As the Church celebrates the Fifth Sunday of Easter, Fr. Marion Nguyen, OSB, offers his thoughts on the day’s liturgical readings under the theme: “The Way Through Anxiety”.
By Fr. Marion Nguyen, OSB*
In today’s Gospel, the disciples are deeply troubled. Jesus has spoken of His departure. Judas has gone into the night. Peter has just been told that before dawn he will deny his Lord three times.
Everything feels uncertain. The one they have followed is leaving, and even the strongest among them is about to fall.
It is not so different from our own time. Many people live with quiet anxiety—fear of failure, fear of losing control, fear that they are not enough. We are surrounded by endless voices offering explanations and speculations—much noise, little authority, and even less peace.
Into that anxiety, Jesus says: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Have faith in God; have faith also in me.”
Saint John Chrysostom points out that this is not a suggestion but a command. (cf. Homily 73 on John) It is the same voice that commanded the wind and the sea, “Be still,” and there was calm. (cf. Mt 8:27)
Jesus does not speak like one who merely comforts from a distance. He speaks with divine authority. If we believe in God, we must believe in Him, because He stands in perfect union with the Father. (cf. Jn 14:10)
Peace does not come from controlling life’s storms, but from trusting the One who commands them.
Then Jesus says, “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.” Chrysostom notes that Jesus speaks of these dwelling places specifically to remove our fear of exclusion. These are not merely spaces in a building, but places of permanent belonging in a Father’s house.
In a world where we often feel like strangers or outsiders, Jesus assures us that we have a place specifically prepared for us—not because we earned it, but because we belong to Him. His desire is not to exclude but to gather, like a shepherd who keeps his flock, like a father who draws his children close.
Heaven is not a place of scarcity or competition, but of abundance—there is room for all who come to Him. Christ goes before us not to create heaven, but to open it through His Cross, Resurrection, and Ascension—to bring our humanity into the Father’s presence.
And so He says, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.”
He does not hand us a map. He gives us Himself.
This then is the path to peace: not certainty about the road ahead, but trust in the One who is the Road.
* Abbot of St. Martin Abbey—Lacey, Washington
