John 17:11b-19

Acts 20:28-38

Psalm 68:29-30, 33-35a, 35bc-36ab

John 17:11b-19

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.

When I was with them I protected them in your name that you gave me,

and I guarded them, and none of them was lost

except the son of destruction,

in order that the Scripture might be fulfilled.

But now I am coming to you.

I speak this in the world

so that they may share my joy completely.

I gave them your word, and the world hated them,

because they do not belong to the world

any more than I belong to the world.

I do not ask that you take them out of the world

but that you keep them from the Evil One.

They do not belong to the world

any more than I belong to the world.

Consecrate them in the truth.

Your word is truth.

As you sent me into the world,

so I sent them into the world.

And I consecrate myself for them,

so that they also may be consecrated in truth.”

Opening Prayer: Holy Father, I raise my eyes to you in heaven. Your Son has asked you to keep me from the Evil One and to consecrate me in truth. Hear the priestly prayer of your Son today and grant his request. Keep me united to you and your Son and your Spirit.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Praying for His Household of Priests: Jesus’ high-priestly prayer is modeled on the liturgy of the Jewish Feast Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). Just as the old high priests first prayed for themselves on the Day of Atonement, Jesus, the new and eternal high priest, first prayed for himself and asked the Father to glorify him (John 17:1-5). Next, just as the old high priests had to make atonement for their household – i.e., the priestly descendants of Aaron – so Jesus prays for his Apostles gathered around the table of the Last Supper. Yesterday, we read the beginning of that prayer for his Apostles (John 17:6-11a). Today’s Gospel completes it (John 17:11b-19). Jesus recalls in his prayer how he has revealed the Father to them: “Jesus has planted a knowledge of the Father in their hearts, and by letting his revelation take root and grow through the Spirit’s action in them, the disciples come to a living, experiential knowledge of the truth of Jesus’ words: ‘Everything you gave me is from you’ (John 17:7)” (Martin and Wright, The Gospel of John, 279).

2. Keep Them in Your Name: Since his priestly apostles are in the world and will be attacked by the world, Jesus asks the Father to continue protecting them as Jesus himself did while he was physically present with them. “The divine protection of the disciples recalls Jesus’ words about his sheep: ‘No one can take them out of my hand, … and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand’ (John 10:28-29). Protected by Jesus, none of his disciples was lost except for Judas, the son of destruction. Judas’s defection was not due to any failure of Jesus’ part but so that God’s plan, given in scripture, might be fulfilled (see John 13:18)” (Martin and Wright, The Gospel of John, 281). Jesus’ petition to the Father seeks not only to keep the disciples in communion with the Triune God but also to keep the disciples in communion with one another: “so that they may be one just as we are” (John 17:11).

3. Consecrated Them in the Truth: In his prayer, Jesus makes three petitions for his priestly apostles: Keep them in your name (John 17:11); Keep them from the evil one (John 17:15), and Consecrate them in the truth (John 17:17). This third petition is characteristic of the liturgy and the priesthood. When something is consecrated or made holy, it means that it is set apart from what is common and is now dedicated to the service of the Lord. “Just as the Father consecrated Jesus and sent him into the world, so too must the disciples be consecrated in the truth, meaning in Jesus himself, who is both the Father’s Word and truth” (Martin and Wright, The Gospel of John, 284). Just as Jesus’ consecration leads to his self-offering on the Cross, so also the consecration of his priestly apostles will lead to their self-giving and self-offering for the Church.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I thank you for teaching us how to pray and giving us the “Our Father” and your high priestly prayer as models of true prayer. I hope that I continue to learn from you and enter more deeply and intimately into communion with the Father.

Living the Word of God: Pray today that the Father watch over you and guide you; pray that you may resist the temptations and lies of the devil and mature spiritually under trial; pray that you may be consecrated in the truth, and, in this way, share in God’s holiness and live for your brothers and sisters.