25

FIRST READING (Acts 28:16-20,30-31)

Today we complete the readings for the Easter season. During these seven weeks we have been going through the Acts of the Apostles. As with most of the books which form the liturgical readings, much had to be omitted but at least we do get a general picture of the extraordinary developments of the Church from a small group of uneducated fishermen to a chain of communities which in such a short time reached to the very centre of their known world – the empire’s seat of government in Rome. This would be the new centre from which it would over the centuries expand to every corner of the world.

Yesterday we saw Paul in the presence of King Agrippa and Bernice while Festus explained the reason for Paul’s arrest to them. The following day, Paul was again brought before the king and, for the third time in Acts, gave them an account of how he had tried to destroy the followers of Christ only to experience his own conversion on the way to Damascus. At the end of the speech, Festus said he thought it was all crazy nonsense but both he and the king agreed that Paul had done nothing to warrant punishment. If he had not appealed to the emperor, they agreed, he could have been released.

We are then told of the long and eventful sea journey to Rome which included a storm and being shipwrecked on the island of Malta. When they eventually arrived in Rome, members of the community were there to welcome them on the Appian Way, the ancient highway that led to the city of Rome.

It is at this point that today’s reading begins. We are told that when Paul entered Rome, he was allowed to live by himself with a soldier who was guarding him. It was clearly a benign form of house arrest. Another reading says that “when he entered Rome, the centurion handed the prisoners over to the commander. But Paul was allowed to live outside the [Praetorian] camp.” A note in the Jerusalem Bible comments that “this additional information agrees with what in fact must have happened. By the concession of custodia militaris [military guard] the prisoner had his own lodgings, but his right arm was chained to the left of the soldier in charge”. Clearly, the prisoner was not regarded as dangerous.

As he did so often in the past, Paul made contact with the local Jews. The decree of the emperor Claudius, which, we remember, had caused Apollos and Priscilla to leave Rome, had been allowed to lapse and Jews now had returned to Rome with their leaders. Paul wants to establish good relations with the Jews of Rome as soon as possible. He insists that he has nothing as such against his own people although it was certain Jews who did cause him a great deal of trouble and who were ultimately responsible for his having to appeal to Caesar. Ironically, as we saw, Governor Festus and King Agrippa had agreed that Paul had done no wrong and could have been released if he had not made his appeal to Caesar. In fact, as Paul had emphasised all along, “it is on account of the hope of Israel [for a saviour Messiah] that I wear this chain”.

In the final sentences of the Acts we are told that Paul spent two years in his place of arrest preaching “the Kingdom of God and the truth about the Lord Jesus Christ”. He was able to receive all who came looking for him and was able to preach without hindrance. The two years represents the legal period during which he could be kept in custody. Within that period his case would have to be tried, so it is likely that, at the end of the period, he was released. At the end of his short letter to Philemon he seems to be looking forward to his release and asks that a room be made ready for him in Philemon’s house. During this time also he would have written his letter to the Christians at Colosse and the letter to the Ephesians (although the immediate authorship of this letter by Paul has been questioned), as well as his note to Philemon.

As the NIV Bible points out, there are a number of indications that Paul was released from his imprisonment at the end of two years:

1, Acts stops abruptly at this time;

2, Paul wrote to churches expecting to visit them soon; so he must have anticipated a release (see Phil 2:24; Philem 22);

3, A number of the details in the Pastoral Letters do not fit into the historical setting given in the book of Acts. Following the close of Acts, these details indicate a return to Asia Minor, Crete and Greece;

4, Tradition indicates that Paul went to Spain. Even if he did not go, the very fact that a tradition arose suggests a time when he could have taken that journey.*

It is clear that the sudden ending of Acts indicates that it is not an ending at all but a beginning. Luke’s story had begun with Jesus’ ‘mission statement’ made in the synagogue at Nazareth. From there he progresses steadily south to Jerusalem, which is the climax of his life and work – through passion, death and resurrection. The story is then taken up with Acts which begins with the Pentecost experience when the baton of Jesus’ mission is passed to his disciples. It begins where Jesus left off, in Jerusalem, and from there spreads progressively to the surrounding territories and then on to Macedonia and Greece and ultimately to the heart of the empire and the centre of their world – Rome. The Gospel is being preached freely in the very heart of the Roman Empire.

Christianity from being a tiny movement of a small number of Jews is now a world phenomenon. From now on, its mission is to make the Kingdom a reality in every corner of our planet. There are many more triumphs and tragedies to come. But to have reached Rome in such a short time was little short of miraculous.

So, these final sentences sound an understandable note of triumph for the fledgling Church. “You have come a long way, baby”, and, we might add, “And you ain’t seen nothin’ yet”.

GOSPEL (John 21:20-25)

Peter has been given his mandate to shepherd the Lord’s flock and been fully rehabilitated after his sad betrayal earlier on. But it is still the same old, impetuous Peter. Having heard about his own future, he now wants to know that of the “beloved disciple”.

Basically, he is told to mind his own business; it is no concern of his. Jesus says enigmatically, “Suppose I want him to stay until I come, how does that concern you? Your business is to follow me.”

As a result, Jesus words became distorted and were understood that the “beloved disciple” was not going to die. He would stay alive until the Lord came. But this is strongly denied by the author of the chapter. [It is believed that this final chapter is not by the author of the rest of this gospel.]

The New American Bible comments here: “This whole scene takes on more significance if the disciple is already dead. The death of the apostolic generation caused problems in the church because of a belief that Jesus was to have returned first. Loss of faith sometimes resulted. Cf . 2 Peter 3:4.” (loc. cit.)

Another very different explanation is possible if the “beloved disciple” is not identified with John but with the symbolic figure who represents the perfect follower of Jesus. This person appears four times in John’s gospel – and perhaps five, if we identify him with the unnamed disciple of John the Baptist who spent a day with Jesus in the company of Andrew (John 1:35ff). At this point, he is not called the “beloved disciple”, as he is just beginning to be a follower. Later in the gospel, he is identified on four different occasions of special significance – leaning on the breast of Jesus at the Last Supper, standing at the foot of the Cross, going with Peter to the empty tomb on the day of the resurrection and understanding the meaning of the arrangement of the cloths (something which meant nothing to Peter) and, finally, as the one who recognised in the stranger who told the disciples where the fish were to be found as “the Lord”.

Hopefully, all through the history of the Church there will be “beloved disciples”, people who have lived out the Gospel to a very high degree. And such people will continue to be found until Jesus finally comes to bring us all to himself.

For our own lives, in the light of this passage, we can ask ourselves once again what we see to be the mission that Jesus has for us at this time. And secondly, while we do of course need to be responsible for the wellbeing of our brothers and sisters, our main concern is to focus on where God is calling us and not be too worried about what he expects from others.

On a final note, the author claims to have witnessed everything that has been written but that it still is only a fraction of all the things that Jesus said and did. We would indeed love to know what some of those unreported words and actions were but we have more than enough with the existing texts to provide a challenge to us for the rest of our lives. And, with the imminent approach of Pentecost, we remember that the Spirit is there to continue teaching and guiding us and leading us ever deeper into the meanings of God’s Word.

*On Paul’s ministry after his discharge, his second imprisonment, and his death, see the Introduction to the Letters of St Paul (Jerusalem Bible).