Farewells

Homily for Friday of the Fourth Week in Easter

Farewells are never easy. If were up to us, we would never want to say goodbye. Our relationships are an important part of who each of us is. However, farewells cannot be avoided. Perhaps that is why there are so many farewells recorded in the Scriptures. Surely, Jesus’ farewell to his apostles is a primary example of how difficult it is to say goodbye.

In typical fashion, Jesus tells those closest to him that they not let their hearts be troubled. Would that it were easy for the apostles to let go of him! Thank goodness for St. Thomas who is bold enough to say what we would all wish to say. “Lord, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?” Perhaps a simpler way of saying it would have been: “Lord, when will we see you again?” Is this not the question that is the foundation of our anxiety whenever we lose someone who is close to us, whenever we are forced to say goodbye?

Jesus answers Thomas’ question with one of the most profound “I AM” statements in the Gospel of St. John. “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” Jesus’ answer does not try to provide a map. Rather, Jesus asks a relationship of all who follow him. Christina Rossetti, a poet of the Pre-Raphaelite movement, speaks of this relationship when she wrote:

“Lord, Thou art life, though I be dead;
Love’s fire, Thou art, however cold I be;
No heaven, have I, nor place to lay my head,
Nor home, but Thee.”

Today, Jesus invites us to enter into such a relationship with him. To help us form this relationship, he has given us two essential gifts – the presence of the Holy Spirit and the Eucharist. These two gifts are the answer to Thomas’ question. Anyone who places their hope in these gifts enjoys the assurance that we will never be abandoned; we will never be alone.