Fifth Sunday of Easter- Reflection by Canon Leslie

Today is the Fifth Sunday of Easter, when the Gospel reading is taken from John’s account of Jesus’ last supper with his disciples. There Jesus gives them a new commandment. In the synoptic Gospels Jesus is portrayed as summing up the law of Moses in terms of the two great commandments, to love God and to love your neighbour as yourself.  Here in John’s Gospel Jesus gives his followers a new commandment, that they love one another.  This new commandment has been characterised as the essence of the Christian way of life. 
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For those of you who wanted to do some thinking and preparation for today’s service during the preceding week, I invited reflection on the image of hearts. In today’s picture from their book, Special People, Aled and Sian see a picture of a healthy heart smiling toward them.   


Risen Lord, 
you gave a new commandment 
to love one another. 
Fill our hearts with your love 
and empower us to share your love with others, 
that all may know us to be your disciples; 
for you are our God. 
Amen. 


Next week, the Sixth Sunday of Easter, the Gospel reading again is taken from John’s account of Jesus’ last supper with his disciples. Here Jesus is preparing his disciples for receiving the Advocate, the Holy Spirit. The image to help us for next week’s theme is the coach. You can find out more about that theme here https://www.prayerforliverpool.org/prayer-resources.html. We would really appreciate you letting us know how you are using these materials.