God’s promises are eternal Prv 9:1-6; Ps 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7; Eph 5:15-20; Jn 6:51-58 There are many beautiful things about the Gospel of John. It presents readers with a vision of God who cares deeply about humanity, desiring so badly to be close to them that God sends Jesus to testify to God’s great love for the world. However, there are some aspects of the Gospel of John that are difficult and have been at the root of anti-Jewish and antisemitic attitudes in the church, and in Christianity as a whole. This problem also exists in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke; however, they do so in a different way. For example, the synoptic Gospels often paint the Pharisees in a negative light. We encountered this earlier in the liturgical year in the Gospel of Matthew, where the Pharisees were said to be conspiring to entrap Jesus (Mt 22:15, 34), and Jesus criticizes them harshly (22:1-7). The animosity we see between Jesus and the Pharisees in the Gospels reflects much later tensions that the authors of the Gospels write into their works. This negative portrayal does not truly show us who the Pharisees were or how they acted. Jesus had much in common with Pharisees. His views on the afterlife, the immortality of the soul, the hope for a coming redemption, ethics and his teachings on love are shared with and come from Pharisaic teachings. This is part of what we mean when we say that Judaism is the foundation of our Catholic faith. The author of John takes a different approach. He sometimes singles out the Pharisees. More often, though, the Jews in general are presented as the enemies of God and even the children of the devil (8:44). While not all references to the Jews in the Gospel of John are as vitriolic as this, Jews are consistently shown to be unbelieving, scheming and even cruel. Both last week’s and today’s readings are a bit more subtle. The author tries to frame the Jews poorly, insinuating that the Jews alone demonstrate some lack of faith or understanding and cause trouble for Jesus (6:52). However, we know that both Jews and Gentiles followed Jesus. We also know that some of the animosity toward the Jews in the Gospel of John is the result of disagreements and tensions among Jews at the time the Gospel was being written. Even with the knowledge we have gained about first century Judaism and the different situations in which the Gospels were written, there are many who still take this presentation of the Jews at face value. It may seem wrong to point out problems within Scripture, almost as if we are denying that these texts hold the word of God. However, our Scriptures were written by human hands, and we know that humans do not always get it right. We also know that God does not require perfection but instead works with our human failings and weaknesses. It is right and just for us to be aware of and address these kinds of problems whenever we read a passage of Scripture. Then, we want to look at that same passage and ask ourselves, “Where do I see God’s love and goodness in this passage?” Today’s readings offer us a vision of God’s abundant love and generosity to anyone who wants to know and love God. Our reading from the Book of Proverbs portrays God as one who sets a lavish table of food and drink, calling to anyone who seeks wisdom to come to eat at wisdom’s table (Prv 9:2-3, 5) and live (v. 6). This offer does not have any boundaries — anyone who wishes to know God and walk on the path of life is welcome to the table. This same offer of abundant life carries over into today’s Gospel, where Jesus tells the disciples of the life he can offer them. God will continue to reach out to us and offer us life, no matter where we are in our relationship with God. God’s promises and love are as eternal as the life of the world to come.
About the Author Kate Oxsen is an assistant professor of Old Testament studies at Catholic Theological Union.