BIBLE STUDY #45
SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
June 5, 2011


Reading 1 Acts 1:12-14

After Jesus had been taken up to heaven the apostles
returned to Jerusalem
from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem,
a sabbath day’s journey away.

When they entered the city
they went to the upper room where they were staying,
Peter and John and James and Andrew,
Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew,
James son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot,
and Judas son of James.
All these devoted themselves with one accord to prayer,
together with some women,
and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.

The Word of the Lord

Reading II 1 Pt 4:13-16

Beloved:
Rejoice to the extent that you share in the sufferings of Christ,
so that when his glory is revealed
you may also rejoice exultantly.
If you are insulted for the name of Christ, blessed are you,
for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.
But let no one among you be made to suffer
as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as an intriguer.
But whoever is made to suffer as a Christian should not be ashamed
but glorify God because of the name.

The Word of the Lord

Gospel Jn 17:1-11a

Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said,
“Father, the hour has come.
Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you,
just as you gave him authority over all people,
so that your son may give eternal life to all you gave him.
Now this is eternal life,
that they should know you, the only true God,
and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ.
I glorified you on earth
by accomplishing the work that you gave me to do.
Now glorify me, Father, with you,
with the glory that I had with you before the world began.

“I revealed your name to those whom you gave me out of the world.
They belonged to you, and you gave them to me,
and they have kept your word.
Now they know that everything you gave me is from you,
because the words you gave to me I have given to them,
and they accepted them and truly understood that I came from you,
and they have believed that you sent me.
I pray for them.
I do not pray for the world but for the ones you have given me,
because they are yours, and everything of mine is yours
and everything of yours is mine,
and I have been glorified in them.
And now I will no longer be in the world,
but they are in the world, while I am coming to you.”

The Gospel of the Lord

Reflection

Today we have part of the Prayer of Jesus, also called the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus. This prayer takes place immediately prior to Jesus’ arrest. He is about to die, and he prays to the Father for himself and for us. The end of this prayer, not included today, Jesus prays for all those who follow him because of the efforts of his followers.

He begins by stating that his ‘hour’ has come. What is this hour? It’s not a particular time, but an event – the saving event of his passion, death, and resurrection. In John’s gospel, this hour is glory, it is source and summit of his life, the purpose and the end result of the incarnation, the reason why his Father sent him.

The Father glorifies the Son through the Sons’ passion, death and resurrection, and the Son glorifies the Father through his obedience and being that connection to God that reveals the will of the Father. Jesus doesn’t let anyone or anything deflect him from his mission.

The purpose of this glory, this hour, is so “that your son may give eternal life to all you gave him. Eternal life is described as knowing God, which means that we have a relationship with the Father and the Son; we share in the intimate relationship between the Father and the Son. It is more than knowing things about the Father and the Son, it is about having an experience of the risen Christ who brings the Father to us. Jesus saving actions forgives our sins, conquers death, and brings the indwelling of the trinity to those with faith.

Notice that Jesus’ glory is about suffering, not glory as the world sees it. Jesus glory is not about praise, or honor, or riches or adulation; it is about being faithful to God’s will, no matter the suffering. It is about being a witness to God’s love regardless of how it is received by others.

Why does Jesus pray for us? For 3 reasons: 1) we are precious to Jesus because the Father has given us to him; 2) because we acknowledge Jesus for who he is; and 3) he is concerned about our welfare after he ascends to his Father.

Jesus knows that living a life dedicated to God’s will is not easy. We are pulled in many directions and we often fail. It is not easy to sacrifice in a world that is self indulgent; or to be forgiving in a world that demands vengeance; or to love in a world that can be hateful.

We don’t talk much nowadays about living a virtuous life. According to paragraph 1833 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “Virtue is a habitual and firm disposition to do good.” It is both reason and faith that help us be virtuous. God gave us all a conscience, and we know when we have done wrong. We feel guilty, for example, when we have hurt someone: no one needs to tell us that it is wrong to do this. Our faith teaches us such virtues such as morals, faith, hope and love.

When we look at what it takes to be a disciple, no wonder Jesus prays for us! How are we supposed to do all these things on our own? The answer is: we can’t. We need prayer to not only persevere, but to grow in faith.

In Acts of the Apostles, right before Jesus ascends to heaven, he tells his disciples that he will send the Holy Spirit and they will be his witnesses. Until that time, our first reading has the disciples return to Jerusalem and gather in prayer. It is the beginning of a good habit: they will need prayer many times during their ministry. They will gather weekly for the breaking of the bread and will depend on the power of the Holy Spirit to guide, lead, inspire and direct them.

If we are to be true disciples, we need to be people of prayer and sacraments. We need to devote ourselves to a minimum of weekly mass, daily prayer and occasional confession (the quickest way to lapse in our faith is to assure ourselves that we don’t sin or need God’s forgiveness). If we think that we can get away with anything less then we are fooling ourselves. If we try to do less there will come a time when our spiritual lives will founder, God will seem far away and we will be tempted to give up the Christian life.

But be warned: following Jesus may lead to suffering. Peter warns us in the second reading, “Rejoice to the extent that you share in the sufferings of Christ.” Christ has given us the job of continuing his mission and ministry. If he suffered and was persecuted, can we expect less?

In this country, we don’t expect to suffer physically for our faith, but there are plenty of other types of suffering that can sometimes be worse. Do we stand up for our catholic values when questioned? Do people even know that we are catholic and affiliated with a church? Do we go out of our way to attend mass and pray? Or are these things dropped when it is inconvenient? On vacation do we look for a church on Sunday or make excuses? Are we Catholics when it is convenient or do we continually practice our faith?

Personally, when our Church is ridiculed in the media, I take it as a badge of honor. It is said that anti-Catholicism is the last acceptable prejudice. We must be doing something right! I would worry more if we went unnoticed in secular society. I hope we can continue to be the conscience of our culture, regardless of the cost.

Jesus prayed for you to remain faithful, and I do the same. I pray that you may open your hearts to the forgiving, life giving, healing, and saving presence of the Lord and to let the Holy Spirit guide, nurture, inspire, and direct you to be virtuous people. Whatever it costs, the Lord is worth it. God will not be outdone in generosity. Please pray for me, too.



Fr. Phil