Jesus teaches us that we do not belong to the world anymore than He does, but also that "God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."  Christians are called to live differently than the world, but to also bring the message of the Gospel to the world that desperately needs to hear it.

God's love is unconditional, but to be friends with God necessitates that we love.  By loving those around us enough to share Christ with them, we truly fulfill the commandment of love.

Creation and the redemption are the fruits of the communion of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit.  Jesus, in His image of the vine and the branches, invites us to likewise bear fruit in communion with Him.  The Eucharist is the Sacrament of Jesus' body and blood that allows us to remain in Him, and He in us, and to bear great fruit.

Are you saved?  In the Catholic vision of salvation, we are touched by Christ personally and socially, spiritually and physically, historically and in a transcendent way.  Jesus, the Good Shepherd, comes to us to bring us this salvation.

The kerygma or core Gospel message has the power to change and transform the world.  How are we receiving it and is it changing our lives in this Easter season?

The Divine Mercy comes to us from the pierced side of Christ.  Out of His side flows blood and water, washing away our sins in the waters of baptism and strengthening us in the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist.  Thus God provides for us all that we need to make a free and generous return to Him.

Easter is about rediscovering our story-our life in Christ-and announcing it to God in worship and the world in evangelization.

The Church is called, in Holy Week, to accompany Christ on the road to calvary and the Resurrection.  

St. Paul urges us to "put on the whole armor of God."  When we do so we can win the battle for virtue, the battle for prayer and the battle against spiritual apathy.

Christ, in our Gospel this weekend, introduces us to the paradox of the cross.  It is the seed that dies and is buried in the ground that bears much fruit.  How are we called to unite ourselves more completely to His cross and so share in the fullness of His resurrection?