One of the sweetest invitations in all of Scripture can be found in the Gospel of John: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love” (15:9). The Greek word menó (μένω) can be translated a variety of ways into English. It can mean to remain, to abide, to stay, to continue, to dwell, or to endure. The Gospel of John uses this word 34 times. It occurs 19 times in the three Letters of John. The evangelist packs considerable theological and spiritual significance into this little word—far too much to be explored in a single blog! One observation, however, I would like to share is this: loving and remaining are inseparable because it is love that remains.
God is love. God’s eternal being and doing is love. Where there is love, there is God. And so, an invitation has been extended to us: Remain in my love. Love that is of God, that comes from the core of our being, is what endures beyond suffering and death. And, it is our loving connection with others that weaves us into web of eternal life with God and the saints. We have only to remain steadfast in this love that feeds, nurtures, protects and sustains us. The invitation is a gift.
My imagination tends to go wild with metaphors to tease out the many nuances of what remaining in Christ’s love is like. From the Gospel we have the image of the vine and the branches (Jn 15:1-6). Branches that remain connected to the vine “bear fruit” while those who do not remain wither and die. Similarly, there is the image of a tree, a shrub, or a flower that stays firmly rooted in the soil. Most of its nurturing comes from the ground, and its capacity to thrive is dependent upon remaining in the good soil where it is planted.
In the first chapter of John’s Gospel, two disciples of John the Baptist ask Jesus, “Rabbi, where are you staying?” Jesus answers them, “Come and you will see.” So, the disciples go with Jesus, see where he is staying, and they stayed with him that day (Jn 1:38-39). This brief engagement with Jesus at the outset of the Gospel narrative sets the stage for all of the one-on-one dialogues Jesus has with individuals throughout the rest of the text. True disciples stay/remain with Jesus wherever it is that he stays/remains, not so much in a physical sense as in a spiritual one. They believe Jesus’ words. They do the work that Jesus commands them to do, primarily, to love one another.
In Jesus’ Last Supper Discourse, he states: “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling in him” (Jn 14:23). Again, this “dwelling with” is the same as “remaining with.” These words echo what Jesus says earlier in the discourse: “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places” (14:2). These are not physical places; they are spiritual ones. Staying with Jesus, remaining in his love, dwelling in the Father’s house are all ways of trying to articulate a truth that cannot be wholly articulated with words. It is a mystery beyond human understanding, but it is not beyond our capacity to experience. Jesus invites us to this experience. Will you take him up on it?
By Sister Therese Haydel, OSB