A reading of the holy Gospel according to Jn 14:23-29
Jesus said to his disciples: “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me. “I have told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. You heard me tell you, ‘I am going away and I will come back to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father; for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you this before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe.”
REFLECTION
The Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.
How unique are we that God created us just so that our final dwelling place is heaven By the passion and death of Jesus, our place in heaven has been prepared. From Easter to the Ascension, Jesus will physically remain very close to the apostles. He promised the apostles He would never leave them and that He would come back.
We have Him with us in our daily meal of His Body and Blood in the Holy Eucharist.
God also gave us the freedom to choose what we do and where we want to go when we die. He has prepared heaven for us, but is this what we will be choosing for our final dwelling place?
Hope is our future that one day Jesus will be waiting for us and will introduce us to His Father who is our father as well. Faith helps us continue on this journey to see Jesus, to be with Him. And love unites us with the ones dearest to us.
When my daughter started her first year of college, we were so excited for her. But when all the unpacking finished, the many excuses not to leave were exhausted, there was an emptiness in my heart, because, after all, I loved her and knew how hard it would be to not see each other daily. Most important, would she remember all that I taught her or would others show her a different path. How would my daughter be assured of our love and the love of God? We would remind her, of course--we would be always present to her, we would always be there to listen, to hear and open up her eyes and ears.
Jesus knew how hard it would be to be here on earth with all the temptations, the earthly things we get so attached to, and all the different people in our lives that can influence us "to go here" and "to be there". Remember the noonday devils we read in a prior reflection? Are we in danger of a spiritual burnout?
We have been given a special gift of the Holy Spirit. And what does one do with a gift--of course, we open it! We don't let it just sit there on the cupboard, getting dusty. The Holy Spirit comes to us in the wrappings of the Word, but unlike any other gift, He slowly and deliberately does the opening--not us. He does not just sit there, but is always active in our lives. God so loved us that He gave us His only Son. He gave us His Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit will be the advocate for Jesus--reminding us of all He taught us, how to pray, how to get closer to Him and how to make it to heaven.
"If you (I) know how to give good gifts to your (my) children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him? (Luke 11:13). (emphasis mine)
"The Holy Spirit will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you."
Sources:
(1) In Conversation with God, Volume 2, Part 2, Eastertide, Francis Fernandez (kindle)
(2) Holy Spirit Make your Home in Me, George Montague (kindle)
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