A Few Words On "The Word"

August 27, 2006
The Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

John 6: 60-69

When the Going Gets Tough

What's the difference between casual friends and close ones? You don't expect much from casual buds, do you? As long as everyone has fun, no one gets dissed-it's all good. If someone in the posse starts to get too demanding, too needy, too pushy, too whatever-it's time to go (either you or him or her).

But close friends are something else. The attraction is so fierce that you don't want to get going, even when you're feelings are hurt or you're unsure about how your close friend feels about you. You want to stick it out, work it through-and be better friends for it. Part of this involves trusting in your close friend, believing in him or her even he or she isn't being his or her best self. Because being close friends mean that you see each other for who each of you really, truly is-the not so good things as well as the oh-so-good things.

When Jesus began to get a sense of who he was and what he had to do, some of his casual friends, the hangers-on and the hanging-out, took off. The casual friends found him to be too much-too intense, too demanding, too whatever. Time to go. This freaks Jesus out a bit. He even begins to think that his close friends are going to book, too. He asks them in an almost self-pitying kind of way.

And then Peter shows what it means to be a close friend. The same Peter who later is going to mess it all up, abandon his close friend, wimp out when Jesus needs him. But here Peter is the model best friend. Not letting Jesus fall into the self-pity trap, Peter keeps a sense of humor and yet says something pretty intimate and deep: "Leave you? Like where would we go?" And Peter sees Jesus for who he really is-holy and good. That's what close friends do.

Reflection Question

What do you see in a close friend-maybe your best friend-that is holy and good?

Join us in our Forum to discuss these questions!