Pastor’s Pen
St. Augustine Catholic Church
Sunday, May 2, 2021
Fifth Sunday of Easter
I am the Vine; you are the branches.
If you remain in Me, you will bear much fruit.
(John 15:1-8)
Last Sunday was named Good Shepherd Sunday. Christ used the image of a shepherd, one who rears or cares for sheep in the same way He relates with us. In today’s Mass, the fifth Sunday of Easter, Christ also uses the image of a vine, a tree that produces wine in Palestine to demonstrate how closely we must relate with Him to produce the desired fruit. He says, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. He that follows Me will receive everlasting life.” If we adhere very closely to Him, we are like a tree already
pruned and ready to bear fruit in plenty. However, if we are cut off from Him, we will bear no fruit. We will be like branches cut off from its roots. Unable to receive the nutrients from the tree and will surely die. In this metaphor, Christ is our vine. We must adhere closely to Him just as the branches of every tree adheres to its trunk in order to live.
It is indeed through Christ that we became Christians. He nourishes us with His Divine Word through the Sacred Scriptures. It is Christ that nourishes us with His body and blood which is the food of the soul. He heals us when we are spiritually sick through the Sacrament of Anointing and forgives us of our sins through Reconciliation. The other Sacraments make us holy which we receive from time to time, and we are able to carry on His work. It is through Him that we ultimately receive the strength from the power of the Holy Spirit to be able to practice faithfully our Christ obligations actively in the church.
Amen.
Fr. Chris
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