Daily Gospel for Sunday, 3 May 2015

Daily Gospel for Sunday, 3 May 2015
"Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life."[John 6:68]
Fifth Sunday of Easter - Year B
Saints of the day:

BLESSED TOMMASO ACERBIS
  Friars Minor Capuchin

(1563-1631)

Bl. Tommaso Acerbis, from Olera (Italy) was born in 1563 and died in Austria in 1631.
He has been beatified by Pope Francis on September 21st, 2013.
Fifth Sunday of Easter - Year B
Acts of the Apostles 9:26 On reaching Yerushalayim, he tried to join the talmidim; but they were all afraid of him — they didn’t believe he was a talmid. 27 However, Bar-Nabba got hold of him and took him to the emissaries. He told them how Sha’ul had seen the Lord while traveling, that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Dammesek Sha’ul had spoken out boldly in the name of Yeshua. 28 So he remained with them and went all over Yerushalayim continuing to speak out boldly in the name of the Lord. 29 He talked and debated with the Greek-speaking Jews, but they began making attempts to kill him. 30 When the brothers learned of it, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him away to Tarsus.
31 Then the Messianic community throughout Y’hudah, the Galil and Shomron enjoyed peace and was built up. They lived in the fear of the Lord, with the counsel of the Ruach HaKodesh; and their numbers kept multiplying.
Psalm 22:26 (25) Because of you
I give praise in the great assembly;
I will fulfill my vows
in the sight of those who fear him.
27 (26) The poor will eat and be satisfied;
those who seek Adonai will praise him;
Your hearts will enjoy life forever.
28 (27) All the ends of the earth
will remember and turn to Adonai;
all the clans of the nations
will worship in your presence.
30 (29) All who prosper on the earth
will eat and worship;
all who go down to the dust
will kneel before him,
including him who can’t keep himself alive,
31 (30) A descendant will serve him;
the next generation will be told of Adonai.
32 (31) They will come and proclaim
his righteousness
to a people yet unborn,
that he is the one who did it.
1 John 3:18 Children, let us love not with words and talk, but with actions and in reality!
19 Here is how we will know that we are from the truth and will set our hearts at rest in his presence: 20 if our hearts know something against us, God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. 21 Dear friends, if our hearts know nothing against us, we have confidence in approaching God; 22 then, whatever we ask for, we receive from him; because we are obeying his commands and doing the things that please him.
23 This is his command: that we are to trust in the person and power of his Son Yeshua the Messiah and to keep loving one another, just as he commanded us. 24 Those who obey his commands remain united with him and he with them.
Here is how we know that he remains united with us: by the Spirit whom he gave us.
Holy Gospel According to Saint John 15:1 “I am the real vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 Every branch which is part of me but fails to bear fruit, he cuts off; and every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes, so that it may bear more fruit. 3 Right now, because of the word which I have spoken to you, you are pruned. 4 Stay united with me, as I will with you — for just as the branch can’t put forth fruit by itself apart from the vine, so you can’t bear fruit apart from me.
5 “I am the vine and you are the branches. Those who stay united with me, and I with them, are the ones who bear much fruit; because apart from me you can’t do a thing. 6 Unless a person remains united with me, he is thrown away like a branch and dries up. Such branches are gathered and thrown into the fire, where they are burned up.
7 “If you remain united with me, and my words with you, then ask whatever you want, and it will happen for you. 8 This is how my Father is glorified — in your bearing much fruit; this is how you will prove to be my talmidim.
Fifth Sunday of Easter - Year B
Commentary of the day:
Saint Bernard (1091-1153), Cistercian monk and doctor of the Church 
Sermon 58 on the Song of Songs 
Bearing fruit in abundance I must warn each of you about his vine: for who has never cut back everything that is superfluous in himself to the point of thinking that there is nothing more to cut? Believe me, what has been cut, grows back; the vices that have been chased away return, and we see tendencies that had gone to sleep waking up again. It is therefore not enough to cut one’s vine once; rather, we have to do it again and often, and if possible, even without ceasing. For if you are sincere, you ceaselessly find in yourself something to cut… Virtue cannot grow among the vices; for virtue to develop, we must prevent the vices from increasing. So suppress what is superfluous; then the necessary will be able to spring up.

For us, Brothers, it is always the time for cutting; it is always necessary. For I am sure that we have already left winter behind us, we have left behind the fear without love, which introduces us all to wisdom, but which doesn’t let anyone grow in perfection. When love comes, it chases away that fear just as the summer chases away the winter… So may the winter rains stop, that is say, the tears of anguish that arise because of the memory of your sins and the fear of judgment… If “the winter is over” and “the rain has topped” (Song 2:11)…, the sweetness of the spring of spiritual grace shows us that the time has come to cut our vine. What else is there for us to do other than to become entirely committed to this work?

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