Communities Conquered with Love

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to consider how our inaction with people in our environment needs adjustment to be opportunities to build community and care with Jesus as our leader.

Care and Community

The Reading from the Acts of the Apostles shares the mission of Paul in Ephesus.

* [19:1–6] Upon his arrival in Ephesus, Paul discovers other people at the same religious stage as Apollos, though they seem to have considered themselves followers of Christ, not of the Baptist. On the relation between baptism and the reception of the Spirit, see note on Acts 8:16. (Acts of the Apostles, CHAPTER 19 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 68 accompanied the early autumn Feast of Tabernacles.

* [Psalm 68] The Psalm is extremely difficult because the Hebrew text is badly preserved and the ceremony that it describes is uncertain. The translation assumes the Psalm accompanied the early autumn Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkoth), which included a procession of the tribes (Ps 68:25–28). Israel was being oppressed by a foreign power, perhaps Egypt (Ps 68:31–32)—unless Egypt stands for any oppressor. The Psalm may have been composed from segments of ancient poems, which would explain why the transitions are implied rather than explicitly stated. At any rate, Ps 68:2 is based on Nm 10:35–36, and Ps 68:8–9 are derived from Jgs 5:4–5. The argument develops in nine stanzas (each of three to five poetic lines): 1. confidence that God will destroy Israel’s enemies (Ps 68:2–4); 2. call to praise God as savior (Ps 68:5–7); 3. God’s initial rescue of Israel from Egypt (Ps 68:8), the Sinai encounter (Ps 68:9), and the settlement in Canaan (Ps 68:10–11); 4. the defeat of the Canaanite kings (Ps 68:12–15); 5. the taking of Jerusalem, where Israel’s God will rule the world (Ps 68:16–19); 6. praise for God’s past help and for the future interventions that will be modeled on the ancient exodus-conquest (Ps 68:20–24); 7. procession at the Feast of Tabernacles (Ps 68:25–28); 8. prayer that the defeated enemies bring tribute to the Temple (Ps 68:29–32); 9. invitation for all kingdoms to praise Israel’s God (Ps 68:33–35). (Psalms, PSALM 68 | USCCB, n.d.)

The text from the Gospel of John concludes Jesus’ Departure.

* [16:30] The reference is seemingly to the fact that Jesus could anticipate their question in Jn 16:19. The disciples naively think they have the full understanding that is the climax of “the hour” of Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension (Jn 16:25), but the only part of the hour that is at hand for them is their share in the passion (Jn 16:32).

* [16:32] You will be scattered: cf. Mk 14:27 and Mt 26:31, where both cite Zec 13:7 about the sheep being dispersed. (John, CHAPTER 16 | USCCB, n.d.)

Eileen Wirth shares her perspective that popes no longer act like kings became beautifully evident during the liturgy when various representatives of the people of God, not just cardinals and clergy, offered their obedience to Pope Leo. Instead of stiffly extending his hand for his genuflecting subjects to kiss his ring like a sovereign, Pope Leo greeted participants with smiles, handshakes and hugs.

World leaders flocked to the Vatican for the funeral of Pope Francis and the installation of Pope Leo out of respect for and possibly fear of this influence. Think, for example, of the impact of St. John Paul II on the fate of communism in Eastern Europe.   Many leaders will disregard the messages about peace, love and prioritizing the needs of people on the margins. But they felt compelled to show up, if only for the photographers.

Now it is up to us, the people of God, to work to implement the pope’s messages. This may take courage, but today’s gospel assures us that we need not be afraid because Christ has conquered the world. (Wirth, 2025)

Don Schwager quotes “In Christ we have peace, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

"When [Jesus] says, 'These things have I spoken to you, that in me you might have peace,' he refers not only to what he has just said but also to what he had said all along, either from the time that he first had disciples, or since the supper, when he began this long and wonderful discourse... He declares this to be the object of his whole discourse, that is, that in him they might have peace. And this peace will have no end but is itself the end of every godly action and intention." (excerpt from TRACTATES ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 104.1.15) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on John 16:29-33 comments that John Paul II continued to proclaim the power of Jesus’ cross and resurrection with conviction and with joy. He was convinced that Jesus had “conquered the world,” and he believed in the depths of his heart that he had a share in that victory (John 16:33). In fact, John Paul became known throughout the world as a champion of hope. People of all cultures and ages were inspired by his words and chose to follow Christ because of him.

“Be not afraid! There is no evil to be faced that Christ does not face with us. There is no enemy that Christ has not already conquered. There is no cross to bear that Christ has not already carried for us and does not bear with us now.”

“Lord, you have conquered the world. Help me to be a champion of hope today!” (Meditation on John 16:29-33, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments on the reception of the Holy Spirit when Paul ministers to the people in Ephesus. In Christian Baptism, we receive the Gifts of the Holy Spirit. The disciples in the Gospel of John declare they believe because He is speaking clearly. Friar Jude reminds us that Jesus, one with the Father, has conquered those who have rejected His Message, the world, by Love presented on the Cross.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, considers how Jesus’ eating habits challenged the religious and cultural norms of his time—and our own.

It’s necessary to calculate very carefully what was lost and what was gained as Christianity developed. The church moved from Jesus’ real meal with open table fellowship to its continuance in the relatively safe ritual meal that became the Christian Eucharist. Unfortunately, the meal itself came to redefine social reality in a negative way, in terms of worthiness and unworthiness.  

That is almost exactly the opposite of Jesus’ intention. To this day, we use Eucharist to define membership in terms of worthy and unworthy. Even if we deny that is our intention, it’s clearly the practical message people hear. Isn’t it strange that sins of marriage and sexuality are the primary ones we use to exclude people from the table, when other sins like greed and hatefulness that cause more public damage are never considered? (Rohr, n.d.)

We implore the Spirit to guide our understanding and action based on Jesus' declaration to us that “He has conquered the world” by love, compassion, and inclusion.

References

Acts of the Apostles, CHAPTER 19 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved June 2, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/acts/19?1 

John, CHAPTER 16 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved June 2, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/16?29 

Meditation on John 16:29-33. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved June 2, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/06/02/1296572/ 

Psalms, PSALM 68 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings.

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Meal-Based Social Action. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved June 2, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/meal-based-social-action/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Peace in Overcoming the World. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved June 2, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=jun2 

Wirth, E. (2025, June 2). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved June 2, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/060225.html 

Covenant and Community

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today, Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, invite us to celebrate and share the joy of our relationship with Christ especially with people to whom we can bring love and support.

Community and Care

The reading from the Prophet Zephaniah, proclaims “Shout for joy, daughter Zion!”

h. [3:14] Zec 9:9.

i. [3:17] Jl 2:27. (Zephaniah, CHAPTER 3 | USCCB, n.d.)

The reading from the Letter of Paul to the Romans celebrates Mutual Love.

f. [12:9] 2 Cor 6:6; 1 Tm 1:5; 1 Pt 1:22 / Am 5:15.

g. [12:10] Jn 13:34; 1 Thes 4:9; 1 Pt 2:17; 2 Pt 1:7 / Phil 2:3.

h. [12:11] Acts 18:25.

i. [12:12] 5:2–3; Col 4:2; 1 Thes 5:17.

j. [12:13] Heb 13:2; 1 Pt 4:9.

k. [12:14–21] Mt 5:38–48; 1 Cor 4:12; 1 Pt 3:9.

l. [12:14] Lk 6:27–28.

m. [12:15] Ps 35:13; Sir 7:34; 1 Cor 12:26.

n. [12:16] 15:5; Phil 2:2–3 / 11:20; Prv 3:7; Is 5:21. (Romans, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB, n.d.)

The response from the Prophet Isaiah expresses Israel’s thanksgiving to the Lord.

* [12:1–6] Israel’s thanksgiving to the Lord, expressed in language like that of the Psalms. (Isaiah, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB, n.d.)

In the Gospel of Luke, Mary’s Visit to Elizabeth is celebrated in the Canticle of Mary known as the Magnificat.

* [1:43] Even before his birth, Jesus is identified in Luke as the Lord.

* [1:45] Blessed are you who believed: Luke portrays Mary as a believer whose faith stands in contrast to the disbelief of Zechariah (Lk 1:20). Mary’s role as believer in the infancy narrative should be seen in connection with the explicit mention of her presence among “those who believed” after the resurrection at the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:14).

* [1:46–55] Although Mary is praised for being the mother of the Lord and because of her belief, she reacts as the servant in a psalm of praise, the Magnificat. Because there is no specific connection of the canticle to the context of Mary’s pregnancy and her visit to Elizabeth, the Magnificat (with the possible exception of v. 48) may have been a Jewish Christian hymn that Luke found appropriate at this point in his story. Even if not composed by Luke, it fits in well with themes found elsewhere in Luke: joy and exultation in the Lord; the lowly being singled out for God’s favor; the reversal of human fortunes; the fulfillment of Old Testament promises. The loose connection between the hymn and the context is further seen in the fact that a few Old Latin manuscripts identify the speaker of the hymn as Elizabeth, even though the overwhelming textual evidence makes Mary the speaker. (Luke, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB, n.d.)

Andy Alexander, S.J. comments that upon hearing that her elderly relative Elizabeth is also pregnant – because nothing is impossible with God – Mary’s first and immediate instinct is to go and help Elizabeth.  Full of grace, and carrying the human expression of God’s dying-to-self love, Mary shows us that when we receive God’s love, the grace will be there to share it with others.  To highlight this central part of our faith, our new Pope, Leo XIV, outlined this movement in his inauguration homily.

Brothers and sisters, I would like that our first great desire be for a united Church, a sign of unity and communion, which becomes a leaven for a reconciled world.

In this our time, we still see too much discord, too many wounds caused by hatred, violence, prejudice, the fear of difference, and an economic paradigm that exploits the Earth’s resources and marginalises the poorest. For our part, we want to be a small leaven of unity, communion and fraternity within the world. We want to say to the world, with humility and joy: Look to Christ! Come closer to him! Welcome his word that enlightens and consoles! Listen to his offer of love and become his one family: in the one Christ, we are one. This is the path to follow together, among ourselves but also with our sister Christian churches, with those who follow other religious paths, with those who are searching for God, with all women and men of good will, in order to build a new world where peace reigns!

This is the missionary spirit that must animate us; not closing ourselves off in our small groups, nor feeling superior to the world.  We are called to offer God’s love to everyone, in order to achieve that unity which does not cancel out differences but values the personal history of each person and the social and religious culture of every people.

Brothers and sisters, this is the hour for love! The heart of the Gospel is the love of God that makes us brothers and sisters. With my predecessor Leo XIII, we can ask ourselves today: If this criterion “were to prevail in the world, would not every conflict cease and peace return?” (Rerum Novarum, 20).

With the light and the strength of the Holy Spirit, let us build a Church founded on God’s love, a sign of unity, a missionary Church that opens its arms to the world, proclaims the word, allows itself to be made “restless” by history, and becomes a leaven of harmony for humanity.

Together, as one people, as brothers and sisters, let us walk towards God and love one another.  [Inauguration homily] (Alexander, n.d.)

Don Schwager quotes “John prophecies from the womb,” by Maximus of Turin (died between 408-423 AD)

"Not yet born, already John prophesies and, while still in the enclosure of his mother's womb, confesses the coming of Christ with movements of joy - since he could not do so with his voice. As Elizabeth says to holy Mary, 'As soon as you greeted me, the child in my womb exulted for joy.' John exults, then, before he is born. Before his eyes can see what the world looks like, he can recognize the Lord of the world with his spirit. In this regard, I think that the prophetic phrase is appropriate: 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you came forth from the womb I sanctified you' (Jeremiah 1:5). Thus we ought not to marvel that after Herod put him in prison, he continued to announce Christ to his disciples from his confinement, when even confined in the womb he preached the same Lord by his movements." (excerpt from SERMON 5.4) (Schwager, n.d.)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 1:39-56 comments that our joy, however, is not something we should hide or keep to ourselves. As Jesus’ followers, our lives should shine with the joy and light of God’s love. Through our demeanor and our actions, we can make that joy readily apparent to everyone we meet. We can bring the light of Christ to a world that often sits in darkness!

On this special feast day, perhaps you could pray the joyful mysteries of the Rosary, or maybe just the second decade, the Visitation. As you do, let the joy so evident in this scene bubble up in your heart. Then “go in haste” to share this joy with all those you encounter today!

“Lord Jesus, help me to shine with the joy I experience in knowing you.” (Meditation on Luke 1:39-56, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments on the joy expressed by Zephaniah to visit Jerusalem ruled by God himself. Paul’s Letter to the Romans speaks of Christian virtues that we see in the reaction of Mary and Elizabeth. Mary set out for the hill country to Ein Kareem outside Jerusalem. Mary celebrates the fact of raising the lowly as the Queen of the anawim, people who but for the grace of God are not going to make it. Mary remains for three months and this refers to a greater sign nearby where David left the Ark for three months. Friar Jude reminds us of the role of Mary as the new Ark of the Covenant.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces indigenous author Sherri Mitchell who describes how we can heal our collective human shadow through compassion and spiritual maturity. There are other times when we meet our shadows with darkness. When this happens, we will simply expand the shadow and create more space for harm to occur. So how do we face the shadows that we see, and make the choice to bring light instead of darkness? How do we get to the place where we are willing to stop blindly lashing out, and end the illusion of war within ourselves and with others? 

We do so by facing ourselves, in every reflection, in every moment, with some degree of compassionate awareness and spiritual maturity. This is the real challenge of our lives…. 

The question is not why we are here, but how we show up most powerfully to meet the times that we are part of. The work that we are required to do is to reconcile the external world that we have created with the inner wisdom that we have acquired. Can we see how we, collectively, have played a role in the reality that is unfolding around us? Can we look at the world that we’ve created and identify our fingerprint in the design?…  

Are we willing to recognize the patterns of harm that we have been involved in, and consciously choose to heal the reverberations of that harm that are unfolding all around us? Will we as a species finally find a way to create a reality of peaceful coexistence, now that we know that failing to do so would be a complete destruction of ourselves? (Rohr, n.d.)

We ask the Spirit to inspire our action to bring loving support to people to celebrate their lives as children of God.

References

Alexander, A. (n.d.). Daily Reflection Of Creighton University's Online Ministries. Creighton University's Online Ministries. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/053125.html 

Isaiah, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/isaiah/12?2 

Luke, CHAPTER 1 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/1?39 

Meditation on Luke 1:39-56. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://wau.org/meditations/2025/05/31/1289960/ 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). Embracing the Shadow: Weekly Summary. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/weekly-summary-embracing-the-shadow/ 

Romans, CHAPTER 12 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/romans/12?9 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Joyful Anticipation of the Messiah. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2025&date=may31a 

Zephaniah, CHAPTER 3 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved May 31, 2025, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/zephaniah/3?14