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There’s a beautiful, sometimes overlooked, detail in today’s Gospel.
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After Jesus rose from the dead, he tossed his burial cloths aside – much like we’d toss aside dirty laundry; he had no further use for them.
However, he took the time to roll up the cloth once covering his head, placing it in a separate area.
Why??
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There was a custom in ancient Israel where a master would drop his napkin on the table when he was finished eating, signaling for his servants to clean the table.
The napkin was used, much like dirty laundry.
But if he folded it, then it signaled he wasn’t finished eating; he was coming back.
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Jesus folded his napkin.
As the Gospel tell us, he “rolled it up in a separate place,” meaning:
“I’m not finished. I’m coming back.”