Sharing Guidelines
*Sharing is not a time for teaching or debate; it is a time to sense the marvelous work of the Holy Spirit who leads the gathering.
*Reflection sharing is not meant to teach others but to share the meaning you personally have discovered. Therefore, do not criticize or debate another person’s sharing. Avoid boasting of your own understanding or knowledge.
*Respect the grace of the Holy Spirit, who reveals the meaning of the Word while dwelling among us, and listen attentively to others’ sharing, holding it in your heart.
*Keep confidential any personal reflections or stories shared in the group; practicing brotherly love means not passing along private matters outside the meeting.
*When speaking, always use the first person singular (“I”). Be careful not to distance or generalize your story by using the third person (“he,” “they”) or the first person plural (“we”).
*Keep it short.
Reading 1
Acts 8:5-8, 14-17
Philip went down to the city of Samaria
and proclaimed the Christ to them.
With one accord, the crowds paid attention to what was said by Philip
when they heard it and saw the signs he was doing.
For unclean spirits, crying out in a loud voice,
came out of many possessed people,
and many paralyzed or crippled people were cured.
There was great joy in that city.
Now when the apostles in Jerusalem
heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God,
they sent them Peter and John,
who went down and prayed for them,
that they might receive the Holy Spirit,
for it had not yet fallen upon any of them;
they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Then they laid hands on them
and they received the Holy Spirit.
-The Word of the Lord – Thanks be to God
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Reading 2
1 Peter 3:15-18
Beloved:
Sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts.
Always be ready to give an explanation
to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope,
but do it with gentleness and reverence,
keeping your conscience clear,
so that, when you are maligned,
those who defame your good conduct in Christ
may themselves be put to shame.
For it is better to suffer for doing good,
if that be the will of God, than for doing evil.
For Christ also suffered for sins once,
the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous,
that he might lead you to God.
Put to death in the flesh,
he was brought to life in the Spirit.
-The Word of the Lord – Thanks be to God
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Gospel
John 14:15-21
Jesus said to his disciples:
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
And I will ask the Father,
and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always,
the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot accept,
because it neither sees nor knows him.
But you know him, because he remains with you,
and will be in you.
I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.
In a little while the world will no longer see me,
but you will see me, because I live and you will live.
On that day you will realize that I am in my Father
and you are in me and I in you.
Whoever has my commandments and observes them
is the one who loves me.
And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father,
and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”
-The Gospel of the Lord -Praise to you Lord, Jesus Christ
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Daily Reflection
Love is about staying together. The Father and the Son remain with each other, and through the Son, all of us are made one in love. The Holy Spirit helps us live in this unity. The Spirit, often called the “Advocate,” means someone who is called to help another.
In the Gospel of Gospel of John, the Holy Spirit reminds a community that was sad and discouraged after Jesus was no longer physically with them that Jesus is still alive and present.
In our life of faith, where the Holy Spirit is present, no one should be left alone. From the beginning, God created human beings to live in “helpful companionship” (Genesis 2:20), and the Holy Spirit continues to help us support one another within the Church (Acts 2).
A Church led by the Holy Spirit does not see the world only in opposites—good and evil, justice and injustice, progress and tradition. Instead, it seeks what is good, but also calls people to conversion when facing evil. It speaks for justice, but also shares in the pain of injustice and works for healing. It reflects on both progress and tradition together. This is not about being neutral or saying “everything is fine,” but about leading everyone toward repentance and life with God the Father.
The Holy Spirit is always at work today, helping all people remain with God and live in communion with Him. What blocks the Holy Spirit also blocks unity with God. Our tendency to divide and judge others becomes a major obstacle to this unity.
Before us are not enemies to destroy, but people to be embraced with repentance and forgiveness. (Rev. John Bosco Park 박병규 요한 보스코 신부)
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Sharing:
1. Let’s share a verse that touched our hearts.
2. In the line, “He will give you another Advocate to be with you always” let’s share a time when we experienced a strong helper in our faith life. How did it help us? What can we do to find and grow closer to this kind of helper in the future?