St John 10: 22-30

St John 10: 22-30

The Feast of Dedication, also known as Hanukkah, celebrated the people of Israel’s freedom from the Seleucid Kings of Syria and the cleansing and rededication of the temple in Jerusalem circa 165 Bc by Judas Maccabeus after the profanations committed there by the tyrant Antiochus Epiphanes.

This festival of lights in winter, normally in December would see a procession of lights and lampstands at people’s windows, a symbol of the light of the Law. Jesus the fulfilment of that Law  will announce in the temple to the people that he is  “the light of the world”.

Jesus is challenged by the people “if you are the Christ, tell us plainly”. This is not a question that seeks truth, that seeks enlightenment as Jesus has already affirmed this. It is a trap to corner him, to implicate him and to use against him. Jesus knows that they do not believe as they do not heed his voice.

We cannot become a true believer unless we stop to hear the voice of Jesus, listen to his instructions and teachings and to follow him. “You will know them by their fruits”. To defy God by wilful and deliberate sin is to separate ourselves from God’s holiness and presence. We may at times give up on God but God does not give up on us. Despite everything, God still loves us and longs for us to be contrite and to receive from his fountain of mercy.