May 1, 2014 (St. Philip and St. Andrew)

Thursday, May 1, 2014 (Feast Day of St. Philip and St. Andrew)

John 14:6-14

Today we remember two of the apostles, followers of Jesus’s way of life. Not only did they share in ministering to people with Jesus, but tradition holds that they were both died martyrs. James is said to have been crucified, and then as if that weren’t bad enough, dismembered. Philip is said to have been crucified too (and again, as if that weren’t bad enough, he was upside down). 

Today’s passage from John, with the famous “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” speech, is associated with these apostles. Sadly, this passage seems to get used primarily as a club with which to beat those whom some see to be our religious ‘rivals.’ It is one of the big proof texts for what is called religious exclusivism. Was Jesus turning his nose up at the Hindus and Buddhists to the east? Or to the indigenous people in North America? 

The Gospel of John features several “I am” statements from Jesus. John’s Jesus talks about himself quite a lot. His acts also tend to point to his identity. Jesus gives sight to the blind man because he is the light of the world. When Jesus refers to himself as the “bread of life” in chapter 6 of the gospel we need to realize that it intentionally follows John’s account of the feeding of the 5000. Jesus’s “I am the resurrection and the life” speech goes along with the story of the raising of Lazarus. The statements and miracles shed light on one another.

So in today’s reading Jesus reveals himself to be “the way,” and associates himself directly with the Father. However, he says that if his listeners have trouble accepting this, they should look to his works. And I think this is key. The Book of Acts refers to the Jesus movement as the Way. Members of that small but growing Jewish sect did more than just worship the person of Christ. They shared what they had. They welcomed orphans and widows. They refused the violence and oppression of the Roman Empire. To see this “I am the way” speech simply as a boast of Jesus that we can appropriate for ourselves and use to put down others is to miss the point. Jesus isn’t calling us into static worship of himself. He is calling us into dynamic communion with the Father and into a radical way of life marked by self-giving love. Even in the Great Commission at the end of Matthew, another authoritative speech of Jesus, he doesn’t say “go and make sure everyone believes such and such about me;’ he says “obey everything that I have commanded you” (Matt 28:20). 

Nostra Aetate, the Vatican’s statement on other religions, comes to mind. You can find the whole statement online, but here is a small segment: 

The Church reproves, as foreign to the mind of Christ, any discrimination against men or harassment of them because of their race, color, condition of life, or religion. On the contrary, following in the footsteps of the holy Apostles Peter and Paul, this sacred synod ardently implores the Christian faithful to "maintain good fellowship among the nations" (1 Peter 2:12), and, if possible, to live for their part in peace with all men, so that they may truly be sons of the Father who is in heaven.

I am writing this reflection as someone who holds what would probably be considered a pretty traditional Christology (view on the person and role of Jesus). I can (and do) bow at his name with the best of them. However, I am also convinced that God did not become man just to give us an idol to worship. Jesus is much greater than that. If Jesus is the way, and the truth, and the life, then he will significantly impact not only our personal devotions, but our whole existence. Indeed, being a follower of Jesus should inform and transform our very way of life.

-Matthew Kieswetter