August 26, 2018
"To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life"(John 6:68).
We have spent the last four weeks meditating on the sixth chapter of St. John. Peter´s words "To whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life" come as a true consolation and hope. I remember that in my youth, when I was searching for meaning in my life and at the beginning of my religious vocation, these words of the Prince of Apostles gave me the confidence to continue on the path of God. Today, 36 years since I joined the Jesuits, these very same words are still a source of consolation and hope in the God who is "always greater."
The liturgy presents us in both the Old and New Testaments with decisive moments in which the believers must take sides. That is, we must decide what to believe and who we want to follow. It was not easy for the people of Israel to believe in the God who liberated them from Egypt or for the disciples of Jesus to believe in his divinity. Today is a good time to think about what we believe when we pray the Creed and publicly manifest our faith that makes us sons and daughters of the Living God.
Loyalty and gratitude are the virtues that the faithful Israelites pledge to continue to serve the Lord. When Joshua asks them to commit to the God they well serve, the people immediately respond that they will not forsake the LORD. The Lord had lead them out of slavery, performed miracles, and protected them in their journey to the Promised Land. They are grateful for all the Lord has done for them and they remain loyal to the Lord while living in the land of other gods.
These same virtues will be those that flourish in the apostles and early Christians who accepted and believed in their Divine Master even when many others had left Jesus. Peter vocalizes his faith in Jesus although he later will deny even that he knows his master. Today with Peter we make our own profession of faith in Jesus Christ and we recognize that only in Him do we have Eternal life.
Fr. Hernán, S.J.