FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER - I AM THE WAY, THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE

Fifth Sunday of Easter – A: (Acts 6:1-7; 1Pt 2:4-9; John 14:1-12)
Theme: COME, WE WILL GO TO OUR FATHER’S HOUSE

Reflection:
- This Fifth Sunday of Easter reminds us that the Risen Jesus is the TRUE AND SURE WAY that leads us to the Father’s House.
- Last Sunday we have reflected that Jesus is the Door/Gate through which we enter into the communion with the other sheep. In this way, God wills that there would be One Shepherd and One Flock. Communion with the others, either our own Christian brothers and sisters or even our brothers and sisters of other faiths, is possible only through the genuine knowledge of Jesus who opens the door of every sheep with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
- This communion will be completely realized when we Christians, as our Christian task and responsibility, open the door of our life to Jesus and to the others.
- Now, today we mediate on how we can reach our Father’s House, which is our TRUE AND ETERNAL HOME, because there are rooms for all and Jesus is going ahead of us to prepare each one a room each. Therefore, the invitation of Risen Jesus to us, today, is: Come, We will go to our Father’s House.

First Reading:
- The institution of the diaconate and the election of first seven deacons.
o Deacon, which originates from ‘dia-kones’, means ‘to be at service’ or ‘to serve’.
o They are to be men of ‘good standing, full of spirit and of wisdom’.
o Apostles’ laying of their hands on them is the gesture through which the appointed ones receive both the grace of God (through the authority Jesus himself has given them) and the power of the Holy Spirit (the gift of His Resurrection that Jesus has offered to his apostles)
o The deacons are elected to be at their service of the community’s needs and for the equal and just distribution of the food.
- It is not right (in better translation: it is not just) to neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables (better translation is: keeping accounts) v. 2:
o The vast distance that has to be and which the Apostles have found out soon is between: the proclamation of the Word of God and the needs of our daily life.
o They do not say that the daily necessities are to be fully kept aside for the word of God but because of these preoccupations the Word of God should not be blocked and should not be disturbed. The Word of God has to take certain priority.
o The word they use is: it is NOT RIGHT, not just to neglect the word of God:
 It is not just to go leave God’s word unheard and un-followed just for the desires of the world.
 It is not just to neglect the spiritual nourishment for the motives of bodily and physical satisfactions like that of food and drink, in fact, Jesus promises us that we should not worry about what to eat and what to drink……if we work of the kingdom of God, everything else would be given to us (Mt 6:25-33). We do not buy the gold and give to the pigs.
 It is not just to leave the church/ or neglect the Church’s teaching and liturgy for the motives of unauthentic and attractive fantasies that the modern technology and politics keep before us; and so on.
 The apostles do not use any other word, like it is not good and all, but, it is NOT JUST. Because it is with the ‘Justice’ that one day we have to give the accounts for the gifts of life and freedom we have received from the goodness of God.
 To keep the word of God away is equal to keep the life away and Jesus today affirms that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life.
- We, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word (v.4): the exact word that was used for ‘devout’ is ‘dedicate’.
o Dedicate means ‘giving the utmost importance’ and ‘doing everything’ to make the matter come into reality;
o The apostles, who have seen the Word’s presence amidst them (word became flesh and is amidst them, Jn 1:14), who have seen the Kingdom of God proclaimed by Jesus in his words and wonders, now, with the presence and power of Risen Jesus which is the Holy Spirit, realize that ‘serving the word’ is the only occupation and preoccupation they have to carry on.
o ‘Serving the word’ is not just the proclamation of the word but it’s ‘task’ and ‘challenge’ of living. It is a service to word. Servant is always present to the masters will and orders. Here the servants of the word are always to be ready to carry upon what it demands and its challenges. A good servant stands by the master, by the mastery of the Word.
o They dedicate themselves, for nothing more or nothing else, but for the prayer and proclamation of the word. They are ready to spend each single second of their life for this service and this is the meaning of dedication.
- The word of God continued to spread and the number of disciples increased greatly, v.7:
o This is the result of dedicated proclamation of the Gospel; its abundant grace reaches every one; it is like a mustard seed which grows into a big tree as Jesus tells in Mt 13.
o When the word of God is given the utmost importance, when all the hindrances that make the word to be hidden (like hidden talents) are removed and when it is served with the dedication and devotion, it grows and spreads its efficacious fruits to the recipients.

Second Reading:
- Spiritual House of living stones on the LIVING STONE:
o For the house each single stone is very important. It makes the building complete. It gives the building the shape.
o Even if one single, simple and small stone is missing the strength of the building starts falling down; may be as a single stone it may be overlooked but once it becomes the part of the building, it cannot be overlooked because, it makes the building loose the strength, shape and its fullness.
o We are those living stones with which God has built his dwelling, his Spiritual House; each one of us is very precious for God. This is not any house where are many moments of joy and also sadness; but this is the Spiritual House, where the Holy Spirit is keeps intact everything with His power; He sees that no stone is removed or overlooked; He strengthens each and individual stone; otherwise, the building loses its spirit and its spiral unity and spiritual communion.
o This brotherly unity and fraternal communion is always possible just because this spiritual house is built upon the Living Rock, Jesus Christ, a rock that was thrown by the non-believers but that stands out to be the foundation stone for the living building for the faithful.
- Believing is an Honor- v.7: for those who believe he is precious; in the little authentic translation we find ‘it is honor for those who believe’.
o Now we are clear of in where consists our honor: it consists proper in believing in Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, died and Risen and has become the Corner Stone.
o We may try to search for many other places for the honor; we may do many other things to get this honor from the people; we may work hard/make risks in order to enter into the life of honor in the society; but finally it consists only in believing Jesus, who has re-brought to us this honor lost by our pride and disobedience. Whatever is the other possible honor in the world, it is false honor or at least the honor which lasts only for some time. This honor for us is a loving gift of God; though unworthy by ourselves and incapable with our own strength, God has gifted this honor to us by making us his own; how did he make us his own?
- You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, v.9:
o God’s choice is gratuitous: There many other people who are more powerful, more capable and more intelligent and more in many aspects; but God’s will is different; his thoughts are different unlike our thoughts, Is 55; His choice comes freely; we are picked up from among many peoples and many faiths to be his people and this is the honor of being ‘God’s chosen race’;
o Priesthood is a gift of God in Christ and in Spirit: Priesthood is to be at the service of the word and the service of the sacraments; some celebrate and some receive; but the grace is equal to the celebrant as well as the recipient; we are equal participant of the grace of priesthood, although some are consecrated in particular manner in the sacrament of Holy Orders and other remain as belonging to the lay priesthood. The same grace of the Spirit flows in us and is given to us according to our need and vocation; above all, our honor consists not only having this grace of priesthood but in living it;
o Holy Nation: not as an individual but as a community. Christian faith is the community faith. All profess one baptism and one creed; we are one in spirit and one in mind; and we have to preserve this holiness as a race, as a community and as a nation; and our honor properly consists in the ‘manifestation of the holy nation’.
o God’s own people: This is the dignity of our recognition. It is made possible to us by the grace fetching merits of Jesus Christ; we are God’s; we belong to God; what a grace! What an honor!

Gospel Reading:

- Many dwelling places in the Father’s House (v.2):
o Father’s house is the ‘state of relationship’ or ‘bond of unity’ with the Triune God; God is in Three and three persons in God; the heart of the Trinity is the House; in this heart of God there is place for everyone; there are many dwelling places which are already willed and designed by God; He does not want that anybody go away from the house (like a small son of the parable of prodigal son, who goes out of the house) or anybody stand outside the house (like that of the elder son in the same parable who was reluctant to enter into the house); the will of God is that everyone (for, God do not make differences – Acts 10:34) has to enter into the house because God has prepared it out of his immense love for the humankind.
o Even in and from the time of creation God has given each one a place in his thought (mind), in his presence (body) and in his heart (spirit) and thus called each creature into existence; coming into existence means coming into life and there was no life outside God; and so coming into life means participating in the life that God offers from his love and goodness; and it goes on; there is no end for life; it’s origin and end is God himself; each one is already carved in the mind of God before being borne in the womb of the mother, therefore God is the origin and source of life; each is invited to the salvation because life continues ever after this earthly pilgrimage and continues in God, therefore God is the end and destiny of life; our life has no end because God, the life, has no end; therefore, the heart of God (the design of God for everyone) is always open and is always ready for our dwelling;
o ‘Many’ has no limited number; many signifies the continuous growth; ‘many dwelling houses’ means that ‘there are as many rooms as there are as many people’. if the number of people increase, even the number of the rooms increase; therefore, ‘many’ may has the starting number, because starts always with one, but there is no ending number; this shows the immensity in the design of God for all; all can/have to be in his House; this is the meaning of what we usually use, “God is in all and all are in God”.
o There are rooms for everyone; but it is we who have to become worthy (by love of God and others) to occupy the room; the door is open but it is we have to be eligible (with the service of prayer and proclamation – first reading) who have to enter into the house; the grace of God is abundant and ever flowing but it is we who have receive it by our availability for the life of Word of God, Jesus. If we do, we occupy the room prepared for us; otherwise, rooms are ready but we are not ready to receive them; and it is we who are going to miss them; there is no accusing of God because He has already made possible the room; it is we who have accuse ourselves for having trodden down the possibility;
- I will Go – Prepare – Come again and will take you to myself (v.3):
o It’s always God who initiates an event; He who makes and moves the first step towards anything; it is because He is the only ‘unmoved mover’. Only he who has life can move; the creation started to move (revolve – process of growth) only because it has received this life from God; therefore, God, who is Life in Fullness, takes the first step to do anything; God wanted to shared his life (inner life as unity and outer life as distinct) with the creation and that is the reason why he called whole of creation to himself; I will ‘go’ and ‘prepare’ a place for you, I will ‘come again’: all these are the movements of God, not of the man; therefore, God is the one who initiates and bring into completion;
o ‘Go-prepare-come again’ is a process of God’s revelation of love for man and this is seen in all the events of God’s doing, either before Jesus (in the Old Testament) or after Jesus (in the New Testament and even to this present day);
 In the act of creation – we see how God has come out of himself (I will go) and created every creature and finally man in his own image and likeness (prepare) and made creation to be his own and destined it to be in his intimate union and thus called it into life (come gain to take it with me);
 In the ‘event of salvation’ (From Abraham to the last of the prophets) of the Old Testament – it is God who made move and walked before his chosen race (second reading also) of Israel, (I will go – in the form of cloud and fire) and opened every possibility of deliverance from the hands of the oppressing empires (prepare) and re-brought them into his covenant of promise of continuous love and mercy and thus made them live in him and for him (come again to take them);
 In the ‘event of Incarnation’: It is more obvious and more manifesting in the Incarnation the movement of God; it is God has left everything and came out of himself (I will go) and opened the door of salvation to the whole of humanity in his union of natures (prepare) and called them into his life with all the revelation in wonderful words and marvelous deeds (come again) and it is for this he says: “I have come so that you may have life and life in abundance” (Jn 10:10);
 In the ‘Paschal Event’ – this movement of God reached its culmination even to the point of giving (offering) his life for the humanity; it is true because only who has life can give life and who has the love to offer life can give life and no one else can do; God who has life only can give this life for humanity because he has the love to do it so (no man can have greater love than giving his own life for his friends); here consists also the authenticity of good news of God’s salvation: God has taken initiative to call to himself all the existence and takes the ultimate step of ‘giving his own life’ for the same existence; the love of God can go any further; it can do anything and even at the cost of death (only human term and human reality because for God death is one event as simple as any event in the recycling design of God); How can God die? Can God die at all? If dies is he really a God? For such a questions posed by so many philosophers/fundamentalists/ and atheist, there is only one answer: ‘the Paschal event’: God who died for man and because the death is not a great power for him and as death has no power over him, has come into life again; this event could be give to the humanity the hope of salvation; God comes out of his nature of death (I will go) and died and made a possibility (prepare) to have the salvation and life (come again);
o From Jesus Christ it has its direction towards the eschatological completion: it is, in today’s Gospel, Jesus who tells about his going to prepare the room and come again to take his disciples. It also has two fold movement of Christ: one in his first coming (his historical and earthly life) and another in his second coming (his glorious and heavenly life); as we have seen above, God in the person of Jesus Christ, entered into the world (I will go) and through his words and deeds of love, which includes also the passion and death, has made the salvation possible (prepare) and in this way humanity can have an access to his risen glory (Come again);
- Where I am, there you may also be (v.3):
o This is the result of God’s movement towards humanity;
o We are made full partakers of Jesus life and so we have to be where he is and we have to be how he is;
o We are being created and called to be with Him; once we have fallen into sin and gone astray from Him, He has come in search of us so that we can be still with Him – that is the movement of Christ Event;
o If Jesus has just visited the world for it is not his permanent dwelling, we also need to consider the world in the same manner and reach the ‘Eternal Home’ and ‘Father’s House’ where Jesus sits at His Right side; we should not cling on this earth and worldly desires because we are not of this world because Jesus calls us to be with him.
o He has enough space for every one of us; he wills that we have to be with him; and he takes every possible step to take us with him so that we are always ‘Through Him’, ‘With Him’ and ‘In Him’.
- I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life (v.6):
o It could be either the way – the truth – and the life: it’s a process one leading to the other, one finding its completion and fulfillment in the other; the Way that leads to the Truth and the Truth that gives the Life and the Life again which makes known the Way; in this way, one goes before the other/or/ one follows the other and in a better way, we can say that, one completes the other; we cannot stop with the first one, the way; we cannot also remain only with the second one, the Truth; and finally we cannot be just happy with the third one, the life, without showing again the way to the others;
• we cannot stop and content with the Way: there are various religions that show ‘the way’ (like Buddhism which itself accepts to be only the way) and it may also lead to the truth but truth in partial, not in full; because the Nirvana is the state perfect happiness a person reaches after giving up all his earthly and bodily desires. And with detachment from the world, in Buddhism, a man reaches a state of joy and it is true; but it is partial because with that the person stops looking for something more; that means, he is not attached to or striving for something spiritual; the life is both physical, mental and more over spiritual; therefore, the person reaches only the partial truth; the fullness of truth consists in ‘detachment’ from what is illusory and temporary and in ‘attachment’ to what is real and eternal; and that’s what Jesus intents when he says that anyone who wants to follow him, deny (detachment) the proper self and take up (attachment) the cross; therefore, when Buddhism is content only with the detachment of the world and thus attaining the Nirvana, which has nothing to do with the life in God, then it is only partial truth;
• we cannot be content neither only with the Truth: there are various religions that are ‘the true’ (like that of Islam who take their sources from the revelation of God through Abraham); but reaching the truth is not enough; the truth has to set us free; the truth has to make us life for God and for his love with the love of neighbors; and we see the negligence of this aspect from the part of this particular fundamental ‘truth’ of Islam; it is also partial because it shows the way and reaches the truth but stops there without attaining life of God;
• we cannot just stop ourselves even with the life: there are various sect of the same religion which call themselves as having the life of Christ (like that of many sects of Christianity – Catholics, orthodox, protestant, Anglican and so on); Indeed, they have life in Christ but not life in common; they have faith in Christ but not united in Christ; each has its own doctrine, its own faith and its own ‘way’ and it own ‘truth’ and its own ‘life’; Jesus did not intent this when he revealed the mystery of God; mystery of God is that all his people are One in mind and One in Spirit; when that do not happen, there is no life;
o Then, where to reach and how to reach the True Father’s Home? The answer is already revealed: Jesus, the way and the truth and the life; It is not very easy to distinguish and decide which shows the way when we have uncountable religions; but from the time that the mystery of Christ Jesus is revealed, the Christians have an access to the Father’s House (Eternal Happiness); but when this revealed ‘way’, ‘truth’ and the ‘life’ is divided into various pieces by various sects, Jesus himself is divided; Now we have look for the better option among all that we have; we have to look for that which is little more authentic, more witnessing and more risk-taking for the service of the word of God and finally we find the ‘Catholic Church’ which seems to be very closer to the design of God’s salvation to man; because it show the ‘way of Jesus’ by its passionate and grace-fetching sacraments; it leads us to the truth by its un-tired proclamation of the Good news and God’s will; and it finally takes initiative (as God always makes his movements for the good of the humanity) with its dialogue, message of peace and call of reconciliation to the fraternal unity of Christ’s followers and of whole humanity, so that, they may have life and life in abundance; and Jesus is ‘The Way’ (I am door, who enters through me, will have share in my life), is ‘The Truth’ (I am the Truth: Jesus’ words to Pilate) and is ‘The Life’ (I am the Life and Resurrection); it is his own revelation which he has manifested with his words, deeds and more over with his Passion, death and Resurrection;
- Whoever has seen me has seen the Father (v.9):
o If we understand all that is revealed in Christ we come to know God; that is what Jesus tells Philip;
o Jesus reveals once again the intimate and undividable unity that exists between God and himself; the mystery of God revealed in fullness in Christ earthly life and thus Jesus becomes as, St. Paul says, fullness of God dwells in him (Col 1:19).
o All the truth that we have meditated on the words of Jesus applies, in the immediate manner and in the implicit manner, to the mystery of the Father;
o Our final destination is to see God face to face, that is beatific vision of God; and we reach that state only when we enter into Father’s House in which rooms are prepared for us by Christ, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

Conclusion:
- The resurrection of Christ reveals so much of truth about God and human destiny;
- Fullness of God’s revelation passes through the mysteries of Christ;
- Christ’s proclamation of God’s kingdom is nothing but reaching our true home, that is, the Father’s House;
- Rooms are ready, the access is made easy to enter into the bosom of the Father, but it is we, who are supposed to be working with the dedication and devotion (first reading) to be authentic ‘chosen race’ who are being bought by God (second reading) for the following ‘the way-the truth-the life’ (Gospel) in order to reach our Father’s House;
- Come, we will go to the Father’s House, Alleluia!