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Seventh Sunday of Easter, May 20, 2012

John 17:11b-19
Jesus prays for his disciples.

Family Connection

One of the greatest gifts that we are given in our family life is protection from harm. Families work together to keep one another safe from physical harm. Think of the effort a family makes to childproof its home for infants and toddlers. Families also work together to protect each other from emotional harm. For example, we attend to the ways in which family members talk to one another so that we do not hurt one another's feelings by our words. Most importantly, families work together to protect each other from those things that might harm them spiritually. We shield our children from those things in our culture that might tempt them. When families work together to strengthen their sense of God and community, they build the spiritual strength to turn from those things that would lead them away from God and the Church. Jesus' prayer for his disciples can also be a prayer for family life.

Gather as a family and talk about the things that you want most for each other. Talk about the fact that as we work toward these things, we also work to protect one another from harmful things. What do you want to protect each other from? Observe that in today's Gospel, Jesus shows these same two tendencies as he prays for something he wants for his disciples and prays for their protection as well. Read together today's Gospel, John 17:11b-19. Consider what Jesus wants for his disciples and what Jesus wants to protect his disciples from. We know that when Jesus prayed for his disciples, he was praying for us as well. We pray for these things as well, for example, when we pray the Lord's Prayer. Conclude by praying together the Lord's Prayer.