<p><em>Breath of the Spirit is our electronic spiritual and liturgical resource for our members and potential members. Nothing can replace your chapter or other faith community but we hope you will find further support here for integrating your spirituality with your sexuality and all the strands of your life.&nbsp;</em><em><a href=https://www.dignityusa.org/civicrm/mailing/subscribe>Get Breath of the Spirit scripture reflections in your inbox every week</a>.</em></p><div class=oldwebkit><div class=mobile-full><p>April 25th 2021: Fourth Sunday of Easter</p><p>Acts 3:13-15 17-19<br>Psalm 4:2 4 7-8 9<br>1 John 2:1-5a<br>Luke 24:35-4</p><p><strong>Reflection from Tom DeVoyd</strong></p><p>Just before our first reading the disciples performed a healing on a person with a debilitating illness a healing that caught the attention of the local authorities. When brought before the local council Peter is filled with the Holy Spirit and speaks out about Jesus' life death and resurrection. My interpretation: each of us can find ourselves in the person who had been healed. Because Jesus died for all of us we are healed. In this healing of the world Jesus becomes the cornerstone of the church. In the architectural practice of Jesus time builders used the cornerstone to make sure that the whole building was properly aligned and therefore structurally sound. It took me a long time to realize that the stone that was rejected meaning Jesus is our cornerstone as well. Jesus helps us know where we fit in life.</p><p>In Luke 2:49 after being found in the temple Jesus asked Mary and Joseph Why were you searching for me? Didnt you know I would be in Gods house? This points to Jesus sacramental nature which is made explicit in todays reading from Acts There is no salvation through anyone else (Acts 4:12). This further emphasizes that Jesus is our salvation the source of our healing. In this age of social unrest COVID-19 and all the changes that are happening this comforts me. The LGBTQI community has begun to see changes as well. In many parts of the country we are getting more protections than we ever had and a growing number of communities are looking to become more inclusive. This reading reminds me that through Jesus there is a saving arc in creation that will eventually encompass all people.</p><p>In the second reading John refers to the children of God. This describes the relationship that we all have with God. We are part of the Divine family. We are in the image of God. We were brought into this relationship through Jesus life death and resurrection. But although we are in the likeness of God we are fallible. We get sick and die but we are promised that we will soon have no death. This points us toward the family unity that we are striving for now: a time when we all are treated equally no matter our gender affiliation sexuality or how we identify ourselves.</p><p>Todays gospel offers us a clear metaphor Jesus is the good shepherd. Jesus will lay down life for the flock (which is all of us). Jesus says that the good shepherd knows the sheep who are being tended and the sheep also know Jesus. It is Jesus the Good Shepherd who will unite us all. Finally the gospel claims that this command from God to lay down ones life which Jesus does willingly is precisely what unites us.</p><p>Unity is the overarching theme of the readings. The responsorial psalm and the first reading say it well The stone rejected by the builders will become the cornerstone of the church. Jesus will unite the world to each other and then also to God. Society craves unity. Given the recent glimpses of hope for the LGBTQI community we dare to dream that this may be a time of greater unification across the globe. That this may be a time when our differences are not the cause for rejection but the catalyst for celebration. How can we be conscious of our differences from and our differences with many of the people in our world but with Jesus as our cornerstone let those differences lead us not to division but to a greater unity in Gods all-encompassing love?</p></div></div><p>__</p>[caption align=left]<img src='https://www.dignityusa.org/sites/default/files/tom.png'>[/caption]<p></p><p></p><p><em style=background-color: transparent;><strong><br>Tom DeVoyd</strong>&nbsp;is a nurse in long term care and works with resident with Dementia. He is an advocate for his residents and has a Masters Degree in Nursing in Adult Psych/ Mental Health. He is also an advocate for the LGBTQI community. Tom currently lives in a small town in NH with his partner of years Phil. He enjoys reflecting on the scriptures and focusing on the world of when the scriptures were written.</em></p><p><span><span><i><em><strong><a href=https://www.dignityusa.org/civicrm/mailing/subscribe>Get Breath of the Spirit scripture reflections in your inbox every week</a></strong></em></i></span></span></p>