Year B
Discover the deeper meaning and connections found in this week's readings, through these great commentaries written by our priests.
Explore this week's readings and hear what God is saying to us through His Word.
Find out more about how we can mark this special day in our liturgy.
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The Gospel today, taken from the final discourse Jesus had with his disciples on Holy Thursday; is centred on love. Here we have Jesus repeating his command to love, but this love is not from some romantic novel. This is a love where one gives of oneself, completely and without counting.
Jesus tells the disciples where this love comes from. This love comes from the Father. Jesus gives an example of how we can demonstrate our love; quite simply he says that if we wish to remain in Christ’s love then we will keep his commandments. Jesus cites his own example of how He has remained in the Father’s love, he kept the father’s commandments, therefore we must follow this example. We are also to follow the example Jesus had given before he started speaking. Jesus washed the feet of his disciples, another sign of that pure love, a love with service at the heart of it. Jesus the master, got down on his hands and knees and washed the feet of his disciples. When I see our priest do this on Holy Thursday, I find this to be such a moving Liturgy. Remembering that Jesus was aware of what was going to happen to him; yet He carried on teaching and setting examples for us; loving us.
The other key part from this Gospel, is that we did not choose Jesus, He chose us; just as He chose to die on the cross for us. Thus demonstrating [and again, giving us the example] the greatest love of all, is where a man or a woman lays down their life for another person.
When we read Scriptures, or listen to them during our Liturgy, we are not doing so blindly or in a vacuum. Scriptures are meant to be digested and change us. This Gospel, being about love, calls us to love. So, what does that mean for us as individuals and as Parish Communities when we look out at the wider community we live in? For me, as a deacon, it prompts and drives me to look out for the unloved, the lonely, the poor in our society. Those on the peripheries; they may have addictions; they may have poor mental health. I am called to love them without judgement. As a deacon I am called to serve them and take Jesus to them. Today, we are all challenged to ask ourselves, what does God want me to do? How does He want me to share his love with my neighbour?
Further Reading
The Catechism of the Catholic Church
Sixth Sunday of Easter
CCC 2746-2751: Christ’s prayer at the Last Supper
CCC 214, 218-221, 231, 257, 733, 2331, 2577: God is love
CCC 1789, 1822-1829, 2067, 2069: love of God and neighbor fulfills the Commandments
CCC 2347, 2709: friendship with Christ
This Sunday’s Liturgy, on the Sunday before Ascension Day, begins to look towards the Solemnity of Pentecost, the Risen Christ’s giving of the Holy Spirit. Within that theme, the prayers speak of the effects of celebrating the Mass.
The Collect reminds us that Mass is not just a mental remembering of Christ, but something objective that changes the life of those who share in it: that what we relive in remembrance we always hold to in what we do.
The Prayer over the Offerings has a similar theme: "... purified by your graciousness, we may be conformed to the mysteries of your mighty love". Those who celebrate the Eucharist pray that the Mystery celebrated will be an active agent in their ongoing Christian conversion.
The Prayer after Communion continues the theme of conversion: Increase in us, we pray, the fruits of this paschal sacrament and pour into our hearts the strength of this saving food.
In the light of the operation of the Holy Spirit in the Eucharist (see the opening of Eucharistic Prayer 3), this theme pervades today’s Liturgy.
Notes These hymns have been chosen from various sources:
God is love (LHON289)
God is love, and where true love is (CFE214, L242)
A new commandment I give unto you (CFE4, L920, LHON133)
Love is his word, love is his way( CFE399, L803, LHON462)
This is my body broken for you (CFE730, L627, LHON681)
Key
CFE - Celebration Hymnal for Everyone
L – Laudate
LHON – Liturgical Hymns Old and New (Mayhew, 1999)
TCH – The Catholic Hymnbook (Gracewing)
Do you have questions about the liturgy and how we are called to participate in it? Explore how the Church councils, saints, and popes have answered this key question and many more.
Every movement of the Mass is rich in meaning but we can become over-familiar with it. Rediscover the Mass and explore how it relates to the Exodus story, where many of its rituals come from, and how it makes Jesus present to us today.
