Jesus Lives
May 19: Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter
Jesus reminds us that even as we grieve, there is something even better still to come. Paul lives through a small version of this concept, nearly dying but coming out fine on the other end.
And that’s what we all need to remember—whatever we’re suffering now, God will make it right in the end.
Reading 1
Acts 18:9-18
One night while Paul was in Corinth, the Lord said to him in a vision, “Do not be afraid. Go on speaking, and do not be silent, for I am with you. No one will attack and harm you, for I have many people in this city.” He settled there for a year and a half and taught the word of God among them.
But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews rose up together against Paul and brought him to the tribunal, saying, “This man is inducing people to worship God contrary to the law.”
When Paul was about to reply, Gallio spoke to the Jews, “If it were a matter of some crime or malicious fraud, I should with reason hear the complaint of you Jews; but since it is a question of arguments over doctrine and titles and your own law, see to it yourselves. I do not wish to be a judge of such matters.”
And he drove them away from the tribunal. They all seized Sosthenes, the synagogue official, and beat him in full view of the tribunal. But none of this was of concern to Gallio.
Paul remained for quite some time, and after saying farewell to the brothers he sailed for Syria, together with Priscilla and Aquila. At Cenchreae he had shaved his head because he had taken a vow.
Paul was having a heck of a time in Corinth, so it’s not surprising that he’d consider leaving. But God had plans for him, and directly intervened, telling him to stay.
But some people didn’t like what he was saying, and took him to the local officials. I’m guessing word had gotten around what happened to Pontius Pilate, because Gallio wants nothing to do with this Jewish in-fighting.
The crowd then, for some reason, takes their anger out on Sosthenes.1 So, God was right that no one will attack Paul.
After that, Paul decides to get a haircut.
It sounds weird, but it has to do with the “nazarite vow,” from the 6th chapter of Numbers. From the Hebrew word nazir, meaning “set apart as sacred, dedicated, vowed,” the nazirite vow could be either for a limited period or for life. Those bound by the vow had to abstain from all the products of the grapevine, from cutting or shaving their hair, and from contact with a corpse.
Which means Paul was done with his vow at this point: “Then at the entrance of the tent of meeting the nazirite shall shave his or her dedicated head, take the hair of the dedicated head, and put it in the fire under the communion sacrifice.”2
Why does that matter? Up until this point, we assume Paul was still under the restrictions of the vow. And he encountered Jesus. If Jesus was dead, he’d be a corpse, and Paul would be in big trouble for touching Him.
But Jesus isn’t dead; He’s alive, and still lives today. Hallelujah!
Responsorial Psalm
PS 47:2-3, 4-5, 6-7
R. God is king of all the earth.
All you peoples, clap your hands,
shout to God with cries of gladness,
For the LORD, the Most High, the awesome,
is the great king over all the earth.
R. God is king of all the earth.
He brings people under us;
nations under our feet.
He chooses for us our inheritance,
the glory of Jacob, whom he loves.
R. God is king of all the earth.
God mounts his throne amid shouts of joy;
the LORD, amid trumpet blasts.
Sing praise to God, sing praise;
sing praise to our king, sing praise.
R. God is king of all the earth.
Like yesterday’s psalm, this one has a double meaning for Christians.
God “mounts his throne” can also be translated simply as “God has gone up.” Christian liturgical tradition has applied the verse to the Ascension of Christ for thousands of years.
Alleluia
See Lk 24:46, 26
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Christ had to suffer and to rise from the dead,
and so enter into his glory.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Just as night is darkest just before the dawn, Jesus had to die and go all the way to Hell before rising again and ascending to heaven.
Gospel
Jn 16:20-23
Jesus said to his disciples: “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy. When a woman is in labor, she is in anguish because her hour has arrived; but when she has given birth to a child, she no longer remembers the pain because of her joy that a child has been born into the world. So you also are now in anguish. But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you. On that day you will not question me about anything. Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.”
This is still part of the Farewell Discourse, the speech Jesus gives at the Last Supper. Weird dinner conversation, right?
Jesus frequently reminds us to take up our own cross,3 to die with him. Whatever that cross is, we will weep and mourn and grieve. And that’s OK; Jesus wept, too.4
It’s part of the human experience. But we as Christians know that it’s only temporary.5 We’ll forget all about it in the next life, just like a new mother.
He might be the Sosthenes referred to in First Corinthians, but that’s disputed; it was a common name.
In comparison to eternity.