Jesus describes his disciples as his friends, not his servants. This provides a model for how we should be with our fellow Christians. Fr Richard reflects on today’s readings from Mass.
Readings for Friday of the 5th week of Easter can be found here.
How many friends do you have? Of course, there are many different types of friends, from those closest to us, to those we consider good friends, and then our acquaintances. The anthropologist Robin Dunbar has estimated that the average person has about five very intimate friends – the “inner circle”, then maybe 15 close friends, 50 good friends and then around 80 further acquaintances. He suggests that humans can maintain about 150 meaningful social relationships at any one time. However many friends we might have, a friendship is surely defined by a number of things. It is a relationship with a person we like and with whom we share common interests. We offer and receive support, love and affection. And it’s a relationship that endures over time.
The amazing thing about today’s Gospel is that Jesus Christ, Son of the most high God, is able to call his disciples (and therefore us as well) his friends. He expresses his love for us, a love so great he was willing to die for us. He shares everything with us – everything he has received from the Father, and everything he does. Yet Jesus also expects something back from us, his friends. He asks that we love one another as he has loved us, and that we should go and bear fruit, continuing his work in the world. As we do this, we know that he is alongside us, never leaving us.
In our first reading, the early Church is treating the new Gentile converts to Christianity as friends. Some were saying that they should adopt the whole Jewish law when they became Christians. The Council of Jerusalem decided that they did not need to; they only had to abstain from certain practices. Behind these legal-sounding decisions lies an attitude of friendship, as the apostles’ words make clear. Some have troubled them with words, unsettling their minds, so the apostles are giving reassurance. The decision of the Council is seen as “to lay on you no greater burden than these requirements…”, a move full of kindness and love. May we always remember that Jesus calls us friends, and may we seek to extend that spirit of friendship to all members of the Church, especially those who are new to the faith.
Mass today is in St Saviour’s at 10am.
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