Gospel: John
11:45-56
Many of
the Jews who had come to Mary and seen what Jesus had done began to believe in
him. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.
So the chief priests and the Pharisees convened the Sanhedrin and said, “What
are we going to do? This man is performing many signs. If we leave him alone,
all will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our land
and our nation.” But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said
to them, “You know nothing, nor do you consider that it is better for you that
one man should die instead of the people, so that the whole nation may not
perish.” He did not say this on his own, but since he was high priest for that
year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, and not only
for the nation, but also to gather into one the dispersed children of God. So
from that day on they planned to kill him.
So Jesus
no longer walked about in public among the Jews, but he left for the region
near the desert, to a town called Ephraim, and there he remained with his
disciples. Now the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up from the
country to Jerusalem before Passover to purify themselves. They looked for
Jesus and said to one another as they were in the temple area, “What do you
think? That he will not come to the feast?”
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Reflection:
Do you
always make yourself available to the people? For example if you’re a
politician are you always available to your constituents even if it’s not
election time? Many politicians are only available when they campaign during
election. But after the election has been won they are already hard to find.
If you’re
a priest or a person of God do you always make yourself available to those who
are in need of your time and advice? Many person of God discriminates; they are
always available to those who are rich and powerful. But they are not always
available to the poor and powerless.
Aside
from performing miraculous healings Jesus is also humble, approachable, and
helpful. He always empathized with the poor and lowly. This is what made Jesus dear
to the hearts of the people most especially the common people.
Through
these virtues He galvanized into one the dispersed children of God. And it
created a bandwagon effect that whoever saw or even heard about Him was
captivated to follow Him. Thus Jesus became a threat to the powers that be at
that time.
We who follow
Jesus must learn from these human qualities of Jesus. We may not have the gift
to perform miraculous healings. But if we are humble, approachable and always
available we could also be His representative to our fellowmen most especially
to the poor and powerless. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
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