Today's reading helps us see more clearly the influence that religiosity has on a person's soul and consciousness. The account begins with mention of the feast of Sukkot ("the Feast of Booths"), to which Jesus' brothers are going to go in Jerusalem (vv. 2-3). Sukkot was one of the four main feasts of the Jewish religious year, and as usual a great gathering of pilgrims was expected in Jerusalem. It is no surprise that Jesus' brothers, who did not believe in His messiahship, wanted Him during the feast to proclaim Himself publicly as the Messiah and to give the proofs that those around Him had already demanded of Him more than once (vv. 3-5). Evidently, they expected to see the Messiah as the majority of believing Jews of the Gospel period imagined Him - as a Messiah-king, proclaiming an independent Jewish state and driving out the Romans. It is no surprise that Jesus refuses such a demonstration (vv. 6-8); He does come to Jerusalem, but secretly, trying not to draw attention to Himself (vv. 9-10).

Meanwhile, in the city, very different rumors about Him are circulating: some consider Him a man of God, others a deceiver (vv. 11-12). But everyone looks anxiously over his shoulder at those whom the evangelist calls "the Jews," meaning, as we can see, the spiritual leaders of the Synagogue and of the Pharisaic movement (v. 13). At that time Jesus again speaks to the people gathered in the temple court about the main thing - about His mission (vv. 14-18). And also about the true meaning of the Sabbath, whose meaning had long been lost behind numerous ritual prescriptions (vv. 19-24). Then some of those present recognize in the Speaker the One who had already been accused of breaking the Sabbath law, a violation punishable by death. And perhaps He is right? After all, no one appears to be intending to apply any sanctions to Him. But He cannot be the Messiah, for the Messiah must appear in some completely different way (vv. 25-27).

Here before us, as if on the palm of a hand, are all the questions that religion produces in the consciousness of a person who finds himself face to face with Christ and with the Kingdom that He brought into the world. No one has ever done such miracles as He has, and, perhaps, no one ever will (v. 31), but... why did He come not as religious tradition says of Him? And why do the religious leaders not receive Him? Where is the truth - in the religion that rejects Him, or in that evident reality of the Kingdom which bears such bright witness to Him? Each person answered this question for himself, and on this answer depended the acceptance or rejection of the Savior and of the Kingdom He brought into the world.

Speaking to the people, Jesus continually tries to bring His listeners back to the foundations, to the spiritual core of the Yahwist and Jewish tradition. As we know, He was accused more than once of breaking Shabbat by healing people on the day of Shabbat. And He reminds them of circumcision, which is performed on the appointed day even when that day happens to be Shabbat. And He adds: what, then, are you accusing Me of?

The logic is clear: circumcision is only a sign of the Covenant, a sign of faithfulness to the Torah. And so, in order to mark a person's faithfulness to the Torah, it is possible to set aside the rest of Shabbat; such neglect is not considered a violation of Shabbat. Can the One who heals a person on the day of Shabbat, bringing him into the life of the Kingdom, be considered a violator of Shabbat? This is not about medicine, not about treatment, which in some cases Jewish tradition does indeed regard as a violation of Shabbat. It is about opening the Kingdom of God to a person in all its fullness. Is this not, in the end, the true meaning of Shabbat? After all, all the prohibitions and restrictions surrounding the Sabbath day ultimately have only one purpose: to shift a person's attention completely from everyday life to the presence of God, without which no spiritual life is possible.

Faithfulness to the Torah is an essential condition of communion with God; that is why circumcision, as a sign of such faithfulness, is performed even on Shabbat. And is the manifestation of the Kingdom of God not even a sign or symbol, but a vivid manifestation of that same faithfulness? If it is, why must people seize stones when the One appears who manifests the Kingdom, and manifests it in all its fullness?

In this way Jesus tries to convey to His listeners the true meaning both of Shabbat and of spiritual life itself. Yet many of them, remaining more attached to their tradition than to the Kingdom, are still ready to grab stones.

This is one of the strangest dialogues in the Gospel. It looks as if the Jews simply do not understand what Jesus is talking about, while He Himself does not answer their words but says things that appear irrelevant. Yet if we consider the remarks of the people and of Jesus separately, their logical coherence is immediately revealed. They are simply conducting the conversation (if it is a conversation at all) in different directions. The Lord speaks about His mission - to bring people the word about the Father (for He Himself is the Father's Word), while the crowd's remarks show its complete lack of understanding.

Sometimes it feels as if this situation repeats again and again: Christ speaks to us through the Gospel, and we answer Him about something entirely different. To some extent this is natural, because we belong to different worlds (He is "from above," we are "from below"); He speaks of what we have not seen, but He has seen. This is not a lecture; it is testimony. And it is grasped only through the love and faithfulness of disciples who, not yet fully understanding and not yet believing perfectly, feel that Jesus speaks the words of eternal life and do not want to leave Him.