The Lord worked with them

SAT 25 APRIL (Mk 16,15-20)

In creation, redemption and salvation Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one work and yet each one acts according to his divine and eternal personal essence. The love that governs everything and moves everything belongs to the Father. The grace that creates and renews everything is of Christ Jesus. The communion which is the essence of life is of the Holy Spirit. In the mystery of the Blessed Trinity every person lives of eternal communion. Even in creation and redemption life is from the communion of every created being. The body of Christ also lives, works and produces from the mystery of the love of the Father, for the grace of Christ and in the communion of the Spirit of the Lord. This truth is admirably revealed in Paul in the First Letter to the Corinthians: “There are different kinds of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit; there are different forms of service but the same Lord; there are different workings but the same God who produces all of them in everyone. To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit. To one is given through the Spirit the expression of wisdom; to another the expression of knowledge according to the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit; to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit; to another mighty deeds; to another prophecy; to another discernment of spirits; to another varieties of tongues; to another interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit produces all of these, distributing them individually to each person as he wishes. As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink of one Spirit” (1Cor 12,4-13). Where communion does not reign between the Christian and Christ, the Christian and the Holy Spirit, the Christian and the Father and the Christian and the other Christians, no fruit of eternal life might be produced. Eternal life is from communion.

St. Paul always adds truth to truth. The Letter to the Ephesians thus celebrates the mystery of communion in unity:  “One body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. And he gave some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers, to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the extent of the full stature of Christ. Rather, living the truth in love, we should grow in every way into him who is the head, Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, with the proper functioning of each part, brings about the body’s growth and builds itself up in love” (Eph 4,4-16). This mystery of unity and communication must never be forgotten. Every Christian with every other Christian. Every Christian with Christ in the Holy Spirit. One is not with Christ if he is not with his body.

He said to them, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents (with their hands), and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” So then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God. But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs.)

Jesus acts with the Christian, if the Christian acts with the Christian and together they act to form the body of Christ. If the body of Christ is not formed, the Lord does not act with the Christian or even the Christian with the Christian. Unity breaks, communion dies. We do not work to form the body of Christ. Vain works are performed.

Mother of God, Angels and Saints ensure that we never break the unity and communion with Jesus.