Gospel : John 19:25-34 ( Jn 19:25-34 )
The Word
"They did not break his legs" --- The Johannine Passion of Jesus enables us to reflect better why we call this day "Good Friday" :
The Passion of Jesus is theophany. Jesus is not a helpless, pitiful victim. He reminds Pilate that he is King. He breathes the Spirit even as he Breathes his last. He establishes a community represented by his mother and the beloved disciple.
The Passion of Jesus is victory. Earlier in the Gospel, in his conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus alluded to his crucifixion: "Just as Moses lifted the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him might have eternal life. ( Jn 3:14 ). At Calvary, Jesus may be dangling on the cross as a condemned criminal, but in the eyes of the evangelist, he reigns as king. His death sentence, written in three languages, is a universal proclamation of this kingship: "Jesus the Nazorean, the King of the Jews".
The Passion of Jesus is saving. John brings in the image of the lamb of the Israelite Passover. Hyssop was used to paint the doorposts of the Israelites with the blood of the lamb. The bones of the Passover lamb were not broken when eaten. Now, a sprig of hyssop is used to make Jesus drink wine. And not one of his bones is broken. Clearly Jesus is the "Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world ( Jn 1:29 )"
365 Days with the Lord, Good Friday (Fast & Abstinence) RED
26-27 : When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom Jesus loved, he said to his mother, "Woman, behold your son." Then he said to the disciple, "Behold your mother" And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.
Mary is given a role as mother of Christians (personifed by the beloved disciple [John] ); or, as a representative of those seeking salvation, she is supported by the disciple [John] who interprets Jesus' revelation; or Jewish and Gentile Christianity (or Israel and the Christian community) are reconciled.
29 : There was a vessel filled with common wine..
John does not mention the drugged wine, a narcotic that Jesus refused as the crucifixion began [Mark 15:23, but only this final gesture of kindness at the end [Mark 15:36]
30 : Handed over the spirit: there is a double nuance of dying (giving up last breath or spirit) andthat of passing on the Holy Spirit [John 7:39] which connects the giving of the Spirit with Jesus' glorious return to the Father, and [John] 20, 22, where the author protrays the conferral of the Spirit
34 : ..and immediately blood and water flowed out
In the blood and water there may be also a symbolic reference to the Eucharist and baptism
The New American Bible
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