Fifth Sunday of Easter 'B'

Sunday May 10, 2009

Keep in touch

It’s not unusual to hear family members or close friends at the departure gates of life say to one another, “Don’t forget to keep in touch; lets stay connected.” AT&T captured that theme in its radio and TV commercials for several years and it is subliminal in many telemarketing advertisements.

“Call when you get there,” or “Call if you’re going to be late,” are also polite protocols intended only to maintain the basic courtesies that lessen worry. The greater concern however, is the need to keep family members and friends in a support system. Keeping ‘in touch’ also keeps us connected to our family values and a value system that will hold us up in good times and bad—in the green wood and in the dry wood.

We need one another — the road ahead is long and we can’t go it alone. ‘Lone rangers’ run out of steam and eventually run the risk of burnout. Many do not discover this until it’s too late.

Since Easter Sunday, the Scriptures have been describing different qualities of the “post-resurrection” community of early Christian believers. Although Luke uses the word “Church” in Acts of the Apostles, it was more a movement within Judaism than a separate institution. We need take care not to read anti-Semitism into these ancient texts. The earliest followers of Christ were Jews among Jews but they did not all agree on the identity of Jesus or on his mission.

It is also important to note that the biblical authors were less concerned about presenting documentary history than in conveying the deeper reality of God’s interventions into human history. Some of the descriptions of the appearances of Jesus are quite graphic because the authors wanted to emphasize continuity between the historical Jesus and the Christ of faith experienced after the resurrection as in the account last weekend of Jesus having shared a breakfast of fish at the shore of the lake. In other words, they wanted to give testimony to the fact that the Jesus of faith is the same as the Jesus of history though in a different form. Other descriptions were metaphorical with the accent on faith and ritual, e.g., the experience of Jesus’ presence on the road to Emmaus and in the “breaking of the bread.”

Through the use of allegories and metaphors, biblical accounts alert us to our own individual and communal experience of the mystery of God’s life in the midst of the challenges that face us on a daily basis. Despite our tendency to go it alone, these faith stories remind us that in so doing, we run the risk of burnout and spiritual disaster.

During a parish family Mass several years ago at St. Joseph, I invited the congregation to participate in an ‘interactive’ homily. This was my lead question: “Why did Jesus use the metaphor of the vine and the branches to describe his relationship with his disciples and followers?”

Here are samples of their responses:

“Because we can’t grow as Christians without staying connected.”

Indeed, growth is an ongoing process. We need to remain connected to God’s word and to the sacrament of Christ’s presence in the Eucharist. There are two tables in our sanctuary. The first is the table of God’s word. The private reading of the Bible as important as it may be is not sufficient to keep us connected. We need to listen to the Scriptures together in this assembly. Despite my familiarity with particular passages and despite my study of the scriptural commentaries, I still hear something new when the Scriptures are read publicly at public worship.

As I listened to the proclamation of the readings on this Mother’s Day, I was reminded of my mom’s welcome on my return from a date when I was a kid. Despite my attempt to avoid the squeaky step on the way up to my bedroom, she never failed to wake upon my return. “Is that you Ken?” “Yes,” said I. “Did you have a good time?” “Yup,” was my pithy response. “Who was there?” “The same crowd…” etc. Then I would hear my dad say to mom, “Let’s ask him all those questions in the morning!

We need to break open the “bread” of God’s word in this assembly every Sunday because they will undoubtedly trigger a memory of a meaningful family incident or event that connects us to our ancestors.

The other table is the Eucharist table. It is the most important table in the parish because it is where our life in Christ is nourished and sustained. It is where we are bonded as a family in Christ. This can have a dramatic impact on the way we interact with one another after we leave this assembly.

Here is another response from the pew: “The vine gives life to the fruit or flower which if cut off, dies.”

How true. In his commentary on the Eucharist, St. Augustine said, “Behold what you are, behold what you are to become.” In other words, we become what we eat. We become bread blessed and broken for one another and for humanity.

Still another: “The vine is symbolic of our support for one another.”

Excellent observation! The Church is a huge support group. Notwithstanding the fact that we sometimes get in one another’s way, we need one another and that we will lend a hand and extend our heart when the going gets rough. Jesus said, “Where two or more are gathered in my name, I will be there.”

And here is still another response: “The wine of Christ’s life makes our efforts fruitful!”

This is more than a metaphor. The blood of Christ surges through our veins to the extent that in the words of Paul to the Galatians, “I live now, no longer I but Christ lives in me.” The wine of Christ’s life also adds a note of joy to our efforts. The life of the disciple is not intended to be a life of travail but a life of grace and happiness despite the hard knocks connected with the pursuit of integrity.

This is what it means to be “Church.” It’s where we learn to listen not only to the Word of God and the homily but also to the music and prayers. It means listening to the heartbeat of God and to one another’s heartbeat. It’s where we learn to beat our own drum and even walk to its beat and where we learn to respect the beat of our neighbor’s drum. It’s where we learn to work out our differences and break down barriers and barricades of bias and prejudice so that we can be an example to a very divided world

Mothers—both biological and spiritual mothers—have a way of creating such an atmosphere and helping us to stay connected.

Don’t forget to call when you get there and if you get stuck, call me but most of all, stay in touch!

Indeed we all need to stay in touch!

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