GOSPEL POWER l MAY 25, 2022 - WEDNESDAY of  6th Week of Easter 

Saint Bede the Venerable, priest  and doctor of the Church 

Saint Gregory VII, pope Saint Mary Magdalene of Pazzi, virgin

Gospel: Jn 16:12-15 

 Jesus said to his disciples, 12“I still have many things to say to you,  but you cannot bear them now. 13When the Spirit of truth comes, he  will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but  will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things  that are to come. 14He will glorify me, because he will take what is  mine and declare it to you. 15All that the Father has is mine. For this  reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.” 

The little band of disciples who followed the carpenter  from Nazareth, believing him to be the Messiah, could  not have foreseen what the future holds for their first century messianic movement. The reality of a worldwide expansion,  with all the challenges that it entails, must have been unimaginable  for them. Yet this is the implication of their vocation to be “fishers of  men.” Jesus could not elaborate on this while he was still with them,  because it would be too much for their limited minds. It would be the  role of the Holy Spirit, after the departure of Jesus, to gradually guide  his disciples and their successors toward the fulfillment of their being  “fishers of men,” not only in Galilee, nor only in Palestine but in the  vast sea of the world. Indeed, the grain of wheat that fell to the ground  and died produced abundant fruit through the powerful activity of the  Holy Spirit, who brings to completion the mission of Jesus and the  Father’s saving plan. 

Lord Jesus, we trust that your Holy Spirit will keep us faithful to you,  as he leads us across the swiftly changing times. Amen.