Showing all posts in Biblical Meditations

Following the series on Saint Joan of Arc and two texts from our archive of biblical meditations, I would now like to turn to the reflection on another letter from the New Testament. It is the Letter to the Church in Philippi. It comes from Saint Paul, the beloved Apostle to whom we owe so much regarding the spread of the Gospel. He was an untiring worker in the vineyard of His Lord and even labored more than the other Apostles, as he himself testifies (cf. 1 Cor 15:10).

Since my conversion, I have held this holy Apostle in great affection. Many elements come together that deeply impress me and awaken great gratitude. First, there is his extraordinary conversion—from a persecutor of Christ to a herald of the message of salvation. I am moved by the way he placed his life entirely under the obedience of Christ. Furthermore, through the perseverance he shows in proclaiming the Gospel and building up the churches, he is a great role model. We know from his own words what heavy burdens he had to bear (2 Cor 11:23–27), and we are touched by how great his love for the Lord was, enabling him to endure all this and not give up.

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Mt 11:25-30

At that time Jesus exclaimed, ‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to little children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. ‘Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light.’

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Acts 11:21b-26; 13:1-3

In those days, a great number that believed turned to the Lord. News of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad; and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose; for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a large company was added to the Lord. So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul; and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church, and taught a large company of people; and in Antioch the disciples were for the first time called Christians. Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyre′ne, Man′a-en a member of the court of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. Read More

Joan kept this secret between God and herself, hidden within her as she grew up over the following years. She spoke to no one about it—not to the local priest, nor to her parents or friends. Guided by her saints, she oriented her entire life toward this mission, and little by little, her saints revealed more and more of it to her.

Young Joan was well aware of France’s dire wartime situation, for the Hundred Years’ War between England and France did not spare her village. The political fragmentation of the country, the various warring factions, and the roaming, plundering bands were a constant threat, and there was no prospect of peace. Undoubtedly, this dire situation was the subject of anxious daily conversation among the residents of Domrémy and the surrounding area.

In the course of this war, the English had gradually brought large areas of France under their control. They allied themselves with the French Burgundians, so that the conquest of all of France—and thus its subjugation to the rule of the English king—became increasingly likely.

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According to the traditional calendar, the feast of Saint John Baptist de La Salle is celebrated on May 15, and we will dedicate today’s meditation to him. For this occasion, the following Gospel passage has been chosen:

At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them, and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me.” (Mt 18:1–5)

Here the Lord presents us with two aspects regarding children. First, their simplicity and sincerity. That is the attitude with which we must approach our heavenly Father. In children who still retain their purity, we find a wonderful innocence that willingly receives what we offer them. By living such a relationship with our Father, we become receptive to God’s love, which can be transmitted to us directly. True greatness flows from this, for in the Kingdom of Heaven, the one who loves and serves others is great. If our heart is as open as a child’s, not only do we receive God’s love by the most direct path, but this love also becomes the motivation for action, since love drives us to carry out God’s works. Ultimately, it is the Holy Spirit—the love between the Father and the Son—Who impels us to do good and enlightens our hearts.

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The forty days during which the Risen Lord had instructed His disciples and led them even more deeply into their mission have come to an end. For the Lord, the hour has come to return to His Father in all His glory. He has completed the work He was commissioned to carry out on Earth and has laid the foundation for the message of salvation to be proclaimed throughout the world. Nothing is more important than the fulfillment of the mission the Lord entrusted to His apostles so that all people might come to know the Redeemer of all nations and follow Him. Jesus is the only way to the Father (Jn 14:6).

In recent days, the readings and the Gospel have spoken to us again and again of the Holy Spirit, who is absolutely indispensable for the authentic spread of the Gospel. Without Him, the fire of love would soon be extinguished, and the truth would be replaced by human fables and the deceptions of fallen angels. Today, on the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, we hear the passage from the Acts of the Apostles that recounts this event:

Acts 1:1–12

In the first book, O Theoph′ilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. To them he presented himself alive after his passion by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days, and speaking of the kingdom of God. And while staying with them he charged them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me, for John baptized with water, but before many days you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has fixed by his own authority. 

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Jn 16:12-15

At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.  When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.  He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.  All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

While still on earth with His disciples, the Lord did not entrust everything to them, knowing that the Holy Spirit had to be sent to them first, both to allow them to understand things and to strengthen them to put them into practice.

This is how the Lord guides His Church through time, enabling it to discern His revelation through the Holy Spirit ever more clearly.

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Jn 16:5-11

At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’  But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts. Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convince the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:  concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

Today we hear again one of those statements of the Lord that the disciples had to learn to understand. Their hearts were full of grief, but none of them dared to ask where Jesus was going. Perhaps they were afraid of an answer that would deepen the pain in which they were already immersed.

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Jn 15:26-16:4

At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: When the Counselor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness to me; and you also are witnesses, because you have been with me from the beginning. I have said all this to you to keep you from falling away.  They will put you out of the synagogues; indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God.  And they will do this because they have not known the Father, nor me. But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told you of them.

The Church teaches us that the Holy Spirit is sent by the Father and the Son. As today’s reading suggests, His task is to remind us of what Jesus said and did; that is, to bear witness to Him.

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Today’s Gospel invites us to reflect once again on the Holy Spirit.

Jn 14:15–21

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, to be with you for ever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him; you know him, for he dwells with you, and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans[1]; I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world will see me no more, but you will see me; because I live, you will live also. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. He who has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me; and he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” 

This other Advocate whom the Lord has sent is the Holy Spirit, who dwells within us, enlightens and strengthens us, leads us on the path of sanctification, and inspires the Church to proclaim the Gospel in the right way.

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