“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father, but through me” (Jn 14:6).

Newsroom(04/06/2023 15:00, Gaudium Press)  How many times has it occurred to you that when planning a trip by car to visit a relative or to see a new place, you hesitate about which road to take.

As soon as we set off, we come across signs pointing to this or that route, and we think: “this road is well paved and quieter, but it’s too long”; or: “will I go this way, because this road is full of potholes?”; or: “this route is longer, but there is less traffic…”.

And even if we consult the “apps” that present us with other options – the least expensive; the fastest, usually with tolls… – we usually hesitate.

In such trivial occasions, our decision must be both accurate and conscientious, otherwise we would be wasting our vehicle’s fuel, wasting tires unnecessarily, or – worse – wasting our time in an endless traffic jam?

Now, this can happen in small circumstances in our daily life, but it happens in a larger and much more serious way in our spiritual life, whose end will be defined by the small choices we make every day!

It is, therefore, on this “choice” that the liturgy of the 5th Sunday of Easter invites us to reflect.

God’s Way

The Gospel of St. John gathers the words of Our Lord addressed to his Apostles:

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, but through me” (Jn 14:6)

Jesus wanted to emphasize to the twelve the need for faith and trust in His Divine Person, so that their hearts would never deviate from the course He pointed out: “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be given you besides” (Mt 6:33). As, indeed, St. Paul reminded us: “Seek the things that are above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God” (Col 3:1).

Jesus being the true way, any other course separated from Him leads not to eternal life, but to ruin.

In this vein, in the 2nd reading on the 5th Sunday of Easter, St. Peter will apply to Our Lord the words of Scripture that state:

“Behold, I lay in Zion a cornerstone, chosen and magnificent; whoever trusts in it will not be put to shame” (Pt 2:6)

But what does this expression “he will not be put to shame” mean?

To embrace the way of virtue means to lead a life based on the commandments and the aspirations of grace. And even if we stumble and fall, those who follow it soon stretch out their arms humbly asking for help from Heaven.

On the contrary, those who set out on the paths of sin reject Christ, the “living stone”, and, for this very reason, it is on Him that they stumble, because they do not welcome Him” (cf. Pt 2:8). And from stumble to stumble, from sin to sin, they head toward the abyss of perdition, leading to eternal punishment.

A Single Path

And even if there are people willing to propagate a certain alliance between religion and sinful practices, it is important that Christ remains the only way, the only truth, and the only life.

For them, too, He will be a stumbling block.

However, if in the traffic lanes we are usually presented with the option of “return”, whereby we are able to get back on the right track despite the initial bad choice, in the spiritual life as well. As Lewis observed, “if you are on the wrong road, progress will mean turning around and returning to the right road.”[1]

Let us then ask God to obtain for us, through Our Lady’s entreaties, the grace to continue walking the true path of life, remaining firm in the faith we profess; but if perchance we are not on that right path, let us make that indispensable “return”, in order to proclaim the works of Him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light (cf. 1 Pet 2:9).

By Guilherme Motta

[1] Cf. LEWIS, C. S. Christianity pure and simple. Translated by. Gabriele Greggersen. Rio de Janeiro: Thomas Nelson Brasil, 2017, p. 60.

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Compiled by Florence MacDonald