+ The first reading today from the Acts of the Apostles gives us an indication on how the Holy Spirit worked
directly and powerfully with the Apostles in the very first days after
Pentecost and the founding of the Church. The court official of Queen Candice
of Ethiopia was already interested in what was “blowing in the wind” – the
rumors of “prophecies fulfilled” – but he was confused and could reach no
persuasive or valid conclusions because he did not have anyone with authority
to explain to him what it was that he was reading.
And so the Holy Spirit moved
Phillip to have a spontaneous meeting with the young Ethiopian on the road. And
when Phillip explained that the prophecy of Isaiah had to do with the Jesus who had just been killed and then
raised from the dead – he wanted to express his belief in this Jesus by
“joining up” with him in the most intimate way that he could – by being
baptized into his Body, his Church. This was done by Phillip, and the life of
the court official was changed forever; and who knows how many lives he
touched, bringing them also the message and means of salvation!
The
gospel passage continues the “bread of life” discourse: the bread of life that is accessed in a
number of ways: by eating transubstantiated bread, but also by listening and
responding to stories about Jesus. Both give life, both sustain faith, both
bring light to the darkness of the world.
With the young man from
Ethiopia let us feast on the Word of Life,
the Bread of Life: Jesus, Son of God
and Son of Mary: and let us bring him to as many as we can today to show our
gratitude for belonging to such an intimate and amazing community of believers!
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