The Word among Us: A Catholic Devotional based on the Daily Mass Reading & Meditation for Thursday, 7 May 2015

The Word among Us: A Catholic Devotional based on the Daily Mass Reading & Meditation for Thursday, 7 May 2015

Meditation: Acts 15:7 After lengthy debate, Kefa got up and said to them, “Brothers, you yourselves know that a good while back, God chose me from among you to be the one by whose mouth the Goyim should hear the message of the Good News and come to trust. 8 And God, who knows the heart, bore them witness by giving the Ruach HaKodesh to them, just as he did to us; 9 that is, he made no distinction between us and them, but cleansed their heart by trust. 10 So why are you putting God to the test now by placing a yoke on the neck of the talmidim which neither our fathers nor we have had the strength to bear? 11 No, it is through the love and kindness of the Lord Yeshua that we trust and are delivered — and it’s the same with them.”

12 Then the whole assembly kept still as they listened to Bar-Nabba and Sha’ul tell what signs and miracles God had done through them among the Gentiles. 13 Ya‘akov broke the silence to reply. “Brothers,” he said, “hear what I have to say. 14 Shim‘on has told in detail what God did when he first began to show his concern for taking from among the Goyim a people to bear his name. 15 And the words of the Prophets are in complete harmony with this for it is written,

16 ‘“After this, I will return;

and I will rebuild the fallen tent of David.

I will rebuild its ruins,

I will restore it,

17 so that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,

that is, all the Goyim who have been called by my name,”

18 says Adonai, who is doing these things.’[a]

All this has been known for ages.

19 “Therefore, my opinion is that we should not put obstacles in the way of the Goyim who are turning to God. 20 Instead, we should write them a letter telling them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from fornication, from what is strangled and from blood. 21 For from the earliest times, Moshe has had in every city those who proclaim him, with his words being read in the synagogues every Shabbat.”[Footnotes:

Acts 15:18 Amos 9:11–12]

5th Week of Easter
We ought to stop troubling the Gentiles who turn to God. (Acts 15:19)
If you had been present at this meeting between Peter and the apostles, you might have been worried. This was no minor dispute! Some Jewish believers weren’t ready to mix with Gentiles, who didn’t share in their traditions. But Peter and James pointed out that God had poured his Spirit on the Gentiles, so they shouldn’t place any obstacles before them. Who was going to win this debate?
The same Holy Spirit who started the debate in the first place, that’s who! He helped the apostles and elders see that they had all been saved by grace, so there was no need to require the Gentiles to live up to standards that God did not expect. The Spirit also helped them compromise on a few issues that were important both to Jews and Christians. Because they came together with humble, open hearts, the Spirit was free to move in them and help preserve their unity in faith.
The Church has always had to deal with conflicts, but it has always relied on the Holy Spirit to work them out. In just a few months, we will hear from the Synod of Bishops on controversial marriage and family issues. Some imagine that the Church will compromise its doctrines. Others worry that the Church will be completely rigid and refuse to help families in any measurable way. But in the midst of all these concerns, we need to put our trust in the Holy Spirit. We need to trust that he will always guide and show us what the Lord wants. It may not happen overnight, and we may not like everything we will hear. But in the end, we can always trust that “the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail” against the Church (Matthew 16:18)!
Until Jesus comes again, we will all have differing viewpoints on topics. We may even get into arguments with each other. But that’s okay, because the Spirit works through our discussions and debates and ultimately brings us all closer to the truth.
Keeping this in mind, let’s pray for the Synod of Bishops. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to fill all of our leaders with an ever-deepening desire to discern his voice.
“Holy Spirit, guide our bishops. Help them discern how you want the Church to be your light to the world!” Amen!
Psalm 96:1 Sing to Adonai a new song!

Sing to Adonai, all the earth!

2 Sing to Adonai, bless his name!

Proclaim his victory day after day!

3 Declare his glory among the nations,

his wonders among all peoples!

10 Say among the nations, “Adonai is king!”

The world is firmly established, immovable.

He will judge the peoples fairly.

John 15:9 “Just as my Father has loved me, I too have loved you; so stay in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will stay in my love — just as I have kept my Father’s commands and stay in his love. 11 I have said this to you so that my joy may be in you, and your joy be complete.
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