From our Pastor’s Desk
Dear Parish Family:
Today’s reading from the Gospel of John is part of Jesus’ discourse at the Last Supper. Recall that John tells the story of Jesus’ Last Supper differently from the other Evangelists. In John’s Gospel, the Last Supper begins with Jesus washing his disciples’ feet. Jesus then provides them with a series of instructions. The Church calls this section the Last Supper discourse or Jesus’ farewell discourse. In these chapters of John’s Gospel, Jesus instructs his disciples about the importance of following his example of love and service, about the gift they will receive when Jesus sends them the Holy Spirit, and about their relationship with Jesus and with the world. The Last Supper discourse concludes with Jesus’ prayer for his disciples.
Today’s Gospel reading is taken from middle of the Last Supper discourse. Jesus speaks about his relationship to his disciples. In his metaphor of the vine and the branches, Jesus is referencing the Hebrew Scriptures. In the Hebrew Scriptures, Israel is the vineyard, and Yahweh himself tends the vineyard. One of the primary themes of John’s Gospel is to show Jesus to be the fulfillment of God’s promises to Israel.
In this passage, Jesus teaches his disciples that his relationship with them will not end after his death; he will remain with them always. This unity between Jesus and his disciples is the basis for their ability to continue to do the work that he began. Similarly, Jesus’ presence with us through the Gift of the Holy Spirit enables us to continue the work of love and reconciliation that he began.
It is very important, then, that when He says to us “I am the vine and you are the branches,” what it really means is that we, as Christians, do not just walk with him. He is within us, in each other, in our community, in those outside our community. Because He has become one of us, through his own incarnation, He has become incarnate in every human being. And that means that, when we look at each other, we must look at each other the way He is. When we treat each other, we must treat each other the way we are, not just solitary individuals being nice to each other. We are people who are filled with the life of God in an intimacy that will last for all eternity. And this is why today Jesus says to them, “You cannot separate the vine from the branches. You cannot separate the branches from the vine.” This is a great mystery, because he is saying, “You are dependent upon me, but also God Himself has made Himself dependent on us.”
We observe many people who act in ways that show their commitment to serve their neighbor. Christians and non-Christians feed the hungry, care for the sick, shelter the homeless, and give alms to the poor. These actions become acts of Christian discipleship when they are motivated by our relationship with Jesus. Whatever the immediate results, Jesus promises us that these actions will bear fruit when we undertake them in his name.
It is precisely because of this commitment to serve our neighbor, that this weekend we are conducting a Registration Campaign in our parish. We are one with Christ as Christ is one with us, and therefore, we need to know each other, we need to know that we belong to HIM, that we are his flock. We cannot continue in anonymity; we need to come forward and say, we are here, and we belong to this wonderful community of St. Katharine Drexel Parish.
I invite those who are not registered to please do so. You may do it online by scanning the QR code in the back of the chair in front of you. You may do it in the lobby on your way-out Mass; members of our parish will be there to assist you. You can do it at the Parish office during the week. If you are already registered, we thank you for having the spirit of belonging to this community of love moved by our love for the Eucharist, Jesus Christ in the flesh, body, blood, soul, and divinity.
Because He is the vine and we are the branches, we are One Body, One Spirit, One Family! Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Katharine Drexel, Saint Michael the Archangel, Pope Saint Pius X and Blessed Dr. José Gregorio Hernández, pray for us!
Yours in Christ Jesus!
Fr. Omar
