May 5, 2026 Written by 
Art'working

6th Sunday in Easter

6th Sunday in Easter

6th Easter Sunday (year A)

(John 14:15-21)

 

John 14:15 If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

John 14:16 I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever,

John 14:17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

John 14:18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

John 14:19 A little while longer and the world will no longer see me; but you will see me, because I live and you will live.

John 14:20 On that day you will know that I am in the Father, and you in me, and I in you.

John 14:21 Whoever receives my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves me. Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and reveal myself to him.

 

Love comes first, and then the keeping of the commandments. One loves Christ, and for this reason one keeps the commandments. Love for Christ is an overwhelming force. When this force is in the heart, one is even capable of martyrdom. If we allow ourselves to be taken by the love of Christ, in this love we will rediscover love for ourselves, and in rediscovering love for ourselves we will also rediscover the right love for others. Whoever does not allow themselves to be won over by the love of Christ will never be able to keep his commandments. The commandments in themselves are an obligation, a duty, a burden. But through the love of Jesus, the commandments are transformed into a desire, into a will. We give our lives to Jesus so that Jesus may love through us. But who can create in us the love for Christ and thus the love to fulfil his will?

If we wish to love Jesus, if we ask him to become our very life, he comes to our aid and fulfils our desire. How? Jesus will pray to the Father, and the Father will give us another Paraclete, so that he may remain with us always. The Paraclete is the Advocate, but also the Teacher, the Helper, the Support, the Inspirer, the Guide, the One who takes us by the hand and leads us to Christ, so that in Christ, with Christ, through Christ, we may have access to the Father. The Paraclete is the ‘fruit’ of the prayer of Jesus Christ. The Father gives him to all who love Christ and keep his commandments. 

The Holy Spirit is given through the sacraments. He acts in the sacraments. He regenerates us and makes us children in the Son. He makes us witnesses of Christ. He consecrates us and makes us priests of Christ. Through the Holy Spirit acting within him, the priest forgives sins and transforms a piece of bread and a few drops of wine into the Body and Blood of Christ the Lord. The Holy Spirit acts – as was once taught – “Ex opere operato non ex opera operantis”. This teaching is true. Otherwise, we would have no certainty regarding the validity of any sacrament. One thing that is rarely taught, however, is this: conversion, the drawing to Christ, and the sanctification of people take place through the Holy Spirit acting within the Christian, whoever they may be – a lay faithful or a priest. The love of Christ living within the Christian becomes and is transformed in them into the power of the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit draws them to Christ, converts them to Him, conforms them to Him, and makes them like Him. The stronger the love of Christ within us, the greater is the power of the Holy Spirit at work within us.

The Paraclete Spirit is the Spirit of truth. In the Spirit we know the truth of the Father and the truth of the Son. The Spirit is also our truth. If we are in the Holy Spirit, we know one another. If we are not in the Spirit, we will never be able to know one another. But why can the world not receive the Spirit of truth? Because the world is under the power of the prince of this world, who is a spirit of deception and falsehood. Those who live in the world must first leave the world behind. Having abandoned the world and allowed themselves to be seized by Christ, they love Christ, observe his commandments, and receive the Spirit of truth. What happened on the day of Pentecost must happen every day.

For us, receiving the Holy Spirit does not require leaving the world. A mere two or three years of attending catechism classes is enough. A rational education in the truths of our holy faith is enough. This is utter folly. If one does not leave the world, one does not receive the Spirit! The Spirit does not work in those who remain in the world; He works in those who leave the world. The Christian is called to leave the world, that is, to leave sin, lies, falsehood and idols. Conversion from idols to God is an indispensable condition for the Holy Spirit to act and work in us and through us.

Being in darkness, the world neither sees nor knows the Spirit of truth. The disciples will know the Holy Spirit because the Spirit will remain with them and be within them. The Holy Spirit will be the soul of their soul, the heart of their heart, the spirit of their spirit, the feeling of their feelings, the will of their will, the thought of their thoughts. They will know Him because He will dwell within them, abide in them, and make Himself known to them. Knowledge of the Holy Spirit does not come about through rational means. Rather, it comes through the spiritual transformation of our entire life. Only He can bring about this transformation. 

 

 

 Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation – an exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers – Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ, True God and True Man in the Trinitarian Mystery

The Prophetic Discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24–25)

All Generations Will Call Me Blessed

Catholics and Protestants Compared – In Defence of the Faith

The Church and Israel According to St Paul – Romans 9–11

 

(Available on Amazon)

182 Last modified on Tuesday, 05 May 2026 12:07
Rate this item
(1 Vote)
Argentino Quintavalle

Argentino Quintavalle è studioso biblico ed esperto in Protestantesimo e Giudaismo. Autore del libro “Apocalisse - commento esegetico” (disponibile su Amazon) e specializzato in catechesi per protestanti che desiderano tornare nella Chiesa Cattolica.

Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Latest from Argentino Quintavalle

Previous
« 5th Sunday in Easter
Next
Ascension of the Lord »
back to top
The grain of wheat that "falls to the ground and dies" becomes the promise of bread (Pope John Paul II)
Il chicco di grano che “cade in terra e muore” diventa la promessa del pane (Papa Giovanni Paolo II)
The power of faith can move mountains (cf. Mt 17:20): the Lord can illuminate even the deepest darkness [Pope Benedict]
La forza della fede può spostare le montagne (cfr Mt 17,20): il Signore può illuminare anche la tenebra più profonda [Papa Benedetto]
By willingly accepting death, Jesus carries the cross of all human beings and becomes a source of salvation for the whole of humanity. St Cyril of Jerusalem commented: “The glory of the Cross led those who were blind through ignorance into light, loosed all who were held fast by sin and brought redemption to the whole world of mankind” (Catechesis Illuminandorum XIII, 1: de Christo crucifixo et sepulto: PG 33, 772 B) [Pope Benedict]
Accettando volontariamente la morte, Gesù porta la croce di tutti gli uomini e diventa fonte di salvezza per tutta l’umanità. San Cirillo di Gerusalemme commenta: «La croce vittoriosa ha illuminato chi era accecato dall’ignoranza, ha liberato chi era prigioniero del peccato, ha portato la redenzione all’intera umanità» (Catechesis Illuminandorum XIII,1: de Christo crucifixo et sepulto: PG 33, 772 B) [Papa Benedetto]
In the New Testament, it is Christ who constitutes the full manifestation of God's light [Pope Benedict]
Nel Nuovo Testamento è Cristo a costituire la piena manifestazione della luce di Dio [Papa Benedetto]
Faith opens us to knowing and welcoming the real identity of Jesus, his newness and oneness, his word, as a source of life, in order to live a personal relationship with him. Knowledge of the faith grows, it grows with the desire to find the way and in the end it is a gift of God who does not reveal himself to us as an abstract thing without a face or a name, because faith responds to a Person who wants to enter into a relationship of deep love with us and to involve our whole life (Pope Benedict)
La fede ci apre a conoscere e ad accogliere la reale identità di Gesù, la sua novità e unicità, la sua Parola, come fonte di vita, per vivere una relazione personale con Lui. Il conoscere della fede cresce, cresce con il desiderio di trovare la strada, ed è finalmente un dono di Dio, che si rivela a noi non come una cosa astratta senza volto e senza nome, ma la fede risponde a una Persona, che vuole entrare in un rapporto di amore profondo con noi e coinvolgere tutta la nostra vita (Papa Benedetto)
Jesus Christ clearly indicates that even acts of devotion and penance (such as fasting, almsgiving, prayer), which by their religious purpose are primarily 'interior', can succumb to current 'externalism', and can therefore be falsified [John Paul II]
Gesù Cristo indica chiaramente che anche gli atti di devozione e di penitenza (come digiuno, elemosina, preghiera) che per la loro finalità religiosa sono principalmente “interiori”, possono cedere all’“esteriorismo” corrente, e quindi possono essere falsificati [Giovanni Paolo II]
Today’s Gospel reminds us that faith in the Lord and in his Word does not open a way for us where everything is easy and calm; it does not rescue us from life’s storms. Faith gives us the assurance of a Presence (Pope Francis)
He does so in many situations of daily life - He holds his hand out to us. And only if we take the Lord's hand, if we let ourselves be guided by him, will the path we take be right and good [Pope Benedict]

duevie.art

don Giuseppe Nespeca

Tel. 333-1329741


Disclaimer

Questo blog non rappresenta una testata giornalistica in quanto viene aggiornato senza alcuna periodicità. Non può pertanto considerarsi un prodotto editoriale ai sensi della legge N°62 del 07/03/2001.
Le immagini sono tratte da internet, ma se il loro uso violasse diritti d'autore, lo si comunichi all'autore del blog che provvederà alla loro pronta rimozione.
L'autore dichiara di non essere responsabile dei commenti lasciati nei post. Eventuali commenti dei lettori, lesivi dell'immagine o dell'onorabilità di persone terze, il cui contenuto fosse ritenuto non idoneo alla pubblicazione verranno insindacabilmente rimossi.