Reflecting on the Word…

Jesus the vine gives flower to some very different branches.  Last week we considered Peter, so this week let us turn to Paul.  No one would have suspected that Saul of Tarsus, that “breather of murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord,” would ever become known as “the Apostle to the Gentiles” and one who would refer to himself as both a loving father and mother to the communities he himself tended.  As Peter proved to be a good shepherd of the flock, so Paul was a dedicated worker in the vineyard, tending with such loving care the branches growing from one vine that is Jesus.

     What we see in Paul and hear in his letters is the intímate love of Christ for his church.  Take up any of his letters and you will become engaged with the spirit of Paul as an instrument that communicates the spirit of Christ.  Paul’s letters reveal that many voices he used to preach Christ crucified: the evangelizer and herald, the teacher and witness, the admonishing father and loving midwife, all calling God’s children to be fully alive in Christ.

     Jesus speaks of himself as a vine with many branches, benefitting not only the infinite variety of individuals he called in his own day, but also the many peoples and nations that have come to believe in him.  We pray for all who give themselves over to the work of the vineyard, to all who help others to remain in Christ and bear fruit.

 

                                           ~Living the Word

 

Fifth Sunday of Easter

When Saul arrived in Jerusalem he tried to join the disciples,
but they were all afraid of him,
not believing that he was a disciple.
Then Barnabas took charge of him and brought him to the apostles,
and he reported to them how he had seen the Lord,
and that he had spoken to him,
and how in Damascus he had spoken out boldly in the name of Jesus.
He moved about freely with them in Jerusalem,
and spoke out boldly in the name of the Lord.
He also spoke and debated with the Hellenists,
but they tried to kill him.
And when the brothers learned of this,
they took him down to Caesarea
and sent him on his way to Tarsus.

The church throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria was at peace.
It was being built up and walked in the fear of the Lord,
and with the consolation of the Holy Spirit it grew in numbers.