Gospel (Jn 14,1-6) - At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: «Do not let your hearts be troubled. Have faith in God and have faith in me too. In my Father's house there are many mansions. If not, would I have ever said to you: “I'm going to prepare a place for you”? When I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to be with me, so that where I am you may also be. And of the place where I am going, you know the way." Thomas said to him: "Lord, we do not know where you are going; How can we know the way?". Jesus said to him: «I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

The commentary on the Gospel by Monsignor Vincenzo Paglia

Jesus, after having given the apostles the commandment of love, tells them that he will leave them: "Children, I am with you for a little while longer". They are words full of poignant tenderness. And the disciples, hearing him speak like this, are saddened. After all, how is it possible to resign oneself to losing such an exceptional friend? How to accept the loss of such a good and strong Master? Jesus, seeing them become sad, continues with words of comfort: "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Have faith in God, and have faith also in me. In my Father's house there are many mansions... when I go and prepare you a place, I will come again and take you to me." Jesus, first of all, wants the bonds of friendship not to be broken, but rather to last forever, so much so that he adds: "So that where I am you may be too". He doesn't abandon them, he wants them to be with him forever. He goes forward to prepare for each of us a place in the great house of the Father. With these words Jesus opens up a small glimpse into our future. How many times have we wondered about life after death and wondered what happened to our dead friends, to those we loved and for whom we perhaps worked and suffered! The Gospel does not leave us without answers to questions like these. Indeed, almost as if he wanted us to experience the consolation firsthand, he speaks of the afterlife as a large, spacious house, inhabited by our friends, those near and those far away. A certain path leads us to them and to that place: it is Jesus himself. In fact, in the bond with him lies the guarantee that nothing of our life is lost: not a thought, not a gesture of affection is in vain, everything instead is collected and preserved like a precious treasure and illuminated by the light of the announcement of the victory of life on the death we received at Easter. Jesus seems convinced that the disciples have understood the truth about the afterlife, so much so that he says: "Where I am going, you know the way". In truth, it wasn't like that, just as it isn't like that for us today. Tommaso, on behalf of everyone, asks what the way is. And Jesus, once again, expresses himself clearly: "I am the way, the truth and the life". Remaining united with him is the guarantee of following the right path that leads to reaching the Father who is in heaven.