[media presentation below] GospelThink Wednesday, May 24 JOHN 17:11b-19 I continue to pray to my Father for you, and in particular that you should be consecrated in truth. Prayerthoughts a. The Lord prays that we be “one.” As I go about my life, do I have a tendency to be divisive in the way I think and talk with others? What can I do better? b. The Lord again makes a distinction between the world and what He teaches. What does the “world” consist of in today’s understanding. What is good about it and what is bad? (This is the task of the meditation.) c. The Lord prays that I be kept from the evil one. What are the tendencies toward evil in my life? What can I do about them? d. The Lord prays that we, and therefore I, be consecrated in the truth of His Word. Do I    read the Gospels with the thought of wanting to know His truth in my life? e. The Lord says that he sends His disciples into the world. I am sent into the world in the sense that the people around me should know that I am a Christian. In general, is that thought getting through to people? Go through yesterday and grade how well I did. f. Jesus wants me to be consecrated in truth. In general, am I a truthful person? g. My prayerthoughts…   Today, I will carry out letter b. Some Thoughts on the Liturgy  KEEPING OURSELVES IN JESUS’ NAME  + Today’s Gospel is taken from what Scripture scholars call Jesus’ high priestly prayer to his Father         – Jesus prays for his apostles and by extension, all of us, saying:         I do not ask that you take them out of the world.                 – it is quite a significant statement because for John who is recording Jesus’ words here, the world is not good at all, and in fact, evil                         – therefore, we are called to remain in the world, but all of us are called to be holy as well                                 – Jesus again:         Keep them in your name.         – in terms of spirituality, we are all to remain in God’s name, that is, all of us are called to be holy, even as we stay in the world  + And, if a person is going to do this well, if a person is to stay in the world and at the same time develop a deeper spiritual life, I believe that there are certain things that have to be done         – every liturgy of the Word—that is the readings of the Mass—suggest something to be done to remain in Jesus’ name         – there are actually several things to help us, but today’s readings might suggest these:                 – if you are going to remain in Jesus’ name while we are in this world,         – 1 – from the reading from Acts, we must work hard to “help the weak” as Luke writes                 – and the way that you do that, according to Luke, is to remember one of the principal doctrines that Jesus gave us: “It is more blessed to give than to receive”                         – we have to learn to give of ourselves to others                                 – really one of the more difficult virtues to develop well in life         – 2 – a second way to develop a spiritual life for all of us comes from John’s Gospel again and might be phrased: you must have the truth         – Jesus prays about that on behalf of his Apostles and us in the high priestly prayer in the Gospel:         Consecrate them in the truth–your word is truth.         – the “word” is, of course, Scripture,                 – the Scriptures must be read and assimilated and acted upon  + So, while we develop a spiritual life, Jesus prays that we not be taken out of the world         – and we set about developing the spiritual life by giving of ourselves and reading closely the Lord’s word in Scripture. MEDIA PRESENTATION Movie: “Interstellar” — beginning session A NECESSARY SACRIFICE The Gospel MARK 9:33-35 They came to Capernaum, and once inside the house, [Jesus] began to ask them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they remained silent. They had been discussing among themselves on the way who was the greatest. Then he sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.”

Gospelthink: I told my disciples that they had to servants. In my dealings with people around me, do I consider myself a servant?

The movie “Interstellar” is the story of the world on the edge of extinction because of lack of necessary food and a deteriorating climate. A western farmer whom we come to know as “Cooper” was a once-upon-a-time astronaut who had turned to farming. Discovering that NASA had relocated and was involved in trying to figure out a way to “save the world,” he found himself called back to the program. The directors ask him to pilot a spacecraft that would hopefully discover an alternate world in which to move Earth’s population. Saying “yes” to his situation, Cooper understood that his new calling would place enormous pressure on his existing family, especially his children, and in particular, his youngest child, Murph, a very intelligent young person who truly loved her father and did not want him to leave.

As Christians venerate the Apostles and consider their interaction with Jesus, we often come up with the thought that they must have been very holy and perhaps a little gifted considering their accomplishments. After all, Jesus gave them power to perform miracles and help people in a unique way. The truth is, as witnessed to by many Gospel passages, the Apostles had very human difficulties. They liked their importance, they became jealous of one another, and Jesus had to constantly teach them the way to be the people that they should be. The Apostles probably wanted to be the way that they were before and change as little as possible. They soon became aware that their future calling was much more than they had originally thought. It is the lesson of maturity. No doubt it affected them as well as their families who probably had no idea what they were doing. It is not unlike the situation of Cooper and his family in the movie “Interstellar.” Once Cooper understood what he had to do as he literally “tried to save the world,” he knew that he had to do it. His children, of course, did not understand it, and suffered as a result, but they eventually did understand it, especially Cooper’s daughter Murph. The beauty of the movie is that their understanding is an integral part of the movie. We should not miss the idea that the Apostles began a new life to “save the world” as Jesus wanted it, and Cooper wanted to “save the world” as we have come to know it. We should not miss it because without too much imagination, it is exactly what the Christian is called to do–save the world as best we can in our own way. We must all grow in maturity, and as we do, we will gradually realize the importance of what we are called to.

PRAYER Good and gracious God, your Son called the Apostles to begin a new life with him. Guide us to see that we have the same calling in our own personal way, and allow the calling to lead us to greater maturity. Be with us, we pray.

+++++ GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT Theme: Every future calling in life will place challenges to one’s present living status.    DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: (session: approximately 78 minutes) 1. What scene during this session of the movie was most striking to you? Why? 2. The incident of the Gospel is yet another example of the Apostles’ misunderstanding of Jesus. From your knowledge of the Gospels, why did the Apostles have such a difficult time understanding Jesus? 3. The Gospel passage brings out the importance of being a servant to the world. In your opinion, have most Christians truly understood what it means to be a servant? Yes or no and why? 4. Although we would not discuss “who is the greatest” in our common parlance, in what areas do you see “pride and jealousy” as a problem for our world?  5. In your opinion, why did Jesus choose the Apostles as he did in the Gospels? 6. The point of the use of this passage with the movie is that the Apostles had to leave their families to follow Jesus because it was a “higher calling.” Using your imagination, how do you think the families managed to cope with their loss? 7. Define your own understanding of “growing in maturity.” 8. Name some situations in today’s world in which people must give up their families in order to do what they are doing. 9. In terms of the importance of the different callings in life, what is the most important calling that a human being can have? 10. Scene analysis: The “1930’s” look of the dust bowls Great Depression. In your opinion, as you have studied history, what was most difficult about those times? Why? 11. Analysis: Murph thinks her room is “haunted.” What is your opinion about places that seem to be “haunted”? 12. Scene analysis: NASA believes that Cooper is “chosen.” Do you believe that God works this way with us, “choosing” us to do the walk of life that we have chosen? Yes or no and why? 13. Scene analysis: the crew makes the decision to go to Miller’s Planet, possibly losing a number of Earth years in the process. What type of preparation should we have in order to make such a momentous decision? 14. Scene analysis: Brand makes the decision to explore when she does not have the time, costing them years, but Cooper forgives her. Given the situation of the movie, why is it important that Cooper shows the forgiveness? 15. Scene analysis: back on the space station Endurance, Cooper and the others review the tapes that have been sent to them over the years they missed. If you had amnesia and did not remember the years before this point in your life, what would be the first couple of things that you would like to know? Why?