For your reading, reflection, faith-sharing, comments, questions, discussion.

From: Acts 22:30, 23:6-11

Speech before the Sanhedrin

[30] But on the morrow, desiring to know the real reason why the Jews accused
him, he (the tribune) unbound him, and commanded the chief priests and all the
council to meet, and he brought Paul down and set him before them.

[6] But when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Phari-
sees, he cried out in the council, “Brethren, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees;
with respect to the hope and the resurrection of the dead I am on trial.” [7] And
when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sad-
ducees; and the assembly was divided. [8] For the Sadducees say that there is
no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit; but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.
[9] Then a great clamor arose; and some of the scribes of the Pharisees’ party
stood up and contended, ‘We find nothing wrong in this man. What if a spirit of
an angel spoke to him?” [10] And when the dissension became violent, the tri-
bune, afraid that Paul would be torn in pieces by them, commanded the soldiers
to go down and take him by force from among them and bring him into the bar-
racks.

[11] The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage, for as
you have testified about me at Jerusalem, so you must bear witness also at
Rome.”

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

30. This does not seem to have been a regular session of the Sanhedrin; it is an
informal one arranged by Lysias (Acts 23:26) to enable documentation to be pre-
pared, now that “evidence” cannot be extracted from Paul by torture.

6-9. From St Luke’s Gospel (cf. 20:27) we know that the Sadducees, unlike the
Pharisees, did not believe in a future resurrection of the dead. This is the only
place in the New Testament where it says that they also denied the existence
of angels and spirits; however, this is confirmed by Jewish and secular sources.

In the course of his trial, Paul brings up a subject which sets his judges at each
other. Personal advantage is not his main reason for doing this. He is obviously
very shrewd, but he really does not expect to get an impartial hearing from the
Sanhedrin. Therefore he tries to stir their consciences and awaken their love for
the truth and thereby elicit some sympathy for Christians. Although Christian be-
lief in the Resurrection was not the same thing as the Pharisees’ belief, the two
had this in common: they believed in the resurrection of the dead.

9. They are referring to his vision on the road to Damascus. They are not going
as far as to say that it was Jesus who spoke to Paul, but they do not rule out
the possibility that he had a genuine spiritual experience.

11. The Lord is Jesus. These words of consolation to Paul show him that God
will guide him all along, right up to his court appearance in Rome.

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

From: John 17:20-26

The Priestly Prayer of Jesus (Continuation)

(Jesus lifted His eyes to Heaven and said,) [20] “I do not pray for these (My dis-
ciples) only, but also for those who believe in Me through their word, [21] that
they may all be one; even as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they al-
so may be in us, so that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me. [22] The
glory which Thou hast given Me I have given to them, that they may be one even
as we are one, [23] I in them and Thou in Me, that they may become perfectly
one, so that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me and hast loved them e-
ven as Thou hast loved Me. [24] Father, I desire that they also, whom Thou hast
given Me, may be with Me where I am, to behold My glory which Thou hast given
Me in Thy love for Me before the foundation of the world. [25] O righteous Father,
the world has not known Thee, but I have known Thee; and these know that Thou
hast sent Me. [26] I made known to them Thy name, and I will make it known,
that the love with which Thou hast loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

20-23. Since it is Christ who is praying for the Church His prayer is infallibly effec-
tive, and therefore there will always be only one true Church of Jesus Christ. Uni-
ty is therefore an essential property of the Church. “We believe that the Church
founded by Jesus Christ and for which He prayed is indefectibly one in faith, in
worship and in the bond of hierarchical communion” (Paul VI, “Credo of the Peo-
ple of God”, 21). Moreover, Christ’s prayer also indicates what the basis of the
Church’s unity will be and what effects will follow from it.

The source from which the unity of the Church flows is the intimate unity of the
Three Divine Persons among whom there is mutual love and self-giving. “The Lord
Jesus, when praying to the Father ‘that they may all be one...even as we are one’
(John 17:21-22), has opened up new horizons closed to human reason by imply-
ing that there is a certain parallel between the union existing among the Divine
Persons and the union of the sons of God in truth and love. It follows, then, that
if man is the only creature on earth that God has wanted for its own sake, man
can fully discover his true self only in a sincere giving of himself” (Vatican II,
“Gaudium Et Spes”, 24). The unity of the Church is also grounded on the union
of the faithful with Jesus Christ and through Him with the Father (verse 23). Thus,
the fullness of unity — “consummati in unum” — is attained through the superna-
tural grace which comes to us from Christ (cf. John 15:5).

The fruits of the unity of the Church are, on the one hand, the world believing in
Christ and in His divine mission (verses 21, 23); and, on the other hand, Chris-
tians themselves and all men recognizing God’s special love for His faithful, a
love which is a reflection of the love of the Three Divine Persons for each other.
And so, Jesus’ prayer embraces all mankind, for all are invited to be friends of
God (cf. 1 Timothy 2:4). “Thou hast loved them even as Thou hast loved Me”:
this, according to St. Thomas Aquinas, “does not mean strict equality of love but
similarity and like-motivation. It is as if He were saying: the love with which You
have loved Me is the reason and the cause of Your loving them, for, precisely be-
cause You love men do You love those who love Me” (”Commentary on St. John,
in loc.”). Besides noting this theological explanation, we should also ponder on
how expressively Christ describes His ardent love for men. The entire discourse
of the Last Supper gives us a glimpse of the depth of Jesus’ feelings — which infi-
nitely exceeds anything we are capable of experiencing. Once again all we can
do is bow down before the mystery of God-made-man.

20. Christ prays for the Church, for all those who, over the course of centuries,
will believe in Him through the preaching of the Apostles. “That divine mission,
which was committed by Christ to the Apostles, is destined to last until the end
of the world (cf. Matthew 28:20), since the Gospel, which they were charged to
hand on, is, for the Church, the principle of all its life for all time. For that very rea-
son the Apostles were careful to appoint successors in this hierarchically consti-
tuted society” (Vatican II, “Lumen Gentium”, 20).

The apostolic origin and basis of the Church is what is termed its “apostolicity”,
a special characteristic of the Church which we confess in the Creed. Apostoli-
city consists in the Pope and the Bishops being successors of Peter and the A-
postles, holding the authority of the Apostles and proclaiming the same teaching
as they did. “The sacred synod taught that the bishops have by divine institution
taken the place of the Apostles as pastors of the Church, in such wise that who-
ever listens to them is listening to Christ and whoever despises them despises
Christ and Him who sent Christ (cf. Luke 10:15)” (Vatican II, “Lumen Gentium”,
20).

21. Union of Christians with Christ begets unity among themselves. This unity of
the Church ultimately redounds to the benefit of all mankind, because since the
Church is one and unique, she is seen as a sign raised up for the nations to see,
inviting all to believe in Christ as sent by God come to save all men. The Church
carries on this mission of salvation through its union with Christ, calling all man-
kind to join the Church and by so doing to share in union with Christ and the
Father.

The Second Vatican Council, speaking of the principles of ecumenism, links the
Church’s unity with her universality: “Almost everyone, though in different ways,
longs for the one visible Church of God, a Church truly universal and sent forth to
the whole world that the world may be converted to the Gospel and so be saved,
to the glory of God” (”Unitatis Redintegratio”, 1). This universality is another cha-
racteristic of the Church, technically described as “catholicity”. “For many centu-
ries now the Church has been spread throughout the world, and it numbers per-
sons of all races and walks of life. But the universality of the Church does not de-
pend on its geographical distribution, even though this is a visible sign and of mo-
tive of credibility. The Church was catholic already at Pentecost: it was born ca-
tholic from the wounded heart of Jesus, as a fire which the Holy Spirit enkindled.

“In the second century the Christians called the Church catholic in order to distin-
guish it from sects, which, using the name of Christ, were betraying His doctrine
in one way or another. ‘We call it catholic’, writes St. Cyril, ‘not only because it
is spread throughout the world, from one extreme to the other, but because in a
universal way and without defect it teaches all the dogmas which men ought to
know, of both the visible and the invisible, the celestial and the earthly. Likewise
because it draws to true worship all types of men, governors and citizens, the
learned and the ignorant. And finally, because it cures and heals all kinds of sins,
whether of the soul or of the body, possessing in addition — by whatever name it
may be called — all the forms of virtue, in deeds and in words and in every kind
of spiritual life’ (”Catechesis”, 18, 23)” (St. J. Escriva, “In Love with the Church”,
9).

Every Christian should have the same desire for this unity as Jesus Christ expres-
ses in His prayer to the Father. “A privileged instrument for participation in pursuit
of the unity of all Christians is prayer. Jesus Christ Himself left us His final wish
for unity through prayer to the Father: ‘that they also may be in us, so that the
world may believe that Thou hast sent Me’ (John 17:21).

“Also the Second Vatican Council strongly recommended to us prayer for the uni-
ty of Christians, defining it ‘the soul of the whole ecumenical movement’ (”Unitatis
Redintegratio”, 8). As the soul to the body, so prayer gives life, consistency, spi-
rit, and finality to the ecumenical movement.

“Prayer puts us, first and foremost, before the Lord, purifies us in intentions, in
sentiments, in our heart, and produces that ‘interior conversion’, without which
there is no real ecumenism (cf. “Unitatis Redintegratio”, 7).

“Prayer, furthermore, reminds us that unity, ultimately, is a gift from God, a gift
for which we must ask and for which we must prepare in order that we may be
granted it” (Bl. John Paul II, “General Audience”, 17 January 1979).

22-23. Jesus possess glory, a manifestation of divinity, because He is God, equal
to the Father (cf. note on John 17:1-5). When He says that He is giving His disci-
ples this glory, He is indicating that through grace He makes us partakers of the
divine nature (2 Peter 1:4). Glory and justification by grace are very closely united,
as we can see from Sacred Scripture: “Those whom He predestined He also cal-
led, and those whom He called He also justified, and those whom He justified He
also glorified” (Romans 8:30). The change grace works in Christians makes us
ever more like Christ, who is the likeness of the Father (cf. 2 Corinthians 4:4; He-
brews 1:2-3): by communicating His glory Christ joins the faithful to God by gi-
ving them a share in supernatural life, which is the source of the holiness of Chris-
tians and of the Church: “Now we can understand better how [...] one of the prin-
cipal aspects of her holiness is that unity centered on the mystery of the one and
triune God. ‘There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one
hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and
Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all’ (Ephesians 4:4-6)” (St.
J. Escriva, “In Love with the Church”, 5).

24. Jesus concludes His prayer by asking that all Christians attain the blessed-
ness of Heaven. The word He uses, “I desire”, not “I pray”, indicates that He is
asking for the most important thing of all, for what His Father wants—that all may
be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth (cf. 1 Timothy 2:4): which is
essentially the mission of the Church—the salvation of souls.

As long as we are on earth we share in God’s life through knowledge (faith) and
love (charity); but only in Heaven will we attain the fullness of this supernatural life,
when we see God as He is (cf. 1 John 3:2), face to face (cf. 1 Corinthians 13:9-12).
Therefore, the Church has her sights fixed on eternity, she is eschatological: that
is, by having in this world all the resources necessary for teaching God’s truth, for
rendering Him true worship and communicating the life of grace, she keeps alive
people’s hope of attaining the fullness of eternal life: “The Church, to which we are
all called in Christ Jesus, and in which by the grace of God we acquire holiness,
will receive its perfection only in the glory of Heaven, when will come the time of
the renewal of all things (Acts 3:21). At that time, together with the human race,
the universe itself, which is so closely related to man and which attains its desti-
ny through him, will be perfectly reestablished in Christ (cf. Ephesians 1:10; Co-
lossians 1:20; 2 Peter 3:10-13)” (Vatican II, “Lumen Gentium”, 48).

25-26. God’s revelation of Himself through Christ causes us to begin to share in
the divine life, a sharing which will reach its climax in Heaven: “God alone can
give us right and full knowledge of this reality by revealing Himself as Father, Son
and Holy Spirit, in whose eternal life we are by grace called to share, here below
in the obscurity of faith and after death in eternal light” (Paul VI, “Credo of the
People of God”).

Christ has revealed to us all we need to know in order to participate in the mutual
love of the Divine Persons—primarily, the mystery of who He is and what His mis-
sion is and, with that, the mystery of God Himself (”I made known to them Thy
name”), thus fulfilling what He had announced: “No one knows the Father except
the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him” (Matthew 11:27).

Christ continues to make known His Father’s love, by means of the Church, in
which He is always present: “I am with you always, to the close of the age”
(Matthew 28:20).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States

KEYWORDS: catholic; easter; jn17; prayer; saints;

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Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible by Darton, Longman & Todd

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: White.

First reading
Acts 22:30,23:6-11 ©

'You have borne witness in Jerusalem: now you must do the same in Rome'

Since the tribune wanted to know what precise charge the Jews were bringing, he freed Paul and gave orders for a meeting of the chief priests and the entire Sanhedrin; then he brought Paul down and stood him in front of them. Now Paul was well aware that one section was made up of Sadducees and the other of Pharisees, so he called out in the Sanhedrin, ‘Brothers, I am a Pharisee and the son of Pharisees. It is for our hope in the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial.’ As soon as he said this a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and Sadducees, and the assembly was split between the two parties. For the Sadducees say there is neither resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit, while the Pharisees accept all three. The shouting grew louder, and some of the scribes from the Pharisees’ party stood up and protested strongly, ‘We find nothing wrong with this man. Suppose a spirit has spoken to him, or an angel?’ Feeling was running high, and the tribune, afraid that they would tear Paul to pieces, ordered his troops to go down and haul him out and bring him into the fortress.

Next night, the Lord appeared to him and said, ‘Courage! You have borne witness for me in Jerusalem, now you must do the same in Rome.’

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 15(16):1-2,5,7-11 ©

Preserve me, Lord, I take refuge in you.

or

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

Preserve me, God, I take refuge in you.

I say to the Lord: ‘You are my God.

O Lord, it is you who are my portion and cup;

it is you yourself who are my prize.’

Preserve me, Lord, I take refuge in you.

or

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

I will bless the Lord who gives me counsel,

who even at night directs my heart.

I keep the Lord ever in my sight:

since he is at my right hand, I shall stand firm.

Preserve me, Lord, I take refuge in you.

or

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

And so my heart rejoices, my soul is glad;

even my body shall rest in safety.

For you will not leave my soul among the dead,

nor let your beloved know decay.

Preserve me, Lord, I take refuge in you.

or

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

You will show me the path of life,

the fullness of joy in your presence,

at your right hand happiness for ever.

Preserve me, Lord, I take refuge in you.

or

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

Gospel	John 17:20-26 ©

Father, may they be completely one

Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said:

‘Holy Father,

I pray not only for these,

but for those also

who through their words will believe in me.

May they all be one.

Father, may they be one in us,

as you are in me and I am in you,

so that the world may believe it was you who sent me.

I have given them the glory you gave to me,

that they may be one as we are one.

With me in them and you in me,

may they be so completely one

that the world will realise that it was you who sent me

and that I have loved them as much as you loved me.

Father, I want those you have given me

to be with me where I am,

so that they may always see the glory you have given me

because you loved me before the foundation of the world.

Father, Righteous One,

the world has not known you,

but I have known you,

and these have known that you have sent me.

I have made your name known to them

and will continue to make it known,

so that the love with which you loved me may be in them,

and so that I may be in them.’

John
	English: Douay-Rheims	Latin: Vulgata Clementina	Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000)
	John 17
20.	And not for them only do I pray, but for them also who through their word shall believe in me;	Non pro eis rogo tantum, sed et pro eis qui credituri sunt per verbum eorum in me :	ου περι τουτων δε ερωτω μονον αλλα και περι των πιστευοντων δια του λογου αυτων εις εμε
21.	That they all may be one, as thou, Father, in me, and I in thee; that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.	ut omnes unum sint, sicut tu Pater in me, et ego in te, ut et ipsi in nobis unum sint : ut credat mundus, quia tu me misisti.	ινα παντες εν ωσιν καθως συ πατερ εν εμοι καγω εν σοι ινα και αυτοι εν ημιν εν ωσιν ινα ο κοσμος πιστευση οτι συ με απεστειλας
22.	And the glory which thou hast given me, I have given to them; that they may be one, as we also are one:	Et ego claritatem, quam dedisti mihi, dedi eis : ut sint unum, sicut et nos unum sumus.	και εγω την δοξαν ην δεδωκας μοι δεδωκα αυτοις ινα ωσιν εν καθως ημεις εν εσμεν
23.	I in them, and thou in me; that they may be made perfect in one: and the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast also loved me.	Ego in eis, et tu in me : ut sint consummati in unum : et cognoscat mundus quia tu me misisti, et dilexisti eos, sicut et me dilexisti.	εγω εν αυτοις και συ εν εμοι ινα ωσιν τετελειωμενοι εις εν και ινα γινωσκη ο κοσμος οτι συ με απεστειλας και ηγαπησας αυτους καθως εμε ηγαπησας
24.	Father, I will that where I am, they also whom thou hast given me may be with me; that they may see my glory which thou hast given me, because thou hast loved me before the creation of the world.	Pater, quos dedisti mihi, volo ut ubi sum ego, et illi sint mecum : ut videant claritatem meam, quam dedisti mihi : quia dilexisti me ante constitutionem mundi.	πατερ ους δεδωκας μοι θελω ινα οπου ειμι εγω κακεινοι ωσιν μετ εμου ινα θεωρωσιν την δοξαν την εμην ην εδωκας μοι οτι ηγαπησας με προ καταβολης κοσμου
25.	Just Father, the world hath not known thee; but I have known thee: and these have known that thou hast sent me.	Pater juste, mundus te non cognovit, ego autem te cognovi : et hi cognoverunt, quia tu me misisti.	πατερ δικαιε και ο κοσμος σε ουκ εγνω εγω δε σε εγνων και ουτοι εγνωσαν οτι συ με απεστειλας
26.	And I have made known thy name to them, and will make it known; that the love wherewith thou hast loved me, may be in them, and I in them.	Et notum feci eis nomen tuum, et notum faciam : ut dilectio, qua dilexisti me, in ipsis sit, et ego in ipsis.	και εγνωρισα αυτοις το ονομα σου και γνωρισω ινα η αγαπη ην ηγαπησας με εν αυτοις η καγω εν αυτοις

20. Neither pray I for these alone but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
21. That they all may be one; as you, Father, is in me, and I in You, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that you have sent me.
22. And the glory which you gave me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23. I in them, and you in me, that they may be made perfect in one: and that the world may know that you have sent me, and have loved them, as you have loved me.

AUG. When our Lord had prayed for His disciples, whom He named also Apostles, He added a prayer for all others who should believe on Him; Neither pray I for these alone, but for all others who shall believe of Me through their word.

CHRYS. Another ground of consolation to them, that they were to be the cause of the salvation of others.

AUG. All, i.e. not only those who were then alive, but those who were to be born; not those only who heard the Apostles themselves, but us who were born long after their death. We have all believed in Christ through their word: for they first heard that word from Christ, and then preached it to others, and so it has come down, and will go down to all posterity. We may see that in this prayer there are some disciples whom He does not pray for; for those, i.e. who were neither with Him at the time, nor were about to believe on Him afterwards through the Apostles' word, but believed already.

Was Nathanael with Him then, or Joseph of Arimathea, and many others, who, John says, believed on Him? I do not mention old Simon, or Anna the prophetess, Zacharias, Elisabeth, or John the Baptist; for it might be answered that it was not necessary to pray for dead persons, such as these who departed with such rich merits. With respect to the former then we must understand that they did not yet believe in Him, as He wished, but that after His resurrection, when the Apostles were taught and strengthened by the Holy Spirit, they attained to a right faith.

The case of Paul however still remains, An Apostle not of men, or by men; and that of the robber, who believed when even the teachers themselves of the faith fell away. We must understand then, their word, to mean the word of faith itself which they preached to the world; it being called their word, because it was preached in the first instance and principally by them; for it was being preached by them, when Paul received it by revelation from Jesus Christ Himself. And in this sense the robber too believed their word. Wherefore in this prayer the Redeemer prays for all whom He redeemed, both present and to come.

And then follows the thing itself which He prays for, That they all may be one. He asks that for all, which he asked above for the disciples; that all both we and they may be one.

CHRYS. And with this prayer for unanimity, He concludes His prayer; and then begins a discourse on the same subject: A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another.

HILARY. And this unity is recommended by the great example of unity: As you, Father, are in Me, and I in you, that they also may be one in Us, i.e. that as the Father is in the Son, and the Son in the Father, so after the likeness of this unity, all may be one in the Father and in the Son.

CHRYS. This as again does not express perfect likeness, but only likeness as far as it was possible in men; as when He says, Be you merciful, even as your Father, which is in heaven, is merciful.

AUG. We must particularly observe here, that our Lord did not say, that we may be all one, but that they may be all one, as you, Father, in Me, and I in You, are one, understood. For the Father is so in the Son, that They are one, because They are of one substance; but we can be one in Them, but not with Them; because we and They are not of one substance. They are in us, and we in Them, so as that They are one in Their nature, we one in ours. They are in us, as God is in the temple; we in Them, as the creature is in its Creator. Wherefore He adds, in Us, to show, that our being made one by charity, is to be attributed to the grace of God, not to ourselves.

AUG. Or that in ourselves we cannot be one, severed from each other by diverse pleasures, and lusts, and the pollution of sin, from which we must be cleansed by a Mediator, in order to be one in Him.

HILARY. Heretics endeavoring to get over the words, I and My Father are one, as a proving unity of nature, and to reduce them to mean a unity simply of natural love, and agreement of will, bring forwards these words of our Lord's as an example of this kind of unity: That they may be all one, as You, Father, is in Me, and I in You.

But though impiety can cheat its own understanding, it cannot alter the meaning of the words themselves. For they who are born again of a nature that gives unity in life eternal, they cease to be one in will merely, acquiring the same nature by their regeneration: but the Father and Son alone are properly one, because God, only-begotten of God, can only exist in that nature from which He is derived.

AUG. But why does He say, That the world may believe that you have sent Me? Will the world believe when we shall all be one in the Father and the Son? Is not this unity that peace eternal, which is the reward of faith, rather than faith itself? For though in this life all of us who hold in the same common faith are one, yet even this unity is not a means to belief, but the consequence of it.

What means then, That all may be one, that the world may believe? He prays for the world when He says, Neither pray I for these alone, but for all those who shall believe on Me through their word. Whereby it appears that He does not make this unity the cause of the world believing, but prays that the world may believe, as He prays that they all may be one. The meaning will be clearer if we always put in the word ask; I ask that they all may be one; I ask. that they may be one in Us; I ask that the world may believe that you have sent Me.

HILARY. Or, the world will believe that the Son is sent from the Father, for that reason, viz. because all who believe in Him are one in the Father and the Son.

CHRYS. For there is no scandal so great as division, whereas unity amongst believers is a great argument for believing; as He said at the beginning of His discourse, By this shall all men know that you are My disciples, if you have love one to another. For if they quarrel, they will not be looked on as the disciples of a peacemaking Master. And I, He says, not being a peacemaker, they will not acknowledge Me as sent from God.

AUG. Then our Savior, Who, by praying to the Father, showed Himself to be man, now shows that, being God with the Father, He does what He prays for: And the glory which you gave Me, I have given them. What glory, but immortality, which human nature was about to receive in Him? For that which was to be by unchangeable predestination, though future, He expresses by the past tense. That glory of immortality, which He says was given Him by the Father, we must understand He gave Himself also.

For when the Son is silent of His own cooperation in the Father's work, He shows His humility: when He is silent of the Father's cooperation in His work, He shows His equality. In this way here He neither disconnects Himself with the Father's work, when He says, The glory which you gave Me, nor the Father with His work, when He says, I have given them. But as He was pleased by prayer to the Father to obtain that all might be one, so now He is pleased to effect the same by His own gift; for He continues, That all may be one, even as We are one.

CHRYS. By glory, He means miracles, and doctrines and unity; which latter is the greater glory. For all who believed through the Apostles see one. If any separated, it was owing to men's own carelessness; not but that our Lord anticipates this happening.

HILARY. By this giving and receiving of honor, then, all are one. But I do not yet apprehend in what way this makes all one. Our Lord, however, explains the gradation and order in the consummating of this unity, when He adds, I in them, and You in Me; so that inasmuch as He was in the Father by His divine nature, we in Him by His incarnation, and He again in us by the mystery of the sacrament, a perfect union by means of a Mediator was established.

CHRYS. Elsewhere He says of Himself and the Father, We will come and make Our abode with Him; by the mention of two persons, stopping the mouths of the Sabellians. Here by saying that the Father comes to the disciples through Him, He refutes the notion of the Arians.

AUG. Nor is this said, however, as if to mean that the Father was not in us, or we in the Father. He only means to see, that He is Mediator between God and man. And what He adds, That they may be made perfect in one, shows that the reconciliation made by this Mediator, was carried on even to the enjoyment of everlasting blessedness. So what follows, That the world may know that you have sent Me, must not be taken to mean the same as the words just above.

That the world may believe. For as long as we believe what we do not see, we are not yet made perfect, as we shall be when we hare merited to see what we believe. So that when He speaks of their being made perfect, we are to understand such a knowledge as shall be by sight not such as is by faith. These that believe are the world, not a permanent enemy, my, but changed from an enemy to a friend; as it follows: And has loved them, as you has loved Me. The Father loves us in the Son, because He elected us in Him.

These words do not prove that we are equal to the Only-Begotten Son; for this mode of expression, as one thing so another, does not always signify equality. It sometimes only means, because cause one thing, therefore another. And this is its meaning here: You have loved them, as you have loved Me, i. e. You have loved them, because you have loved Me. There is no reason for God loving His members, but that He loves him, But since He hates nothing that He has made, who can adequately express how much He loves the members of His Only-Begotten Son, and still more the Only-Begotten Himself.

24. Father, I will that they also, whom you have given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which you have given me: for you loved me before the foundation of the world.
25. O righteous Father, the world has not known you: but I have known you, and these have known that you have sent me.
26. And I have declared to them your name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith you has loved me may be in them, and I in them,

CHRYS. After He has said that many should believe on Him through them, and that they should obtain great glory, He then speaks of the crowns in store for them; Father, 1 will that they also whom you have given Me, be with Me; where I am.

AUG. These are they whom He has received from the Father, whom He also chose out of the world; as He says at the beginning of this prayer, you have given Him power over all flesh, i.e. all mankind, That He should give eternal life to as many as you have given Him. Wherein He shows that He had received power over all men, to deliver whom He would and to condemn whom He would. Wherefore it is to all His members that He promises this reward, that where He is they may be also. Nor can that but be done, which the Almighty Son says that He wishes to the Almighty Father: for the Father and the Son have one will, which, if weakness prevent us from comprehending, piety must believe. Where I am; so far as pertains to the creature, He w as made of the seed of David according to the flesh: He might say, Where I am, meaning where He was shortly to be, i.e. heaven. In heaven then, He promises us, we shall be. For there was the form of a servant raised, which He had taken from the Virgin, and there placed on the right hand of God.

GREG. What means then what the Truth says above, No man has ascended into heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. Yet here is no discrepancy for our Lord being the Head of His members, the reprobates excluded, He is alone with us. And therefore, we making one with Him, whence He came alone in Himself, there; He returns alone in us.

AUG. But as respects the form of God, wherein He is equal to the Father, if we understand these words, that they may he with Me where I am, with reference to that, then an away with all bodily ideas, and inquire, not where the Son, Who is equal to the Father, is: for no one has discovered where He is not. Wherefore it was not enough for Him to say, I will that they may be where I am, but He adds, with Me. For to be with Him is the great good: even the miserable can be where He is, but only the happy can be with Him. And as in the case of the visible though very different be whatever example we take, a blind man will serve for one, as a blind man though He is where the light is, yet is not himself with the light, but is absent from it in its presence, so not only the unbelieving, but the believing, though they cannot be where Christ is not, yet are not themselves with Christ by sight: by faith we cannot doubt but that a believer is with Christ. But here He is speaking of that sight wherein we shall see Him as He is; as He adds, That they may behold My glory, which you have given Me. That they may behold, He says, not, that they may believe. It is the reward of faith which He speaks of, not faith itself.

CHRYS. he says not, that they may partake of My glory, but, that they may behold, intimating that the rest there is to see the Son of God. The Father gave Him glory, when He begat Him.

AUG. When then we shall have seen the glory which the Father gave the Son, though by this glory we do not understand here, that which He gave to the equal Son when He begat Him, but that which He gave to the Son of man, after His crucifixion; then shall the judgment be, then shall the wicked be taken away, that he see not the glory of the Lord: what glory but that whereby He is God? If then we take their words, That they may be if with Me where I am, to be spoken by Him as Son of God, in that case they must have a higher meaning, viz. that we shall be in the Father with Christ. As He immediately adds, That they may see My glory which you have given Me; and then, Which you gave Me before the foundation of the world. For in Him He loved us before the foundation of the world, and then predestined what He should do at the end of the world.

BEDE. That which He calls glory then is the love wherewith He was loved with the Father before the foundation of the world. And in that glory He loved us too before the foundation of the world.

THEOPHYL. After then that He had prayed for believers, and promised them so many good things, another prayer follows worthy of His mercy and benignity: O righteous Father, the world has not known it you; as if to say, I would wish that all men obtained these good things, which I have asked for the believing. But inasmuch as they have not known you, they shall not obtain the glory and crown.

CHRYS. He says this as if He were troubled at the thought, that they should be unwilling to know One so just and good. And whereas the Jews had said, that they knew God, and He knew Him not: He on the contrary says, But I have known you, and these have known that you have sent Me, and I have declared to them your name, and will declare it, by giving them perfect knowledge through the Holy Ghost. When they have learned what you are, they will know that I am not separate from You, but You own Son greatly beloved, and joined to You. This I have e told them, that I might receive them, and that they who believe this aright, shall preserve their faith and love toward Me entire; and I will abide in them: That the love wherewith you have loved Me may be in them, and I in them.

AUG. Or thus; What is to know Him, but eternal life, which He gave not to a condemned but to a reconciled world? for this reason the world hath not known You; because you are just, and have punished the with this ignorance of You, in reward for their misdeeds. And for this reason the reconciled world knows You, because you are merciful, and have vouchsafed this knowledge, not in consequence of their merits, but of your grace. it follows: But I have known You. He is God the fountain of grace by nature, man of the Holy Ghost and Virgin by grace ineffable. Then because the grace of God is through Jesus Christ, He says, And they have known Me, i.e. the reconciled world have known Me, by grace, forasmuch as you have sent Me. And I have made known your name to them by faith, and will make it known by sight: that the love wherewith you have loved Me may be in them. The Apostle uses a like phrase, I have fought a good fight, by a good fight being the more common form. The love wherewith the Father loves the Son in us, can only be in us because we are His members, and we are loved in Him when He is loved wholly, i.e. both head and body. And therefore He adds, And I in them; He is in us, as in His temple, we in Him as our Head.

Catena Aurea John 17

The Communion of All Saints

June 6 - Memorial of Saint Norbert, bishop

Saint Norbert’s Story

In the 12th century in the French region of Premontre, Saint Norbert founded a religious Order known as the Praemonstratensians or the Norbertines. His founding of the Order was a monumental tasks: combating rampant heresies—particularly regarding the Blessed Sacrament, revitalizing many of the faithful who had grown indifferent and dissolute, plus effecting peace and reconciliation among enemies.

Norbert entertained no pretensions about his own ability to accomplish this multiple task. Even with the aid of a goodly number of men who joined his Order, he realized that nothing could be effectively done without God’s power. Finding this help especially in devotion to the Blessed Sacrament, he and his Norbertines praised God for success in converting heretics, reconciling numerous enemies, and rebuilding faith in indifferent believers. Many of them lived in central houses during the week and served in parishes on weekends.

Reluctantly, Norbert became archbishop of Magdeburg in central Germany, a territory half pagan and half Christian. In this position he zealously and courageously continued his work for the Church until his death on June 6, 1134.

Reflection

A different world cannot be built by indifferent people. The same is true in regard to the Church. The indifference of vast numbers of nominal faithful to ecclesiastical authority and essential doctrines of the faith weakens the Church’s witness. Unswerving loyalty to the Church and fervent devotion to the Eucharist, as practiced by Norbert, will continue immeasurably toward maintaining the people of God in accord with the heart of Christ.

Another Saint of the Day for June 6 is Saint Claude.

franciscanmedia.org

Patronage: safe childbirth, city of Magdeburg

Saint Claude

Saint Claude’s Story

St. Claude is said to have been born in Franche-Comte’, of a senatorial family, and after his ordination he became one of the clergy of Besancon. According to the generally accepted tradition, he retired twelve years later to the monastery of Condate, or, as it is now called, Saint-Claude, in the Jura mountains, where he lived a most holy and austere life. Raised to the position of Abbot, he introduced or enforced the Rule of St. Benedict and restored the monastic buildings. In 685 he was chosen Bishop of Besancon. He was, by all accounts, already an old man and most unwilling to accept the dignity. Nevertheless, he ruled the diocese wisely and well for seven years. He then resigned and went back to Condate, the direction of which he had retained during his episcopate. He died in 699, at a very advanced age.

Another tradition represents St. Claude as having remained a secular priest until his elevation to the episcopate, and only to have retired to the monastery after vacating his office. The cultus of St. Claud became widespread in the twelfth century when his body was discovered to be incorrupt. His burial place was for centuries a favorite place of pilgrimage at which miraculous cures took place.

Reflection

Many of the saints of the Church are shrouded in a cloud of mystery since we know so little about them. But in their own time and place, they inspired people to great holiness. So we don’t have to be popular or well known to spread the Gospel message.

franciscanmedia.org

Claudius's relics were burned in March 1794, during the French Revolution. (Wikipedia)