The Gospel according to John (13:21-33, 36-38)
Reclining at table with his disciples, Jesus was deeply troubled and testified,
“Amen, amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”
The disciples looked at one another, at a loss as to whom he meant.
One of his disciples, the one whom Jesus loved,
was reclining at Jesus’ side.
So Simon Peter nodded to him to find out whom he meant.
He leaned back against Jesus’ chest and said to him,
“Master, who is it?”
Jesus answered,
“It is the one to whom I hand the morsel after I have dipped it.”
So he dipped the morsel and took it and handed it to Judas,
son of Simon the Iscariot.
After Judas took the morsel, Satan entered him.
So Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.”
Now none of those reclining at table realized why he said this to him.
Some thought that since Judas kept the money bag, Jesus had told him,
“Buy what we need for the feast,”
or to give something to the poor.
So Judas took the morsel and left at once. And it was night.
When he had left, Jesus said,
“Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him.
If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself,
and he will glorify him at once.
My children, I will be with you only a little while longer.
You will look for me, and as I told the Jews,
‘Where I go you cannot come,’ so now I say it to you.”
Simon Peter said to him, “Master, where are you going?”
Jesus answered him,
“Where I am going, you cannot follow me now,
though you will follow later.”
Peter said to him,
“Master, why can I not follow you now?
I will lay down my life for you.”
Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me?
Amen, amen, I say to you, the cock will not crow
before you deny me three times.”
Reflection:
As I was pondering this Gospel, a line struck me that I had not really thought too much about before – at least, not as one to focus on: Jesus said, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, though you will follow later.” That line has all sorts of depths of meaning we can think about.
First, Jesus is speaking of His suffering and death, which the Apostles all (except John, the “beloved disciple”) would experience in a very real way, like Jesus. He was reminding them that they would all be asked to suffer and lay down their own lives for the faith they were taking on. Second, Jesus is speaking of His resurrection, which we celebrate again this coming weekend during the Sacred Triduum. He was reminding His closest followers that they, too, would be raised up, no matter what happened to them on earth.
Third, He is saying those same words to you and to me – we will follow after Him, but not before whatever mission He has given us on earth is done. Back in the early days of email, folks would have cute little sayings or quotes as part of their “email signatures”. Remember those? So, I recall one that I favored (and this was quite early in my IT career): “I believe that God has placed each of us here for a purpose. I am now so far behind, I will never die.” Kind of presumptuous of me to dare to suggest such a thing, right?
The point is that Jesus does invite us to follow Him and to share His love as our main mission in life. Just like Peter in today’s Gospel asks why he can’t follow Jesus *now*, we may have that same question. His answer is that He wants us to participate in His mission of salvation for the world, so that we can do our small part of ensuring that the Gospel is indeed proclaimed to every creature, and not just by our words, but by our very lives.
As we walk through Holy Week, may we be even more attentive to how God is calling each of us to follow His Son, and make Him known to all. May we see that the cross truly is the triumph for each of us in that it paid the price for us to be able to follow after Jesus through our work sharing His love, through His death and resurrection and ultimately to the glory of the heavenly kingdom, where we long to be with our Lord and all of the Saints forever. I pray that you all have a blessed Holy Week!
Action for the Day:
Maybe you’re not feeling worthy of this amazing gift we are given. I’m there with you! If that’s the case, we have a chance this week, prior to Holy Thursday, to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Don’t hesitate to approach our Lord for His pardon and strength, and then go forth to Easter with true Easter joy, and shine the light of Jesus for all to see.
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