SIXTH SUNDAY- EASTER

"We will come and make our home in  you"

1.  In a little parish called Chepstow where I worked in 1987, a little five old came up to me one morning after Mass and said, "Hi God !"  Why do you call me God, I asked? Well you live here don't you and my mother told me this is God's house, so you must be God. In a way he was right, our Gospel today describes Jesus as saying, The Father and I will come and make our home in you. And there fore we must be a House for God.  Not a building of brick and marble, or drainpipes and eaves troughs that must be cleaned. God's house is a living human being.  You and I. What an awesome responsibility.



2.  God's house is also what we call our Church - the physical building where we go to celebrate the Eucharist each Sunday, and for some people each day. Like any home there is always controversy and disagreement. Do you remember as growing up, how often you said, "Mummy will you tell my brother not to bug me, will you tell my sister not touch my things ." As we grew older the arguments grew a little more serious: the chores that had to be done, how late could we stay out, why did Dad seem so unreasonable.

And so too in our Church with so many vibrant and intelligent members there is bound to be disagreement.  In our First reading taken from the Acts of the Apostles, we have a major controversy. Should the Gentiles who were thinking of becoming Christians, first have to undergo the Jewish rituals of initiation like circumcision. The argument was settled by the very first Council of the Church, the Council of Jerusalem.

The argument was settled for three reasons. First the members of the Church were willing to talk.  They were willing to put the issue on the table, to discuss it, and communicate. Secondly, the Apostles in the Church showed leadership. They did not vacillate, they did not just let things go and hope they would sort out themselves. Peter and James spoke out and gave their decision. And the third reason was they were guided in Love by the Holy Spirit, what was more important were the persons concerned rather than the issue of division.

3.  The Early Church remained united with the Hope of a Future and Heavenly Jerusalem. This beautiful picture is painted in the Second reading from the Book of Revelation. It shows us the City of God, the Heavenly Jerusalem descending among us. And surprise, surprise, the focal point of the City should have been the Temple which is at the heart and source of all the activity. But the Temple

• is not a sacred place
• it is not a Holy Article
• The Heart of the City of God is a Person. The Presence of the Lord.

This brings back memories of King David who lived in a Magnificent Palace. David felt guilty that he was living in this beautiful House made of costly Cedar, where as the House for the Ark of the Covenant was a miserable tent. But God prevented David from building anything Magnificent. In a prophetic vision, the Presence of the Lord did not need to be tied down to Costly Cedar, and in our day to Bricks and Marble and Stained Glass windows.

Once again in St. John's Gospel ch.4. Jesus would remind the Samaritan Woman, that neither the Temple in Samaria nor in Jerusalem would be able to limit the Love of God whose generosity would know no limit.

4.  This does not mean to say we do not need or  we should not build Magnificent Churches. We build them not for the sake of God, but for the sake of the People of God. The churches are a physical expression of our faith, our commitment, our dedication.

• The more intense our suffering, the more beautiful our churches
• the more intense our pain, the more moving and touching our melodies.
• the more intense our sacrifice, the more poetic our words to these songs.
• the more God like and selfless our love, the more aware will we be  of the Presence of the Lord who has chosen to make God's home in us.

5.  The gospel brings this second reading - the descent of the City of God to a crescendo, to a climax. The HeavenlyCity is going to be in our Midst, and the Presence of Lord has chosen to make a Home in us. We in our turn become the Church and we can expect the same controversy of the LargerChurch, among its members to be right in the heart of every individual. St. Paul in the letter to the Romans would say, the good I want to do, I do not do, but the evil I want to avoid I commit. So many of us will witness to being disturbed with the fight between good and evil that takes place in our very heart. And it is in such times, Jesus says, "do not be afraid." when the Father and I come to make our home in you - you will have Peace. My peace I give you, my peace I leave with you.

6.   In Guyana, a Grandfather, Father and Grandson went out into the forest to hunt. The Grandfather point to the clouds and spoke of the weather, the rain that was imminent. He pointed out to signs of a possible rain. The Father showed the Son the broken grass, the snapped branch of a tree, and other signs of where the animal had gone. The father helped the grandchild to prime his bow and arrow ready for the animal and the food it would bring to the village.

What a beautiful picture of the God who has chosen to make his Home in us. These three family members gave have the image of God the Father with the fullness of Wisdom - a Wisdom that God wants to share with us. Jesus like the Father shows the way by which this Wisdom becomes concrete in our life, becomes flesh and dwells among us. And the Grandchild like the Holy Spirit makes us live this Wisdom, this Understanding, this Peace, this Courage each in our own way. With God making a Home in us, how rightly can we be called Temples' of the Holy Spirit. And going back to the five year old in Chepstow, without knowing it, how theologically accurate he was in saying to you and me - "Hi God !" Our only response should be the one of Mary:

"My soul magnifies the Lord and My spirit rejoices in God my saviour, because God continues to do great things in me. Holy is God's name”.