5/13/2016 – Friday of the 7th week of Easter – John 21:15-19

     In the Passion of the Lord that we heard during Holy Week, Peter very famously denied Jesus three times.  Echoing those denials, Peter in today’s Gospel affirms that he loves Jesus three times.   It may be easy for us to say that we love Jesus, to even do so multiple times, but do we show this to be true in our actions?  

     There are different ways we can take action in our lives of faith. Mysticism is a word we often hear in Christian theology and spirituality. Mysticism is a way to express and live out our faith and spirituality.  But, what exactly is a mystic?  That is a good question, isn’t it?  We hear of different saints being mystics, such as Teresa of Avila, Catherine of Sienna, Therese of Lisieux, Hildegard of Bingen, and John of the Cross. We define a mystic as someone who unites himself with God in a profound way, which could be in a state of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness that has a special religious or spiritual meaning. Julian of Norwich, the saint of the day, is a famous mystic from England from who was born in the middle of the 14^th century.  Little is known about Julian.  In fact, we don’t even know her real name.  The name she is known by is taken from the church where she lived as an anchoress – the church of St Julian in Norwich, England.  An Anchoress was a deeply religious woman who chose to live a solitary life in her town or village in a confined quarters called an anchorage, which usually consisted of a single small cell. Scholars debate as to whether Julian was a lay woman or a nun.  However, what is known, is that Julian’s book entitled The Revelations of Divine Love, a written account of 16 visions she had of Jesus while she was suffering from a grave illness, is earlier known book written by a woman in the English language.  Julian has many well-known quotes, but perhaps this is her most famous: “But Jesus, who in this vision informed me of all that is needed by me, answered with these words and said: ‘It was necessary that there should be sin; but all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.”  Like the way Peter was able to redeem himself, Julian’s quote reflects the hope and encouragement that are a part of our faith.  We have sin and temptation in our lives, but we also have reconciliation and salvation and conversion.  We are always with the hope that our faith provides.