Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter
ALL ARE WELCOME
IN THE CHURCH
In full collegiality, the apostles decided at the Council of Jerusalem that the Church is to be open to all without any distinction. All are saved in the same way: through Jesus Christ. God loves all people. That must have been a tremendous challenge for the Jews, to whom pagans were unclean and alien.
Is the Church indeed open to all today? Is there no distinction of color, language, and social class? Is there no discrimination against the poor, against people with a “bad record?” People with long hair, who have different tastes in music, people with shorter sleeves or skirts? What are the things that really matter and that are objects of faith? What makes us stay and live in the love of Christ?
Reading 1: Acts 15:7-21
The apostles and leaders called a special meeting to consider the matter. The arguments went on and on, back and forth, getting more and more heated. Then Peter took the floor: “Friends, you well know that from early on God made it quite plain that he wanted the pagans to hear the Message of this good news and embrace it—and not in any secondhand or roundabout way, but firsthand, straight from my mouth. And God, who can’t be fooled by any pretense on our part but always knows a person’s thoughts, gave them the Holy Spirit exactly as he gave him to us. He treated the outsiders exactly as he treated us, beginning at the very center of who they were and working from that center outward, cleaning up their lives as they trusted and believed him.
10-11 “So why are you now trying to out-god God, loading these new believers down with rules that crushed our ancestors and crushed us, too? Don’t we believe that we are saved because the Master Jesus amazingly and out of sheer generosity moved to save us just as he did those from beyond our nation? So what are we arguing about?”
12-13 There was dead silence. No one said a word. With the room quiet, Barnabas and Paul reported matter-of-factly on the miracles and wonders God had done among the other nations through their ministry. The silence deepened; you could hear a pin drop.
13-18 James broke the silence. “Friends, listen. Simeon has told us the story of how God at the very outset made sure that racial outsiders were included. This is in perfect agreement with the words of the prophets:
After this, I’m coming back;
I’ll rebuild David’s ruined house;
I’ll put all the pieces together again;
I’ll make it look like new
So outsiders who seek will find,
so they’ll have a place to come to,
All the pagan peoples
included in what I’m doing.
“God said it and now he’s doing it. It’s no afterthought; he’s always known he would do this.
19-21 “So here is my decision: We’re not going to unnecessarily burden non-Jewish people who turn to the Master. We’ll write them a letter and tell them, ‘Be careful to not get involved in activities connected with idols, to guard the morality of sex and marriage, to not serve food offensive to Jewish Christians—blood, for instance.’ This is basic wisdom from Moses, preached and honored for centuries now in city after city as we have met and kept the Sabbath.”
Gospel: Jn 15:9-11
“I’ve loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you’ll remain intimately at home in my love. That’s what I’ve done—kept my Father’s commands and made myself at home in his love.
11-15 “I’ve told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I’m no longer calling you servants because servants don’t understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I’ve named you friends because I’ve let you in on everything I’ve heard from the Father.
Prayer
Lord, our God,
you want your Church
to be open to all persons and all nations,
for your Son was available to all
and you love all people.
God, give us open minds
and open hearts.
Save us from our narrow prejudices
and stop us from trying to create people
in our own image and likeness.
We ask you this through Christ, our Lord.
Reflection:
11 May 2022
Jn 15:9-11
Keep hatred and selfishness at a distance
Jesus invited his disciples to love because only by loving would they live life to the full. The love Jesus has for his disciples, derived from the Father, empowers the disciples to love one another. But our experiences in our relationship with others would have taught us that ‘to love’ is not easy because we are often controlled by jealousy, envy, hatred and selfishness.
And we often argue that love cannot be commanded or forced. I can’t force someone to love me! Love and commandments – these two words seem to contradict each other. However, Jesus in today’s Gospel says, “If you want to be in my love, keep my commandments.” Does that imply, ‘If you want to be loved by God, fulfill these requirements?’ Certainly not. Jesus loves us without conditions, but it is our choice whether to accept or reject God’s love.
Therefore, remaining in the love of Jesus is a personal choice. In effect, when we hate others, we dissociate ourselves from God as we reject the love of Jesus. Consider seriously the implications of accepting God’s invitation to love one another as he has loved us.
Learning to love someone without expecting anything is difficult. The task calls for honesty and courage. Love is always a sweet burden, but Jesus already shared that burden with us through the cross and resurrection. The Gospel tells us that the only way to learn to love one another without conditions is by trusting and surrendering to the love of Jesus. Our abiding in Jesus is always a continuous effort.
The early church had its growing pains and even arguments, but as we see in the Acts of the Apostles, compassionate understanding and gentle Christ-like love is the best and only way to settle disagreements, especially in families and in our communities. We are praying these days for peace in the world and a peace that resolves injustice. Let us continue to pray for those parts of our world which suffer wars, hatred and distrust.
In today’s Gospel, the words ‘abiding’ and ‘love’ seem soft, sweet, and gentle, but their implications are frightening. Our hearts must be open to love, compassion, and empathy instead of hatred and selfishness.