Bible texts with commentary
These Bible meditations are meant as a way of seeking God in silence and prayer in the midst of our daily life. During the course of a day, take a moment to read the Bible passage with the short commentary and to reflect on the questions which follow. Afterwards, a small group of 3 to 10 people can meet to share what they have discovered and perhaps for a time of prayer.
December 2014
John 1:35-42: The First Disciples
The next day John was
there again with two of his disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said,
“Look, the Lamb of God!” When the two disciples heard him say this, they
followed Jesus. Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do
you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”
“Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was
staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.
Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said
and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother
Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). And he
brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John.
You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter). (John 1:35-42)
In this narrative, the
Baptizer sees Jesus passing by and points to him, saying, “Look, the Lamb of
God!” The two disciples of John then set out to follow Jesus. But Jesus is not
satisfied with their submissiveness. He wants to know why they are following
him. He turns to them and asks for an explanation of their decision.
Jesus was not in a
hurry to take them on as followers of his. He did not hold on to them. He
wanted them to express the reasons for their step. “What do you want?” This
question can echo in us during our entire lives as followers of Jesus. Whoever
truly wants to be his disciple must do so intentionally. At all the important
moments of their life they will have to ask themselves where they are in their
searching. In this way they will realize anew what matters most for them.
The reply given by the
two disciples can seem banal or even awkward. “Rabbi, where are you staying?”
Is all they really want to know the place where Jesus lives? Naturally, in a
first discovery there is necessarily an element of modesty, of shyness, as if
the desire was too strong to express itself. Jesus invites the two of them
simply to come and see. They join him and enter his dwelling. “And they spent
that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.”
We should give full
weight to the verb “to stay.” They did not only want to get his address or
spend a few moments in his home. They did not ask for information about what
kind of training they could receive from him. What mattered to them was to
encounter him, Jesus. What was important for them was to be with him, to be “at
home” with him, to remain in his presence and to allow this first contact to
last. They wanted to get to know him.
They were not looking
for any material or spiritual benefits from him. The modesty of their first
reply expresses admirably their lack of self-interest; all they wanted was to
be with him. That is how, from that moment on, they began to share his
existence.
Andrew, one of the two
disciples, shared his discovery with Simon, his brother, and brought Simon to
Jesus. Looking at him, Jesus immediately gave him another name. As the gospel
writer remembers it, from that very instant Simon’s life was marked by a new
significance. Whoever begins to share Jesus’ life no longer belongs to
themselves.
What am I looking for in attempting to follow Jesus? Has
this search changed in the course of my existence? How can we “stay” with Jesus today? What has changed in my life because of my faith?
[This text is an
excerpt from the book written by Brother François of Taizé, Suivre le
Christ et se faire disciple. Réflexions bibliques (Following Christ and
Becoming a Disciple: Bible Reflections), recently published in French by
the Presses de Taizé.]
News from Taizé by email
Taizé: Silence and waiting
Over the last few weeks the great silence of winter has fallen on the village of Taizé. There are a lot fewer visitors at this time of year, although the international meetings continue each week. Last week the biggest group came from Norway and at the end of November there were 200 young people from Barcelona taking part in the programme.
And it was to Barcelona that two brothers went to receive a prize, awarded annually by the Catalan government, known as the "Memorial Cassià Just", the name of a former Abbot of the monastery of Montserrat. The award was presented to the community for its ecumenical work and commitment to dialogue and reconciliation.
In Taizé, each Sunday at 6.30pm we continue to pray in silence for peace. Advent began with the brothers and the young people gathering together to sing around the Nativity scene.
Prague: The final weeks of getting ready
In Prague, the preparation is entered its final phase. Due to the large number of participants registered, a marquee will be installed as one of the places for the evening prayer. At midday the young people will pray in the 16 churches of the city centre.
On our website you can see a 30 minute film about the long friendship between the Taizé Community and the Christians of Prague.
Istanbul: Pope Francis speaks about Taizé and the search for Christian Unity
On November 30, 2014 the last morning of his apostolic trip to Turkey, Pope Francis attended the Divine Liturgy celebrated by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople in the Patriarchal Cathedral of Saint George at Phanar in Istanbul.
In his speech, Pope Francis spoke about the search for full communion between the Churches and cited three "voices" calling particularly for unity: the poor, victims of conflict and young people. Speaking about the latter, he added:
It is precisely the young who today implore us to make progress towards full communion. I think for example of the many Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant youth who come together at meetings organized by the Taizé community. They do not do this because they are not aware of the differences which still separate us, but because they are able to see beyond them; they are able to embrace what is really important and what already unites us.
Haiti: A stage in the pilgrimage of trust in the Caribbean
During October 2014, Brother Alois and four brothers spent several weeks visiting four countries in the Caribbean. Some stories from the visits have been published on our website, like this picture of the stay in Haiti: "The first of three prayers took place in Petite-Rivière des Nippes, a town in a beautiful area by the sea. The next day the brothers were expected in the centre of the country, in the town of Hinche. In the old cathedral, the participants had a time of intense prayer with songs from Taizé but also many other well-known songs from the country. On the third day the brothers made a brief visit to the Sisters of Charity who live in the poor neighbourhood of Cité Soleil, located on the outskirts of the capital, Port-au-Prince."
Brazil: A thirst for the future that leads on unknown paths
João, a young Portuguese computer scientist who spent a few months volunteering with the brothers in Alagoinhas, writes about his experiences with the poor children from the local neighborhood. He was working on the training courses which have been developed alongside the activities of the "brincadeira", which the brothers have been running for many years.
Commented Bible Text: John 1: 35-42, The First Disciples
In this narrative, the Baptiser sees Jesus passing by and points to him, saying, “Look, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples of John then set out to follow Jesus. But Jesus is not satisfied with their submissiveness. He wants to know why they are following him. He turns to them and asks for an explanation for their decision.
New Releases
- Volume 4 of the "Collected Writings" of Brother Roger is now available in French under the title "Dynamic of the Provisional". This volume also contains the full text of "Violent for Peace".
- A new DVD "In Just a Few Words" has just been released with eleven excerpts from interviews with brother Roger. It provides an overview of the key insights that inspired and sustained him throughout his long life.
- A book of conversations with Brother Alois, by Marco Roncalli, has been published in Italian and German. It will be released soon in French.
- A Czech version of "Choose to love," with texts from Brother Roger, has been published in Prague.
- The book by the Orthodox theologian Olivier Clement, "Taizé, a meaning to life", has been published in a new Russian edition in Moscow.
For more information see here or you can go directly to the online shop.
For the Diary
- Lebanon: After a visit to Israel and Palestine, one of the brothers will be visiting students in several cities in the Lebanon to run prayers and meetings open to all.
- Italy: This week, one of the brothers is taking part in prayers in Treviso, Venice and Olmi, supporting young people in their preparation for the European meeting. Four buses will come to Prague from the Veneto region.
- Portugal: Two brothers will be in Portugal in January to participate in the National Youth Ministry Council, which will bring together delegates from across the country. One of the brothers will then stay on to visit different parts of the country, meet young people and praying with them.
Prayer
Holy Spirit, you know our deep longing, and you want this to make us not sad but joyful. And so you make us understand that in God there is a still more ardent wish to be in communion with us.
December 2014
‘Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise’ (Lk 3:11).
In this period of Advent, our time of preparation for Christmas, the figure of John the Baptist comes into light once again. He was sent by God to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah. To those crowding around to hear him, he strongly urged a change in their lives: ‘Bear fruits worthy of repentance’ (Lk 3:8). And to those who asked: ‘What then should we do?’ (Lk 3:10), he replied:
‘Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.’
Why should I give what is mine to another? Since we were both created by God, the other person is my brother, my sister; therefore, he or she is part of me. ‘I cannot hurt you without harming myself,’ Gandhi once said. We were created as a gift for one another, in the image of God who is Love. We have the divine law of love in our blood. When he came among us, Jesus explained it very clearly in his new commandment: ‘Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another’ (Jn 13:34). It is the ‘law of heaven’, the life of the Holy Trinity brought down on earth, the heart of the Gospel. As the Father, Son and Holy Spirit live in full communion in heaven, to the point of being one (see Jn 17:11), we on earth are truly ourselves to the extent that we live the reciprocity of love. And just as the Son says to the Father: ‘All that is mine is yours, and what is yours is mine’ (Jn 17:10), so too our love reaches fulfilment when we share with one another not only spiritual goods, but also material goods.
The needs of our neighbour are the needs of all of us. Is someone unemployed? I am unemployed. Is someone’s mother sick? I help her as if she were my own. Are there others who are hungry? It’s as if I myself were hungry and I try to find food for them as I would for myself.
This is the experience of the first Christians in Jerusalem: ‘The whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common’ (Acts 4:32). This communion of goods was not obligatory, and yet they practised it intensely. As the apostle Paul explained it was not a matter of making someone go without so as to give relief to others but of ‘a fair balance’ (2 Cor 8:13).
Basil the Great says: ‘The bread you set aside belongs to the hungry; the coat you store in your chest belongs to the naked; the money you keep hidden belongs to the needy.’
And Augustine says: ‘The surplus of the rich belongs to the poor.’
‘Even the poor can help one another. One can offer legs to the other, another eyes to guide the blind, and another can visit the sick.’
‘Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.’
Today too we can live like the early Christians. The Gospel is not a never-never land. This is shown, for example, by the new ecclesial Movements. The Holy Spirit has given rise to them in the Church to help revive, in all its freshness, the passionate gospel-based drive of the early Christians and to respond to the huge challenges of present society where there is such great injustice and poverty.
I remember that in the early days of the Focolare Movement the new charism filled our hearts with an exceptionally powerful love for the poor. Whenever we came across people in poverty, we wrote down their addresses in a notebook so that we could visit them later and help them. They were Jesus: ‘You did it to me’ (Mt 25:40). After visiting them in the run-down places they lived, we invited them to share a meal with us. For them we got out our best tablecloth, our best cutlery, the tastiest food. All around the table, in that first focolare, sat a focolarina then someone poor, a focolarina then someone poor…
At one point it seemed to us that the Lord was asking us in particular to become poor so as to serve both the poor and everyone else as well. There, in the living room of that first focolare house, each one put in a pile on the floor whatever she felt was extra: an overcoat, a pair of gloves, a hat, even a fur coat… And today, in order to give to the poor, we have businesses that give employment and their profits to share out!
But there is still a great deal to do to help ‘the poor.’
‘Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.’
We might not realize it, but we have many riches that we can put into common with others. We have our sensitivity that we need to sharpen and things we need to learn so that we can help concretely, can find out how to live real fraternity. We have love in our hearts to give, warmth of feeling to turn into action, joy to pass on. We have time to put at others’ disposal, prayers, inner riches to put in common through the spoken or written word. And at times we have things that we can offer: purses, pens, books, money, houses, cars… It may be that we accumulate many things thinking that one day they could be useful, but in the meantime there are people nearby who need them urgently.
Just as a plant absorbs from the soil only the amount of water it needs, so we should try to have only what we need. Actually it’s better every now and then to realize something is lacking; it’s better to be a little poor than to be a little rich.
‘If we were all content with what’s necessary and we gave our surplus to those in need,’ Basil says, ‘there would no longer be the rich and the poor.’
Let’s try. Let’s begin to live like this. Jesus will not fail to send us the hundredfold, and we will be able to continue giving. In the end, he will tell us that whatever we have given, to whoever it might be, we have given it to him.
(First published December 2003)
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