Today’s Gospel takes us to the Last Supper. The passage we have heard is just after Our Lord told the apostles that he would be with them only “a little while longer,” that one of them would betray him and that Peter would deny him. It was news that shook the apostles to their very core. And still, Our Lord says what seems impossible: “Do not let your hearts be troubled…have faith…”
Few of us get through life without troubles, and when they come along faith can be a struggle. It’s hard to feel confident of God’s presence when the ground beneath us is rocking and shifting. The path on our journey of life is not always straight, clear, or comfortable. We meet a few detours to negotiate and even a roadblock or two to overcome. Life is full of changes and challenges!
Faith is difficult when life throws us a curve ball. Still, Jesus says, “Do not let your hearts be troubled…have faith. Ordinarily, these are words that elude us, they seem too simplistic, unable to calm our fears, soothe our grief, and lift our worries. But, hearing these words in the light of the Resurrection, we know that they come from someone who will never deceive us, someone upon whom we can depend, from someone we know loves us and will be with us always. These words are not uttered by just anyone. They have meaning because they are the words of the Son of God.
It took time for the apostles to trust in these words. Time was needed to calm their fears and anxieties. Think of it—even after seeing the Risen Lord, they continued to be “troubled.” The Lord appeared to them many times over the course of forty days. He knew that they had to grasp that in the midst of their troubles he was there. He is also there for us—in whatever we experience. As it took time for the apostles to understand this, so it takes time for us.
The Lord is not distant. He is ever present to us—in his Word, in his Eucharist, and in His Church. His voice, the voice of Truth can be heard every time we open the Scriptures. His very Body and Blood, the precious gift that came from that Upper Room sustains us on our life’s journey. It is the pledge of our future glory.
Today let us pray that stress and burdens of life may not obscure our ability to see and know that the Lord is near. Our Lord did not become man to take away our problems but to teach us to cope with them. He wants to lead us through them, supporting and strengthening us on the way.
Today, during this Mass, a number of our young parishioners receive their first Holy Communion. We congratulate them and pray that this first encounter with Jesus in the Holy Eucharist will be the first of many throughout their lives. May they always remember that the Eucharist is not "something" but "Someone"—Jesus Himself, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity—who comes to us to be our strength and our love through life.
