Friday of the Fourth Week of Easter
(Acts 13:26-33; John 14:1-6)
In driving out its merchants, Jesus equated the Temple with
his Father’s house. “’… stop making my Father’s
house a marketplace,’” he said. He also
likened the Temple to his own body. “’Destroy
this Temple,’” he added referring to his body, “’and in three days I will raise
it up.’” In today’s passage he speaks of
going to his Father’s house to prepare places for his disciples. Of course, he
is not speaking of tidying guest rooms.
Rather he has in mind making his disciples members of his Body.
He does this, as Thomas understandably does not yet realize,
by suffering crucifixion and rising from the dead. It is a brutal road. Jesus is the one whose heart should be
troubled. But he bravely underplays his
own emotion to take note of his disciples’ anxiety.
As members of Jesus’ Body, we too suffer and rise. The experience brings us a new intimacy with
God and with one another. Suffering with
Christ, we develop a dependence on the Father that magnifies faith. We also acquire empathy – that virtue which enables
solidarity with the poor. We need not be troubled by Jesus' having gone away, only by our unwillingness to follow.
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