Sharing the Word – May-26-2019 – Sixth Sunday of Easter, Cycle C.

Sixth Sunday of Easter, Cycle C.Readings: 1st Reading; Acts 15 : 1 – 2, 22 – 29,                Responsorial Psalm; Ps. 66 : 2-3, 5-6, 8                2nd Reading; Apocalypse 21 : 10 – 14, 22 – 23,                Gospel; John 14 : 23 – 29.

In the last paragraph of the second reading, John, still in the Island of Pätmos, where he was cast away to die, says he sees no temple in the New City of Jerusalem since the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb were themselves the temple. The city neither needs “the sun nor the moon for light, since it was lit by the radiant glory of God and the Lamb was a lighted torch for it”. At the time of Jesus’ physical sojourn on this earth, there was only one temple, found in Jerusalem. This was reserved for sacrifices and the synagogues were all over, meant for the teaching of the word. Jesus having offered himself for us as the final sacrifice shows that the hitherto importance of the temple in Jerusalem was reduced. We who have received the Spirit are the new temple and should be the center of sacrifice for God.

n the Gospel of today, we hear Jesus say; ” Peace I bequeath to you, my own peace I give you, a peace the world cannot give, this is my gift to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid” John 14:27. Jesus finally promises to send another advocate, the Holy Spirit who will make us, His followers understand and find peace.

We are often deceived by others with outward signs. Words and actions are sometimes Pharisaical. If actions and words are not matched with the heart, they are all pretenses. It should be the heart that matters. It is not clean fingernails, or clean teeth, or clean skin that makes a person clean in the sight of God. It is not pretentious words or actions either, nor is it keeping the Church doors as close as possible. To be truly clean is to be clean of heart and all other actions will flow without deception. For the heart is what I am deep down. It is the real me. And while we are all capable of deception, a corrupt heart will sooner or later show itself in the face. At the same time, a clean heart, like a clean mountain lake, shines in the face. A mind meant to deceive, does not get the peace Jesus gives in the Gospel of today. It leaves the heart full of fear, in case its real state is known, and so Jesus’ bidding “Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid”, cannot reign in such a heart. While we were children, everything we did wrong in hiding, kept on nagging us that our parents or those we were hiding the act from, would discover. This is the fear that goes on in us when we hide our true selves. We are almost always hiding our true selves and pretending to be what we are not.

Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit who will dispel this fear, as He, Jesus has already made atonement for our sins. However, such fear can only be dispelled if we open up our hearts to receive Him who is the Truth, the Way and the Life.

This Holy Spirit comes to remind us of all things that we may have heard and not understood. He comes also with the light to teach us and make us understand the hidden things around. Every man, woman and child who truly opens up the heart and welcomes the Spirit, receives all the gifts that He brings. Like John on the Island of Patmos, the receiver will be able to see the light that His love brings. When you see the light, you perceive peace of mind. Do you have peace of mind? 

The world’s approach to peace is the avoidance of trouble and refusal to face unpleasant things. Jesus grants peace to His apostles and us as a gift. This peace results from the permanent relationship He offers us through the Holy Spirit. This peace conquers our fears and anxieties. Anxieties that result from hate. So, think seldom of your enemies, as they will rule your way and day, but think often of your friends, and everyday of Jesus. And to spend as much time as you can, with body and with spirit, in God’s out-of-doors.  These are the little signposts on the path of peace. The person who seeks God has already found these signposts. 

Look at your family, your subordinates, your colleagues, your kids, your friends, your neighbours, what kind of peace do you bequeath them? Do you truly wish them peace through your advice and actions? When you leave them physically like Jesus left His apostles, will they be in peace with their relationships and environment? If you selfishly think only about yourself, you are certainly not at peace as you constantly fear that they will someday discover your greedy intentions. As a Christian, you need to truly be yourself, human with shortcomings and efforts to overcome them.

An episode in the Bible brings to mind what makes us not to find the peace which Jesus gives. Jesus once looked at the the Pharisees and said to them: “These men are no better than white-washed tombs: they are clean on the outside, but inside they are full of corruption”. But He looked at Nathanael and said: “Here is a true Israelite, a man in whom there is no trace of deceit”. In, other words, here was a transparent person. Here was a man clean of heart, and therefore, clean all over. I wish Jesus could use the same words to all of us, very present in the Churches, all other days. Only then can we find real peace, otherwise, we remain uncomfortable with all the hidden parts of our daily lives. These hidden parts are those which give us no peace.

A Little Prayer. Lord Jesus, thank You for giving me your peace and your love. Lord, in your peace and  love, my soul finds its rest and perfect end. Lead me where you will, and help me in all my weaknesses to follow and not stay behind. Let the peace which your Spirit of love gives me gently shine out from within me and touch others around me. Amen Have a Blessed Week.

Bobe Talla Toh