03-14-2016, 08:09 AM
CHRIST AS THE LIGHT OF HUMANITY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: Dn 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62; Ps 23:1-6; Jn 8:12-20
The fifth week of Lent is traditionally known as Passion Week. Before Vatican II, the crosses and statues in church were veiled to indicate Passion Time. Today, it is optional. That this mood is still the background for this week is indicated by the fact that the rubrics permit us to use the hymns of Passiontide for Lauds and Vespers; and the preface for mass is taken from the Passion of the Lord. This means that the liturgy wants us to focus on the passion of our Lord. All the gospel texts remind us of the increasing hostility against Jesus from this week onwards leading up to Good Friday.
But what is the reason for the growing enmity of the religious leaders against Jesus? Firstly, it is a question of the identity of Jesus. The Jews were ignorant of Jesus’ identity, simply because they did not know the Father since the Father and Him are one. Jesus told them, “You do not know me, nor do you know my Father; if you did know me, you would know my Father as well.” This too is the most crucial question in Christianity. Who is Jesus? Where did He come from? What is His relationship with the Father? Is He a man or is He God? The identity of Jesus determines our relationship with Him and our understanding of life. For the Elects preparing for baptism and even for all of us, this question is urgent, since the answer we give to this question has implications on our commitment to the Lord.
To the extent that we know who Jesus is and what He is for us, we give ourselves totally to Him. If our answer is unclear then we will not take the words of Jesus seriously, nor will we believe that He is with the Church, protecting her from errors. It is for this reason that the Church has been preparing the Catechumens all this while to come to know Jesus personally and deeply so that they could make a decisive commitment to the Lord when they are baptized this coming Easter. For us who are already baptized, we too are asked to evaluate whether we truly believe in Jesus and know Him because often we pay lip service to our faith in Christ. This is seen when our lives contradict the faith we profess. When we do not live the life of Christ accordingly, we too have become like the religious leaders in today’s scripture readings, betraying the Lord by our sinful life.
So what prevents us from seeing Jesus clearly and coming to faith in Him? Clearly, it is because of sin. In the bible, adultery is always a symbol of sin because every sin is a sin of infidelity to God. The story of Susanna brings out the wickedness of sin. The lust of the wicked judges blinded them to what is truth. Sadly, instead of using their position and power invested on them to render justice to the poor and the weak, they abused their authority; and used their influence and position to satisfy their lustful desires. When they could not get what they wanted, they became vindictive and falsely plotted together to accuse Susanna, the innocent and God-fearing wife of Joakim, of committing adultery. They framed a false charge against her, knowing that because they were judges, their testimony would immediately be accepted without question. So too, the religious leaders during the time of Jesus were not ready to accept Jesus simply because He was a threat to them. They saw Jesus as a threat to their status quo and their position in society. Filled with jealousy and resentment like the lustful judges, they sought to have Jesus killed to safeguard their interests.
In today’s gospel, Jesus proclaims Himself as the light of the world. He comes to enlighten us all in the darkness of our sins. Like the prophet Daniel, Jesus has come to reveal to us the darkness of our souls and the blindness of our eyes to the truth about ourselves. This theme of Jesus as the Light is anticipated at the very beginning of chapter 8 of the story of the adulterous woman, when St John indicated that it was at daybreak that the adulterous woman who committed sin in the dark came to find Jesus in the light, since He is the light, the truth and then the life.
That today’s assertion is made during the Feast of the Tabernacles, which is also a celebration of Light, also implies that Jesus was identifying Himself with God. For the Jews, the Temple was lighted up in commemoration of the Exodus experience when God appeared in the form of the Pillar of Fire which led their forefathers through the wilderness in the desert. So the Jews knew what Jesus was implying when He said, “I am the light of the world” since the very word, “I am” is the name of Yahweh and only God is the Light of humanity. However, because Jesus is the “I am”, He could say so confidently that “anyone who follows me will not be walking in the dark; He will have the light of life.” Only because He is God, He could show us the fullness of life and truth. If we believe in Jesus, it is only because He is the Word of God and therefore the light of the world. If He is the light, then following Him is the way to overcome the darkness of our minds and the evil in our hearts.
How are we so sure that Christ is the Light of the world? The basis for His claim is His own personal testimony and that of the Father. Jesus said, “My testimony is still valid, because I know where I came from and where I am going.” In His life and in His works, and in the scriptures, His identity with the Father is manifested. The works of Jesus are indications that He is acting on behalf of His Father. The works of Jesus refer also to great works of God at creation and at the Exodus. But most of all, it is His resurrection that vindicated His divine identity. Otherwise the passion that He would undergo would be meaningless and tragic. That the Father would raise a criminal from the dead means that the Father was endorsing all that Jesus said and did. This other theme of the resurrection is anticipated in Year A of last Sunday’s liturgy when the gospel gives us a preview of the all-important sign in John’s gospel, namely, that of the raising of Lazarus, foreshadowing His own resurrection.
Hence, if Jesus is the resurrection and the life, the challenge to all of us is to follow Him. Will we be like the blind man in the following chapter of John’s gospel who was healed by Jesus and who recognized Jesus’ identity, or respond like the blind Pharisees who refused to admit that Jesus is the Light of the world?
If we have come to that recognition, then as the Light, Jesus will show us where we came from and where we are going. Besides revealing our true origin and destiny in life, Jesus as the light will reveal to us our sinfulness, where every sin is rooted in infidelity, symbolized by adultery. Once we are clear about our identity and destiny, we will be called to walk with Him in the light even when we face trials and difficulties. Like Jesus, we can remain firm, standing for the truth. Even when we walk in the valley of darkness, we know that Jesus our Good Shepherd and Light will light up our path. We can trust that Jesus will show us the way to be true to the light and remain confident in the face of our opponents.
Today, we have the example of Susanna. She is exemplary in faith. It was her total faith in God whom she believed would justify her, that she could remain firm to the commandments and not feel discouraged when misunderstood or wrongly found guilty. Of course in her case, the prophet Daniel set her free. In the case of Jesus, He had to go to the ultimate test of surrendering in faith to the Father when He was condemned unjustly and crucified for a crime that He did not commit. But because of His surrender to the Father, He was raised to new life and made Lord and God.
As we journey with Jesus during Passion Week, let us walk with Him, so that we might “have the light of life”. It is in our fidelity to God and to the commandments that we will find true freedom and peace, for the truth sets us free. The question that remains at the end of the day is whether we will be faithful to the truth and walk in truth and love, or will we allow our selfishness and pride to hinder us from walking in the light. Consequently, we need to spend time contemplating on the love of Jesus and our Father during Passion Week. We need to come to know Him more and more. Only when we know the Father’s love, can we come to understand the heart and mind of Jesus as well, for He comes to reveal to us the love of His Father for us.
SCRIPTURE READINGS: Dn 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62; Ps 23:1-6; Jn 8:12-20
The fifth week of Lent is traditionally known as Passion Week. Before Vatican II, the crosses and statues in church were veiled to indicate Passion Time. Today, it is optional. That this mood is still the background for this week is indicated by the fact that the rubrics permit us to use the hymns of Passiontide for Lauds and Vespers; and the preface for mass is taken from the Passion of the Lord. This means that the liturgy wants us to focus on the passion of our Lord. All the gospel texts remind us of the increasing hostility against Jesus from this week onwards leading up to Good Friday.
But what is the reason for the growing enmity of the religious leaders against Jesus? Firstly, it is a question of the identity of Jesus. The Jews were ignorant of Jesus’ identity, simply because they did not know the Father since the Father and Him are one. Jesus told them, “You do not know me, nor do you know my Father; if you did know me, you would know my Father as well.” This too is the most crucial question in Christianity. Who is Jesus? Where did He come from? What is His relationship with the Father? Is He a man or is He God? The identity of Jesus determines our relationship with Him and our understanding of life. For the Elects preparing for baptism and even for all of us, this question is urgent, since the answer we give to this question has implications on our commitment to the Lord.
To the extent that we know who Jesus is and what He is for us, we give ourselves totally to Him. If our answer is unclear then we will not take the words of Jesus seriously, nor will we believe that He is with the Church, protecting her from errors. It is for this reason that the Church has been preparing the Catechumens all this while to come to know Jesus personally and deeply so that they could make a decisive commitment to the Lord when they are baptized this coming Easter. For us who are already baptized, we too are asked to evaluate whether we truly believe in Jesus and know Him because often we pay lip service to our faith in Christ. This is seen when our lives contradict the faith we profess. When we do not live the life of Christ accordingly, we too have become like the religious leaders in today’s scripture readings, betraying the Lord by our sinful life.
So what prevents us from seeing Jesus clearly and coming to faith in Him? Clearly, it is because of sin. In the bible, adultery is always a symbol of sin because every sin is a sin of infidelity to God. The story of Susanna brings out the wickedness of sin. The lust of the wicked judges blinded them to what is truth. Sadly, instead of using their position and power invested on them to render justice to the poor and the weak, they abused their authority; and used their influence and position to satisfy their lustful desires. When they could not get what they wanted, they became vindictive and falsely plotted together to accuse Susanna, the innocent and God-fearing wife of Joakim, of committing adultery. They framed a false charge against her, knowing that because they were judges, their testimony would immediately be accepted without question. So too, the religious leaders during the time of Jesus were not ready to accept Jesus simply because He was a threat to them. They saw Jesus as a threat to their status quo and their position in society. Filled with jealousy and resentment like the lustful judges, they sought to have Jesus killed to safeguard their interests.
In today’s gospel, Jesus proclaims Himself as the light of the world. He comes to enlighten us all in the darkness of our sins. Like the prophet Daniel, Jesus has come to reveal to us the darkness of our souls and the blindness of our eyes to the truth about ourselves. This theme of Jesus as the Light is anticipated at the very beginning of chapter 8 of the story of the adulterous woman, when St John indicated that it was at daybreak that the adulterous woman who committed sin in the dark came to find Jesus in the light, since He is the light, the truth and then the life.
That today’s assertion is made during the Feast of the Tabernacles, which is also a celebration of Light, also implies that Jesus was identifying Himself with God. For the Jews, the Temple was lighted up in commemoration of the Exodus experience when God appeared in the form of the Pillar of Fire which led their forefathers through the wilderness in the desert. So the Jews knew what Jesus was implying when He said, “I am the light of the world” since the very word, “I am” is the name of Yahweh and only God is the Light of humanity. However, because Jesus is the “I am”, He could say so confidently that “anyone who follows me will not be walking in the dark; He will have the light of life.” Only because He is God, He could show us the fullness of life and truth. If we believe in Jesus, it is only because He is the Word of God and therefore the light of the world. If He is the light, then following Him is the way to overcome the darkness of our minds and the evil in our hearts.
How are we so sure that Christ is the Light of the world? The basis for His claim is His own personal testimony and that of the Father. Jesus said, “My testimony is still valid, because I know where I came from and where I am going.” In His life and in His works, and in the scriptures, His identity with the Father is manifested. The works of Jesus are indications that He is acting on behalf of His Father. The works of Jesus refer also to great works of God at creation and at the Exodus. But most of all, it is His resurrection that vindicated His divine identity. Otherwise the passion that He would undergo would be meaningless and tragic. That the Father would raise a criminal from the dead means that the Father was endorsing all that Jesus said and did. This other theme of the resurrection is anticipated in Year A of last Sunday’s liturgy when the gospel gives us a preview of the all-important sign in John’s gospel, namely, that of the raising of Lazarus, foreshadowing His own resurrection.
Hence, if Jesus is the resurrection and the life, the challenge to all of us is to follow Him. Will we be like the blind man in the following chapter of John’s gospel who was healed by Jesus and who recognized Jesus’ identity, or respond like the blind Pharisees who refused to admit that Jesus is the Light of the world?
If we have come to that recognition, then as the Light, Jesus will show us where we came from and where we are going. Besides revealing our true origin and destiny in life, Jesus as the light will reveal to us our sinfulness, where every sin is rooted in infidelity, symbolized by adultery. Once we are clear about our identity and destiny, we will be called to walk with Him in the light even when we face trials and difficulties. Like Jesus, we can remain firm, standing for the truth. Even when we walk in the valley of darkness, we know that Jesus our Good Shepherd and Light will light up our path. We can trust that Jesus will show us the way to be true to the light and remain confident in the face of our opponents.
Today, we have the example of Susanna. She is exemplary in faith. It was her total faith in God whom she believed would justify her, that she could remain firm to the commandments and not feel discouraged when misunderstood or wrongly found guilty. Of course in her case, the prophet Daniel set her free. In the case of Jesus, He had to go to the ultimate test of surrendering in faith to the Father when He was condemned unjustly and crucified for a crime that He did not commit. But because of His surrender to the Father, He was raised to new life and made Lord and God.
As we journey with Jesus during Passion Week, let us walk with Him, so that we might “have the light of life”. It is in our fidelity to God and to the commandments that we will find true freedom and peace, for the truth sets us free. The question that remains at the end of the day is whether we will be faithful to the truth and walk in truth and love, or will we allow our selfishness and pride to hinder us from walking in the light. Consequently, we need to spend time contemplating on the love of Jesus and our Father during Passion Week. We need to come to know Him more and more. Only when we know the Father’s love, can we come to understand the heart and mind of Jesus as well, for He comes to reveal to us the love of His Father for us.