Reading
John 14:1-6
14 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”
5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Comment
With this farewell discourse, which takes place in the room where the Last Supper was eaten, while Judas has already gone away, Jesus encourages the disciples while his passion approaches.
The faith that conquers the world contrasts (1 Jn 5:4) the upset of the disciples expressed by the Greek verb tarasso - the same used by Jesus at the death of Lazarus. United with Jesus, the disciples receive the strength to overcome fear and courageously persevere in the trials until the final victory.
Jesus does not ask the disciples to anesthetize their emotions, not to feel sadness or pain for what is about to happen, he asks not to be "overwhelmed" by them. Faith is an anchor in the storms of the world. If the exteriority of the soul is also tested, its bottom remains in peace.
The "father's house" is the Temple in the Old Testament, but later it came to represent in Jewish culture the house established in heaven, in which the abodes of the righteous are found.
Jesus clearly announces his return at the end of time to bring the righteous to heaven, teaching also present in Matthew (Mt 24:36-44) and taken up by Paul (1 Cor 15:51-54; 1 Thes 4:13-18 ).
The "way" to which Jesus refers is himself, the Gospel imparted with his words and with his life. The term "the way" will come to distinguish Christianity itself in the apostolic age, as testified by the book of Acts (Acts 9:2; 19:9.23; 22:4; 24:14.22).
Jesus is not simply a guide that leads to salvation but is the truth and life (v. 6), the Word that proceeds from the Father, through whom all things were created (Jn 1:3) and who has the power to make those who welcome her become children of God (Jn 1 12).
The being "way" of Jesus implies that truth and life represent a path before a goal. The journey of the believer's life itself is growing in the experience of God.
There is a dwelling in heaven that awaits those who in this life "have left home for the sake of the gospel" (Mk 10:29). The Risen One not only prepares a house for us but also prepares us for this house, assisting us with his grace on the path that leads to the Father.
Prayer
O Lord, you have mercy on the pilgrimage of man on this earth, and you have traced for us the road that leads to the fullness of life. Your Spirit assists us so that we can be found by you on the right path when you come to meet us. Amen.
- Rev. Dr. Luca Vona
