‘Jesus…left the district for a town called Ephraim’
John 6: 45-56
The Gospel today is an example of what happens to people when they see their power being taken away. The chief priests and the Pharisees were afraid that the people would give their allegiance to Jesus and no longer follow them.
Caiaphas, rationalizing on the situation, makes a pronouncement with which they all agree: it is better for one man to die for the people, than for the whole nation to be destroyed. This is a situation that is evident not only in politics but in our communities and clubs.
We become extremely jealous when we notice that we are losing power to someone who is not of our clan, and we will do anything to get rid of them. This is often how gossip and ‘bad talk’ starts.
Jesus, however, shows us that we should move away from such situations. He left the district for a town bordering on the desert.