"I am the vine,
you are the branches.
Whoever remains in me
and I in him will bear much fruit,
because without me you can do nothing." -
In our introduction to the Holy Friendship Pillar of Prayer, we said that praying is keeping the connection with the Source: God himself; for without God we cannot do anything [see above passage].
Jesus tells us that we can only bear fruit if we are connected with Him. Being connected with Him means believing in Him [see Acts 16:31], being baptized [see Matthew 28:19], living in accordance with His life, living in holiness [see Matthew 5:48], denying ourselves, carrying our crosses, following in His steps [see Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23]. What fruit should we bear? Nothing else but those fruits that will last for which we have been commissioned by the Lord to out into the world [see John 15:16]. What are these fruits? Some of these, according to this Missionaries of the Sacred Heart Ireland Scripture Reflection, are acts of love, peacemaking and justice.
We must also remember that Christ is Head of the Church, which is His Body. We are on the other hand members of the Church, hence we form the Body of Christ. We are merely members of the Body of Christ being members of the Church. Being members we are mere parts and we do not posses the entirety of the Body. We can only do what we are supposed to do if we remain connected to the Head, the Lord Jesus Christ. Separated from the Head and the main body, we can do nothing for a part in itself does not have life and cannot perform anything. In the same manner, the Lord as the vine is the main plant and we are merely branches. As mere branches, we are insignificant unless connected with the Vine. For if we get separated or cut off from the vine, we have no use except being thrown into the fire.
As parts of the Body, we have specific roles to perform in accordance with the purpose of the Head and the ultimate good of the entire Body. Every part must therefore work only in so far as it is beneficial to the Body for if it works on its own, it will do harm instead of good [see 1 Corinthians 12: 12-31]. And as long as each of us fulfill the role given to us, we help the Body to accomplish what the Head has given it to perform [see Matthew 28:19].
When Jesus our Lord ascended into heaven, He has left the Church to continue His presence on earth through the Church, His Body. Therefore, if we want to be connected with Jesus our Lord, we ought to be connected with the Church also. It would be a lie to say that we are connected with Christ when we separate ourselves from the Church. For Jesus our Lord said that as the Father is in Him and He is in the Father, He also is with His followers and His followers is in Him and this will only happen if we truly love Him by obeying His commandment [see John 14: 19-23] and what did He command? Nothing else but to love one another as He loved us [see John 15: 12-17 - the Gospel of Holy Friendship]. Since His ascension to heaven and the descent of the Holy Spirit, the Church has never ceased to exist and those who say it had ceased to exist would make the Lord a liar for He said that He will abide by the Church [see Matthew 28:20] and that nothing can ever destroy the Church [see Matthew 16:18], and deny the presence and power of the Holy Spirit for the Lord said that the Holy Spirit will be with the Church to teach and remind her of all that He had taught [see John 14:26]. Moreover, the Lord also said that there must be one flock and one shepherd so all His other sheep must be gathered into the one fold [see John 10:16] and this means that there should be no Christian apart from the Lord and His Body, the Church. Hence being connected with the Lord also means being connected with His Body, the Church.
With regards to bearing fruits, it cannot be denied that the Church has been bearing so much amid the presence of members who are doing harm to the Vine. The long history of the Church will show the great number of members who have given glory to God and service to humanity. Moreover, the present civilizations has been mostly founded upon Christian ideals and principles, and the vast difference from areas where Christianity is not a major religion can be be greatly seen in how people, especially the marginalized ones are being treated and cared for, at least by the Church and its various institution.
Separated from the Head, who is Jesus our Lord, His Body, which is the Church, cannot do anything. Since we are mere members of the Body, which is the Church, the more that we cannot do anything. We must always be connected with the Lord and with His Church. This means that we must always live in holiness and avoid all occasions of sin and be in constant communion with Him and His Body.
In closing let us remember what the Lord prayed - with my annotations - before His passion, death and resurrection in the garden of Gethsemane,
"I pray not only for these [the Apostles]
but also for those [which includes us]
who through their [the Apostles' and their successors'] teaching
will come to believe in me.
May they [all those who believe]
all be one [that is, belong to one Fold, the Church, see John 10:16],
just as, Father, you are in me
and I am in you,
so that they also may be in us,
so that the world may believe
it was you who sent me."
- John 17: 20-21
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