You probably have heard “absence makes the heart grow fonder.” Maybe it is true, at least in some cases. Jesus seems to be acting in accord with this axiom in today’s Gospel that is part of His farewell discourse to His apostles at the Last Supper,

the night before His death. I would expect that the apostles would love Jesus and remember Him long after He was gone, but as far as people, years, centuries after Jesus’ death, we would not remember and love someone we never met. Jesus knew that there would be a big disconnect between Him and His disciples and believers. How does one solve this kind of problem? I can’t do this, but Jesus can. So, he sent another advocate to His people, a new advocate, the spirit of truth, whom we know as the Holy Spirit, inspires us to love Jesus, to do His works, to be servants like Him.