Daily Gospel Reflection
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January 4, 2020
John was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.
When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, “What are you looking for?”
They said to him, “Rabbi” (which translated means Teacher), “where are you staying?”
He said to them, “Come and see.”
They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon.
One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated Christ). He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).
After I first read this passage, I couldn’t let one question go: Why does it matter that this meeting occurred “about four o’clock in the afternoon”? It felt like a precise yet insignificant detail. I’d like to suggest two meanings: one literary, one historical.
Let’s start with the literary. John’s Gospel uses light as a metaphor for understanding. These disciples demonstrate their understanding of Jesus by first referring to him as “Rabbi,” but then soon recognizing him as “Messiah.” Contrast this with a later encounter by Nicodemus who also calls Jesus “Rabbi,” but then fails to name him as “Messiah.” It’s fitting that here, the disciples’ conversion encounter occurs in the sunlit afternoon while that of Nicodemus occurs at night, when he can’t literally or figuratively “see” Jesus.
This would be sufficient if the Gospel read “in the afternoon,” but the precise hour is more provocative. It reminds us that God’s call does not come to us out of the blue, but in a specific time and place. Perhaps it also touches on the historical meaning. I believe four o’clock was significant for John because he was the unnamed disciple accompanying Andrew. The scene bears John’s hallmark of besting Peter, like when he sat closer to Jesus at the Last Supper or ran faster to the empty tomb. Four in the afternoon may have been when John “outpaced” Peter to discipleship, a crystallizing moment he would never forget.
Let me invite you to ponder one additional moment—when John recalled that first hour of encounter while writing the Gospel decades later. John remembers the afternoon sighting, but then it dawns on him that it occurred in the light. He sees a broader pattern and wonders, “Did Jesus orchestrate this?” If so, the use of light in the Gospel is not a construction of John-as-author, but John’s recognition of the artistic mastery of Jesus, the Author of history.
That sunny, life-changing afternoon, John was a player in the scene we read. But decades later he looks back, this time as the audience member reflecting on the drama, delighted to see the Author’s design. Christ authored the metaphor of light, and John was the dutiful scribe. And in that role—to see, to believe, to relay—there is joy for us as Christians in the kingdom.
Prayer
Loving God, the followers of Jesus were filled with zeal to lead others to Christ. Help us to grow in faith and love, so that all Christians might zealously proclaim the Gospel. Inspire our words and our actions so that others may see our love for you and long to know you. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton was the first native-born citizen of the United States to be canonized.
Born Elizabeth Bayley, today's saint was born in 1774 and came of age with our young nation during the tumultuous years of the American Revolution. The Bayley's were part of New York City high society, and Elizabeth was raised with all the comforts of a young heiress. In 1794, Elizabeth married a wealthy man named William Seton and their first years were full of happiness. The memory of that happiness would remain with Elizabeth in the hard years ahead.
William’s father suddenly died, and the young couple took on the care of William’s seven brothers and sisters. Soon after, William’s business failed and he contracted tuberculosis. In a desperate move to save William, they sailed to Italy for a warmer climate, where William had business partners, but he died there.
Elizabeth had a life-long love of Scripture, and the Word of God sustained her in these difficult years of her early widowhood. It was during her time in Italy that she awakened to Catholicism—especially the Eucharist—and she began taking instruction in the faith there. In 1805 she joined the Church, alienating many of her Episcopalian family members.
To support her family as a widow, and to provide for the education of her five small children, Elizabeth opened a school. At the invitation of Archbishop John Carroll and with the help of two other women, she opened a school in Maryland, one of the first free Catholic schools in America.
The small community was known as the Sisters of Charity and they adopted a common rule of life, which made an allowance for Elizabeth to continue to raise her children. Over time, the community would grow to six groups of nuns and grew rapidly, establishing many other orphanages and schools throughout the United States.
Elizabeth herself contracted tuberculosis but continued to guide her five children through her illness. She died at the age of 46 in 1821, after only sixteen years as a Catholic. Elizabeth was canonized in 1975 by Pope Paul VI, the first native-born United States citizen to be canonized.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is the patron saint of widows, the state of Maryland, and of Catholic Schools. A statue of St. Elizabeth sits in the Knott Hall Chapel on Notre Dame's campus. The Notre Dame Archives in the Hesburgh Library collects and maintains records that document the life of the Catholic Church and her people as lived in the American context—which includes material from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, patron saint of Catholic schools in the United States—pray for us!