20210505 PRUNING REQUIRES COMMUNION
05 May, 2021, Wednesday, 5th Week of Easter
First reading | Acts 15:1-6 © |
They were to go up to Jerusalem and discuss the problem with the apostles and elders
Some men came down from Judaea and taught the brothers, ‘Unless you have yourselves circumcised in the tradition of Moses you cannot be saved.’ This led to disagreement, and after Paul and Barnabas had had a long argument with these men it was arranged that Paul and Barnabas and others of the church should go up to Jerusalem and discuss the problem with the apostles and elders.
All the members of the church saw them off, and as they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria they told how the pagans had been converted, and this news was received with the greatest satisfaction by the brothers. When they arrived in Jerusalem they were welcomed by the church and by the apostles and elders, and gave an account of all that God had done with them.
But certain members of the Pharisees’ party who had become believers objected, insisting that the pagans should be circumcised and instructed to keep the Law of Moses. The apostles and elders met to look into the matter.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 121(122):1-5 © |
I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’
or
Alleluia!
I rejoiced when I heard them say:
‘Let us go to God’s house.’
And now our feet are standing
within your gates, O Jerusalem.
I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’
or
Alleluia!
Jerusalem is built as a city
strongly compact.
It is there that the tribes go up,
the tribes of the Lord.
I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’
or
Alleluia!
For Israel’s law it is,
there to praise the Lord’s name.
There were set the thrones of judgement
of the house of David.
I rejoiced when I heard them say: ‘Let us go to God’s house.’
or
Alleluia!
Gospel Acclamation | Jn10:14 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the good shepherd, says the Lord;
I know my own sheep and my own know me.
Alleluia!
Or: | Jn15:4,5 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Make your home in me, as I make mine in you,
says the Lord;
whoever remains in me bears fruit in plenty.
Alleluia!
Gospel | John 15:1-8 © |
I am the vine, you are the branches
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘I am the true vine,
and my Father is the vinedresser.
Every branch in me that bears no fruit
he cuts away,
and every branch that does bear fruit
he prunes to make it bear even more.
You are pruned already,
by means of the word that I have spoken to you.
Make your home in me, as I make mine in you.
As a branch cannot bear fruit all by itself,
but must remain part of the vine,
neither can you unless you remain in me.
I am the vine,
you are the branches.
Whoever remains in me, with me in him,
bears fruit in plenty;
for cut off from me you can do nothing.
Anyone who does not remain in me
is like a branch that has been thrown away – he withers;
these branches are collected and thrown on the fire,
and they are burnt.
If you remain in me
and my words remain in you,
you may ask what you will
and you shall get it.
It is to the glory of my Father that you should bear much fruit,
and then you will be my disciples.’
PRUNING REQUIRES COMMUNION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ACTS 15:1-6; PS 122:1-5; JOHN 15:1-8]
In the first reading, we read of the tensions in the primitive Church arising from converts from the Gentile community. The first Christians were Jews converted from Judaism. But as the apostles made it clear, Christianity is not a new religion per se but it is the fulfillment of Judaism. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. Jesus had no intention to start a new religion. But He wanted to perfect the Law and the Prophets by bringing Judaism to its completion. It is for this reason too that when the apostles, including St Paul, preached, it was first directed to the Jews and then only to the Gentiles. The Jews remained the privileged People of God. That promise had not been revoked even when they opposed the Christians as St Paul said, “As regards the gospel they are enemies of God for your sake; but as regards election they are beloved, for the sake of their ancestors; for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.” (Rom 11:28f)
Nevertheless, we can appreciate the tensions in the early Church between the Jewish Christians and the Gentile Christians. The Jews had all the while seen themselves as the choicest vineyard of the Lord. They were the Chosen People of God. They saw the Law of Moses and the Prophets as paramount in being faithful to God. But they also accepted many specific laws extrapolated from those principles meted out by Moses, which they called Oral Law or Scribal Laws. They observed the ceremonials and rituals meticulously so that they could be considered God’s people. This was particularly true in the case of “those members of the Pharisees’ party who had become believers objected, insisting that the pagans should be circumcised and instructed to keep the Law of Moses.” Again, we can feel with the Jewish Christians. By becoming Christians, they had already sacrificed much. Many of them were ostracized from their community. The former Pharisees lost their dignity and place in Judaism. They were never comfortable eating with the Gentiles whom they felt were unclean until they adopted the Jewish customs and rituals.
Hence, for them to work together and live as a community, the Jewish Christians felt that it was necessary that they first be proselytes to the Jewish Faith and then over and above the Jewish Faith, accept Christ. But this would contradict the belief that Christ saves us by grace and not by observance of the Laws. If the Laws could save them, then accepting Christ would be redundant. Precisely, it is only through Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross that we are reconciled by grace to God. Indeed, in the gospel, Jesus reiterated this fact when He implied that He was the new Vine and the Christians were His branches. The Old Vine, Israel, who rejected God no longer was valid. Anyone who is incorporated into the New Vine, Jesus Himself, will find salvation and bear much fruit. As a consequence, when “some men came down from Judaea and taught the brothers, ‘Unless you have yourselves circumcised in the tradition of Moses you cannot be saved’. This led to disagreement.”
Yet, we must understand that God allowed all these tensions and disagreement between the Jewish Christians and the Gentile Christians as the Lord wanted to prune them further. This was what the Lord said, “Every branch in me that bears no fruit he cuts away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes to make it bear even more.” Christ wanted to prune the Christian community further so that they could grow and bring more into the Faith and find salvation in Him. But this called for greater sensitivity between the two different cultural communities. It called for dialogue and compromise so that both could adjust themselves to each other, out of love and respect, even if such customs could give a wrong impression on the salvific work of our Lord.
Dialogue, therefore, is the only way forward to come to a better understanding of each other, to what they were saying and why they were observing certain customs. A community, especially when it is a diverse one, will be fragmented as we see in so many religious, racial and social conflicts in the world because the sensitivities of each other’s culture are not treated with respect. So it was certainly in the right spirit that “it was arranged that Paul and Barnabas and others of the church should go up to Jerusalem and discuss the problem with the apostles and elders.” When the community cannot come to an agreement among themselves, it is important that we refer to a higher authority to mediate and settle the differences.
Hence, we see the importance of being one with the true vine. This is what the Lord insisted. “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever remains in me, with me in him, bears fruit in plenty; for cut off from me you can do nothing.” To remain with the Vine of course means to be in union with our Lord. It means to let His Word live in us, that we share His mind and His heart. This was what the Lord said to the disciples, “You are pruned already, by means of the word that I have spoken to you. Make your home in me, as I make mine in you. As a branch cannot bear fruit all by itself, but must remain part of the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me.” We dwell in God when we allow His word to live in us. “Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; and the word that you hear is not mine, but is from the Father who sent me.” (Jn 14:23f)
But being with the true Vine means also to be one with the community. We must be in union with the branches as well because fruits can be produced only when we are all connected to the Vine and working together to produce the fruits. This explains why Paul and Barnabas were sent by the Christian community to Jerusalem for consultation and directions. When members of an organization or community become arrogant and proud, and alienate themselves from the larger community, they will end up being another sect due to the lack of guidance and most of all, because they have forgotten their roots and are without foundation for their growth.
Thank God, they did not take that route, otherwise the Lord’s warning would have been fulfilled for the primitive Church. “Anyone who does not remain in me is like a branch that has been thrown away – he withers; these branches are collected and thrown on the fire, and they are burnt.’ When we cut ourselves from the apostolic Church, we end up deviating from the central beliefs of the Christian Faith. This explains why fidelity to the apostolic tradition is one of the conditions for orthodoxy. For us Catholics, because the bishops are the successors of the apostles and the Pope the Vicar of Christ, we are called to be in communion with the teaching of the Church, which we call the Magisterium. This is to safeguard the orthodoxy of faith and fidelity to the deposit of faith passed down to the Church for generations.
Indeed, because they were ready to dialogue and be in communion and willing to make compromises, the Church could grow from strength to strength. We read that “as they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria they told how the pagans had been converted, and this news was received with the greatest satisfaction by the brothers. When they arrived in Jerusalem they were welcomed by the church and by the apostles and elders, and gave an account of all that God had done with them.” Accountability and testimony of the fruits of their mission indicated that the Lord was working in and through them. Jesus said, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask what you will and you shall get it. It is to the glory of my Father that you should bear much fruit, and then you will be my disciples.” The fruits that they bore were not just more converts to the faith but most of all, it demonstrated the fruits of the Spirit in their lives, especially of joy, love, peace. (cf Gal 5:22-26)
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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