April 8, 2019 Monday, 5th Week of Lent 1st Reading: Dn 13:1–9, 15–17, 19–30, 33–62 (or 13:14c–62) Gospel: Jn 8:12–20
Jesus spoke to them again, “I am the Light of the world; the one who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have light and life.” The Pharisees replied, “Now you are speaking on your own behalf, your testimony is worthless.”Then Jesus said, “Even though I bear witness to myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I have come from and where I am going. But you do not know where I came from or where I am going.You judge by human standards; as for me, I don’t judge anyone. But if I had to judge, my judgment would be valid for I am not alone: the Father who sent me is with me. In your Law it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is valid; so I am bearing witness to myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness to me.”They asked him, “Where is your Father?” Jesus answered, “You don’t know me or my Father; if you knew me, you would know my Father as well.”Jesus said these things when he was teaching in the Temple area, in the place where they received the offerings. No one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE (Daily Gospel in the
Assimilated Life Experience)
Jesus claimed being the Light of the World, but the Jews challenged this claim for lack of substantiation. Under Jewish laws at that time, the testimony of two witnesses was needed to va-lidate a claim. But Jesus had already tried to accommodate this law when he presented himself as his own witness and the Father as second witness. Under Philippine laws, a person can be his own witness (Rule 115(d), Rules of Court), but not under Jewish laws. On this basis the Pharisees dismissed Jesus’ testimony on his own behalf as inadmissible.
A deeper reflection would actually show that the “two-witness rule” of the Jews could not be applied to Jesus because no one could pre-exist him to qualify as witness to the spiritual rea-lities surrounding his past. Only Jesus could stand as witness to his past. Thus Jesus said, “Even though I bear witness to myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I have come from and where I am going. But you do not know where I came from or where I am going.”
The lack of persons qua-lified to stand as witnesses to Jesus did not mean that Jesus’ testimony was false. They had Scriptures abounding in testimonies in favor of Jesus (Jn. 5:31-39). They also had John the Baptist who spent his whole life in testimony of him (Is. 40:3). They found it hard to believe not because of the impossibility or improbabi-lity of the claim of Jesus but because of their lack of faith (Matt. 13:58). – (Atty.) Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., D.M.
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