Accountability and Support
“Two are better than one: They get a good wage for their toil. If the one falls, the other will help the fallen one. But woe to the solitary person! If that one should fall, there is no other to help. So also, if two sleep together, they keep each other warm. How can one alone keep warm? Where one alone may be overcome, two together can resist. A three-ply cord is not easily broken.”
– Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
Monthly Focus on Action
“I will make you fishers of men.”
M1. What apostolic success did the Lord accomplish through me during the past 30 days to extend the kingdom? In my family? In my work? In my environment?
M2. With what apostolic failure did the Lord wish to test me during the past 30 days? In my family? In my work? In my environment?
M3. How did I fulfill last month’s plan?
M4. What do I need to work on?
Discussion Questions for May 26, 2019
Sixth Sunday of Easter
First Reading
Acts 15:1-2, 22-29
Some who had come down from Judea were instructing the brothers,
“Unless you are circumcised according to the Mosaic practice,
you cannot be saved.”
Because there arose no little dissension and debate
by Paul and Barnabas with them,
it was decided that Paul, Barnabas, and some of the others
should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders
about this question.
The apostles and elders, in agreement with the whole church,
decided to choose representatives
and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas.
The ones chosen were Judas, who was called Barsabbas,
and Silas, leaders among the brothers.
This is the letter delivered by them:
“The apostles and the elders, your brothers,
to the brothers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia
of Gentile origin: greetings.
Since we have heard that some of our number
who went out without any mandate from us
have upset you with their teachings
and disturbed your peace of mind,
we have with one accord decided to choose representatives
and to send them to you along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,
who have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
So we are sending Judas and Silas
who will also convey this same message by word of mouth:
‘It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and of us
not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities,
namely, to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols,
from blood, from meats of strangled animals,
and from unlawful marriage.
If you keep free of these,
you will be doing what is right. Farewell.’"
First Reading Discussion Questions
F1. Is there any growth without tension? Would the Church be better off if there were never dissension and debate? Which is a sign of life: Paul and Barnabas going to Jerusalem to work out the Judean people’s objections, or the two “sides” staying as far away from each other as possible?
F2. Does the “letter” in the 2nd paragraph of this First Reading represent a solution? Discuss the value of both listening and representing your own point of view when coming together to work out a problem. How are your listening skills? Do you try to see the other person’s point of view?
Second Reading
Revelations 21:10-14, 22-23
The angel took me in spirit to a great, high mountain
and showed me the holy city Jerusalem
coming down out of heaven from God.
It gleamed with the splendor of God.
Its radiance was like that of a precious stone,
like jasper, clear as crystal.
It had a massive, high wall,
with twelve gates where twelve angels were stationed
and on which names were inscribed,
the names of the twelve tribes of the Israelites.
There were three gates facing east,
three north, three south, and three west.
The wall of the city had twelve courses of stones as its foundation,
on which were inscribed the twelve names
of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
I saw no temple in the city
for its temple is the Lord God almighty and the Lamb.
The city had no need of sun or moon to shine on it,
for the glory of God gave it light,
and its lamp was the Lamb
Second Reading Discussion Questions
S1. What kind of vision are we reading in the Second Reading? Is it literal? If so, since the temple had been the symbol of God’s presence for so many centuries, why is it left out in John’s vision? Do the “names of the twelve tribes” and the “names of the twelve apostles” on the gates and stones of the city close the chasm between the Old Testament Jews and the New Testament Christians?
S2. In this reading John talks about the “Lamb,” present with the twelve apostles. Why is Christ called the Lamb (which we repeat in every Mass: “Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world … ”)? Has he been a sacrificial victim?
Gospel
John 14:23-29
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.
Whoever does not love me does not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me.
“I have told you this while I am with you.
The Advocate, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you everything
and remind you of all that I told you.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives do I give it to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.
You heard me tell you,
‘I am going away and I will come back to you.’
If you loved me,
you would rejoice that I am going to the Father;
for the Father is greater than I.
And now I have told you this before it happens,
so that when it happens you may believe.”
Gospel Discussion Questions
G1. The second great gift in this reading is the promise of the Holy Spirit, who will teach us everything. Do you think there could be a direct proportion between how much a person loves and how much that person allows the Holy Spirit to live within him/herself?
G2. Jesus says, “Whoever loves me will keep my word, … and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. … Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.” How does Pope Francis’ greeting to the participants in the International Congress on Catechesis include these two ideas from this Gospel?
(The story of Jonah) teaches us not to be afraid of going outside our ways of thinking in order to follow God, because God always goes beyond. ... God is not afraid! ... God is not afraid of the peripheries. If you go to the peripheries, you will find Him there. ... If a catechist allows himself to be conquered by fear, he is a coward; ... What I want to say now, I have already said many times before, but it comes from my heart … When we Christians are closed in our group, in our movement, in our parish, in our own environment, we remain closed and what happens to us is what happens to whatever remains closed: when a room is closed the odor of humidity gathers. … A Christian … remains closed and becomes ill.
International Congress on Catechesis
Vatican City, September 28, 2013
**From Saint Louis University & Anne Osdieck
Suggested Strategies for Managing the Clock
For those with smaller groups or those who have the luxury of enough allotted time, it is suggested that the group cover each question from the monthly focus through the Gospel discussion questions
For those with larger groups or don't have the luxury of operating on God's Time, it is suggested that the group cover the monthly focus question and then feel free to skip around and attempt to answer only a few questions - whether that’s just the gospel, or the second reading and gospel, etc.