WASHINGTON, DC (Catholic Online) - "Context is everything. A text without a context is a pretext!" I can still remember Dr. Robert Traina, my seminary professor, saying that regularly during class. We would end up saying it with him. An he was right.

Looking beyond the lectionary reading for today (John 7:1, 2, 10, 25-30), there is a lot of important information that was left out from this chapter. That's why it's always a good idea to study the  readings in your Bible and include the empty spaces you'll find.

There has been a dip in our Lord's popularity. It really began after the feeding of the 5,000 - an amazing miracle - when Jesus began to expound more completely on the heavenly provision for the Jews during their wilderness wanderings as well as the 5,000 men (along with women and children) who heard him teach at the Sea of Galilee. He contrasted God-given manna with the sustenance of eternal bread that will come through his life.

In John 6:49-58 we read: Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world."

The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, "How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?"

Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. 56 He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. This is the bread which came down from heaven-not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever."

Unfortunately, after this teaching, many began to fall away, declaring, "This is a hard saying, who can understand it?"

St. John goes on in Chapter 6: From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more. Then Jesus said to the twelve, "Do you also want to go away?"

But Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." (vs. 66-69)

The twelve continued to follow but there was great disillusionment.

In today's Gospel from Chapter 7, in the verses left out of the lectionary, Jesus' relatives told him that they were going to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles, also called the Feast of Booths, which is held in late September or early October. This is a festival that last seven days, recalling the Exodus wanderings of Israel as well as celebrating the autumn harvest.

They encouraged him to go along and word miracles in Jerusalem. They felt he needed to get a bigger and better crowd with more exposure. They told him he needed to go public, although John adds that they really didn't believe in him.

He refused saying that, as he did at the wedding in Cana, his hour had not yet come. Once they left however, he changed his mind in accordance with the will of the Father and heads to the Feast, but on God's terms not his relatives.

The Jews were already looking for him, according to verse 11, and he was being talked about a lot by those at the Feast.

Quite different from his triumphal entry, which will come later. This visit to Jerusalem takes place in secret, both coming and going from the feast.

While in Jerusalem, however, he continued his teaching ministry in the temple, where many began to believe.

Eventually Jesus was discovered and confronted by some of the people who opposed him. The words they share become a blinding indictment that their opposition to him is based on faulty information - for example, they claimed to know where he came from and that this information would not be known about the real Messiah.

Two schools of thought actually existed among the rabbis of the time. One said that the Messiah's appearance would actually come in adulthood, that his origin would remain a mystery. The other school said that he would be born in Bethlehem, according to the prophecy of Micah.

Ironically, both of these are actually true about Jesus; however, the crowd thinks they know him as a Nazarene from Galilee. He challenges them at this point, using another hard saying.

Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent ...