“But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My
joy fulfilled in themselves” (John 17:13)
The Last Supper has ended; Judas Iscariot, His betrayer, had gone off into the night’s darkness to perform his wicked deed, and our loving Lord lifted up a prayer to the heavenly Father. He wanted the apostles to hear what He was praying.
It’s a prayer full of joy. One might think it odd that He would be in high spirits at a time like this, when He was well aware of what lay ahead the next day. And yet He had reasons for His euphoria. He is relating to His Father what the Father and Holy Spirit well knew—that the plan for the salvation of mankind, which the Holy Trinity set forth even before the universe had come into existence, had reached its culmination. The phrase used in contemporary military parlance, “Mission Accomplished,” was appropriate in His report to the Father. The assignment of our Lord Jesus was almost fulfilled. Satan would be defeated. Within hours, the fallen angel and his cohorts would have their last opportunity to test Him. They would utilize the power of evil against purity and goodness, but our Lord Jesus was certain that the devil would fail. He had accepted the challenge by coming to earth. The Son of God took on human flesh to prove that it is possible to overcome sin with purity and grace.
By uniting the nature of divinity with human nature, in the mystical manner known but to the Trinity, bonding with our humanity and offering access to the uncreated energy of divinity, He made salvation possible for human beings.
Now He is prepared to make the journey back to where He was before the world was made, seated at the right hand of the Father.
By praying aloud in the presence of His disciples, He teaches the value of praying for others in their presence. We know and feel the good effects of prayers uttered to God in our behalf, but it helps us to know it is happening. It lifts us up from despondency. Also, He wanted them to hear that sublime word of thanksgiving and tenderness, because it was important that they not only understood His emotions, but that they would share them. He wanted His joy to be theirs as well. In the trauma and confusion of the next day, joy would vanish. That Friday they had all they could do to stay alive themselves, to deal with the great disappointment of His trials and suffering culminating in the cross; but they would compose themselves, and eventually they would piece together the words that came from His lips not just to them, but those addressed to the heavenly Father.
And for us, two millennia later, that joy is a barometer of our spiritual condition. All we who are baptized into Christ and have put on Christ have the duty to bear in our hearts the victory that our Master has attained on our behalf. The opposite of joy is despair. And it’s a grievous sin. It’s worse than most sins, because we can recognize others, repent of them, confess and be healed. Depression is a mood that engulfs us like dark clouds over several days that makes us forget there’s a sun shining far above. Satan never sleeps or needs to rest. He has all our lifetime to attack us night or day. The weapon of despair is formidable. We must constantly be on guard against it. It’s a spiritual disease that the monastics call “darkening of the heart.” All of the spiritual leaders warn us to recognize when it happens to us, and to take measures to rid our hearts of its sclerosis. Another reason for finding ways to be with the community of believers is to bask in the happiness of the Church—assuming, of course, that the Church is always ready and eager to fill us with joy.