{"id":1076,"date":"2013-04-29T12:55:46","date_gmt":"2013-04-29T16:55:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/renewaloffaith.org\/blog\/?p=1076"},"modified":"2013-04-29T12:55:46","modified_gmt":"2013-04-29T16:55:46","slug":"fifth-sunday-of-easter-year-c","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.renewaloffaith.org\/blog\/fifth-sunday-of-easter-year-c\/","title":{"rendered":"Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year C"},"content":{"rendered":"

5th Sunday of Easter, Year C<\/a>
\nActs 14:21-27
\nRevelation 21:1-5a
\nJohn 13:31-33a, 34-35
\nApril 28, 2013<\/p>\n

We need hope.<\/p>\n

We live in a world of turmoil.\u00a0 Bad things happen.\u00a0 Bombings in Boston, the explosion in Texas, and the possibility of nuclear and chemical warfare.<\/p>\n

There is much illness.\u00a0 Medical Science is making great advances but even as advances are made, new illnesses are diagnosed.<\/p>\n

There are whole countries in financial turmoil.\u00a0 There are individuals who don\u2019t have a job or a sufficient job to provide for family needs.<\/p>\n

In all of this we need hope.\u00a0 Our second reading today comes from the Book of Revelation.\u00a0 It\u2019s sometimes used at funerals.\u00a0 It offers us hope in the life to come, something crucial for us to know at the time of death.<\/p>\n

The setting comes after the death and resurrection of Jesus.\u00a0 Jesus has already come into the world to begin something new but that something new is not fully achieved yet.<\/p>\n

Revelation speaks of the New Jerusalem where there will be no more death, mourning, wailing, or pain.\u00a0 We still know mourning, wailing, and pain so we know that this vision is not fulfilled yet.<\/p>\n

Revelation often speaks of how there will be no death.\u00a0 We still know death but after Jesus\u2019 teaching, death, and resurrection, we see it very differently.\u00a0 Death no longer defines us because Jesus has shown us something more.<\/p>\n

Jesus speaks of how God is glorified in Him and He is glorified by God.\u00a0 How is God glorified in Jesus?\u00a0 Because Jesus does the Father\u2019s Will.<\/p>\n

In doing the Father\u2019s Will, Jesus is showing us His trust in the Father.\u00a0 Jesus shows us that there is something more to life than what we see in this world, that the things of this world in which we live does not define us.<\/p>\n

This is our faith.\u00a0 We are proud to profess it in Christ Jesus our Lord.<\/p>\n

We are called in Baptism to share our faith.\u00a0 The Acts of the Apostles is the story of how the early disciples shared the faith Jesus had given them.<\/p>\n

Note it wasn\u2019t just about bringing the faith to new people.\u00a0 Today we hear how Paul doesn\u2019t just go evangelize a town and then move on, never to return.\u00a0 He returns to the places he has visited.\u00a0 In fact, all but one of the letters of Paul that we have, were written to communities Paul had already visited.<\/p>\n

Paul keeps evangelizing new people but he also continues to evangelize those who he has already visited.<\/p>\n

We are called to share our faith with people who don\u2019t know it.\u00a0 That can be heard.\u00a0 We don\u2019t know where to begin the conversation.\u00a0 But we must.<\/p>\n

The best way to share our faith is in the natural moments of life.\u00a0 It begins as simple as when someone we know faces a new suffering, we can tell them we will pray for them.\u00a0 That simple comment can open the door to conversation.\u00a0 Do we have to teach them all the doctrines of the church?\u00a0 No.<\/p>\n

The best thing we can do is to tell them what our faith means to us.\u00a0 In doing so, we glorify God.<\/p>\n

In doing so we can be strengthened in our own faith.\u00a0 I already spoke of how Paul sometimes returned to people he had already visited or wrote them letters to strengthen them in their faith.<\/p>\n

We need to be constantly strengthened in our faith.\u00a0 We don\u2019t just receive faith in an instant and live it perfectly forever.\u00a0 We need to keep coming back to be strengthened in our faith.<\/p>\n

Coming to church once in a while isn\u2019t enough.\u00a0 We need it on a regular basis to help us stay in tune with the Father\u2019s Will.\u00a0 When we face a tragedy, we need to know that God was present.<\/p>\n

When we already have faith and hope, when tragedy happens, we can know God is there.\u00a0 It\u2019s not that we will ever understand why God allows bad things to happen.\u00a0 It\u2019s about trusting in God.\u00a0 In showing trust we glorify God and God will glorify us.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

5th Sunday of Easter, Year C Acts 14:21-27 Revelation 21:1-5a John 13:31-33a, 34-35 April 28, 2013 We need hope. We live in a world of turmoil.\u00a0 Bad things happen.\u00a0 Bombings in Boston, the explosion in Texas, and the possibility of nuclear and chemical warfare. There is much illness.\u00a0 Medical Science is making great advances but …<\/p>\n

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