believe.” From the beginning, Jesus knew who would betray him. So he added, “As I have told you, no one can come to me unless it is granted by the Father.”
After this many disciples withdrew and no longer followed him. Jesus asked the Twelve, “Will you also go away?” Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go?
You have thewords of eternal life. We now believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”
Reflection:
I was scheduled to preach at a parish where I had never
been before. I had prepared the homily based on insights
emerging from all the three readings. Before the Mass began,
while interacting with the lectors who were scheduled to
read at the Mass, I was surprised to learn that they had changed
the second reading (which was a passage from Paul). The reason?
Because they did not agree with Paul’s ideas in that passage. They
found his ideas there insulting. So, they dropped it and chose a
more convenient reading! Come to think of it, this should not
surprise us: Don’t we sometimes succumb to practicing such
‘cafeteria Catholicism’ where we pick and choose from our
faith what is most convenient for us, sidestepping the difficult
tasks? Like some disciples who left Jesus, don’t we follow him
in fits and starts?
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