To The Father Always
Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Read this Gospel passage aloud to the family
John 8:21-30 - Jesus said to the Pharisees: “I am going away and you will look for me, but you will die in your sin. Where I am going you cannot come.” So the Jews said, “He is not going to kill himself, is he, because he said, ‘Where I am going you cannot come’? ”He said to them, “You belong to what is below, I belong to what is above. You belong to this world, but I do not belong to this world. That is why I told you that you will die in your sins. For if you do not believe that I AM, you will die in your sins. So they said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus said to them, “What I told you from the beginning. I have much to say about you in condemnation. But the one who sent me is true, and what I heard from him I tell the world.” They did not realize that he was speaking to them of the Father. So Jesus said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I AM, and that I do nothing on my own, but I say only what the Father taught me. The one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I always do what is pleasing to him.” Because he spoke this way, many came to believe in him.
(Parent) Reread this part a few times aloud
“When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I AM…”
(Parent) Read this meditation aloud to the family
When is the Son of Man “lifted up” by the people? It’s on the Cross. Jesus tells these people that it is on the Cross that they will realize that “I AM.” (Remember that “I AM” is what God says His Name is to Moses.) So Jesus tells these people that it is on the Cross that they will realize that He is God. If we wish to understand who God really is, we must understand the Cross. The Cross gives us the clearest picture of who God truly is. On the Cross Jesus gives Himself totally to God the Father for the salvation of the world. But Jesus, the Son, always gives Himself to the Father, eternally. And the Father gives Himself eternally to the Son. Their Life is a life of perfect unity. “I do nothing on my own…the one who sent me is with me,” says Jesus.
Perhaps during prayer we can look at the Cross. And when we do, perhaps we can see it not only as a symbol of sacrifice for our salvation, but also as the greatest expression of how the Son gives Himself to the Father always. (It should be said that the Son’s eternal gift of Himself to the Father isn’t a painful one, like His gift on the Cross, but it is a total one, in which He holds nothing back.) Do you want to see what God is like? Then watch Him empty His life out in total love.
As a family, pray a portion of the Rosary together (very short if children are young) reflecting on the Scripture passage above. (Optional: allow a brief time for discussion or questions from children concerning their thoughts and prayer.)
Reminder for Parents: Pier is just meant to be a jumping off point. The real goal is that you pray & eventually use the fruits of your personal prayer as the content of your family’s prayer. Duc in altum.
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