FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER A
THE WAY…
JN 14: 1-12
MESSAGE
Isn’t today’s Gospel all too familiar to us? Yes, this is the same reading we hear at every funeral Mass. It is thus easy to dismiss it as something we already know, and as something that has value for when we say farewell to a loved one. Assuring, yes, but for those who passed away…
But is it really that? At the heart of the reading, Jesus makes a solemn declaration: “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” These three things are the aspirations we secretly harbor in our hearts, for ourselves first, and then, for our loved ones.
We are seeking for the way: not just the road to follow or imitate or an escape route out of a mess; we desire to discover the meaning of our lives, the relevance of what we do, the significance of who we are. We also seek for the truth: not to gain knowledge, not even to grow in wisdom but to have certainty about things in the world and in our hearts. We run after life: not a satisfied and contented life but a life that grows, expands, and flows out to others.
As long as the quest is unfulfilled, our search leads to sadness, to fear, to uncertainty. And that is why the Lord Jesus reassures us: Do not let your hearts be troubled; have faith in God… have faith in me. He offers to us the gift of an encounter with him that will lead us to achieve what we dream of: the way, the truth, and the life. We find all three not in things, but in him, a real living Person who alone has the power to bestow these to us because he is the Risen One.
REFLECT
Easter is an invitation to seriously accept the challenge of Jesus to encounter him, to relate with him, to walk with him in prayer, through the Church, through acts of devotion and kindness. Let us allow him to hold our hands so that we can discover the riches he has in store for us.
LET US CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR PEACE! RISEN CHRIST, HEAR US!
