We Have Been Told

This passage from John’s Gospel embodies the quintessential Christian theme: Love One Another. It includes several familiar phrases and is part of what’s known as the Farewell Discourses, as Jesus was about to depart from his disciples.

John’s is the last of the Gospels, written well after the other three; it focuses on Christ’s ministry in Jerusalem, rather than Galilee.

John’s riff on the Great Commandment, to love one another, is all about encouragement for the disciples as they prepare to go forth to spread the Good News. He makes them aware that God the Father is always backing them up and that they can ask and will receive what they need – reminders we all can use.

For me, though, this passage had me humming (I really can’t sing) a familiar hymn called “We Have Been Told.” It’s by a prolific contemporary Catholic songwriter, David Haas, whose other liturgical hits include “You Are Mine” and “Blest Are They.”

Mary Pradt
Librarian

We Have Been Told

by David Haas

Refrain

We have been told. We've seen his face And heard his voice alive in our hearts. 

"Live in my love with all your heart. As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you."

Verses

1. "I am the vine; you are the branches, And all who live in me will bear great fruit."

2. "You are my friends, if you keep my commands, No longer slaves; I call you friends."

3. "No greater love is there than this: to lay down one's life for a friend."