[media presentation below] GospelThink Friday, April 28 JOHN 6:52-59 I tell you plainly that if you receive me in the Eucharist that you will never die. Prayerthoughts a. Jesus is very clear about what the Sacrament of the Eucharist is. Should I spend more time thanking God for the gift of the Eucharist? b. Since I have received the Eucharist, in a general sense, the Lord remains in me. What should that mean to me in changing my current behavior? c. Through the Eucharist, the Lord has given me life eternal and a help to a better life here on earth.. What contribution am I making to bring about a better life here on earth? d. The Lord has promised me eternal life because I have received the Eucharist. Not knowing what eternal life is, what are some elements that I think of when I think of eternal life? e. My prayerthoughts…   Today, I will read the Acts of the Apostles chapter 9:1-20 and write an important thought from it. Some Thoughts on the Liturgy  WHAT GIVES US LIFE?  + The Acts of the Apostles’ reading today is the classic story of Saul’s conversion           – it is one of a three accounts in the New Testament                      – one of the most important happenings in the newly formed Christian church           – Saul becomes God’s instrument                      – it took incredible courage to go back to the places where he had been and tell them that he had changed and so should they  + One of the means that he used, no doubt—he does talk about it as he deals later with the Corinthian church—to bring about the belief that Jesus is Lord was the Eucharist           – the Eucharist that is treated in chapter 6 of John’s Gospel                      – in that discourse, Jesus is direct and clear                                – he knew that the Jews had a difficult time with eating someone’s flesh and blood                                          – it went against everything they had been taught                                                    – and everything they believed                      – but Jesus says that that is exactly what he is talking about                                – in fact, he says:           If you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you.  + Perhaps the central question here is: what gives us life?           – what gives life to us as spiritual people?           – what are the things that we look toward to guide us and give us good feelings as human beings as we live a spiritual life?                      – what should give us life, that is, motivate us in our day-to-day living is our knowledge of what Jesus said to do and think                                – too often it is not that at all, but some form of the very human desires of power, pleasure or money, translated as selfishness                                – the classic sins that Jesus withstood in the temptations at the beginning of his public life, and in one way or another summarize all of the sins of the modern world                                                    – they are the basic desires of our human nature  + Jesus tells us today that that which gives life is not the human nature that we want to satisfy–           – it is remaining in him                      – and the Eucharist is the means to do that           – that is our goal as spiritual people                      – even as we live our lives amidst the very human desires that we all have                                – we are called to eat his body and drink his blood, and so remain in him                                          – it is one of the automatic goals of the spiritual life  + The Eucharist will always be one of our means of ongoing conversion to the Lord           – as it was for Paul. MEDIA PRESENTATION Song: “Ghost” — Justin Bieber THERE’S ALWAYS TOMORROW The Gospel JOHN 14:16-20 Jesus said, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you always, the Spirit of truth, which the world cannot accept because it neither sees nor knows it. But you know it, because it remains with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me, because I live and you will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you.”

Gospelthink: I promise you that the Spirit of Truth will guide you. Do I make the prayer to the Spirit asking for guidance often enough?

“Youngblood thinks there’s always tomorrow. I miss your touch on nights when I’m hollow; I know you crossed a bridge that I can’t follow. Since the love that you left is all that I get, I want you to know that if I can’t be close to you, I settle for the ghost of you. Your memory is ecstasy. I miss you more than life.”

In St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, he speaks about what the Advocate or Spirit of truth does for Christians: “We ourselves who have the first fruits of the Spirit, we groan within ourselves as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved. The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness.” (Romans 8:23-25). St. Paul knew exactly what Jesus said about the Advocate or Spirit of truth: it gives hope to a Christian. Perhaps the greatest hope for a Christian person is that Jesus promised life to the people who would adopt his way of living. Jesus who the Christian believes is God told his followers: “I will not leave you orphans.” God will be with us through thick and thin, in good times and in bad, always there, even when all hope is gone. God will be there all the way. There is always hope. Interestingly enough, Justin Bieber speaks of hope that is realized because of a person who is no longer present to him. It is a perfect statement about what the virtue of hope does for a person looking for a love relationship. “Your memory is ecstasy,” he sings. Like the Spirit of truth or Advocate working for a Christian, the man who is looking for a relationship is guided by the way his girlfriend loved, or as he sings her “ghost.” The song itself is a song of hope, perhaps in three ways. First, as he spoke about the song, Justin Bieber said that he wanted to “make people feel like there is hope and that the trauma and the hurt [of the pandemic of the Coronavirus] that you feel isn’t gonna last forever.” Secondly, from the song itself, he sings, “Youngblood thinks there’s always tomorrow.” The situation is one of hope because the man in the relationship is rejoicing that he has the memory of his girlfriend which gives him the feeling of good times in the future. And, thirdly, from the video of the song that is well worth while watching, the story of a death is presented, and then the family works through that death to be more hopeful for the future. There is hope for a Christian automatically because the Advocate or Spirit of truth assures us of a good life in the future, in the “tomorrow.” It is also true for love relationships, even if there is some type of unavoidable separation.

PRAYER Good and gracious God, Your Spirit is part of our lives since we have chosen to follow you. Thank you for the guidance of the Spirit, especially as we work at making our lives here better, even in the face of adversity. We know that you will continue to be with us.

+++++ GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT Theme: Dwelling on a good relationship is hope for a future one. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: 1. What does the song “Ghost” teach young people? 2. What is the meaning of each gift of the Spirit (usually listed as Wisdom, Understanding, Reverence, Knowledge, Courage, Awe of the Lord, Right Judgment)? 3. Why do some Christians “give up hope” even though the Lord is present to them? 4. What are the causes for a Christian to “give up hope”? 5. What lessons can be learned from the Coronavirus which infected our world? 6. What are the characteristics of a good relationship that a person will always remember in his/her future? 7. We all will experience the death of someone close to us. What should be the Christian’s response to a person who is suffering because of it?