THE SPIRITUAL DIRECTOR
When I was a child we used to be given a weekly leaflet at Sunday school called ‘Friends of God.’ It had a coloured illustration on the cover depicting the Bible story for the week and the story itself was inside. It was a simple but effective way to introduce children to the God who reaches out to us in friendship.
In this first chapter of John we see Jesus calling five men to follow him. They may have known each other and been friends. Two were together with John the Baptist, one went to find his brother to introduce him to Jesus and a fourth went to find his sceptical friend. Two were invited to the house where Jesus was staying and spent the rest of the day with him, a good way to get to know someone.
They certainly became closely connected with each other as well as with Jesus from then on as they followed him and developed their relationship with him.
Friendship is a precious gift that humans give to one another. It means many things and many have written about it in poetry and prose, celebrating it and commending it. The orator Cicero said it was like the sun that gives us warmth and light. Before him the author of Proverbs had reflected on friendship while the book of Job shows us how not to be a friend.
Tr ue friendship combats loneliness and offers support, acceptance and understanding. It is risky. How amazing that Jesus sought it for himself even as he offered it to others. One of the key features of the word made flesh is that Jesus entered our world of human relationships. Abraham was called the friend of God, but now, God’s friendship was being extended to all human beings everywhere and in such a way that demonstrated real concrete relationship.
Jesus spelled out the importance of friendship when he told his disciples that he no longer called them servants but friends (Jn 15:15). God was in Christ offering the world friendship! It is said that we have the capacity to be acquainted with around 150 people maximum and to be close friends with less than a dozen. Some of us prefer to have just one or two really close friends. God’s capacity for intimate friendship with each one of us is limitless. He knows us inside out and calls each one of us personally to follow him and become his friends.
John’s decision to tell us about these particular five disciples is interesting. What was special about them? We do not hear much more about some of them. Andrew and Peter were among his closest friends but they ran away at the critical moment just like all the rest. Each one had a unique calling, however, and became part of the initial proclamation of the good news of Jesus.
They didn’t know where friendship with Jesus would lead. Little by little they got to know him and learned to trust him. They listened to his words and watched his life. They got to know a person.