The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today exhort us to action as disciples of Christ that is modelled on the Love of God and the example of Jesus.
Working for Life
The reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah expresses the promise that Zion’s Children be brought Home.
* [49:3] Israel: the servant is identified with the people of Israel as their ideal representative; however, vv. 5–6 seem to distinguish the servant from Israel. * [49:6] The servant’s vocation extends beyond the restoration of Israel in order to bring the knowledge of Israel’s God to the rest of the earth; cf. Lk 2:32.1
Psalm 145 praises the greatness and the goodness of God.
* [Psalm 145] A hymn in acrostic form; every verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Acrostic poems usually do not develop ideas but consist rather of loosely connected statements. The singer invites all to praise God (Ps 145:1–3, 21). The “works of God” make God present and invite human praise (Ps 145:4–7); they climax in a confession (Ps 145:8–9). God’s mighty acts show forth divine kingship (Ps 145:10–20), a major theme in the literature of early Judaism and in Christianity.2
The Gospel of John declares the Authority of the Son and our role as witnesses to Jesus.
* [5:19] This proverb or parable is taken from apprenticeship in a trade: the activity of a son is modeled on that of his father. Jesus’ dependence on the Father is justification for doing what the Father does. * [5:21] Gives life: in the Old Testament, a divine prerogative (Dt 32:39; 1 Sm 2:6; 2 Kgs 5:7; Tb 13:2; Is 26:19; Dn 12:2). * [5:22] Judgment: another divine prerogative, often expressed as acquittal or condemnation (Dt 32:36; Ps 43:1). * [5:28–29] While Jn 5:19–27 present realized eschatology, Jn 5:28–29 are future eschatology; cf. Dn 12:2.3
Eileen Wirth hears God asking her, “Where are YOU? What are YOU doing for my people? You know that I act through people like YOU. "
The United Nations estimates that there are more than 82 million refugees in the world. Most are the victims of wars or ethnic cleansing that get little coverage in our media. Many are people Americans know nothing about, like the Karen family from Burma that St. John’s Church at Creighton sponsors. If you know anything about the Karen, you’re ahead of where I was when we were assigned our wonderful family. Working with refugees powerfully reminds us that we are all God’s children. It is a rich way to grow spiritually even though the actual tasks are mundane. God’s universal family comes alive when you’re driving cute toddlers from a nation you could scarcely locate on a map to a clinic or pre-school. I find myself thanking God that they are in my life. As we approach Good Friday, I picture Jesus and Mary en route to Calvary, surrounded by refugees. Are we also in that scene coming to the aid of these suffering people? Are we acting as God’s agents in showing “mercy to his afflicted?” 4
Don Schwager quotes “The wonderful exchange,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"Unless the Word of God had first assumed our mortal flesh he could not have died for us. Only in that way was the immortal God able to die and to give life to mortal humans. Therefore, by this double sharing he brought about a wonderful exchange. We made death possible for him, and he made life possible for us." (excerpt from Sermon 218c,1)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on John 5:17-30 comments that when we think about eternal life, we think of heaven and the life that awaits us after we die. But in John’s Gospel—and especially in this verse in today’s Gospel reading—“eternal life” also means the life we experience now as believers in the Lord Jesus.
Because we have eternal life, we are united to our fellow believers. Whether they are still here on earth or already enjoying heavenly glory, we are in communion with them because Christ lives in each of us. Bodily death won’t separate us forever. In some mysterious way, we are all one in our Lord. Jesus said that he gives life to whomever he wishes (John 5:21). He chose to give that life to you! It is a life that will never end because Christ himself is eternal and lives in you. May we begin and end each day in awe and thanksgiving for this incredible, priceless gift! “Lord God, with all my heart, I thank you for the gift of eternal life!”6
Friar Jude Winkler notes the text from Deutero Isaiah is a promise to the exiles in Babylon (587-539 BCE) to bring them back. Hebrew Scripture reference to the feminine nature of God may have been restricted over concern about the many female pagan gods. Friar Jude reminds us that obedience and saying “yes” gives us great dignity.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces Cole Arthur Riley, a writer and creator of the online prayer space Black Liturgies. She views fear as a place to discover God’s compassion for us.
I hear “Don’t be afraid” and hope that it is not a command not to fear but rather the nurturing voice of a God drawing near to our trembling. I hear those words and imagine God in all tenderness cradling her creation against her breast. Perhaps it is not the indictment of God we are sensing but our own souls turned against themselves. I wouldn’t dare criticize Christ in the garden—sweating, crying, pleading for God to let the cup pass from him [Luke 22:41–44]. This is a Christ who knew fear deeply. And if God himself has been afraid, I have to believe he is tender with our own fear.7
The reluctance we have to step up and make changes as followers of Christ may be diminished as the Spirit reveals the motherly care of God.
References
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