6th Sunday of Easter (Year B) - 5 May
5th May 2024
“Since God is perfect in loving man, man must be perfect in loving his neighbour.” - St Vincent Pallotti
A reflection on today's Gospel by the Venerable Archbishop Fulton J Sheen:
"‘This is My commandment, that you should love One another, as I have loved you. This is the greatest love a man can show, that he should lay down his life for his friends.’ (John 15:13 )
"Love is the normal relation of branches to one another, because all are rooted in the vine. There were to be no limits to His love. Peter once set a limit to love when he asked how many times he should forgive. Was it seven? Our Lord told him seventy times seven, which implied infinity and denied any mathematical calculation. There are to be no limits to their mutual love, for they must all ask themselves, what was the limit of His love? He had no limit, for He came to lay down His life.
"Here again He spoke of the purpose of His coming, namely, Redemption. The Cross is foremost. The voluntary character of it is emphasised when He said that He laid down His life; no one takes it away. His love would be like the heat of the sun: those who were nearest to it would be warm and happy; those who were farthest away would still know its light.
"Only through death for others could He show love. His death would not be like the death of one man out of love for another, or like a soldier for his country, because the man who saves others must die eventually anyway. However great the sacrifice, it would be a premature payment of a debt that had to be paid. But in the case of Our Saviour, He need not have died at all. No one could take away His life from Him. Though He called those for whom He died ‘friends,’ the friendship was all on His side and not on ours, for as sinners we were enemies. John later on expressed it well when he said that He died for us while we were yet sinners.
"Sinners can show a love for one another by taking the punishment which another deserves. But Our Blessed Lord was not only taking the punishment but also taking the guilt as if it were His own. Furthermore, this death that He was about to die would be quite different from the death of martyrs for His cause, since they have the example of His death and the expectancy of the glory which He promised. But to die upon the Cross without a pitying eye, to be surrounded by a multitude who mocked Him, and to die without being obliged to die—such was the peak of love. The Apostles could not understand such depths of affection, but they would later on.
"John would paraphrase what he heard that night, as he leaned against the heart of Christ: ‘God has proved His love to us by laying down His life for our sakes; We too must be ready to lay down our lives for the sake of our brethren.’ (I John 3:16)"
(Life of Christ)
Act of Love Prayer
O Lord, my God, I love You above all things, with my whole heart and soul, because You are all-good and worthy of all love. I love my neighbour as myself for the love of You. I forgive all who have injured me, and ask pardon of all whom I have injured. Jesus, I live for You. Jesus, I die for You. Jesus, I am Yours in life and in death. Amen. 🙏💐💖