Fifth Sunday of Easter (Year C)

Fifth Sunday of Easter May 15, 2022

Acts 14: 21 b-27; Revelation 21:1-5a; John 13:31-33a, 34-35

(image courtesy: Google)

The renowned artist Paul Gustave Dore (1821-1883) lost his passport while traveling in Europe. When he came to a border crossing, he explained his predicament to one of the guards. Giving his name to the official, Dore hoped he would be recognized and allowed to pass. The guard, however, said that many people attempted to cross the border by claiming to be persons they were not. Dore insisted that he was the man he claimed to be. "All right," said the official, "we'll give you a test, and if you pass it, we'll allow you to go through." Handing him a pencil and a sheet of paper, he told the artist to sketch several peasants standing nearby. Dore did it so quickly and skilfully that the guard was convinced he was indeed who he claimed to be. His action confirmed his identity.

We need some external identity to prove ourselves who we are. Similarly, Jesus too made sure that there are some external identities which makes the followers different from others. The external identity is Love and service. 

Jesus told his disciples to love one another as he himself had loved them. He showed the type of love they ought to have: he served them and washed their feet during the final meal. During the Last Supper, he told them that there is no greater love than one giving his life for his friends and he gave his life for all, calling them his friends. He also defined for us the meaning of God’s love which is sacrificing and self-emptying love. God emptied himself and gave his only son for our sake that we may have life in him.

In the First Reading taken from the Acts of the Apostles tells us about the early missionary journeys of Paul and Barnabas. They went through all hardships and misunderstandings while communicating the message and vision of Jesus to all – Love and Service.  At the same time to those who were already Christians they gave support and encouragement to persevere in their Christian convictions.

Today Jesus calls us to love like his, a love of service. He calls us to love like our heavenly Father who is benevolent and who shows no partiality. He calls us to love as he loved, meaning to be filled with love for one another. The disciple of Christ is not primarily an individual person but an inter-person. He is always at the service of the other. Hence Jesus gives us the new commandment to love other people he has loved us. The divine command is to love God with our whole heart and soul and so on; and to love our neighbours as ourselves. Jesus has added a new element in telling us that the true test of discipleship is to love other people in the same way that he has loved us. His love was the sacrificial love where he gave his life for us.  The disciples are now called upon to build the faith of others and we see how marvellous the living faith of the early Church was.

The great Mahatma Gandhi was asked about his view of Christianity. What he said could show us what probably is keeping two-thirds of the world away from the Good News of Christianity: 

"I have a great respect for Christianity. I often read the Sermon on the Mount and have gained much from it. I know of no one who has done more for humanity than Jesus. In fact, there is nothing wrong with Christianity, but the trouble is with you Christians. You do not begin to live up to your own teachings."

The greatest homage we can pay to the Christian faith is to live in such a way that through us people begin to have a glimpse of the unbounded and unconditional love that God has shown us in Christ.

Happy Sunday