Sunday Homily, 3 May 2026 - Fr Paul Rowse, OP

The Lord tells us not to let our hearts be troubled because it's in our power to do so. He only ever commands what is possible; Jesus doesn't ask the impossible of us. So, because life's troubles are inevitable and because Jesus trusts us to deal with them, we're going to find a way forward with him. It's in our power to keep our hearts untroubled; it's in our power to untrouble our hearts.

The kind of trouble the Lord sees in the disciples' hearts is of the highest order. They have just witnessed Peter's bold ambition to die for Jesus quashed by the forecast of the denials. They've been shocked by Jesus' revelation of Judas' treachery. There he was in our midst all along. And they've been stunned as their Master poured out the water of Kingdom-service on their feet. There's much for them to be troubled by, and it's only Holy Thursday. How much worse can it get?

The Lord sees their hearts becoming troubled and says stop this. You must stop this fear going on any further. The Lord sees our hearts becoming troubled sometimes and says the same. You must stop this fear inside you.

The remedy the Lord proposes is trust. So often in John's Gospel, faith and trust go together: they are two sides of the same coin. The one we believe in is the one we believe. This is to distinguish between but keep together the intellectual requirement of faith and its affective working. If we're having a tough time trusting God, that's time time to profess our faith in God once again.

"Trust in God still and trust in me," the Lord tells us. He's speaking of his equality with the Father. So, it's through Jesus' sacred humanity, through the way he is like us in all things but sin, that we come to God, that we come to trust in God. He is all-powerful, all-loving, and over all prevailing.

But our trust in God isn't to be just a vague feeling or it'll deny reality. If we let trust in God float above us, fear will remain and faith won't work. So, the Lord gived us something to trust in him for. He gives us a Why.

"There are many rooms in my Father's house ... I go to prepare a place for you." In the rich imagery of a generously adoptive father, the Lord speaks to our future in God. We are being graciously taken into a house we have no right to enter. By his saving death, the Lord Jesus takes away our sins so that there is nothing preventing our entry into his eternity. For membership of that royal household we are chosen and consecrated and sanctified.

Image by Anelhj [license]

Yes, it's risky; Jesus' words stand above our natural realm. But he has never given us any reason to doubt him. His amazing miracles, his wise teaching, his forebearance with foolish disciples all evidence his credibility. He is the way. His way is true. His truth is life.

When our hearts are troubled, and troubled they might well be sometimes, we are to renew our trust in him as the one who makes it possible for us mere mortals to live for ever. Nothing can destroy the place God has created for you. Only personal sin will stand in the way. Whatever happens cannot undo the Lord's work. I live for him, just as he lived and died for me. To him be the glory for ever and ever. Amen. Alleluia.

Fr Paul Rowse, OP

Parish Priest