Jesus told his disciples that if the world hates them, it hated him first. The Good News is that Jesus overcame that hate, as so can we. So we can confront the hatred in our world, rather than pretending it doesn't exist or has the last word.
On this Feast of the Apostles Philip and James, we hear a Gospel passage where they struggle to understand what their faith in Jesus means. We are all always doing the same, learning what it means to believe. Let's keep up the struggle.
Fr. Brendan Curran, OP breaks open the readings for the Fifth Sunday of Easter. Jesus tells us that he is the vine and we are the branches. We are bound to him and to one another, and if we stay so bound, we can produce much fruit. We are constantly threatened to give up and let ourselves be torn apart, but we need to stand against that.
On this Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, we need to remember that the Good News that God is always with us should banish fear and give us hope.
