The Vitality of the Vine

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Reflecting on the Word

By Rev. James A. Wallace, C.Ss.R.

Jesus the vine gives flower to some very different branches. Last week we considered Peter, so this week let us turn to Paul. No one would have suspected that  Saul of Tarsus, that “breather of murderous threats against the disciples of the  Lord,” would ever become known as “the Apostle to the Gentiles” and one who  would refer to himself as both a loving father and mother to the communities he  himself tended. As Peter proved to be a good shepherd of the flock, so Paul was  a dedicated worker in the vineyard, tending with such loving care the branches  growing from the one vine that is Jesus. 

What we see in Paul and hear in his letters is the intimate love of Christ for his  church. Take up any of his letters and you will become engaged with the spirit of  Paul as an instrument that communicates the spirit of Christ. Paul’s letters reveal  the many voices he used to preach Christ crucified: the evangelizer and herald,  the teacher and witness, the admonishing father and loving midwife, all calling  God’s children to be fully alive in Christ. 

Jesus speaks of himself as a vine with many branches, befitting not only the  infinite variety of individuals he called in his own day, but also the many peoples  and nations that have come to believe in him. We pray for all who give themselves over to the work of the vineyard, to all who help others to remain in Christ  and bear fruit. 

Consider/Discuss

  • What does the image of Christ as the vine with many branches say to  you about today’s Church? 
  • How do you understand Jesus’ words about the branches needing to  be pruned so that they might bear more fruit? 

Responding to the Word

Risen Jesus, you are the vine and we are the branches. Strengthen our resolve  as a community to remain in you, so that we might bear more fruit. May your  words remain in me, your child; may I, like Paul, recognize the life these words  carry within them, and hold them in my heart.

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