FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER "B"

FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER “B”

The Vine and the Branches

Introduction: God wants us to turn to him in our need. And that’s exactly what we do, since we are people of faith. We believe in his love and care for us. Our best prayers have more groans than words. Beg God to help you live in his presence everyday of your life. Prayer is the sum of our relationship with God. We are what we pray. St. Francis deSales said, “Every Christian needs half an hour of prayer everyday, except when he is busy; then he needs one hour.”

The greatest prayer is certainly the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, which is precisely the prayer of Jesus, in terms of his total self-surrender to his Father. We could do no better than join him in this great action-prayer. Let us first be sorry for our sins and failures and ask God for pardon and strength.

THE HOMILY

“I am the Vine and you my Branches are.”

In the Old Testament the image of the vine was vividly used to describe Israel. Israel was God’s Vine, planted by him personally, and enjoying most favoured status. However, its fruit was disappointing; if is did produce grapes, they were sour. These so-called beloved of God turned out to be stubborn and crooked idolaters, boasting of their hardness of heart and infidelities.

In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus takes up the image and uses it to describe himself. More than that, he is the true Vine.

Every gardener will resonate with the language Jesus uses in this passage. There is a certain amount of pragmatic realism in gardening: a branch that is not bearing fruit is a drain on the life of the vine and needs to be cut off. This is an application of the Principle of Totality. If a particular organ of yours is cancerous and a danger to the whole body, the cancerous member must be excised immediately before the cancer spreads.

On the other hand, a branch that is bearing fruit needs to be carefully pruned and dressed to enable it carry more and luscious fruit.

As Christians, how do we bear fruit for God? Jesus tells us the secret of fruitfulness: “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me” (vs. 4). To abide in Jesus is really the call of the Christian life. We are called to live our lives and die our deaths in the love of Jesus.

A certain observer has written a line about our spiritual life: “Most of us in the spiritual life talk cream but live skimmed milk.” The point is that spiritually we can be more interesting and refreshing than we are at the moment. What we lack is boldness and smartness.

There is a little story about the genius Michelangelo Buonarotti, the great artist and architect.

 He had a number of pupils under his tutorship. One morning he entered his studio and carefully examined the canvasses of each of his pupils. A few he cautiously complimented. He advised one or two to go back to their day jobs and not to inflict their paintings on an innocent humanity! Finally he came to his star disciple. Without a word, Michelangelo took up a brush, heavy with red paint. Across the picture he wrote the Latin word “amplius,” which translates into English “larger.” The maestro felt that his pupil was playing it too safe. He was not working up to his capacity. He wanted him to start all over again from scratch. The student did, and the result was a masterpiece.

Jesus, our Lord, must often be tempted to write the word “amplius” over the lives of many of us. There is no doubt that we are good as far as we have gone. But we have not gone far enough. Our spiritual canvasses are too small. We are capable of so much more in the spiritual life.

 The lives of our spirit need constant and larger repainting. And the Teacher would inform us that the larger canvasses and brushes are sitting on the racks in front of us. They are ours for the picking.

The great French philosopher Leon Bloy wrote this line: “The greatest tragedy is that each of us is not a saint.” Is there anyone here who would think that Jesus Christ would disagree with that judgement? The same Christ who in today’s Gospel says, “…every branch that does bear fruit my Father prunes to make it bear even more.” More generous, more charitable, a more pure life, greater encouragement to the weak members of the parish.

How much more effective our parish and we ourselves as Catholics could be if everyone here carried his or her share of the responsibilities! Some of you have marvelous contributions in leadership to offer us. Be willing to take risks. Christ needs you and wants you, and so do we.

Some fellow summed up our spiritual quest as follows:

“Aim for the stars and you at least reach the mountain range. But aim only at the mountain and you never get out of the mud.”

                                    The Vine and the Branches

“I am the trusty Vine,

And you my Branches are.

Blest be he who adheres to me:

A branch that spreads afar.

True Vine am I;

So will you be,

If you but cling to me.

But more than cling,

For I shall bring

The sap that fructifies

That branch of mine,

To give sweet wine

For life that never dies.

Whichever branch that bears much fruit

My Father will renew

To feed my sheep more plenti’ly,

And bind them to the root.”

O Holy Vine, O Jesu Lord,

We love and cling to you.

O prune our hearts

And cleanse our minds,

And teach us how to bear you;

That men may taste and savour sweet

Your wine of truth and love,

And praise the Dresser of that Vine

He planted from above.

Amen.