Saturday of the Fourth Week of Easter
Sometimes we think, often to our later embarrassment, that we have a sudden insight about someone or something. Feeling pretty good about ourselves, we pose what we think is a very astute statement or question. Just imagine this one:
“Teacher, are there known genetic factors that cause brown cows to give chocolate milk and brown chickens to lay brown colored eggs?”
What seems to be missing here? A little knowledge can be dangerous!
Moving from the ridiculous to the sublime, we have the apostle Phillip approaching Jesus in the Gospel today with a request that Phillip obviously thought was a very good suggestion. He suggested that if Jesus would only show them how to see the signs of the Father’s presence, it would clarify the whole discussion about seeing and knowing the Father.
Feeling pretty good about himself, Phillip sets the scene for us:
“Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.”
And Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.”
With the patience of a good teacher, Jesus calls Phillip to notice what should have been obvious to him the whole time. Jesus then takes the personal identification of the Father and the Son to a whole new level, higher than anything Phillip had ever thought possible.
What might have been an embarrassing moment for Phillip turns out to be a blessing for the rest of us. Grasping the possibility of Jesus and his Father sharing the same identity is beyond our human ability to comprehend. But the longer reach of faith opens up a relationship with God the Father that is new and different from anything we find in the Old Testament. The Father is not off at a distance in the heavenly court, but He is present to us in the very heart of His Beloved Son.
The implications of this are huge. Do we know to whom we’re talking? When the Spirit of the Risen Jesus nudges us and invites us to verbalize our deepest desires, joys, and sorrows we are in the presence of the Blessed Trinity. Phillip and the apostles were accustomed to the sound of the voice of Jesus, as they knew Him so well. We also know the voice of Jesus in prayer and reflection when we truly listen at the core of our being. Jesus is speaking for the Father who has known us from the moment of our conception. The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus are the Word and love of the Father poured out for us in a visible way. It is right there in front of us.
Yes, Phillip, you were asking a good question, but you had no idea of the full implications of the answer. And we don’t either.
Reflection by Fr. Daniel Petsche, OSB
Posted in Lenten Resources