The following is a submission on behalf of Vincent Artur Taffe #21553-041, Pekin FCI.
“John 15: 1-17
“When I get out, I’m gonna build a cabin in the woods, off the grid and live off the land, away from everyone, dependent on myself and no one else.”
If I got a month off for every person who’s told me that one, I”d be the one sitting in a cabin in the woods with Megan right now! And I get it. After so many years in a cell with zero privacy, in a unit jammed full of men who barely tolerate each other, completely dependent on COs who range from “kinda care” to “openly cruel” (and way more of the latter) for every aspect of life, it does kind of sound like paradise. It’s not that far off from Megan’s and my plan, either. The difference is that we know we still need community; whether as a market for our homegrown products, clients for Megan’s veterinary practice and my landscaping/handyman work, or family and friends, or our parish, we recognize that we can’t do it alone. That’s kind of like what Christ is telling us here, but about Himself. And that makes complete sense – this is the Creator of the universe, the very Source of life. How could we possibly survive without Him?
Look at the people in your life; I’d be that the people who seem the most alive and fulfilled by their lives are also those who are closest to God. That doesn’t mean that they don’t experience suffering. Jesus tells us that God “takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does He prunes so that it bears more fruit.” Look into your own life – are you bearing fruit? Are you helping the poor, visiting the sick or imprisoned, showing kindness and love to all people – not just those who are easy to love? We live in a century where independence and individuality reign above all, and it’s gone too far. We’ve fragmented our communities into “people who are just like me” and “everyone else,” and the media – especially the deceptively named “social” media – is cashing in on getting you to hate anyone who isn’t just like you.
Jesus tells us to “remain in my love” but, instead, we’ve abandoned everything He taught. He says “anyone who does not remain in me will be thrown out like a branch and wither; people will gather them and throw them in a fire and they will be burned.” Well, friends, the media is cutting us off from each other and from Christ. We have withered. And they’re feeding us into the fires of hatred to help drive others away from Christ.
We’ve all felt the burn of a family member, friend, or coworker who attacked or ignored us for our beliefs or political views. Who does that sound like? Not Christ. He says to “love one another as I have loved you.” Are you free of sin? Are you following Christ in all things without error? Are you perfect? I’m sure not. Yet, He died on a cross, the object of humiliation and derision, for me. For YOU. The least we can do is the one thing He commanded over and over again.
“This I command you: love one another.”
No qualifications. No exceptions. No one excluded.
Let’s start now.’
