5th Sunday of Lent B March 29, 2009

Gospel, John 12:20-33  People of non-Jewish background could join the Jewish religion as full members through circumcision or as associates or as “God-fearing” members who, short of circumcision, shared beliefs and could attend the synagogue services. This latter group was rather numerous by the apostolic period. Well before the time that John’s gospel was written, the leaders of the church at the Council of Jerusalem (c. 46 A.D.) determined that the “God-fearing”, or for that matter any non Jew, could be full members of the Christian community without need to be circumcised and follow the details of the Mosaic law.

The “Greeks” referred to in this reading may have been proselytes or “God-fearing”, but they might have simply been Greek visitors or tourists in Jerusalem out of curiosity. There is a simple song based their request with the words: “Open our eyes, Lord. We want to see Jesus”. The Gospels only speak of two other people “wanting to see” Jesus, Zacchaeus in Luke 19:3 and Herod Antipas in Luke 23:8. Philip, to whom these Greeks come with their request, wil make a somewhat similar one at the Last Supper: “Lord, show us the Father (John 14:8-9)”. Perhaps Philip had pondered over the request brought to him by these Greeks.

Why did they come to Philip? Was it because he had a Greek name (Philip = lover of horses)? Does being from Bethsaida, a more Greek-styled city have anything to do with it? By the way, Bethsaida was not in Galilee but rather on the Sea of Galilee across the northern section of the Jordan River just outside of Galilee. Could that little fact indicate that the final format of John’s gospel may have been written by some of his disciples since John was from that area and would have known different?

Why did Philip go to Andrew? John 1:44 says that Peter and Andrew were also from Bethsaida. By the time of Jesus’ ministry, they had moved to Capernaum in Galilee, perhaps to take advantage of the better fishing areas on that side of the lake or to reduce the taxes they would have to pay at the fish processing station at Magdala in Galilean territory. I like to think of Andrew as a kind of father figure, the quiet dependable go-to fellow whom Jesus left in charge when he would take Peter, James and John (Andrew being the fourth member of that initial group) with him as at the Transfiguration, going to raise Jairus’ daughter, and at prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane.

How does the request for Greeks to see him evoke Jesus’ response that his “hour” had come? Note that there is no ensuing conversation. Isaiah 2:2-4 (echoed in Micah 4:1-3) speaks of the mountain of the Lord’s house (the temple) being established as the highest mountain…all nations shall stream to it.” Jesus must have had a sense that, through his disciples, his mission would be expanded beyond the Jewish people to the Gentiles/Greeks. Transition into that next stage would only come through his death on the cross. Could Jesus have interpreted the request as the signal that the hour of transition had come?

As he has characteristically done so in the past, Jesus refers to himself as the “Son of Man”. This phrase was used well over 100 times in Ezekiel as God’s way of addressing the prophet (see also Job 25:6, Ps.8:4, Ps 80:17, Ps 144:3). It took on a special meaning, however, through Daniel 7:13 which refers to: “One like a son of man coming on the clouds of heaven…received dominion, glory and kingship, nations and peoples of every language serve him”. Perhaps understood initially as a symbol of a compassionate ruler to come in contrast to other world powers represented in Daniel by savage animals (bears, lions, etc.), by the time of Jesus “Son of Man” had come to be understood as referring to the Messiah to be sent by God.

As an indicator of Jesus’ teaching about himself which, short of claiming divinity, engendered the antagonism of the Jewish authorities, here is a brief summary of the phrase as used by Jesus in Matthew (the gospel most oriented to people of Jewish background): 8:20 the Son of Man has no place to lay his head / 9:6 that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins / 12:8 the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath / 12:40 the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth / 13:37 the one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man / 13:41 the Son of Man will send out his angels / 16:13 Who do people say the Son of Man is? / 16:27 the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels / 17:12 the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands / 19:28 when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel / 20:28 the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve / Mt 24:30 they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory / 24:44 the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

“Whoever loves his life loses it.” The word for love here is “philos”, love based on attraction and attachment. We are to love our life, but strive for “agape” love, the unattached perfection of divine love. Is it bad to feel an attachment to life in this world? Of course not. That was part of the battle that caused Jesus’ spirit to be so troubled.

The voice of God, heard previously at Jesus’ baptism and transfiguration, once again encourages Jesus toward the completion of his mission. The voice is also for Jesus’ disciples to know that glory awaits those who, like Jesus, pass through the martyr’s suffering and death.

Reading 1, Jeremiah 13:31-34  Jeremiah prophesied for God during the period leading up to the Babylonian Captivity. As it became obvious that people were not going to heed God’s warnings and that disaster was imminent, he began to give messages of hope which the people could hold onto in their time of exile. This text is one such prophecy. Unlike the old covenant written on stone, the new one will be written in the hearts of believers. The passage begins with the words “the days are coming”, commonly used in many a prophetic statement. It enhances Jesus’ statement in the gospel that “the hour has come” as Jesus will be that new covenant. All, including the Greeks mentioned in today’s gospel and whoever else from the diverse races and nations of the world who comes to believe in Jesus, “shall know the Lord”.

Reading II, Hebrews 5:7-9  At first reading, this text seems problematic. How can the author say Jesus’ supplications were heard when he ended up being crucified? If Jesus “learned obedience”, doesn’t that imply that he wasn’t obedient before? And what can it mean that Jesus “was made perfect”? Jesus was the Son of God. In what way could he be considered “imperfect”?

I tend to think of obedience as an action, “being obedient” or doing what one is told to do, but that’s not the core meaning of the word. “Obedience” is a combination of two Latin words: “ob” meaning “under” (here not in referenced to location but being “under” another’s authority) + “audire” meaning “to hear” (think of “audio”). The word in the Greek text, “hupakoen”, has the exact same meaning (“hupo” = under, “akouo” = to hear….”acuoustics”). Obedience begins with attentive listening. Through his prayer Jesus learned to listen attentively to the voice of God the Father, to discern the will of God and then carry it out.

As to Jesus being “made perfect”, the Greek word used refers not to perfection in contrast with imperfection, but rather to being finished as compared to being unfinished with some tasks still to be accomplished. Jesus’ mission was not complete until his saving death and resurrection through which he became the source of eternal salvation.

In what sense did God hear Jesus’ supplications? God didn’t save Jesus from dying but he did save him from death. Jesus’ ultimate prayer was that the will of God be done, and he was heard. God used his Son’s earthly life to show the world the depth of his love for us…and the victory over death in which we, too, will have a share.

Teach me, Lord, to listen intently to you in prayer, that I might accomplish all that you desire of me, bearing the crosses along the path you have prepared for me. When the day comes that, like Jesus, I must bear the ultimate cross of dying, let me share in his victory over death and share in his resurrection for all eternity.

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Thank you for yet another perspective that I will share with my 8th graders. Obedience-God grant me the wisdom to know and realize my human limits, that I have a higher power in God who speaks directly to me, and realize it.

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