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Alleluia - Christ is Risen
You heard me say to you, 'I am going away, and I am coming to you.' If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you this before it occurs, so that when it does occur, you may believe. ( John 14: 28-29) Read Sunday's Lessons here.
We had a fruitful and profound Adult Education class with Bishop Breidenthal last Sunday morning. I really like "the mutual invitation" model that we are using. Everyone, if they desire, gets to reflect upon the Gospel reading. There's shared space to identify Jesus' presence in The Bible. It's very cool! I invite everyone to come and contribute on any or all of the upcoming Sundays. It's one of a few opportunities during the week when someone else truly asks how you feel. It may be the only time that we closely examine how our faith unfolds in the midst of day-to-day experiences.
One of the points that a few of us raised last week was how deeply sorrowful Jesus' proclamation of his imminent departure from his disciples left us feeling. He's going somewhere and they can't travel with him. One way of observing this scene is that Jesus is leaving them in the midst of chaos. Why? Another way of perceiving his actions is to assume that there's something that they need to accomplish that can't happen unless he isn't there with him. Does John keep raising the point because the relationship between Jesus, The Father, his followers and all of their relationships with one another are essentially central to John's telling of Jesus' Gospel.
There are lots of possibilities. What do you think?
Now a week and about thirty verses later into John's Gospel; we're back to this theme of Jesus' departure from his followers. Why is John's Jesus so insistent about telling Peter and the others that he is not going to abide with them much longer. Why is it so important for Jesus to constantly talk about his relationship with The Father in contrast to his relationship with his followers? I hope that this Sunday's Adult Education conversation will offer some responses along with further inquiries about this scriptural passage.
One of the most enlightening and enriching aspects of preparing for Bishop Breidenthal's episcopal visitation last week was the amount of time that I spent with the younger and more mature adults who Bishop Breidenthal received and confirmed when he was here. I more fully understand and respect how and why each of these Christians loves Jesus and St. James Church. I more closely empathize with their personal and familial stories than I did when we first began "Episcopal-ese" and Confirmation classes in 2012. They have invited me and one another into closer relationships. They and the bishop have invited us into renewing our own baptismal covenants.
This Christian faith of ours is truly relational. The hellos, goodbyes, and deeper understandings of our day to day lives is core to our faith. Our belief in Jesus the Christ thickens when we pay attention to all God is doing in, around, and through us. Inviting one another into these sorts of relationships indeed brings Jesus' resurrected presence closer to us, especially when we feel that he has left us. Here's my hopeful prayer that you will believe that Jesus the Christ's love is true and that your desire to trust in him continues to grow here and the shared world in which we live.
Blessings Along The Way, Jim+
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