Joshua confronts the tribes of Israel; Will you desert your covenant with Yahweh? The desertion of disciples is a prelude to the paschal mystery. With Peter, however, let us profess our faith in the Lord, who gave himself up for all of us.

Wisdom has prepared a banquet of food and wine, an image expressive of God’s communion with us. For those who desire life, Jesus gives his own flesh and blood. Thus we shall be filled with the Spirit.

To strengthen him for the journey, God provides Elijah with cake and water, reminiscent of his ancestors’ Pasch. Thus he experiences the goodness of the Lord. Jesus, the bread of life, strengthens us for our journey, following his way of love.

The Lord provides heavenly food for the Israelites to eat. Jesus proclaims himself to be the very bread of life. We lay aside our way of life to be created anew in his image.

Today the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. The Trinity simply means that there are three persons in One God. That is to say, God is One and Three at the same time. It is a mystery and that is why it is called the mystery of the Trinity. A mystery does not mean something we cannot understand nor do we have any clue about it, but something we cannot fully grasp with our limited understanding. Mystery is part of our religion and in fact every authentic religion has elements of mystery. Jesus revealed to his disciples the great mystery of our faith, the triune nature of God in three persons and the inseparable union of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ mission is to reveal the glory of God to us and to unite us with God in a community of unbreakable unity and everlasting love. The ultimate end, the purpose for which God created us, is the entry of God’s sons and daughters into perfect unity of the blessed Trinity.

The historical event that the Catholic Church celebrates this Sunday is described in today's Gospel as 'Pentecost': "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so l send you". Jesus breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained". The Acts of the Apostles focus here on how the end of the Easter Season moves beyond the four Gospel accounts to the remainder of the New Testament. The Holy Spirit is the new law, the power that leads us to do good, from within our heart. The Holy Spirit is also a source of unity (it pulls down all barriers) and wherever it is, it destroys sin.

Steven Covey in his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, has as one of the habits, "Start with the end in mind". Where are we going in life? What do we want people to say about us at our own funeral service? Jesus started with the 'end in mind'. He followed his Father's will. Today we are about to end the Easter season liturgically with the Ascension of Jesus into heaven. We have reflected on the passion, death, and amazing resurrection accounts. Jesus has risen from the dead. We have celebrated the 40 days after the resurrection that Jesus spent as the reading from Acts of the Apostles says, "(Jesus) presented himself alive to them by many proofs after he had suffered, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God". No ghost, Jesus ate and drank with his closest followers. He has shown them the nail marks and pierced side. He has been preparing them for something new, something powerful, something that will come from the Holy Spirit of God: the Pentecost and out-pouring of the grace of God's Spirit.

In the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles Peter proclaims that God shows no partiality "Rather in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him." This is because God is love and shows his love to everyone no matter your circumstance or state of life. He shows his love to everyone no matter where you are or where you come from. Thus, anyone who opens himself or herself to him will experience the depth of his love. The only obstacle to witnessing God's love in our lives is when we close ourselves to his love. This can happen when we fail to believe in him, obey him or keep his commandments, but even at that he still loves each one of us in an amazing way.

The rose bush is a beautiful bush. Its' flower is a symbol love, romance and joy. This is the most popular flower for Valentines day. It can tell someone "I love you" and it can tell someone "I'm sorry." It is often sent to someone who is sick to show caring and this bush can also be an image of God's plan of salvation for us.

There is something comforting about knowing that we are in someone’s care. Children can feel thismost easily when surrounded by the embrace of a mother or father. All is well. Jesus is the GoodShepherd. We don’t have to figure out all of the complexities of life. All we need to do is allow Jesus to be the true shepherd of our lives: to point us in the right direction, lead us to the best pasture, and keep us safe from harm. So many things in the world can hurt us, and we can quicklyfind that we are on the road to despair. Keeping focused on Jesus, remaining close to him, allowsus to develop the gifts and talents God has given us and discover the key to true happiness. Jesus welcomes me with all of my doubts and fears, limitations and sins.

Today's Gospel occurs in the middle of Jesus' ministry. At first, Jesus' words seem to be about the value of self-sacrifice in a leader. "I am the Good Shepherd … I will lay down my life for the sheep." The Apostles likely would have accepted these words easily enough. But then comes something more strange. "I lay down my life in order to take it up again … I have power to lay it down and power to take it up again." Only later, when Jesus opened the Scriptures to them after his resurrection, would the Apostles understand his words. Only then would they understand why such an act was necessary for the salvation of the world.

Today's liturgy invites us to appreciate lovingly the riches of the Paschal mystery which is the sum total of the work of creation and redemption, of all the reality of humanity and of all the revelation of God. For us, every Eucharistic celebration renews the presence of Christ who died and rose again.

Jesus comes into the midst of our assembly for the Eucharistic celebration and through the Eucharist He makes us touch His Body, His Blood and His real presence. Christ is also present and communicates through the Scriptures and through His witnesses who are sent to proclaim the forgiveness of sins, His Apostles who are today His Priests.

Do you know the joy of the resurrection? The Risen Lord Jesus revealed the glory of his resurrection to his disciples gradually and over a period of time. Even after the apostles saw the empty tomb and heard the reports of Jesus' appearance to the women, they were still weak in faith and fearful of being arrested by the Jewish authorities.

When Jesus appeared to them he offered proof of his resurrection by showing them the different wounds of his passion, his pierced hands and side. He then calmed their fears and brought them peace. The peace which reconciles sinners and makes us friends of God.

This is the day the Lord has made let us rejoice and be glad (Psalm 118:24). Today we can again sing "Hallelujah" that we have not sung all through Lent. Today we begin again to sing Glory be to God in the highest because the Lord has indeed risen. Our faith as Christians is based on the Resurrection. We rejoice today because Christ has risen from the dead, he has conquered death and the enemy of death and taken the victory over sin and death. What does this rising from the dead mean for us? It means that death no longer has the final power. It means that despair gives way to hope, darkness gives way to light, hatred gives way to love and sorrow gives way to joy. We are no longer afraid because Jesus rising from dead has liberated us from fear.