Fifth Sunday of Easter Year C
Acts 14:21-27
Psalm 145:8-9, 10-11, 12-13
Revelation 21:1-5a
John 13:31-33a, 34-35
Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him (Jn 14:23).
Jesus says these words during the Last Supper. He repeatedly reassures the disciples that he would not leave them orphans, alone, abandoned!
If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth (Jn 14:15-17). Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him (Jn 14:21).
Jesus promises that the whole Trinity will come and make a dwelling with the one who has Jesus’ words, who keeps them.
In this, the old prophecies are fulfilled. The Lord, God of Israel, promised already to Moses that he would walk with them. I will make my dwelling among you, and my soul shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves. (Lev 26:11-13) Later, the prophets reassure the nation that the Lord did not change his mind, and he would walk with them (Jer 30:21-22; Ezek 11:19-20)
Once Jesus comes back after the resurrection, the indwelling of the Most Holy Trinity will be possible. In other words, the one who has and keeps Jesus’ words will be allowed to live in the presence of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The concrete “technicality” of it is keeping the word of Jesus. In Greek, it literally means “to attend to carefully.” But how? What does it mean?
One of the most frequently recommended practices among the earliest Christian monks, “the Desert Fathers” is what they called meletê – meditation. Thus, it was the custom of John the Dwarf, for example, to dedicate himself to prayer, meletê, and psalmody after an absence from his cell “until his mind was restored to its former state.” The frequency of this recommendation shows the importance of such practice among the monks of the fourth through sixth centuries. The Greek melete translates the Hebrew (1) hgh : hagah and (2) syh : siyah – utter, muse, repeat in undertone, speak silently and mutter. This is the basic of biblical meditation.
“This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night” (Josh 1:8a). Similarly, the king is required to have a copy of the Book of the Law and utter it day by day, that is, to study in a meditative manner (Dt 17:18-19). Psalm 1 proclaims blessed the one whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law, he meditates day and night (Ps 1:2)
In a word, the biblical meditation is the vocal and continuous repetition of the Word of God. The idea comes from the shepherd’s world, where the sheep and cows would go out to pastures, feed themselves with the grass and later chew it, ruminate. This is the meaning of the Hebrew hagah and siyah. Likewise, to meditate means to read the Scripture and ruminate on a word or a phrase.
There are the following simple steps to practice. First, pray to the Holy Spirit. Second, read the passage of the Scripture. Third, re-read it several times and pay attention to a word or phrase that catches your attention. Fourth, repeat the word/phrase for several minutes without any speculation, reflection. Simply repeat it. Fifth, remain in silence and see whether the dots are connected. In other words, do you see the reason for this word? What does it tell you? How does it illuminate your life situation? If there is no connection, return to it the next time. Ask the Lord for light. If there is a connection, give thanks!
Such a simple practice of keeping the Word leads us to a personal experience of Jesus’ presence, his practical guidance in our daily lives. This experience helps us to redirect our steps. In this way, we allow the Word to nourish our hearts, cleanse our thinking and strengthen our steps.