J 10,22-30

Stand in God’s presence. God is present here and now, looking upon you with love.

Ask for the Grace: I will beg God our Lord that all my intentions and actions may be directed purely to the praise and service of His Divine Majesty

Fixing a place, a picture for meditation: Jerusalem during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. It is winter time, the air temperature can oscillate around 10 degrees C. During this time Jesus is there. He walks around the temple and talks to Jews.

Ask for the fruit of meditation: desire for closeness with Jesus

 

  1. How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.

The Jews accuse Jesus of keeping them in suspense, they need another confirmation from Jesus that he is their long-awaited Messiah. Jesus answers them: I told you, and you do not believe. Both the insecurity of the Jews and their faith seem to be independent of the confirmations and signs of Jesus. Perhaps faith does not rule out uncertainty, and it too has a right to arise. It is only important what I do with her, what I will deal with more in my life: uncertainty or faith? Faith is an act of the will, a conscious choice of man (cf. CCC 142-185). The more I get to know someone, the more I start to trust, believe and feel safe in the presence of another person. Each meeting, even the difficult one, builds closeness and each meeting begins with the meeting of the eyes of two people. The same is true of our relationship with God.

How do you maintain of your relationship with God? How do you meet him? How does your gaze meet God’s gaze?

 

  1. My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me.

Jesus knows his sheep, he knows you and me. We get to know someone also by listening. So, another important factor of meeting, apart from looking, is listening. Jesus listens to you: what you say, what you feel, what you experience. He listens to what you may not say verbally, but you communicate with your behavior. It’s a very intimate relationship. Also, sheep’s relationship with Jesus is based on listening. Sheep are obedient to Jesus. Obedience can be interpreted as clinging to the message heard what Jesus says. Therefore, the relationship with him is based on listening, which creates mutual trust, not fear of punishment that I did not do something, that I was not good enough. It is a relationship of love, acceptance. Jesus knows you, listens to and hears you. What do these words cause (what feelings and thoughts) in you? How do you listen to Jesus?

 

  1. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand.

Jesus gives us eternal life, from the earlier pericope we also know that he gives life abundantly for us. So, we are invited to feast, to experience joy and experience the fullness of life. We can experience life only now, at this moment. Worrying about tomorrow or thinking about the past deprives us of the possibility of being here and now. Only now is the moment you can taste. The apple eaten leaves a memory, the apple you want to eat raises expectations for taste. You can taste, smell, touch the apple only when you are eating it. Jesus also gives us security: nobody and nothing can tear us away from him. How do these words resonate in you? How do you experience your life here and now?

 

 

Meditation: St Ignatius encourages in The Spiritual Exercises No. 2 … Because not so much knowledge, but internal feeling and the taste of things please and saturate the soul, that is, we stay where we feel interior movement … and nervously do not try to go on.

The final conversation: Spend a little time at the end, being with God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit….as you would with a good friend: sometimes talking, sometimes listening, sometimes being together in silence. Speak to God about your feelings. Remember that times when ‘nothing is happening’ can also be significant. When you’re ready, end your prayer by saying thank you or using words that are familiar, such as the Lord’s Prayer (Our Father)–whichever feels right and comfortable. (The Spiritual Exercises No.54)

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J 6,30-35

Stand in God’s presence. God is present here and now, looking upon you with love.

Ask for the Grace: I will beg God our Lord that all my intentions and actions may be directed purely to the praise and service of His Divine Majesty 

Fixing a place, a picture for meditation: Capernaum, a settlement of several thousand inhabitants on the Sea of Galilee. Residents engaged in fishing, agriculture and trade. So, you can see boats, fishing nets, trade stands, somewhere in the distance people working in the field. People from Tiberias come to this town to meet Jesus.

Ask for the fruit of meditation: for my eyes open more to see signs (goods) I receive from Jesus

 

  1. What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you?

Ask yourself questions: did Jesus not give signs that he was the Son of God, or was something happening in people that they could not see them? and what was their trust in Jesus?

Each of us needs specific signs confirming that I am loved, accepted, that someone cares for me. It builds a relationship and trust, although creating a close relationship is very difficult. We have our wounds, we are afraid of another injury from a loved one. We distance ourselves, we move away where we feel safer. Closeness always carries the risk of injury. However, by moving away, we are not able to heal our wounds and we are not able to take full advantage of closeness, and thus also we are not able to see the signs of another person taking about love for us.

Think about how do you build relationships, how far are you from God and your loved ones? Think about what signs you see from God who is alive, present all the time and through which he communicates with you, shows you his love?

 

  1. I am the bread of life.

Jesus speaks of himself as the Bread of Life, which everyone can enjoy. What is your spiritual food in your everyday life, what gives you strength to live (maybe some concrete prayer, maybe silence, maybe a conversation, maybe some book or walk, movement…), especially now during a pandemic that has been going on for over a year?

 

3. Encounter.

Imagine that Jesus meets you and says: I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst. How do you accept these words, how do it resonate with you?

 

Meditation: St Ignatius encourages in The Spiritual Exercises No. 2 … Because not so much knowledge, but internal feeling and the taste of things please and saturate the soul, that is, we stay where we feel interior movement … and nervously do not try to go on.

The final conversation: Spend a little time at the end, being with God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit….as you would with a good friend: sometimes talking, sometimes listening, sometimes being together in silence. Speak to God about your feelings. Remember that times when ‘nothing is happening’ can also be significant. When you’re ready, end your prayer by saying thank you or using words that are familiar, such as the Lord’s Prayer (Our Father)–whichever feels right and comfortable. (The Spiritual Exercises No.54)

 

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J 3,7-15

Stand in God’s presence. God is present here and now, looking upon you with love.

Ask for the Grace: I will beg God our Lord that all my intentions and actions may be directed purely to the praise and service of His Divine Majesty

Fixing a place, a picture for meditation: Nicodemus meets Jesus at night. The meeting place can be a garden.

 

Ask for the fruit of meditation: for the desire to meet Jesus

 

  1. You must be born from above.

This phrase is translated in two ways: “to be born again” or “to be born from above”. The first understanding underlines the radical transformation of life resulting from trust in Jesus, and the second means that spiritual life is a gift from God, not something you can earn (see Nowy Testament dla Moderatorów, Vocatio, page 226, footnotes).

Both understandings are consistent with each other. I accept my life as a gift because I trust Jesus and my trust and faith change my life. This change of life does not mean that you change your husband, wife, order or quit your job. Rather, it is a change in your way of thinking, perception of the world, your duties, your everyday life, other people and yourself. Quarantine time associated with a coronavirus pandemic can help verify your life, your values and priorities. You can experience the feeling of loss and pain of being born again. You may feel it is difficult to cross your comfort zone, but the birth ends with joy from a new life.What is in your life born again?

 

2.     The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes;

The Holy Spirit is compared to the wind. We can see an unknown in this sentence: we do not know where the wind is coming from and where it is going. Similarly, with the Holy Spirit, we don’t know where it leads us. We know that it leads us to God, but what is the way to him is unknown. A blind person may arouse anxiety, fear, and uncertainty in us, and this in turn increases our need for control. We want to control ourselves, others and God.

But isn’t it some kind of prison into which we put ourselves? What does control give you? How do you find the freedom that God invites you to?

 

  1. … that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

God wants us to experience his love and eternal life now. Eternal life is knowing God and his mercy.

Pope Francis in Bull Misericordiae Vultus writes:

<<Mercy: the ultimate and supreme act by which God comes to meet us. Mercy: the fundamental law that dwells in the heart of every person who looks sincerely into the eyes of his brothers and sisters on the path of life. Mercy: the bridge that connects God and man, opening our hearts to the hope of being loved forever despite our sinfulness.>>

How do these words resonate in you? How do you experience God’s love and eternal life in the context of the above words?

 

4.     Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

Jesus comes to you, not to condemn you, but to give you salvation, to save you. Jesus is coming… meet him as you can.

 

 

Meditation: St Ignatius encourages in The Spiritual Exercises No. 2 … Because not so much knowledge, but internal feeling and the taste of things please and saturate the soul, that is, we stay where we feel interior movement … and nervously do not try to go on.

 

The final conversation: Spend a little time at the end, being with God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit….as you would with a good friend: sometimes talking, sometimes listening, sometimes being together in silence. Speak to God about your feelings. Remember that times when ‘nothing is happening’ can also be significant. When you’re ready, end your prayer by saying thank you or using words that are familiar, such as the Lord’s Prayer (Our Father)–whichever feels right and comfortable. (The Spiritual Exercises No.54)

 

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J 20,11-18

 Stand in God’s presence. God is present here and now, looking upon you with love.

Ask for the Grace: I will beg God our Lord that all my intentions and actions may be directed purely to the praise and service of His Divine Majesty

Fixing a place, a picture for meditation: Garden – see what it looks like, what plants, flowers, trees grow. There is the tomb of Jesus. Mary Magdalene is standing there and she is weeping.

Ask for the fruit of meditation: for meeting Jesus the Risen Lord

 

  1. Whom are you looking for?

Mary Magdalene cries because Jesus, her Master, is not in the tomb. This cry can express her pain, suffering and longing. She doesn’t know where to find Jesus. But he is with her, he is talking to her and she does not recognize him. Maybe Jesus comes differently than she expects? Who are you looking for?

 

  1. She turned and said to him (…) Teacher.

Mary Magdalene was staring at the tomb, looking for Jesus who she remembered. She had created an image of her Master to which she was attached. Only breaking away from this image, i.e. turning around, allowed her to recognize the one she was looking for. Maria Magdalena was open to the novelty, that it may be different than always. Her turning around made her meet Jesus.Today you hear your name and turn away from focusing on your way of acting to the news of Jesus, who

is our hope, and in a wonderful way he brings youth to our world, and everything he touches becomes young, new, full of life. (cf. exhortation Christus Vivit, The Holy Father Francis, point 1,2).

 

  1. Message.

Jesus makes Mary Magdalene an apostle, lets her go to people and declare that Jesus is alive. That was her mission, which she got from the Risen Christ. You and I are the ones who give Jesus- that is the Love:

His is “a love that does not overwhelm or oppress, cast aside or reduce to silence, humiliate or domineer. It is the love of the Lord, a daily, discreet and respectful love; a love that is free and freeing, a love that heals and raises up. The love of the Lord has to do more with raising up than knocking down, with reconciling than forbidding, with offering new changes than condemning, with the future than the past”. (cf. exhortation Christus Vivit, The Holy Father Francis, point 116)

What is causing this fragment in you (how does it affect your feelings, thoughts, desires …)? What does Jesus invite you?

 

  1. Encounter in the garden.

Jesus’ tomb was in the garden (John 19:41). The garden is a common theme in the Bible, the first people Adam and Eve were created in the garden of Eden, the garden of delight. The garden symbolizes the place where God’s presence is manifested. Each person has his own inner garden where the Risen Jesus waits to meet him/her. Look at your garden, see what it looks like, what is blooming, what is starting to grow and what needs watering. In your garden, recognize Jesus as Mary Magdalene recognized him, because He is in you, he is with you and he never abandons you. However far you may wander, he is always there, the Risen One. He calls you and he waits form you to return to him and start over again. (cf. exhortation Christus Vivit, The Holy Father Francis, point 1,2).

 

Meditation: St Ignatius encourages in The Spiritual Exercises No. 2 … Because not so much knowledge, but internal feeling and the taste of things please and saturate the soul, that is, we stay where we feel interior movement … and nervously do not try to go on.

The final conversation: Spend a little time at the end, being with God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit….as you would with a good friend: sometimes talking, sometimes listening, sometimes being together in silence. Speak to God about your feelings. Remember that times when ‘nothing is happening’ can also be significant. When you’re ready, end your prayer by saying thank you or using words that are familiar, such as the Lord’s Prayer (Our Father)–whichever feels right and comfortable. (The Spiritual Exercises No.54)

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