Fifth Sunday of Easter 2020 (A)
INTRO: Okay… I am going to say it first, and then I will ask you to please say it with me…
“In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places!”
I bet you can answer this at home: Who is Jesus talking to?
I hope you answered: His APOSTLES
And Mom’s and Dad’s ………
If your kids got it right, give ‘em a treat after Mass!
So, Jesus is telling His 12… you are always going to be with me and when you die, you are going to get your own “dwelling place” in heaven.
He loved those APOSTLES!
Do you know anything about those Apostles that Jesus loved???
One was a thief
One was a tax collector
One became a writer
Peter was always putting his foot in his mouth
None of them were perfect and saintly and yet THEY were all PROMISED a dwelling place in heaven!
Again, he loved those APOSTLES.
I had a perfection complex in the seminary. (Some may say I still do!!!) I would go through my discernment and end up saying: “I can’t do this! I am not going to be perfect enough!”
My spiritual director reminded me that JESUS didn’t PICK THE MOST PERFECT to build His church and bring about the Kingdom of God for him.
So Jesus picked these imperfect ones to lead the church and look what we have today.
Now, remember I LOVE SCRIPTURE analysis so here’s a tricky question and I know I asked it before:
“In this Gospel, who is Jesus talking to?”
ANSWER: Not just 12 Apostles /PRIESTS, but to ALL OF US as we are all:
A ROYAL PRIESTHOOD
Pat yourself on the back if you answered that you knew that JESUS was talking to all of us this morning! And if you knew about the priesthood of the faithful!!! In reality the Catholic people can be referred to as “PRIESTS!”
By virtue of baptism we enter the royal priesthood of the faithful, and like priests on ordination day, a baptized person is likewise anointed with the same oil to make that connection.
CONCLUSION
So if Jesus is talking to all of us ….. PRIESTS …..There is a dwelling place for all of us in His Father’s house. That’s your good SUNDAY NEWS!!!
There’s yours and my hope for an eternal future, a gift from JESUS who loves all of his priests.