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"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know." Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?" Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him."
Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.
"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it."
- John 14:1-14
On Friday, we read from the end of chapter 13 of John's Gospel: Simon Peter said to Him, "Lord, where are You going?" Jesus answered him, "Where I am going you cannot follow Me now, but you shall follow Me afterward." Peter said to Him, "Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake." Jesus answered him, "Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times."
"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also." My study bible tells us, "Many mansions is literally 'many dwelling places,' a word-picture of numerous living units surrounding a central courtyard -- an abundance of living accommodations. Mansions also speak of the multiplicity of blessings which await those who enter the Kingdom of God." Actually the word for "mansion" for which my study bible gives the meaning "dwelling place" is more evocative of something rather counter-intuitive to "mansion" in the English. The word is mone' (μονή in the Greek), and as it may suggest to my readers, it implies single dwellings, made for each individual. In that light, there are places for each of us (or each of the Apostles to whom He's speaking), with Him.
"And where I go you know, and the way you know." Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?" Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." A note here tells us, "The way, the truth, and the life is a Person, our Lord Jesus Christ. He is so because of His perfect union with His Father. The way we reach the Father is forever established through the Son. Jesus is the truth because He is the unique revelation of the Father, who is the goal of our journey through life. Christ is the life, the uncreated eternal life manifest in the flesh, so that we might have life. Because of this, No one comes to the Father except through the Son. While aspects of goodness and truth are found among all people by virtue of their being created in the image and likeness of God, salvation comes through Christ alone." "Way" in the Greek is a word that also means "road."
"If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him." Philip said to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?" A note here reads (regarding He who has seen Me has seen the Father): "Our relationship with Christ determines our relationship with the Father. If we reject Christ, then we will not find the Father; but if we believe in Christ and follow Him, then we ourselves becomes 'sons of God,' living eternally in the love of the Father." Jesus' words echo once again themes for which He is about to be persecuted and put to death. He has testified many times already, including publicly before the leadership, as to His relationship with the Father -- each time He was asked about His identity, Jesus spoke of the Father. In chapter 10, He said, "I and My Father are One."
"Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works." My study bible tells us: "While human beings are made in God's image, the Incarnate Son is the exact image of the Father. He did not say 'I am the Father,' for He is not. Instead, He declared I am in the Father, and the Father in Me. This means He and the Father are one in essence and undivided."
"Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves. Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do because I go to My Father." Again, there is a helpful note: "As shown in the Book of Acts, the disciple will later do even greater works in spreading the gospel throughout the world because Jesus will have completed the work of salvation and they will be endowed with the Spirit. In Christ, and through the Holy Spirit, the Church makes God's salvation available to all in every age."
"And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it." My study bible tells us that "we pray in Jesus' name because when we are in union with Him, our will corresponds with His will. Thus what we ask for is exactly what Christ wants to give. Prayer is for the glory of God the Father, not for our own glory, so we also pray, 'Our Father.'" To be in Christ's name is an important idea, a concept we need to understand clearly in the light of the tradition of royal houses or lineage such as emperors. Anything in the "name" of a house or king is a part of that kingdom, it "bears the image" because it bears the name. Thus there is also his presence. Therefore in that sense, if we are "in His name" we are, as my study bible suggests, a part of His life, His goals, His commandments. His "name" is of the Father, and inseparable from the Spirit.
In Romans, chapter 8, St. Paul tells us, "Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God" (26, 27). In some sense, this is the elaboration of what happens "in His name" -- we dwell in this place where Father, Son and Spirit are altogether, and all three may dwell in and be at work in us. When Jesus tells us, "In My Father's house are many mansions," and we understand these to be individual dwelling places, it somehow suggests something much deeper than what we think of as housing. It suggests chambers of the heart, of the heart of Christ, which may hold each one of us. In this sense, the image suggests an indwelling place that is at once complex and yet simple: Father, Son and Spirit are inseparable, and in the place of the heart we may dwell in each and they in us. It is a depth given to the understanding of what it may mean to pray "in His name." Yesterday, we celebrated Easter in the Western world (the Eastern churches for the most part will celebrate a few weeks from now). In the light of the Resurrection, Jesus' words here take on an even greater significance than the time and place in which they were uttered first to the Apostles. Christ Resurrected is the Christ whose love and heart expand throughout an entire universe of Creation, and penetrate deep within us, even into the eternal life into which He invites us and within which He makes us free to participate. Let us also remember that even our faith -- our capacity to participate in this love and in this prayer in the Spirit -- is also a gift of grace of Christ Resurrected. We are embraced and bidden to enter into this life, not "only" the life of the Incarnation. Our "daily bread" is the bread of the Kingdom, of the Risen Christ, in whom we may live and participate, and who also bids us to partake of His body and blood, so that He lives inseparably, in His risen majesty, as a part of us. When we think of the magnitude of His love into which we are invited, we must think of the Risen Christ, and the "many mansions" He speaks of in today's reading. Our "yes" is simply our capacity to love in return.
