We are gifts

7^th Week of Easter (R)

Fr. Philip Neri Powell OP

St. Dominic Priory, NOLA

Jesus prays to the Father “not only for [the disciples], but also for those who will believe in [him] through their word.” He makes an extraordinary statement while praying, “Father, they are your gift to me.” A gift, properly understood, is freely given and freely received. A gift cannot be requested, earned, borrowed, coerced or stolen. A gift cannot create a debt or an obligation. Nor can something belonging to another be given as a gift. Likewise, receiving a gift cannot be forced or obliged. Giving and receiving a gift – for it to be truly free – must be entirely unattached from any and all conditions that muddle the exchange. When the Lord says that we are a gift to him from the Father, he is saying that we, His creatures, first belonged to the Father. Now, we belong to Christ. If we are now one with Christ in this free exchange, then we also belong to one another as gifts. Our growth in holiness depends in part on the difficult task of being gifts to each other, living daily as freely given and freely received subjects of charity and mercy. As the kids say these days, “The struggle is real.” But the struggle is more than worth the work. 

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Who is truth?

7^th Week of Easter (W)

Fr. Philip Neri Powell OP

St. Dominic Priory, NOLA

Jesus prays to the Father, asking Him to consecrate the disciples in truth. To set them aside for the particular purpose of sending them out to be truth in the world. Pilate's question echoes here: what is truth? Even better: who is truth? Jesus says, “Your word is truth.” And we know that Christ is the Word – the Way, the Truth, and the Life. So, Jesus is praying to the Father to set us aside for the particular purpose of sending us out to be Christ in the world. To accomplish this mission we need to remain in the Father's name, I AM. Or rather, we need to be kept in the Father's name, protected. Why? Because we remain as Christ ascends. And the world is not our home. He will send the Holy Spirit to keep us in his Word, to keep us protected along the Way, in the Truth, for eternal Life. His protection is freely offered, so it must be freely received; and once received, freely given to anyone who asks. Paul warns that savage wolves will come among us, and they will not spare the flock. Neither will they spare the shepherds – as we know all too well! So, we remain in the Truth b/c Christ is Truth, and the Truth sets us free.   

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