Let us return to the image of our vineyard, branches and vine master. Now imagine the vine master spotting some branches that do not bear fruit. See how he selects them, cuts them off and discards them.
This can be an uncomfortable image. Is God going to cut us off and burn us? I really hope not!
I think that if we are honest with ourselves, we all know that there are some aspects of our lives that are less than desirable. We have mindsets, attachments and habits that distract us from living the way in which we would truly like to live.
Sometimes, it is not easy to change these ways. I recently told my spiritual director that I was simply not yet ready to let go of one of these
distractions. Pruning ourselves isn’t so easy.
But, as I continued that conversation, I was reminded of all the other fruitless branches that seemed to have fallen away of their own accord. I had “trusted the process” of praying, journaling, participating in the sacraments, and talking to my spiritual director, and somehow, without me even realising it, I had moved on from things that had felt too difficult to let go of before.
Perhaps we should be encouraged that the Lord will do the pruning for us. We can actually hand over the responsibility to our loving vine master. Our responsibility is to remain closely connected to God, and he can cut away what needs to be pruned in his own time and in his own gentle way.
What are your unfruitful branches? Which ones are you not yet ready to let go of? Which
ones has God already gently pruned?
Reflections by Sean van Staden SJ
