HOMILY: Sixth Sunday of Easter (C)
John 14:23-29
25 May 2025
Fr. Ricky Cañet Montañez, AA
Who do you consider family? Does a family member always need to be a blood relative? Do they need to marry into your family? Some families adopt children, others consider close friends part of their family. Others consider strangers who have helped them tremendously as honorary members of their family. Even pet lovers consider their pets part of their family. How do you decide if someone can be part of your family?
In today’s Gospel, Jesus discloses the secret to becoming part of His family. He says “Whoever loves me will keep My word, and my Father will love him, and we will come [go] to him and make our home with him.” (John 14:23) Love is the mark of God’s family. It is what identifies us as Christians. This kind of love, Jesus cautions, is not just an emotion or a passing feeling — it’s a way of living. It’s the sign that we belong to Him. His teachings, His example, His works of mercy and healing are all manifestations of a life fuelled and motivated by love. This kind of love is what identifies us as Christians.
This shouldn’t be new to us. From the earliest days of the Church, love was meant to be the defining mark of the Christian community. Initially there were issues and questions about who could belong to the Church. In our First Reading from the Acts of the Apostles, we hear about the argument whether non-Jews or Gentiles could be accepted. Did they have to follow Jewish law to be accepted? They struck at the heart of what it meant to be part of God’s people.
Eventually, guided by the Holy Spirit, the Church made a bold, loving decision: to open its doors wide. To welcome people not based on background, ethnicity, nor strict-rule-keeping — but on faith in Jesus and the presence of His Spirit in their lives. It was a reminder that God’s love is always bigger than our boundaries. What is more important is to love Jesus and live by His word.
Pope St. John XXIII captured this spirit beautifully when he said: “Let there be unity in what is necessary, freedom in what is doubtful, and charity in everything.”
We need unity — we need to hold fast to the essentials of our faith: love, mercy, the dignity of every person.
We need freedom — we give room to explore, to question, to grow, especially in matters that are not central to our faith.
Above all, we need charity — we have to love because even if we get everything else right but have no love, we have missed the heart of the Gospel.
Thus, what does this mean for us today? It means we are called to be people who welcome, not exclude; who forgive, not judge; who build bridges, not walls. We are called to be known — not for our opinions or positions — but for our love. We must have love for God, love for neighbour, and love even for those we find difficult to love. It is not how much theology we know, not how often we go to church, not how well we perform religious rituals — but how we love. Hence today, let us ask ourselves: Am I living a life where people experience love through me? Do I make others feel that they belong? Do my words, actions, and relationships reflect the presence of God?
Let us hold on to the promise Jesus gives: “We will come [go] to him/her and make our home with him/her.” (John 14:23) Let us remember that when we love, we make space for God to dwell with us. Love is where God feels at home. Let us be the kind of people where others encounter Christ not through fear nor conditions, but through the open, generous, welcoming love that He showed us. Let us rejoice that we can be part of God’s family!
Christ by Jorge Cocco Santángelo
Sunday Gospel Reflections 