“What you do is what matters, not what you think or say or plan.”

“Jesus Christ said 'by their fruits ye shall know them,' not by their disclaimers.” – William Burroughs: (1914 – 1997: was an American writer.)

Gospel Text: (JN 14:7-14)

Jesus said to his disciples:

"If you know me, then you will also know my Father.

From now on you do know him and have seen him."

Philip said to Jesus,

"Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us."

Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you for so long a time

and you still do not know me, Philip?

Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.

How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?

Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?

The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own.

The Father who dwells in me is doing his works.

Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me,

or else, believe because of the works themselves.

Amen, amen, I say to you,

whoever believes in me will do the works that I do,

and will do greater ones than these,

because I am going to the Father.

And whatever you ask in my name, I will do,

so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

If you ask anything of me in my name, I will do it."

“Words” and “works” flow from the relationship of the Father and the Son. Jesus mentions both “words” and “works” in today’s Gospel passage, but focus here on the “works” He refers to: “The Father who dwells in me is doing His works.” Jesus says this as the Only-Begotten Son of the Father. Nonetheless, you and I, as the Father’s adopted children in Christ, may speak these words truthfully inasmuch as we root our lives in Christ. This in fact is our vocation as Christians.

As a night-time examination of conscience, then, we might ask the Holy Spirit to guide us in answering these questions: “How many of the words I spoke today were not the Father’s words? How many of the works that I did today were not the Father’s works?”