When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth

 "These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble.  They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service.  And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me.  But these things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them.

"And these things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you.  But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, 'Where are You going?'  But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.  Nevertheless I tell you the truth.  It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.  And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:  of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.  However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.  He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.  All things that the Father has are Mine.  Therefore I said to that He will take of Mine and declare it to you."

- John 16:1-15

This week we have been reading through Jesus' farewell discourse to His disciples at the Last Supper.   In yesterday's reading, Jesus told them, "This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.  Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends.  You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.  No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.  You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.  These things I command you, that you love one another.  If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you.  If you were of the world, the world would love its own.  Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.  Remember the word that I said to you, 'A servant is not greater than his master.  If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.  If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.  But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know Him who sent Me.  If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin.  He who hates Me hates My Father also.  If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father.  But this happened that the word might be fulfilled which is written in their law, 'They hated Me without a cause.'  But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.  And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning."

"These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble.  They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service.  And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me.  But these things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them."  Jesus begins to prepare the disciples, and the whole of the Church, for the future, for what is to come.  His preparation means that we must be ready for whatever comes, and we bear all things with Him, as He did.

"And these things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you.  But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, 'Where are You going?'  But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart."  My study bible says here that the word sorrow as used in this passage isn't the colloquial understanding of the word.  Rather it means "extreme grief leading to despondency or despair."  It is important to understand that despondency or despair is seen as a sinful passion.   That is, something to which we do not wish to give full reign.  John Chrysostom writes, "Great is the tyranny of despondency."  This is constantly referred to in the writings of the Desert Fathers.  My study bible says, "When the world persecutes the believer or when God seems to be absent, Christians are called to fight against this despondency, taking comfort from the presence of the Holy Spirit" (as Christ teaches in the following verses).

"Nevertheless I tell you the truth.  It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.  And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:  of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged."  The Holy Spirit will bring an illumination into the world of various truths.  In this the world will be convicted, or proven wrong, concerning firstly, its sin, the ultimate of which is denying Christ.  Secondly, righteousness, which the world failed to accept from Christ with faith and thanksgiving; and finally of judgment, because those who reject His gift of life receive ultimately the same as that which the "ruler of this world" has already received (see Matthew 25:41).

"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.  However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.  He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you.  All things that the Father has are Mine.  Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you."  The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth; where the Spirit abides, therefore, is the truth.  The Church, despite also being a human institution and therefore susceptible to its frailties, is also the guardian of all truth.  (See 4:23-24.)

What does it mean for the Church to be the "guardian of all truth," as my study bible puts it?  What we understand of tradition is the working of the Holy Spirit in and through the Church, and making up the very Body of Christ, which is the Church itself.  We may hear of sinful behavior and all kinds of scandals, but what we know is also what we receive.  In our worship, we encounter God, we participate in the communion with God:  that is, with Father, Son, and Spirit.  Our sincere prayers ask for this Spirit of truth to be always present and guiding us, teaching us discernment, helping us find the way of Christ's illumination, the great light.  There is a prayer said at the closing of the liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, which includes a passage based on a teaching from the Epistle of St. James:  "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming from You, the Father of lights" (see James 1:17).  We find these good and perfect gifts in the Church; that is, the truth that is guarded by the Church is given freely to all, and continues to be distributed into the world.  Whatever we know of Christ, whatever we understand of the Father and of the Spirit, comes to us through this guardianship, through the store of treasure that has grown and accumulated throughout its history and is awaiting our understanding, attention, and communion.  In this we can trust and understand the powerful dynamic of the Church as a human-divine institution.  It is like a powerhouse of good things, stored in the energy of the Spirit, for distribution to all.  Whatever we understand of despair and sorrow and despondency, what we find there is hope that awaits to give us His light and His joy, to nurture our spirits, and to understand what He has taught us.