The Question John Refuses to Rush
How John's Gospel begins with mystery , and takes its time to reveal who Jesus really is
Welcome to today’s reflection.
This week, I’m sharing these readings a little more widely than usual. Christmas has always felt like a season for open doors, where the story is not guarded but offered.
As always, thank you for being here and for reading alongside me.
If you are accustomed to Christmas stories beginning with angels, shepherds, and a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, then the Gospel of John may seem a little awkward.
There is no manger here, no journey to Bethlehem, and no freaked-out shepherds squinting into the dark. Instead, John opens with a sentence that sounds less like a story and more like a riddle:
In the beginning was the Word.
Not once upon a time, or this is what happened. John pushes us back before events, before explanation, even before familiarity. He lifts our eyes to the cosmic picture and asks us to consider that before everything else, there was something, or rather, someone, already present.
John does not begin by telling us what to think. He begins by asking us to dwell on a question.
