5TH SUNDAY OF EASTER, B

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MORE THAN A POWER BANK



How can today’s gospel (Jn 15:1-8) be more easily understood by people today?  Many people living far from nature cannot appreciate how the vine affects the branches.  We like the grapes but we don’t take time to know what happens between the vine and the branch that yields the grapes.

Maybe an analogy can be found in the technology we are using now. Many people have cell phones, tablets, ipads, laptops and other modern gadgets. And there is one thing most people need to keep using these mobile gadgets everywhere – the power bank.  When the power is used up, the power pack comes in handy to continue the operation of our gadgets.

The vine plays the same role with regard to the branches. The vine is the power pack of the branches. The branches will wilt and die if they are not connected to the vine.  There will be no power, no operation, no life for the branches that are severed from the vine.

But the relationship of the vine to the branches is even deeper and more significant. The vine assures that the branch will not only have life but that the branch will also be fruitful. With the sustenance flowing from the vine, the branch grows healthy leaves, flowers, and fruits.  This is what Jesus tells us in the gospel; that connected to him, he desires us to produce much fruit.

The power bank only makes the gadget operate. Jesus wants our entire lives, not merely to operate, to be very fruitful – our family life, our work, our studies, our relationships, our every good dream and ambition, our prayer.

Jesus is the vine of our lives and we, his followers, are the branches. Let us honestly look into our hearts and see whether we are truly in deep relationship with the Lord. May we always keep plugged in to our power bank!

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