May 12

May 12, 2017:  Friday, 4th week, Easter

See about a dozen connections with today?
Legend below

Listen

• We are one body/ Scallon (for "I am the way..." verse) (gospel)

• Thou shalt break them, from Messiah/ Handel (psalm)

• The call ("Come, my Way, my Truth, my Life")/ Vaughan Williams:  sheet music (the rest of his Five Mystical Songs are here and here) (gospel)

• Thomas asked the Lord

• Do not let your hearts be troubled/ Haas

• Only this I want/ Foley

• I want to walk as a child of the light/ Thomerson

• Lead me, Lord/ Becker

• Guide my feet (spiritual):  lyrics

• Psalm 2: Refuge in him/ Silver

Pope Francis at Vatican Observatory "Black holes, gravitational waves, and space-time singularities" conference

The issues you've been addressing are of particular interest to the Church; they're about questions that concern us deeply, such as the beginning and evolution of the universe, and the structure of space and time.  They're particularly relevant for science, philosophy, theology and the spiritual life; they represent an arena where the disciplines meet and sometimes clash.

Msgr. Georges Lemaître, who knew the tension between faith and science, always defended the methodological distinction between science and theology.   While integrating them in his own life, he viewed them as distinct; that distinction, already present in Thomas, avoids a short-circuiting harmful to both science and faith.

Before the immensity of space-time, we can experience awe and a sense of our insignificance:  “What is man that you should keep him in mind, the son of man that you care for him?”  “The world's eternal mystery is its comprehensibility” (Einstein).  The universe's existence and intelligibility are a result of God’s Wisdom, present “at the beginning of his work.”

Persevere in your search for truth.  We ought never to fear truth nor become trapped in our preconceived ideas, but welcome new discoveries with humility.  As we journey towards the frontiers of knowledge, we can have an authentic experience of the Lord that can fill our hearts.

 Read

• Acts 13:26-33  Paul in synagogue:  "To us this word of salvation has been sent.  Jerusalem and their leaders failed to recognize Jesus; they found no grounds for a death sentence but still asked Pilate to have him killed, but God raised him, and many are now his witnesses.  God fulfilled in the resurrection what he promised our ancestors."

• Ps 2:6-11ab  "You are my Son; this day I have begotten you."  “I'll give you the ends of the earth to rule.”  Serve the Lord, and rejoice before him.

• Jn 14:1-6  “Don't let your hearts be troubled.  Have faith in me.  In my Father’s house are many dwelling places.  I'll take you to myself, so that where I am you may be too.  I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me.”

Reflect

• Msgr. Albert Bahhuth homily podcast:  Follow the Way

• Creighton:  At the Last Supper Jesus poured out his heart to his disciples. Knowing what was ahead , he told them, “Don't let your hearts be troubled....  Have faith in me.”  We need to do the same as we confront challenges in our lives and our world; following Jesus requires a personal relationship with him.  Christianity is often demeaned as merely a set of obligations prescribed by religious authorities, a checklist of do’s and don’ts typically gathered under the categories of belief, morality, and worship.  This caricatures Christian faith by leaving out it soul, the personal relationship with Jesus/; the institutional dimensions matter only inasmuch as they embody that relationship.  May we bring our hearts to him, not let them be troubled, and have that faith.

St. George with Martyrs Maurus,
Papianus, Domitilla, Nerus and Achilleus

• One Bread, One Body:  "Subpoenaed":  Throughout Acts, the Lord commands us to be his witnesses.  How are we doing at that?  If a court subpoenaed you as a witness, would you obey?  If not, you'd face contempt charges.  As a Christian, you're always subpoenaed to witness for Jesus and must obey; the Lord insists on this because he wants everyone to be saved.  If we love Jesus and people, we must witness for Jesus.



St. Pancras

• Passionist:  Yesterday's readings reminded us Jesus is the I AM, the God who brings us through everything, and of God's actions:  the Exodus, establishing a Promised Land, and sending Samuel, Saul, David, John the Baptist and Jesus. In today's 1st reading, Paul, continuing his address, reminds us that the witnesses to Jesus' risen life continue to inspire, lead, and build God's kingdom.  Doing that takes courage, facing sufferings due to our humanness and evil caused by ignorance, greed, self-centeredness, and intolerance. Jesus tells us not to let our hearts be troubled; seeking him means being be on the Way, applying our skills to serve others, not counting the cost...

• DailyScripture.net:  "Don't let your hearts be troubled!"  Jesus knew we'd face trials and persecution.   Adversity can discourage us or press us closer to God and his promises.  Just as God went ahead of Moses and the Israelites to lead them to the promised land, Jesus says he's going ahead through his ascension to prepare a place for them in his Father's house:  a place of peace, friendship, and happiness with God.  God's house is never closed nor overcrowded; there's room for all believers.  Jesus' promise of eternal life puts our greatest fears to rest.

Traveling alone in unfamiliar places can be unnerving and bewildering, and some places are impossible to pass through without the right person.  The Lord Jesus promised his followers that he'd be their guide and friend and lead them to the source of peace, friendship, and life.  Jesus alone knows the way to the Father because he has been with him from the beginning.  He gives us more than a map or GPS; he personally is the way to the Father's kingdom, and we won't miss it if we follow him.  He accompanies us and watches over us.

Only Jesus can say, "I am the Truth."  One with the Father, he possesses the fullness of truth.  Jesus promised his disciples that if they continued in his word, they'd learn the truth, and it would set them free.

"I am the Life":  Jesus shows us the path of life and gives us everlasting life.

• Today's saints, from Universalis

• Nereus and Achilleus, martyrs; see also Wikipedia.

• Pancras (Pancratius), martyr; see also New Advent.

Dress legend

• 'Hearts' suspenders:  "Don't let your hearts be troubled" (gospel)

• 'Castle' button:  "In my Father's house there are many dwelling places (sometimes translated 'mansions'); I'm preparing a place for you" (gospel)

• 'Cars on roads' tie:  "I am the way" (gospel)

• 'Crown' tie bar:  "I have set up my king on Zion..." (psalm)

• 'Ruler' tie bar:  "Take warning, you 'rulers' of the earth." (psalm)

• Crucifix tie pin, 'tree' pin:  Jerusalem inhabitants and leaders had Jesus put to death and took him down from the tree... (1st reading)

• 'Alps' tie pin:  "I have set up my king on my holy mountain" (psalm)

• 'Olympics' tie pin:  "I'll give you the nations, the ends of the earth" (psalm)

• '?' tie pin:  "How can we know the way?" (gospel)

• White shirt and socks:  Easter season

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