A Reflection for Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Easter
Find today’s readings here.
He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit,
and everyone that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit.
The rose bush in front of my house became wildly overgrown a few years back. In the hopes of preserving the plant’s integrity and avoiding being attacked by its unwieldy thorns every time I walked by, I researched the perfect time to prune it: early spring, before there is much new growth. Something about a 45 degree angle. Something about cutting a quarter inch above an outward facing bud, whatever that is.
I was fearful of making too many cuts, of destroying rather than cultivating. Still, armed with some small clippers and cursory knowledge from the internet, I did what I thought was a decent job. But the arrival of summer was accompanied by chaotic branches sprouting in all directions, and fewer roses than usual. The plant still looked more like a sea monster than a rose bush.
The next year, I enlisted my father in the process. His cuts were far more drastic than I had imagined would be useful. When he put down his clippers, the plant was significantly smaller than when I’d attempted the effort. I worried the rose bush wouldn’t recover, but he assured me that this was just what it needed––a little more space for growth, fewer unwieldy stems, the chance to focus more nutrients on the blooms rather than the leafy branches. The roses bloomed for months that summer.
I thought of these precise but drastic cuts when I read today’s Gospel: “He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and everyone that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit” (John 15:2).
If I am a branch on Christ’s vine, how do I ensure that I continue to grow as God intends? Are there spiritually dead or dry parts of myself I need to let go of in order to flourish? Am I too hesitant to make big changes needed to stay close to Christ? Am I willing to make myself smaller in order to let God’s love grow? Today’s Gospel reminds us that God always wants to see us flourish and will not leave us to languish. May we always embrace this growth so that our faith will bloom.
