St. John's Gospel
The Farewell Discourse: The Priestly Prayer of Jesus: Part 2 (17:9-19)
Posted on October 23rd 2011 in St. John's Gospel
The second section of Jesus’ prayer to His Father, the so-called Priestly Prayer that occupies c17 of the Gospel, has the apostles as its main focus. The apostles occupy an ambiguous position, being simultaneously both in and out of the world. Jesus expresses a tender care for them as they will remain in the world after His return to the Father. They have relied on Him for everything: direction, learning and encouragement. Behind their own uncomprehending decision to follow Jesus lies a deeper force, that of the Father’s will, which gives strength to their human fallibility. Jesus asks the Father to become their Father as well, otherwise the apostles would not survive the opposition from the world.
Twice Jesus refers to the apostles as those ‘given me true to your name’. This truth reflects back on Jesus Himself, who is Son of the Father. The love between them is the Holy Spirit, so the ‘name’ to which the apostles are connected is the Trinity. Hence Mass begins, ‘in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit’. Liturgy like faith is conducted under the name of God, the Most Holy Trinity. The attentiveness that Jesus demonstrates to those given to Him by the Father does not deny the requirement for a free response on the part of the apostles. In the case of Judas this free response was not given and he was left to choose his own path, that of betrayal. The betrayal by Judas, though his own free act, is embraced into the plan of God. Jesus’ awareness of his imminent betrayal demonstrates that He is in charge of events, not those seeking to arrest and kill Him, a fact that will colour all the subsequent scenes of the Passion.
Jesus’ request to consecrate the apostles in the truth, and for them to be ‘made holy’ is to assist them to identify completely with the design of the Father, which had been the guiding principle of Jesus’ own life. The design of the Father is to make His name known, and with that the identity of the Son, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. The prayer looks forward to after Easter and Pentecost. The apostles are being prepared for the worldwide mission which keeps them in the world, but the mission’s success depends on them not being part of the world, but of being true to the design of God, revealed in the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The Farewell Discourse: The Priestly Prayer of Jesus: Part 1 (17:1-8)
Posted on October 9th 2011 in St. John's Gospel
Jesus concludes his long monologue with the encouraging words ‘I have conquered the world’, addressed both the Apostles sitting in front of Him and to the readers of the Gospel. It will be possible for them to discover a true sense of peace as a foundation to their missionary lives, and for us as a foundation to the daily life of faith. These sentiments are given spiritual depth with the prayer Jesus now speaks to His Father, a prayer that reveals the intimate connection between the Father and the Son, and the desire of Jesus to include the Apostles, and all those who believe, into this union. Listening to the prayer gives a privileged moment of revelation of the relationship between Jesus and the Father.
The Prayer begins with Jesus’ request to the Father to glorify Him, because He has now completed the tasks set before Him. The glorification of Jesus refers to His hour. The life of Jesus is led at the Father’s timetable, and when the hour had come (13:1) Jesus washes His disciples’ feet as a mark of His utmost dedication to His mission of divine reconciliation and service. The hour of Jesus, the end point to which His whole life was orientated, and His glorification by the Father, will meet on the Cross. The Cross and His subsequent Resurrection will vindicate Jesus’ mission, and those who believed in Him during His life on earth will receive the gift of eternal life. The prayer reveals the unique role of Jesus in revealing God, and His public life makes known everything there is to know about God.
The success of His mission is demonstrated by those sitting around the table of the Last Supper, and whose feet Jesus had washed. Each of them has responded to the call of Jesus, but their conscious response reveals a deeper movement of the Spirit, that propels each one towards the truth. This internal propulsion by the Holy Spirit allows every potential believer to recognise the identity of Jesus as the Son of God. The mystery of unbelief is at heart a rebellion against the dynamism of the Holy Spirit by seeking the meaning of life within the created order alone. Hence the key to belief is not just the person of Jesus Christ but a recognition of His origin: ‘that I came from you’ (v8).
The Farewell Discourse: Sorrow and joy of the disciples (John 16:17-24)
Posted on October 2nd 2011 in St. John's Gospel
The disciples are still overcome with confusion as to the intentions of Jesus, especially about His going away and coming back again. Perhaps it is too easy for us to read these predictions as to the Crucifixion and post resurrection appearances, and fail to sympathise with both their ignorance and then joy at encountering the risen Jesus on the first Easter Sunday evening. To see the post-resurrected Jesus today is to possess a spiritual sight, to ‘see’ His presence in the lives of the Church and individual believers, something impossible to achieve without the joy that comes from the Holy Spirit.
The ‘birth-pangs’ recorded by the Evangelist refer both to the situation of the moment: the imminent arrest in the Garden, the consequent trial and punishment, and also the entry into true faith by the Christian. Faith is both a gift to be accepted graciously but also involves a struggle to make it become the animating principle of every part of life. The death and resurrection of Jesus will have its influence on the prayer life of all His followers. As Sts Matthew and Luke record, He had already taught them, the ‘Our Father’, thus establishing Jesus’ relationship to God as Father. Now the same intention is being described, whereby successful petitionary prayers to Jesus will demonstrate His intimate connection with the Father.
The long farewell discourse by Jesus in the Upper Room will conclude with His ‘Priestly Prayer’ to the Father. This prayer will ask the Father to protect the apostles, those He has chosen to continue His work in the world. They will face an ambiguous situation, being both in and out of the world simultaneously. Jesus will ask the Father to send the Holy Spirit to bind them together and form the Church. (To be continued).
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