Have you ever heard that the Gospel is radical?
In our times, we hear that word and think of fundamentalists, radical activists, or extremists - people who go beyond limits to achieve their goals and may not consider themselves bound by normal propriety or morality. Their ethos might not be so different from James and John in today's Gospel. "Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?" This isn't so foreign to some of the stories of the Old Testament. Yet Jesus rebukes them. He won't be exacting in the way his contemporaries expected. There will be no radical rain down of fire and brimstone. Jesus is radical in another way: the call to discipleship.

"They all ate and were satisfied." Why read the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves this Sunday? Here we see the mystery of our physical and spiritual realities intermingling. Too often, they can feel separate. When we go to Mass, how often we appear more ordinarily human rather than stretching toward the divine.

Perhaps our experience of the Eucharist is fairly mundane. We notice when a new sacramental wine has been selected. We feel the varying textures of the host and wonder if they'll ever bring back the one that tasted distinctly like wheat. As we shuffle up to the front and stride back to our pew, we notice the looks on people's faces and the clothes on their backs. We get distracted by the crying child, the man blowing his nose, and the mechanical sound of the air conditioner kicking in. How human we are, how earth-bound, how material!

If God is one, how can He be three? The most intelligent theologians have racked their brains over the problem, and the most prayerful ones have surrendered to the mystery. How it can be, we can't explain. But what it means, we can join! Our God is an ever-unfolding relationship. Theologians speak of the immanent and economic Trinity. The Trinity is immanent in the sense that the Persons are close and entirely sufficient within Godself. In other words, God doesn't require us for God to exist. The word economic is rooted in the Greek word for management of a household or family. The

El Espíritu de Dios viene de la mano de la paz de Cristo y debemos recibirlo con el Corazón abierto. Antes de irse, Jesús les promete a sus discípulos que enviará al Espíritu Santo: "Y cuando venga él, el Espíritu de la Verdad, los guiará, en todos los caminos de la verdad". (Juan 16:13). Las personas tienen la experiencia que el Espíritu siempre deja huella, cambia la vida, y produce efectos. Así es que, algunos dicen: "abrí mi corazón al Espíritu Santo y cambio mi vida, ahora soy diferente. Menos egoísta, más justo con mí esposa y mis hijos". Hoy es el día que Dios regala su Espíritu al mundo, y a cada uno en particular.

I travel a good bit, which means I am away from my wife and children for decent periods of time. But what makes it easier for me, besides being able to share the Good News of Jesus with people all over, is that I know I will not be gone forever. I will return, and then all will be well again. I have been called by God to be away from them at times, but God always brings me back to them.

Each liturgical year, we celebrate Jesus' ascension into heaven. The feast speaks much to who Jesus is theologically. But in a very practical way, we also acknowledge that he has gone to be with the Father, but will return someday. Just as I return after a conference or visit with a parish to those God has entrusted to me and I love, Jesus will return to those entrusted to him and whom he loves.