TGIMMsend

April 2

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Wednesday, April 2, Lent IV

JOHN 5:17-30

The Father has given me the task of bringing you to eternal life.

Prayerthoughts
a. The Jewish leaders certainly understood that Jesus was calling God His Father. As I study my family, living and deceased, have I given them the proper respect?

b. Jesus gives life to us. In my life, what are the areas for which I should be most thankful? (This is the task of the meditation.)

c. The Lord says that His Father judges no one, leaving it up to the Son. Who have I judged in a negative way, and what should I do to correct the fault?

d. The Lord urges us to hear and believe. Have I listened well to the passages of Scripture especially the ones on forgiveness and judging others?

e. The Lord speaks of the end of the world. Does the end of the world or the end of my life scare me in any way at all? Why or why not?

f. Jesus sought to follow the will of his Father. Do I subject my will to others or am I too selfish to do that?

g. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will write down the answer to letter b, saying a prayer
for each instance.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

HEARING AND BELIEVING

+ One of the characteristics of John’s Gospel is the continual reference by Jesus to his relationship with the Father

- in today’s Gospel, John records that it is the reason why the Jewish leaders wanted to kill him—he was making himself equal to God, absolute blasphemy among a people who refused to even pronounce God’s name

- but Jesus, especially in John’s Gospel, does not let up

- it is clear that part of our reason to believe in him is the fact of his closeness to his Father, calling himself his Son

+ It has been our faith from the very beginning that Jesus is God’s Son

- and our spiritual lives are built around that concept

+ Perhaps the essence of Jesus’ dialogue today is this:

- Jesus says:

I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes in the one who sent me [namely his Father] has eternal life and will not come to condemnation, but has passed from death to life

+ Two things are presented here for our consideration and our growth in our spiritual lives

1 – hearing his word

- of course, hearing implies much more than being aware of what Jesus said

- it implies truly listening which means both reading his word—that is the reason that the Gospels are so important—and a desire to carry through with what we read or listen to

- that is the way that Jesus’s doctrines of love, forgiveness, reconciliation, peace, and genuine care for others comes into our communities

- it takes time and quiet prayer to do that well

2 – believing in the Father

- believing in God is much more than saying the words of the Creed

- believing in God implies a lifestyle that is evidence to others that God really does exist in our own little worlds

- that we truly accept the words of Isaiah 49, the first reading today—and that God will not forget him/her, and he/she acts accordingly

+ And once we have heard Jesus’ word and believed in the Father

- it’s interesting to look at the language of John—then the person has eternal life

- that is, eternal life has begun, or we have begun our heaven on earth, even with all the challenges that we have, it is the beginning of eternal happiness.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "Send My Love" -- Adele

THE SPIRITUAL SIDE OF A BREAKUP

The Gospel

MARK 10:40-45

Jesus said: “To sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared.” When the ten heard this, they became indignant at James and John. Jesus summoned them and said to them, “You know that those who are recognized as rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you will be the slave of all. For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Gospelthink: If you want to be a true follower of mine, you will learn to serve other human beings. In what ways am I serving others?

"This was all you, none of it me. You put your hands on my body and told me you were ready for the big one, I’d be your last love everlasting—you and me. I’m giving you up, I’ve forgiven it all. You set me free. Send my love to your new lover. Treat her better. I was running, you were walking. You couldn’t keep up, you were falling down."

The Apostles were relatively ordinary people, although they grew to be extraordinary in their later lives. That in itself is a good thing for us to learn from. But looking at it from another angle, since they were ordinary, they had to disagree with each other. There were twelve of them, and chances are that they often disagreed more than they should have. At one time, James and John, known to be a little belligerent in their approach to life, had asked Jesus to be first in his kingdom. The other Apostles were "indignant" about it, causing no doubt an argument in which there was blame leveled at one another.

Jesus was well aware that addressing who was to blame would not solve any problems. Instead, knowing how blaming others created havoc, he chose to teach them about being servants to one another. He told them in effect, that if they learned the lesson of being a "slave" to another, they would find the answer to any disagreement.

Translating the Gospel incident into everyday life, when some type of blame is placed on another, it is important to understand the meaning of being a servant to one another. We who are upset at someone must look at the person with whom we are upset and understand that we are servants of the person. If we do, then, whether another is to blame or not, the problem can be solved without too much complication.

As we consider the case in Adele's song "Send My Love," the lady in the relationship places direct blame on the other, and indeed, it seems to be the case. She seems to handle the breakup well, but she must remember that she is a servant of sorts to the other, and treat such a one with that in mind. It not only is good "religion," but it is good "psychology" as well.

The follower of Jesus in particular will work with romantic breakups and indeed every disagreement with another, with the thought of being a servant to the other. In general, it will control anger, but more importantly, it will lead to better relationships.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, Your Son in many ways was a perfect psychologist. He taught us the lesson of being a servant. Give us the grace to learn the lesson a little better so that our relationships, romantic and otherwise, will be healthy. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: We can place blame for failed relationships on others, but we must always remember the importance of everyone involved.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What is your definition of a "servant"?
2. Analysis: As one studies the words of the song, describe what the relationship between the man and woman was like.
3. It is good for us to consider the Apostles as ordinary people who became extraordinary in their spiritual lives. Do you feel that Christians in general develop their spiritual lives well? Yes or no and why?
4. Using your imagination, what would it have been like for the twelve Apostles to spend a significant time together?
5. In what way is being a "slave" different from being a "servant"?
6. In an anger situation, considering ourselves to be servants of the person with whom we are angry is a way to diffuse anger, but it is extremely difficult. What is the best way to control anger?
7. Do you think that all "religion" is good "psychology"? Yes or no and why?
8. How should a Christian consider a "break up"?
9. What does the song "Send My Love" teach young people?