May 18, 2007 Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter

  2007년 5월 18일 부활 제6주간 금요일

 

 제1독서

 사도행전 18,9-18
[바오로가 코린토에 있을 때], 9 어느 날 밤 주님께서는 환시 속에서 바오로에게 이르셨다. “두려워하지 마라. 잠자코 있지 말고 계속 말하여라. 10 내가 너와 함께 있다. 아무도 너에게 손을 대어 해치지 못할 것이다. 이 도시에는 내 백성이 많기 때문이다.” 11 그리하여 바오로는 일 년 육 개월 동안 그곳에 자리를 잡고 사람들에게 하느님의 말씀을 가르쳤다.
12 그러나 갈리오가 아카이아 지방 총독으로 있을 때, 유다인들이 합심하여 들고일어나 바오로를 재판정으로 끌고 가서, 13 “이자는 법에 어긋나는 방식으로 하느님을 섬기라고 사람들을 부추기고 있습니다.” 하고 말하였다.
14 바오로가 입을 열려고 하는데 갈리오가 유다인들에게 말하였다. “유다인 여러분, 무슨 범죄나 악행이라면 여러분의 고발을 당연히 들어 주겠소. 15 그러나 말이라든지 명칭이라든지 여러분의 율법과 관련된 시비라면, 스스로 알아서 처리하시오. 나는 그런 일에 재판관이 되고 싶지 않소.”
16 그러고 나서 그들을 재판정에서 몰아내었다. 17 그러자 모두 회당장 소스테네스를 붙잡아 재판정 앞에서 매질하였다. 그러나 갈리오는 그 일에 아무런 관심도 두지 않았다.
18 바오로는 한동안 그곳에 더 머물렀다가, 형제들과 작별하고 프리스킬라와 아퀼라와 함께 배를 타고 시리아로 갔다. 바오로는 서원한 일이 있었으므로, 떠나기 전에 켕크레애에서 머리를 깎았다

  

 복음

 요한 16,20-23ㄱ
그때에 예수님께서 제자들에게 말씀하셨다.
20 “내가 진실로 진실로 너희에게 말한다. 너희는 울며 애통해하겠지만 세상은 기뻐할 것이다. 너희가 근심하겠지만, 그러나 너희의 근심은 기쁨으로 바뀔 것이다.
21 해산할 때에 여자는 근심에 싸인다. 진통의 시간이 왔기 때문이다. 그러나 아이를 낳으면, 사람 하나가 이 세상에 태어났다는 기쁨으로 그 고통을 잊어버린다.
22 이처럼 너희도 지금은 근심에 싸여 있다. 그러나 내가 너희를 다시 보게 되면 너희 마음이 기뻐할 것이고, 그 기쁨을 아무도 너희에게서 빼앗지 못할 것이다. 23 그날에는 너희가 나에게 아무것도 묻지 않을 것이다.”

 

 

 

 May 18, 2007

 Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter

 Reading 1
Acts 18:9-18

One night while Paul was in Corinth, the Lord said to him in a vision,
“Do not be afraid.
Go on speaking, and do not be silent, for I am with you.
No one will attack and harm you,
for I have many people in this city.”
He settled there for a year and a half
and taught the word of God among them.

But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia,
the Jews rose up together against Paul
and brought him to the tribunal, saying,
“This man is inducing people to worship God contrary to the law.”
When Paul was about to reply, Gallio spoke to the Jews,
“If it were a matter of some crime or malicious fraud,
I should with reason hear the complaint of you Jews;
but since it is a question of arguments over doctrine and titles
and your own law, see to it yourselves.
I do not wish to be a judge of such matters.”
And he drove them away from the tribunal.
They all seized Sosthenes, the synagogue official,
and beat him in full view of the tribunal.
But none of this was of concern to Gallio.

Paul remained for quite some time,
and after saying farewell to the brothers he sailed for Syria,
together with Priscilla and Aquila.
At Cenchreae he had shaved his head because he had taken a vow.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 47:2-3, 4-5, 6-7

R. (8a) God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
All you peoples, clap your hands,
shout to God with cries of gladness,
For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome,
is the great king over all the earth.
R. God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He brings people under us;
nations under our feet.
He chooses for us our inheritance,
the glory of Jacob, whom he loves.
R. God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
God mounts his throne amid shouts of joy;
the LORD, amid trumpet blasts.
Sing praise to God, sing praise;
sing praise to our king, sing praise.
R. God is king of all the earth.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Gospel
Jn 16:20-23

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn,
while the world rejoices;
you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.
When a woman is in labor, she is in anguish because her hour has arrived;
but when she has given birth to a child,
she no longer remembers the pain because of her joy
that a child has been born into the world.
So you also are now in anguish.
But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice,
and no one will take your joy away from you.
On that day you will not question me about anything.
Amen, amen, I say to you,
whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.”

 

 

 Commentary

 

 Paul is given a dream to stay in Corinth and he will be safe. And he stays, preaching for a year and a half. But then the Jews want him out, he is defended by the proconsul and fighting breaks out among the Jews. When he leaves, he takes with him Priscilla and Aquila. And we are given a snippet of information that he shaves his head because of a vow (private devotion). The church is living and growing and the gospel has Jesus teaching us that life is filled with weeping/mourning and rejoicing. Life in the church, in the Spirit, in the baptized, is like a woman giving birth-hard labor, pain, but incredible joy at what is brought forth. And the child is born.

 

 

 In today’s readings, Acts of the Apostles (18:9-18) describes how the Lord protected Paul throughout his teaching of the word of God in Corinth. The Responsorial Psalm (47:2-3, 4-5, 6-7) reminds us that “God is king of all the earth” and worthy of our praises. And, the Gospel of John (16:20-23) describes Jesus’ teaching to the apostles that they will grieve his absence, but they will see him again. Jesus promises His followers that “whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.” The messages in the readings reinforce the power of God and the presence in heaven of our advocate Jesus.

There a number of directions that I could go with today’s readings, but because our daughter is due to deliver her first child in early June, I keep coming back to the following passage from John, as he quotes Jesus:

“When a woman is in labor, she is in anguish because her hour has arrived;
But when she has given birth to a child,
She no longer remembers the pain because of her joy
That a child has been born into the world.”

Two lines of thinking come to mind as I have read, and re-read this quote.

First, a woman’s body is capable of delivering, but the process of delivery is usually not without the kind of pain that Jesus mentions in the preceding quote. In addition, I know that complications can occur during labor and delivery that have consequences for mother and/or child. Thus, for the modern parent (and grandparent), there can be pain and too much knowledge in terms of possible adverse consequences.

My Good Friday reflection was about trusting God, and although my intention was not to write about a previous theme, trusting God seems particularly important for me and for our family, at this moment. I pray each day for our daughter and the child she is carrying, for a safe delivery, and for a happy, healthy child. I am really not worrying about the remainder of her pregnancy, the delivery, or the outcome. I know that I can trust God to take care of both mother and child during labor and delivery, and we will be there to help. As with Good Friday, my prayer continues, “God, you have taken such good care of me and my loved ones in the past; I am trusting that you will continue such good works as you have previously performed. You work so very hard to convince me that all will be well, and I will believe that you are with me and with my loved ones.”

Second, part of my teaching load each semester centers around human development from conception to late adolescence. If nothing else is gained from the course, I want students to come away with a profound sense of awe at the miracle of human conception, gestation, birth, and life-long development. Much of what I teach can be reduced to scientific fact, but there is a dimension that for me defies any science and leaves me in complete wonder. I have that profound sense of awe as I look at the-little-girl-turned-mother-to-be whose birth I witnessed and who has been the source of joy for thirty years. God has taken such good care of her in the past; I am trusting that our Lord will continue such good works as have previously been performed. I cannot wait to meet our granddaughter. I will write about her next fall when I return from the summer and have my feet back on the ground.

 

 by
Tim Dickel
Education Department

 

 

 In the Irish language there are two different verbs for ‘ask’.  If you are asking a question, the word is ‘fiafraím’; if you are asking for anything else (for help, for example), it is ‘iarraim’.  It is the same with the final verse of today’s reading.  Two different Greek verbs are translated as ‘ask’. one, ‘erotao’, is used for asking questions; the other, ‘aiteo’, usually refers to petitions.  It is not as watertight a distinction as in Irish, but the idea is the same. 

‘On that day you will ask (erotao) nothing of me.  Very truly, I tell you, if you ask (aiteo) anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.’  Paraphrasing this we could say, ‘When you  see me again you won't be full of questions, you will be doing something: you will be interceding with the Father in my presence.’ 

Any teacher in any school will tell you how quickly a religion class disintegrates into a debating society.  It is much easier to talk about something than to take it to heart or to do it.  Talking is often a substitute for doing. 

A 19th century British Prime Minister, William Lamb, once famously remarked, on hearing an evangelical sermon, “Things have come to a pretty pass when religion is allowed to invade the sphere of private life.”  one way to avoid the challenge of religion is to keep it out there in the public sphere, along with ceremonies like the Changing of the Guard.  Another very successful way, paradoxically, is just the opposite, and it seems to be the preferred one today: make it so private that you no more need to give an account of it than you need to tell everyone about your circulation or your digestion. 

But the Faith is something you do in the first place, and afterwards talk about if you must.  ‘I'd rather see a sermon than hear one any day.’  An adherence to the Faith that is not also an adherence to prayer  -  Liturgy and informal prayer  -  and to service of others, is only talk.  Oscar Wilde said that talking was the only form of exercise he ever took.  Spoken like a Christian!

 

 

"No one will take your joy from you"

 

Why does Jesus tell his disciples to weep and lament and be sorrowful?  Jesus was neither a pessimist nor a masochist, and he was certainly more than a realist!  The way to happiness and joy in the kingdom of God is through the cross.  Sin must be brought to the cross of Jesus Christ and evil can only be completely mastered by the power of God's redeeming love. Jesus told his disciples that it was more blessed to mourn for sin because it would yield the fruit of peace, joy, and righteousness. Jesus knew that the cross would be a stumbling block for those who refused to believe in him.  The cross for Jesus was not defeat but victory — victory over sin, over the forces of evil in the world, and over the devil — the arch- enemy of God and humankind.  Through death on the cross Jesus won for us new life and freedom over the power of sin, despair, and death. The Easter victory of Jesus teaches us courage in the face of suffering and death.  In the resurrection of Christ our fears are laid to rest.  His resurrection is total, final triumph, and for us peace and joy at the end.  We will have troubles in the present reality.  Through the eyes of faith, we know the final outcome -- complete victory over sin, suffering, and death in Jesus Christ.  That is why we can pray confidently now, knowing that the Father will give us everything we need to live as his children and as disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Do you know the Easter joy of Christ's victory over sin and death?

"Lord, we are an Easter people, and alleluia is our song.  May we radiate the joy of Easter and live in the reality of Christ's victory over sin and death."

Psalm 47:2-7

2 For the LORD, the Most High, is terrible, a great king over all the earth.
3 He subdued peoples under us, and nations under our feet.
4 He chose our heritage for us, the pride of Jacob whom he loves. [Selah]
5 God has gone up with a shout, the LORD with the sound of a trumpet.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises!
7 For God is the king of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm!

 

 

 ASKING IN JESUS' NAME

'I give you My assurance, whatever you ask the Father, He will give you in My name.' John 16:23

At the Last Supper, when Jesus spoke the words above, the apostles had not yet asked for anything in Jesus' name (Jn 16:24). They had asked for plenty of things, such as sitting at Jesus' right and left hand (Mk 10:37), permission to send down fire from heaven on some Samaritans (Lk 9:54), and even for an estimate on how many people would be saved (Lk 13:23). They didn't receive because they asked to satisfy their own desires or curiosity (Jas 4:3), rather than asking for what Jesus wanted to give them, which is the meaning of asking in Jesus' name.

The apostles asked Jesus to teach them how to pray (Lk 11:1). This was what Jesus wanted, and so He taught them the greatest prayer, the 'Our Father' (Lk 11:2-4). They asked Jesus to increase their faith (Lk 17:5). Jesus also wanted this, and so they received faith great enough to lay down their lives in martyrdom for His name.

To ask in Jesus' name means that we don't ask in our own name, for that prayer is centered on ourselves. If we ask in Jesus' name, our prayer is centered on the glory of His name and the desires of His heart. The Father's heart is set on fathering us and providing for our needs, so we don't have to spend much time asking for what He already plans to give us. This frees us to ask in Jesus' name for the Father's will to be done in the world.

Praise: In answer to Jesus' Last Supper prayer that 'we all be one,' Pope St. John I worked to heal the schism between the East and West.
Prayer: Jesus, on this first day of the Pentecost Novena, I ask for a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit for all who read this page.
Promise: 'Do not be afraid. Go on speaking and do not be silenced, for I am with you.' Acts 18:9-10

 

 

«Your sorrow will turn to joy»

Today we begin the Decad of the Holy Spirit. Reliving the memory of Cenacle, we see the Virgin Mary, Mother of God, Mother of Good Counsel, talking with the Apostles. What a warm and brimful conversation! Recalling all the joys they shared with their Master. The Paschal days, the Ascension and Jesus' promises. The sufferings of the Passion days have turned into joy. What a nice atmosphere at the Cenacle! And what is yet to come, as Jesus has told them.

We now know that Mary, Queen of the Apostles, Spouse of the Holy Spirit, Mother of the raising Church, guide us to receive the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit. The gifts are like a boat's sails when unfurled and the wind —representing the grace— blowing in favor: what a speed and easiness of the course!

The Lord has also promised us to transform into joy the hardship of our journey: «And no one will take your joy from you» (Jn 16:22) and «your joy will be complete» (Jn 16:24). And in Psalm 126:6: «Those who go forth weeping, carrying sacks of seed, will return with cries of joy, carrying their bundled sheaves».

All this week the Liturgy speaks of revitalizing, of exulting (jumping with joy), of an eternal and certain happiness. Everything leads us to live in prayer. As St. Josemaria says: «I want you to be always contented, because joy is an integral part of your life —Implore this supernatural joy for everybody».

Human beings need to laugh both for their physical and spiritual health. Healthy humor teaches us how to live. St. Paul will say: «And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God» (Rm 8:28). And here you have a good jaculatory prayer!: «It's all unto good»; «Omnia in bonum!».
 

 

 In yesterday’s first reading, we saw that Paul left Athens in a spirit of dejection.   Wise Athens had proved foolish.  He went down to Corinth, about thirty miles south of Athens.    Corinth was “sin city” of the ancient world.    It was a seaport town with all the sins of seaports.   In common slang, “Corinthians’ disease” was venereal disease; a “Corinthianess” was a prostitute.   You get the idea.   After the disaster in using rhetoric and eloquence at Athens, Paul had resolved to preach only the crucified Christ.   He turned to the Gentile sinners at Corinth.  But the Holy Spirit tells him not to be afraid, that there are many believers in Corinth.   Through God’s grace, Corinth became a flourishing Church.   There is an old Latin saying: “Corruptio optimi pessimum; conversio pessimi optimum.”  – The corruption of the best becomes the worst; the conversion of the worst becomes the best.”   Evil Corinth will eventually become holy Corinth.   There is hope for all.

Also St. John I   (+526 A.D.)
   He was elected pope when he was old and sickly.   He was forced to go to  Constantinople by the Arian co-emperor Theodoric.   Theodoric wanted him to give toleration to Arians.  When John returned to the West, Theodoric had him imprisoned where he died.

 

 

 Pray opens up many levels of consciousness.  The Spirit holds us in joy in the deep levels of our union through Jesus with the Father.  But at other levels we are not exempt from the sorrows that come from trials.  Our Gospel vision might add to our mourning because we see as the world does not see.  The world can rejoice over its triumphs and accomplishments, but we see that so much of the triumph is short-lived or really does not answer the deep needs of humanity.  Right then we are like a mother who experiences the pain of childbirth.  God then grants us in our prayer life deep joy as a mother who experiences the birth of her child.  We turn to the Father in Jesus' name, and gazing upon the face of the Father in the Son we experience the joy of the Holy Spirit.  No one can take that away.  And more, it is a guarantee, a down payment to eternal joy.