I am the true vine.
And my father is the vine dresser.
We see imperfectly the true line.
But we attempt to make a sincere prayer.

I am, he said, the vine.
You are the branches.
We will grow, we will be just fine.
We are connected to his holy branches.

Abide in me.
And I in you.
We pray he is here now with me.
And with you.

We remain connected.
We will be resurrected.

…..

He is the true vine
And we are the true branches
That is what we pray

……

See John 15: 1-8

Peace I leave with you.
Jesus said to his disciples.
Peace I give to you.
Now we are his disciples.

Not, he said, as the world gives.
Do I give to you.
Thus he saves.
Me and you.

Let not your hearts be troubled.
Neither let them be afraid.
But so often our hearts are troubled.
Too often we are afraid.

He told us, I am going to the Father.
And we pray too that we are going to the Father.

……

Peace I leave with you.
Let not your hearts be troubled
We must believe him

….

See  John 14: 27-41

You will be dragged before governors.
And kings for my sake.
But these martyrs are saviours.
They died too for our sake.

I lay tossing, worrying.
And started to concentrate on Blessed Richard as living.
I was not saying words as in praying.
But I felt him close comforting.

How extraordinarily real.
As if he was just with me.
Not some distant ghost but really real.
Understanding and listening to me.

Was this just a mind induced dream.
How could something so real be a dream.

……

We dream of the saints
But they seem living here now
Why shouldn’t they be

.. …

See Acts 7: 55-60

Truly I say to you.
Whoever believes in me.
Will also do the works that I do.
Because I am going to the father who is in me.

Like Thomas we say Lord.
I do not know where you are going.
We cannot understand this leading spiritual cord.
And we are fearful as to where we are going.

But we take heart.
We hear he has in his father’s  house many rooms.
This surely is a welcoming start.
We will not lie forever in catacombs.

So let not our hearts be troubled.
Let hope be redoubled.

…..

Our hearts are troubled
Not knowing where we’re going
There are many rooms

….
See John 14: 1-12

If you had known me.
You would have known my father also.
From now on you do know him, it is me.
And you have seen him also.

St Athanasius confronted Arianism.
That the son is inferior to the father.
Yet another defeated ism.
For the Son is equal to the Father.

If not then we are not saved.
The Father did send himself to us.
With Jesus as man and God we are saved.
He is both God and us.

He is both God and man.
And we are man.

…..

Jesus God and man
Not inferior to father
And sent to save us

…..

See John 14: 7-14

He appeared to those who had come up with him from Galilee.
Who are now his witnesses to the people.
They truly could see.
And we now are his people.

Like Thomas I ask.
Lord we do not know where you are going.
Finding faith is my task.
And I can only progress with praying.

But I hear what he says to me.
Let not your hearts be troubled.
Believe in God, believe in me.
With this I must be consoled.

I pray I’ll go that place.
And that he has prepared that place.

…..

He appeared to them
They became his witnesses
We have that task now

……

See Acts 13: 26-33 and John 14: 1-6