Scripture readings for the Sixth Sunday of Easter:
Acts 15:1-2, 22-29
Psalm 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23
John 14:23-29
Right about now, this might be the most important sentence we hear in Church: “Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.”
Maybe the headlines are giving us headaches. Maybe with all the news of the world these days, it’s harder to remember the Good News. Clouds can block the sun. In a time of anxiety, worry, mistrust or uncertainty, those consoling words from Jesus to his apostles strike close to home. They remind us what we might easily forget: Despite what we may think, God is still here. We’re not alone.
Does it sound familiar? It should. Before Christ’s birth, we pleaded, “O come Emmanuel,” crying out for the one whose name means “God with us.” And this Sunday, we hear again Christ’s words to his apostles as he prepares to return to the Father.
But we also hear these words of reassurance: someone else is coming. Beyond the Ascension, this scene from John’s Gospel sets the stage for Pentecost, and the arrival of another member of the Blessed Trinity.
“The Advocate,” Jesus said, “the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.”
We aren’t really on our own after all.
So often in life, in our bleakest moments, it is tempting to think that God has abandoned us.
How often do we dread that phone call in the night? That letter in the mail? How often do we find ourselves worrying about a future we can’t see, a decision we can’t come to, a choice that seems impossible? We might feel helpless or hopeless. Life can easily spin out of control. How often do we just stop trusting God? Do we wonder if he has abandoned us? Imagine what the apostles must have been feeling.
But this Gospel reassures them – and us: “Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.”
Whether we realize it or not, Christ’s peace is with us. Whether we remember it or not, God’s mercy is with us. The Holy Spirit’s comfort is with us.
Christ’s parting message to the world says, in effect, don’t sweat it. God’s got this. Maybe at this moment in our calendar – or in our lives – this shocks us.
Let’s face it: the “Alleluias” and joyous odes of Easter seem to be fading. The flowers on the altar have wilted. The Paschal Candle is a little shorter. The candy is long gone and the baskets have been stowed away until next year and the palm strands from a few Sundays ago are parched and crumbling.
We’re transitioning in a few weeks back into Ordinary Time. Spring will soon give way to summer. A season is drawing to a close. But that doesn’t mean Easter is ending. Far from it.
The great promise of the Resurrection lives on! This Gospel may just be the reminder we need.
When we feel forgotten, or helpless, or worried, we need to remember Christ’s words – his gift of peace, his promise of an Advocate, of a guide who will look for us when we are lost, who will console us when we are despairing, who will be there when we feel alone or abandoned.
Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.
No matter what may be going on in the world around us or in our lives, we all need this simple message at one time or another. So, be assured of this beautiful fact: In our uncertainty and pain, our fear and worry, God is here.
Christ’s words tell us as much. We are never forgotten or abandoned. All these weeks after Easter, isn’t that worth another “Alleluia?”
Deacon Greg Kandra is an award-winning author and journalist, and creator of the blog “The Deacon’s Bench.”
