Truth

On the final weekend of the liturgical year, the Church celebrates the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe.  On this day, the gospel presents the scene where Jesus was appearing before the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate.  This is no ordinary trial, and for this reason, we must look deeper into the scene in order to understand what is truly going on.

Pilate was a notorious figure.  He had a reputation for being particularly cruel to anyone who did not follow his orders.  Jesus stands before him, accused of having the reputation of being considered to be the king of the Jews (Jn 18:33).  It’s very interesting to watch Pilate at work.  He is a very calculating individual.  Outside the walls of his headquarters, where he meets with religious officials, he is a politician in charge of protecting the social order and negotiating with the leaders of the people he governs, but inside, he is an individual.  He meets Jesus, but is reluctant to make a judgment about who Jesus is.

Pilate’s inability to reflect the conviction of his heart in his outward appearance caused great conflict within him.  He ultimately wanted others to make important decisions for him because he was unable to be at peace with himself.  The same is true for us: if we speak one truth but believe another, we will never be able to find peace within ourselves.

Thankfully, Jesus is always willing to help us.  He came into the world in order to testify to the truth (Jn 18:37), so if we follow him, he will always lead us to the truth.  This is not always an easy journey, because we must admit that we need his help, and we must be willing to allow him to help us.  If we can get over our own insecurities, if we can learn to trust him, Jesus will always lead us to situations where we can grow in our awareness of those in our world who are truly in need, and he will always give us the words to speak so that we can comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable.

This is what Jesus did.  During his time here on earth, he did not seek any earthly measure of power or prestige.  Rather, he found ways to comfort the disturbed: the poor, the downtrodden, those who were neglected and those who were ignored; and he wasn’t afraid to disturb the comfortable, including the Jewish leaders and even the Roman governor.

Even today, we must bravely continue the work that Jesus began.  It is up to us to comfort those in our world who are disturbed, including those who mourn the loss of their loved ones, or those who feel powerless and unable to influence the world around them.  We must find ways to welcome the strangers who appear in our midst and do everything we can to make them feel at home.  At the same time, we must be courageous enough to dare to disturb those who have been lulled into complacency because they are too comfortable.

This the truth to which the Lord invites us; it is the truth which we must proclaim.