"I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life"

A couple of weeks ago, I had the honor of attending a bat mitzvah for a dear friend's daughter. I always enjoy going to synagogue services even though I don't speak or understand a lick of Hebrew. But I appreciate the depth of dedication to the Torah and the intimacy of the Jewish community in that sacred space. And as I was basking in the beauty of the service and delighting in the pride of the entire community centered on that bright 13-year old girl, I wrestled with today's gospel. Today>s gospel holds the oh-so-famous verses, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me!' (John 14: 61 NSRV) And just how famous are these verses? Well, a quick google search for John 14:6 yielded 30.6M results. When I searched specifically with the words "I am the way and the truth and the life, I got over one billion results. That's right. Billion with a B. Obviously, these words convey special meaning for so many people.

And, I can understand why. But they are also used to spread division, antisemitism, islamophobia, and religious intolerance. The phrase, "no one comes to the Father except through me" is interpreted by many Christians as permission to co-opt Jesus into an intolerant gatekeeper who demands allegiance before granting access to God. But that doesn't sound like a message that the humble, servant-leader, Jesus who I know would deliver. And, as I sat among my Jewish friends, surrounded by men and women wearing tallits, or prayer shawls, listening to ancient Hebrew songs sung with heads bowed and faith-filled hearts, I just couldn't for a second believe that these people, who do not worship Jesus, do not know God. Or that God does not know them. I thought about the people in my family who are practicing Hindus and who have dedicated their lives to healing and fighting injustice. Am I supposed to believe that they cannot come to God because they don't worship Jesus? In my heart, I know that's not true.

And then the Spirit entered in and whispered, "Katie read it again. Think about it a little bit harder." And I saw it. Jesus identifies himself as "the way and the truth and the life". What if we read these verses as "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through [the way and the truth and the life]"? Oh. What if Jesus is talking about his teachings, his ministry, his love for all of life, his refusal to tolerate injustice and not at all about his personhood? What if Jesus means to actually get the disciples to think of him as a movement and not as a man? These were the questions rumbling through my head while trying to pay attention to the (very long) bat mitzvah. But they all point to an even bigger question: What exactly is meant by the way and the truth and the life?

Let's start with the way first. In today's gospel from John and the chapter just preceding it, there is a lot of dialogue about going and following. But let's talk about where this text lies within the Jesus story. Jesus has just washed the feet of his disciples, let them know that he's going to be betrayed, and given them the Great Commandment to love one another as he has loved them. And Peter is like, "but wait - where are you going, Jesus?" and Jesus replies, "you can't come yet but you will follow me later." But, of course, Peter isn't satisfied. He wants to go with Jesus now. He doesn't want his best friend, teacher, and hope for all the world to leave him. None of the disciples do. Jesus talks of going and preparing a place for them, reassuring them that they will know the way. And when Thomas presses and asks how they can possibly know where to go without him, we get Jesus's famous response that he is the way.

When Jesus talks of "the way" he is leaning on a rich tradition of Scriptural literary meaning. There are references to "the way" sprinkled throughout Psalms and Proverbs. But it is Isaiah's use of "the way" that I find particularly compelling in light of today's gospel. The prophet Isaiah declares, "Though the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself any more, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, 'This is the way; walk in it"' (Isaiah 30: 20-21, NSRV). Jesus's teaching and ministry built "the way" out of bricks of justice, healing, peace, storytelling, miracles, friendship, grief, joy, humility, feeding people, mercy, compassion, and, always, love in action. I don't think God put a toll on this road God co-built with Jesus, but instead invites everyone to walk it freely, listening for that divine whisper telling us where to go. Thinking of the way in this manner, I can better understand Jesus's assertion that no one comes to the Father except on it, the path that Jesus illuminated by loving completely to the end heeding God's guiding voice.

And using this understanding of "the way", I'm apt to think of "the truth" as how to walk this path, as exemplified by Jesus. And it's not easy. I think maybe that's why the first reading from Acts where Stephen is stoned to death is included in the lectionary for today. In that story, Stephen's death echoes Jesus's own crucifixion in key ways that hone in on what living in "the truth'' could really mean. Our dear friend, Martin Luther, promoted a theology of the cross that we, as Lutherans, embrace today. It basically means witnessing and naming the suffering on the cross as a means to encounter God. It means that we can't look past the crucifixion and jump right into the glory of the Resurrection, conveniently avoiding the adversity and affliction to which Isaiah refers. "The truth" is living in a way that boldly faces injustice, challenges it, and insists on love. It is to commend one's life to something bigger than the self, to yearn for right relationship with God, community, and creation. Which means that "the truth" also requires forgiveness. Stephen asks God to forgive his murderers (Acts 7:60). Jesus asks God to forgive the Romans who crucified him (Luke 23:34). "The truth" is living into reconciliation and I agree that we cannot come into full communion with God without it. Walking the path of the way and truth is hard. It can be extremely unpopular. It forces us to see things we cannot unsee. And it is transformative in ways we never imagined, whether one worships Jesus or not.

So, that brings us to "the life". If "the way,, is the path and "the truth" is how to walk the path then perhaps "the life" is where the path leads. And I think Jesus has been telling us all along that the way and the truth lead to the kin-dom of God, the dwelling place of the Lord. In John's gospel from today Jesus uses the imagery of a building to describe this divine destination. And he tells his disciples, "In my Father's house there are many dwelling places [ie room for everyone] ... And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also " (John 14: 2-3, NSRV). Whether you believe that the kin-dam of God is a literal place in the next world or you subscribe to an understanding that leans towards fulfillment here on Earth, Jesus extends an open invitation to "the life" where all belong. Notice that Jesus doesn't put forward a list of requirements for entry. He doesn't name any nationality, race, gender, sexual identity, class, immigration status, or religion when he invites disciples into "the life". Now, you may be saying, "OK, but he's talking to his disciples, so doesn't that automatically mean he's talking to Christians?" My inclination is to say, "no", because Jesus and his disciples were all faithful Jews. But also because Jesus doesn't ever promote spiritual elitism. Ever. Quite the opposite, actually. The salvation that Jesus leads us towards is expressed through solidarity, humility, hospitality, and radical love, especially for those who've been pushed to the edges. And sadly, some Christians have weaponized Jesus's invitation to "the life" to inflict real and lasting trauma to people of other faith traditions while also causing ecumenical divisions. "The life" that Jesus is talking about is so much bigger than our individualism and human-sized imaginations. Today's gospel starts out, "Do not let your [plural] heart [singular] be troubled" (John 14:1, NSRV). One collective heart among the entire community. One collective love intertwined to form belonging. One collective creation that God adores. Together in this way, we come to God and God comes to us. That is "the life".

The rabbi at the bat mitzvah preached about the dangers of religious fanaticism, the harmful division it causes, and promoted a message of peace and understanding. The exact same message could have been delivered from this pulpit. Christians don't have a monopoly on the way, the truth, and the life. God doesn't hide away from people who live loving, justice-centered lives that reflect Jesus's ministry and teachings, even if they do so using a different faith language. As critically-thinking, justice-minded people who call ourselves Christians, we must not let Jesus's famous words "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" be reduced to bumper sticker Scripture that negates Jesus's radically inclusive story of love. Friends, denying love and dignity to people because they "reject Jesus" is itself rejecting Jesus. But when we turn squarely towards those who weaponize Jesus's words and respond with a collective heart and a communal voice that uplifts everyone who walks the Christ-like path towards God, then we all come to the Father. We come to the Father wearing yarmulkes, praying on sajjadahs, gathering for pujas, protesting fascism, sharing the Eucharist, and any other time we act with Christ's compassion, prayer, humility, sacrifice, reconciliation, and love. This is Jesus's message for us today. This is the way and the truth and the life that will set us all free. Thanks be to God!