An online Community for Prayerful Scripture Reflection.
During this time, when many of our usual ways of expressing our Faith have been removed, and we can no longer gather together due to the Coronavirus, it is all the more important that we find ways to invest in our relationships with God and each other.
Here is one small way that we can communicate our faith and support each other whilst encouraging daily prayer with a Scriptural focus. It is also a great way for people who are usually involved with Metanoia Project groups and events to keep in touch and continue to feel part of the Metanoia family as well as the wider Church community.
God wants to speak to us all and has given us His Word as a constant source of life and relationship with Him. The aim of this group is to encourage each other to spend time each day praying with Scripture and allowing God to speak to us. Please then share your thoughts, questions and reflections to help us all hear from our Loving Father.
Metanoia Project ‘The God Who Speaks’ Scripture Reflection Group
**Happy Feast of the Ascension!**
**It isn't Sunday but it's a Solemnity so like a Sunday! So after the Gospel passage you will find a reflection to help you get the most out of this celebration. We hope you will find it useful!**
Jesus showed himself to the Eleven and said to them:
‘Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News to all creation. He who believes and is baptised will be saved; he who does not believe will be condemned. These are the signs that will be associated with believers: in my name they will cast out devils; they will have the gift of tongues; they will pick up snakes in their hands, and be unharmed should they drink deadly poison; they will lay their hands on the sick, who will recover.’
And so the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven: there at the right hand of God he took his place, while they, going out, preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word by the signs that accompanied it.
**Reflection**
Today we celebrate the Ascension of Jesus into heaven. It is now 40 days since Easter Sunday when Jesus rose from the dead. In that time He showed himself not only to the disciples but many more people, in fact in 1 Cor 15:6 it mentions that Jesus appeared to more than 500. The first word of today’s reading is “Jesus showed himself …”. It speaks of how much Jesus wants to show himself to all people. For people to know Him and to know how much He loves them. We see this in His final words to the disciples to “go out to the whole world, proclaim the Good News to all creation”.
So what is this Good News? In a nutshell, it is that God loves us so much that Jesus came to suffer and die for us so that we could have forgiveness for our sins. Jesus accomplished His mission through His life, death and resurrection and now He has returned to heaven to sit at the right hand of God the Father. He conquered death so that we too can have salvation and eternal life. It is a free gift, not something we need to earn.
I wonder how the disciples must have felt as they watched their beloved Jesus be taken up to heaven. In the first reading (Acts 1:1-11) we hear how Jesus told the disciples “you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit …” but at this time they probably didn’t fully understand what that meant or understand that Jesus needed to go to be with the Father so that the Holy Spirit could come to be with all those who believe. The Holy Spirit is part of the Good News.
When I first read this reading I felt very unworthy to be preparing a reflection on proclaiming the gospel to all creation and on the signs that would follow. It made me ask myself ‘am I going out and proclaiming the good news to all creation?’ ‘Do I see signs and wonders happening when I pray?
Many years ago a friend told me that she had inner peace because Jesus was in her life. This was a turning point for me, because even though I was going to Mass every Sunday, I didn’t have that inner peace. It made me turn more to Jesus, to eventually give my life fully to Him and to invite the Holy Spirit to fill me and use me. She didn’t realise what her words had done for me and I suppose we never realise how much we have helped others by sharing our faith with them, even in small ways.
As I’ve meditated on this I realise I’m not like St Peter preaching to the 1000s, but I do see God opening the door for me to share His love with people, often in small ways, through offering to pray (for them or with them), reminding them that God loves them or giving a short testimony of what God has done for me. When I’ve done this I’ve been amazed at the signs that follow. I’d like to say I take every opportunity but sadly sometimes I miss the chance because of doubt or fear. It’s a reminder to me of how much I need Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit in my life. It is certainly not something I can do in my own strength. Jesus may have ascended into heaven and sits are the right hand of God but through the Holy Spirit He is with each one of us, we are never alone and He will never leave us. “The Lord working with them and confirming the word by the signs that accompanied it”.
We are all called to be other “Christs” to people, to make Him known and to spread the love of God to others. To be brave despite our fears and inadequacies. To step out in faith and rely on the Holy Spirit to work through us. We are all different and God gives us different gifts to use to bring others to Him. It’s only in stepping out that we will see the signs that follow believers. In the second reading (Ephesians 4:1-13) it says that “each one of us has been given his own share of grace, given as Christ allotted it” and it goes on to say that we all have different gifts “so that the saints together make a unity in the work of service, building up the body of Christ.” We can do this!
When Jesus had ascended into heaven the disciples didn’t immediately start preaching to people, in fact they went to the upper room and prayed for nine days (the first novena). At Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came on them, they received the power to preach and the boldness they needed to do it. This reminds us of the importance of prayer. Tomorrow we start the nine days leading up to Pentecost and it’s an opportunity for us to prepare for Pentecost, to pray a novena for the power of the Holy Spirit to fall afresh on us, so that we too can share the Good News. Come Holy Spirit.
-Christine
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘I still have many things to say to you
but they would be too much for you now.
But when the Spirit of truth comes
he will lead you to the complete truth,
since he will not be speaking as from himself
but will say only what he has learnt;
and he will tell you of the things to come.
He will glorify me,
since all he tells you
will be taken from what is mine.
Everything the Father has is mine;
that is why I said:
All he tells you
will be taken from what is mine.’
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘Now I am going to the one who sent me.
Not one of you has asked, “Where are you going?”
Yet you are sad at heart because I have told you this.
Still, I must tell you the truth:
it is for your own good that I am going
because unless I go,
the Advocate will not come to you;
but if I do go,
I will send him to you.
And when he comes,
he will show the world how wrong it was,
about sin,
and about who was in the right,
and about judgement:
about sin: proved by their refusal to believe in me;
about who was in the right: proved by my going to the Father and your seeing me no more;
about judgement: proved by the prince of this world being already condemned.’
From Bishop Robert Barron's reflection. Tuesday, May 11, 2021  SIXTH WEEK OF EASTER JOHN 16:5–11 Friends, once again in today’s Gospel, Jesus promises to send us the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is the fuel of the Church, the energy and life force of the Body of Christ. And we can’t get him through heroic effort. We can only get him by asking for him. That’s why, for the past two thousand years, the Church has begged for this power from on high. Jesus told us that the Father would never refuse someone who asked for the Holy Spirit. So ask! And ask again! Realize that every liturgy is a begging for the Holy Spirit. Fr. Hesburgh of Notre Dame once commented that the one prayer that is always appropriate—whether one is experiencing success or failure, whether one is confident or afraid, whether one is young or old—is "Come, Holy Spirit!" He’s right, for this is the fundamental prayer of the Church. Mind you, we pray it, as the first Apostles did, in the presence of Mary and with her support. In the Hail Mary, we say, "Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death." What are we asking her to pray for but the Holy Spirit?
Copied from the Evangeli app. Comment: Fr. Joseph A. PELLEGRINO (Tarpon Springs, Florida, United States) «It is better for you that I go» Today, we are presented with a deeper understanding of the reality of the Ascension of the Lord. In the reading from the Gospel of John on Easter Sunday, Mary of Magdala is told not to cling to the Lord because “I have not yet ascended to the Father” (Jn 20:17). In today's Gospel Jesus notes that the disciples are overcome: “because I told you this, grief has filled your hearts. But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go” (Jn 16:6-7). Jesus must ascend to the Father. Yet, He still remains with us. How can he go, yet still remain? This mystery was explained by our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI: «Given that God embraces and sustains the whole cosmos, the Lord's Ascension means that Christ has not gone far away from us, but now, thanks to the fact that He is with the Father, He is close to each one of us forever». Our hope is in Jesus Christ; His conquest of death gave us the life that death can never destroy, His Life. His resurrection is the verification that the spiritual is real. Nothing can separate us from the love of God. Nothing can diminish our hope. The negatives of the world cannot destroy the positive of Jesus Christ. The imperfect world we live in, a world where the innocent suffer, can point us to pessimism. But Jesus Christ has transformed us into eternal optimists. The living presence of the Lord in our community, in our families, in those aspects of our society that can rightfully be called “Christian” have given us a reason for hope. The Living Presence of the Lord within each one of us has given us joy. No matter how great the barrage of negatives that the media delights in presenting, the positives of the world far outweigh the negatives, for Jesus Christ has risen. He ascended, but He has not left us.
Tonight at 22.00 Tuesday The Sorrowful Mysteries. Praying for the end of the covid 19 virus throughout the world And for world peace and mankind to love one another. For the poor to be taken care of by his neighbours.
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘When the Advocate comes,
whom I shall send to you from the Father,
the Spirit of truth who issues from the Father,
he will be my witness.
And you too will be witnesses,
because you have been with me from the outset.
‘I have told you all this that your faith may not be shaken.
They will expel you from the synagogues,
and indeed the hour is coming
when anyone who kills you
will think he is doing a holy duty for God.
They will do these things
because they have never known
either the Father or myself.
But I have told you all this,
so that when the time for it comes
you may remember that I told you.’
From Bishop Robert Barron's reflection. Monday, May 10, 2021  SIXTH WEEK OF EASTER JOHN 15:26–16:4A Friends, today’s Gospel focuses on the Holy Spirit’s role as witness to Jesus: “When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, he will testify to me.” All Christian preaching is ultimately about the Paschal Mystery—the suffering, dying, and rising of Jesus—and the sending of the Holy Spirit. But this last element is especially important for today, because it signals the way that we are able to participate in the life that Jesus opens up to us. One of the chief marks of the Holy Spirit is the prompting to bold speech. From the Apostles through the great evangelists and theologians, up to Billy Graham and John Paul II, the Spirit prompts people to confess the Lordship of Jesus. Remember that Paul told us, “No one can say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ except by the Holy Spirit.” Who is the Holy Spirit? He is the third person of the Holy Trinity, but more precisely, the love shared by the Father and the Son. As the love between Father and Son, the Spirit comes most fully to historical expression during the great events of the Incarnation and the Paschal Mystery.  Word on Fire Catholic Ministries, PO Box 170, Des Plaines, IL 60016, United States Manage Your Email Preferences . 
Copied from the Evangeli app. Comment: Fr. Higinio Rafael ROSOLEN IVE (Cobourg, Ontario, Canada) «And you also testify» Today in the Gospel, Jesus announces and promises the coming of the Holy Spirit: "When the Paraclete comes…that proceeds from the Father, he will testify to me" (Jn 15:26). "Paraclete" literally means "the one who is called near to one", and is usually translated as "Comforter". In this way, Jesus reminds us of the goodness of God, for the Holy Spirit being the love of God, He instills peace in our hearts, serenity in adversity and joy for the things of God. He makes us look to the things above and unite with God. Furthermore, Jesus says to the Apostles: "And you also testify" (Jn 15:27). To testify it is necessary to: 1st Have communion and intimacy with Jesus. This is born of the daily relationship with Him: reading the Gospel, listening to His words, knowing His teachings, frequenting His sacraments, being in communion with His Church, imitating His example, keeping the commandments, seeing Him in the saints, recognizing Him in our brothers, having His spirit and loving Him. It is about having a personal and living experience of Jesus. 2nd Our testimony is credible if it appears in our works. A witness is not only a person who knows that something is true, but who is also willing to say it and live it. What we experience and live in our soul we must transmit to the outside world. We are witnesses of Jesus not only if we know His teachings, but — and mainly — when we want and make others to know and love Him. As the saying goes, "Actions speak louder than words." Pope Francis told us: “I am grateful for the beautiful example given to me by so many Christians who joyfully sacrifice their lives and their time. This witness comforts and sustains me in my own effort to overcome selfishness and to give more fully of myself.” And he added: "I especially ask Christians in communities throughout the world to offer a radiant and attractive witness of fraternal communion." That is always a light that attracts.
Tonight at 22:00 Monday The Joyful Mysteries. Praying for the end of the covid 19 virus throughout the world And for world peace and mankind to love one another. For the poor to be taken care of by his neighbours.
**As it is Sunday, after the Gospel passage you will find a few points to consider, and some thoughts on how we can apply today’s Gospel to our lives today. We hope you will find it useful!**
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘As the Father has loved me,
so I have loved you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments
you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father’s commandments
and remain in his love.
I have told you this
so that my own joy may be in you
and your joy be complete.
This is my commandment:
love one another, as I have loved you.
A man can have no greater love
than to lay down his life for his friends.
You are my friends,
if you do what I command you.
I shall not call you servants any more,
because a servant does not know
his master’s business;
I call you friends,
because I have made known to you
everything I have learnt from my Father.
You did not choose me:
no, I chose you;
and I commissioned you
to go out and to bear fruit,
fruit that will last;
and then the Father will give you
anything you ask him in my name.
What I command you
is to love one another.’
**Reflection. **
Today we hear beautiful, loving words of Jesus our Lord, and what He intends for me as His friend. It is unbelievable that Jesus wants to consider me as a friend; me a mere sinner who has not always stayed true to His commandments! But, through the great LOVE God has for me, my sins are forgiven so that I may remain in His love.
Over the past few weeks, I have been feeling low in faith with Satan attacking my thoughts in my everyday life and in my faith in God. When I have found myself trying to have quiet time with God, I feel as if a door has firmly shut me out of the space that I am trying to share with our Lord Jesus, and so I give up. But in my heart I truly know that He is there listening to me even though I do not understand why it seems like He is not with me. Despite (or perhaps because of) this struggle, somehow I feel I still receive my daily pruning from Him.
This shows me that our Lord Jesus does truly love me! In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus tells us that we can have intimacy with Him if we stay true to His teachings and follow the path He leads us on – That is how I will always stay in His Love. This path leads us to bear more fruit, fruit that has to be nurtured while I am still growing in faith - a lifetime of nurturing and pruning. We all need to be pruned so that we will gain new growth, continuing to learn more and build upon what Jesus has already taught us. Pruning gives us the opportunity to go back and start again with new added growth.
It is amazing how many times I have looked back over a reading in the bible and something new has stood out to me. This happens to me all the time and will always happen because Jesus is always teaching me and revealing to me what has been revealed to Him by the Father. This is a great reminder of who God really is - a great Master, Teacher and Friend, full of love for all of mankind.
And so, I too, must love everyone and follow Jesus’ commandment to love one another as He has loved me. It is a great love that He has set in my heart for all to share in, a love that will bear fruit for God’s harvest. It is a lifetime commitment to lay down my own worldly life for the nurture of God’s fruit that will be in good condition and ready for the great harvest. What greater love can I have than to give up my worldly life for the benefit of other souls so that they may come to know God’s love for themselves, so that they may pass God’s love on and bear more fruit themselves?
What verse stands out to me in this Weeks reading? John 15:16 ‘You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that what ever you ask the Father in my name, He may give you’. Not only should I bring people to the Lord but commit my life to their spiritual wellbeing. An important part of our Christian life is our Christian community, a togetherness for our spiritual teaching, prayer and worship of our God, one in the Universal Church of God.
- Tony.
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘If the world hates you,
remember that it hated me before you.
If you belonged to the world,
the world would love you as its own;
but because you do not belong to the world,
because my choice withdrew you from the world,
therefore the world hates you.
Remember the words I said to you: A servant is not greater than his master.
If they persecuted me, they will persecute you too;
if they kept my word, they will keep yours as well.
But it will be on my account that they will do all this,
because they do not know the one who sent me.’
From Bishop Robert Barron's reflection. Saturday, May 8, 2021  FIFTH WEEK OF EASTER JOHN 15:18–21 Friends, today’s Gospel balances our Easter joy with the warning of danger from a society opposed to God: "If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own; but because you do not belong to the world, and I have chosen you out of the world, the world hates you." It is altogether appropriate that, during this Easter season, we rejoice. The Lord is risen; he is truly risen. Jesus Christ is Lord, God is King, and sin and death have been defeated. All of that is true and remains centrally important during this season. At the same time, we must not succumb to a "cheap grace" interpretation of Christianity, whereby Christ is risen and all is well. As Julian of Norwich said, "All will be well, all manner of things will be well." Notice the future tense. The definitive battle has been won, but the war continues. The struggle is ongoing.
Copied from the Evangeli app. Comment: Fr. Ferran JARABO i Carbonell (Agullana, Girona, Spain) «They will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know the one who sent me» Today, the Gospel opposes the world to Christ's followers. The world represents whatever sinful there may be in our existence. Consequently, one of the main characteristics of Christ's followers is fighting all evil and sin to be found in the world and inside every man. This is why Jesus is the light of men, the light that illuminates the world's darkness. Saint John Paul II exhorted us: “so that this light makes us strong and capable to accept and love the entire Truth of Christ, and love it even more when opposed by our world.” Neither Christians nor the Church can follow the passing fads or criteria of this world. Christ's criterion is the unique, definitive and unavoidable one for us to follow. It is not up to Jesus to adapt himself to the world where we live; it is up to us instead to transform our lives after Jesus. “Christ is the same one whether yesterday, today or always.” This should make us wonder: when our secularized society demands from us and from the Church certain changes or licenses, we are simply being asked us to move away from God. However, we Christians should be faithful to Christ and to his message. Saint Ireneus says: “God does not need anything; but man needs to be in permanent communion with God. And man's glory lies in persevering and always keep in God's service.” This fidelity may, quite often, mean persecution: “If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you” (Jn 15:20). We should not be afraid of persecution; we should rather be afraid of not attempting strongly enough to always make God's will. Let's be brave and let us proclaim without any fear Christ resurrected, light and joy of all Christians! Let us leave the Holy Spirit to transform us so that we can inform the whole world about it!
Tonight at 22:00 Saturday The Joyful Mysteries. Praying for the end of the covid 19 virus throughout the world And for world peace and mankind to love one another. For the poor to be taken care of by his neighbours.
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘This is my commandment:
love one another,
as I have loved you.
A man can have no greater love
than to lay down his life for his friends.
You are my friends,
if you do what I command you.
I shall not call you servants any more,
because a servant does not know
his master’s business;
I call you friends,
because I have made known to you
everything I have learnt from my Father.
You did not choose me:
no, I chose you;
and I commissioned you
to go out and to bear fruit,
fruit that will last;
and then the Father will give you
anything you ask him in my name.
What I command you is to love one another.’
Tonight at 22:00 Thursday The Mysteries of Light. Praying for the end of the covid 19 virus throughout the world And for world peace and mankind to love one another. For the poor to be taken care of by his neighbours.
From Bishop Robert Barron's reflection. Friday, May 7, 2021  FIFTH WEEK OF EASTER JOHN 15:12–17 Friends, today’s Gospel instructs us in the way of loving others with God’s love. The whole of the Christian life is on display here: God is love. In other words, God is a self-emptying gift on behalf of the other. But this means, paradoxically, that to have God is to be what God is—and that means giving one’s life away. Now we see the link that Jesus suggests between joy and commandment: "This is my commandment: love one another as I love you." Now we begin to understand the laws, commands, and demands of the Church. All are designed to make us more adept at giving ourselves away—more adept at love. Don’t steal; don’t kill; don’t covet your neighbor’s goods or spouse; honor your mother and father; worship God. All of these commands—positive and negative—are meant to awaken love in our lives.
Copied from the Evangeli app. Comment: Fr. Carles ELÍAS i Cao (Barcelona, Spain) «This is my commandment: love one another as I have loved you» Today, our Lord exhorts us to fraternal love: «Love one another as I have loved you» (Jn 15:12), that is to say, as you have seen me loving and you will still see me love. Jesus speaks to you as a friend, for He has told you that his Father calls you, that He wants you to become an apostle, and that He expects you to bear fruit, a fruit that is manifested through love. St. John Crysostom affirms: «If love would be spread all over, an infinite goodness would be born out of it». To give love amounts to create life. Spouses know it well, for they love each other, they make a reciprocal donation and they assume the responsibility of becoming parents by accepting, at the same time, the abnegation and self-denial of their time and their own being in favour of those they must take care of, must protect, must educate and, in short, must form as persons. Missionaries know it too, when they offer their life for the Gospel, with the same Christian spirit of sacrifice and abnegation. And friars, priests and bishops also know it, and with them all of Jesus' disciples who commit themselves to our Savior. A little before, Jesus already told you which the requirements for love and bearing fruit are: «Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit» (Jn 12:24). Jesus invites you to lose your life, to deliver it to Him without any fear, to willingly die, if need be, to be able to love your brother with Christ's love, with supernatural love. Jesus invites you to attain an operative, benefactor and concrete love; this is how apostle James understood it when he said: «Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed’, but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead» (2:15-17).
