You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. But I know Him, for I am from Him, and he sent Me

 

 Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught.  And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"  Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.  If anyone will to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.  He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.  

 

"Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law?  Why do you seek to kill Me?"  The people answered and said, "You have a demon.  Who is seeking to kill You?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel.  Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath.  If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?  Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."  

 

Now some of them from Jerusalem said, "Is this not He whom they seek to kill?  But look!  He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him.  Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?  However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from."  Then Jesus cried out, as he taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.  But I know Him, for I am from Him, and he sent Me."  Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.  And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?" 

The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me.  You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come."  Then the Jews said among themselves, "Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him?  Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?  What is this thing that He said, 'You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come'?" 

 

- John 7:14-36 

 

On Saturday we began chapter 7 of John's Gospel.  Chapter 6 will be visited after this week, but we're to understand that the controversial events of that chapter figure into the setting here.  After these things (particularly including Jesus' teaching that He is the Bread of Life, establishing the foundation for the Eucharist) Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.  Now the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand.  His brothers therefore said to Him, "Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing.  For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly.  If You do these things, show Yourself to the world."  For even His brothers did not believe in Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready.  The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil.  You go up to this feast.  I am not yet going up to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come."  When He had said these things to them, He remained in Galilee.  But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.  Then the Jews sought Him at the feast, and said, "Where is He?"  And there was much complaining among the people concerning Him.  Some said, "He is good"; others said, "No, on the contrary, He deceives the people."  However, no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews.

 

  Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught.  And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"  Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.  If anyone will to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.  He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him."  My study Bible comments that the simple desire to know and follow God's will is the key to understanding it.  It notes that spiritual blindness comes from unwillingness to know God or to recognize His authority.  St. John Chrysostom is cited as paraphrasing Christ in this way:  "Rid yourselves of wickedness:  the anger, the envy, and the hatred which have arisen in your hearts, without provocation, against Me.  Then you will have no difficulty in realizing that My words are actually those of God.  As it is, these passions darken your understanding and distort sound judgment.  If you remove these passions, you will no longer be afflicted in this way."

 

 "Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law?  Why do you seek to kill Me?"  The people answered and said, "You have a demon.  Who is seeking to kill You?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel.  Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath.  If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?  Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."  Once again, Jesus is being sought for a blameless violation of the Sabbath rule (among other things).   That is, for His healing of the paralytic on the Sabbath at the Feast of Weeks, also known as the Old Testament Pentecost, celebrating the giving of the Law (see this reading).  Here He gives another example of a blameless violation of the Sabbath, that of circumcision, and compares it to making someone completely well.  

Now some of them from Jerusalem said, "Is this not He whom they seek to kill?  But look!  He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him.  Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?  However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from."  Then Jesus cried out, as he taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.  But I know Him, for I am from Him, and he sent Me."  The crowds claim, "We know where this Man is from."   But, my study Bible comments, the crowds are mistaken, both in an earthly sense and also in a divine sense.  Humanly speaking, they believe tat Jesus is from Nazareth of Galilee, but He was actually born in Bethlehem, and they're not aware of this (see verse 42; also Luke 2:1-7).  Beyond this, they can't understand that He has come from the Father in Heaven, eternally begotten before all ages, and therefore His divine "origin" also remains unknown to them. 

 

Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.  And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?"    The text tells us that His hour had not yet come:   Christ's hour is the time of His suffering and death.  He is the Lord over time, my study Bible explains, an authority which is possessed by God alone.  He comes to the Cross of His own free will, and in His time, and not according to the plots of human beings (see John 8:20; 10:39).

The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me.  You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come."  Then the Jews said among themselves, "Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him?  Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?  What is this thing that He said, 'You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come'?"  Here Christ is referring to His death, Resurrection, and Ascension into heaven ("I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me.  You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come").  To go among the Greeks means to go among the Gentiles.  My study Bible calls this an unwitting prophecy which points to the time after Christ's Ascension, when His name will be preached among the Gentiles by the apostles. 

 

Jesus asks, "Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law?  Why do you seek to kill Me?"  The people answered Him, saying, "You have a demon.  Who is seeking to kill You?"  Note how quickly they tell Him He has a demon, suggesting He's out of His mind and imagining things, or perhaps, as we'd say today, He's paranoid.  It's telling, perhaps, that the people answer Him, asking, "Who is seeking to kill You?"  For we know at least some among the religious leaders are already plotting to kill Him.  Perhaps the people who answer don't know this.  But on the other hand, a little further down, some from Jerusalem already have heard there is a plot against Jesus to kill Him.  They say, "Is this not He whom they seek to kill?"  John's Gospel is quite clever in how it suggests to us the huge mixture of responses that swirl around Jesus.  Some from Jerusalem have heard that the religious rulers want to catch Him and kill Him.  Others think He's beside Himself for saying so.  Some notice that the rulers are not saying anything to Jesus, and they say, "But look!  He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him.  Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?"  Isn't this behavior rather typical even of today, with all of our social media and an interconnected entire world, in which people wonder what the leaders know, and what they aren't telling us?  Perhaps the Gospel is quite reassuring to us in that literally nothing much has changed, as much as we think truly that the world has changed in some respects.  All the rumors, and gossip, things half true and half false, the wrong assumptions, and wrong information about where Jesus is truly from (they think He's from Galilee but don't know He was born in Bethlehem) -- all of these suggest to us the modern world and the myriad rumors we can hear about anything, repeated and stretched and turned and twisted one way or another, all available on social media to all who have a voice.  So Jesus walks amidst the same world that you and I do, only He is the Son of Man, the Messiah, both fully divine and fully human, and yet He's misunderstood, and plotted against, and will be betrayed, and defied.  We should take heart that this is the same world, and that He's come before us with His light and truth in order to show us how we, too, should walk through it -- and giving us what is true and what is false.  Even though the people of Israel devoutly hoped in a Messiah, Jesus will be a rejected because He will not be what they expect, what they wanted -- and also because of the plots of the religious leaders who conspire to rid themselves of One so impressive  and well-known to the people.  Note that even while He is there at this festival, the religious leaders send officers, temple police, to seize Him.  Later we read, therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.  And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?"   So there are those among the people who believed in Him, remarking upon His signs.  So some intuit the truth, although full faith is based not only upon the signs He performs.  But it's not yet His time, His hour has not yet come.  This, too, should reassure us that even in the midst of a chaotic, turbulent, fickle, and frightening world, Jesus is still in charge of the time, God's unfolding has a certain reality to it that we don't perceive.  As Jesus says earlier, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working" (John 5:17).   In this world of betrayal we don't expect, things unseen and hidden, plots we can't even imagine, let us take heart that this, too, remains true.  The Father has been working until now, and Christ is working, and so is the Holy Spirit.  It is there we meet our faith midst the world that swirls around us, and there we must remain and stay rooted, for it is the certain reality we can trust and cling to.  Jesus declares, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.  But I know Him, for I am from Him, and he sent Me."  Let us stay true to the One who is true. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If I tell you, you will by no means believe. And if I also ask you, you will by no means answer Me or let Me go

 

 Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest's house.  But Peter followed at a distance.  Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them.  And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, "This man was also with Him."  But he denied Him, saying, "Woman, I do not know Him."  And after a little while another saw him and said, "You also are one of them."  But Peter said, "Man, I am not!"  Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, "Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean."  But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are are saying1"  Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.  And the Lord turned and looked at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times."  So Peter went out and wept bitterly. 

Now the men who held Jesus mocked Him and beat Him.  And having blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the face and asked Him, saying, "Prophesy!  Who is the one who struck You?'  And many other things they blasphemously spoke against Him.  

As soon as it was day, the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, came together and led Him into their council, saying, "If You are the Christ, tell us."  But He said to them, "If I tell you, you will by no means believe.  And if I also ask you, you will by no means answer Me or let Me go.  Hereafter the Son of Man will sit on the right hand of the power of God."

 

- Luke 22:54–69 

 

Yesterday, we read that, coming out from the Passover Supper (the Last Supper), Jesus went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him.  When He came to the place, He said to them, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."  And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done."  Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly.  Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow.  Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep?  Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."  And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him.  But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"  When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?"  And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.  But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this."  And He touched his ear and healed him.  Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."   

 

Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest's house.  But Peter followed at a distance.  Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them.  And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, "This man was also with Him."  My study Bible notes that it is a girl who is the first to test Peter; it teaches us that she is an icon of the temptation of Adam by Eve (Genesis 3:6).  The Gospel shows us that our fallen state is overcome in Christ when it is women who are the first to hear, believe, and proclaim the Resurrection (Luke 24:1-10).  

But he denied Him, saying, "Woman, I do not know Him."  And after a little while another saw him and said, "You also are one of them."  But Peter said, "Man, I am not!"  Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, "Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean."  But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are are saying1"  Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.  And the Lord turned and looked at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times."  So Peter went out and wept bitterly.  Peter is so overcome with fear, my study Bible says, that neither Christ's prediction (verse 34) nor the crowing of the rooster calls him to repentance.  It's only the Lord's gaze that finally causes him to weep bitterly.  St. Ambrose of Milan is quoted as saying of this passage that, nevertheless, "through tears, what cannot be defended can be purged, for tears wash away the offense which is shameful to confess out loud."

Now the men who held Jesus mocked Him and beat Him.  And having blindfolded Him, they struck Him on the face and asked Him, saying, "Prophesy!  Who is the one who struck You?'  And many other things they blasphemously spoke against Him.  Our Lord as prisoner is humiliated, ridiculed, abused, in a brutish way.  But we must consider how He condescended to experience what we may experience in our lives.  

As soon as it was day, the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, came together and led Him into their council, saying, "If You are the Christ, tell us."  But He said to them, "If I tell you, you will by no means believe.  And if I also ask you, you will by no means answer Me or let Me go.  Hereafter the Son of Man will sit on the right hand of the power of God."  My study Bible comments here that Jesus asked many questions of the Jewish leaders which they refused to answer because doing so would have meant confessing Him as the Christ (Luke 20:4-7; Matthew 22:41-46; Mark 3:4).  His final statement here is a declaration that He is equal with God. 

Let us compare the two responses of Peter and Jesus in today's reading.  St. Peter's expression is to deny that he is a follower of Christ.  In that sense, it's a negative expression, a denial of something.  Three times people identify him as a follower or disciple of Christ, and three times he denies that this is the truth.  "Woman, I do not know Him."  In a sense, this is a refusal to speak, to confess that he is a follower of Christ.  Then we can turn to Jesus who also refuses to speak.  In the first case, He is mocked and beaten by the soldiers.  They tie a blindfold on Him, strike Him across the face, and demand that He prophesy who hit Him.   He is treated to all manner of blasphemy, but He doesn't say a word (Isaiah 42:2).  Then when He is questioned by the religious leaders as to whether or not He is the Christ, He already knows that to answer them is futile.  He says, "If I tell you, you will by no means believe.  And if I also ask you, you will by no means answer Me or let Me go."  But then, He knows where He is going and what is going to happen, telling them only, "Hereafter the Son of Man will sit on the right hand of the power of God."  In a sense, with this last statement, He's answering their questions by declaring Himself, but not answering them directly as they desire.  Son of Man is a title for a messianic figure in the Book of Daniel, the right hand of the power of God is in the position of power with God.  In St. Peter's case, he is denying who he is as a member of Christ's followers, with his strong and vehement denials, as predicted by Christ.  In Jesus' case, He doesn't speak where it will do Him no good, and neither will it do any good to those to whom He might speak.  Indeed, revealing Himself to those who scoff or mock or beat Him would only condemn those people more for their refusal to hear.  It is Jesus who teaches us, "Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces" (Matthew 7:6).  Finally, He will not answer the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, who bring Him in to trial.  As He said at His arrest, "When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness" (see yesterday's reading, above).  But here they ask Him again, although they have no intention -- and perhaps no capability at this stage -- of believing His answer, of responding to Him, or of letting Him go.  This truth about them He will declare Himself, and finally, He will make a statement about where He knows He is going, and whom He knows He is and the role He will assume.  Jesus' denial to speak contrasts with Peter in that Jesus is absolutely true to Himself, to the One whom He is in the sight of God the Father.  Peter is denying himself by denying Christ; he isn't being true to the identity he's been called to assume by Christ.  Both do not answer in the ways their interrogators desire them to, but one denies the truth, and the other embodies the truth in all things and through all things.  What these poignant and terrible scenes teach us is all about how to comport ourselves as Christians, as His followers.  There will be proper times to speak and proper times not to speak -- but in all cases, our personal integrity is the truth of Christ that we can live, even through the worst of things we may experience.  We should not get caught up in formalities, but rather rely on our faith to teach us and guide us through all difficulties properly.  There is a deeply powerful moment written into this account in Luke, and that is also a moment of 'not speaking.'   We're told that the Lord turned and looked at Peter just as the rooster crowed.  How many volumes of truth does the Lord's gaze tell to Peter, and even to all of us who will one day also stand before that gaze ourselves?  He doesn't need to say a word, for He has already foretold what Peter would do, and Peter is at once brought back to himself, and to the truth of what he's doing -- even to his failure to hold to his promise that he was willing to go to prison and to die with him (Luke 22:33).  St. Peter weeps bitterly in repentance after Christ's look brings all things back to his remembrance.  Let us remember the power in silence, in a look, in a refusal to speak, even in an answer that's not really an answer someone wants to demand from us.  Let us remember the power of truth in all things, and the One who is the truth that guides us in our responses to the world, our identities and loyalties to Him first of all.

No man ever spoke like this Man!

 

 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."  But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.  

Therefore many from the crowd, when they heard this saying, said, "Truly this is the Prophet."  Others said, "This is the Christ."  But some said, "Will the Christ come out of Galilee?   Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where David was?"  So there was a division among the people because of Him.  Now some of them wanted to take Him, but no one laid hands on Him. 

Then the officers came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, "Why have you not brought Him?"  The officers answered, "No man ever spoke like this Man!"  Then the Pharisees answered them, "Are you also deceived?  Have any of the rulers of the Pharisees believed in Him?  But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed."  Nicodemus (he who came to Jesus by night, being one of them) said to them, "Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?"  They answered and said to him, "Are you also from Galilee?  Search and look, for no prophet has arisen out of Galilee."

 

- John 7:37–52 

 

In our previous reading, we were told that about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught.  And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"  Jesus answer1ed them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.  If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.  He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.  Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law?  Why do you seek to kill Me?"  The people answered and said, "You have a demon.  Who is seeking to kill You?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel.  Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath.  If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?  Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."  Now some of them from Jerusalem said, "Is this not He whom they seek to kill?  But look!  He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him.  Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?  However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from."  Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.  But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me."  Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.  And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?"  The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me.  You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come."  Then the Jews said among themselves, "Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him?  Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?  What is this thing that He said, 'You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come'?"

 

 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."  But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.  My study Bible explains that the last day, that great day of the feast was the eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles.  At this ceremony was the drawing of water from the pool of Siloam, giving us the context for Christ's words, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink."  The living water, as St. John's text indicates, is the gift of the Holy Spirit, my study Bible notes, and the new life that accompanies this gift.  

 

 Therefore many from the crowd, when they heard this saying, said, "Truly this is the Prophet."  Others said, "This is the Christ."  But some said, "Will the Christ come out of Galilee?  Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where David was?"  So there was a division among the people because of Him.  Now some of them wanted to take Him, but no one laid hands on Him.   The Prophet, my study Bible says, refers to the expected Messiah, the Savior to come foretold by Moses in Deuteronomy 18:15-19.  Bethelehem, the home of King David, was the town from which the Christ (the Messiah was expected to come (see Micah 5:2). 

Then the officers came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, "Why have you not brought Him?"  The officers answered, "No man ever spoke like this Man!"  Then the Pharisees answered them, "Are you also deceived?  Have any of the rulers of the Pharisees believed in Him?  But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed."  Earlier in the chapter, we read that the chief priests had sent officers of the temple to arrest Jesus in the middle of the feast (John 7:32).  But by now it is the last day of the feast (the eighth day), and no arrest has been made.  This is because, according to my study Bible, these officers had been converted by Christ's teaching.  It cites the commentary of St. John Chrysostom, who writes that the Pharisees and scribes who had "witnessed the miracles and read the Scriptures derived no benefit" from either.  These officers, by contrast, who could claim none of this learning, were "captivated by a single sermon."  When one's mind is open, St. Chrysostom says, "there is no need for long speeches.  Truth is like that."

Nicodemus (he who came to Jesus by night, being one of them) said to them, "Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?"  They answered and said to him, "Are you also from Galilee?  Search and look, for no prophet has arisen out of Galilee."  This is the same Nicodemus (also a Pharisee) who had spoken with Jesus by night, accepting teaching (John 3:1-21), and in the intervening time had increased in faith.  However, my study Bible notes that his defense of Christ is still based on our law and hence this is not yet a public profession of faith (see John 19:38-39).  In accordance with the law, Jesus must be given a hearing before He can be judged (Exodus 23:1; Deuteronomy 1:15-17).   The Pharisees claim that no prophet has arisen out of Galilee, but in this, my study Bible says, they show at once their blind hatred and their ignorance of the Scriptures.  The prophet Jonah was from Galilee, the town of Gath Hepher, only three miles from Jesus' home in the town of Nazareth (2 Kings 14:25).

The temple officers explain their failure to arrest Jesus with the vehement statement to the rulers,  "No man ever spoke like this Man!"  Once more, it is now Christ's words that make such a difference to people, even these officers who are not those learned in the Scripture like the Pharisees and scribes.  St. John Chrysostom's words come back to us, reminding us of the impact of truth on an open mind (and conversely, the complete lack of impact truth may make on a closed and prejudiced one).  But this emphasis on the remarkable power of Christ's words is one that we have heard emphasized before in St. John's Gospel.  In St. Peter's confession of faith, he first prefaces by saying, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" (see John 6:67-69).  Now we read a stunning statement by those who are not disciples, but are instead temple police, sent to arrest Jesus as if He were a criminal.  So the text is clear in showing us that the power of Christ's words is not understood merely from an intellectual appreciation of them, or from first knowing Scripture, but there is another component within us that responds to His "words of eternal life."  All of the rest, as St. Chrysostom's commentary indicates, is of little use when a mind is closed to begin with.  Certainly those among the most well-trained and educated minds of the past have formed the Church and its theology, which is made very clear through the lives of the early saints of the Church.  For the early patristic scholars, coming out of a pagan civilization, and themselves enriched through classical education in philosophy, literature, and all other subjects available to them, if our Lord was the Person who is Truth (see John 14:6), then whatever serves truth may be honored as serving Christ (truth, beauty, and goodness being hallmarks of the Divine).  So in such cases, the brilliant minds of past and present whose intelligence and education contributed to our understanding of Christ did so only where faith was also present.    We see the difference between Nicodemus and nearly all of his fellow Pharisees; it is Nicodemus who is also growing in faith, and will come to an even greater dedication to Christ by the time of His Passion and death.  It is under faith, then, that our talents, skills, experience, and education are organized within one principle, to serve the Lord.  God will take all of the differentiated aspects of our lives and personal formation, and use those skills and talents to God's purposes.  This we can see in the countless examples of saints from all countries and backgrounds, of every century, whose work is always surprising and impactful on the lives of those around them.  These policemen are similar to the centurion who will oversee Christ's Crucifixion, in that they come to faith and insight through their openness to faith and the truth of Christ, even though they are loyal to the ones who sent them.  Through the faithful action of Cornelius the Centurion, the impact upon the world is incalculable (Acts 10 - 11:18).   In consideration of these things, let us consider how essential to life is our faith, and what potential impact it can have around us in shaping our lives and actions.  We may consider the learning of skills, development of talents, gaining of an education, and all other forms of development to be the most important and decisive elements of our flowering as persons.  But what the Gospels seem to teach us is that so much depends on our ability to truly hear and know the things of God.  Jesus Himself often proclaims in His preaching, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear" (Matthew 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:9; Luke 8:8; 14:35).  A heart open to the words He teaches us is one capable of grasping the truth in the words, and this is the powerful teaching couched in today's reading.   The people at the festival echo like a Greek chorus all the possible understandings and interpretations of Christ's words and acts, but they are unknowing, confused, and they reflect a time in Israel of great uncertainty.  But those who can hear are stunned by His words, magnetic in their appeal to their hearts.  Let us understand the reality of truth, and the challenge to hear even in the confusion and uncertainty of today. 

 

 

 

Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me?

 

 And immediately, while He was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, with a great multitude with swords and clubs, came from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders.  Now His betrayer had given them a signal, saying, "Whomever I kiss, He is the One; seize Him and lead Him away safely."  As soon as he had come, immediately he went up to Him and said to Him, "Rabbi, Rabbi!" and kissed Him.  Then they laid their hands on Him and took Him.  

And one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.  Then Jesus answered and said to them, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me?  I was daily with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me.  But the Scriptures must be fulfilled."  Then they all forsook Him and fled. 

Now a certain young man followed Him, having a linen cloth thrown around his naked body.  And the young men laid hold of him, and he left the linen cloth and fled from them naked.

 

- Mark 14:43–52 

 

Yesterday we read that, after instituting the Eucharist at the Last Supper, Jesus said to the disciples, "All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written:  'I will strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered.'  But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee."  Peter said to Him, "Even if all are made to stumble, yet I will not be."  Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you that today, even this night, before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times."  But he spoke more vehemently, "If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!"  And they all said likewise. Then they came to a place which was named Gathsemane; and He said to His disciples, "Sit here while I pray."  And He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He began to be troubled and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death.  Stay here and watch."  He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him.  And He said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for You.  Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will."  Then He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, "Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not watch one hour?  Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation.  The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."  Again He went away and prayed, and spoke the same words.  And when He returned, He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him.  Then He came the third time and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting?  It is enough!  The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners.  Rise, let us be going.  See, My betrayer is at hand."

 

  And immediately, while He was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, with a great multitude with swords and clubs, came from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders.  Now His betrayer had given them a signal, saying, "Whomever I kiss, He is the One; seize Him and lead Him away safely."  As soon as he had come, immediately he went up to Him and said to Him, "Rabbi, Rabbi!" and kissed Him.  Then they laid their hands on Him and took Him.  My study Bible notes the phrase for Judas, described as "one of the twelve."  Once again, as in Mark 14:20, the text emphasizes the level of betrayal here.  That Judas was one of the twelve makes him one of Christ's closest friends.  Let us note that this betrayal is to all of the others of the twelve as well.  My study Bible comments that the fact that a kiss is needed to signal the mob is a statement about those who were in that mob.  The Jewish leaders and even the most common people would have recognized Jesus.  This shows that the soldiers were mercenaries, dispatched by the chief priests and the scribes and the elders.  According to John's Gospel, this group included Romans (John 18:3).  In the Orthodox Church, there is a prayer at each liturgy for the strength not to kiss Jesus in betrayal as did Judas.

And one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.  Then Jesus answered and said to them, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me?  I was daily with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me.  But the Scriptures must be fulfilled."  Then they all forsook Him and fled.   The one who stood by and drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest is identified as Peter in John 18:10.  Jesus rebukes him for using the sword, as Peter still does not understand that Christ is going to His death willingly, a fulfillment of the Scriptures which prophesy Christ's salvation for humankind.  That Christ's death was foretold in the Scriptures, my study Bible tells us, served to strengthen the disciples at their hour of greatest test. 

 

 Now a certain young man followed Him, having a linen cloth thrown around his naked body.  And the young men laid hold of him, and he left the linen cloth and fled from them naked.  My study Bible says that to flee naked is a great shame and humiliation (Ezekiel 16:39; Amos 2:16).  It notes also that some teach this young man was James, the brother of the Lord (Galatians 1:19), while others claim it was the apostle John, who was the youngest of the twelve.  Most others believe that this was Mark, the author of the Gospel, as it was a common literary device for a writer not to give his own name (as is the case in Luke 24:13; John 21:24).   My study Bible points out that the other evangelists do not report this incident.  It says that they would not have been inclined to humiliate Mark, whereas Mark would have been more likely to relate such an event which concerned himself.  

In yesterday's reading, Jesus quoted from the prophesy of Zechariah:  "Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered" (from Zechariah 13:7).  In today's reading, the Shepherd, Jesus, is struck through betrayal and arrest on behalf of the authorities, committed by outsiders -- those who cannot even recognize Him.  Today's reading asks us to put ourselves in the places of the disciples, the other members of the twelve now betrayed by Judas who gives Christ a kiss to do so.   Imagine their disarray, and panic, and unpreparedness for this moment.  But even until He is taken away from them, Christ guides them to the last moment, teaching Peter, "Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword" (Matthew 26:52).  They've been with Him all this time, and so He has taught them His way.  But no one is really prepared for this particular time, and this very particular depth of betrayal.  Like the naked young man who does his best to follow the Master as he can, but who must run naked after they try to seize him too.  Christ follows the teachings of the Old Testament, for He is the same Lord who taught Israel not to put their faith in weapons and the power of sheer material might.  In both the Letters to the Romans and the Hebrews, St. Paul quotes from Deuteronomy, in which the Lord proclaims, "Vengeance is Mine; I will repay" (Romans 12:19; Hebrews 10:30; Deuteronomy 32:35).  We might think of their disciples and their fledgling movement.  How could they know what would happen?  How would they know what to do?  There is a report in the Acts of the Apostles of the time in which the Church continued to grow, and the high priest and the Council grew more indignant, having Peter and others thrown into prison.  But the prison doors were opened, and again the apostles were preaching, so that members of the Council plotted to kill them.  But the teacher Gamaliel (spoken of by St. Paul in Acts 22:3) advised the Council:  "Now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found to fight against God" (see Acts 5:12-42).  Today we must consider, as the disciples had to at that time, in what do we place our faith today.  The world is filled with weapons capable of enormous destruction many times over, with technologies that may exert enormous control, and wield all kinds of influence and power in ways we might not even understand or be conscious of over our own lives.  We grow increasingly dependent on material power, technology, and our social interdependence based upon these structures, including that of telecommunications and even the waging of wars.  But we need to consider, despite this enormous-seeming material power and capacity to manipulate, where we place our faith first.  That power of the sword to which St. Peter turned in order to defend Jesus from betrayal and arrest is with us today, in so many ways no one at that time could have considered.  And yet, we are still to turn to these words as our words of faith:  "Vengeance is Mine," says the Lord.  "I will repay."  If we put our faith in the sword then we will die by that sword.  Our faith must continue to be in something else, something beyond, as the wise words of Gamaliel once taught.  In this particular struggle we each have our own battle to wage, but with what weapons?  St. Paul urges us to "be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places."  For all the weapons of this struggle, see Ephesians 6:10-18.  For if we do not remember these things first, before all else, how will we know where we are going?  How will we be assured of what it is we are to be about?  How can we be aware of what Christ asks us to do at this time?  We cannot worship God and mammon, we will put our faith in and serve one, or the other (Luke 16:13).  We must know which we serve first, and that must lead the way for all else.  As He teaches us, "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you" (Matthew 6:33).  For the disciples from this moment, they will be scattered as the prophecy teaches, and eventually in hiding.  But shortly after Christ's death will come a revelation to the women at the tomb, the hope of the hopeless, the good news of the Resurrection.  Let us remember the power of the Lord and seek first God's kingdom, for our struggle is not confined simply to the things we see in the world, but involves so much more.

 

 

Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times." So Peter went out and wept bitterly

 

Caravaggio, The Crucifixion of St. Peter.  Circa 1600, Cerasi Chapel, Santa Maria del Popolo, Rome

 Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."

Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest's house.  But Peter followed at a distance.  Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them.  And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, "This man was also with Him."  But he denied Him, saying, "Woman, I do not know Him."  And after a little while another saw him and said, "You also are of them."  But Peter said, "Man, I am not!"  Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, "Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean."  But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are saying!"  Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.  And the Lord turned and looked at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times."  So Peter went out and wept bitterly.

 

- Luke 22:52-62 

 

 Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him.  When He came to the place, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."  And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."  Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly.  Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow.  Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep?  Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."  And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him.  But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"  When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?"  And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.  But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this."  And He touched his ear and healed him.  

 

  Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."  Especially in John's Gospel, we get images of light corresponding to Christ, to God, and to the power of God working within and through human beings.  Darkness here is symbolic of all that rejects that light.  My study Bible refers us to Christ's words to Nicodemus:  "And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God" (John 3:19-21).

Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest's house.  But Peter followed at a distance.  Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them.  And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, "This man was also with Him."  But he denied Him, saying, "Woman, I do not know Him."  And after a little while another saw him and said, "You also are of them."  But Peter said, "Man, I am not!"  Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, "Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean."  But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are saying!"  My study Bible comments here that a girl being the first to test Peter is an icon of the temptation of Adam by Eve (Genesis 3:6).  It notes that our fallen state is overcome in Christ when women are the first to hear, believe, and proclaim the Resurrection (Luke 24:1-10).  

Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.  And the Lord turned and looked at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times."  So Peter went out and wept bitterly.  My study Bible notes that Peter is so overcome with fear that neither the prediction of Jesus at the Last Supper (Luke 22:34) nor the crowing of the rooster calls him to repentance.  Only the gaze of the Lord causes him to weep bitterly.  Nonetheless, comments St. Ambrose of Milan, "through tears, what cannot be defended can be purged, for tears wash away the offense which is shameful to confess out loud."

If we take St. Ambrose's commentary seriously, we understand him to be saying something profound about human tears.  It is frequently asserted within Orthodox spiritually and the monastic tradition that tears are the surest sign of repentance.  No doubt this is drawn at least partially from this memorable example of St. Peter and his bitter tears.  But psychologically, we can also understand something deeper about the nature of tears and the state of our being:  tears frequently are a sign of truth being told.  Often, in popular culture, one may see a recording of a person purporting to confess repentance for something, and people will point out that they see no tears, even though one may see what is meant to be understood as crying.  Moreover, even if it is not a personal sin being repented, but a recollection of something true that happened which gave birth to some form of trauma, or a difficult truth is being faced and told, tears will also make their appearance -- giving once again witness to truth.  There are times when tears will accompany a recognition of great joy, overwhelming beauty, or transformational change for which we are deeply grateful.  In each case, the tears form themselves as involuntary witnesses to truth being recognized.  In the Eastern Orthodox tradition, prayer ropes are used for the repetition of the Jesus Prayer.  These will frequently have tassels attached to them; it is said that the tassel is for the wiping away of the tears of repentance.   But let us focus on St. Peter and his bitter tears of repentance, for these are the way that St. Peter has come to terms with himself, and with his own failing as he has come to know it.  To understand it truly, we have to reread Luke 22:31-34, the verses that tell us about his interaction with Jesus.  Jesus first warned Peter -- on behalf of all of the disciples -- that Satan wanted to "sift" them "as wheat."  But He said to Peter, "I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  Peter's response was to declare to Jesus, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  In today's reading, Peter comes to recognize not simply his failure to live up to these words, but his own unawareness of himself and his own weaknesses.  Far from this image he no doubt had of himself at the time, in this experience he is defeated even by the gaze of a servant girl, and denies being a follower of Christ three times.  The bitterness of the tears is the truth of his recognition of himself, including the weakness Christ fully recognized when He admonished all of the disciples -- and particularly Peter -- to pray so as not to fall into temptation.  The truth we are given here in the Gospel of Luke, however, is not just about Peter, but about all of us.  How often do we disappoint ourselves with weakness?  How do we come to terms with the recognition of our own sad failings, even as we wish -- and even if we believe -- we are different?  Our faith does not task us with the impossible, but serves us here in the Gospel and elsewhere where this story is recounted the truth about who we are as human beings, and about those who would go on to become truly great in their full service to Christ.   Ultimately, we do not know the full history of St. Peter's life.  In one apocryphal tradition, the story of St. Peter's death is one of crucifixion -- and in his humility, asking to be crucified upside down, not considering himself worthy of being crucified in the same manner as Christ.  In this understanding, the man who bragged and failed had become humble indeed, and fully heroic in his humility.  It is a teaching for us all in the image of this man who would become a leader among the disciples, that it is ultimately his repentance and humility which made him great.  At the Last Supper, Jesus taught the disciples that "he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves" (Luke 22:26).  At the end of John's Gospel, Jesus prophesies Peter's eventual death by first telling him, "Feed My Sheep.  Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish," adding, "Follow Me" (John 21:17-19).  In today's reading, Peter's bitter tears teach us about this lesson learned, and it is one for each of us.

 

 

 

 

And the Lord turned and looked at Peter

 

 Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."

Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest's house.  But Peter followed at a distance.  Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them.  And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, "This man was also with Him."  But he denied Him, saying, "Woman, I do not know Him."  And after a little while another saw him and said, "You also are of them."  But Peter said, "Man, I am not!"  Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, "Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean."  But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are saying!"  Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.  And the Lord turned and looked at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times."  So Peter went out and wept bitterly.

 

- Luke 22:52–62 

 

On Saturday, we read that, coming out from the Passover supper, Christ went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him.  When He came to the place, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."  And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."  Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly.  Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow.  Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep?  Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."  And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him.  But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"  When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?"  And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.  But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this."  And He touched his ear and healed him.   

Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."  Throughout the readings of last week, in which the events of Christ's betrayal and arrest were given, the text clearly marks the ultimate culprit for this plot of Christ's death.  That culprit is Satan; that is, the one whose influence is the power of darkness, who works through the weaknesses, temptations, and passions of human beings.  Regarding "darkness" see John 3:19-21, 13:30.

Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest's house.  But Peter followed at a distance.  Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them.  And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, "This man was also with Him."  But he denied Him, saying, "Woman, I do not know Him."  And after a little while another saw him and said, "You also are of them."  But Peter said, "Man, I am not!"  Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, "Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean."  But Peter said, "Man, I do not know what you are saying!"   My study Bible tells us that a girl being the first to test Peter is an icon of the temptation of Adam by Eve (Genesis 3:6).  It notes that our fallen state is overcome in Christ when it is women who are the first to hear, believe, and proclaim the Resurrection (Luke 24:1-10).

Immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.  And the Lord turned and looked at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times."  So Peter went out and wept bitterly.  My study Bible comments that Peter is so overcome with fear here that neither Christ's prediction (Luke 22:34) nor the crowing of the rooster calls him to repentance.  It is only when the Lord turned and looked at Peter that His gaze causes Peter to weep bitterly.  Quoting St. Ambrose of Milan, my study Bible says that nevertheless, "through tears, what cannot be defended can be purged, for tears wash away the offense which is shameful to confess out loud."

Peter wept bitterly at the realization of his own failure.  At the Last Supper (that is, the Passover supper which Jesus had eaten with His disciples just prior to His arrest in the garden of Gethsemane), Jesus warned Peter, "Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  (See Friday's reading.)  Peter replied, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  But Jesus told him, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."  Peter has let himself down, despite his great protestation to Jesus that he was ready to go with Him, both to prison and to death.  The bitter tears are his response to the realization that his fear has kept him even from admitting to a servant girl that he is a follower of Christ.  But Peter's bitter tears give him a chance again at something.  They give him a chance to repent and to return to his brothers and sisters in the Church, to return to Christ.  Jesus says, tellingly, "But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  There is a role for Peter to play, and even this failure will not stop his faith.  Of course, we know that he did return and resumed his role as a leader among the apostles and the early church.  This great example of the apostle who would go on to serve and lead gives to us an important teaching for all.  Peter has his weaknesses, and they are on full display throughout the Gospels.  His exuberance often causes him to overestimate his capacity for strength, but his faith will be steadfast, and he will die a martyr.  Indeed, even in the words Jesus said after Peter declared he would go to prison and die for Him, Jesus affirms that he has prayed for the strength of Peter's faith and that Peter must use this faith to come back and strengthen his brethren (and by inference the whole of the Church).  St. Ambrose comments insightfully that Peter would not have followed Christ to the home of the high priest -- even though he was clearly fearful -- if he was not devoted to Christ in the first place.  But his denial comes as the result of sudden temptation.  St. Ambrose compares Peter to King David, who writes, "Now in my prosperity I said, 'I shall never be moved,'" but then  admits that his boasting had harmed him, writing, "You hid Your face, and I was troubled" (Psalm 30:6-7).  Peter had boasted of his conviction and courage, but at Jesus' glance realizes he has let himself down.  St. Ambrose writes, "At that same moment and time, Christ looks at you. If you perhaps fall into some sin, because he is a witness to your secrets, he looks at you so that you may recall and confess your error. Imitate Peter, when he says in another place for the third time, 'Lord, you know that I love you'" (see John 21:15-19).  If great figures of our faith show us the effect of temptation, then let each one of us have the humility to remember this before we ourselves boast.  King David and Peter are also figures who resemble one another as each would help to lead the world to Christ, to be examples of faith and devotion.  Let us not forget that where we love Christ, there the Gospel story also reminds us that we will be tempted, having repeated throughout the readings for this week that it is forces of spiritual evil (in the figure of Satan) who work to harm the faithful and thereby the Church.  This is the power of darkness at work through human beings, and our weaknesses, temptations, and passions.  Peter's temptation is attributed to his fear of death in patristic commentary, where it is noted that Christ has not yet died nor risen.  The Gospel gives us Peter's tremendous example which shows our own need for humility, our capacity for repentance, and the love that is restored to us with Christ.  All of these things must be in Christ's eyes when He turned and looked at Peter.  Let us not forget it is all there, too, including His love, when He turns and looks at us.

No man ever spoke like this Man!

 

 On that last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."  But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.  

Therefore many from the crowd, when they heard this saying, said, "Truly this is the Prophet."  Others said, "This is the Christ."  But some said, "Will the Christ come out of Galilee?  Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where David was?"  So there was a division among the people because of Him.  Now some of them wanted to take Him, but no one laid hands on Him.  

Then the officers came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, "Why have you not brought Him?"  The officers answered, "No man ever spoke like this Man!"  Then the Pharisees answered them, "Are you also deceived?  Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in Him?  But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed."  Nicodemus (he who came to Jesus by night, being one of them) said to them, "Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?"  They answered and said to him, "Are you also from Galilee?  Search and look, for no prophet has arisen out of Galilee." 

 

- John 7:37–52 

 

Yesterday we read that about the middle of the Feast of Tabernacles Jesus went up into the temple and taught.  And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"  Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.  If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.  He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true and no unrighteousness is in Him.  Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law?  Why do you seek to kill Me?"  The people answered and said, "You have a demon.  Who is seeking to kill You?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel.  Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath.  If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?  Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."  Now some of them from Jerusalem said, "Is this not He whom they seek to kill?  But look!  He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him.  Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?  However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from."  Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.  But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me."  Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.  And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?"  The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me.  You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come."  Then the Jews said among themselves, "Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him?  Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?  What is this thing that He said, 'You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come'?"

 

 On that last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."  But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.   My study bible tells us that the last day, that great day of the feast was the eighth day of the Feast of Tabernacles.  The ceremony of the drawing of water, in which water from the pool of Siloam (meaning "Sent") was mixed with wine and poured at the foot of the altar, is the context for Christ's words, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink."   This was to commemorate the water pouring from the rock struck by Moses (Exodus 17:1-7).  But the living water Christ is speaking of, my study bible says, is the gift of the Holy Spirit, and the new life that accompanies this gift.  

Therefore many from the crowd, when they heard this saying, said, "Truly this is the Prophet."  Others said, "This is the Christ."  But some said, "Will the Christ come out of Galilee?  Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where David was?"  So there was a division among the people because of Him.  Now some of them wanted to take Him, but no one laid hands on Him.   The Prophet refers to the expected Messiah, the Savior foretold by Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15-19).  The Christ (the Messiah, "Anointed One") was expected to come from Bethlehem, the town of David (Micah 5:2). 

 

 Then the officers came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, "Why have you not brought Him?"  The officers answered, "No man ever spoke like this Man!"  Then the Pharisees answered them, "Are you also deceived?  Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in Him?  But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed."  My study bible reminds us that the chief priests had sent officers of the temple to arrest Jesus in the middle of the Feast (verse 32; see yesterday's reading, above).  By the time this last day of the Feast had arrived, no arrest had yet been made, because these officers had been converted by the teaching of Christ.  St John Chrysostom comments that although the Pharisees and scribes had "witnessed the miracles and read the Scriptures derived no benefit" from either one.  But these officers, on the other hand, even though they could not claim any such learning, were "captivated by a single sermon."  When the mind is open, he says "there is no need for long speeches.  Truth is like that."  

Nicodemus (he who came to Jesus by night, being one of them) said to them, "Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?"  They answered and said to him, "Are you also from Galilee?  Search and look, for no prophet has arisen out of Galilee."  Nicodemus had come to Jesus by night to be taught by Him (John 3:1-21) and since had increased in faith.  But his defense of Jesus was still based on our law, my study bible says, and so was not yet a public profession of faith (see John 19:38-39).  According to the law, Jesus must be given a hearing before He can be judged (Exodus 23:1, Deuteronomy 1:15-17).  The Pharisees make a broad claim, that no prophet has arisen out of Galilee.  My study bible says that in doing so they show their blind hatred, and also their ignorance of the Scriptures -- for the prophet Jonah came from Galilee, from the town of Gath Hepher, which was only three miles from Nazareth (2 Kings 14:25).  

I'm always struck by the sheer confusion around Jesus.  John's Gospel gives us a picture of an increasing level of hysteria on the part of the leadership, even as their threats to Jesus begin to rise because of His growing popularity.   But nothing will come together until it is time, "His hour of glory" (John 12:23).   In the meantime, the officers at this Feast of Tabernacles (a sort of temple police) are simple unable to take Him, as they are stunned by His speech and teaching.  And if we pay close attention to Jesus' teachings in today's reading, we see they are, in effect, mysterious to the people who hear them, as is quite common in John's Gospel.  He says, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."   It's only after Jesus is glorified that even His apostles really understand that in those rivers of living water, He's speaking of the Holy Spirit.  And yet, the people are coming to faith in Him, the officers too amazed to arrest Him.  It's quite eye-opening to perceive that despite the chaos, the rising  division around Him, and all the forces stirred up among the leaders and the people, Jesus simply persists in His message, in what He's come to do.  He's come to preach and teach about the Kingdom and the realities that must be revealed.  He's Incarnate Lord for a reason, and has a mission to fulfill.  Nothing interferes with that mission:  not the attempts of the leaders to stop Him and arrest Him, not the confusion of the people, not the misunderstandings about the figurative language that He uses, not the fear and turmoil of the disciples that is to come, not the controversy -- none of it matters in terms of the fulfillment of His mission.  He persists and pursues what He is meant to do in union with the Father and the Spirit.  Judas' betrayal won't stop Him, and the Cross will not stop Him, because all of it will be a part of this mission, all used by God for a purpose.  It doesn't indicate a lack of prudence on Jesus' part, because we've already observed that He is quite prudent:  there are occasions when He deliberately evades Jerusalem and the religious leadership, even leaving Galilee for a time to go to Samaria (John 4:1-42).  It isn't a kind of recklessness that He manages to stir up controversy around Him.  All of this is for a purpose, and His hour is chosen.  But it is a kind of courage fortified by faith, and even the power of the Cross is in the midst of it all.  There is a lot that Jesus will endure as Messiah, but none of it is wasted, because His highest calling isn't to do His own will but to be true to the Father who sent Him, so that His mission of salvation for human beings is complete.  Possibly the greatest mystery of all is the Cross, but even that we understand as used by God to destroy death for all of us.   If these mysteries have indeed come down to us in the Church, perceived by the holy, trusted to give strength and hope to countless people throughout the centuries, and continuing to do so, then we can simply marvel that none of it was lost.  None of the controversy and complication and misunderstanding stopped any of this message from getting through and having its effect, and continuing to do so today.  Indeed, what we can truly assume is that Christ's revelation has more yet to give us.  The one mistake we can make is to underestimate His mission and ministry and the power of His words, for they continue to be "the words of eternal life" as St. Peter said (John 6:68).  If we ourselves look to Jesus as the image for our lives, we can't help but learn from Him:  from His humility and His courage, His willingness to serve, and His infinite capacity for faith and love.  He teaches us how we are to be in the world, and to have endless faith in the word and teachings of eternal life, for in them we find life for ourselves.  And this life cannot be stopped.

If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority

 

 Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught.  And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"  Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.  If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.  He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.  Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law?  Why do you seek to kill Me?"  The people answered and said, "You have a demon.  Who is seeking to kill You?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel.  Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath.  If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?  Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."

Now some of them from Jerusalem said, "Is this not He whom they seek to kill?  But look!  He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him.  Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?  However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from."  Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.  But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me."  Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.  And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?"

The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me.  You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come."  Then the Jews said among themselves, "Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him?  Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?  What is this thing that He said, 'You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come'?"

 

- John 7:14–36 

 

Yesterday we read that at this time, Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the religious leaders sought to kill Him.  Now the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand.  His brothers therefore said to Him, "Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing.  For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly.  If You do these things, show Yourself to the world."  For even His brothers did not believe in Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready.  The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil.  You go up to this feast.  I am not yet going up to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come."  When He had said these things to them, He remained in Galilee.  But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.  Then the Jews sought Him at the feast, and said, "Where is He?"  And there was much complaining among the people concerning Him.  Some said, "He is good"; others said, "No, on the contrary, He deceives the people."  However, no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews.   

 Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught.  And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"  Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.  If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.  He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.  Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law?  Why do you seek to kill Me?"  The people answered and said, "You have a demon.  Who is seeking to kill You?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel.  Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath.  If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?  Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."  Jesus is at the eight-day Feast of Tabernacles (or Sukkot), an autumn festival commemorating the time the Israelites wandered toward the Promised Land following Moses, and dwelling in tents (or tabernacles).  My study bible comments on this passage that the simple desire to know and follow God's will is the key to understanding it.   It says that spiritual blindness comes from unwillingness to know God or to recognize God's authority.  St. John Chrysostom paraphrases Christ in this way:  "Rid yourselves of wickedness:  the anger, the envy, and the hatred which have arisen in your hearts, without provocation, against Me.  Then you will have no difficulty in realizing that My words are actually those of God.  As it is, these passions darken your understanding and distort sound judgment.  If you remove these passions, you will no longer be afflicted in this way."  Regarding healing on the Sabbath, Jesus refers to this event which occurred at the Feast of Weeks, or Old Testament Pentecost, which takes place fifty days after Passover.  

Now some of them from Jerusalem said, "Is this not He whom they seek to kill?  But look!  He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him.  Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?  However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from."  Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.  But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me."   My study bible comments that these crowds are mistaken, in both an earthly and a divine sense.  In terms of Christ's human identity, they think Jesus is from Nazareth of Galilee.  But they aren't aware that Jesus was actually born in Bethlehem (verse 42; see Luke 2:1-7).  Moreover, they can't comprehend that Christ has come from the Father in Heaven, eternally begotten before all ages, and therefore His divine "origin" is also unknown to them.

Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.  And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?"  Christ's hour is His time of suffering and death, His Passion.  My study bible remarks that He is the Lord over time, an authority which is possessed by God only.  Christ comes to the Cross by His own free will and in His time, and not according to the plots of human beings (see 8:20, 10:39). 

The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me.  You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come."   Christ's statement is a reference to His death, Resurrection, and Ascension into heaven.

Then the Jews said among themselves, "Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him?  Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?  What is this thing that He said, 'You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come'?"  To go among the Greeks is to go among the Gentiles.  This is an unwitting prophecy, according to my study bible, and it points to the time after Christ's Ascension when Christ's name will be preached among the Gentiles by the apostles.  

It's so interesting that John presents us with Jesus' teaching and the perplexed responses of the leaders and the people.  In today's reading John specifically gives us the dialogue of Jesus with the leaders and also the various people from Jerusalem and also the crowds.  The religious leaders at some point even send officers to seize Him, but as we shall see, and as we've been told, it's not quite His time for that yet.  Yesterday we read that the leaders were searching for him at the feast, but also there was much complaining among the people concerning Him.  Some said, "He is good"; others said, "No, on the contrary, He deceives the people."  However, no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews (meaning the religious leaders).  So the people are looking for clues.  People apparently are talking about Him in today's reading:  common people both from Galilee and now from Jerusalem.  The leaders marvel even at how Jesus knows all the things He's talking about.  Jesus asks, "Why do you seek to kill Me?" and the people respond, "You have a demon.  Who is seeking to kill You?"   Some from Jerusalem ask, "Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?"  But on the other hand, how can He be the Christ since "we know where this Man is from?"     And yet, despite this debate, there are also many who believe in Him because of the works He has done.  Everywhere there is discussion and debate.  There is also fear, and a myriad of opinions hidden under an umbrella of that fear of the leadership.   There is more than one opinion here, more than one party with their own perspective and point of view and interests for consideration, and Jesus is in the middle of all of it.  He is the central point of the controversy, with myriad rumors, opinions, ideas, and interests involved.  In short, we are in the middle of a crisis.  Even while the leaders issue orders to have Him arrested, how does Jesus respond to all of this?  What does He do?  Does He clarify everything for everyone?  Does He carefully explain all the things everybody wants to know?  Does He tell the people He was indeed born in Jerusalem?  No, instead Jesus talks the straight talk about His mystical origins and especially about the Father.  He says His doctrine is that of the One who sent Him, and that they must judge righteous judgment.  He tells them that they both know Him and where He's from, but they don't know the One who sent Him, whose will He always follows:  "I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.  But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me."   Everything keeps going back to the Father.  Finally, as if the climax of a crisis has come, Jesus announces that He will only be with them a little while longer, that He will return to the One who has sent Him, and where He will go they cannot follow.  "You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come."   Instead of resolving this crisis to everyone's satisfaction, Jesus tells the mystical truth of the reality of His ministry and mission.  They cannot understand, but we must consider that these words are not meant only for His immediate circumstances but also with the knowledge that they would also become meaningful to His disciples, and eventually be given to us.  Jesus never abandons the mission.  He doesn't seek to explain everything to everyone's satisfaction, but He does reveal the mystical reality of who He is.  He tells the truth about Himself, even though the people cannot understand.  He is leading them somewhere, and just as John's Gospel gives us this portrayal of the confusion and opinions that surround Him, so are we always in a similar place in the sense that we might hear, think, and entertain all kinds of notions about Christ.  But yet we still have only His words about who He is, and He is speaking to us all of these millennia later.  If we follow His lead, He continually points to the Father, that the Father and He are one, and that this is His mission, to be true to that identity as Son.  He knows His mission and what He is about, and yet into that mystery He reveals we are still drawn and invited in to enter.  Where is that place He is going?  Do we really know the Father, and follow the words and teachings we've been given?  How best do we follow Christ, and where is He taking us?  How do we reconcile our own social roles in the midst of a still-confusing life and time, and yet be true to Him, and even wait on His word?  All of these things are somehow with us still, and John does not spare us the confusion, the misunderstanding, the hostility, the manipulation, the desires, and the thousand and one other things that make up this slice of the life and time of the ministry of Christ.  For all of these things are still with us.  We walk through confusing times.  We don't fully understand the mystery of Christ.  But we know one thing, that He stands firm in His truth for us, and He goes to the Cross and returns to the Father for us.  We have our faith.  We have our will to do His will, and Christ's promise that this is enough.