May 9, 2010
Sixth Sunday of Easter
By Rev. Joe McCloskey, SJ
“‘…It is the decision of the holy Spirit and of us not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities, namely, to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols, from blood, from meats of strangled animals, and from unlawful marriage. If you keep free of these, you will be doing what is right.’” Acts 15:28-29
The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name--he will teach you everything and remind you of all that (I) told you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. John 14:26-27
Piety
The Last Supper of Christ captures the essence of the message of Christ. The word that rings down through the ages and is echoed in every Eucharist is “Love.” Christ captures our hearts by giving us his Body and his Blood. Christ gives us the perfect example of what love is all about by not holding back. He gives all of self. The totality of self-giving is modeled in Eucharist. The Commandments are “the what” of Love. God makes us free. We love God when we freely return all of ourselves to God. Commandments spell out the how to do it. The question is validly put. “How can you love the God you do not see if you do not love the neighbor you do see?” Love is measured out in how we love our neighbor as our self. Christ says it neatly. “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. The Spirit teaches us how to love and makes our love possible with the 7 gifts; wisdom, knowledge, counsel, understanding, (which are the gifts for the mind) and piety, fortitude and fear of the Lord (which are the gifts of the heart). The interplay of the gifts of the Spirit gives us the fruits of the Spirit which are the makeup of our love for one another.
Study
How we live out our Christianity is taught by the Church. Teachings that do not make sense need to be questioned against the light of the Spirit which is reflected through consulting the Church. It is Christ that we are following. When someone comes along with a teaching that does not fit what we have been taught we need to consult with the apostles and the elders of the church about such questions that trouble our spirit. When the teachings of the Church become too complicated it is important to consult with those who are the teachers recognized by the church by their wisdom and the richness of their experience. The Universal Church is an expression of the many cultures of our world and how the teachings of Christ are best expressed by local cultures. There is simplicity in the teachings of love that asks us to love the people that are and the church has learned through its mistakes and its saints how to express the richness of Christ in the local culture. The enculturation of the Church in local cultures gives expression to the differences in people. How we love one another grows as the relationship to Christ becomes the model of human love turned into God love. The Father and Christ come to us with the Spirit to give us our God life on the local scene.
Action
The sign of the action of the Spirit in our lives is the peace that comes with closeness to Christ. Those that are sent in the name of Christ bring peace by their coming. When authority is misused it destroys the love people are meant to have for one another. How Christ operates in our lives is seen by the growth in the fruits of the Spirit in each of us. How we build up the local Church is seen in how well we work with one another to bring out the best of all of us. Hopefully we have all learned by the mistakes of the past how to honor the good that is done and how to approve of the differences that bring greater freedom and local involvement of people in the Church. Protecting the garments of a frigid climate without appreciation of the local conditions of a hot climate brought death to Trappists who first came to this country from Europe in their mistaken zeal to hold unto garments of a cold climate without making the adaptations that made living possible. There will always be unacceptable forms of the Chinese Rite controversy that ended a birthing Church by making a mockery of what Christ’s love is all about. Forgiveness and love have to kiss if we are to avoid zero tolerance and a terrible injustice done to Christ’s love and forgiveness of the Women taken in adultery. Zero tolerance is a terrible put down on Christ love for people that are trying to change and to grow in love for one another. See how they love one another needs to be a reality of the Church once again. It is love that makes change possible.
