The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to contemplate our response to the prompting of the Spirit to live as worthy disciples of Christ.
Gathered together
The reading from the Acts of the Apostles presents the case for the apostles being worthy to suffer.
* [5:17–42] A second action against the community is taken by the Sanhedrin in the arrest and trial of the Twelve; cf. Acts 4:1–3. The motive is the jealousy of the religious authorities over the popularity of the apostles (Acts 5:17) who are now charged with the defiance of the Sanhedrin’s previous order to them to abandon their prophetic role (Acts 5:28; cf. Acts 4:18). In this crisis the apostles are favored by a miraculous release from prison (Acts 5:18–24). (For similar incidents involving Peter and Paul, see Acts 12:6–11; 16:25–29.) The real significance of such an event, however, would be manifest only to people of faith, not to unbelievers; since the Sanhedrin already judged the Twelve to be inauthentic prophets, it could disregard reports of their miracles. When the Twelve immediately resumed public teaching, the Sanhedrin determined to invoke upon them the penalty of death (Acts 5:33) prescribed in Dt 13:6–10. 1
Psalm 30 is a Thanksgiving for recovery from grave illness.
* [Psalm 30] An individual thanksgiving in four parts: praise and thanks for deliverance and restoration (Ps 30:2–4); an invitation to others to join in (Ps 30:5–6); a flashback to the time before deliverance (Ps 30:7–11); a return to praise and thanks (Ps 30:12). Two sets of images recur: 1) going down, death, silence; 2) coming up, life, praising. God has delivered the psalmist from one state to the other.2
The reading from the Book of Revelation offers the image of the Worthiness of the Lamb.
* [5:1–14] The seer now describes a papyrus roll in God’s right hand (Rev 5:1) with seven seals indicating the importance of the message. A mighty angel asks who is worthy to open the scroll, i.e., who can accomplish God’s salvific plan (Rev 5:2). There is despair at first when no one in creation can do it (Rev 5:3–4). But the seer is comforted by an elder who tells him that Christ, called the lion of the tribe of Judah, has won the right to open it (Rev 5:5). Christ then appears as a Lamb, coming to receive the scroll from God (Rev 5:6–7), for which he is acclaimed as at a coronation (Rev 5:8–10). This is followed by a doxology of the angels (Rev 5:11–12) and then finally by the heavenly church united with all of creation (Rev 5:13–14).3
In the Gospel of John, Jesus appears to Seven Disciples.
* [21:15–17] In these three verses there is a remarkable variety of synonyms: two different Greek verbs for love (see note on Jn 15:13); two verbs for feed/tend; two nouns for sheep; two verbs for know. But apparently there is no difference of meaning. The threefold confession of Peter is meant to counteract his earlier threefold denial (Jn 18:17, 25, 27). The First Vatican Council cited these verses in defining that Jesus after his resurrection gave Peter the jurisdiction of supreme shepherd and ruler over the whole flock.4
Nicky Santos S.J. was drawn to the theme of “detachment.” in the Gospel today. Peter was still clinging on to his old occupation, his former way of life. His wanting to go fishing is indicative of this attachment. But if he was to be a true leader of this new community he had to quit relying on his knowledge, on what he was familiar with, and instead open himself to the grace of Jesus’ spirit that would guide him toward abundance.
During this Easter season, we are invited to reflect on our own relationship with Jesus. Do we truly love Jesus above everything else? Or are there ways of life, addictions to things or behaviors that come in the way of being truly free to do God’s will? Do our qualifications and knowledge become an obstacle to our following God’s direction in our lives? As we become detached from all that blocks us from experiencing the grace of Jesus’ spirit in our lives and as we strive to think about and serve others, lo and behold, we might suddenly become aware that Jesus has a fire going and wishes to cook breakfast for us.5
Don Schwager quotes “Jesus' question to Peter,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"Christ rose again in the flesh, and Peter rose in the spirit because, when Christ died in his passion, Peter died by his denial. Christ the Lord was raised from the dead, and out of his love he raised Peter. He questioned him about the love he was confessing and entrusted him with his sheep. After all, what benefit could Peter confer on Christ by the mere fact of his loving Christ? If Christ loves you, it is to your advantage, not Christ's. And if you love Christ, it is to your advantage, not Christ's. And yet Christ the Lord wanted to indicate how people ought to show that they love Christ. And he made it plain enough by entrusting him with his sheep. 'Do you love me?' 'I do' 'Feed my sheep.' All this once, all this a second time, all this a third time. Peter made no other reply than that he loved him. The Lord asked no other question but whether he loved him. When Peter answered, our Lord did nothing else but entrust his sheep to him."(excerpt from Sermon 229n)6
The Word Among Us Meditation on John 21:1-19 comments that Jesus does not berate or even correct Peter! Quite the opposite, he immediately commands him to feed his sheep. Peter’s denials didn’t disqualify him from following Jesus or serving him. Rather, they served as lessons in humility and prepared him for his mission.
We all fall short from time to time as we try to follow the Lord. Our weaknesses and sins hinder us from loving and obeying Jesus as we should. But like Peter, we can learn from our failures and humbly return to the Lord for the grace to begin again. Nothing disqualifies us from our call to be Jesus’ disciples and feed his sheep. Just as impurities in stained glass bring forth beauty when the sun shines upon it, our weaknesses can show the Lord’s grace when we come into his light. So let’s not stay in the darkness counting our stains. Let’s come into the light and let it shine through us. “Lord, you know everything; shine through me today.”7
Friar Jude Winkler comments on the very Jewish praise of Jesus and the One on the Throne in Revelation. There is much symbolic language in the passage from the Gospel of John. Friar Jude comments on the use of two of four Greek words for love in the dialogue between Jesus and Peter.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, in a conference with Trappist monk Thomas Keating, considered how contemplation is an antidote to violence.
To be clear, it is inconceivable that a true Christian would be racist, anti-Semitic, xenophobic, homophobic, or bigoted toward any group or individual, especially toward the poor and vulnerable, which seems to be an acceptable American prejudice. To end the cycle of violence, our actions must flow from our authentic identity as Love…. When we begin by connecting with our inner experience of communion rather than separation, our actions can become pure, clear, and firm. This kind of action, rooted in one’s True Self, comes from a deeper knowing of what is real, good, true, and beautiful, beyond labels and dualistic judgments of right or wrong. From this place, our energy is positive and has the most potential to create change for the good. This stance is precisely what we mean by “being in prayer.” We must pray “unceasingly” to maintain this posture. It is a lifelong process.8
Our worthiness for our mission of phileo and agape to the people we encounter is on track through the promptings of the Spirit.
References
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