Unexpected Death

The meditation text begins at John 14:27: "Peace I leave with you. . . You heard me say to you, 'I go away, and I will come to you.' If you loved me you would have rejoiced, because I go to the Father . .How could Jesus expect his disciples to be comforted with these hard and lonely words: "I leave - I go away"? They had shared so many meals together, and had so many intimate moments. So many times they had walked together, slept in the same house, prayed the same prayer and sang the same song. They could see him in every familiar place. How could Jesus expect a word of peace to replace his physical presence? What a poor substitute for the real thing; the sound of the real voice, the look on the real face, the body visible. How they, like we, would miss the day-by-day shari…