Year C – 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

On Loving thy Neighbour

(Deut.30:10-14; Col.1:15-20; Lk.10:25-37)

Over the last fortnight our Gospel readings have come from St Luke’s story of Jesus’ ‘Great Journey’ to Jerusalem, and a central theme has been the art of Christian discipleship. 

Two weeks ago, when he began his journey, Jesus told his disciples to be strong, to be prepared to embrace humility and discomfort, and to leave everything behind as they follow him.

Last week, when he sent 72 disciples out as missionaries, Jesus told them to travel light, to live simply, to be people of peace, and to engage deeply with the people they meet, by living as they do.

Today, Jesus tells us more about what it means to be a good disciple, by giving us the Parable of the Good Samaritan and his golden rule: to ‘Love your neighbour as yourself’.  One interesting point about this famous commandment is that most of the world’s cultures and religions share this same rule. They might express it differently, but Jews, Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims all agree that you should love your neighbour as yourself.

If it’s so widely accepted, then why did Jesus present this rule as something new?  It’s because he gave it new meaning.  The truth is that many cultures and religions define the word ‘neighbour’ very differently.

In Jesus’ time the Jewish sect, the Essenes of Qumran, believed that only those with the same religious beliefs could be their neighbour.  Another Jewish group, the Zealots, only accepted people as neighbours if they shared their nationality and ethnicity.

So, the Jews didn’t accept the Samaritans as their neighbours. They feared they might be contaminated by them, even if their shadows touched.  They had a real sense of ‘us’ and ‘them’.

What Jesus is trying to teach us in today’s Parable of the Good Samaritan is that all of humanity is one big neighbourhood.  We’re all neighbours, regardless of any differences we might have.

St Catherine of Genoa was an aristocratic woman who lived in the 15th Century.  After her husband went bankrupt, she started working in a poor hospital.  She once prayed, ‘Lord, you say I should love my neighbour, but I can love no one but you’. 

But God replied to her, saying, ‘Everybody who loves me loves what I love’.  What he means here is that if God loves everyone, no matter what, then we should do the same.

So, who is my neighbour?  Anyone and everyone, without exception.

One thing that sets saints apart is the way they’re prepared to suffer the pain of profound love for their neighbours.

In today’s parable, we can see that Jesus is the Good Samaritan who goes out of his way to help the wounded man.  At the same time, however, he’s also the wounded man lying in the street.  We know that because in Matthew 25:40, 35,  Jesus says that whatever ‘you did to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did to me …’ 

Learning to love isn’t always easy.  As so many of us know, it can be painful.  For those who have never really loved, it’s like exercising a muscle you’ve never used.  It can hurt.  But with practice it gets stronger and loving gets easier.  

One thing that sets saints apart is the way they’re prepared to suffer the pain of profound love for their neighbours.  St Vincent de Paul used to say that we should pray continually that God may give us the spirit of compassion which is truly the spirit of God.

The Polish St Maria Faustina Kowalska did just that.  She was completely devoted to God’s loving Mercy, and used to pray, ‘… O Lord, may the greatest of all divine attributes, that of your unfathomable mercy, pass through my heart and soul to my neighbour’.  

She prayed, ‘Help me, O Lord, that my eyes may be merciful, so that I may never …  judge from appearances …  Help me, that my ears may be merciful, so that I may listen to my neighbour’s needs …  Help me, that my tongue may be merciful, so that I should never speak negatively of my neighbour …  Help me, that my hands may be merciful and filled with good deeds …  Help me, that my feet may be merciful, so that I may hurry to assist my neighbour … and help me, O Lord, that my heart may be merciful so that I myself may feel all the sufferings of my neighbour…  O my Jesus, transform me into yourself, for you can do all things.’ 

May we all go and do the same.

Year C – Corpus Christi

On the Real Presence

(Gen.14:18-20; 1Cor.11:23–26; Lk.9:11-17)

Today, on Corpus Christi Sunday, we celebrate the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.  Pope Urban IV established this feast in 1264, shortly after a Eucharistic miracle occurred at Bolsena in Italy.

In 1263, a pilgrim priest travelling from Prague to Rome stopped at Bolsena to say Mass.  He’d been having doubts about his calling and had asked God to strengthen his faith.  During the consecration, when he raised the host up high, it started to bleed onto the altar cloth.  Today that blood-stained cloth is kept in the Cathedral in Orvieto.  I saw it in 2008.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus says ‘My flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I live in him’ (Jn.6:55-56).  He’s not speaking figuratively. He’s not speaking metaphorically. He’s speaking literally.

The Jews couldn’t understand it (Jn.6:60), and many people today can’t understand it either.  For how can the bread and wine at Communion possibly be the body and blood of Christ?  It doesn’t look any different.

Well, to teach us what really happens and to encourage our faith, every now and then God sends us a Eucharistic miracle.  Over the years there have been dozens of them, across 22 countries. [i] 

In their book ‘Unseen’ (2013), Ron Tesoriero and Lee Han explain three of these miracles. [ii]  The first was in 1996, in Buenos Aires, when Pope Francis was a bishop.  A priest found a host in a candle-stand.  He put the host in a bowl of water to dissolve it, and then he placed it in the tabernacle.  Eight days later the host had turned red, with something like blood oozing from it.

Pope Francis asked for photos and in 2004 a sample was sent to New York for forensic examination.  Several scientists investigated it, without knowing where it came from.

They identified the red substance as human heart tissue.  The presence of white blood cells indicated that the heart had suffered trauma.  It also indicated that the person was alive when the heart tissue was collected.

The second Eucharistic miracle was in 2008, in Sokolka, Poland.  A consecrated host was accidentally dropped at Mass.  It was also placed in water and locked in a safe.

Days later, a nun found that the host had developed a red mark on it.  It was sent for analysis, and again they found human heart tissue. The damaged myocardial fibres indicated that that heart had suffered agony in the form of painful spasms, and again the tissue was from a live heart.

The third miracle was in Lanciano, Italy, in 750 AD.  As the priest consecrated the bread and wine at Mass, they literally turned into flesh and blood. That flesh and blood are still there today in a reliquary in the Church of St. Legontian.

In 1971, these relics were examined by scientists at the Arezzo Hospital and the University of Siena.  These specimens, over 1200 years old, were still fresh.  The investigators found heart tissue, as well as the rare blood type AB.  

Interestingly, the NASA scientists who tested the Shroud of Turin in 1978 also found blood type AB.

When Jesus says, ‘This is my body, this is my blood’, he’s not kidding.  He’s literally giving us his Sacred Heart.  He’s giving us himself.

St Thomas Aquinas taught that when we approach the Eucharist, four of our five senses fail us.  He said that what we receive at Communion looks, smells, feels and tastes like ordinary unleavened bread.  But clearly it’s not.

At that moment, he said, we can only trust one of our senses: our hearing.  That’s when we believe Jesus when he says, ‘this is my body, this is my blood’. 

In John chapter 6, Jesus tells us thirteen times that we must eat his flesh and drink his blood.  He also says ‘whoever eats me will draw life from me (and) … anyone who eats this bread will live forever’ (Jn.6:57-58).

Now, as Christians we don’t have to believe in miracles – not even when they’re officially recognised.  We’re free to make up our own minds.  But Jesus does want us to have faith.  That’s why he encourages us with these signs.

Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist.  He’s right here, right now, offering us his love, his healing and his Real Presence. 

Jesus is always here for us when we come to Mass.


[i] http://www.therealpresence.org/eucharst/mir/engl_mir.htm

[ii] Ron Tesoriero & Lee Han, Unseen.  Published by Ron Tesoriero, Kincumber: 2013.

Year C – Trinity Sunday

On the Union of Love

(Prov.8:22-31; Rom.5:1-5; Jn.16:12-15)

Some people love a good mystery.  Pope Leo XIII once said that the greatest mystery of all is the Holy Trinity, for how can one God possibly be made up of three divine persons?

The only reason we know about the Trinity is because God told us about it himself.  The Bible doesn’t use the word ‘Trinity’, but its meaning is clearly there.  The Bible often refers to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit – the three persons in one God.

At Pentecost, Jesus said to his disciples, ‘if you love me, you’ll keep my commandments, and I’ll ask the Father, and he’ll give you another Advocate (the Holy Spirit) to be with you always’ (Jn.14:15).  

Jesus also told his apostles to go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (Mt.28:19).

Jesus often spoke about his Father and the Spirit, but he didn’t say everything.  In today’s Gospel, he says he has much more to say, but it’s too much for his disciples. He then adds that the Spirit, when he comes, will guide them towards the truth.

And that’s just what happened.  Early on, the Holy Spirit guided the Church towards the doctrine of the Trinity, which is what we affirm every time we say the Nicene or Apostles’ Creed.  That’s where we say we ‘believe in one God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit …’   

Many people have tried to explain the Trinity. St. Patrick talked about the three leaves of the shamrock, with each leaf representing one of the three persons. But really, our ordinary human language and our limited experience make it impossible to precisely explain who God is. 

The Jesuit Fr Anthony de Mello said that explaining the Trinity is like describing the colour green to someone who’s been blind since birth.  God is always far greater and much more than anything we could ever think of.

But there is something we do know.  The thing that unites the three persons in one God is love. 

God is three persons permanently united in love. He wants us to join that union of love.

The Father and the Son love each other so completely that they are one. And the love between the Father and the Son is so strong that it’s a powerful force in itself – and that’s the Holy Spirit.

So, what does all this mean for us?

Well, firstly, we should remember St Paul’s words:  we are the Body of Christ. God became incarnate through Jesus Christ, and he continues to make himself incarnate through us, his disciples. We are now Jesus’ hands, feet and eyes.  It’s through you and me that God now delivers his love into the world.

Secondly, God gives us the model of the Trinity because he wants us to copy it in our own lives.  Just as the three persons in one God are permanently united in love, God wants us to experience that same perfect love in our relationships, in our marriages, in our families and in our communities.  He wants us all to be permanently united in perfect love.  And such divine love is never passive.  It can never be contained.  If we choose to live in perfect love, just like the Trinity, then our love will grow naturally to include others.  It will transform the world. 

That’s what God wants of us.

And finally, God the Father doesn’t want to leave us where we are.  We’ve all been created in his image, and he wants us to join him.  That’s why he sent us his Son and his Spirit.  They’re calling each of us to join them in that same perfect love – so that the divine three then expands to become four … five … six … seven …  That’s also what God wants.

We can’t do these things on our own. To succeed, we need the creativity of the Father, the loving heart of the Son, and the power of the Holy Spirit. They’re all available to each of us when we open our hearts to receive them.

So, whenever we make the sign of the Cross and whenever we pray, let’s remember that God is three persons permanently united in love. 

He wants us to join that union of love. 

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.  Amen.

Year C – Pentecost Sunday

On the Gifts of the Spirit

[Acts 2:1-11; Gal.5:16-25; Jn.15:26-27; 16:12-15]

Today, as we celebrate the Feast of Pentecost, we also celebrate the Church’s birthday.  Happy Birthday!

Something we associate with birthdays is gifts, and happily Pentecost’s no exception.

After Jesus returns to his Father by ascending into heaven, the disciples go into hiding.  On Pentecost Sunday they’re huddled in the Upper Room, when suddenly a great noise like a mighty wind rushes through the house.  A tongue of fire rests on each disciple, and they’re all filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit they receive is the same powerful Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, and in that instant the disciples’ lives are changed completely.  Instead of cowering in fear, they walk bravely into the streets of Jerusalem and start telling everyone the truth about Jesus.  And despite the differing languages, everyone in the crowd can understand.  That day some 3,000 people become Christians and the Church is born.

Now, the Holy Spirit’s work didn’t stop with Jesus and his Apostles.  Today the Holy Spirit continues to work throughout the world in many different ways, transforming the lives of many people (1Cor.12:4-11).  For each of us, our own personal Pentecost started with the Sacrament of Baptism, and this gift was strengthened through the Sacrament of Confirmation.

Through these two sacraments, the Holy Spirit gives us the same special graces he gave the Apostles.  At Baptism we receive the gifts of faith, hope and charity.  At Confirmation these graces are strengthened by the gifts of wisdom, understanding, right judgment, courage, knowledge, reverence and fear of the Lord (or wonder and awe).

These graces, these spiritual strengths, are exactly what the Apostles need to get going. They’re also exactly what we need if we’re to live our lives to the full.

St Thomas Aquinas described these spiritual gifts as being like the sails of a boat. Just as sails catch the wind and move the boat forward, so these gifts catch or receive the impulses that come from the Holy Spirit.  They drive us onward, helping us to love God and helping us to live as good disciples, doing what he wants us to do.

St Thomas also described these gifts as ‘perfections of man’, through which we become amenable ‘to the promptings of God’. 

The Spirit can only unleash his power if we allow him to change us from within.

But we’re only amenable to God’s promptings if we play our part.  If we’ve forgotten our gifts of the Spirit, if we’ve packed up those sails and put them away, our boat isn’t going anywhere, no matter how hard the Spirit’s wind blows.

Three years ago, Pope Francis said, ‘Man is like a traveller who, crossing the deserts of life, has a thirst for living water, gushing and fresh, capable of quenching his deep desire for light, love, beauty and peace.  He said this living water is the Holy Spirit, which Jesus pours into our hearts.

But only last week, Pope Francis commented that the Holy Spirit seems to be a ‘luxury prisoner’ in the hearts of many Christians.  He said that too often the Spirit is someone who’s welcomed to stay, but he’s not allowed to move us or push us forward.

Pope Francis added that the Holy Spirit is the one who moves the Church, who works in the Church and in our hearts.  The Spirit does everything, knows everything, reminds us what Jesus said and can explain all about Jesus. But too many Christians don’t understand the Spirit’s role.  Instead they’ve simply reduced the Christian life to a code of ‘morals and ethics’.

The Pope also said that the faith is not just an ethical life: it’s an encounter with Jesus Christ.  It’s an invitation to a personal relationship with God himself, but to accept this invitation we must open up our hearts to the Holy Spirit.

‘This is what we must do’, he said. We must ‘think of the Spirit and talk to him.’

In 2008, in Sydney, Pope Benedict XVI described the Holy Spirit as the spirit of God’s love.  He can perform miracles.  But the Spirit can only unleash his power if we allow him to change us from within.

We need to allow the Spirit to work his magic in us, transforming us, just as he transformed those fishermen and tax collectors 2,000 years ago.

If we do allow the Holy Spirit to work his magic in us, we’ll then start reaping the fruits that St Paul spoke about in Galatians 5:22: ‘love, joy, peace, generosity, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control’.

Year C – Ascension of Our Lord

On the Kindling of a Flame

(Acts.1:1-11; Heb.9:24-28, 10:19-23; Lk.24:46-53)

The Greek philosopher, Socrates, used to say that education isn’t the filling of a vessel; rather, it’s the kindling of a flame.

Ten years ago I was in Italy, travelling by train from Florence to Pisa.  I was at a crossroads in my life and took this opportunity to pray, asking Jesus, ‘Please tell me what you want me to do with my life.  Tell me, and I’ll do it.’

Over and over again I repeated those words, and suddenly, to my great surprise, I got an answer.  I heard Jesus say with firm voice, ‘I want you to learn’.

Those words completely changed my life.  When I returned home I enrolled in a theology degree and I applied to join the Permanent Diaconate.  Ever since then I’ve been learning all I can about Jesus and the Christian faith.  

I know from personal experience that the learning God wants me to do hasn’t just filled an empty vessel.  It’s actually lit a fire that’s still burning inside me.

Part of my learning included a course on preaching.  At one point I asked the lecturer, ‘If a congregation includes people of different ages, to whom should I pitch my preaching?’  His answer surprised me.  He said, ‘to a 14 year old’.  When I asked why, he said that’s because the average adult Catholic hasn’t grown much in faith since they were in middle high school. He said their understanding of the Church is limited to what they learnt up to the age of 14. Most haven’t bothered to learn any more since then.

What do you think?  Do you agree?

Pope St John Paul II used to worry that too many Catholics really don’t understand their own faith.  He encouraged everyone to do something every day to strengthen their faith – to read the Bible, to learn about the saints, to pray, to go to Mass.  The important thing, he said, is to keep learning and growing.

He practised what he preached.  Every day from 10 to 11pm, before going to bed, he read books or articles he’d set aside during the day.  Every Tuesday he invited 5 or 6 experts in various fields – theology, philosophy, sociology, politics, culture or science – to talk and have lunch with him. 

He made a point of understanding not only his own faith, but many other things as well, including physics and history.  He believed in lifelong learning. 

In Luke’s Gospel today, Jesus says farewell to his disciples.  He’s finished his work on earth and it’s time to return to his Father. He’s taught his disciples all they need to know, and now it’s up to them to continue his work.  He knows they can’t do it on their own, so he promises to send the Spirit to help them.

Becoming a Catholic is a lifetime process. It’s not a one-off event. It’s a continuous process of change.

Now, I wonder how much confidence Jesus had in his disciples, because earlier, in Luke 18:8, he asks the question, ‘when the Son of Man returns, will he find faith on Earth?’  He must have worried about it, just as John Paul II did. 

Today, many people have given up learning about their faith. They think they know enough already.  But like everything in life, we only get out what we put in. 

In his book ‘Talent is Never Enough’ (2007), John Maxwell says ‘the greatest enemy of learning is knowing’.  What he means is that sometimes when we know a little bit, we think we know it all.  But the problem is that when we think we know it all, we usually prove that we don’t.

The American writer Flannery O’Connor (1925-64) used to say that becoming a Catholic is a lifetime process.  It’s not a one-off event.  It’s a continuous process of change in the way we see ourselves and the way we live our lives. It’s a never-ending process of conversion, and it relies on lifelong learning.

Of course, every learner needs a teacher.  St Therese of Lisieux called Jesus the Teacher of teachers.  She said, ‘… though I’ve never heard him speak, I know he’s within me, always guiding and inspiring me; and just when I need them, lights … break in upon me’.

The Irish poet W.B. Yeats agreed with Socrates.  He said ‘education isn’t just the filling of a pail, it’s the lighting of a fire’. 

Henry Ford said that learning keeps you young.

So, let’s honour our families, ourselves and Jesus himself by becoming the best people we possibly can be.

Both Jesus, and our families, would be proud to know that we’re lifelong learners, filled with fire and passion for the truth, and living life to the full.

It’s time to start learning what we really need to learn.

Year C – 6th Sunday of Easter

On Unconditional Peace

(Acts 15:1-2, 22-29; Rev.21:10-14, 22-23; Jn.14:23-29)

In John’s Gospel today, Jesus is talking with his disciples just after the Last Supper.  He knows he’s going to die and that his disciples are scared and confused.  So he says to them, ‘Don’t be troubled or afraid … my peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you.  A peace the world cannot give, this is my gift to you’.

The peace Jesus offers us isn’t the same as worldly peace.  Worldly peace typically is temporary; it’s fragile and it’s conditional.  In many places, peace is simply the absence of trouble and war, and it often depends on fear and armed force to enforce it.  Such peace usually has conditions attached, and it only lasts while these conditions are kept.  

That’s not genuine peace.

Jesus’ peace is different.  It’s unconditional; it’s an eternal and spiritual gift, and there are no strings attached. 

So how can we get some of this peace? 

Well, the first thing to note is that the peace of Christ doesn’t come from any human effort.  Some people think that all they have to do is properly organise the world around them, and then they’ll have peace.  But true peace isn’t external, it’s internal.  It’s not based on order or control.  It’s not based on fear or strength.  True peace is based on love and surrender.  It’s about letting go.

Jesus’ peace is like the calm at the bottom of the ocean.  Storms may be raging above, but there’s a wonderful calm deep below the surface.

The true peace of Jesus is a free gift that’s only available to those who have a close, loving relationship with him.  When you genuinely ask Jesus to enter into your heart and life, God’s peace will come flooding into your soul.

The second thing to note is that apart from any peace for ourselves, each of us also has a responsibility to help spread peace wherever we may be.

Think about this.  How much peace do we really bring into the lives of others?  Some people live under a delusion.  They think they’re living kind, considerate and sensible lives, but really they’re doing just the opposite.  Their actions and attitudes work against peace.  They’re actually making others unhappy and they’re unaware of the difficulties they’re causing.

Sometimes we think we’re doing the right thing, but we’re not.  Sometimes we miss the obvious.

When Jesus spoke about peace, the word he used was ‘shalom’ which means much more than peace as we know it.

Consider the case of Alfred Nobel.  He was a wealthy Swedish chemical engineer and inventor in the 1800s.  He spent much of his life developing things like artificial silk and synthetic rubber and leather.  He was very successful and fabulously wealthy.  He had more than 90 factories, and laboratories in 20 countries, and he held 355 patents.

In 1866 he invented dynamite.  He named it after dynamis, the Greek word for power.  But he didn’t expect it to be used for war.  He thought it would be used for peaceful purposes like construction – blasting rock and building tunnels and canals.  But he was wrong, and in 1870 it was used in the Franco-Prussian War … and in every other war since then.

In 1888, Alfred’s older brother Ludvig died.  A French newspaper thought it was Alfred himself who had died, and it published his obituary instead. It described him as the ‘merchant of death’ and said he’d become ‘rich by finding ways to kill more people faster than ever before’.

Alfred was horrified.  He didn’t want his life to be remembered that way, so he decided to change it.  To relieve his conscience, he began supporting the international peace movement, and when he died in 1896, he left most of his wealth to fund the Nobel Prize, the award for scientists and writers who work to foster peace.

Alfred Nobel said that every person should have the chance to correct his own obituary midstream and to write a new one.

What about you?  What would you like your obituary to say?  Are you a peacemaker?  Or do you need to change the way you live?

When Jesus spoke about peace, the word he actually used was ‘shalom’, which means much more than peace as we know it.  ‘Shalom’ is a very rich Hebrew expression which speaks of completeness, wholeness, fulfilment and everything in life being as it should be. 

This kind of peace isn’t a place.  It’s a loving relationship with God, and this is the free gift that Jesus offers us today. 

‘My peace I give to you,’ says Jesus. 

Let’s accept this wonderful gift with a warm, open heart and very grateful hands.

Year C – 5th Sunday of Easter

On the Four Loves 

(Acts 14:21-27; Rev.21:1-5; Jn.13:31-33a, 34-35)

In St John’s Gospel today, Jesus and his disciples have just finished the Last Supper, and Jesus knows he’s leaving soon.  He’s worried about his disciples, so he gives them a gift. He says, ‘I give you a new commandment; love one another just as I have loved you’.

He calls this a new commandment. But why is this new?  Haven’t we heard it before?

In Leviticus 19, God gives Moses some laws to help people live a holy life.  These laws are often called the Holiness Code, and at the heart of them is the commandment to ‘love your neighbour as yourself’ (19:18).  We have heard that one before.

Matthew’s Gospel (Mt.22:37-40) also has something similar.  When the Pharisees ask Jesus which commandment’s the greatest, he says, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbour as yourself’. 

So, yes these are similar to Jesus’ new commandment.  How then is it new?

Well, when the Book of Leviticus tells people to love their neighbour, the standard it sets for how to love others is ‘as you love yourself’.  It’s the same in Matthew’s gospel – love your neighbour as yourself

After the Last Supper, however, when Jesus introduces his new commandment, he raises the bar considerably.  Now his disciples must love each other, as I have loved you.  The standard for loving is now much higher – as I have loved you, not as you love yourself.  That’s a challenge for anyone.

So what kind of love is Jesus talking about?

When the Beatles sang ‘All you need is Love’, they thought that love is simply love, and all you need is lots of it to solve the world’s problems.  But there are actually many kinds of love.  There’s romantic love, tough love, platonic love, puppy love, true love, maternal love, paternal love and brotherly love … The list goes on.

So what kind of love is Jesus talking about?

Well, the Bible refers to four kinds of love.  In Greek, each one has a different name [i].

Jesus shows us what agape really means when he washes his disciples’ feet

Storge (STOR-jay) is family love. It’s the natural love parents have for their children, and the Bible gives several examples.  In Genesis there’s the love between Noah and his family, and in the Gospels there’s the love Martha and Mary have for their brother Lazarus.

Eros is sensual and passionate love, and in the Old Testament it’s portrayed in the Song of Solomon, and St Paul talks about it in 1 Corinthians 7:8-9.

Philia is close friendship or brotherly love, and this word often appears in the New Testament.  In Romans 12:10, St Paul uses it when he tells Christians to ‘Love one another with mutual affection…’

Agape, however, is different. It’s the supreme kind of love.  It’s selfless, unconditional and sacrificial love, and it’s the way that Jesus loves his Father and indeed all of humanity.  St John uses the word agape when he says that ‘God is love’ (1Jn.4:8).  And Jesus shows us what agape really means when he washes his disciples’ feet, when he feeds the hungry, when he heals the sick and the blind, and especially when he sacrifices himself on the Cross.

So Jesus is telling his disciples – that’s us – to love each other with agape, just as he loves us.  That means selfless, unconditional and self-sacrificial love.

I expect we’d all like to love like that, but it’s not easy is it?  We’re all so human, it often seems impossible.  So what’s the secret?  How can we love like Jesus?

Jesus answers that question in Mark 10:27, when he says, ‘With man it is impossible, but not with God.  For all things are possible with God’.

He then further explains what he means in John (15:1-10) in his parable of the vine and branches.  That’s where Jesus says, ‘Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.  I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing’.

So that’s the answer.  We can’t love like Jesus on our own.  It’s impossible.  But we can, if we invite Jesus to become part of us. 

We can all love each other with agape, just as Jesus loves us.


[i] C.S. Lewis explains these terms in his book The Four Loves, Harcourt, Brace: New York, 1960.

Year C – 4th Sunday of Easter

On the Good Shepherd

(Acts 13:14, 43-52; Rev.7:9, 14-17; Jn.10:27-30)

Today’s Gospel is short – very short.  It only has 8 lines and 63 words, but its message is deep:  Jesus tells us he’s the good shepherd who leads his sheep to eternal life.

Some people don’t like being called sheep; they think they’re stupid animals. But sheep are smarter than we think.  Yes, they do have a strong flocking instinct, but that’s how they’ve learnt to protect themselves from predators. 

In fact, scientists tell us that sheep are sometimes smarter than monkeys. They can recognise colours and symbols, as well as faces and facial expressions.  They can also navigate complex mazes.

When Jesus said ‘My sheep hear my voice; I know them and they follow me’, he knew what he was talking about.  Every night in Palestine, shepherds gathered their animals into folds to protect them from danger.  Quite often several shepherds used the same enclosure, but the sheep never got mixed up. Each morning they really did recognise their shepherd’s voice.  The shepherd would walk off, talking to them or calling them by name, and they’d follow.  The sheep would never follow a stranger.

In his book, A Turtle on a Fencepost (1980), Allen C. Emery writes about the night he spent in the country with a shepherd who had two thousand sheep.  As the stars filled the night sky, the shepherd lit a bonfire to cook dinner and the sheepdogs slept in its warmth.

Suddenly Emery heard the call of a wild dog in the distance. The sheepdogs were off duty and the shepherd worried.  He got up quickly and tossed some logs onto the fire. 

In this firelight, Emery looked out at the sheep and saw thousands of little lights.  Emery writes, ‘I realized that these were reflections of the fire in the eyes of the sheep. In the midst of danger, the sheep weren’t looking out into the darkness … (they) were keeping their eyes set toward the shepherd’.

So, sheep are smarter than we think.  When there’s danger about, sheep always keep their eyes on the shepherd.

But sheep are also noble animals.

In ancient times, people thought there was a similarity between sheep and honourable men.  Back then, personal and family honour was critically important.  It was a man’s responsibility to protect his family’s honour, even to the point of death.  If there was any risk of death, then an honourable man was expected to suffer it in silence, without complaining.

Now, people noticed that that’s how sheep behave, because whether they’re being shorn for wool or prepared for slaughter, they’re always quiet.  It’s because of this that Isaiah (53:7) describes the ideal servant of the Lord as being ‘like a lamb that is led to the slaughter … like a sheep that before its shearers is silent’.

In other words, like sheep, good disciples don’t readily complain.  And Jesus never complained when he suffered.

Like sheep, we must learn to recognise his voice and follow him.

Sheep, then, are smart and noble creatures.  They deserve our respect.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus says that the Good Shepherd does three things for his sheep. Firstly, he knows his sheep well.  Secondly, he keeps them safe from harm, and thirdly, he leads his followers to everlasting life.  He says his sheep know his voice and they follow him.

This means that Jesus knows each of us personally.  He loves us and protects us, and wants to lead us to eternal life.  And, like sheep, we must learn to recognise his voice and follow him.  

But it’s not so easy to hear Jesus’ voice these days, is it?  There’s so much noise about and life isn’t easy.  There are wolves out there and people are vulnerable.  If we drift through life like lost or stray sheep, then we’re certainly in danger.

But if we keep our eyes on the Good Shepherd, when we listen to his voice and follow his lead, then we’re sure to be led not only to safety, but also to greener pastures.

So, sheep are smart and noble creatures. 

Today, on Good Shepherd Sunday, let’s listen for the voice of the one true Shepherd.  He’s calling us.

It’s time to follow him.

Year C – 3rd Sunday of Easter

On Feeding my Lambs

(Acts 5:27-32,40-41; Rev.5:11-14; Jn.21:1-19)

In today’s Gospel Jesus is at Tabgha, a quiet beach on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee.  Jesus knew it well.  It’s 3km from Capernaum and his Sermon on the Mount and his miracle of the loaves and fishes occurred nearby.

In ancient times Tabgha was called Heptapegon (‘Place of Seven Springs’). These are hot springs that still flow into the lake today, feeding algae and attracting fish.

Peter and the disciples have been night fishing, but caught nothing.  At dawn, as they return to shore, someone calls out and tells them to cast their nets on the other side.  They don’t recognise Jesus, but he must have sounded important because they do what he says and they catch lots of fish.

This story’s very similar to Luke 5:1-11, when Jesus tells Peter, James and John to cast out into the deep and they catch a huge haul of fish.  Luke’s story is at the start of Jesus’ public ministry; but today’s story is from John’s last chapter. 

Both stories use fish as a metaphor for souls.  In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus calls on his disciples to be ‘fishers of men’.  In John’s Gospel, we’re told that they caught 153 fish.  Many have wondered what this number means.  Some think it refers to Aristotle’s teaching that there were 153 species of fish in the sea.  If that’s true, then this number represents all people and Jesus is telling his disciples to bring everyone to him through his Church.

So, Jesus is there on Tabgha’s pebbly beach, cooking a breakfast of fish and bread over a fire.  He invites his disciples to join him.  He then takes the bread, blesses it and gives it to them.  This meal is clearly Eucharistic.  Jesus shared many meals with his disciples, and whenever they ate with him and listened to him, they were nourished and their relationship with Jesus was strengthened.

Today at Tabgha there’s a small grey-stone church by the shore.  It’s called St Peter Primacy.  Inside, in front of the altar, there’s a large flat limestone rock called ‘Mensa Christi’ (‘Table of Christ’).  Tradition tells us that this is where Jesus cooked and ate this meal with his disciples.

Now, after breakfast, Jesus takes Peter aside and asks him three times, ‘Do you love me?’  Each time Peter replies, ‘Yes, Lord’.  Jesus is giving Peter a chance to undo the three times he denied him. 

But Jesus does something else as well.  He says to Peter, if you really love me, then ‘feed my lambs’ and ‘take care of my sheep’.  With these words he’s telling Peter to lead his universal Church, and that’s why that little church in Tabgha today is called ‘St Peter Primacy’.  Peter is given responsibility for leading Jesus’ church.

We know that Peter takes that command seriously, because in our first reading today he confronts the Sanhedrin, the Temple leaders who crucified Jesus.  Previously Peter was terrified of them; that’s why he denied Jesus three times.  But now he’s a changed man.  He’s filled with authority and, empowered by the Holy Spirit, he stands up to them.

Well, then, do something about it. Take care of my people.

So what does all this mean for us?

Well, the Gospels weren’t written for the Apostles.  They were written for you and me, and what applied to Jesus’ disciples back then also applies to us today.

Just as his disciples often ate with Jesus, so we do the same at every Mass.  When the disciples ate with Jesus and listened to him, they were nourished and their relationship with him grew.  We should seek to do the same.

Remember what Jesus says, ‘My flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.  He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me and I in him… this is the bread come down from heaven … he who eats this bread will live forever’ (Jn.6:55-58).  Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist.

And just as Jesus asks Peter, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love me?’ He asks us the same question. 

He asks, ‘Ellie, do you love me?’ and ‘Frank, do you love me?’ and ‘Joe, do you love me?’

And when we reply like Peter, ‘Yes Lord, I love you’, he also replies to us, ‘Well then, do something about it.  Take care of my people’.

When we receive Jesus’ Real Presence in the Eucharist, he’s also calling us, just as he called Peter, to go and take care of his people.

Year C – 2nd Sunday of Easter

(Acts 5:12-16; Rev.1:9-13, 17-19; Jn.20:19-31)

On the Secrets of Divine Mercy

We all want peace, don’t we?  Sadly, there’s more fear, mistrust and tension around us than peace.  What can we do about it?

In today’s Gospel, Jesus enters the locked room where his disciples are hiding and says, ‘peace be with you’.  He also says something similar in our second reading to St John, who’s exiled on the island of Patmos.  Jesus says, ‘Do not be afraid’.

Jesus often speaks of peace, but the peace he refers to isn’t just restful calm or a beach holiday.  It’s much deeper than that.  Jesus’ peace comes from a life of love and joy that’s only available from God.

So many saints have shown us that a life filled with God’s love is not only liberating, transforming and dynamic, but also profoundly peaceful.

Consider the Apostles after Jesus’ resurrection.  They’re totally transformed as they finally start understanding Jesus’ message about God’s love.  And when Jesus says, ‘As my Father has sent me, so I send you’, they go out and start telling everyone about God’s unconditional love and mercy.  And despite the obvious dangers, they’re peaceful inside.

The early Christians understood this. They knew the parables of the Prodigal Son and the Good Shepherd. They understood that God’s love isn’t just the pardon of a merciful judge; it’s actually the warm embrace of a loving father.

Sadly, people have been forgetting this, but Jesus doesn’t give up easily.  He wants everyone to understand God’s love, and that’s why he keeps working through the saints to remind us.

In the 1200s, St Gertrude and St Mechtilde in Germany encouraged people to recognise the Sacred Heart of Jesus as the symbol of God’s love. Their beautiful prayers and devotions helped many people to find peace.

In the 1670s, in France, Jesus revealed to St Margaret Mary Alacoque the secrets of his Sacred Heart and again many Christians discovered peace, love and joy.  Every first Friday millions of people prayed with the words ‘Sacred Heart of Jesus I trust in Thee’ on their lips and in their hearts. 

As time passed, however, these too seemed to be forgotten.  But Jesus doesn’t give up.

Jesus wants a personal relationship with each of us, not just in our heads, but deep in our hearts.

In February 1931, Jesus appeared to a humble nun, Sr Maria Faustina Kowalska, in Poland.  He appeared as the ‘King of Divine Mercy’, wearing a white garment, with rays of white and red light shining from his heart. He told Sr Faustina to paint this image, emblazoned with the words: ‘Jesus, I trust in You’. He said he wanted this image venerated, first in her chapel, and then throughout the world. And he promised that anyone who venerates this image will not perish.

In several revelations, Jesus taught her the secrets of his Divine Mercy, saying that it’s unlimited and available to even the greatest sinners.  And he said he wanted the Sunday after Easter to be celebrated as the Feast of Divine Mercy.

Sr. Faustina was surprised that he wanted this Feast of Divine Mercy.  She asked, ‘Isn’t there one already?’  But Jesus replied, ‘Who knows anything about this feast?  No one!  Even those who should be proclaiming my mercy and teaching the people about it, often don’t know about it themselves’.

Why does this worry Jesus? 

Well, we should remember the Pharisees.  In Matthew 15:8, Jesus calls them hypocrites and says, ‘These people honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me’.  The Pharisees had forgotten the meaning of their prayers and their rituals, and their worship became very superficial.  Nothing they did touched their hearts.  They had no relationship with God, so it’s not surprising that they didn’t recognise Jesus when he arrived.

Jesus doesn’t want that to happen to us.  He wants a personal relationship with each of us, not just in our heads, but deep in our hearts.

For four years Faustina Kowalska kept a diary of her contact with Jesus.  The result is the book ‘Divine Mercy in My Soul’ – 600 pages about God’s merciful love for us and how he wants us to live and pray.

In April 2000, Pope St John Paul II canonised Sr Faustina and established the second Sunday of Easter as Divine Mercy Sunday. That’s what we celebrate today.

So, let’s pray for peace – the unfathomable peace we all need deep in our hearts. 

The peace that only comes from truly loving, trusting and understanding the tender loving and merciful heart of our God.