Wednesday Reflection

Daily Gospel Reflections May 20^th 2020

Gospel                                                          JN 16:12-15

Jesus said to his disciples:
“I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.
He will not speak on his own,
but he will speak what he hears,
and will declare to you the things that are coming.
He will glorify me,
because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
Everything that the Father has is mine;
for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine
and declare it to you.”

Dear Friends and Family,

            You can hear the love Jesus has for his disciples in the past and in the present.  This love is realized when Jesus gives the disciples what they need in the moment.  Jesus does not burden them with the problems of the future, but rather gives the disciples the Spirit of Truth to guide them in the moment; nothing more and nothing less.  Our world misunderstands truth and that misunderstanding leads people astray.  The Catholic tradition understands the embodiment of the truth is found in Jesus Christ, who said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”  But then Jesus gives us more than the truth. Jesus gives us the Holy Spirit so that we will understand his truth and be able to apply it to our lives.  This is in an incredible gift we are wise to accept. But how do we follow the Spirit and truth in a world that so confused by its many truths?

            A sports analogy might help us.  Two teams take to the field, or step onto the court; both teams know the rules and both strive to play by them.  But often in the midst of play someone may feel the rules have been violated and a conflict of perspectives begins.  Who has the authority or power to make the call?  Most sports have a judge, official, or referee who is watching the game intently.  Both teams will defer to the watchful eye of the official and trust that the official will make a fair, unbiased call regarding the play at hand.  A game without officials or judges soon dissolves into chaos as rules are violated and no authority is present to make the call.  But when two team play by the rules and are watched by fair officials; that game is thrilling to watch and fun to play.

            Our Catholic Church has the Spirit that was given to us by Jesus and will remain with us to the end of time.  This Spirit continues to work with and through our Pope, Bishops and the Magisterium of Catholic Church.  As new issues and questions arise in our world, we turn to our Spirit filled leaders seeking guidance and truth.  We long for the truth in all things.  We thrive and grow when the truth is embraced and we wither and die when the truth is ignored or rejected.  So many modern issues could be quickly resolved if the world would open its eyes to the truth as it is and not as the world imagines it to be.  Jesus knows our desire for truth, he gives us that truth and sends us his Holy Spirit so that we might embrace it and grow.  In ancient times there were two types of people: the wise and the foolish.  The wise would see the world as God sees the world; the fools lived in a world of their own imagination not rooted in reality.  Today let us not play the fool and make our own truth, but rather seek the wise counsel of our Pope and Bishops as they reveal the world to us in Spirit and truth.  We pray for Pope Francis and our bishops as they boldly lead us through the trial of this pandemic.  Keep them healthy and grant them your peace and strength so they can shepherd a suffering flock.