by Fr. Jose “Joesum” Sumampong, Jr.
March 21, 2021
Jeremiah 31:31-34 / Psalm 51:3-4, 12-15
Hebrews 5:7-9 / John 12:20-33
LOOKING UP THE CROSS WITH THE EYES OF JESUS
Word: Like last Sunday, John invites us to meditate on the cross.
As Jesus is increasingly rejected by the Jewish leaders, some Greeks come to see Jesus. They are brought by Philip and Andrew, the only apostles who have Greek names. They are from Betsaida, where Jews and Gentiles intermingled.
Yes, at the very moment when those intent on putting Jesus to death are closing their nets on him, and when the opposition of the Pharisees is getting more and more apparent, suddenly, at the beginning of his last week on earth, Jesus gets a glimpse of the universal scope of his role as Savior. These Greeks announce the entrance of the Gentiles into the Church and the spread of redemption far beyond the physical boundaries of Israel. As Jesus reflects on his impending death, he speaks of it as a glorification. He sees the extraordinary fertility of his death, a death which will “bear fruit” and “attract all”.
This incident occurs after Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem just before the passion. Jesus says now that “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified (Jn 12:23).
At first sight, we may think that Jesus does not answer the request of the Greeks, who have asked to see him. But, in fact, Jesus does give the deepest possible answer, that is, “the hour that will make me sees as I am” – the hour that makes God to be seen. Indeed, one cannot really see either God or Jesus in any other light than the light of the Cross.
Then Jesus recalls a proverb about the grain of wheat. He says: “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit (Jn 12:24). The hour of Jesus is really the hour of his death. But at the same time it is the hour of his life multiplied. Jesus will be very much alone on the cross. But he will be also surrounded, although invisibly, by billions of men and women saved by his sacrifice.
After calling his disciples to follow him, Jesus turns to prayer. The passage is similar to the agony in the garden in the other gospels. He wonders if he should ask for escape. He says, “I am troubled now. Yet what should I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But it was for this purpose that I came to this hour” (Jn 12:27). He accepts his mission to glorify the Father.
Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it and will glorify it again” (Jn 12:27). The voice from heaven leaves the crowd confused, though Jesus says it was intended for their benefit. Jesus says, “This voice did not come for my sake but for yours (Jn 12:30). St. John does not narrate the Transfiguration of Jesus, nor any glorious theophany. For him, as we already saw last Sunday, the hour of the Cross is the hour of Glory.
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Order: Men and women of all ages and civilizations have discoursed on death and tried to unveil its mystery. In today’s gospel, Jesus shares his own conviction with us. He does not reason at length. He expresses existentially how he envisages His own death as a sowing. Jesus is challenging us to look at death with the eyes of faith. Just as during the long winter months, the grain of wheat buried in the ground seems to be dead; but in spring time, it sprouts out of the soil, and within some weeks, becomes a full ear of wheat, meant for the harvest.
Jesus’ reflection on his “glorification” indicates the paradoxical nature of the event. Just as a grain of wheat must die in order to grow, so also must one be willing to die in order to have life. Although the claim may sound contradictory, its truth can be readily seen. Letting go of something in order to gain it is part of our reality as well, whether a dream, a friendship or the promise of life itself. We cannot try to hang on to something too tightly, lest we kill it by strangulation.
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Realities: 1. A soldier of Alexander the Great was driving a heavily laden mule to the royal tent. The soldier, seeing that the burden was too great for the mule, took a bag from its back and carried it on his own shoulders. Alexander chanced to see the act, and was so pleased that he called the soldier over and said to him, “That bag which you have on your shoulders is filled with gold.
Take it as a gift from me. It is yours: you deserve it.” (Our Young People, KINDNESS)
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2. An old lady and her granddaughter were sorting seeds preparatory to the spring planting. “Queer little promises, grandmother, aren’t they?” remarked the little girl as she examined the contents of a little packet in her hand. “Every seed is a promise, isn’t it?
“Yes,” replied the old lady. “Every seed is a promise, but as is the case with every promise, there are conditions that must be met before it can be fulfilled.
“God has given us promises of comfort for times of sorrow; of strength, for the hours of trial and temptation; of light, for the days of darkness. But we have to have the faith and fortitude to go ahead in those hard times.
“Until the little seed allows itself to be buried in the soil, and exposed to rain and wind and sunshine, its beautiful possibilities or promises will never be realized.” (Forward, SEEDS ARE PROMISES)
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3. Once a little boy had a pet Iamb which played and skipped about until it landed in a thorny bush, scratched itself a little, and drew blood. The animal began to bleat dismally. The boy in excitement wanted his dad to go right out and cut down that wicked bush, for having hurt his little Iamb.
But the father sat the boy down beside him, not too far from the bush and began to watch in silence. A small bird came flying. along, perched on the offending bush and enraptured the lad with his joyous singing. Then it gathered together the bits of lamb’s wool that were left hanging on the thorns, and flew away with them to its nest. (Tonne, SUFFERING BEARING FRUIT)
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4. For many Filipino Christians of today, there seems to be two contradictory but widely shared attitudes which are very common. One “piously” makes suffering something to be sought in itself. The other, in worldly fashion, sees it as something to be avoided at all costs. Both gravely misunderstand the authentic Christian approach to suffering and death. (cf. Catechism for Filipino Catholics, no. 554).
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Direction: O Lord Jesus, like St. Paul, may I count everything as loss in comparison with the supreme advantage of knowing you. I want to know you and what your passion and resurrection can do. I also want to share in your sufferings in the hope that if I resemble you in death I may somehow attain to the resurrection from the dead. Give me grace to make every effort to supplement faith with moral courage, moral courage with knowledge, knowledge with self-control, self-control with patience, patience with piety, piety with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. May these virtues keep me both active and fruitful and bring me to the deep knowledge of you, Lord Jesus Christ. (Prayer to Know Jesus Christ, People’s Prayer Book, no. 692)