June 2, 2011 Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easte

[이안드레아]

2011년 6월 2일 부활 제6주간 목요일

제1독서

사도행전. 18,1-8
그 무렵 1 바오로는 아테네를 떠나 코린토로 갔다. 2 거기에서 그는 폰토스 출신의 아퀼라라는 어떤 유다인을 만났다. 아퀼라는 클라우디우스 황제가 모든 유다인은 로마를 떠나라는 칙령을 내렸기 때문에 자기 아내 프리스킬라와 함께 얼마 전에 이탈리아에서 온 사람이었다. 바오로가 그들을 찾아갔는데, 3 마침 생업이 같아 그들과 함께 지내며 일을 하였다. 천막을 만드는 것이 그들의 생업이었다.
4 바오로는 안식일마다 회당에서 토론하며 유다인들과 그리스인들을 설득하려고 애썼다.
5 실라스와 티모테오가 마케도니아에서 내려온 뒤로, 바오로는 유다인들에게 예수님께서 메시아시라고 증언하면서 말씀 전파에만 전념하였다. 6 그러나 그들이 반대하며 모독하는 말을 퍼붓자 바오로는 옷의 먼지를 털고 나서, “여러분의 멸망은 여러분의 책임입니다. 나에게는 잘못이 없습니다. 이제부터 나는 다른 민족들에게로 갑니다.” 하고 그들에게 말하였다.
7 그리고 그 자리를 떠나 티티우스 유스투스라는 사람의 집으로 갔는데, 그는 하느님을 섬기는 이였다. 그 집은 바로 회당 옆에 있었다. 8 회당장 크리스포스는 온 집안과 함께 주님을 믿게 되었다. 코린토 사람들 가운데에서 바오로의 설교를 들은 다른 많은 사람도 믿고 세례를 받았다.

복음

요한. 16,16-20
그때에 예수님께서 제자들에게 말씀하셨다.
16 “조금 있으면 너희는 나를 더 이상 보지 못할 것이다. 그러나 다시 조금 더 있으면 나를 보게 될 것이다.”
17 그러자 제자들 가운데 몇 사람이 서로 말하였다. “‘조금 있으면 너희는 나를 보지 못할 것이다. 그러나 다시 조금 더 있으면 나를 보게 될 것이다.’, 또 ‘내가 아버지께 가기 때문이다.’ 하고 우리에게 말씀하시는데, 그것이 무슨 뜻일까?” 18 그들은 또 “‘조금 있으면’이라고 말씀하시는데, 그것이 무슨 뜻일까? 무슨 이야기를 하시는지 알 수가 없군.” 하고 말하였다.
19 예수님께서는 제자들이 묻고 싶어 하는 것을 아시고 그들에게 이르셨다. “‘조금 있으면 너희는 나를 보지 못할 것이다. 그러나 다시 조금 더 있으면 나를 보게 될 것이다.’ 하고 내가 말한 것을 가지고 서로 묻고 있느냐? 20 내가 진실로 진실로 너희에게 말한다. 너희는 울며 애통해하겠지만 세상은 기뻐할 것이다. 너희가 근심하겠지만, 그러나 너희의 근심은 기쁨으로 바뀔 것이다.”

http://www.usccb.org/nab/

June 2, 2011
Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Reading 1

Acts 18:1-8
Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.
There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus,
who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla
because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome.
He went to visit them and, because he practiced the same trade,
stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade.
Every sabbath, he entered into discussions in the synagogue,
attempting to convince both Jews and Greeks.

When Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia,
Paul began to occupy himself totally with preaching the word,
testifying to the Jews that the Christ was Jesus.
When they opposed him and reviled him,
he shook out his garments and said to them,
“Your blood be on your heads!
I am clear of responsibility.
From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”
So he left there and went to a house
belonging to a man named Titus Justus, a worshiper of God;
his house was next to a synagogue.
Crispus, the synagogue official, came to believe in the Lord
along with his entire household, and many of the Corinthians
who heard believed and were baptized.

Responsorial Psalm

98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4

R. (see 2b)  The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:       
R. Alleluia.
Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done wondrous deeds;
His right hand has won victory for him,
his holy arm.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD has made his salvation known:
in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice.
He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness
toward the house of Israel.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.
All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation by our God.
Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands;
break into song; sing praise.
R. The Lord has revealed to the nations his saving power.
or:
R. Alleluia.

Gospel

Jn 16:16-20

Jesus said to his disciples:
“A little while and you will no longer see me,
and again a little while later and you will see me.”
So some of his disciples said to one another,
“What does this mean that he is saying to us,
‘A little while and you will not see me,
and again a little while and you will see me,’
and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?”
So they said, “What is this ‘little while’ of which he speaks?
We do not know what he means.”
Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them,
“Are you discussing with one another what I said,
‘A little while and you will not see me,
and again a little while and you will see me’?
Amen, amen, I say to you,
you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices;
you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.” 

http://www.staygreat.com/ 

http://www.franciscanretreats.net/  

“A little while and you will no longer see me, and again a little while later and you will see me.” 

In today’s Gospel reading Jesus toys with the words “a little while.” These words refer to his coming death and the time before his reappearance to them after the resurrection. These words puzzle the disciples and they seem to feel lost and confused.

It is easy for us, too, to get lost and confused in our lives in this modern world. Sometimes we just don’t know which way to go. Those of us who were one time hunters always carried a compass. Many have compasses in their cars. These devices point out the direction we are traveling on the road. Jesus is our spiritual compass. His words guide us. I found a beautiful little prayer about this situation of our being lost that reminds us that Jesus is the Good Shepherd we celebrated a few Sundays ago. I would like to share it with you:

“God of the lost, you seek each person as a shepherd patrols the pasture for the sheep that has strayed. When we are lost in our journey of faith, come and find us and lead us home to where you live with Jesus Christ, our Lord, and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen. 

 http://www.evangeli.net/gospel/gospel.html

 http://www.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/daily.html

How does the Lord reveal himself to us?  The Psalmist says the Lord reveals himself through his saving power and wondrous deeds.  And he reveals himself to us with kindness and faithfulness.  In this season of Easter, we are most mindful that the Lord reveals himself to us through Jesus.  But how does Jesus continue to reveal himself to us?  That’s both a theological question and a practical question. 

Theologically, I have to defer to one of my pastors who told us a few Sunday’s ago that Jesus reveals himself to each one of us in different ways.  We all experience the saving power and wondrous deeds of the Lord in different ways.  We also experience God’s kindness and faithfulness differently.  So when we are looking for Jesus, we will find him in different ways also.  The most important thing, he told us, is to ask Jesus to be in our midst.  If we do, he will be there.  Not just so we can see him.  He will be there to guide us and lead us.  The resurrection isn’t just about Jesus rising from the dead.  It is about Jesus always being with us and meeting our needs.

That sermon got me to thinking about what is it that I need from Jesus that requires him to always be with me.  Let’s get practical here.  That’s where I have to defer to the Amish.  It is always so straightforward for them.  They recognize that they need Jesus to always be with them to keep their heads and hearts focused on loving God and each other.  They try to live their lives as if Jesus is always in their midst creating a more loving community.  It is in that community that they individually experience the kindness and faithfulness of God.  They grieve the death and dying of Jesus but they are ever grateful and joyful because they know Jesus is in their midst.

Most of us don’t experience our faith that way.  We all experience the individual longings for Jesus to be in our midst but we don’t all live in communities that reinforce our faith with daily practices of love and sacrifice for others.  In fact, we too often live in the midst of injustices, selfishness, and insecurities.   And we feel so often alone in the midst of it all.  Jesus comes into our midst if we ask, yes, but it is much easier to trust that he is with us if we are in a community that shares that experience through daily interaction of love and kindness toward each other.  That’s what I heard from another pastor last week.  She reminded us that if you want to know that Jesus is with you, cultivate relationships of caring with other people who know how to share Christ’s peace, love, and joy in practical ways. 

It is a lot easier for the Amish to experience Jesus in their midst because of the way they live.  One of my Amish friends, a bishop, told me once that the Amish didn’t think any less of Catholics and Lutherans because we worshipped differently.  The main difference they see between us and them is how we live.  He said he thought we could live Godly lives just like they try to live if we would just stick together.  So I am left pondering these questions.  If Christ appears to us all differently and we all experience Christ differently, then how do we experience Christ in our midst?  I know that the sacrament of Holy Communion binds us together in Christian community but it has to be more than what happens on Sunday or just in church.  We have to live rituals of forgiveness and renewal of the bonds of love in all of our interactions throughout the week.  So this Easter season, I am praying that I can live my life in such a way that Christ is revealed in my words and actions.  Alleluia! 

http://www.rc.net/wcc/readings/ 

"You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy"

How does "weeping" and "rejoicing" go together? Jesus contrasts present sorrows with the future glory to be revealed to those who put their hope in God. For the people of Israel time was divided into two ages – the present age and the age to come. The prophets foretold the coming of the Messiah as the dawn of a new age. Jesus tells his disciples two important truths. First, he must leave them to return to his Father and second, he will surely come again at the end of time to usher in the new age of God's kingdom. Jesus' orientation for the time between his first coming and his return in glory at the end of the world is a reversal of the world's fortunes. The world says take your joy now in whatever pleasures you can get from this present life. Jesus points to an "other-worldly" joy wich transcends anything this world can offer. Jesus contrasts present sorrows with future joy. A woman in labor suffers the birth-pangs first, but then forgets her sorrow as soon as her new-born child comes to birth. We cannot avoid pain and sorrow if we wish to follow Jesus to the cross. But in the cross of Christ we find freedom, victory, and joy.  Thomas Aquinas said: "No one can live without joy. That is why a man or woman deprived of spiritual joy will turn to carnal pleasures". Do you know the joy of the Lord?

"To you, O Jesus, do I turn my true and last end. You are the river of life which alone can satisfy my thirst. Without you all else is barren and void. Without all else you alone are enough for me. You are the Redeemer of those who are lost; the sweet Consoler of the sorrowful; the crown of glory for the victors; the recompense of the blessed. One day I hope to receive of your fulness, and to sing the song of praise in my true home. Give me only on earth some few drops of consolation, and I will patiently wait your coming that I may enter into the joy of my Lord." (Bonaventure, 1221-74 AD)

Psalm 98:1-4

1 O sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things!  His right hand and his holy arm  have gotten him victory. 2 The LORD has made known his victory, he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.
3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen  the victory of our God.
4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises!  

 http://www.daily-meditations.org/index2.html

 http://www.contemplative.com/weekday_readings.htm

Our prayer takes place in this matter of "a little while." In prayer we suspend the coming and going of daily life and in our recollection we die to all the details of the world. It is a rehearsal for the act of faith at the moment of death. We close our eyes in prayer to all distractions and open our hearts to the absolute reality of God in spirit and in truth. It is this little while between seeing Christ in our daily life and then through the absence to come into the presence, and finally into the eternal, immediate presence. The world rejoices in its immediate here and now in the rolling out of production and pleasure. We weep and lament over Jerusalem's rejection and the consequences of a godless society. But our prayer is joy, deep joy, a joy that no one can take from us. It is the joy from Christ's ascension shared in the experience of prayer.

 http://www.presentationministries.com/

"OUR TOWN"

"Paul left Athens and went to Corinth." 뾃cts 18:1

St. Paul had been flogged and jailed during his evangelization in Philippi. Then he was run out of town (Acts 16:39). Next, after some initial success in the cities of Thessalonica and Berea, he was again forced to leave town (Acts 17:6-10, 13-15). After that, Paul was escorted to Athens, the major city in Greece, where he had minimal success. Paul then arrived in Corinth "in weakness and fear, and with much trepidation" (1 Cor 2:3). Corinth was a rough-and-tumble, immoral, pagan city, even somewhat dangerous. After being poorly treated in "gentler" cities, Paul had little earthly reason to expect much evangelistic success in Corinth.

Yet upon entering Corinth, God opened door after door for Paul. First, Paul found not only a job and lodgings, but business co-workers and prayer-partners in Priscilla and Aquila (Acts 18:2-3). "Many of the Corinthians, too, who heard Paul believed and were baptized" (Acts 18:8). God even personally told Paul that there were many of his people in Corinth, and assured him that he would not be attacked or harmed while in Corinth (Acts 18:9-10). God had prepared a city for Paul (Heb 11:16), the city of Corinth.

Tomorrow begins the Pentecost Novena, the nine days of prayer to prepare to receive the Holy Spirit more deeply at Pentecost. As you prepare for the Holy Spirit, be aware that God is surely preparing as well. Could the Lord be preparing a city or town for you this Pentecost? Let Him prepare your heart for it.

Prayer: Lord, send me anywhere You desire. "I will be Your follower wherever You go" (Lk 9:57).

Promise: "Your grief will be turned into joy." 뾌n 16:20

Praise: Sts. Marcellinus and Peter are known only through the testimony of their executioner, who was converted by their witness.