THE VINE

Sunday February 29, 2018
Fifth Sunday of Easter (B)
Vestment: White
Today’s Rosary: Glorious Mystery
The memorial of St. Catherine of Siena, V.D. is not celebrated this year.
Theme of the Sunday: Whoever Remains in me Will Produce Much Fruit. We can produce the fruit of the Spirit if we remain with Christ. This is the main theme of the gospel today. The second reading draws our attention to another point. Our faith is manifested by works of love. These ensure that we possess the lite of God. The first reading tells us of Paul who, in spite of all difficulties, misunderstandings and suspicions, remained in union with Christ and with his disciples.

The Gloria
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will. We bless you, we adore you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great glory, Lord God, heavenly King, O God, almighty Father. Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son, Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us; you take away the sins of the world, receive our prayer; you are seated at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us. For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

FIRST READING
“He declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord.”
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles ( Acts 9:26-31)
In those days: When Saul had come to Jerusalem he attempted to join the disciples; and they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. And he spoke and disputed against the Hellenists; but they were seeking to kill him. And when the brethren knew it, they brought him down to Caesarea, and sent him off to Tarsus. So the Church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was built up; and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit it was multiplied.

The word of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM Ps 22:26b-27.28 and 30.31-32 (R. 26a)
R. You are my praise, Lord, in the great assembly.
Or: Alleluia.

My vows I will pay before those who fear him.
The poor shall eat and shall have their fill.
They shall praise the Lord, those who seek him.
May their hearts live on forever and ever! R

All the earth shall remember and return to the Lord,
all families of the nations worship before him.
They shall worship him, all the mighty of the earth;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust. R.

And my soul shall live for him, my descendents serve him.
They shall tell of the Lord to generations yet to come,
declare his saving justice to peoples yet unborn:
“These are the things the Lord has done.” R.

SECOND READING
“This is his commandment, that we should believe. . . and love one an- other. ”
A reading from the first Letter of Saint John (1 John 3 : l b-24)
Little children, let us not love in word or speech but in deed and in truth. By this we shall know that we are of the truth, and reassure our hearts before him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. All who keep his commandments abide in him, and he in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit which he has given us.

The word of the Lord.

ALLELUIA John 15:4a.5b
Alleluia. Abide in me, and I in you, says the Lord; he who abides in me bears much fruit. Alleluia.

GOSPEL
“He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit.”
A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (John 15: 1-8)
At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already made clean by the word which I have spoken to you. 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. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burnt. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be my disciples.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

The Creed (I Believe)
I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Prayer of the Faithful
Christ is our Way, Truth and Life.

PRIEST: My brothers and sisters we pray to God our Father for all the graces for the Church and the world, through Christ, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

READER:
For the Church, the sign of salvation, pause may she always point the way to the world. pause Lord, hear our prayer; through Christ, you Son we pray Oh Lord.

For the leaders of our society, pause may they never consider themselves as the most important members of society, but see themselves rather as servants in the world of which Christ alone is Lord. pause Lord, hear our prayer; through Christ, you Son we pray Oh Lord.

For those who are worried, or in great distress, pause may Christ’s words in today’s gospel, “do not let your hearts be troubled, trust in God still and trust in me” console and encourage them in their time of trial. pause Lord, hear our prayer; through Christ, you Son we pray Oh Lord.

For an increase of vocations, pause may young men and women be encouraged to offer themselves as priests and religious for the service of the Church. pause Lord, hear our prayer; through Christ, you Son we pray Oh Lord.

PRIEST: In silence, we pray to our heavenly Father for our own spiritual intentions.

Father, may we be one with you by following your Son, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

REFLECTION
We are part of the new vineyard, but we shall be able to grow and bear fruit only if we remain in Christ, the source of our life. From the Passover of Jesus springs up a new vineyard, the true one, that will cover the entire world with its branches. Those who believe in the Word of God are purified and made part of this vine. Those who hold firm to this faith extend the influence of Christ to countless other persons and thus produce much fruit. Genuine faith is contagious, and if genuine faith meets with resistance, the very resistance prompts purer and more vigorous faith.

To us Christians of the present century, it would seem too simplistic to say that without Christ we can do nothing. We see that our mission is active on many fronts, and our dossiers are full of plans for adaptions and reform. But how can we give to the Church its dynamic vitality once again? How can the Gospel become once again the festive wine for the people of today? The crisis of our mission perhaps points to the crisis of our faith. What does it mean for us to believe in Christ, to “remain” in him? If the source is obstructed, naturally the flow of water will be scarce. If our profession of faith is lifeless and our Eucharistic celebrations are joyless, how can they attract anyone to join us? Only a convinced faith can be a convincing faith.