by Mary Tracy, ISP Chair of the Board of Directors
reflecting with the Gospel for May 13, John 16:29-33.
Recently my husband and I started watching the series The Chosen. The show portrays Jesus’ disciples as frequently bickering and beset by doubts and insecurities. They accept the invitation to follow Jesus but misread what that invitation will entail. They seem to believe Jesus is the Messiah, but his actions do not match their expectations for the Messiah. They cannot understand why Jesus heals the suffering of some and not of others. In a particularly poignant scene in the show, Peter expresses his anger toward Jesus for healing so many others while ignoring Peter’s personal suffering.
In watching the show, I thought of times when my expectations of how things “should be” were upended and my faith wavered. I believe two things helped me in those challenging moments: grace and the presence of friends who, with their steadfastness and love mirrored the steadfastness and love of God.
Toward the end of today’s passage, Jesus entreats the disciples to have courage in the troubling times that lie ahead. Many people I have met through ISP have faced their own troubling times with courage and with faith. They are truly an inspiration. As we draw near the end of this Easter season, may we continue to draw hope and inspiration from one another and from the belief that God is still speaking and is not done with us yet!
Reflection Questions: Have there been times when your faith was tested? Times when everything seemed to be falling apart, and you felt abandoned, wanting to say with Peter, “What about me, Lord?” What did you find helpful in those times?
Mary is passionate about ISP and has been an ISP Board member for six years and Board Chair for the past eighteen months. Prior to that she worked for the Jesuit Collaborative as Director of the Contemplative Leaders in Action Program (CLA). A native New Yorker, Mary has lived in Boston for over 50 years and now roots for the Red Sox over the Yankees. Mary and her husband Jim have three children and two grandchildren, all of whom they love to spend time with.