Monday, March 16, 2015

The Signs of Jesus (should) lead to belief: Daily Mass Homily--Monday, March 16th, 2015


(Listen to this homily here).

            The passage from the Gospel according to John has several rich layers—as does the Gospel as a whole.
            There are two main points I would like to share this morning.  The first is that a rough sketch of John’s account is to break it into two parts.  The first half is the Book of Signs, the second half is the Book of Glory.  Note how the passage ends this morning: “Now this was the second sign Jesus did when he came to Galilee from Judea.”  John lists seven signs of Jesus—miracles that demonstrate Jesus’ divinity.  All of these point to the greatest sign of all—the resurrection.
            The second point is to reflect on what these signs were meant to do.  On two occasions John explicitly stated why he wrote an account of Jesus—to inspire belief in the reader.  While the miracles themselves—feeding the hungry, raising the dead, curing the ill—were indeed great signs, still not everyone believed in Jesus.  This is what Jesus was implying when he said, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe.”
            Note how the royal official responds to Christ: “The royal official said to him, ‘Sir, come down before my child dies.’  Jesus said to him, ‘You may go; your son will live.’  The man believed what Jesus said to him and left.”  After returning home and finding his son well, “[the royal official] and his whole household came to believe.”
            Jesus continues to do many great signs today.  May we have the faith to allow these signs to strengthen our own belief.

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