Wednesday of the Seventh Week of Easter
(Acts 20:28-38; John 17:11b-19)
Is the world as evil as Jesus indicates in today’s gospel
reading? He says, “… the world hated (his disciples) because they do not belong
to the world.” Yet we don’t experience everything
in the world objectionable. Don’t we enjoy
seeing butterflies and listening to music, even find them edifying?
Without taking away the unique brilliance of the fourth
gospel, commentators have noted its tendency to categorize all things as good
or bad. The good is what belongs to God’s
original creation and to what Christ has redeemed. Some of creation’s good, however, has been corrupted
by Satan’s rebellion against God’s order. These are actions stemming from pride
and its derivatives: lust, greed, and thirst for power.
Followers of Christ are in the world, but they resist Satan’s
evildoing. They may use and indeed enjoy
aspects of the world when those things are aligned with God’s authority. But when the things compete with God for
priority, Christ’s disciples reject them firmly. In the gospel, Jesus prays that his Father
enlightens his followers to always choose wisely.
