Cycle B - Year I:  

3 May 2015: Fifth Sunday of Easter
(Liturgical color: White)

John 15:1-8


"I am the vine, you are the branches!"


The greatest tragedy of man is to believe that he can survive without God. Even with our boast that we have conquered the universe, when powerful wrath of nature strikes, man remains helpless in the face of destructive forces much greater and stronger than his humanity.

The message of this Sunday's liturgy reminds us that we are no superman, even in our own planet.

Our Lord uses the parable of the vine and the branches to deliver a timely message to us all.

Let us put ourselves in the scene of the parable to better appreciate the message. The land of Israel was covered with numerous vineyards during the time of Jesus. Thus, the image of the vine was a rich one for the Jews. Jesus used this practical reality to catch the attention of his listeners to the message He wanted to convey.

A short lesson on planting vine: to make the vine fruitful, it needs the caring hand of the vinedresser by carefully pruning  the vine so it can bear good fruit. Because vines characteristically have two kind of branches --those which bear fruit and those which do not bear fruit. The secret is to carefully prune back the non-bearing branches in order for the vine to conserve its strength for the branches the bear good fruit.

In the parable, Jesus uses this image of the vine to describe the kind of life He produces in those who

are united with Him:

"I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing." (Jn 15:5)

Thus, the central message of the Gospel is simple and clear: we need Christ as surely as a branch needs to remain on the vine. And we are either fruit bearing or non-fruit bearing. There is no in-between.

In other words, the Lord promises that we will bear much fruit if we abide in Him and allow Him to purify us. For it is through our Lord Jesus that we are reconciled with the Father. We need God's grace and strength that we may do good and face the trials and suffering in this life.

Do we trust and believe in the Lord's abiding presence with us?

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!