THE 5TH SUNDAY OF EASTER
No Homily Recording this Week
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My brothers and sisters in Christ,
The risen Christ has been reminding us in the past Sundays of the importance of encountering Him as a living person, not as an idea. The Lord Jesus is alive and wants us to experience his love. This Sunday, He invites us to live out the logical consequence of that love, and so love one another. Indeed, we cannot really love God if we don’t love our brothers and sisters. We should love as He has loved us, and this love will be the sign of our authentic discipleship.

It wouldn’t be strange if we felt that this, while being a beautiful ideal, is ultimately something impossible. Can we really love someone as Jesus has loved us? If we just try to imitate the very actions done by Jesus as manifestations of that love, the answer is no; that is beyond what we can aspire. But if we think about what the Lord expects from us, the answer is yes. Jesus loved with a real commitment, with fidelity, with patience. That, although not as perfectly as in Jesus’ love, is an achievable goal. In the midst of our own imperfections, we are called to love as Jesus did: without counting the cost. This, which we should try to do in the daily and simple circumstances of our life, is what will show that the victory of Easter is real, and that the Lord is truly risen and his love is more powerful than any selfishness and sin. Let us think on ways of growing in this kind of love throughout the week.

With my prayers,
Fr. Daniel