John 15:1-8

Acts 15:1-6

Psalm 122:1-2, 3-4ab, 4cd-5

John 15:1-8

Jesus said to his disciples:

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower.

He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit,

and everyone that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit.

You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you.

Remain in me, as I remain in you.

Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own

unless it remains on the vine,

so neither can you unless you remain in me.

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.

Anyone who does not remain in me

will be thrown out like a branch and wither;

people will gather them and throw them into a fire

and they will be burned.

If you remain in me and my words remain in you,

ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you.

By this is my Father glorified,

that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, you are the vinedresser and know exactly how I need to be pruned. Cut away the stubbornness of my heart so that I may bear spiritual fruit for your Kingdom. Do not let me be separated through selfishness and sin from your Son, the true vine. I desire to glorify your name in all that I do.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Abiding in Jesus’ Love: Today’s Gospel centers on a key element of the New Covenant: abiding in Jesus’ love. The mutual abiding between the Persons of the Trinity and the children of God is the goal of Jesus’ redemptive mission. Jesus uses an image to describe this mutual abiding or indwelling: we, as Jesus’ disciples, are like branches, and we have true life through union with the Son, who is the true vine, and with the Father, who is the vinedresser. Jesus, the Son of God, abides in the Father’s love by keeping the Father’s commandments, even unto death on the cross. We, on the other hand, are empowered to keep the commandments of the New Covenant by abiding and dwelling in Jesus’ love. We cannot bear fruit for the Kingdom of God unless we abide in Jesus and he in us.

2. The Council in Jerusalem: In the First Reading, from the Acts of the Apostles, some believers go from Judea down to Antioch to demand that the Gentiles, who came to believe in Jesus Christ, be circumcised and follow the prescriptions of the Law of Moses. Otherwise, according to this “circumcision party,” the new Gentile Christians cannot be saved. At the heart of the debate that followed were deep questions like: Was the sign of circumcision (Genesis 17:10-14), the sign of entry into God’s covenant people, fulfilled and surpassed by the Sacrament of Baptism, the sign of entry into the New People of God? Do the obligations of the Law of Moses remain in effect for all peoples or are they only binding on the Jewish people? Was the observance of the law of Moses (Deuteronomy 28) brought to fulfillment by Jesus in the New Law of the New Covenant? If so, how was it fulfilled? Does someone have to fulfill first the social, ritual, and cultural obligations connected with the Old Covenant in order to enjoy the fruits of the New Covenant? The Church in Antioch tried unsuccessfully to resolve the dispute and decided to send Paul and Barnabas with some others up to Jerusalem to meet with the Apostles and the elders (presbyters) about the matter. This meeting became known as the Council of Jerusalem and took place around A.D. 50, some two decades after Jesus’ death and resurrection. Just as there was debate in Antioch, there will be debate in Jerusalem. At one point, Simon Peter will stand up and resolve the matter.

3. Circumcision and Baptism: Paul will take up the relationship between the old rite of Jewish circumcision and the new rite of Christian Baptism in his letters to the Colossians (2:11-13) and the Philippians (3:3). He will take up the relationship of the Old Law of Moses to the New Law of Christ in his Letter to the Galatians and his Letter to the Romans. Already in the Law of Moses, there was the imperative to “circumcise your hearts” (Deuteronomy 10:16). Scripture tells us that God himself, and not man, will accomplish this circumcision of the heart (Deuteronomy 30:6). “If literal circumcision of the flesh was a sign of covenant dedication and membership in the people of God, ‘circumcision of the heart’ meant an interior disposition that truly matched the meaning of the external sign” (Hamm, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, 199). Paul, in Philippians 3:3, Christianizes the Hebrew understanding of circumcision to refer to the New Covenant through Baptism into the body of Christ. Baptism truly entails stripping off the carnal body – the old self with its practices. Baptism is truly a death to self (Hamm, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, 199-200). 

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I am comforted to know that from the early days of Christianity until the present, there have been and will be contentious debates and discussions. I pray that all the members of the Church may always be united to you, the true vine, and guided to all truth by the Holy Spirit. Do not let me be discouraged in times of confusion.

Living the Word of God: How do I view the past and current debates in the Church? Am I polarized and look at the debates in purely political terms, like liberals vs. conservatives and progressives vs. traditionalists? How can I be more like the members of the early Church at the Council of Jerusalem? How can I better dialogue with others, seek to understand the authentic values others hold, and seek the truth in love?