Mission and Hatred

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today reassure us of the guidance of the Holy Spirit as we continue our mission as followers of Christ.

In the world

In the reading from the Acts of the Apostles, Timothy joins Paul and Silas and Paul’s Vision of the Man of Macedonia leads to action.

* [16:3] Paul had him circumcised: he did this in order that Timothy might be able to associate with the Jews and so perform a ministry among them. Paul did not object to the Jewish Christians’ adherence to the law. But he insisted that the law could not be imposed on the Gentiles. Paul himself lived in accordance with the law, or as exempt from the law, according to particular circumstances (see 1 Cor 9:19–23).

* [16:7] The Spirit of Jesus: this is an unusual formulation in Luke’s writings. The parallelism with Acts 16:6 indicates its meaning, the holy Spirit.

* [16:10–17] This is the first of the so-called “we-sections” in Acts, where Luke writes as one of Paul’s companions. The other passages are Acts 20:5–15; 21:1–18; 27:1–28:16. Scholars debate whether Luke may not have used the first person plural simply as a literary device to lend color to the narrative. The realism of the narrative, however, lends weight to the argument that the “we” includes Luke or another companion of Paul whose data Luke used as a source. (Acts of the Apostles, CHAPTER 16, n.d.)

Psalm 100 declares all lands are summoned to Praise God.

* [Psalm 100] A hymn inviting the people to enter the Temple courts with thank offerings for the God who created them.

* [100:3] Although the people call on all the nations of the world to join in their hymn, they are conscious of being the chosen people of God. (Psalms, PSALM 100, n.d.)

In the Gospel of John, Jesus explains the World’s Hatred.

* [15:18–16:4] The hostile reaction of the world. There are synoptic parallels, predicting persecution, especially at Mt 10:17–25; 24:9–10.

* [15:20] The word I spoke to you: a reference to Jn 13:16.

* [15:21] On account of my name: the idea of persecution for Jesus’ name is frequent in the New Testament (Mt 10:22; 24:9; Acts 9:14). For John, association with Jesus’ name implies union with Jesus. (John, CHAPTER 15, n.d.)

Nancy Shirley reflects on the readings today for the Memorial of Our Lady of Fatima that emphasize the importance of Mary.

 

Blessed are you, holy  virgin Mary, deserving of all praise.

         From you rose the sun of justice, Christ our God. (Shirley, n.d.)

Don Schwager quotes “Those who suffer with Christ reign with Christ,” by Cyril of Alexandria, 375-444 A.D.

"It is just as if Jesus said, 'I, the creator of the universe, who have everything under my hand, both in heaven and on earth, did not bridle their rage or restrain ... their inclinations. Rather, I let each one choose their own course and permitted all to do what they wanted. Therefore, when I was persecuted, I endured it even though I had the power of preventing it. When you too follow in my wake and pursue the same course I did, you also will be persecuted. You're going to have to momentarily endure the aversion of those who hate you without being overly troubled by the ingratitude of those whom you benefit. This is how you attain my glory, for those who suffer with me shall also reign with me.'" (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 10.2) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Acts 16:1-10 comments that the Holy Spirit is mentioned in the second paragraph, when the apostles’ traveling plans don’t work out. It seems that St. Luke wanted to make a point that God shows up in the midst of—and even allows for—life’s inconveniences.

So the next time you find yourself grumbling about life’s latest challenge, turn to the Spirit. He can help you see the situation as an opportunity to lean on God and to ultimately surrender your will to his. He can help you trust that his plan for you will always be the best one.

“Jesus, when my plans are not working, help me to trust yours.” (Meditation on Acts 16:1-10, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler explains the circumcision of Timothy who is Jewish because his mother was Jewish. The passage from Acts reinforces that the Holy Spirit is the guide for the mission of the Church. Friar Jude reminds us of the privilege to participate in the Cross through the events of our life.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, encourages us to pray when we find ourselves questioning our worthiness.

It seems that God insists on looking at what is good in me, what is God in me, and of course always finds it entirely lovable. God fixes God’s gaze intently where I refuse and fear to look—on my shared, Divine Nature as God’s beloved child (see 1 John 3:2). And one day my gaze meets God’s gaze (that is what we mean by both conversion and prayer). At those times I will find God fully lovable and myself fully lovable at the same time. Why? Because it is the same gaze, but they have become one and look out at life together. (Rohr, 2023)

We experience times of joy and suffering on our journey and we are prompted by the Spirit to seek Jesus Presence in all these events.

References

Acts of the Apostles, CHAPTER 16. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 13, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/acts/16?1 

John, CHAPTER 15. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 13, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/15? 

Meditation on Acts 16:1-10. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved May 13, 2023, from https://wau.org/meditations/2023/05/13/677069/ 

Psalms, PSALM 100. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved May 13, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/100?1 

Rohr, R. (2023, May 13). Freedom from Shame: Weekly Summary — Center for Action and Contemplation. Richard Rohr. Retrieved May 13, 2023, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/freedom-from-shame-weekly-summary-2023-05-13/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved May 13, 2023, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2023&date=may13 

Shirley, N. (n.d.). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved May 13, 2023, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/051323.html 

Following Him for Life

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today have baptism of those outside and the protection of Life by the Good Shepherd in the foreground with the Memorial of Our Lady of Fatima providing a background.

Beside still waters

The reading from Acts describes the inspiration of Peter that led to the Baptism of the Gentiles.

* [11:1–18] The Jewish Christians of Jerusalem were scandalized to learn of Peter’s sojourn in the house of the Gentile Cornelius. Nonetheless, they had to accept the divine directions given to both Peter and Cornelius. They concluded that the setting aside of the legal barriers between Jew and Gentile was an exceptional ordinance of God to indicate that the apostolic kerygma was also to be directed to the Gentiles. Only in Acts 15 at the “Council” in Jerusalem does the evangelization of the Gentiles become the official position of the church leadership in Jerusalem.1 

The psalmist prays that divine attributes lead him back to Jerusalem and ultimately to God’s presence in the Temple.

[42:3] See the face of God: “face” designates a personal presence (Gn 33:10; Ex 10:28–29; 2 Sm 17:11). The expressions “see God/God’s face” occur elsewhere (Ps 11:7; 17:15; cf. Ex 24:10; 33:7–11; Jb 33:26) for the presence of God in the Temple* [43:3] Your light and your fidelity: a pair of divine attributes personified as guides for the pilgrimage. As in Ps 42:9 the psalmist prays that these divine attributes lead him back to Jerusalem and ultimately to God’s presence in the Temple.2 

The Gospel from John declares Jesus as The Good Shepherd bringing fullness of Life.

* [10:7–10] In Jn 10:7–8, the figure is of a gate for the shepherd to come to the sheep; in Jn 10:9–10, the figure is of a gate for the sheep to come in and go out.3 

Nancy Shirley contemplates the confusion and self-centeredness that existed, even at the beginning, regarding who has the right to be saved.

My world was breaking open even more, now I was in school and even friends with many people who were not Catholic yet they were good people.  While I could not then, or even now, imagine my life without Jesus in it, there were people who did and they were not bad people. It was ironic that the first people who knew of Jesus, changed their faith to follow Him and in the beginning could not believe that others would be saved as well.4 

Transforming Christian Muslim Relations.

Don Schwager quotes “Green pastures and still waters,” by Saint Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

"The pastures that this good shepherd has prepared for you, in which he has settled you for you to take your fill, are not various kinds of grasses and green things, among which some are sweet to the taste, some extremely bitter, which as the seasons succeed one another are sometimes there and sometimes not. Your pastures are the words of God and his commandments, and they have all been sown as sweet grasses. These pastures had been tasted by that man who said to God, 'How sweet are your words to my palate, more so than honey and the honeycomb in my mouth!'" (excerpt from Sermon 366,3,1)5 

The Word Among Us Meditation on John 10:1-10 reminds that whatever degree of “life” we experience today, there’s more waiting for us. Thoughts and temptations may try to convince us otherwise, but Jesus is clear. He came to this earth, in fact, so that you would experience rich, overflowing life.

You can know this abundant life in your thoughts. You don’t have to be a slave to negative or critical thoughts. Jesus came so that you might think the best of yourself and other people, even those who have hurt you... You can know abundant life in your words too. Your words can influence the atmosphere around you; they can heal, comfort, encourage, and impart wisdom... Jesus also came so that your actions might flow out of his abundance. The smallest actions—taking soup to a sick friend or mowing a neighbor’s lawn—bear fruit, even if you never see it. When you take a moment to comfort someone, you are bringing Christ, and his abundant life, to them.6  

The reflection of Franciscan Media exhorts that the message of Fatima is simple: Pray.

Unfortunately, some people—not Sister Lucia—have distorted these revelations, making them into an apocalyptic event for which they are now the only reliable interpreters. They have, for example, claimed that Mary’s request that the world be consecrated to her has been ignored. Sister Lucia agreed that Pope John Paul II’s public consecration in St. Peter’s Square on March 25, 1984, fulfilled Mary’s request. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith prepared a June 26, 2000, document explaining the “third secret.”
Mary is perfectly honored when people generously imitate her response “Let it be done to me as you say” (Luke 1:38). Mary can never be seen as a rival to Jesus or to the Church’s teaching authority, as exercised by the college of bishops united with the bishop of Rome.7 

Peter Bannister, author of the e-book “No False Prophet: Pope Francis and his not-so-cultured despisers,” considers the tension here between academic theology’s silence concerning church-approved Marian apparitions with an eschatological dimension such as Fatima, and the way in which the actions of both the present Pontiff and his two immediate predecessors have evidently been shaped by a close attention to private revelation.

This implicit Papal apocalypticism is an area of investigation at the mention of which some readers may well be shuffling their feet nervously. This is fully understandable, yet the documented evidence of Francis’ statements reminds us that any serious attempt to comprehend the strange phenomenon of Jorge Mario Bergoglio and his often not-so-cultured despisers must be open to the question of the Pope’s repeated references to the ‘Three F’s’: Fatima, Faustina and Felsenburgh. They are invitations to commentators, theologians and all interested parties to widen their horizons; the challenge is to do so with charity, sobriety and without emotional hysteria. Bernard Lonergan’s famous methodological watchword remains as relevant (and unfortunately as little-followed) as ever: ‘be attentive, be intelligent, be reasonable, be responsible’.8

Friar Jude Winkler discusses the difficulty Peter experienced after he baptized Cornelius following the prompting of the Holy Spirit. The Good Shepherd is imaged as in Psalm 23 and as the protective sheepgate. Friar Jude connects ministry to the need to watch over our charges.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, shares perspectives on Trinity which have helped form and clarify his thinking. Catherine Mowry LaCugna’s (1952–1997) book, “God for Us: The Trinity and Christian Life,” has helped to make the Trinity once again practical and participative more than mere abstract theology. LaCugna wrote:

The doctrine of the Trinity is ultimately a practical doctrine with radical consequences for Christian life. . . . The doctrine of the Trinity, which is the specifically Christian way of speaking about God, summarizes what it means to participate in the life of God through Jesus Christ in the Spirit. The mystery of God is revealed in Christ and the Spirit as the mystery of love, the mystery of persons in communion who embrace death, sin, and all forms of alienation for the sake of life. Jesus Christ, the visible icon of the invisible God, discloses what it means to be fully personal, divine as well as human. The Spirit of God, poured into our hearts as love (Romans 5:5), gathers us together in the body of Christ, transforming us so that “we become by grace what God is by nature,” namely, persons in full communion with God and with every creature. . . .9 

As we journey with the Good Shepherd, we encounter people within and outside our Tradition who have different understanding and experience of the practice of faith. Our connection to the Trinity opens our lives to being open to all who seek grow in relationship with God.

Table with more information.

Place, Person, Event	More information
Joppa	Joppa appears in the Bible as the name of the Israeli city of Jaffa.
“Council” in Jerusalem	The Council of Jerusalem or Apostolic Council was held in Jerusalem around AD 50.
Don Schwager cites Shepherd texts	Psalm 23:1; Psalm 80:1; Psalm 100:3; Isaiah 40:11; Matthew 18:12; Luke 15:41; Peter 2:25
Anti-Christ figure Julian Felsenburgh.	Robert Hugh Benson’s dystopian [opposite of utopian] fiction The Lord of the World (1907)

References

1	(n.d.). Acts, chapter 11 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved May 13, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/acts/11
2	(n.d.). Psalms, chapter 43 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved May 13, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/psalms/43
3	(n.d.). John, chapter 10 - United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved May 13, 2019, from http://www.usccb.org/bible/john/10
4	(n.d.). Creighton U Daily Reflections - OnlineMinistries - Creighton University. Retrieved May 13, 2019, from http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html
5	(n.d.). Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved May 13, 2019, from https://dailyscripture.servantsoftheword.org/
6	(n.d.). Our Lady of Fatima (Optional Memorial) - Mass Readings and Catholic .... Retrieved May 13, 2019, from https://wau.org/meditations/2019/05/13/
7	(n.d.). Our Lady of Fatima - Franciscan Media. Retrieved May 13, 2019, from https://www.franciscanmedia.org/our-lady-of-fatima/
8	(2016, January 21). Peter Bannister | Thinking Faith: The online journal of the Jesuits in .... Retrieved May 13, 2019, from https://www.thinkingfaith.org/author-article/peter-bannister
9	(2019, May 13). Practical Participation — Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved May 13, 2019, from https://cac.org/practical-participation-2019-05-13/
10	(2016, March 4). What Happened at the 2015 Synod Part N by Fr. Fred Scinto, C.R. .... Retrieved May 13, 2019, from https://resurrectionists.ca/2016-03/what-happened-2015-synod-part-n-fr-fred-scinto-cr

Peace and Prayer to build belief