Not One Fell Swoop

AM Psalm 103 • PM Psalm 111, 114
Isa. 30:18-21 • Acts 2:26-41(42-47) or 1 Cor. 15:12-28 • John 14:15-31

I am often guilty of wanting a single, expansive sweep of the sword of justice to end whatever cruelty or inequity is currently foremost in the news cycle, especially when that particular injustice is longstanding. Being witness to long suffering is not a condition to which the human heart stays immobilized: it either commits to work for change, no matter the increment or form, or it turns away.

Imagine how Christ’s apostles felt when the slow realization seeped in that rather than a dramatic conquering of evil and oppression in one glorious battle, their Savior who had performed true miracles before their very eyes, the Son whom God sent to change the world, was to be dragged away, tortured and then murdered. The public humiliation, the shock to heart and mind, must have been overwhelming. They scattered in fear and abandonment.

But the apostles began to remember their last moments with Jesus. Surely some of the most beautiful words in the Bible are in today’s reading from John, sharing the promise Jesus made to us all. Paraphrasing:

My time here with you will end but I will ask the Father and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever. I will not leave you orphaned.

The Advocate, the Spirit of truth, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and will remind you of all that I have said to you. You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I am coming to you’ — this is because you will no longer see me but you will see me! You will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.

Do not let your hearts be troubled, do not let them be afraid. The Holy Spirit will be with you and in you forever.

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you.

The pure love that is God, shown through his Son and the Holy Spirit, can give us peace and a calm heart while we face our work to ease suffering, for social justice, and to love one another as Christ has loved us.

Written by Bernadette Reda

Praying for those affected by violence, the pandemic, and social injustice, especially the immigrant families.