Reading 1
Acts 15:1-6
Some who had come down from Judea were instructing the brothers,
“Unless you are circumcised according to the Mosaic practice,
you cannot be saved.”
Because there arose no little dissension and debate
by Paul and Barnabas with them,
it was decided that Paul, Barnabas, and some of the others
should go up to Jerusalem to the Apostles and presbyters
about this question.
They were sent on their journey by the Church,
and passed through Phoenicia and Samaria
telling of the conversion of the Gentiles,
and brought great joy to all the brethren.
When they arrived in Jerusalem,
they were welcomed by the Church,
as well as by the Apostles and the presbyters,
and they reported what God had done with them.
But some from the party of the Pharisees who had become believers
stood up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them
and direct them to observe the Mosaic law.”
The Apostles and the presbyters met together to see about this matter.
122:1-2, 3-4ab, 4cd-5
Responsorial Psalm R. (see 1)
Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
I rejoiced because they said to me,
“We will go up to the house of the LORD.”
And now we have set foot
within your gates, O Jerusalem.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Jerusalem, built as a city
with compact unity.
To it the tribes go up,
the tribes of the LORD.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
According to the decree for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the LORD.
In it are set up judgment seats,
seats for the house of David.
R. Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Gospel
Jn 15:1-8
Jesus said to his disciples:
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower.
He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit,
and everyone that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit.
You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you.
Remain in me, as I remain in you.
Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own
unless it remains on the vine,
so neither can you unless you remain in me.
I am the vine, you are the branches.
Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit,
because without me you can do nothing.
Anyone who does not remain in me
will be thrown out like a branch and wither;
people will gather them and throw them into a fire
and they will be burned.
If you remain in me and my words remain in you,
ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you.
By this is my Father glorified,
that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.”
Meditation: John 15:1-8
“He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit.” (John 15:2)
Ah, the parable of the vine and the branches! Who doesn’t derive some sense of comfort from Jesus’ words in this passage? Who doesn’t get a feeling of reassurance when they read that Jesus invites them to remain in him?
But there is another side to these verses that can sound ominous: Jesus wants to prune us. He wants to strip away those parts of our lives that do not bear fruit for him. This can be a frightening thought, especially when we stop to consider how many times we say “no” to the Lord in the course of a week, or even a day.
If this sounds like you, don’t worry! Remember: Jesus told his disciples, and he tells you today: “You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you” (John 15:3). Washed clean in the waters of baptism, we are already forgiven. We are already justified. We are already citizens of heaven! All that remains is for us to embrace our citizenship more fully and ask Jesus to reign over more and more areas in our hearts.
Think of the disciples. They had been with Jesus for three whole years, and still they needed some pruning. Matthew the tax collector had already given up his cheating ways. Mary Magdalene had already been delivered of seven demons. And James and John had already had to deal with their desire to be given special seats in Jesus’ kingdom.
No matter what had already been pruned from these disciples’ lives, there was still more to come. Peter would still deny knowing the Lord three times. All the disciples would run away at Jesus’ arrest. And Thomas would refuse to believe his brothers and sisters that Jesus had risen from the dead.
Jesus knew all this was going to happen, and still he entrusted his church to these fallible men and women. And he entrusts it to us today. So don’t worry about the pruning that is still to come. Just remember that Jesus always welcomes you. He believes in you, even when you don’t believe in yourself. He has already accepted you into his kingdom. All he wants to do now is make you more and more fruitful!
“Jesus, I am so grateful for your love and mercy. Help me to remain in you, Lord, so that I can become more and more pure!”
No comments:
Post a Comment