Daily Gospel Reflection
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May 19, 2020
Jesus said to his disciples, “Now I am going to him who sent me; yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your hearts.
“Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.
“And when he comes, he will prove the world wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because they do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father and you will see me no longer; about judgment, because the ruler of this world has been condemned.”
There is a song lyric that asks, “why is goodbye the hardest part of speech?” We have all felt that pit in our stomach when we have to say goodbye to someone we love, whether that is after visiting with family or friends we don’t see often or spending time with a loved one who may soon pass away.
In this passage, Jesus is delivering the difficult message to his disciples that he must leave and they are distraught about his impending departure. Jesus has already prepared them to do even bigger and better things in his absence, though. They just don’t realize it yet.
Doesn’t Jesus sound like a parent dropping off a child for the first day of school? Whether kindergarten or college, it can be difficult for kids to make the transition to a new level of independence and responsibility. Jesus is reassuring his disciples that he has prepared them for their task and that, in order to grow, they need to forge ahead without him being physically present.
One of my responsibilities as a parent is to help my kids grow into responsible, independent adults (who love the Irish). To that end, my mentor shared with me the following three pieces of advice when I became a father. They ring particularly true in light of the gospel passage as Jesus exemplifies each of them in his relationship with the disciples.
Begin with the end in mind – Jesus knew his supremely important role in our salvation and that he needed to equip the disciples to carry out his mission when he was gone. Jesus’s example is a great reminder to not lose focus on the larger goal of raising children with a strong faith that will serve as a grounding force and source of strength in their lives.
Walk the talk (our kids are watching everything we do) – No one better exemplifies this than Jesus. He provides the prime example of how we should live our lives. We can’t expect our kids to do as we say if we don’t model that behavior ourselves.
Use every opportunity as a teaching moment – One of the most well-known stories about Jesus involves him using bread and fish, pretty mundane items, in his teaching. I love the idea of finding teachable moments that might otherwise be overlooked, as Jesus always did in his ministry. You never know what will resonate with your child.
While goodbyes are difficult, let’s follow Jesus’s example from now until whenever goodbye might be and do our best to pass along lessons to our children that will sustain them long after we are gone.
Prayer
Jesus, you tell us that the ruler of the world has no power over you. Oh, to have that freedom! We are too enslaved by appearances the expectations of others, and it wears down our spirits. Loving God our Father, doing God’s will, and knowing that we are beloved of you and the Father—ah—there is true peace. May we have more of your peace and less of the world’s in our lives. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Dunstan is one of the foundational saints for the English Church; many of England's oldest churches are named after him and, throughout the centuries, the British people have written many stories about his holiness.
St. Dunstan was born sometime between 910 and 924, most historians think it was around the year 910. Dunstan's mother was a Saxon noblewoman. An early legend of Dunstan's life indicates that his spiritual status in the Church was foretold from the very beginning.
When his mother was pregnant with Dunstan she was in the church of St. Mary on Candleday (the feast of "Candlemas," the Presentation of the Lord), and all the lights were suddenly extinguished in the church. But the candle held by Dunstan's mother, Cynethryth, was just as suddenly relighted. Everyone in the church approached her and lit their own candles from the miraculous flame of Cynethryth, thus foreshadowing that the boy "would be the minister of eternal light" to the Church of England.
After Dunstan was born, he was sent to Glastonbury Abbey, an ancient, revered English abbey, where Dunstan was educated in the liberal arts. He was sent to the court of the king, but his stint at court was far from blissful. The other courtiers were wildly jealous of Dunstan, and they attacked him and tortured him, even throwing him into a cesspool. But Dunstan escaped to Winchester, where his uncle, who was a powerful bishop, convinced him to become a monk.
After some initial reluctance, Dunstan joined the monastery of Glastonbury. Eventually, he was asked to become abbot of the community. Dunstan used this powerful position to institute a series of reforms in Glastonbury. He instituted the Benedictine rule in Glastonbury, rebuilt the cloister, and preserved the monastic enclosure, keeping the monks devoted on the work of the community rather than too much involvement with the town outside. But Dunstan did not ignore the needs of the community. He opened a school for local children, which became a famous monastic school throughout England.
Falling out with the new king, Dunstan fled to Cluny, the center of monastic reform in France. As kings came and went with more rapidity in 10th century England, Dunstan was recalled from exile and received a boost in status as he was appointed the Bishop of London. In 960, Dunstan received the pallium of the episcopacy for his new diocese. Several churches in London still bear his name.
After serving England's capital city for almost twenty years, Dunstan retired to Canterbury, where he lived for the remainder of his life until he died on May 19, 988. He was canonized in 1029, and is the patron saint of silversmiths, goldsmiths, bellringers, and Canada.
St. Dunstan, abbot, bishop, and cornerstone of the Church in England—pray for us!
Image Credit: Stained Glass of Dunstan located in Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, New York (circa 1920) Photo by Randy OHC via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)