(Jn 14:21-31)

Dwelling and reciprocity, interpretation and root

Generators from below

(Jn 14:21-26)

The Father's love unites us to Christ through a call that manifests itself wave after wave. And on this path the Son himself is revealed, also through genuine community life.

The Gospel passage reflects the question-and-answer catechesis typical of the Johannine communities of Asia Minor, committed to questioning: this time the theme of misunderstanding is introduced by Judas, not Iscariot.

Even the Jews had waited for an eloquent public outing to believe in the divine status of Jesus of Nazareth. Perhaps such a humble manifestation could only generate scepticism.

How is it that in Him one remains in the sphere of concealment, and His own intimates do not break out in reaction? Wouldn't an open and sensational twist be appropriate?

And why live from within the difficulties? Then, how is it that relationships considered 'important' were regarded with increasing aversion, alien, irritating?

Well, Christ's vulnerable messianism - seemingly defensive, avoidant - is not the kind that dispels doubts.

He remained bare. So he did not lose his naturalness; as if he had perceived the danger of lofty aberrations, all external.

The authentic Messiah protected his identity, his human, spiritual, missionary character. In this way he avoided all the excessive glorious titles expected in the theological culture of ancient Israel.

The life of Faith in us also continues unseen: not surrounded by external miracles and strong feelings; rather, innervated by convictions (recognised in themselves).

In the time of the new relationship with God and the brethren, the old concept of the Lord's Anointed One who observes and imposes the Law of the Chosen People (with force) on all nations has no relevance.

In whatever condition and latitude, God is always present and at work, starting from the core, to make us rediscover the breath of being.

The Father, the Son, and the believers, form in mutual acquaintance a wide-meshed circle of love, reciprocity and obedience, through free responses that are neither stereotypical nor paralysing.

Not parcelled out to details and casuistry, but centred on fundamental options.

"My commandments" [v.21: subjective genitive] is a theological expression designating the very Person of the Risen One in action.

A 'Person' unfolded in human history thanks to his mystical Body: the diverse People of God, whose versatility is an added value - not a limitation or contamination of purity.

Of course, Love is the only reality that cannot be 'commanded'.

But Jesus designates and advocates such in order to emphasise the departure from the Sinai Covenant, which it sums up and yet replaces.

The plural form "commandments" recognises the range of the various forms of exchange and personalisation of love.

No orientation, doctrine, code, can ever overcome it, or conversely make it swampy.

In the Gospels, love is spoken of not in terms of sentiment [of an emotion subject to inflection, or which adjusts itself to the perfection of the beloved] but as a real action, a gesture that makes the other feel free and adequate.

The People of God reflect Christ to the extent that they develop their destiny by living totally by gift, response, exchange, and overflowing in Gratuity.

All of this in an unprecedented way for each person, for each micro- and macro-relational situation, age of life, characteristics, type of defect, or cultural paradigm in force.

In short, the Lord does not like us to elevate ourselves by detaching ourselves from the earth and from our brothers: the honour due to the Father is that which we give to his children.

Hence there is no need to rise by ways of ascetic observance ["to ascend" as in upstairs: the lift is only descending].

It is He who reveals Himself, proposing Himself to us: this is His joy.

He comes down from 'heaven'.

It manifests itself within ourselves and within the folds of history, manifesting the desire to merge with our life (v.21) in order to increase it, complete it, and enhance its capabilities [in qualitative terms].

The Apostles, conditioned by the conventional religious mentality - all catwalks - question the attitude of Jesus, who is modest and not very inclined to show off (v.22).

They do not accept a Messiah who does not impose himself on everyone's attention, who does not astonish the world, who does not shout wild proclamations.

The Master prefers that in his Word we recognise an active correspondence with the desire for integral life that we carry within (vv.23-24).

Such a Logos-event must be assumed in being, as a Call distinct from the commonplaces of the widespread, conformist thought of others.

Indeed, in said Appeal there lurks a sympathy, an understanding, an arrow, an efficient and creative vigour, which makes itself Fire and solidity of personal Presence, from within - at once faint and ringing.In ancient forensic culture, 'Paraclete' (v.26) was said to be the eminent person in the assembly - today we would say a kind of lawyer - who without saying anything stood by to justify the accused.

[The latter could have been guilty, but deserving of forgiveness; however, he needed some sort of public guarantor to guarantee his fate. That is, he could have been innocent, but unable or incapable of finding witnesses in his favour to exonerate him...]

Such an attribute of the Spirit alludes to an intensity, intimate foundation and reciprocity of silent Relation that becomes Person, and knows where to go.

A companion who approves; who leads the heart, the character, life itself, not to the pillory, but to the full flowering of ourselves.

Thanks to His support, we are not enchanted by lofty roles, strong words; formulas, impressions, tumultuous feelings: we enter into the demanding, fulfilled depths of Love.

Let us broaden the field. We welcome a different guiding image, one that presses in and takes us by surprise, but subtly. It does not rebuke or scold us.

An experience that takes place without earthquakes, thunder and lightning - partial - but through the action of the Spirit that internalises, accompanies, nourishes, brings up to date and makes alive the interpretation of the Word (v.26).

The Message of the Gospels has a generative root that cannot be reduced to a one-sided and cumbersome experience; all codified and moralistic but empty as in sectarian situations, always struggling with themselves and the world. 

Venturing into one's own Exodus, each one discovers hidden resources and an amplification of perspectives that dilate and complete one's being, broadening the experience of the vocational character that corresponds to it.

Between life on the road and the Word of God - a golden rule that instils self-confidence - an unpredictable, versatile, eclectic, non-one-way understanding is kindled, which transcends identity concatenations.

In its scope, the Call remains identical, but over time expands the awareness of its facets - indeed, integrating them.

Richly expressed and not already ratified, Creator and creature do not authentically externise themselves in a fixed, sanctioned way, and in reference to a doctrine-discipline code, but in the exceeding freedom of life.

Even today, as new needs and questions arise, there is an appropriate overabundance of new answers - at last also from the Magisterium.

Plausible in the adventure of Faith, but which would drive any external religion crazy.

To internalise and live the message:

Do you recognise the Work of the Spirit or do you reject it as a nuisance? What strikes you about the new Magisterium?

Do you find this approach in the Proclamation, Catechesis, Animation, Pastoral Care and in your own Way?

Peace or truce: the imperative Proclamation

(Jn 14:27-31)

The Semitic peoples wished each other Peace in their meetings and commemoration. The traditional wish for peace was also Greek.

However, in the Gospel this hint, wish, or leave-taking is taken up and reinterpreted in order to the imperative of the Apostolic Announcement.

The Shalôm of Christ is a kind of emancipation from the humiliations of religion, and from the rejections suffered in earthly ministry.

It becomes a distinctive word, designating the ownership of the divine messianic Presence, outside and within us.

An epiphanic emblem, it conveys personal happiness, reserved, divine favour, for the growth of all.

Not a deserved reward for labours, nor an omen, but a personal Gift; not conditional.

Free proposal, of the now, which becomes surplus to requirements in the journey. Cosmic and acutely intimate passage.

Fullness of being and boundless totality, of Life, which marks us - but in the sense of exceeding expectations.

Worldly and religious prosperity [in the ancient sense] resemble each other: opulence that is not born of faith-love.

It seems a reward for services rendered, or blackmail for those expected. A funereal power.

A kind of bliss at mercy and under 'right purpose'.

Ambiguous features at all levels of relationship: with God, the community, the You and even the self.

It is not re-creative confrontation with the Cross, which leaps up.

The 'I go and come to you' (v.28) is a Semitic endiad: two statements united, referring to the same [generative, vital] event of death and complete life, which creates a new situation.

The expression-event is not such as to make itself subject to conditions.

The arc of the Lord's earthly ministry comes to an end; a covenant is lit.

Time of widespread Word and action, with overall results of new fathers and mothers, new Creation.

In short, the Peace of Jesus is not a state, but a relationship.

Full realisation of the human - a condition no longer balanced, according to convention.

Rather, fulfilment recalibrated to the measure of Christ in Person, in the Hour of Birth.On Jesus' lips, 'Shalôm' [excellence and overcoming of ancient blessings] takes on the features of its proper, messianic meaning.

Presence of 'anointing'. Discription of the Gospels and essential announcement (cf. Lk 10:5).

Breadth of well-being: without this precious reading code the Word of the Lord remains incomprehensible, and the Mission to which we are sent becomes prey to obsessions, the most sloppy, inauthentic ones.

In the territories of the empire, the Pax Romana had triumphalist traits - it was synonymous with violence, competition, repression of rebels.

As an armed truce, he was the guarantor of a prosperous economy, but secured in its social dimension only by inequalities, especially by a vast slave base.

The Peace that Jesus introduces is not just any wish, of normal expected improvements; rather, the transmission of his own Person.

Such propensity, affair and priceless Friendship stimulates us to a complete rearrangement, reconfiguration, reorganisation of our whole life.

And we often throw it away, in order to spurn the quietism of circumstance.

In our language, we would perhaps speak of Happiness and new order and public order.

Being everyone's secret desire, no difficulty can extinguish its promise and power of fulfilment (v.30).

Shalôm is fullness of saved existence, "success" in our journey of flourishing through a thousand undertakings.

Shalôm is perfection and complete joy, fulfilment of desires.

Victory of the Covenant between God and the people. Harmony and endless communion between the innate impulse of our particular essence and the fulfilment of hopes.

Success of the Covenant between soul drive and evolutionary achievements experienced in real life.

Shalôm [full realisation of humanity rediscovering itself] indicates vital and fulfilled totality of every aspiration.

Quality of new relationships arising from it: the supreme good of a Presence in action. Entrusted to us.

To internalise and live the message:

Is your Peace a groove, an unmistakable path, an echo of Christ, or empty trust - an exemption from struggle?

And your testimony to establish God on earth in what is competitive, provocative, renewed, living?

We are not alone!

Today's Gospel takes us back to the Upper Room. During the Last Supper, before facing the passion and death on the cross, Jesus promises the Apostles the gift of the Holy Spirit, who will be responsible for teaching and reminding the community of disciples of his words. Jesus himself says: "The Paraclete, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you" (Jn 14:26). Teaching and remembering. And this is what the Holy Spirit does in our hearts.

At the moment when he is about to return to the Father, Jesus announces the coming of the Spirit who will first of all teach the disciples to understand the Gospel more and more fully, to accept it into their lives and to make it alive and operative through their witness. As he is about to entrust the Apostles - which means "sent ones" - with the mission of carrying the proclamation of the Gospel throughout the world, Jesus promises that they will not be left alone: the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, will be with them, who will stand beside them, indeed, will be in them, to defend and sustain them. Jesus returns to the Father but continues to accompany and teach his disciples through the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The second aspect of the Holy Spirit's mission is to help the Apostles remember the words of Jesus. The Spirit has the task of awakening our memory, of recalling the words of Jesus. The divine Master has already communicated all that He intended to entrust to the Apostles: with Him, the Incarnate Word, the revelation is complete. The Spirit will make them remember the teachings of Jesus in the different concrete circumstances of life, so that they can put them into practice. This is precisely what is still happening in the Church today, guided by the light and power of the Holy Spirit, so that it can bring the gift of salvation, that is, God's love and mercy, to all. For example, when you read every day - as I have advised you - a passage, a passage from the Gospel, ask the Holy Spirit: "May I understand and may I remember these words of Jesus". And then read the passage, every day... But first that prayer to the Spirit, which is in our hearts: 'That I remember and that I understand'.

We are not alone: Jesus is near us, in our midst, within us! His new presence in history comes about through the gift of the Holy Spirit, through whom it is possible to establish a living relationship with Him, the Crucified Risen One. The Spirit, poured into us through the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation, acts in our lives. He guides us in how to think, how to act, how to distinguish what is good and what is evil; he helps us to practise the charity of Jesus, his giving of himself to others, especially those most in need.

We are not alone! And the sign of the presence of the Holy Spirit is also the peace that Jesus gives to his disciples: "I give you my peace" (v. 27). It is different from what men hope for or attempt to achieve. The peace of Jesus flows from the victory over sin, over the selfishness that prevents us from loving one another as brothers. It is God's gift and a sign of his presence. Every disciple, called today to follow Jesus by carrying the cross, receives within himself the peace of the Risen Crucified in the certainty of his victory and in the expectation of his definitive coming.

May the Virgin Mary help us to meekly welcome the Holy Spirit as our inner Teacher and as the living Memory of Christ in our daily journey.

(Pope Francis, Regina Coeli 1 May 2016)

I see it as a special gift of Providence that this Holy Mass is being celebrated at this time and in this place. The timeis the liturgical season of Easter; on this Sixth Sunday of Easter, as Pentecost rapidly approaches, the Church is called to intensify her prayer for the coming of the Holy Spirit. The place is the National Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida, the Marian heart of Brazil: Mary welcomes us to this Upper Room and, as our Mother and Teacher, helps us to pray trustingly to God with one voice. This liturgical celebration lays a most solid foundation for the Fifth Conference, setting it on the firm basis of prayer and the Eucharist, Sacramentum Caritatis. Only the love of Christ, poured out by the Holy Spirit, can make this meeting an authentic ecclesial event, a moment of grace for this Continent and for the whole world. This afternoon I will be able to discuss more fully the implications of the theme of your Conference. But now, let us leave space for the word of God which we have the joy of receiving with open and docile hearts, like Mary, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, so that, by the power of the Holy Spirit, Christ may once again take flesh in the “today” of our history.

The first reading, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, refers to the so-called “Council of Jerusalem”, which dealt with the question as to whether the observance of the Mosaic Law was to be imposed on those pagans who had become Christians. The reading leaves out the discussion between “the apostles and the elders” (vv. 4-21) and reports the final decision, which was then written down in the form of a letter and entrusted to two delegates for delivery to the community in Antioch (vv. 22-29). This passage from Acts is highly appropriate for us, since we too are assembled here for an ecclesial meeting. It reminds us of the importance of community discernment with regard to the great problems and issues encountered by the Church along her way. These are clarified by the “apostles” and “elders” in the light of the Holy Spirit, who, as today’s Gospel says, calls to mind the teaching of Jesus Christ (cf. Jn 14:26) and thus helps the Christian community to advance in charity towards the fullness of truth (cf. Jn 16:13). The Church’s leaders discuss and argue, but in a constant attitude of religious openness to Christ’s word in the Holy Spirit. Consequently, at the end they can say: “it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us…” (Acts 15:28).

This is the “method” by which we operate in the Church, whether in small gatherings or in great ones. It is not only question of procedure: it is a reflection of the Church’s very nature as a mystery of communion with Christ in the Holy Spirit. In the case of the General Conferences of the Bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean, the first, held in 1955 in Rio de Janeiro, merited a special Letter from Pope Pius XII, of venerable memory; in later Conferences, including the present one, the Bishop of Rome has travelled to the site of the continental gathering in order to preside over its initial phase. With gratitude and devotion let us remember the Servants of God Paul VI and John Paul II, who brought to the Conferences of Medellín, Puebla and Santo Domingo the witness of the closeness of the universal Church to the Churches in Latin America, which constitute, proportionally, the majority of the Catholic community.

“To the Holy Spirit and to us”. This is the Church: we, the community of believers, the People of God, with its Pastors who are called to lead the way; together with the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of the Father, sent in the name of his Son Jesus, the Spirit of the one who is “greater” than all, given to us through Christ, who became “small” for our sake. The Paraclete Spirit, our Ad-vocatus, Defender and Consoler, makes us live in God’s presence, as hearers of his word, freed from all anxiety and fear, bearing in our hearts the peace which Jesus left us, the peace that the world cannot give (cf. Jn 14:26-27). The Spirit accompanies the Church on her long pilgrimage between Christ’s first and second coming. “I go away, and I will come to you” (Jn 14:28), Jesus tells his Apostles. Between Christ’s “going away” and his “return” is the time of the Church, his Body. Two thousand years have passed so far, including these five centuries and more in which the Church has made her pilgrim way on the American Continent, filling believers with Christ’s life through the sacraments and sowing in these lands the good seed of the Gospel, which has yielded thirty, sixty and a hundredfold. The time of the Church, the time of the Spirit: the Spirit is the Teacher who trains disciples: he teaches them to love Jesus; he trains them to hear his word and to contemplate his countenance; he conforms them to Christ’s sacred humanity, a humanity which is poor in spirit, afflicted, meek, hungry for justice, merciful, pure in heart, peacemaking, persecuted for justice’s sake (cf. Mt 5:3-10). By the working of the Holy Spirit, Jesus becomes the “Way” along which the disciple walks. “If a man loves me, he will keep my word”, Jesus says at the beginning of today’s Gospel. “The word which you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me” (Jn 14:23-24). Just as Jesus makes known the words of the Father, so the Spirit reminds the Church of Christ’s own words (cf. Jn 14:26). And just as love of the Father led Jesus to feed on his will, so our love for Jesus is shown by our obedience to his words. Jesus’ fidelity to the Father’s will can be communicated to his disciples through the Holy Spirit, who pours the love of God into their hearts (cf. Rom 5:5).

The New Testament presents Christ as the missionary of the Father. Especially in the Gospel of John, Jesus often speaks of himself in relation to the Father who sent him into the world. And so in today’s Gospel he says: “the word which you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me” (Jn 14:24). At this moment, dear friends, we are invited to turn our gaze to him, for the Church’s mission exists only as a prolongation of Christ’s mission: “As the Father has sent me, even so I send you” (Jn 20:21). The evangelist stresses, in striking language, that the passing on of this commission takes place in the Holy Spirit: “he breathed on them and said to them: ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’” (Jn 20:22). Christ’s mission is accomplished in love. He has kindled in the world the fire of God’s love (cf. Lk12:49). It is Love that gives life: and so the Church has been sent forth to spread Christ’s Love throughout the world, so that individuals and peoples “may have life, and have it abundantly” (Jn 10:10). To you, who represent the Church in Latin America, today I symbolically entrust my Encyclical Deus Caritas Est, in which I sought to point out to everyone the essence of the Christian message. The Church considers herself the disciple and missionary of this Love: missionary only insofar as she is a disciple, capable of being attracted constantly and with renewed wonder by the God who has loved us and who loves us first (cf. 1 Jn 4:10). The Church does not engage in proselytism. Instead, she grows by “attraction”: just as Christ “draws all to himself” by the power of his love, culminating in the sacrifice of the Cross, so the Church fulfils her mission to the extent that, in union with Christ, she accomplishes every one of her works in spiritual and practical imitation of the love of her Lord.

Dear brothers and sisters! This is the priceless treasure that is so abundant in Latin America, this is her most precious inheritance: faith in the God who is Love, who has shown us his face in Jesus Christ. You believe in the God who is Love: this is your strength, which overcomes the world, the joy that nothing and no one can ever take from you, the peace that Christ won for you by his Cross! This is the faith that has made America the “Continent of Hope.” Not a political ideology, not a social movement, not an economic system: faith in the God who is Love—who took flesh, died and rose in Jesus Christ—is the authentic basis for this hope which has brought forth such a magnificent harvest from the time of the first evangelization until today, as attested by the ranks of Saints and Beati whom the Spirit has raised up throughout the Continent. Pope John Paul II called you to a new evangelization, and you accepted his commission with your customary generosity and commitment. I now confirm it with you, and in the words of this Fifth Conference I say to you: be faithful disciples, so as to be courageous and effective missionaries.

The second reading sets before us the magnificent vision of the heavenly Jerusalem. It is an image of awesome beauty, where nothing is superfluous, but everything contributes to the perfect harmony of the holy City. In his vision John sees the city “coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God” (Rev 21:10). And since the glory of God is Love, the heavenly Jerusalem is the icon of the Church, utterly holy and glorious, without spot or wrinkle (cf. Eph 5:27), permeated at her heart and in every part of her by the presence of the God who is Love. She is called a “bride”, “the bride of the Lamb” (Rev 20:9), because in her is fulfilled the nuptial figure which pervades biblical revelation from beginning to end. The City and Bride is the locus of God’s full communion with humanity; she has no need of a temple or of any external source of light, because the indwelling presence of God and of the Lamb illuminates her from within.

This magnificent icon has an eschatological value: it expresses the mystery of the beauty that is already the essential form of the Church, even if it has not yet arrived at its fullness. It is the goal of our pilgrimage, the homeland which awaits us and for which we long. Seeing that beauty with the eyes of faith, contemplating it and yearning for it, must not serve as an excuse for avoiding the historical reality in which the Church lives as she shares the joys and hopes, the grief and anguish of the people of our time, especially those who are poor or afflicted (cf. Constitution Gaudium et Spes, 1). If the beauty of the heavenly Jerusalem is the glory of God—his love in other words—then it is in charity, and in charity alone, that we can approach it and to a certain degree dwell within it even now. Whoever loves the Lord Jesus and keeps his word, already experiences in this world the mysterious presence of the Triune God. We heard this in the Gospel: “we will come to him and make our home with him” (Jn 14:23). Every Christian is therefore called to become a living stone of this splendid “dwelling place of God with men”. What a magnificent vocation!

A Church totally enlivened and impelled by the love of Christ, the Lamb slain for love, is the image within history of the heavenly Jerusalem, prefiguring the holy city that is radiant with the glory of God. It releases an irresistible missionary power which is the power of holiness. Through the prayers of the Virgin Mary, may the Church in Latin America and the Caribbean be abundantly clothed with power from on high (cf. Lk 24:49), in order to spread throughout this Continent and the whole world the holiness of Christ. To him be glory, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.

[Pope Benedict, Homily Aparecida 13 May 2007]

1. We have mentioned several times in previous catecheses the intervention of the Holy Spirit in the origin of the Church. It is good that we now dedicate a special catechesis to this beautiful and important theme.

It is Jesus himself who, before ascending to Heaven, says to the Apostles: "I will send upon you what my Father has promised; but you remain in the city, until you are clothed with power from on high" (Lk 24:49). Jesus intends to directly prepare the Apostles for the fulfilment of the "promise of the Father". The evangelist Luke repeats the same last recommendation of the Master also in the first verses of the Acts of the Apostles: "While he was at table with them, he commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait until the promise of the Father was fulfilled" (Acts 1:4).

Throughout his messianic activity, Jesus, by preaching about the Kingdom of God, was preparing "the time of the Church", which was to begin after his departure. When this was near, he announced that the day was near when this time was to begin (cf. Acts 1:5), namely the day of the descent of the Holy Spirit. And looking into the future, he added: "You will receive power from the Holy Spirit who will come upon you, and you will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8).

2. When the day of Pentecost came, the Apostles, who together with the Mother of the Lord were gathered in prayer, were shown that Jesus Christ was acting in accordance with what he had announced: that "the promise of the Father" was being fulfilled. This was proclaimed by the first among the Apostles, Simon Peter, speaking to the assembly. Peter spoke, first recalling the death on the cross, and then moved on to the testimony of the resurrection and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit: "This Jesus God raised up, and we are all witnesses. Having therefore risen to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the Holy Spirit whom he had promised, he poured out the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2:32-33).

Peter asserts from day one that the "promise of the Father" is fulfilled as the fruit of redemption, because it is by virtue of his cross and resurrection that Christ, the Son raised "to the right hand of God", sends forth the Spirit, as he had announced even before his passion at the moment of his farewell in the Upper Room.

3. The Holy Spirit thus began the mission of the Church established for all men. But we cannot forget that the Holy Spirit worked as the "unknown God" (cf. Acts 17:23) even before Pentecost. He worked in a special way in the old Covenant, enlightening and leading the chosen people on the road that led ancient history towards the Messiah. He operated in the messages of the prophets and in the writings of all inspired authors. He worked above all in the incarnation of the Son, as witnessed in the Gospel of the annunciation and the history of subsequent events connected to the coming into the world of the eternal Word who had assumed human nature. The Holy Spirit worked in and around the Messiah from the moment Jesus began his messianic mission in Israel, as is evident from the Gospel texts about the theophany at the moment of his baptism in the Jordan and his declarations in the synagogue in Nazareth. But from that same moment and throughout Jesus' life, the expectation and promises of a future, definitive coming of the Holy Spirit were accentuated. John the Baptist linked the mission of the Messiah to a new baptism "in the Holy Spirit". Jesus promised the believers in him "streams of living water": a promise recorded in John's Gospel, which explains it as follows: "This he said referring to the Spirit that the believers in him would receive; for there was not yet the Spirit, because Jesus had not yet been glorified" (John 7: 39). On the day of Pentecost, Christ, having now been glorified after the final fulfilment of his mission, caused the "rivers of living water" to gush forth from his bosom and poured out the Spirit to fill the Apostles and all believers with divine life. These could thus be "baptised into one Spirit" (cf. 1 Cor 12:13). And this was the beginning of the growth of the Church.

4. As the Second Vatican Council writes, "Christ sent the Holy Spirit from the Father, that he might accomplish his work of salvation from within and stimulate the Church to develop. Undoubtedly the Holy Spirit was at work in the world even before Christ was glorified. But it was on the day of Pentecost that it was poured out upon the disciples, to remain with them for ever, and the Church officially appeared before the multitude and began through preaching, the spreading of the Gospel among the pagans, and finally the union of peoples in the universality of the faith was prefigured through the Church of the new Covenant, which in all languages expresses itself and all languages in love understands and comprehends, thus overcoming the Babelic dispersion" (Ad gentes, 4).

The conciliar text highlights what the action of the Holy Spirit in the Church consists of, starting from the day of Pentecost. It is a salvific, interior action, which at the same time expresses itself externally in the emergence of the community and institution of salvation. This community - the community of the first disciples - is all pervaded by love, which overcomes all differences and divisions of an earthly order. A sign of this is the Pentecostal event of an expression of faith in God that is comprehensible to all, despite the diversity of languages. The Acts of the Apostles attest to us that the people gathered around the Apostles, in that first public manifestation of the Church, said with wonder: 'Are not all these who speak Galileans? And how is it that we hear them each speaking our native tongue' (Acts 2:7-8).

5. The Church that was just born like that on the day of Pentecost, by the power of the Holy Spirit, immediately manifests itself to the world. It is not a closed community, but open - one might say wide open - to all nations "to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8). Those who enter this community, through Baptism, become by virtue of the Holy Spirit of truth witnesses of the good news, ready to pass it on to others. It is therefore a dynamic, apostolic community: the Church "in a state of mission".

The Holy Spirit Himself first "bears witness" to Christ (cf. Jn 15:26), and this witness pervades the souls and hearts of those who participate in Pentecost, who in turn become witnesses and proclaimers. The "tongues like tongues of fire" (Acts 2:3) above the heads of each of those present constitute the outward sign of the enthusiasm kindled in them by the Holy Spirit. This enthusiasm extends from the Apostles to their hearers, just as already on the first day after Peter's speech "about three thousand people joined in . . ." (Acts 2:41).

6. The whole book of the Acts of the Apostles is a great description of the action of the Holy Spirit at the beginning of the Church, which - as we read - "grew and walked in the fear of the Lord, filled with the comfort of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 9, 31). It is known that internal difficulties and persecutions were not lacking, and that the first martyrs occurred. But the Apostles were certain that it was the Holy Spirit who was guiding them. This awareness of theirs would somehow be formalised in the concluding sentence of the Jerusalem Council, whose resolutions begin with the words: "We have decided, the Holy Spirit and we . . ." (Acts 15:28). The community thus attested its consciousness that it was moving under the action of the Holy Spirit.

[Pope John Paul II, General Audience 2 October 1991]

The Gospel reading for this Sixth Sunday of Easter presents a passage of the discourse that Jesus addressed to the Apostles at the Last Supper (cf. Jn 14:23-29). He speaks about the work of the Holy Spirit and makes a promise: “the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (v. 26). As the moment of the Cross approaches, Jesus reassures the Apostles that they will not be alone: the Holy Spirit will always be with them, the Paraclete, who will support them in the mission to deliver the Gospel throughout the world. In the original Greek language, the term “Paraclete” means the One who positions himself alongside, to support and comfort. Jesus returns to the Father, but continues to teach and inspire his disciples through the action of the Holy Spirit. 

In what does the Holy Spirit’s mission, which Jesus promises as a gift, consist? He describes it himself: “he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you”. Throughout his earthly life, Jesus already passed on all that he wanted to entrust to the Apostles: he fulfilled divine Revelation, namely, all that the Father wanted to impart to mankind with the incarnation of the Son. The Holy Spirit’s task is to remind, that is, to enable full understanding and to induce us to concretely implement Jesus’ teachings. And this is also precisely the mission of the Church, which she accomplishes through a precise way of life, characterized by a few requirements: faith in the Lord and observance of his Word; docility to the action of the Holy Spirit, who constantly renders the Risen Lord alive and present; acceptance of his peace and the witness borne to it through an attitude of openness and of encounter with the other.

To accomplish all of this the Church cannot remain static but, with the active participation of each baptized person, she is called to act as a community on a journey, enlivened and sustained by the light and power of the Holy Spirit who makes all things new. It is a matter of freeing oneself from worldly bonds represented by our views, our strategies, our objectives that often burden the journey of faith, and to place ourselves in docile listening to the Word of the Lord. Thus it is God’s Spirit who guides us and guides the Church, so that her authentic, beautiful and luminous face may shine, as Christ wished.

Today the Lord invites us to open our heart to the gift of the Holy Spirit, so that he may guide us on the paths of history. Day by day, he teaches us the logic of the Gospel, the logic of welcoming love, by ‘teaching us all things’ and reminding us ‘of all the Lord has said to us’.

May Mary, whom in this month of May we venerate and to whom we pray with special devotion as our heavenly mother, always protect the Church and the whole of humanity. May she who, with humble and courageous faith, fully cooperated with the Holy Spirit for the incarnation of the Son of God, help us too to allow ourselves to be taught and guided by the Paraclete, so that we may welcome the Word of God and witness to it with our lives.

[Pope Francis, Regina Coeli 26 May 2019]

(Jn 15:18-21)

In the preceding section, Jesus denotes the character of love between Him and the disciples, and mutual love between believers. Now he introduces the contrast with the world: the opposite of love.

In Jn the term «world» designates the sin structure resulting from the combination of religion-power-interest.

A kingdom that organises itself from ambitious individuals and interests consortia.

From the earliest times, the wrong-side, the opposite road, became constitutive of the «sons». In this way, the configuration of the kingdom was becoming alternative thing; a reversal.

The well-established and praised models did not distract sisters and brothers of Faith. The new assemblies educated everyone to gain confidence in personal Vocation.

Their experience, even mystical one, had another criterion compared to hosannas and leashed quietism.

In the fourth Gospel the ‘Church’ [Jn never uses the specific term, Εκκλησία] is in watermark the opposite of the «world».

The worldly spirit of official religiosity already hated the very friends whom Christ had drawn «from» those polluted waters:

«If you were from the world [...] For you are not from the world, but I have chosen you from the world, therefore the world hates you» (v.19).

The first experience of the Johannine communities in Asia Minor was persecution.

In event after event, the oppression suffered became normal for the believer ones, because that world there loved only "its" followers: «the world would love its own» (v.19), i.e. that and those in whom it recognizes itself.

Instead, by their living Faith, the friends of Christ remained 'intimate'; strangers to every apparatus.

In their choices and conduct, they reflected a unique convivial lifestyle - humanizing far more than any normal, servile beliefs.

With their action derived from inner strength alone, they prefigured a germ of non-conformist society. This, in comparison to the ideology of power - and its having-appearing.

In such a way, the Lord's brethren bore witness against «the sin of the world» (cf. John 1:29) just as the Lamb of God had done.

Although doomed for defeat, the true believers operated in an eccentric manner; never obsequious.

The detachment was with the official devotional structures, always deferential, cowardly; well disposed to the sacralization of established roles.

In short, the disciples of all times «know» the Son and the Father; the world ignores and disowns them (v.21).

So «There is no greater servant than his Lord» (v.20).

Believers drink from the same Chalice [cup], proclaim the same truths: they cannot have a better fate.

The intensification of evil-against is inevitable.

«All these things shall they do against you because of my Name» (v.21).

Jesus lived amidst denunciations, contrasts, animosities, persecutions, and died as a punished and reduced to shame rebel.

This is the reality of the «Name».

What can be expected differently from the heirs of his Word, from the bearers of the same Appeal that led the Master to be destroyed by the official authorities?

Yet the simple people of the earth have never rejected Him.

And now more than ever it is necessary for the vital germ of that calm and dramatic testimony to continue.

[Saturday 5th wk. in Easter, May 24, 2025]

(Jn 15:18-21)

He who is a master of love, who liked to speak of love, speaks of hate. But he liked to call things by the proper name they have [Pope Francis].

Culture today reflects a 'tension', which sometimes takes the form of 'conflict', between the present and tradition. The dynamic of society absolutizes the present, detaching it from the cultural heritage of the past and without the intention of delineating a future [...] In fact, a people, which ceases to know what its own truth is, ends up lost in the labyrinths of time and history, lacking clearly defined values and without clearly stated great goals [Pope Benedict].

In the preceding section Jesus denotes the character of the love between Him and the disciples and the mutual love between believers. Now he introduces the contrast with the world: the opposite of love.

In Jn the term 'world' designates the structure of sin resulting from the union of religion power interest.

Tradition that is organised from ambitious individuals and entanglements; networks of amateurs, circumstantial tunes, cliques.

From the earliest times, the converse became conversely constitutive of sons! In this way, the configuration of the Kingdom was an alternative, a reversal.

Well-established and praised models did not distract the brethren of Faith. The new assemblies educated to gain security in the personal Vocation.

Their experience, even their mystical experience, had another distinction from the hosannas and leashed quietism of empire and religions.

In the Fourth Gospel the 'Church' [in Jn the specific term Εκκλησία is never used] is in watermark the opposite of the 'world'.

The worldly spirit of official religiosity already hated the friends that Christ had drawn "from" those polluted waters:

"If you were of the world [...] For you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you" (v.19).

The first experience of the Johannine communities in Asia Minor was persecution.

In episode after episode, the oppression suffered became normal for the believer, because that world there loved only 'its own': 'the world would love its own' (v.19 Greek text), that is, that and those in whom it recognises itself.

Instead, by their living Faith the friends of Christ remained 'intimate'; strangers to every apparatus.

In their choices and conduct, they reflected a unique convivial lifestyle - humanising far more than any normal, cowardly belief.

By their action derived from inner strength alone, they prefigured a germ of a non-conformist society. This compared with the ideology of power - and its having-appeared.

Thus the Lord's friends bore witness against "the sin of the world" (cf. Jn 1:29) just as the Lamb of God had done.

Though destined for defeat, the true believers operated eccentrically; never servile.

The detachment was with the official devout structures, always deferential, cowardly; well disposed to the sacralisation of established roles.

In short, the disciples of all times 'know' the Son and the Father; the world disowns them (v.21).

Thus "there is no greater servant than his Lord" (v.20).

The believer drinks from the same cup, proclaims the same truths: he cannot have a better fate.

The intensification of evil-doing is inevitable.

"All these things will they do against you because of my Name" (v.21).

Jesus lived amidst denunciations, contrasts, animosity, persecutions, and died as a rebel punished and shamed. This is the reality of the 'Name'.

What can one expect differently from the heirs of his Word, from the bearers of the same Appeal that led the Master to be destroyed by the official authorities?

Yet the simple of the earth have never rejected it.

And now more than ever it is necessary for the vital seed of that quiet and dramatic witness to continue.

John helps the communities of Asia Minor to understand their own identity and destiny as a mocker, without, however, stopping at the subject of persecution.

Our Way runs parallel to the Master's not only because it is disinterested in visible results and punctuated by wounds.

In the panorama of the various creeds according to worldly currents, it is to be taken into account that the proposal of Jesus creates divisions, antipathy; because it seems an absurdity compared to the ordinary path.

Not only is the witness of the Crucified not reducible to platitudes of lordship, turnabout and social theatre.

Evangelisers make a difference from the abbecedarian of 'spiritual' obviousness as a paradigm.

Precisely, the world does not know the Father (v.21): it loves and understands only what is its own (v.19).

It is impossible to grasp the idea that only those who risk understand God; that only depth, reciprocity and equal dignity make Him Present.

As for the specifics of the humanising proposal, in the Spirit:

It seems absurd that one can be "in the presence" of the Mystery not starting from perfection, but from Grace. Not from the optimal condition, but from the borderline situation. Not by the obligation that is fulfilled (and equal for all) but by the eccentric Calling by Name.

In the life of Communion with Heaven and our neighbour, we do not spring from upstream judgements, procedures, or already solid platforms, but from our accepted neediness.

Proposal that neither abolishes nor ignores what is divinising and human.

It is a bombshell, of course. For sole servants - and without reward.

Forget the [detestable] 'world' with its quietism on a leash: it likes to self-define what is e.g. 'respectable', 'justice', 'spirit', 'relaxation'... and even 'beauty'!

Emptiness - a kind of 'woke' situationism - that does not regenerate the deep nature of souls, nor the world.

To internalise and live the message:

Do you lock yourself into theatrics where the mask eclipses yourself?

Do you opt for the wide and familiar road?

Do you prefer paths of easy self-righteousness or the Way of Faith in the Crucified One, the Way of Love's snub and imbalance?

Today’s culture is in fact permeated by a “tension” which at times takes the form of a “conflict” between the present and tradition. The dynamic movement of society gives absolute value to the present, isolating it from the cultural legacy of the past, without attempting to trace a path for the future. This emphasis on the “present” as a source of inspiration for the meaning of life, both individual and social, nonetheless clashes with the powerful cultural tradition of the Portuguese people, deeply marked by the millenary influence of Christianity and by a sense of global responsibility. This came to the fore in the adventure of the Discoveries and in the missionary zeal which shared the gift of faith with other peoples. The Christian ideal of universality and fraternity inspired this common adventure, even though influences from the Enlightenment and laicism also made themselves felt. This tradition gave rise to what could be called a “wisdom”, that is to say, an understanding of life and history which included a corpus of ethical values and an “ideal” to be realized by Portugal, which has always sought to establish relations with the rest of the world.

The Church appears as the champion of a healthy and lofty tradition, whose rich contribution she sets at the service of society. Society continues to respect and appreciate her service to the common good but distances itself from that “wisdom” which is part of her legacy. This “conflict” between tradition and the present finds expression in the crisis of truth, yet only truth can provide direction and trace the path of a fulfilled existence both for individuals and for a people. Indeed, a people no longer conscious of its own truth ends up by being lost in the maze of time and history, deprived of clearly defined values and lacking great and clearly formulated goals. Dear friends, much still needs to be learned about the form in which the Church takes her place in the world, helping society to understand that the proclamation of truth is a service which she offers to society, and opening new horizons for the future, horizons of grandeur and dignity. The Church, in effect, has “a mission of truth to accomplish, in every time and circumstance, for a society that is attuned to man, to his dignity, to his vocation. […] Fidelity to man requires fidelity to the truth, which alone is the guarantee of freedom (cf. Jn 8:32) and of the possibility of integral human development. For this reason the Church searches for truth, proclaims it tirelessly and recognizes it wherever it is manifested. This mission of truth is something that the Church can never renounce” (Caritas in Veritate, 9). For a society made up mainly of Catholics, and whose culture has been profoundly marked by Christianity, the search for truth apart from Christ proves dramatic. For Christians, Truth is divine; it is the eternal “Logos” which found human expression in Jesus Christ, who could objectively state: “I am the truth” (Jn 14:6). The Church, in her adherence to the eternal character of truth, is in the process of learning how to live with respect for other “truths” and for the truth of others. Through this respect, open to dialogue, new doors can be opened to the transmission of truth.

“The Church – wrote Pope Paul VI – must enter into dialogue with the world in which she lives. The Church becomes word, she becomes message, she becomes dialogue” (Ecclesiam Suam, 67). Dialogue, without ambiguity and marked by respect for those taking part, is a priority in today’s world, and the Church does not intend to withdraw from it. A testimony to this is the Holy See’s presence in several international organizations, as for example her presence at the Council of Europe’s North-South Centre, established 20 years ago here in Lisbon, which is focused on intercultural dialogue with a view to promoting cooperation between Europe, the southern Mediterranean and Africa, and building a global citizenship based on human rights and civic responsibility, independent of ethnic origin or political allegiance, and respectful of religious beliefs. Given the reality of cultural diversity, people need not only to accept the existence of the culture of others, but also to aspire to be enriched by it and to offer to it whatever they possess that is good, true and beautiful.

Ours is a time which calls for the best of our efforts, prophetic courage and a renewed capacity to “point out new worlds to the world”, to use the words of your national poet (Luís de Camões, Os Lusíades, II, 45). You who are representatives of culture in all its forms, forgers of thought and opinion, “thanks to your talent, have the opportunity to speak to the heart of humanity, to touch individual and collective sensibilities, to call forth dreams and hopes, to broaden the horizons of knowledge and of human engagement. […] Do not be afraid to approach the first and last source of beauty, to enter into dialogue with believers, with those who, like yourselves, consider that they are pilgrims in this world and in history towards infinite Beauty!” (Address to Artists, 21 November 2009).

Precisely so as “to place the modern world in contact with the life-giving and perennial energies of the Gospel” (John XXIII, Apostolic Constitution Humanae Salutis, 3), the Second Vatican Council was convened. There the Church, on the basis of a renewed awareness of the Catholic tradition, took seriously and discerned, transformed and overcame the fundamental critiques that gave rise to the modern world, the Reformation and the Enlightenment. In this way the Church herself accepted and refashioned the best of the requirements of modernity by transcending them on the one hand, and on the other by avoiding their errors and dead ends. The Council laid the foundation for an authentic Catholic renewal and for a new civilization – “the civilization of love” – as an evangelical service to man and society.

Dear friends, the Church considers that her most important mission in today’s culture is to keep alive the search for truth, and consequently for God; to bring people to look beyond penultimate realities and to seek those that are ultimate. I invite you to deepen your knowledge of God as he has revealed himself in Jesus Christ for our complete fulfilment. Produce beautiful things, but above all make your lives places of beauty. May Our Lady of Belém intercede for you, she who has been venerated down through the centuries by navigators, and is venerated today by the navigators of Goodness, Truth and Beauty.

[Pope Benedict, meeting with the world of culture, Lisbon 12 May 2010]

37. The Church of the first millennium was born of the blood of the martyrs: "Sanguis martyrum - semen christianorum". The historical events linked to the figure of Constantine the Great could never have ensured the development of the Church as it occurred during the first millennium if it had not been for the seeds sown by the martyrs and the heritage of sanctity which marked the first Christian generations. At the end of the second millennium, the Church has once again become a Church of martyrs. The persecutions of believers —priests, Religious and laity—has caused a great sowing of martyrdom in different parts of the world. The witness to Christ borne even to the shedding of blood has become a common inheritance of Catholics, Orthodox, Anglicans and Protestants, as Pope Paul VI pointed out in his Homily for the Canonization of the Ugandan Martyrs.

This witness must not be forgotten. The Church of the first centuries, although facing considerable organizational difficulties, took care to write down in special martyrologies the witness of the martyrs. These martyrologies have been constantly updated through the centuries, and the register of the saints and the blessed bears the names not only of those who have shed their blood for Christ but also of teachers of the faith, missionaries, confessors, bishops, priests, virgins, married couples, widows and children.

In our own century the martyrs have returned, many of them nameless, "unknown soldiers" as it were of God's great cause.

[Tertio Millennio Adveniente]

Christians are persecuted today more than at the beginning of the history of Christianity. The root cause of all persecution is the hatred of the prince of the world towards those who have been saved and redeemed by Jesus through his death and resurrection. The only weapons to defend themselves are the word of God, humility and meekness.

Also this morning, Saturday 4 May, Pope Francis pointed out a way forward to learn how to untangle the pitfalls of the world. Insidies that, he explained in the homily of the Mass celebrated in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae, are the work of the "devil", "prince of the world", "spirit of the world".

The Pope, commenting on the day's readings taken from the Acts of the Apostles (16:1-10) and the Gospel of John (15:18-21), focused his reflection on hatred "a strong word - he stressed - used by Jesus. Hatred indeed. He who is a master of love, who liked to speak of love so much, speaks of hate'. But "he," he explained, "liked to call things by the proper name they have. And he tells us 'Do not be afraid! The world will hate you. Know that before you he hated me'. And he also reminds us of what he may have said on another occasion to the disciples: 'remember the word that I have spoken to you: a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you'. The way of Christians is the way of Jesus'. To follow him there is no other. One of those marked by Jesus, the Holy Father pointed out, "is a consequence of the hatred of the world and also of the prince of this hatred in the world".

Jesus,' the Pontiff explained, 'chose us and "redeemed us. He has chosen us by pure grace. By his death and resurrection he redeemed us from the power of the world, from the power of the devil, from the power of the prince of this world. The origin of hatred is this: we are saved and that prince of the world, who does not want us to be saved, hates us and gives rise to the persecution that has continued from the early days of Jesus until today. So many Christian communities are persecuted in the world. In this time more than in the first times; eh! Today, now, in this day, in this hour. Why? But because the spirit of the world hates".

Usually persecution comes after a long, long road. "Let us think - Pope Francis suggested - of how the prince of the world wanted to deceive Jesus when he was in the desert: 'But be good! Are you hungry? Eat. You can do it'. He also invited him a little to vanity: 'Be good! You have come to save people. Save your time, go to the temple, throw yourself down and all the people will see this miracle and it is all over: you will have authority'. But let us consider this: Jesus never answered this prince with his words! Never. He was God. Never. He went, for the answer, to find the words of God and answered with the word of God'. A message for the man of today: "With the prince of this world you cannot converse. And let this be clear'. Dialogue is something else: 'it is necessary between us,' explained the bishop of Rome, 'it is necessary for peace. Dialogue is a habit, it is precisely an attitude that we must have among ourselves to hear each other, to understand each other. And it must always remain so. Dialogue comes from charity, from love. With that prince you cannot dialogue; you can only respond with the word of God that defends us'. The prince of the world, he reiterated, 'hates us. And as he did with Jesus he will do with us: 'But look, do this... it's a little scam... there's nothing to it... it's small' and so he starts to take us down a slightly unjust road. It starts with small things, then begins with flattery and with it "softens us up" until "we fall into the trap. Jesus told us: "I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Be prudent, but simple'. But if we allow ourselves to be taken in by the spirit of vanity and think we can fight the wolves by making ourselves wolves, 'they will eat you alive'. Because if you stop being a sheep, you have no shepherd to defend you and you fall into the hands of these wolves. You might ask: "Father, but what is the weapon to defend oneself against these seductions, these fireworks that the prince of this world makes, against his flatteries?" The weapon is the same as Jesus': the word of God, and then humility and meekness. Let us think of Jesus when he was slapped: what humility, what meekness. He could have insulted and instead asked only a humble and meek question. Let us think of Jesus in his passion. The prophet says of him "like a sheep going to the slaughterhouse, he cries out nothing". Humility. Humility and meekness: these are the weapons that the prince of the world, the spirit of the world does not tolerate, because his proposals are of worldly power, proposals of vanity, proposals of riches. Humility and meekness does not tolerate them'. Jesus is meek and humble of heart and 'today,' he said as he drew to a conclusion, 'it makes us think of this hatred of the prince of the world against us, against the followers of Jesus'. And let us think about the weapons we have to defend ourselves: "let us always remain sheep, because then we will have a shepherd to defend us".

[Pope Francis, S. Marta homily, in L'Osservatore Romano 05/05/2013]