Father Miller will offer a reflection on the Seven Last Words of Christ throughout Lent.
In interpreting these words correctly, we have to realize there are three types of interpretation, all of them true, but all on different levels... the most basic, historical, natural interpretation, to greater and higher truths.
The first reason our Lord took such great pains to say these words is because He loved His Mother. And He wanted to make sure that after He was gone, someone would care for Her. It's a very simple thing. Saint Joseph had already died, they had no other children.... So Jesus, out of concern for His mom, chooses one of His disciples, John, to care for her in His place. ... Even though John, the beloved disciple, was the closest one to the Lord, truly among the twelve the best one to care for our Lady; you can imagine the Blessed Mother's reaction to this - on a natural level. "I don't want another son. I want You." But she, knowing it was the will of the Father that her Son die on the cross, would have accepted as the will of Her Son, this replacement. And John really is the best. He's called the "Beloved Disciple" for a good reason, which leads us to the second level of interpretation.
... John held a special place in the heart of Jesus. So it's right that he receive this title "the Beloved." But why would John use it? What would be his motivation? John recognizes in himself and the Lord's love for him the Lord's love for each of His disciples. You see, to Jesus, all of His disciples are beloved. John, realizing this, would avoid using his own name - it's not about me, it's not about "John". It's about each and every beloved disciple. So when you read the Gospel of John and you hear "beloved" or "beloved disciple'" think of yourself.... John is telling you that that is our Lord speaking to you. That means that from the cross, Jesus wasn't just speaking to John the man to care for His Mother while on earth, He was speaking to each one of His beloved disciples throughout the rest of time. He was entrusting to each one of us His Mother.
From the cross He says these words: "Woman, behold your son." And then He says to us, "Behold your Mother." And what does John write immediately after this in the Gospel? "And from that hour, the disciple took Her into his home." From that hour. The disciple - you and me - took Her into his home. So what is our relationship with the Blessed Mother? ... For John, she was now his family. Not by blood, but by baptism. And he takes her into his home and she dwells with him. Wherever he goes, She goes. The message here for us is that this is the way Jesus expects each of His beloved disciples to treat His Mother. This is the relationship He expects them to have with Her.... One of the marks of salvation in the soul of an individual is a true devotion to the Blessed Mother. If you are truly a beloved disciple of the Lord, Mary will live in your home.
What then is the third and highest level of interpretation? We need to look for the signs and the types....
Gn 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18; Ps 116:10, 15, 16-17, 18-19; Rom 8:31b-34; Mk 9:2-10
You may watch the Mass in its entirety on our YouTube channel. Homily begins at 15:47
