The Gospel According to John
– 2018.08.19
The Gospel Reading John 6:51 - 58
Gospel Acclamation John 8:56
Ephesians 5:15 – 20
Psalms 33(34):2 – 3, 10 – 15
Proverbs 9:1 - 6
The Way and the Message
The
reading for today is instructive. It speaks to us of the way of life that all
Christians are called, if their intention is to follow the way of Jesus.
Let
us be clear about this; not all Christians follow the way, and the institutions
of the church have been opposed to the way almost from the beginning, though it
does not know it. Know this as well, you do not need to be a Christian to follow
the way, in fact, because of erroneous teaching, it may be a stumbling block.
Listen!
The
Apostle calls us to be moderate and temperate in all the things we do.
We
are called to sobriety and rationality, as we are called to the service of our
sisters and brothers.
We
are not called to service for the sake of our salvation. We are called on to service
as a means of giving thanks to God, the creator of the universe.
If
our intention is to seek God; look no farther than your heart. You will find
God in loving service, in loving you will be blessed, and you will be a
blessing to others, both.
Praise
God through works of love.
Look
for no other glory than the glory of humility, emulate God, whose greatness
resides in God’s caring.
Listen
to your neighbors, be responsive, rescue them from fear and encourage them. Reflect
the lights of hope and love, God is present in these.
Remember
this, with God there is no shame. God is no respecter of station, class or
wealth. God loves everyone the same.
Do
not look for God to save you from your troubles, the divine hand will not reach
into our lives and change our circumstance. In this way, we are all Job, the
universe is indifferent and full of suffering, but we are not called to
indifference, we are called to share the suffering of others, as Christ did,
and to alleviate it if we can.
We
cannot escape the pains of the world, we are called to have faith in God, that
we may understand how transient they are. All pain is temporary, only love
lasts forever.
Do
not fear.
Speak
the truth.
Avoid
evil.
Do
good.
God
see all and hears all, God knows all, even our innermost thoughts, our secrets
and desires, our true motivations. God understands our experience even as we
understand it ourselves, seeing through our eyes, feeling what we feel.
Keep
your mind in the present and do not focus on the good things that may or may
not come.
God
loves us always, but it is only in the present moment that we experience it,
that we are able to share it with others.
Listen
only to those who teach hope…ignore the fear-mongers, except insofar as you are
sharing the truth with them.
This
is the way to peace.
The
Apostle calls us to be moderate and temperate in all the things we do.
We
are called to sobriety and rationality and to the service of our sisters and
brothers.
We
are not called on to do this for the sake of our salvation. We are called on to
do this as a means of giving thanks to God, the creator of the universe.
We
are saved because God wills it. Give thanks for it, and do not place your faith
in anything else.
The
eucharist is not magical food.
Eating
the bread and drinking the wine does not confer the gift of eternal life,
Christians
do a disservice to the memory of Jesus when they use the eucharist to divide
people from one another, splitting them into groups of insiders and outsiders,
and by withholding the grave which they believe it confers.
The
eucharist may only be seen as a sacrament insofar as it fulfills the ministry
of Jesus, which is to foster hope through the loving service we provide to one
another.
The
bread and the wine are the flesh and blood of the church, literally feeding the
members through the gifts the members themselves bring to be shared at the
common table.
First Reading: Proverbs
9:1-6 ©
Wisdom
Builds Her House and Invites All to Eat Her Bread There
Wisdom
has built herself a house,
she has erected her seven pillars,
she
has slaughtered her beasts, prepared her wine,
she has laid her table.
She
has despatched her maidservants
and proclaimed from the city’s heights:
‘Who
is ignorant? Let him step this way.’
To the fool she says,
‘Come
and eat my bread,
drink the wine I have prepared!
Leave
your folly and you will live,
walk in the ways of perception.’
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm
33(34):2-3,10-15 ©
Taste and see that the
Lord is good.
I
will bless the Lord at all times,
his praise always on my lips;
in
the Lord my soul shall make its boast.
The humble shall hear and be glad.
Taste and see that the
Lord is good.
Revere
the Lord, you his saints.
They lack nothing, those who revere him.
Strong
lions suffer want and go hungry
but those who seek the Lord lack no blessing.
Taste and see that the
Lord is good.
Come,
children, and hear me
that I may teach you the fear of the Lord.
Who
is he who longs for life
and many days, to enjoy his prosperity?
Taste and see that the
Lord is good.
Then
keep your tongue from evil
and your lips from speaking deceit.
Turn
aside from evil and do good;
seek and strive after peace.
Taste and see that the
Lord is good.
Second Reading: Ephesians
5:15-20 ©
Be Filled Not with Wine,
but With the Spirit
Be
very careful about the sort of lives you lead, like intelligent and not like
senseless people. This may be a wicked age, but you redeem it. And do not be
thoughtless but recognise what is the will of the Lord. Do not drug yourselves
with wine, this is simply dissipation; be filled with the Spirit. Sing the
words and tunes of the psalms and hymns when you are together, and go on
singing and chanting to the Lord in your hearts, so that always and everywhere
you are giving thanks to God who is our Father in the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
Gospel Acclamation: John 6:56
Alleluia,
alleluia!
He
who eats my flesh and drinks my blood
lives
in me, and I live in him,
says
the Lord.
Alleluia!
Gospel: John 6:51-58 ©
My Flesh is Real Food and
My Blood is Real Drink
Jesus
said to the crowd:
‘I
am the living bread which has come down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread
will live for ever; and the bread that I shall give is my flesh, for the life
of the world.’
Then
the Jews started arguing with one another: ‘How can this man give us his flesh
to eat?’ they said. Jesus replied:
‘I
tell you most solemnly, if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink
his blood, you will not have life in you. Anyone who does eat my flesh and
drink my blood has eternal life, and I shall raise him up on the last day. For
my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. He who eats my flesh and
drinks my blood lives in me and I live in him. As I, who am sent by the living
Father, myself draw life from the Father, so whoever eats me will draw life
from me. This is the bread come down from heaven; not like the bread our
ancestors ate: they are dead, but anyone who eats this bread will live for
ever.’
20th Sunday in
Ordinary Time
