May 15, 2022, Fifth Sunday of Easter (Year C)
They say that a picture paints a thousand words. And although there may not be a thousand words behind the picture that Jesus paints with the Gospel for today, there is definitely more than what is presented in this short passage than one might expect.
The scene depicted is the Last Supper in the Gospel of John (Jn. 13:31-33a, 34-35). Judas has just left the dinner so that he might turn Jesus over to the Jewish high priests and authorities. Jesus tells the remaining disciples, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him” (Jn. 13:31). But the disciples are clueless over what is about to transpire.
They have witnessed Jesus perform many miracles and they have listened raptly to his teachings and other commands. So, from what they have seen and heard, it would make sense that Jesus be made into a state of glorification by God, much like his transfiguration. But this is not the case. In fact, the glorification of Jesus is completely opposite to what they might expect.
First he is betrayed by one of the twelve for thirty pieces of silver, the price paid to a master for the death of a slave. His identity is revealed with a traitor’s kiss in the Garden of Gethsemane while most of his disciples flee in selfish fear of their own lives. And he is arrested and taken before the Sanhedrin, as well as Pontius Pilate and the Romans in the mockery of a trial.
Then Jesus is found guilty of blasphemy and disturbing the peace and sentenced to die due to the insistence of the high priests and other Jews who have been incited by the Jewish authorities. He is stripped, beaten, and mocked and made to carry his cross to the place called Golgotha, a cliff which resembles a skull. He is crucified as a common criminal and dies the horrible death of exhaustion and asphyxiation.
Lurking behind this entire ordeal is the earlier instruction of Jesus for the disciples to love one another as he has loved them. This does not imply a sentimental view of love. Rather this type of love is shown in service to and sacrifice for others. Jesus tells the disciples that all will know that they are his disciples because of the love they show for one another.
It is not until they encounter the risen Jesus in the breaking of the bread and see the marks of his wounds that they finally understand the meaning of his glorification and clarification of the love that he had earlier preached: “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (Jn. 15:13). This is finally when the apostles set about to create the church and spread the message of the Gospel throughout the Roman Empire.
We see one example in the First Reading from the book of Acts (Acts 14:21-27). In their travels we are told that Paul and Barnabas have made a considerable number of disciples. What is missing from the reading is the earlier part of the chapter which explains that there had been “an attempt by both the Gentiles and the Jews, together with their leaders, to attack and stone them” (Acts 14:5).
Thus, when Paul and Barnabas returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch they strengthened the spirits of the disciples there and found it necessary to exhort them to persevere in the faith, saying, “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.” (Acts 14:22). History shows that Paul and Barnabas both met the glorification preached by Jesus, the laying down of their lives for the sake of the gospel. Paul was beheaded in Rome and Barnabas was stoned in Cyprus.
We might also consider another example from the Second Reading and the life of its author John. Some suggest that this is the disciple John, “The one whom Jesus loved.” While others suggest that it is another John, perhaps a student or follower of the disciple by the same name who had mentored the author.
Regardless, the form of literature that the book depicts is known as “apocalyptic.” It contains a large number of symbols and images not to be taken literally which reveal truths of the state of the Church during the persecution by Rome in the First Century. It also contains certain material which might reflect visions of the future.
The passage that we read today might be said to contain a prime example of “glorification” experienced by followers of Christ. Prior to these verses we hear samples of the persecution suffered by Christians at the hands of the Romans. They have experienced tribulation, poverty, and imprisonment by Satan’s disciples. (Rev. 2:16-17). They were conquered and killed by those waging war against them and slaughtered because of the witness they bore to the word of God.
Yet after their trials, these followers of Christ will receive the rewards of their glorification as described in the passage for today. They will experience a “new heaven and a new earth” (Rev. 21:1) where the tribulations they have experienced will be washed away. And they will dwell in the presence of the Lord who will “wipe every tear from their eyes” and “and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain.” (Rev. 21: 3-4).
When we consider these writings for today we get the understanding that the glorification we might experience as Christians is not exactly the same as what the word implies. It is not a life of carefree self-aggrandizement. Nor is it adoration and worship by those around us. And it is not a selfish experience of me and Jesus.
Rather glorification in the site of the Lord is a selfless commitment to help those around us through the process of self-sacrificing, self-giving love. It is a life lived by putting the good of others before our own well-being. And it is a cooperation with Christ “to make all things new again.” (Rev. 21:5a).
