Traditional Catholic Teaching - Lesson 4

Lesson 4 - Supplement B

That They May All Be One

John 17: 20 – 26

It is not only for them that I pray; I pray for those who are to find faith in me through their word; that they may all be one; that they too may be one in us, as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee; so that the world may come to believe that it is thou who hast sent me. And I have given them the privilege which thou gavest to me, that they should all be one, as we are one; that while thou art in me, I may be in them, and so they may be perfectly made one. So let the world know that it is thou who hast sent me, and that thou hast bestowed thy love upon them, as thou hast bestowed it upon me. This, Father, is my desire, that all those whom thou hast entrusted to me may be with me where I am, so as to see my glory, thy gift made to me, in that love which thou didst bestow upon me before the foundation of the world. Father, thou art just; the world has never acknowledged thee, but I have acknowledged thee, and these men have acknowledged that thou didst send me. I have revealed, and will reveal, thy name to them; so that the love thou hast bestowed upon me may dwell in them, and I, too, may dwell in them. (Knox translation)

Introduction

Remember the closing few verses of the Gospel according to St Luke, and how the final view the disciples had of the Lord was Jesus in a posture of prayer – with hands lifted up, blessing his followers. The response of those disciples was, as you will also recall, that they were filled with joy, and they prayed and blessed God frequently.

The Church has, ever since, kept this image of the Lord in unceasing prayer, before her. The early Church continued to model herself on this example. Thus she reflected the same unceasing prayer, alert attention, watching and waiting for the Lord to return, crying:

"Maranatha" – Come Lord Jesus.

It is in this spirit that Christians gather together for prayer and meditation, and ponder the events which the Gospel accounts relate for us. In this particular case we meditate on the Great Prayer of Jesus on the night of the Last Supper. It is the longest recorded prayer of Jesus and remains an inspiration to the Church he formed to continue his work in the world.

On this occasion (the night before he died), the Lord had been instructing his Apostles, at the conclusion of which he would have stood up and in Jewish custom would have sung the Hallel (Psalms 113 to 118). Then, still standing, he would have offered this Priestly Prayer. In it he talked about his mission and the needs of his disciples present. Then he went on to pray for all believers. It is at that point we join the prayer at verse 20.

Some Notes On the Text

Preamble

We acknowledge that the following notes are rather detailed. The text we are meditating on is possibly the most profound ever recorded in human history. We will never fully plumb the depths of this great prayer. To be a Christian, is to have the honour to hold this as part of one's spiritual heritage. For this reason we have added extra details to help each reader to treasure it in the depths of their heart, and to return to it often and be renewed and strengthened, and above all, to become more at one with God, with others, and with one's own self.

Verses 20 and 21 (a)

Our Lord prays for all future believers exactly what he prayed for his original disciples.

"It is not only for them that I pray; I pray for those who are to find faith in me through their word; that they may all be one; that they too may be one in us, as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee;…."

So his top priority is that all his disciples are to display a very distinctive and unique mark: the unity between the Father and the Son. Our source of unity is therefore is always to be located in heaven. All manner of disintegration will surround the Church, but its members are to manifest an inner unity. But that is not all.

Verse 21(b)

Our Lord goes on to extend and emphasize this idea of unity. The text is usually translated something like, "May they also be in us". Some Greek manuscripts have, "May they also be one in us". Most commentators agree that, in essence, the meaning is the same. It is a mystery that while in this life we cannot be "one" as are the Father and the Son, nevertheless our Lord prays that we will in some way share in their unity.

Jesus goes on to give a reason for his very focussed and earnest prayer:

"…so that the world may come to believe that it is thou who hast sent me".

Here, he is harkening back to this teaching about the vine"

"Remain in me and I will remain in you……"
" I am the vine and you are the branches".

By heeding this call, the followers of Jesus will manifest not only divine unity, but also God's presence. This in turn he says, will help people in the world to see that it was for them that he was sent.

Verses 22 and 23

Jesus continues:

"And I have given them the privilege which thou gavest to me, that they should all be one, as we are one; that while thou art in me, I may be in them, and so they may be perfectly made one. So let the world know that it is thou who hast sent me, and that thou hast bestowed thy love upon them, as thou hast bestowed it upon me."

In these two verses, Jesus in a way simplifies his declarations about unity, and expands them more fully, to give the prominence his teaching on unity is to have. We interpret his words to mean:

"I pray that my disciples may be so closely united – I dwelling in them, and they dwelling in me – that they may be consolidated and perfected into one body – having one mind, one will, one heart, and one judgement, though having many members. And that then the world, seeing this great all-pervading unity, will be enabled to also believe that you sent me to be your Anointed One, and that you love me".

But, what is this "glory" that God gave his Son, who has handed it on to us? Scholars over the ages have given their opinions which we can reflect on. Some of these are:

The image and likeness of God by which the disciples were renewed (2 Cor 3: 18).
The imperceptible power, influence and authority which accompanied all our Lord did and said during his earthly ministry. Thus Moses had "glory" in his countenance when coming down from the mount (2 Cor 3: 7). This same power and influence Christ gave to the Apostles (Acts 4: 33).
The power of working miracles, which was the special and peculiar glory of our Lord while he was on earth. Thus we read, "Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father" (Rom 4: 4).
The heavenly glory and immortality, which our Lord promised to his disciples – a glory which they should have after faithfully serving him on earth (Rom 8: 18).
The spiritual union which is communicated to us in the celebration of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
The unity of mind and heart.
The gift of the Holy Spirit who is elsewhere called (allowing for differences in translation) "the Spirit of Glory" (1 Peter 4: 14).

Perhaps each of these helps us catch a glimpse of the inexhaustible meaning of this precious gift unequalled in all spiritual writing.

Verse 24

Jesus follows these profound thoughts with even deeper ones.

" This, Father, is my desire, that all those whom thou hast entrusted to me may be with me where I am, so as to see my glory, thy gift made to me, in that love which thou didst bestow upon me before the foundation of the world."

The opening words to this verse have always warmed the hearts of our Lord's followers. Christ yearns for the presence of his followers. Elsewhere he has talked of a certain unity, even in this world. Here, he is reaching forward to the final consummation. He is praying for every follower – and remains praying for them, that they will reach their final Homeland and behold Jesus' glory.

Note:

To behold the glory of the Lord is most certainly not to look on as a spectator, but to participate in it, share in it, and enjoy it.

The closing words of this verse open up a whole new vista of faith. At this point Jesus acknowledges that his Father loved him before the creation of the world. Thus the glory of Christ in the next world is a glory which had been prepared from all eternity, before time began, and before the creation of man. It was not only something which, like Moses, or John the Baptist, he had obtained by his faithfulness on earth; but something he had, as the eternal Son of the Eternal Father, from everlasting.

Verse 25

Jesus enters into the last stage of his profound prayer by acknowledging the righteousness of his Father: "Thou art just." This is a very beautiful affirmation and it is the only time anyone witnessed our Lord using it. The word "just" or "righteous" can only be represented by a cluster of meanings especially when ascribed to the Father. These include:-

faithful, truthful
whose acts are always in agreement with his nature and promise
without prejudice or partiality
who always does what is right
merciful and abounding in loving kindness.

The prayer continues, "the world has never acknowledged thee but I have acknowledged thee, and these men have acknowledged that thou didst send me."

Verse 26

"I have revealed, and will reveal, thy name to them." Here, as previously, Jesus declares that to make known the Father, was one of the great objects of his ministry. We can take comfort in the fact that he continues to expand our knowledge of the Father as he here promises – but also will continue to make the Father known more widely throughout humanity.

And why this pledge of commitment to his great mission? The answer lies in the final words of his prayer. Still addressing his Father he says,

"…so that the love thou hast bestowed upon me may dwell in them, and I, too, may dwell in them."

This is indeed a great climax to our Lord's intimate prayer to the Father, which has remained an inspiration for the Church down through the ages. What could give greater confidence to Jesus' followers confronted with the most dangerous threats of violence, oppression and satanic torture than these beautiful words. Just as these words of Christ have enabled his followers to die for him, so they continue to help others to live for him.

We give one example here, of the way our forebears were influenced to think and teach by this text.

"If an earthly King lie but one night in a house, what care there is taken that nothing be offensive to him, and that all be neat, and sweet, and clean! How much more careful ought you to be to keep your hearts clean, to perform service acceptable to Him, to be in the exercise of faith, love, and other graces, that so you may entertain, as you ought, your heavenly King, who comes to take up His continual abode in your hearts."

We can see why Christians who understood this truth of the Lord's teaching about his presence within us, would do nothing to dishonour him no matter how terrible the fury of hell unleashed upon them.

We will all feel humbled as we leave our reflection on this privileged insight into our Lord's prayer life. Hopefully this will help us see that we have but scratched the surface and that it would be in our best interest to return often to it and meditate on its endless riches.

Over a period of time we should reflect on the whole prayer of 26 verses. Meanwhile we can at least pray daily for the four things our Lord upholds in it for us: (a) our preservation from all that could harm our spiritual wellbeing, (b) our sanctification, (c) our unity with his body of followers, and (d) our final glory in Christ's company.

End of Lesson 4 Supplement B

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