5th Sunday of Easter – Cycle B
April 29, 2018
4:00pm at Saint Mary Parish, Pylesville
11:00am at Saint Matthew Parish, Baltimore
Inflatables
One day this past week, I was stopped at a traffic signal waiting for the light to turn green.
Right across the road there was a car dealership and they had one of those large inflatables. I am sure you have seen them outside of stores and places like that.
They are made out of a nylon-type of material, are usually a bright color – this one the other day was a bright green – and they often have a face and arms, like a person. And, of course, the key thing is that they are inflatable.
They are connected to an electric blower that pumps air into them and the result is that they writhe and move and up and down and are in constant motion. The result is that these inflatables really get your attention.
The other day, the purpose was to get you to notice the cars on the dealer’s lot and maybe come in and buy one. Now obviously, all of these inflatables have to be connected to an electric blower.
As long as they are connected, they receive the air and stay inflated and keep moving and getting our attention. But the minute they are disconnected or the blower is turned off, they deflate and collapse.
Vine and Branches
These inflatables help us to appreciate the image in today’s gospel.
But before I talk about the image, who can answer the question I asked before the second reading? How many times is the word “remain”used in the second reading and then how many times is it used in the gospel?
[Call on someone who wants to volunteer the answer.] You are right. The word “remain”is used two times in the second reading and eight times in the gospel.
Now, let’s go back to the inflatables and today’s gospel. Here is what I am thinking.
Jesus says, “I am the vine, you are the branches.” This image speaks of a connection between Jesus and us.
The idea is that we are connected with Jesus, like the branches with the vine or inflatables with the electric blower, and we need to be connected to be really alive. This is why the passage keeps using the word “remain”and why Jesus himself says: “Remain in me, and I remain in you.”
How to “Remain”
So, what do we have to do to “remain” in Jesus?
I think the most important way of doing this is by prayer. I know this may sound so simple and we have heard it before, but it is true.
We can be prayerful persons in a whole variety of ways. For example, we may speak to God in our own words: heartfelt, honest, and candid.
Or we may use prayers that we have learned, like the Lord’s Prayer. We may be with God by reading and reflecting on a few verses of the gospel.
Or we may just be silent. Just be, sit, walk, or even drive in silence and be with the Lord and let the Lord be with you in that.
And of course, we have the Sacrament of the Eucharist – a visible, physical experience of Jesus remaining in us and our remaining in him. Each of these ways of being prayerful helps us to “remain”in Jesus.
Results of Remaining
Then, notice that Jesus says:“Whoever remains in me and I in them will bear much fruit, for apart from me you will do nothing.”
I think the key word in Jesus’ statement is the word “fruit.” The idea is that if we “remain”in him, we will be able to do positive, constructive, life-giving things.
We might say that the air of Jesus will be flowing into us. And it will have an effect on us and on those around us, much like the inflatables.
So, by remaining in Jesus we will be empowered to keep on going in ordinary, everyday life. We will be empowered to do things that we would prefer not to do but that we sense God is calling us to do.
We will be empowered to live as persons of faith, loving God and loving others as we love ourselves. So in a way, the idea is simple.
Staying connected, letting the air of Jesus flow in, remaining in Jesus will enliven us for each day and for the long haul of life. It will help us, as Jesus says, to “bear much fruit.”
