In the first reading of today’s liturgy, 1 John 1: 1-4, St.
John the Apostle says to each one of us:
What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with
our eyes, what we looked upon and touched with our hands concerns the Word of
life—for the life was made visible; we have seen it and testify to it and
proclaim to you the eternal life.” John
is excited and wants to share with us the intimacy, the closeness, he was privileged
to share with Jesus during his lifetime. John, the brother of James, sons of
Zebedee, was in his father’s boat mending nets when Jesus called him with his
brother James to be one of His followers. He was privileged to listen to Jesus’
proclamation of the Kingdom, to witness not only Jesus’ healing of the sick and
the lame, the blind and the dead, the demoniacs and lepers, but also to
participate in Jesus’ multiplication of the loaves. John was present on Mount Tabor when Jesus
was transfigured and the Father said to Peter, James and John: Listen to Jesus;
He is my only begotten Son. John also was present at the Last Supper, at the
first Eucharistic celebration, when Jesus transformed the bread and the wine at
the Last Supper into His body and blood: take and eat this is my body given up
for you; take and drink, this is the blood of the New Covenant poured out for
you. It was John who rested his head on
Jesus’ breast when the betrayer was announced to be one of them. It was also John who stood beneath the cross of
the crucified Jesus. Jesus said to him: John, take care of my mother and he
took her into his home. It was at that moment, also, that Jesus asked Mary to
take care of her son John and all her sons and daughters, you and me.
We might envy John for being privileged to be so close to
Jesus. But you and I are as privileged. As Christians, and especially as
Catholics, we rest our heads on the breast of Jesus and Jesus on our breast
when we receive Holy Communion, heeding Jesus’ words to take and eat; this is my body given up for
you. Take and drink, this is my blood poured out for you. In the holy sacrifice
of the Catholic Mass, we join all of the angels and saints in heaven, singing: “Hosanna
in the highest; blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” Heaven and earth join together praising and
thanking our God for the gift of eternal life which every person who eats of
the consecrated bread and drinks of the consecrated wine, the body and blood of
Jesus, inherits.
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