Wednesday of the
Third Week of Easter
(Acts 8:1b-8; John 6:35-40)
At the Last Supper in John’s gospel Judas slips away just
before the great discourse of Jesus. The
evangelist makes a pithy remark after reporting Judas’ departure. He says, “And it was night” (13:30). Night, the time of darkness, indicates evil
as today’s gospel relates.
The passage raises eyebrows for its stark presentation of
good and evil, of hope and despair. In
an act of mercy God sends his only Son into the world to save it. He is the light of the world because he
teaches the way to eternal life. He
delivers his most eloquent lesson from the cross. There he shows that to live eternally one
must die to her or himself. Many reject
this truth. In the gospel’s words, they
“prefer(ed) darkness to light.” They
would rather live for themselves than serve others. Think of the man so proud that he ceaselessly
talks about himself. Or consider the
women so spiteful that she seldom has a kind word for anyone.
We have to choose between good and evil, light and
darkness. By choosing goodness Christ
becomes our companion. He usually comes
to us in the people or in the sacraments of the Church. Preferring evil, we also find company with people
of similar interests. But in the end
they will care for us no more than the extent that we serve their purposes.
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