May 6 NOTES FOR REFLECTION Fifth Sunday of Easter

May 6                                      NOTES FOR REFLECTION             Fifth Sunday of Easter

Texts: Acts 8:26-40; 1 John 4:7-21; John 15:1-8

Theme: There are many possibilities today.  I'm going with "On the Road Again": it's remarkable how many stories take place in the context of a journey along a road somewhere [Emmaus, Damascus, Jericho, and today we can add the road to Gaza, known, incidentally as 'The wilderness Road'.]

Introduction.  We have the typical Easter Season recipe today: take a large chunk of action from the Book of Acts and marinate it in a strong mixture of mystical theology, comprising one part Gospel of John and three parts First Epistle of John.  Serves everyone who wants a share.  John is often described as the theologian of the New Testament.  That's fine if we understand that in the Eastern rather than the Western tradition.  In the West Theology is usually seen as an intellectual exercise, whereas the Eastern Church sees theology as arising from prayer rather than pure thinking.  John writes as he does because of his experience, pondered over many years.  He finds that he is filled with love for others, and so he places the emphasis on that.  He finds that because of this new love in his heart for other people, he wants to help them, and so he places his emphasis on that too.  Those two strands are inseparable; they are, to John, the proof of Christian faith, and they prove each other.  If we do not minister to others, we cannot claim to love them.  St Luke, the author of Acts, shows us how that works out in practice when Philip goes out of his way (literally) to share his faith with a complete stranger (and a rather strange one at that).

Background.  It's important to grasp that we are in the Easter Season.  To most people "Easter" is a weekend, to us it's a period of 50 days.  [To be pedantic for a moment, that may be arguable: some would say the Easter Season concludes with the Ascension.  However, I side with those who say that Easter culminates in the giving of the Spirit at Pentecost.]  The Church says that the Resurrection of Christ is so extraordinary and so wonderful that we need some weeks to begin to absorb it, to get our heads around it, to use the modern and much-overused expression.  So week by week we continue to reflect on the story, seeking to go ever deeper into its mystery. 

Above all, resurrection is an experience: we experience the Risen Christ, and all else flows from that.  The experience enlivens us, and so John talks of 'life' or 'eternal life'.  The experience is enlightening (we see things differently), and so John talks of the 'light' of Christ coming into the world.  The experience gives us great peace, and so John emphasises Christ's greeting 'Peace be with you'.  And the experience brings us great joy, and so John talks of our 'joy' being made complete in Christ.

These then are examples of how John's wonderful mystical theology arises from the experience of the Risen Christ.  But today he reminds us that these 'internal experiences', if genuine, necessarily manifest themselves outwardly; and the principal image he has come up with for this is that of the vine.  It is a brilliant choice for all sorts of reasons.  First, Israel is often referred to in such terms in the Old Testament.  The most obvious example is the beautiful Song of the Vineyard in Isaiah 5.  Christ is, therefore, the New Israel.  Secondly, it describes the new relationship between Christ and his followers created through the Spirit.  The two have truly become one.  It is John's poetic version of Paul's more anatomical image of the Body of Christ.  We might say "We who are many are one because we are all branches of the one vine."

Continuing that image, John speaks in his gospel of the outward manifestation of the indwelling Christ as "fruit"; in his epistle he speak of both the indwelling Christ and the outward manifestation as "love".  Because God is (literally) love, to be indwelt by God is to be indwelt by (divine) love; and the outward manifestation of that love is a love for others.

The other thing to look for in this Easter Season is the way in which the mundane and the supernatural intertwine.  At one level the story of Philip's encounter with the Ethiopian eunuch is a classic piece of Lukan reportage.  But then comes the throw-away line at the end: Philip is "snatched away by the Lord", and, unfazed, the eunuch goes happily on his way.   This is just one of the ways in which Luke reminds us that we now live in a different world, one in which the 'real' world (as we are still inclined to call it' is for ever penetrated by the heavenly one, the Kingdom of God has come to earth.  It is also just one reason for believing that Luke has shaped this story as a re-enactment of his classic story of the disciples on the Road to Emmaus.  Watch.

Acts.  Both stories are set in the context of a journey home from Jerusalem.  Like the disciples, the eunuch has been to Jerusalem to attend a religious festival.  From the eunuch's point of view, Philip suddenly joins him, as the Risen Christ suddenly drew alongside the two men on the Emmaus road.  Philip explains the Scriptures to him, as the Risen Christ explained them to the disciples.  And when the work was done Philip vanished from the eunuch's sight, as the Risen Christ disappeared from the sight of the disciples.

Now let's look at things from Philip's point of view.  He's one of the unsung heroes of the New Testament period.  He is very rarely in the spotlight, but John tells us a couple of things about him in his gospel.  First, we have a bit about his calling: he is from Bethsaida, and Jesus himself called him to "Follow me."  Then Philip sought out Nathaniel, and told him that they had found the prophet of whom Moses had written.  More importantly, Philip is the one who asked Jesus to 'show us the Father', prompting Jesus to chide him for not recognising the Father in Jesus.

But we learn most about Philip from this chapter 8 of the Book of Acts, and it's worth reading the whole chapter to get an idea of the importance of his ministry.  The persecution of Christians is now underway, following the martyrdom of Stephen, which we are told was observed by Saul/Paul.  The flock was scattered.  We might note in passing that there is a little confusion in Luke's mind about the status of Philip.   In verse 1 we are told that all the believers "except the apostles" were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria, the inference being that the apostles remained together in Jerusalem.  However, in verses 4 and 5 Philip is among those who were scattered.  Be all that as it may, Philip had a wonderful ministry in a nameless city in Samaria, a ministry of preaching, healing, and exorcism.  But he was not the only crowd-drawer in town.  There was also a man called Simon the Sorcerer who was a great magician.  When Peter and John went to Samaria to see what was going on, Simon saw them in action, and offered them money if they would give him this strange new power called 'the Holy Spirit'.  Peter's angry rebuke in verses 20-23 should be required reading for all those today who believe that everything has a price and everything is for sale.

That gets us to today' reading.  Some particular points to note (in addition to those already referred to) are:

·        The role of divine prompting.  The angel of the Lord starts the ball rolling, and the Spirit of the Lord concludes the action by snatching Philip away.

·        The prompting is to go, but no purpose is given, or, indeed, any other details.  Faith is a journey of obedience taken one step at a time.

·        The inference is that Philip was sent to the eunuch, but verse 27 is open to the interpretation that this encounter happened while Philip was on the way to somewhere or something or someone else.

·        The person encountered is very unlikely: a non-Jew, a eunuch (despised in those days), a Treasury official (no comment!), and a foreigner.  The gospel is good news for everyone.

·        Philip allowed the eunuch to set the agenda; this is no prescribed course on Christianity.  Philip responds to the eunuch's question, and begins his exposition of the faith from the passage in Isaiah that the eunuch was reading when they met.

·        The climax of the story (like the climax to the Emmaus story) is sacramental; in this case it culminates in baptism rather that the breaking of bread.

Taking It Personally.

·        Can you recall an occasion on which you were "prompted" to go somewhere, do something, meet someone, or say something?  How does your experience compare with Philip's?

·        If someone asked you to explain the reasons for your faith, would you be able and willing to do so?  Would that be easier for you if the other person were a stranger or someone you knew really well?  Why?

John's Epistle.  Many scholars believe that the community that produced the Fourth Gospel and the three epistles attributed to St John was being torn apart by factions and suffering defections.   Hence his insistence on unity and mutual love; and on his argument that in the absence of such love the conclusion must be that God/Christ is not in the offenders.  Those themes are already present in the Gospel, of course, but he spells out this issue in even more detail in this epistle.  We could, perhaps, summarise this teaching in modern terms, "Put up or shut up"!

Taking it Personally.  This is a good passage for self-examination.  Read it through several times slowly and prayerfully.  Then ask the Spirit to guide you in reflecting on your own attitudes to other people, particularly those in your church fellowship.

John's Gospel.  Something strange has happened at this point in John's gospel.  Although chapters 13-17 are usually referred to as the "Farewell Discourses" and taken as one package, chapter 14 seems to suggest that the Discourse is at an end (verse 31 ends with the words "Come now; let us leave"; and then chapter 15 goes on as if they are continuing, albeit with a rather sudden change of subject.  Be all that as it may, the image is clear and powerful, stressing the need for unity (union), and loving outreach (bearing fruit) that can only occur from such union.

Taking It Personally.  Focus on a pot-plant, or a particular plant in your garden.  Ponder Christ's words.  Notice that he does not day that he is one part of the plant and we are another.  He is the whole thing which is comprised of us.  Stay with that idea for a while.  Enter ever more deeply into its truth.  How do you feel about it?