“HONEY FROM THE ROCK”
Tuesday, 27th December 2016,
Christmas Octave
Feast of St John, Apostle and Evangelist
1 Jn 1: 1-4;
Ps 96: 1-2, 5-6, 11-12;
Jn 20: 2-8
WORD MADE FLESH FOR US!
Today is dedicated to St. John, the evangelist and Apostle. Not only did he write one of the four Gospels, he also wrote various letters that are preserved. In the passage from his letter, John echoes what he wrote in the first chapter of his Gospel when he spoke of the Eternal Word, existing from the beginning, taking on flesh. Here, he echoes that “What was from the beginning…was made visible to us.” The Eternal Son of the Father took on flesh for us to see. John was a witness to this. For John, the Incarnation would have been particularly real and overwhelming in a personal and transforming way. John dedicated his life to the spreading of the Good News. He dedicated his life to pondering the great mystery by allowing himself to see, more clearly, that the human being with whom he walked and talked, was both God and man. He would have never fully exhausted this great mystery and would have continually been in awe of what he experienced. Furthermore, John would have been blessed to continue “touching” the presence of the God-Man every time he celebrated the Holy Eucharist. Little by little he would have understood that Jesus was fully present to him through the gift of himself.
Even after the resurrection of Jesus it was John who first recognized the stranger as Jesus at the lake of Galilee. When they caught no fish and the stranger told them to cast the net to the right side of the boat, John was quick enough to recognize Jesus and he exclaimed “It is the Lord”. This tells us how much impact Jesus had made on his life. He was able to feel his presence though he was physically absent. Love knows all things, it has no limits.
Christmas brings us the message that God is love. Let us then ask God’s grace so that we may know Jesus, as the relationship with Jesus is the best thing that can happen to us. Let us offer a prayer of thanksgiving for John’s deeply insightful writings, and try to enter into his mind and heart as he prayerfully reflected upon Jesus throughout his life.
Prayer: Lord, You are glorious and beyond my understanding. Your divine presence in this world is truly mysterious and awe-inspiring. Thank You for coming among us and thank You for revealing Yourself to us. May I come to know You more deeply and may I always imitate the example of your beloved disciple. St. John, pray for us. Jesus, I trust in You. Amen.