Adopted Children of God

Homily for Saturday of the Fourth Week in Eastertide

In the Acts of the Apostles this morning, we read: “Filled with jealousy, the religious leaders stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their territory.” They saw that the Gentiles were also listening to the word of God and responding to it. The word used in our translation is “jealousy,” but strictly speaking; what they were experiencing was probably not simply jealousy. They were also experiencing “envy.” Jealousy is a desire to guard what one already possesses, while envy brings on resentment toward another for what one has and the desire to deprive one of it. The Jewish people had always been God’s chosen; but now, Paul and Barnabas were turning and preaching to the Gentiles, too.

Envy and jealousy crowd out love. Love seeks the highest good for another; it is a sacrificial and selfless activity of the will. Jesus was God’s love made flesh and it tells us that those who know him also know the Father. The Father is in him and works through him. It is through Jesus that we are brought to the Father in love and remain in him in love.

Jesus longs for his disciples to know the love that he experiences in the Father, because of the joy that he finds in that relationship. Consider how frequently he retreats to pray during his public ministry. However, he does not wish to keep this love for himself. In fact, Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection win for all of humanity the opportunity to become the adopted children of God. Jesus shares us with the Father and shares the Father with us.

Through Jesus, we are guided to know the Father’s love. We know we will not be satisfied until we rest in God. Until then, we are grateful for the Eucharist which satisfies the hunger for God’s grace.