Some Greeks came up to Philip and made this request: “Sir, we
should like to see Jesus.” They are to find Jesus, of course,
in the grain of wheat fallen to earth and dying. They are to find
Jesus in the one who is lifted up from the earth and loses his
life.
If we should like to see Jesus we need to look for the fallen grains
of wheat around us, the sick and impoverished, the abused and
oppressed. If we should like to see Jesus, we need to look for those
who are losing their lives, the victims of poverty, abuse,
discrimination, and war.
What we need is a new covenant, a covenant of love and forgiveness.
We need to have written in our hearts that we are God’s
people, that we aspire to be like Christ in transforming the
darkness of the world’s pain into the life and joy of Easter.
Jesus who came as ‘Emmanuel’ (God with us, Mt 1:23) and who promises to be with his people until the end of the age (Mt 28:20) is hidden in those most in need; to reject them is to reject God made manifest in history.
