Reading 1 1 Jn 1:1-4
Beloved:
What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we looked upon and touched with our hands concerns the Word of life — for the life was made visible; we have seen it and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was made visible to us— what we have seen and heard we proclaim now to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; for our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We are writing this so that our joy may be complete.
Responsorial Psalm PS 97:1-2, 5-6, 11-12
R. (12) Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
The LORD is king; let the earth rejoice;
let the many isles be glad.
Clouds and darkness are around him,
justice and judgment are the foundation of his throne.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,
before the LORD of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his justice,
and all peoples see his glory.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
Light dawns for the just;
and gladness, for the upright of heart.
Be glad in the LORD, you just,
and give thanks to his holy name.
R. Rejoice in the Lord, you just!
Gospel Jn 20:1a and 2-8
On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we do not know where they put him.” So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed.
REFLECTION
As I reflected on today’s feast of St. John, and its placement in the Octave of Christmas, I was struck again by the delicate layers of insight the Spirit gives to the Church in our liturgical life. Even before we ponder the poetic proclamation of witness in the first reading, the placing of the feast on the third day of the eight days of celebration of the mystery of the Incarnation tells us a great deal about our lives as disciples. John is often called the “beloved disciple” because he speaks of a “disciple Jesus loved” as one who lays his head on Jesus’ breast at the Last Supper, and stands with Jesus’ mother at the foot of the cross. The intimacy of the description seems to be an implied self-description (hence the Church’s reference to John as the “Beloved”) but another way of reading it, similar to the address of the Luke’s Gospel and Acts of the Apostles to one “Theophilus” – or God-lover – can be a general reference about all real disciples, we are, each and all, “Beloved.” It is we who in the Eucharist and in other tender moments of prayer lay our head on Christ’s shoulder or breast, and we who stand beneath the Cross with our mother, the Church, to receive the instruction to care for and be cared for by her. It is the “role” of a disciple to be beloved, just as it is the role of the disciple to witness to that loving tenderness of God made manifest in the humanity of Jesus Christ, which we celebrate these eight days (the fullness of time and participation in the new creation marked by the number eight).
The witness of the disciple is simply and strikingly presented in the first reading: What we have seen and heard in our own lives we report to you – we share with you. But IF we have seen and heard it in our own lives, then our lives have to demonstrate that. Pope Francis has been calling all Catholics to be “JOYFUL” because IF we have seen and heard the truth of God becoming human in our own lives THEN we must manifest that truth by our attitudes, choices and way of life. What have we seen and heard? In some way or another we have encountered the profound loving care of God’s personal attention to us. If that hasn’t happened for us, then we must pray in confidence that God will disclose God’s self to us, and we have to attentively listen to the soft whisper of God that changes everything – like a mighty wind. The Advent season called us to patience. This Christmas octave calls us to attend – to kneel at the crèche, to place our head on the shoulder or chest of the adult Jesus, to stand listening, longing or even agonizing at the foot of the cross, and to run – as today’s Gospel describes it – to run to the tomb, and see the evidence of Resurrection in our life. Where is new life popping up when we least expect it? Where does the evidence of gracious events leave us puzzling about how this could be? Pray with St. John to see how the evidence around corroborates your own experience of God’s presence in Jesus.
After Christmas, we would think that the predominate feeling we would have would be gratitude. Grateful at what family or friends or co-workers have provided; grateful for what we have and who we have that love us; grateful, above all for our lives and the goodness of God who has given us so much. I especially speak for myself as I type these words – how can I help rejoicing in the gratitude of all that God has given. But I find a temptation to feel “let down” somehow. A similar feeling came after a big performance years ago when I did some theater or musical performance. But Christmas is not about performance. Christmas is about receiving the Word-made-flesh into our lives. Maybe if I – (or you?) – don’t feel grateful it is because we did not allow ourselves the humility of the disciple to RECEIVE Christ’s gracious presence. The great news is that we still have time! We are celebrating only the third day of the octave – five more days to become attentive . . . receptive . . . to Jesus’ invitation to intimacy as a real disciple – a beloved disciple. Blessed St. John’s Day!
“Oh come let us adore him . . . Christ the Lord ”
by Eileen Burke-Sullivan, Theology Department, Creighton.edu
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