We continue on this Easter journey, sustained by the certainty that the Risen One walks with us. Throughout these Sundays we have been discovering how his peace comes alive in us, how he transforms our decisions and sends us to be bearers of hope. Today, that promise becomes even more profound: we are not alone.
This Sunday’s Gospel (Jn. 14:15-21) introduces us to the promise of the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete. Jesus says: the Paraclete. Jesus says: “I do not leave you orphans (…) I am in the Father and you in me and I in you”. It is a presence that does not abandon us, that sustains us, that accompanies us from within. The Spirit is that breath of God that reminds us of all that Jesus has taught us and urges us to live it.
Also this gospel expresses: “If you love me, keep my commandments”, and “Whoever keeps and keeps my commandments, he loves me”. The commandments are not imposed; they are an internal demand of love. It is not a question of obedience to external norms, but a manifestation of an interior impulse, a response of love. Jesus had given us “the new commandment”, only one: to love God above all things and one’s neighbor as oneself.
The Easter message of Pope Leo XIV helps us to understand the depth of this message and this presence: "The power by which he rose from the dead (...) is God himself, Love that forgives and redeems."
It is this love that is given to us and that we are called to embody.
From the General Government of the Daughters of Jesus we receive a concrete invitation for this time: "Easter invites us to be people whose presence is a home, a network of care and relief".
To be a caring and reconciling presence
The Spirit transforms us so that we too can be an accompanying presence. In a world marked by wounds, divisions and loneliness, we are called to be a sign of something different: a place of welcome, care and reconciliation.
To be “home” for others is to offer listening, closeness, patience.
To be a “network of care” is to support, to accompany, to leave no one alone.
To be “relief” is to bring comfort, forgiveness and peace where it is most needed.
Easter urges us to heal relationships, to take the step of forgiveness, to rebuild broken bonds. It is not always easy, but we do not walk alone: the Spirit sustains and guides us.
Today more than ever, the world needs people inhabited by this Love that forgives and makes all things new.
Prayer
Risen Jesus, thank you that you help us to heal relationships and make peace possible.
Help us to forgive always.
Your peace come to us.
