FRIDAY, JAN 5
John 1: 43-51
Jesus decided to go to Galilee, and he found Philip.
And Jesus said to him, “Follow me.”
Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the town of Andrew and Peter.
Philip found Nathanael and told him,
“We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law,
and also the prophets, Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth.”
But Nathanael said to him,
“Can anything good come from Nazareth?”
Philip said to him, “Come and see.”
Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him,
“Here is a true child of Israel.
There is no duplicity in him.”
Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.”
Nathanael answered him,
“Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“Do you believe
because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree?
You will see greater things than this.”
And he said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you,
you will see the sky opened and the angels of God
ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”
Grace: I ask for the grace to know Jesus in a deeper way that I may abundantly love and follow him.
God calls Philip to go beyond his ordinary daily life of fishing and he calls Nathanael from his fig tree of studying scripture and cultural prejudices. Philip hears Christ, responds to Christ and alerts Nathanael to “Come and see.” Opening himself to Christ, Nathanael is able to move through his biases and cultural conditioning. God calls us through the facts and circumstances of our lives, personal choices, our nature and diversity so we can be a generative resource in the faith of others.
Jewish tradition understood that to be under a fig tree was to be at home. To be a person who takes personal responsibility for their beliefs, values and systems of meaning and commitments. Imagine standing under your own fig tree? What are your beliefs? What are your values? Which daily experiences provide you with a sense of meaning? Which commitments bring you to life and which fill you with a sense of comfort? Is God calling you out of your place of comfort, where you formulate opinions and biases? Perhaps he calls you in a new way to “Come and see”.
Ignatian contemplative prayer invites us to see ourselves in the scripture passage. Let’s do that now. Imagine yourself at the seashore fishing. You have fully given yourself to the task at hand. All your senses are guiding you unconsciously from years of familiarity. You are in a state of relaxed attentiveness ready for the possibility of an unexpected change. You hear “follow me’. A feeling of delight from deep within rises up and says ‘yes’ here I am! Take a moment to savor this seeking and being… found… and united with Jesus. Perceive Jesus befriending you……now you befriending Jesus. Filled with delight, let go of what you were doing and turn, where did your focus naturally go toward……begin moving in that direction, you are aware of what is around you, allowing yourself to be led……. Who are you drawn toward……gaze at the beauty, goodness and diversity of the one God has drawn you to……let yourself be moved by gratitude…… invite others to ‘Come and see’ the One who found you. The One who filled you with delight and new life…… and hear, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” Amen
For Reflection and Prayer:
Having entered into this encounter with Jesus what did you notice about him? You may close your prayer time, if you wish by spending some time in a place nearby of natural beauty.
The Contributor:
Suzanne Broussard is a spiritual director, contemplative and founder of Gardener’s House of Prayer for Christian Spiritual Formation, New Braunfels, Texas. She gives workshops, courses on spirituality, leads days of prayer and retreats for congregations and retreat centers. She has facilitated workshops at Oblate Renewal Center in San Antonio, Texas for the “People of Pilgrimage” as well as for other contemplative groups. Her website is gardenershouseofprayer.org.
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Excerpts from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States of America, second typical edition © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC. Used with permission. All rights reserved. No portion of this text may be reproduced by any means without permission in writing from the copyright owner.