Suy Niệm Thứ Bẩy tuần 3 Phục Sinh

Suy Niệm Thứ Bẩy tuần 3 Phục Sinh
Hôm nay chúng tiếp tục Mừng của Thánh Gioan hôm thứ Năm và hôm qua với câu Chúa Giêsu nó "chính là Ta là Bánh hằng sống bởi trời xuống! Ai ăn bánh này, thì sẽ được sống đời đời. Và bánh Ta sẽ ban, ấy là thịt mình Ta vì sự sống thế gian"(Jn 06:51), . Và cũng vì những lời này mà một số môn đệ của Ngài đã bỏ Ngài ra đi vì họ thấy khó có thể chấp nhận?
Tại sao những người môn đệ này lại cảm thấy nó khó để chấp nhận những lời của Chúa Giêsu? Có lẽ rất nhiều người đã bị con mắt thế gian che dậy, cộng với cái long tự cao vì họ biết Chúa Giêsu là con của một người thợ mộc quê mùa. Và trong thâm tâm của họ, họ vẫn còn có những ham muốn riêng của họ về sự vật thế gian và không nhận ra bản tính Thiên Chúa của Chúa Giêsu,  Con Thiên Chúa đã nhập thể làm người. Trong Matthew câu 22 đoạn 14, viết Chúa Giêsu nói: "Nhiều người được gọi, nhưng ít người được chọn." Nhiều người được mời đến vương quốc của Thiên Chúa, nhưng chỉ có một số ít người nhận ra Chúa Giêsu là Chúa và là đấng Cứu Chúa Thế của họ, và họ là những người sẽ được chọn để vào nước Trời.\
Thế nào là để chấp nhận Chúa Giêsu? Để chấp nhận Chúa Giêsu có nghĩa là chúng ta phải biết đáp lại lời kêu gọi của Ngài, Có nghĩa là chúng ta thật sự tham gia tích cực với Ngài trong cuộc khổ nạn của Ngài trong bất cứ mọi kể giá. Sứ mệnh của chúng ta là trở thành những người tông đồ để loan truyền Lởi của Chúa cho tất cả những người vẫn chưa được nghe và biết đến Chúa,  để gieo những hạt giống và để đem ân sủng của Thiên Chúa tới với mọi người và giúp làm cho Lời của Chúa được sinh sôi và lớn lên trong trái tim của họ cho đến khi Lời Chúa được nở rộ trong họ. Nhiệm vụ của chúng ta không phải là chỉ tìm đến vương quốc của Thiên Chúa một mình, nhưng là để mang lại càng nhiều linh hồn cùng đến tới Thiên Chúna với chúng ta.
        Chúng ta có trung tín theo đuổi sứ mệnh của chúng ta để theo Chúa Giêsu? hay là chúng ta đang mang những linh hồn khác lánh xa Thiên Chúa và Nước Trời bằng những lời nói khích bác, bằng sự chia rẽ và bằng lối sống ích kỷ của chúng ta? Hay là chúng ta đã chọn việc bỏ Chúa giống như một số các môn đệ của Chúa Giêsu đã làm trong đoạn Tin Mừng hôm nay vì chúng ta chưa sẵn sàng vác thập giá của chúng ta và theo Chúa?
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          
Reflection Saturday 3rd week of Easter
What is it that some of the disciples find hard to accept? In John 6:51, Jesus says, "I am the living bread which has come from heaven; whoever eats of this bread will live forever. The bread I shall give is my flesh and I will give it for the life of the world."
Why did they find it hard to accept the words of Jesus? There were many who got stuck with knowing Jesus as the son of a carpenter. Their hearts were still hardened by their own desires of worldly things and didn't recognize the divine nature of Jesus, that he is the Son of God incarnate. In Matthew 22:14, Jesus said, "Many are called, but few are chosen." Many are invited to the kingdom of heaven, but only those who accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior will be chosen to enter the kingdom.
What does it mean to accept Jesus? It means that we respond to his call, that we take active participation in his passion regardless of the price. Our mission is to be apostles who will spread the word of God to all those who haven't heard it yet, to plant the seed and let God's grace grow in their hearts until it reaches full bloom. Our mission is not to go to God's kingdom alone, but to bring as many souls with us.
Have we been faithful in pursuing our mission, or have we brought souls farther away from God and from His kingdom with our worldliness, our selfishness? Or have we chosen to walk away like many of the disciples did during Jesus' time because we are not ready to take up our cross and follow him?
 
Saturday of the Third Week of Easter
As a result of this, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer walked with him. Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” John 6:66–67
Today’s Gospel concludes the beautiful and profound sermon on the Bread of Life (see John 6:22–71). When you read this sermon from beginning to end, it is noticeable that Jesus moves from more general statements about the Bread of Life that are easier to accept to more specific statements that are challenging. He concludes His teaching just prior to today’s Gospel by saying very directly, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” After Jesus said this, many who had been listening to Him left Him and no longer followed Him.
There are generally three common attitudes people have toward the Most Holy Eucharist. One attitude is that of profound faith. Another is that of indifference. And a third is what we find in today’s Gospel: disbelief. Those who walked away from Jesus in today’s Gospel did so because they said, “This saying is hard; who can accept it?” What a great statement and question to ponder.
It is true, in a certain way, that the teaching of Jesus on the Most Holy Eucharist is a hard saying. “Hard,” however, is not bad. It’s hard in the sense that belief in the Eucharist is only possible through a faith that comes from a deep interior revelation from God. In the case of those who walked away from Jesus, they heard His teaching, but their hearts were closed to the gift of faith. They remained stuck on a purely intellectual level, and, thus, the idea of eating the Flesh and Blood of the Son of God was more than they could comprehend. So who could accept such a statement? Only those who listen to our Lord as He speaks to them interiorly. It is only that interior conviction that comes from God that can be proof of the truthfulness of the Holy Eucharist.
Do you believe that when you consume that which appears to be only “bread and wine,” you are actually consuming Christ Himself? Do you understand this teaching of our Lord on the Bread of Life? It is a hard saying and a difficult teaching, which is why it must be taken very seriously. For those who do not flat out reject this teaching, there is also the temptation to be somewhat indifferent to the teaching. It can easily be misunderstood to be just symbolism in the way our Lord talks. But the symbolism is much more than just symbolism. It’s a profound, challenging, and life-changing teaching of how we share in the divine and eternal life our Lord wishes to bestow upon us.
Reflect, today, upon how deeply you believe this hard saying of Jesus. The fact that it is a “hard” saying should make you seriously examine your own faith or lack thereof. What Jesus teaches is life-changing. It’s life-giving. And when clearly understood, you will be challenged to either believe with your whole heart or turn away in disbelief. Allow yourself to believe in the Most Holy Eucharist with your whole heart and you will find that you are believing one of the most profound Mysteries of Faith.
My glorious Lord, Your teaching on the Most Holy Eucharist is beyond human comprehension. It is a mystery so deep that we will never fully understand this precious gift. Open my eyes, dear Lord, and speak to my mind so that I may listen to Your words and respond with the deepest faith. Jesus, I trust in You.
 
Saturday 3rd week of Easter 2025
Opening Prayer: Lord God, every day I am faced with a decision to believe and follow you and your Son or return to my former way of life. Strengthen my resolve to follow you always. You truly give me life in your Son. I never want to be separated from you.
Encountering the Word of God
1. This Saying is Hard: At the beginning of today’s Gospel passage, we hear about the disciples who grumbled against Jesus’ teaching about himself as the Bread of Life and the need to eat his flesh and drink his blood to have eternal life. They refused Jesus’ invitation to Eucharistic conversion. Instead of embracing the newness of life and the gift of the Eucharist, many of Jesus’ disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer walked with him. “They returned to a way of life without Jesus. They chose his absence rather than his presence in their lives. Instead of accompanying him, they walked alone. Their rejection of the gift of Jesus’ word, body, and blood meant they would not walk with him. And neither could he send them on mission” (Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Homily at the U.S. National Eucharistic Congress, July 24, 2024).
2. Do You Also Want to Leave? Jesus asks each one of us, “Do you also want to leave me like the others did?” We hope we can answer like Peter and remain with Jesus and abide in him. Thus, Peter’s question, “To whom shall we go?” seems to have two answers. On the one hand, we need to go to Jesus. He has the words of everlasting life. Without Jesus, we are nothing. Jesus is the Holy One sent by the Father to redeem and save us from sin and death.
3. To Whom Shall We Go? On the other hand, we need to take what we have received and go to others. “Like Peter, we should believe with conviction. Jesus does not impose himself on anyone. He appeals to our interior freedom. Faith and conviction are our gifts to Jesus, who gives himself to us. … Will you stay with Jesus? … Those who choose to stay with Jesus will be sent by Jesus. The gift of his presence and love for us will be our gift to people. We should not keep Jesus to ourselves. That is not discipleship. That is selfishness. The gift we have received, we should give as a gift. Have you experienced the tenderness of Jesus towards his tired disciples, offering them time to rest and to eat, as recounted in the gospel today? Go and share Jesus’ tender love to the weary, the hungry, and the suffering. Have you experienced Jesus’ compassion and guidance when you were like sheep without a shepherd? Go and share Jesus’ shepherds’ caress to the lost, confused, and weak. Have you experienced Jesus’ wounded heart uniting those who are separated from each other, as St. Paul states in his letter to the Ephesians? Go and share Jesus’ gift of reconciliation and peace to those who are divided” (Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Homily at the U.S. National Eucharistic Congress, July 24, 2024).
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you have pronounced my name and invited me to rise with you to new life. You invite me to follow you even when others reject you and the mysteries you reveal. You can do great things in and through me, and I entrust myself to you today.
 
Saturday 3rd week of Easter 2024
Opening Prayer: Lord God, every day I am faced with a decision to believe and follow you and your Son or return to my former way of life. Strengthen my resolve to follow you always. You truly give me life in your Son. I never want to be separated from you.
Encountering the Word of God
1. Doing the Works Jesus Did: Jesus promises that those who believe in him will do the works that he accomplished (John 14:12). In today’s Gospel, Peter includes himself in the group of those who have come to believe in Jesus as the Holy One of God, and, in the First Reading, we see Peter accomplish the works of Jesus Christ. During his public ministry, Jesus restored at least three people to life: Jarius’ daughter (Matthew 9:24-25; Mark 5:40-42; Luke 8:49-56), the widow’s son (Luke 7:11-17), and his friend Lazarus (John 11:1-44). These miracles and signs are all invitations to faith. Jesus tells Jairus: “Do not be afraid; only have faith” (Mark 5:36; Luke 8:50); he tells his disciples: “Lazarus is dead; and for your sake I am glad I was not there because now you will believe" (John 11:15); and he asks Lazarus' sister Mary: "Whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" (John 11:26). Jesus' miracles attest that the Father has sent him. They invite belief in him. “By freeing some individuals from the earthly evils of hunger in justice, illness, and death, Jesus performed Messianic signs” (CCC, 549). Peter has experienced Christ and seen his works and, through an act of faith, enters more deeply into communion with Jesus and with the Father. His confession today at Capernaum, “You are the Holy One of God,” parallels his confession at Caesarea Philippi, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God” (Matthew 16:16).
2. Reactions to Jesus’ Bread of Life Discourse: The Gospel presents two different reactions to Jesus’ Bread of Life discourse. There were many disciples who murmured in protest. Despite the signs and miracles Jesus has done, they refuse to accept his teaching about the Eucharist: “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you” (John 6:53). They refuse to believe, break away from Jesus, and will not accompany him any longer. The opposite response is that represented by Simon Peter, who says to Jesus: “Lord, you have the words of eternal life; and we have come to believe and are convinced that you of the Holy One of God” (John 6:68-69). Peter walks by faith and is confident that by following Jesus he will receive the promise of eternal life. We learn today that faith is a gift from God that we freely reject or freely accept. That is why Jesus says: “No one can come to me unless it is granted to him by the Father” (John 6:65). God’s grace moves us and assists us in making an act of faith. We freely collaborate with God’s grace; our hearts are moved and converted to God; God opens the eyes of our mind, bringing us out of our spiritual blindness, and enables us to accept and believe the truth (CCC, 153). That truth is that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, sent by the Father to redeem us and save us and bring us into the unity of his family, the Church. In Christ and through him, we are invited to become, in the Holy Spirit, God's adopted children and heirs of his blessed life (CCC, 1).
3. Peter’s Two Miracles: In the First Reading, we hear of Peter leaving Jerusalem to minister to the new people of God in Judean towns near the Mediterranean Sea. Just as he did miracles in Jerusalem, Peter works a miracle in the name of Jesus Christ in Lydda and says to the paralyzed man, named Aeneas: “Jesus Christ heals you. Get up.” Peter has received power from Jesus and exercises it in Jesus’ name. As well, he invites Aeneas to a deeper faith in Jesus, who now reigns in heaven. In a second miracle, Peter imitates the words of Jesus to the little girl. Jesus said in Aramaic: “Talitha qum,” which means, “Little girl, rise up!”. And Peter likely said in Aramaic: “Tabitha qum,” which means, “Tabitha, rise up!”. In this way, “Luke continues to show that what the apostles do and say in Acts is continuing what ‘Jesus did and taught’ in the Gospel (Acts 1:1). This occurs as they exercise great faith, confident in Jesus’ power and in their own authority to speak and act in his name under the leading of the Holy Spirit” (Kurz, Acts of the Apostles, p. 165).
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you have pronounced my name and invited me to rise with you to new life. You invite me to follow you even when others reject you and the mysteries you reveal. You can do great things in and through me and I entrust myself to you today.