Today Jesus teaches us just how intimately we are connected to Him, like branches on a vine. That if we strive to stay connected to Jesus in our lives then we will continually be “pruned” in order to bear greater fruit for the service and love of God. For without Jesus in our lives we truly can do nothing or be His disciples in our world. That is why St. John says to love in deed and truth and then our words will more fully reflect the presence of God within us. As we continue to hear of the accounts of the growth of the early Church in the Acts of Apostles, we are reminded that there were struggles and challenges, yet the Apostles continued to speak the name of Jesus to whomever they met, which caused the Church to grow in number. Which brought more and more people together in mind and in heart, to carry out the mission they received in their Baptism. We too, do the same, proclaiming the truths of what Jesus taught and sharing in His Divine mission to spread the Gospel. Blessings, Fr. Fred