This morning we heard Jesus tell us that He is the Vine and that we need to remain in Him, stay connected to Him, and to be part of Him. We do this by being part of the Church. And on Sundays and on Solemnities, we hear these four words in the Creed: ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC, and APOSTOLIC.
We are ONE because we are connected to Christ as the Vine. We aren't all tall or short, old or young, dark or light, skinny or fat. We are unique, but we are all part of the Church and we are all part of Christ. God is one, Christ is one, and the Church is one.
We are HOLY not because of anything we do, but because God shares His Grace through Christ in the Power of the Holy Spirit. If we disconnect from Jesus, we unplug that power for holiness. And we are called to be holy as God is holy. God is Truth, God speaks the Truth, and God's thoughts are True. When we think, act, and speak the truth in Christ, we show forth God's holiness in our lives.
We are CATHOLIC, not just because it's the name on the sign out front. We are Catholic because we are universal. We allow all sorts of people into the Church, and we seek out a diversity of people; because all are called to be saved in Christ Jesus.
Finally, we are APOSTOLIC. First, because we can trace our faith to the Apostles, but also because the Greek word apostello means to be sent. And we, too, are sent out to spread the Gospel by what we say, think, and do.
So, let us remain in Christ by remaining in His Church: ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC, and APOSTOLIC. Because, like we heard in John 15:5, "without [Jesus] we can do nothing." The converse of which is: with Jesus, we can do everything. So let us do everything today through, with, and in Christ Jesus our Lord.
