A Reflection for Friday of the Seventh Week of Easter
Find today’s readings here.
“Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger,
you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted;
but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands,
and someone else will dress you
and lead you where you do not want to go.”
He said this signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God.
And when he had said this, he said to him, “Follow me.” (John 21:15-19)
Have you ever feared aging?
I imagine we all probably fear this thought from time to time. Some people fear losing their looks, their dexterity or their sharpness. I often fear getting stuck—stuck in my ways, stuck in my position or stuck in one place. Stagnation is my great fear.
But that changed after I watched the announcement of Pope Leo XIV. The former Cardinal Robert Prevost was not a “household name” by conventional standards, though now, of course, much of his story is well known. “Father Bob” from Chicago, the first American pope who is a huge White Sox fan and went to college at Villanova. When I dove into the life story of our new pontiff, I learned something valuable that quieted my fear of aging: Even when we get older, things never stop happening to us.
Yes, Pope Leo may have started out in a modest home in Chicago. After graduating from college, however, he joined the Augustinians. Then, after his ordination, he became a missionary in Peru, where he would spend the next thirteen years of his life ministering to the poor. In the ‘90s, he started moving up and up in the ranks of the Augustinians, finally becoming Prior General of the order until 2013. Only after that did he become Bishop of Chiclayo, before being created cardinal in 2023, and then, of course, he just became our newly beloved pope.
This is to say: We never know what life is going to throw at us! Anything can happen to us at any moment, and God can call us to our most significant mission at any age. For some, like Mary, that call can come when you haven’t even left your teens. For others, like Pope Leo, that call may come when you are almost 70. Life is not over until it is over, and it is likely never going to stop being interesting.
In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus tells Peter, “When you were younger, you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
Do not fear the changes that will happen as you get older. They are stops on the journey that God has prepared for you. And though you may hesitate to go forward, instead preferring to look back at younger and perhaps happier times, remember one thing: There is no telling what great adventures God may have for you yet.
