By Fr. Ignatius L. Madya Utama, SJ
In this second farewell discourse,
Jesus presents the pattern of discipleship. He sets up three
dimensions. First,
our relation to Jesus
(verses 1-11): to remain in Him and His words remain in us. Using
the image from the Bible –the vine– Jesus gives different meaning
to it. As the true vine, He is the true Israel, fulfilling the
vocation in which the old Israel had failed (Isaiah 5:1-7; Jeremiah
2:21; Ezekiel 19:10-14). He is the trunk from which the branches
sprout, namely all of us who live in Him. Our union with Him
produces much fruits. These fruits are beautifully explained by St.
Paul in his letter to the Galatians: charity, joy and peace,
patience, understanding of others, kindness and fidelity,
gentleness and self control (Galatians 5:22-23).
Second,
the relation of believers
to one another (verses 12-17). The measure of this relationship is
determined by His own example; namely, laying down one’s life for
one another. Fellowship with Jesus, fruits bearing, and prayer, all
are dependent on obeying His commands to love.
Third,
our relation to the world
(verses 18-27). In the Johanine Gospel, “the world” always has
pejorative meaning; it hates Jesus, it also hates His followers.
Different from this Johanine perspective, the Second Vatican
Council sees the world in a positive way. It understands the world
as a place where GOD is still present and working to build His
Kingdom. Therefore, as the followers of Christ we need to be in the
world, to get involved in the world affairs in order to transform
it in the pattern of His will, so that everything is in a very good
condition (cf. Genesis 1: 31).
Against the above background, we can reflect on our life journey as
followers of Jesus both personally as well as communally. Or put it
in a better way, the above understanding of discipleship should
become our vision both as a Christian person as well as a Christian
community – Genesis Community!
Some questions can be raised for our reflection. In the area of our
relationship with Jesus we can ask the following: How personally do
I really know Jesus? What do I need to do to sustain and deepen
this personal knowledge? What is the role of my community (my
family, my friends, my parish) in this regard? How does this
personal knowledge of Him shape my life? What important decision(s)
did I make flowing from this personal knowledge of Jesus? Have I
implemented this decision consistently?
In the area of our relationship with one another, we can ask: Do I
take care for myself well so that I can also take care of others?
Do I give priority to the needs of others without neglecting my own
needs? Is my relationship with other people a mutually life-giving
relationship?
Finally, with regard to our relationship with the world, we need to
ask ourselves the following: Am I aware that as followers of Jesus
I am sent to give witness to my faith in this world? Am I aware
that the world is a place where GOD is building up His Kingdom, and
I am invited to participate in His work? Do I take my day-to-day
responsibilities seriously as a way of committing myself to
participate in GOD’s work perfecting His creation? Is my life-style
ecologically friendly, knowing that all of creation will share the
glorious freedom of the children of GOD (cf. Rom 8:19-23)?
May GOD’s Spirit empower us to answer
these questions positively.