Verbs and veritas

The texts today from the Roman Catholic Lectionary bring a view of truth which is shrouded in the inadequacy of human language to completely describe the Divine. Paul makes his farewell to the leaders of Ephesus as he is being drawn by the Spirit to return to Jerusalem. The future is not clear. He has had visions of the likelihood of persecution and suffering. The compulsion to follow the Spirit of Love is overwhelming. We have decisions and directions which are uncertain and which likely will require personal sacrifice. The truth is that Life is in the journey in those directions. The Psalmist in today’s text, as is frequently the case, reassures us of Providence who moves and sustains God’s people. The Gospel of John offers Jesus prayer for those He will be leaving behind. The truth of the His Nature and a description of eternal life are contained in these verses. The prayer of Jesus focuses on the maintenance of the communion between Jesus and Father to which we are admitted through His petition. The eternal life is in this communion of Life which contains our indwelling Spirit with the Spirit of Love of Father and Son