Saturday of the Seventh Week of Easter, Year A, June 3, 2017.
1st Reading: Acts 28:16-20.30-31.
When he entered Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself, with the soldier who was guarding him. Three days later he called together the leaders of the Jews. When they had gathered he said to them, “My brothers, although I had done nothing against our people or our ancestral customs, I was handed over to the Romans as a prisoner from Jerusalem. After trying my case the Romans wanted to release me, because they found nothing against me deserving the death penalty. But when the Jews objected, I was obliged to appeal to Caesar, even though I had no accusation to make against my own nation. This is the reason, then, I have requested to see you and to speak with you, for it is on account of the hope of Israel that I wear these chains.” He remained for two full years in his lodgings. He received all who came to him, and with complete assurance and without hindrance he proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ. The word of the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm: 11(10):4.5.7.
R/.The just will gaze on your face, O Lord.
Gospel: John 21:20-25.
Peter turned and saw the disciple following whom Jesus loved, the one who had also reclined upon his chest during the supper and had said, “Master, who is the one who will betray you?” When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about him?” Jesus said to him, “What if I want him to remain until I come? What concern is it of yours? You follow me.” So the word spread among the brothers that that disciple would not die. But Jesus had not tell him that he would not die, just “What if I want him to remain until I come? (What concern is it of yours?)” It is this disciple who testifies to these things and has written them, and we know that his testimony is true. There are also many other things that Jesus did, but if these were to be described individually, I do not think the whole world would contain the books that would be written. The gospel of the Lord.
SATURDAY REFLECTIONS:
Imagine the insights that our Blessed Mother would have had about her Son. She, as His mother, would have seen and understood so many hidden moments of His life. She would have watched Him grow year after year. She would have watched Him relate and interact with others throughout His life. She would have noticed that He was preparing for His public ministry. And she would have witnessed so many hidden moments of that public ministry and countless sacred moments of His entire life. This Scripture above is the final sentence of the Gospel of John and is one we do not hear very often. But it offers some fascinating insights to reflect upon. All we know about the life of Christ is contained in the Gospels, but how could these short Gospel books ever come close to describing the totality of who Jesus is? They certainly cannot. To do that, as John says above, the pages could not be contained in the whole world. That’s saying a lot.
So a first insight we should take from this Scripture is that we know only a small portion of the actual life of Christ. What we know is glorious. But we should realize that there is so much more. And this realization should fill our minds with interest, longing and a desire for more. By coming to know how little we actually do know, we will hopefully be compelled to seek Christ more deeply. However, a second insight we can gain from this passage is that, even though the numerous events of Christ’s life cannot be contained in countless volumes of books, we can, nonetheless, discover Jesus Himself in what IS contained in the Holy Scriptures. We can come to encounter the Living Word of God Himself in the Scriptures and, in that encounter and meeting of Him, we are given all we need.
Together we pray: Lord, I may not know everything about Your life, but I do desire to know You. I desire to meet You every day, to love You and to know You. Help me to enter more deeply into a relationship with You. Jesus, I trust in You that You alone will heal our sick brethren and set them free. May the souls of our faithful departed brethren rest in perfect peace, amen. Have a blessed and fulfilled weekend.