5th Easter Sunday

John 15:1-8

He who abides in Christ bears much fruit

- What does it mean to remain in Christ?

- What does it mean to bear much fruit?

In the Gospel, Jesus uses the image of the vine to show that in order to bear fruit, a plant must be connected to a root that nourishes it. 

To abide in Christ is to be immersed in the nourishment He provides, which can become the source of our "fruit-bearing".

- Fruit - something that will last from my life; something that will withstand the test of death.

- Fruit - not just any fruit, produced in Jesus.

Looking at the allegories of the vine, we might think of baptism as the moment of implantation - of union with the vine, with Christ. But being grafted in is by no means the same as abiding. 

For abiding to be effective, there is a need for nourishment and care, expressed first of all in receiving nourishment - the Eucharist, but also in the care of rejecting unhealthy and undesirable elements - the sacrament of Penance.

Confirmation is still to come. It is also a special moment in the building of this relationship called perseverance.

But even that is not enough. Perseverance is more than a few 'point' events. Abiding is in a sense infinite. It is a dynamic process, a kind of ossification.

By way of introduction and explanation

 As usual, I have a problem with regularity. I seem to remember that this is a blog, and yet somehow I can't always find the self-discipline to sit down at the keyboard and write something new. 

To be honest, I suspect I won't have as much time to write as I did for a while after the accident, but you can try and do something about it.

I'm certainly not promising myself that I'll write every day. Firstly, I don't really have the time, and secondly - I realise that this blog has a mediocre reach, and I can't find the external motivation that comes from believing that I'm writing it for someone. So I write more for myself - to get my thoughts in order.

I have certainly decided to return to my notes on the Apophthegms - because reading them does not stop. From today, I will also try to present a new 'series', namely Reflections on the Word, that is, de facto - to sort out my sermon notes, the full form of which can be heard on Sundays in church or as part of a podcast. And that's about it. At least for now.

Love your cell - St Anthony the Great

He also said: "Just as a fish that lingers too long on the shore perishes, so monks who delay returning to their cells or who quarrel with lay people lose their ability to concentrate. Therefore, as a fish returns to the sea, so we must return to our cells: lest, by staying too long outside, we forget our inner vigilance".

For the desert monks, the cell was the centre of all life. It was a defined area where they lived, worked, prayed and ate their meals. They rarely and reluctantly left it, seeing the permanence of the place as one of the means of attaining holiness.

The cell offered a certain space of freedom from distractions that made it difficult to concentrate on the things of God.

The comparison used by Saint Anthony is reminiscent of the description of a living environment, specific to certain organisms. For fish it is water, for monks it is a cell.

It is possible to be outside the right environment, but only for a short time. If it is prolonged, there are negative consequences.

The question that arises in me after reading this Apoftegma is: What is my environment? What conditions help me to develop optimally?

In other words. In which places am I most distracted? What harms me most?

In other words, what is my purpose? Where is it?

I know that I will not be able to live like the monks, like Saint Anthony. I don't have the opportunity to lock myself up in a small cell, completely cut off from the world. But perhaps I should create a kind of substitute? To find my place, a time when I can concentrate on my relationship with God. A fixed ritual through which my inner alertness and focus will grow.