📜Introit (Sir 15, 5 | Ps 91, 2)
In médio Ecclésiæ apéruit os ejus: et implévit eum Dóminus spíritu sapiéntiæ et intelléctus: stolam glóriæ índuit eum.
In the midst of the Church the Lord opened his mouth: and filled him with the spirit of wisdom and understanding: He clothed him with a robe of glory. It is good to give praise to the Lord: and to sing to Thy name, O Most High.
📜Epistle (Sir 15, 1-6)
He that feareth God, will do good: and he that possesseth justice, shall lay hold on wisdom, and she will meet him as an honourable mother. With the bread of life and understanding, she shall feed him, and give him the water of wholesome wisdom to drink: and she shall be made strong in him, and he shall not be moved: And she shall hold him fast, and he shall not be confounded: and she shall exalt him among his neighbours. And in the midst of the Church she shall open his mouth, and shall fill him with the spirit of wisdom and understanding, and shall clothe him with a robe of glory. The Lord our God shall heap upon him a treasury of joy and gladness, and shall cause him to inherit an everlasting name.
📜Gospel (Jn 21, 19-24)
At that time, Jesus said to Peter: Follow Me. Peter turning about, saw that disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also leaned on His breast at supper, and said: Lord, who is he that shall betray Thee? Him therefore when Peter had seen, he saith to Jesus: Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith to him: So I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee? follow thou Me. This saying therefore went abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die. And Jesus did not say to him: He should not die; but: So I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee? This is that disciple who giveth testimony of these things, and hath written these things; and we know that his testimony is true.
🕯️The Contemplative Wisdom of the Beloved Disciple
🏹The liturgy consecrates to Saint John the title of theologian par excellence, the one who, by reclining his head upon the breast of the Incarnate Word, drank from the waters of eternal wisdom that the Epistle describes as the bread of understanding. Saint Augustine teaches that while Peter symbolizes the active life and the struggles of the Church militant, John represents the contemplative life, the rest in the truth that extends until the final coming of the Lord (Tractates on the Gospel of John, 124, 5). This wisdom is not mere human erudition, but a gift of the Spirit that clothed him with the robe of glory mentioned in the Introit, allowing him to announce that the Word was made flesh (Jn 1, 14). The Catechism of the Catholic Church recalls that the testimony of the beloved apostle is the foundation of our faith in the divinity of Christ (CCC 454). In the Gospel, the dialogue between Jesus and Peter reveals that John's destiny - to "remain" until the Lord comes - manifests the permanence of the doctrine of charity and contemplation in the Church. As Saint Thomas Aquinas explains, John's love was more tender and familiar, which granted him a deeper understanding of divine mysteries (Summa Theologica, II-II, q. 124, a. 5). Therefore, today's feast invites the faithful to seek this wholesome wisdom, nourishing themselves on the Word and the Eucharist so that, like the Evangelist, we may give a true and unshakable testimony of the light that dispels the darkness of the world.
🇺🇸See English version of the critical articles here.
📜Epistle (Sir 15, 1-6)
He that feareth God, will do good: and he that possesseth justice, shall lay hold on wisdom, and she will meet him as an honourable mother. With the bread of life and understanding, she shall feed him, and give him the water of wholesome wisdom to drink: and she shall be made strong in him, and he shall not be moved: And she shall hold him fast, and he shall not be confounded: and she shall exalt him among his neighbours. And in the midst of the Church she shall open his mouth, and shall fill him with the spirit of wisdom and understanding, and shall clothe him with a robe of glory. The Lord our God shall heap upon him a treasury of joy and gladness, and shall cause him to inherit an everlasting name.
📜Gospel (Jn 21, 19-24)
At that time, Jesus said to Peter: Follow Me. Peter turning about, saw that disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also leaned on His breast at supper, and said: Lord, who is he that shall betray Thee? Him therefore when Peter had seen, he saith to Jesus: Lord, and what shall this man do? Jesus saith to him: So I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee? follow thou Me. This saying therefore went abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die. And Jesus did not say to him: He should not die; but: So I will have him to remain till I come, what is it to thee? This is that disciple who giveth testimony of these things, and hath written these things; and we know that his testimony is true.
🕯️The Contemplative Wisdom of the Beloved Disciple
🏹The liturgy consecrates to Saint John the title of theologian par excellence, the one who, by reclining his head upon the breast of the Incarnate Word, drank from the waters of eternal wisdom that the Epistle describes as the bread of understanding. Saint Augustine teaches that while Peter symbolizes the active life and the struggles of the Church militant, John represents the contemplative life, the rest in the truth that extends until the final coming of the Lord (Tractates on the Gospel of John, 124, 5). This wisdom is not mere human erudition, but a gift of the Spirit that clothed him with the robe of glory mentioned in the Introit, allowing him to announce that the Word was made flesh (Jn 1, 14). The Catechism of the Catholic Church recalls that the testimony of the beloved apostle is the foundation of our faith in the divinity of Christ (CCC 454). In the Gospel, the dialogue between Jesus and Peter reveals that John's destiny - to "remain" until the Lord comes - manifests the permanence of the doctrine of charity and contemplation in the Church. As Saint Thomas Aquinas explains, John's love was more tender and familiar, which granted him a deeper understanding of divine mysteries (Summa Theologica, II-II, q. 124, a. 5). Therefore, today's feast invites the faithful to seek this wholesome wisdom, nourishing themselves on the Word and the Eucharist so that, like the Evangelist, we may give a true and unshakable testimony of the light that dispels the darkness of the world.
🇺🇸See English version of the critical articles here.