Catholic Daily Reflections

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Meeting Us Where We Are At

After Jesus had revealed himself to his disciples and eaten breakfast with them, he said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.” He then said to Simon Peter a second time…” John 21:15–16

Today’s resurrection appearance is the third time Jesus appeared to His disciples, as recorded in John’s Gospel. It took place while seven of the Apostles were fishing. Following a miraculous catch of fish, they recognized Jesus on the shore. After they went to Him, Jesus cooked breakfast and asked Peter three times if he loved Him.

The first time Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him, Jesus used the verb agapáō (from the noun agápē), but Peter responded with the verb philéō: “‘Simon, son of John, do you agapáō Me more than these?’” Simon Peter answered Him, “‘Yes, Lord, You know that I philéō You.’” The word agapáō refers to a deeper form of love—a self-sacrificial, total commitment that reflects the love of God for humanity. It involves a love that is not just affection but is marked by a willingness to sacrifice for the good of the other, the kind of love exemplified by Jesus Himself. Peter’s use of the word philéō, on the other hand, refers to a more affectionate, friendly love, often associated with a deeper, more humanly focused bond of friendship. While sincere, it is less intense and self-sacrificial than agápē love.

The second time Jesus asks the question, He again uses agapáō, and Peter again responds with philéō. The third time, Jesus shifts His question to match Peter’s response, using philéō: “Simon, son of John, do you philéō Me?” Peter responds again with philéō: “Lord, You know everything; You know that I philéō You.”

This shift to philéō in the third question shows that Jesus meets Peter where he is, acknowledging Peter’s limitations and his current ability to love with a more affectionate, rather than sacrificial, love. This exchange also highlights Peter’s awareness of his weakness and his humility in acknowledging that he cannot yet love with the full depth of agápē to which Jesus is calling him.

At the end of the conversation, Jesus states: “Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go” (John 21:18). Jesus was not only prophesying that Peter would die as a martyr, but also that through his martyrdom, Peter’s death would glorify God, as it would be the ultimate expression of the sacrificial agápē love to which Jesus had called him. This promise to Peter would have given him hope for the future, even as he faced the challenge of his calling.

Despite Peter’s weakness and inability to express agápē, Jesus not only meets Peter where he is but also gives him a threefold mission of divine importance. He says, “Feed My lambs…tend My sheep…feed My sheep.” While these commands might seem similar, they differ in their emphasis. To “feed My lambs” implies Peter’s mission to care for those who are weak in faith and in need of the initial nourishment of the Word of God. To “tend My sheep” means to shepherd and guide the mature Christians. To “feed My sheep” emphasizes the need for those mature in their faith to receive nourishment through a deeper understanding of the Word of God and the gift of the Eucharist, the Bread of Life. Though Peter was imperfect, struggling with guilt and discouragement over his inability to express the depth of love Jesus was asking of him, Jesus still entrusted him with a divinely inspired mission.

Reflect today on God’s invitation to you to love Him and fulfill His mission. Though we are each imperfect and fail in many ways, Jesus continuously asks us for agápē love. Though we struggle to live that depth of love, God, in His mercy, does not wait until we are perfect to send us forth to be His instruments. He wants us to nourish those with little to no faith, strengthen and encourage our brothers and sisters who are stronger in faith, and nourish them by becoming instruments of His pure love. The extent to which we embrace agápē is the extent to which we will be able to fulfill that mission well. But we start today by responding the best we can because Jesus meets us and uses us where we are, while calling us higher.

Most loving Lord, Your love for me is perfect, yet mine is imperfect. Please give me hope and draw me ever closer each day to the pure agápē love to which I am called. As I grow in this love, please use me as I am to fulfill the mission You have entrusted to me. Jesus, I trust in You.

Image: Christ's Charge to Peter by Raphael

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“Father, they are your gift to me. I wish that where I am they also may be with me, that they may see my glory that you gave me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world.” John 17:24

You are the Father’s gift to Jesus the Son. What an amazing reality to understand! This profound truth is at the heart of today’s Gospel in which Jesus speaks of the unique and intimate relationship between the Father, the Son, and all those who believe in Him.

Today’s Gospel continues Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer, offered to the Father at the conclusion of the Last Supper, marking His final words recorded in John’s Gospel before the beginning of His Passion. This beautiful prayer encapsulates Jesus’ entire mission and identity, expressing His deep intimacy with the Father and His longing for unity between Himself, the Father, and all those who believe in Him. Through this prayer, Jesus reveals the nature of His relationship with the Father, the unity He desires for His followers, and the eternal glory that is to come for those who are united in Him.

The line above not only expresses intimacy between the Father and the Son but also incorporates all the faithful into that intimate relationship. This was and is Jesus’ mission. His love for and union with the Father existed from all eternity. Nothing could change that perfect love. It was, is, and always will be a love so deep and strong that God, in His eternal love, chose to create us to share in that love. Though this love is completely gratuitous on God’s part, freely given and unmerited by us, it’s beautiful to hear Jesus speak of our invitation into the love He shares with the Father as the Father’s gift to the Son. We are not seen as estranged or separate but as gifts freely given and received.

In everyday language, a “present” is understood as something that is expected from another, such as on a birthday. In theological terms, a “gift” carries a richer meaning. A gift is something given freely, without expectation of return, and signifies the giver’s love and goodness. A gift, in this sense, is a manifestation of divine love and generosity. It’s not simply an exchange of material items, but a relational exchange—a movement of love between the giver and the receiver. The Father and the Son’s exchange of love is so perfect that everything they have is entirely given to the other, without reservation or expectation of anything in return. This eternal giving and receiving of love is the foundation of the divine communion between them, and it is from that love that the Holy Spirit—the expression of their shared perfect love—proceeds. As Saint Augustine teaches, “And the Holy Spirit, according to the Holy Scriptures, is neither of the Father alone, nor of the Son alone, but of both; and so intimates to us a mutual love, wherewith the Father and the Son reciprocally love one another” (On the Trinity XV.17.27).

Again, you are part of that love, making you both the Father’s gift of love to the Son and the Son’s gift of love to the Father, because Their love—the Holy Spirit—dwells within you. What a privilege that is! Understanding this loving reality reveals the dignity that each of us has when we are in a state of grace and transformed into gifts given out of love between the divine persons. This mystical and profound language is essential to ponder, especially because it permeates John’s Gospel and reveals the heart of God’s love for us.

Reflect today on how you are the Father’s gift to the Son and the Son’s gift to the Father, made possible by the gift of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Though we do nothing on our own to merit such dignity, this is the reality into which we are invited. On our part, we must cooperate with grace so that God transforms our souls into gifts of increasing glory and beauty. The more we cooperate with God’s grace, the more glorious a gift we become. Though Heaven will be an eternal existence where each saint delights in the Beatific Vision, it is important to understand that each of us will cause eternal delights in the hearts of the Most Holy Trinity. They will look upon us and see us as gifts given to each of them, resulting in an unending outpouring of divine love.

The mystery is great. Reflect on it, meditate on it deeply, and rejoice that you are called to such a life. Most Holy Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—You are a perfect communion of divine Love. Your love is so great, so perfect, so strong, that You have willed to draw me into Your very life, making me a gift of Your love to each other. I thank You for this unfathomable gift and ask the Holy Spirit to dwell within me so that Your mutual self-giving may be glorious. Jesus, I trust in You.  

Image: Jesus Christ Praying at the Garden of Gethsemane

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“Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed, saying: “Holy Father, keep them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are one.”  John 17:11

In the ancient world, a name was not only a means of identification but also an expression of the authority and power that the person possessed. For instance, when a king or ruler issued a decree, it was done “in the name” of the king, meaning with his full authority and power behind it.

In the Bible, the “name” of God is much more than a simple designation or label; it signifies the full revelation of God’s identity, character, and power. The concept of God’s name is deeply tied to His nature and His actions in the world. His name represents who God is and His relationship with His people.

In the Old Testament, God appeared to Moses in the burning bush and instructed him to go to Pharaoh to bring His people, the Israelites, out of Egypt. Moses inquired, “But... if I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is His name?’ what do I tell them?” God replied to Moses: “I am who I am.” Then He added: “This is what you will tell the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you” (Exodus 3:13–14).

God’s mysterious name—“I AM WHO I AM” or simply “I AM”—is also His identity. It expresses God’s eternal existence and His self-sufficiency. He is the one who exists by His own nature, without beginning or end, having sovereignty over all creation.

In John’s Gospel, Jesus identifies Himself with the divine name numerous times: “I am he;” “I am the Bread of Life;” “I am the Light of the World;” “Before Abraham was, I AM;” “I am the Gate;” “I am the Good Shepherd;” “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life;” “I am the True Vine;” and “I told you that I AM.” Therefore, when Jesus prayed to the Father, “Holy Father, keep them in your name that you have given me…,” His prayer was authoritative, by which the Father’s will is implemented, because Jesus is I AM, and in that name, He prays.

Jesus’ prayer was “that they may be one just as we are one.” This prayer should give us great hope. To “be one” with God, just as the Father and Son are one, reveals that we are called to share in God’s very life, to be united to Him in a way that goes beyond intellectual agreement or friendship. We are invited into God’s unity, taking our identity in Him, sharing in His very essence and life. We become members of Christ’s Body, the Church, acting in Him, with Him, and through Him. This is why Jesus said three times during the Last Supper that whatever we ask the Father in His name, He will give us.

In 2 Peter 1:4, we read that God’s power has enabled us to escape corruption and evil desire and has bestowed upon us “precious and very great promises, so that through them you may come to share in the divine nature.” This foundational Scripture has led many Church Fathers to speak of our high calling to “divinization.” As Saint Athanasius of Alexandria famously said, “For He was made man that we might be made God; and He manifested Himself by a body that we might receive the idea of the unseen Father; and He endured the insolence of men that we might inherit immortality” (On the Incarnation, 54:3).

Reflect today on the high calling you have received. You are invited to share in God’s life, to take your identity in Him, to live and act in God’s divine name, exercising His authority and manifesting His sacrificial love. This is only possible when we are united to Christ as He is united to the Father. We become one with God, by His will, with His authority and grace. What high dignity we have received to act in His name and with His authority! Have hope in the ability to be drawn into this high calling, taking on this new identity, so that Jesus’ prayer at the Last Supper becomes a reality in your life. 

My divine Lord, the great I AM, You have existed from all eternity as the one and eternal God. You invite me to share in Your life by uniting me with You in Christ through His humanity. I accept this high calling and pray, as You prayed during the Last Supper, that I may be one with You—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—and live and act in Your Name. Jesus, I trust in You.

Image via Adobe Stock 

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“I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for the ones you have given me, because they are yours, and everything of mine is yours and everything of yours is mine, and I have been glorified in them.” John 17:9–10

Though the Church has traditionally summarized sin under the seven capital sins, sin is also understood to arise from three primary sources: the flesh, the world, and the devil. The “flesh” refers to the disordered desires and passions that stem from our fallen human nature. The “world” signifies the societal values, materialism, and secular ideologies that promote a lifestyle contrary to God’s will. The “devil” represents the personal, spiritual adversary who seeks to lead us astray through deception, lies, and the stirring of sinful desires. These three sources constantly seek to undermine our relationship with God.

We are called to resist these temptations and remain firm in faith. This is accomplished by relying on grace to silence these sources. The flesh is subdued and moderated by the virtue of temperance, the devil is overcome as we discern the voice of God, and the world is overcome by seeking the true glory to which we are called. It is this third source, and its remedy, that Jesus particularly addresses in today’s passage.

This prayer concludes Jesus’ Last Supper Discourse and is prayed just before He goes to the Garden of Gethsemane, where His Passion begins with His arrest. These final words of Jesus encapsulate the ultimate purpose of life. Within this prayer, He prays to His Father, “Now glorify me, Father, with you, with the glory that I had with you before the world began” (John 17:5).

From a human perspective, we naturally desire glory. However, from a worldly perspective, earthly “glory” is a temptation, as it leads us to seek the praise of creatures over the glory that God desires to bestow. Jesus does not dismiss the value of glory; He simply points to its true source—the Father. Jesus’ glory does not originate from human praise. His glory stems from His perfect fulfillment of the Father’s will, offering Himself as the one and only Sacrifice for sins. Through His Passion, He is glorified by the Father in His human nature and manifests the glory He has always enjoyed as the eternal Son of God. He will continue to manifest this glory for all eternity.

Though Jesus begins this prayer for Himself, He quickly includes “the ones you have given me”—His disciples, and ultimately, everyone who will come to believe in Him through them, including us. His prayer is for all who are united to Jesus and the Father, pointing out that Jesus is glorified in them because they fulfill His will and continue His mission, which results in our participation in His eternal glory.

This passage beautifully illustrates that the attainment of worldly glory and recognition pales in comparison to the true glory we are invited to share. We are called to participate in Jesus’ own glory, the eternal glory He shares with the Father. We do this by being united to Him in His earthly mission of living sacrificial love, which manifests His glory—the true glory for which we long. 

Reflect today on your natural desire for glory. God places this desire in us, but the values of the fallen world tempt us to seek a passing glory bestowed by others’ opinions. The only way to fulfill the desire for true glory is to unite ourselves to Christ, including His Passion and death, so as to receive the glory bestowed upon Him by the Father. This is why martyrdom, the ultimate act of sacrificial love, is considered glorious. It is the highest expression of participation in Christ’s own suffering, which manifested His glory. Sacrifice, selflessness, virtue, and perfect conformity to Christ all lead us into this eternal glory. Living transformed in Christ bestows that glory here and now. When we die, we will enjoy forever in heaven the level of glory we participated in on earth. Seek glory—true glory—and you will find that your natural desires are fulfilled by supernatural grace. 

Lord of all glory, with Your Father, You are eternally glorified, and the glory bestowed upon You by the Father from all eternity shines forth. You invite us to share in Your glory by sharing in the earthly means by which that glory was manifested—Your Passion. May I always seek this holy and pure glory above that which the world offers, so as to share in it forever in Heaven with You and all the saints. Jesus, I trust in You.  

Image: The last supper via Adobe Stock

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The disciples said to Jesus, “Now you are talking plainly, and not in any figure of speech. Now we realize that you know everything and that you do not need to have anyone question you. Because of this we believe that you came from God.” John 16:29–30

Throughout John’s Gospel, Jesus often speaks in allegories and metaphors that the disciples struggle to comprehend. Among these, He referred to Himself as the Good Shepherd, the Bread of Life, the Light of the World, the True Vine, and Living Water. However, during the Last Supper, Jesus speaks clearly and openly, without the veiled language they were accustomed to. He speaks of the Father’s love for them, His imminent departure and return to the Father, and how He would send the Holy Spirit—the Spirit of Truth—to guide them into all truth.

As the Apostles listened to Jesus speak plainly, they rejoiced in a newfound clarity, indicating that their faith had reached a deeper level. At this pivotal moment, just hours before Jesus’ arrest and Passion, their new insight must have amazed even them: “Now we realize that you know everything…we believe that you came from God.”

This new level of understanding was just the beginning of a journey that would lead them deeper into all Truth in the years to come. However, despite their new understanding, Jesus quickly adds that they will soon “be scattered” and leave Jesus alone. Their newfound clarity would quickly come face to face with the Cross.

The experience of the Apostles teaches us much about our own spiritual journeys. Prior to the Last Supper, the Apostles grew in faith through years of listening to Jesus, grappling with veiled language, and witnessing miracles. As Jesus spoke plainly and lovingly during the Passover meal, He lifted the veil more fully to help their faith blossom. He did this, in part, because He knew they would be traumatized by His Passion—and indeed, they were.

In each of our lives, we find a similar pattern. As we learn to pray, meditate on the Gospels, and study divine truths, we are encouraged as we begin to realize the treasure we have discovered. We might then experience a moment of clarity, sensing God speaking directly to us. When that happens, it’s easy to assume that everything in life will immediately be easier. Yet the Cross often comes next. Like the Apostles, we might stumble, become confused or fearful, and scatter.

The lesson taught by the Apostles is one we must grasp. When we are gifted with spiritual insights and consolations, finding that life and God’s Word make more sense, we must remember that these consolations and moments of clarity must deepen. To draw us closer to Him, God needs to purify our faith and strengthen our wills. He does this by preparing us for a fuller participation in His Sacrifice.

When we face a heavy cross, our first response is often to resist it. We might wonder where God is and why this suffering has afflicted us. The lesson from the Apostles’ lives is that the crosses we face become our greatest blessings when they are united to Christ’s Cross. The momentary confusion and affliction must give way to God’s power to deepen us in ways that good spiritual feelings and insights alone cannot.

Once the Holy Spirit descended fully on the disciples at Pentecost, their clarity and consolations were even greater, but so were the crosses they endured. The journey of faith to which we are called is first and foremost a journey into Christ’s Passion. We need many moments of clarity to help us understand the value of the sacrifices we are invited to make. We need consolations so that our wills are strengthened when strength is needed the most. 

Reflect today on your own journey ahead. As you look to the future, know that God wants to teach you much and lift the veil from His divine truths. He does so not because He wants everything to be easy or one unending consolation, but because He wants you to share in the sacrificial love revealed through His Passion. In the end, it is that purified love that has the potential to make us holy and share in the glory of the saints. 

My revealing Lord, You lifted the veil to divine mysteries for the Apostles during the Last Supper as a way of preparing them for Your coming Passion and the confusion they would endure. As I journey through life, I trust that You will continually reveal Yourself to me so that I can share more fully in Your sacrificial love, which is the only way to the glory of the Resurrection. Jesus, I trust in You.  

Image: Ascension of Jesus in side apse of church kostel Svatého Václava by S. G. Rudl 

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