Today’s Gospel is an expression of an impending separation cushioned with a promise of an abiding presence. Jesus is speaking to his disciples at their last supper together. And it must have been a LONG, many-course supper given the length of Jesus’ discourse. He lovingly reassures those gathered with him that even though he must leave them, he is not abandoning them. In his stead, he promises, he will send the Holy Spirit. And, on that day they will realize that He and the Father God are one.
When a lifetime friend moves far away we can reassure one another that we’ll stay in touch but we also probably agree [even if we do have FaceTime and Instagram]: “It’s just not going to be the same.” This may have been the feeling of the disciples. Jesus is saying “goodbye”. This is not just a farewell before going on a short trip, when they will see one another again in a few weeks or months. It’s a more permanent farewell. He is preparing them for the shock of his violent death and the collapse of their plans for the future. Everything is about to change for them “It’s just not going to be the same.”
Jesus is sensitive to the feeling of loss they are about to endure. He’s telling them quite clearly, “It’s just not going to be the same.” He knows they won’t make it on their own. Their human courage, like ours, just won’t be enough – they’ll need continued support to spread Jesus’ message after He is gone.
So, Jesus makes a FANTASTIC, and unbelievable promise: He is going to the Father and he will send the Holy Spirit to guide them as they face new challenges. There are going to be new issues and suffering for what they believe. But they will become aware of Jesus’ abiding presence.
We may be 2000+ years away from those disciples around the table with Jesus that night; but we too have experienced loss and need. We have said many goodbyes to family and community members. We’ve experienced big changes in our lives. There have been times when we’ve needed to be strong ourselves and for others: times of grave illness, worry over a troubled or addicted loved one, sorrow over a broken relationship or an uncertain future.
Those are the times when we’ve known: “It’s just not going to be the same.” And it wasn’t. God sends us curve balls when we least expect it. But, like a skilled ball player we can still hit a home run. God gives us the strength to stay faithful and the wisdom to maneuver life’s many twists and turns.
Who could have foreseen, or even imagined, this day when we would be lesser in number? These are times when we know well the feeling: It’s just not going to be the same.
Our duty, our challenge, then, is to believe, to trust that we DO have the Spirit with us – in Word, the Eucharist, in each other. We believe Jesus has kept his promise to give us the gift of the Spirit – an abiding, permanent dwelling with each and every one of us. We believe Jesus when he says: I will send the “Advocate” – a counselor, a consoler, a mediator – divine energy that will bind you together with one another, and all you in God.
A Thomas Merton prayer speaks to me when all I do know is: “it’s just not going to be the same.”
“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And, I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore, will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.”
[Thomas Merton, Thoughts on Solitude, 1956}
~Reflection by Sister Roberta Bailey, OSB
