Fifth Sunday of Easter
| First reading |
|---|
| Acts 14:21-27 |
Paul and Barnabas went back through Lystra and Iconium to Antioch. They put fresh heart into the disciples, encouraging them to persevere in the faith. ‘We all have to experience many hardships’ they said ‘before we enter the kingdom of God.’ In each of these churches they appointed elders, and with prayer and fasting they commended them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.
They passed through Pisidia and reached Pamphylia. Then after proclaiming the word at Perga they went down to Attalia and from there sailed for Antioch, where they had originally been commended to the grace of God for the work they had now completed.
On their arrival they assembled the church and gave an account of all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith to the pagans.
| Responsorial Psalm |
|---|
| Psalm 144:8-13 |
| Second reading |
|---|
| Apocalypse 21:1-5 |
I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth; the first heaven and the first earth had disappeared now, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the holy city, and the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, as beautiful as a bride all dressed for her husband. Then I heard a loud voice call from the throne, ‘You see this city? Here God lives among men. He will make his home among them; they shall be his people, and he will be their God; his name is God-with-them. He will wipe away all tears from their eyes; there will be no more death, and no more mourning or sadness. The world of the past has gone.’
Then the One sitting on the throne spoke: ‘Now I am making the whole of creation new.’
When Judas had gone Jesus said:
‘Now has the Son of Man been glorified,
and in him God has been glorified.
If God has been glorified in him,
God will in turn glorify him in himself,
and will glorify him very soon.
‘My little children,
I shall not be with you much longer.
I give you a new commandment:
love one another;
just as I have loved you,
you also must love one another.
By this love you have for one another,
everyone will know that you are my disciples.’
By Fely C. Santiago
“I give you a new commandment: love one another”
It is always easy to say “I love you” but doing what Jesus did when He died on the cross for His great love for all of us, will never be easy. That is why we live in a troubled world because true love is really not there. Most people including myself find it hard to “die to myself” because of love. But everyday we can always try. For Jesus said, “for man it is difficult, but with God nothing is impossible.”
The world needs love. Our country needs love. I just pray that with the coming election getting nearer we may learn to really love one another and not keep pulling each other down. I pray that all the candidates running for election are there because of their love to serve our country and the people and not to be served, or because of selfish interests. And as people, may we learn to vote with prayers that God will lead us to the right persons who can lead this country and bring us even closer to God. And after the election, may we learn to accept those elected to serve and move on with love in our hearts.
The next challenge with love is also to stay in love - the decision to love, the commitment to love.
“But the most significant part of love is found not in the initial attraction but in the commitment afterwards: the commitment of spouses to one another; the commitment to a community despite the imperfection and humanity of its members; or the commitment to friendships when there are rocky parts on the path, and the initial attraction has somewhat waned. If love is the “effective willing of the good of another,” though, as Thomas Aquinas argued, then love has much more to do with the staying power of love than its first glimmer.”- See more at: http://www.ignatianspirituality.com/23515/stay-in-love#sthash.eYc0HzSQ.dpuf
Since we are all human, we have all our imperfections and weaknesses the challenge to stay in love is there. That is where the decision to love comes in especially for married couples who are the foundation of the families. That is where acceptance, humility, understanding comes in. That is where the grace of God is greatly needed so married couples and families can stay in love despite of…
Love. Give. Live. Let the purpose of anything we do be LOVE….
God of Easter Joy, in these weeks after Your resurrection, I long to be in Your protective care. Give me the courage to allow You into my life to let you love me - so I can remain in You. As I pray with the image of the vine and the branch, I know I want to hold tightly to You and grow in love with You. With the guidance of Your Holy Spirit, give me the consolation of being fruitful so I can spread the joy of Your gospel to all those around me. May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.
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