Creating
the perfect home means different things to different people, but for most of
us, our domestic surroundings are where we can truly express ourselves.
What makes
a house a home? A straw poll of friends
threw up similar themes: ‘it holds all my favorite things and my favorite
person in one place’, ‘it’s about having cool, smooth sheets but also feeling
free to make a mess’, ‘it’s the place I retreat to for peace from the hectic,
bossy outside world’, ‘it’s where I can spend the whole day in my pajamas
watching the Golf Channel, QVC, Star Wars Trilogy, or HDTV if I so choose’.
It seems
for many, creating a home is less about the building itself, its look or the
area it is in, and more about the emotional connection and sense of comfort
we’re able to create behind closed doors.[1] It’s about having the space to be, to live out
our own identity, a sacred space of security, love and belonging.
Paul is
fighting an uphill battle: trying to convince an audience of Jews that Jesus is
the fulfillment of their history, even though their religious leadership in Jerusalem
do not accept Jesus. He relies on his
interpretation of the tradition and Scripture sacred to the Jews. Jesus fulfills God’s promises and the enduring
hope of the Jewish nation. Rejection of
Jesus and his mission is rejection of Yahweh’s plan for his people.
As
important as it is to have our sight on the event of Jesus’ Easter
resurrection. John’s Gospel focuses more
on who Jesus is than on what Jesus did. Christianity
is not so much a religion as it is a relationship. Jesus describes himself in ultimate terms: “I am the way, the truth, and
the life.” (Jn
14:6) All our rules, rituals, and writings are
geared toward deepening our intimate relationship with Jesus the Christ.
Thomas’ melancholy
question reflects the slowness of the disciples to understand. They have
deciphered neither Jesus’ true identity nor the intimacy between the Son and
the Father. The disciples still do not
know who Jesus is, but we do! Jesus’
answer significantly focuses not on geography but upon a person, upon himself.
As we partake in this mystery, is knowing the way to the Father’s house, to the place Jesus has gone to prepare for us, to our true heavenly home, with all that a home means to us, the way is with, in, and through Jesus: this is the ultimate meaning behind his initial invitation, “Follow me” (Jn 1:43)
which leads us to a
place of belonging.
As we partake in this mystery, is knowing the way to the Father’s house, to the place Jesus has gone to prepare for us, to our true heavenly home, with all that a home means to us, the way is with, in, and through Jesus: this is the ultimate meaning behind his initial invitation, “Follow me” (Jn 1:43)
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