When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he lovedhe said to his mother, "Woman, behold, your son."
Then he said to the disciple,
"Behold, your mother."
And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.
Everyone remembers D-Day. Many who are fascinated by the Second World War can tell us about H-Hour. In the early hours of June 6, 1944, after months of intense preparation, the Allies began their assault on the coast of Normandy. The combined weights of preparation and readiness had gathered such momentum that, despite the storms that chopped the British Channel, General Eisenhower gave the go-ahead. 156,000 men and tons of materiel moved forward as British and American ships pummeled German defenses.
On Good Friday we celebrate another Hour which was infinitely longer in preparation and utterly irresistible. Unlike D-Day, called the worse-kept secret of World War II, only Jesus saw That Hour coming. Also unlike D-Day, only a few could see that Jesus’ Hour would rewrite the story of time.
Reading the Old and New Testaments with attention to time words – words like year, day, hour, fullness of time, new and now – we discover an intense anticipation of the moment of our salvation. There is a season for everything under heaven. Blessed are those who are prepared for That Hour when the master returns; but those who are not prepared are cursed.
That Hour of which scripture speaks is not just that particular 3pm, Friday in April 30AD. That hour came and went along with every hour in the created universe. We leave it to cosmologists and astrophysicists. That Hour is discovered not with a calendar or the "atomic clock" on your wall; rather, it is found within the story of one’s identity, faith and values. It is the hour of opportunity which comes only once.
So what finally happened in That long awaited Hour?
The disciple took her into his home. The Church was born. It consisted of a man and woman; not husband and wife but mother and son. Their affection for one another begins with Jesus’ command, “Behold …”
It is a chaste relationship, founded in God’s love and utterly without jealousy, lust or self-seeking. Rather, they are for one another. As son and mother neither is superior, yet both are responsible. They are the Adam and Eve of a new creation, born from the side of Jesus as blood and water flowed from his sacred heart.
They are the ideal Church which does, in fact, exist -- although you and I are members of it. They are the Holy City of Jerusalem which was, is and ever shall be faithful and worthy of God.
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.