Third Sunday of Lent – March 7th, 1999
Cycle A Readings: Ex 17:3-7; Rm 5:1-2, 5-8; Jn 4:5-42; or 4:5-13, 19-26, 39, 40-42
Outline:
1) Crisis and hardship test the people of God
2) At times we give help; at times we receive help
3) Paul assures us that Christ came to save the helpless, the godless
4) The Samaritan woman given living water
5) The shunned woman became an evangelist
Once again we have an opening reading that reminds us of the challenge and hardships that the leaders and people of God as a whole go through in following the Lord. Faced with imminent death, they asked the fundamental question, "Is the Lord in our midst or not?" When faced with personal crises this question has a tremendous impact even on the staunchest of believers. In times of calm it is easy for us to give an unqualified yes to the question. But when we are really hurting, suffering, it is another story altogether. Priest and laity alike, faced with the deaths of loved ones, the loss of personal health, the collapse of cherished projects, unemployment, family betrayals or the failure of personal love have our faith sorely teste. In today’s first reading in the midst of a dangerous crisis Moses was angry, frightened and somewhat bitter as he bore the pain and hostility of his people. But the Lord delivered both Moses and the people by giving them the water they needed.
In our own time of crisis we need deliverance that is tangible and concrete. It usually comes through the people who love us and who suffer with us. At times each of us needs our own Moses to support and guide us. At other times we are called upon to be an instrument of deliverance for those around us. It is not usually a joyful task. We may be frightened, hesitant, inadequate for the task but if we act in love the Lord will be with us. To be truly balanced and wholistic in our lives, it is necessary to realize that on occasion we will have to call out for help from people and God, and at times we ourselves will respond to such calls and be the helpers of the friends of God.
The friends of God described in the first reading were a quarrelous, cantankerous lot who were prone to experience crises of faith. In other words, they were a great deal like us. In Paul’s selection from the Romans today, he assures us that it was precisely for sinful, suffering, and rebellious people that the Lord laid down his life. Because of this great and humanly inexplicable act of Christ we should be at peace. Somehow, in spite of our weakness and failures, we now stand before God overflowing with hope because the Holy Spirit is filling our hearts.
The Samaritan woman in today’s Gospel passage was not respectable. She was shunned and went alone to get water at the hottest part of the day. The respectable women of her own village hesitated to be associated with her. Her opening remarks indicate that she had a sharp tongue and understood all too well the dynamics of religious, ethnic and male chauvinistic prejudices. She soon learned, however, that although she had known many men in her life, none could compare with the one who stood before her.
Behind her arrogant demeanor the Lord was able to see a frustrated, confused, desperate human being that thirsted for authentic love and religious fulfillment.
The Lord sees beyond our false mask of apparent rugged independence. He knows our deepest needs and addresses them whether we choose to respond or not. He is able to see beyond external symptoms of distress and look deeply into our hearts. When we respond to that loving gaze of Christ, our lives find peace and we are able to share that peace with others. In today’s Gospel we find the Lord taking a woman shunned by the respectable people of her town, brought the good news of Christ’s knowledge, love and power to her people. Neither she nor they were ever the same again.
The disciples of the Lord, too, manifested their arrogance, ignorance and cowardice. They wanted to ask him how he could be talking to a woman like the Samaritan. They were angry, shocked and yet afraid. In their state, Jesus refused to eat with them. He knew that their heart at that moment were filled with prejudice and their minds had usurped the role of the Father by judging another human being. Jesus would not break bread with them until they had a change of heart and mind.
The food that was important to Jesus was not what the disciples had to offer. When they wondered if he had already eaten, he challenged them by saying that bringing the work of the Father to completion was the only food necessary.
The woman at the well became a theologian by asking the Lord the questions that puzzled her most. She became an evangelist by spreading her knowledge and love of God to her neighbors.
In Lent we place our questions before the Christ who knows and loves us totally. In Lent we try to share the partial answers Christ has given us with others. We pray in this season that we will benefit from breaking bread with the Lord and will allow our prejudices, hatreds, and bitterness towards others to die. We pray that we will be as one with Christ as he wants to be with us.
Fourth Sunday of Lent – March 14th, 1999
Cycle A Readings: 1 Sm 16:1, 6-7, 10-13; Ep 5:8-14; Jn 9:1-41 or 9:1, 6-9, 13-17, 34-38
Outline:
1) The blond Amer-Asian boy
2) The blind man of the Gospel
Over the years in South Korea many children were born out of wedlock to Korean women and American soldiers. More often than not they and their mothers were abandoned when the soldiers tour of duty was completed. One young boy had the misfortune to be particularly light complexioned and had blond hair. As he grew, his physical appearance was a source of unending shame. His mother was shunned and he was abused by children his own age. Since the Korean government believes citizenship comes from the father, he was not recognized as a Korean citizen. He soon learned he would not be able to go to public school, to ever vote or even to emigrate to another country because he would be unable to obtain a passport. To make life easier for him his mother dyed his hair black but his western features could not be altered. Finally a priest, a missionary, noticed the boy in the streets. He went to the boy’s mother. He talked to her and explained that he had an orphanage of Amer-Asians and could get the boy a new home in America. Because she loved her child greatly and understood that he had no future in Korea she gave him up for adoption. When he entered the orphanage, for the first time he experienced total acceptance, his shame dropped away and a feeling of worth came over him.
The blind man in today’s Gospel passage was living under a similar curse. Not only was he unable to see the wonders of God’s creation, or to earn a living through work, but in a highly religious culture it was assumed even by the disciples of Jesus that this affliction was the result of either his sin or that of his parents. He bore the weight of an unjustified moral guilt. He found himself alternately having to defend the parents he loved and himself against terrible remarks and attacks.
When he encountered Jesus the blind man’s life was turned completely around. The encounter gave an entirely new meaning and direction to his life. Jesus took his affliction out of the category of sin and shame and put it in the category of God’s glory and power. The patience, the dignity and the courage that can come from affliction filled this one man’s being. Jesus washed his eyes in mud and helped the man not only see creation in all its wonders for the first time, but the Creator’s plan for him.
Obviously his years of suffering tempered his spirit and formed him into quite a verbal fighter. In today’s Gospel he proclaims the power, the goodness and the devotion of Jesus. Passionately and fiercely he argues with the experts. The experts literally threw him out. No doubt he was dazed and confused by the rapid events that had changed his life, but the Lord who had helped him was seeking him out. When the Lord found him he challenged him to believe in the Son of Man. He met that challenge and this long-suffering courageous man moved through the world with a new hope and faith. It is a faith and a hope that we share today.
Not everyone is, however, blessed with our faith. Some people seem devoid of any religious belief. They need a miracle to bestow spiritual sight upon them as surely as the man in the Gospel needed his physical sight miraculously restored by Christ. Some deliberately close their eyes to his presence and love.
St. Theophilus, an ancient bishop of Antioch, wrote the following passage on how he handled people who were stubbornly anti-religious:
If you say, "Show me your God," I will say to you, "Show me what kind of person you are, and I will show you my God." Show me then whether the eyes of your mind can see, and the ears of your heart hear.
God is seen by those who have the capacity to see him, that they keep the eyes of their mind open. All have eyes, but some have eyes that are shrouded in darkness, unable to see the light of the sun. Because the blind cannot see it, it does not follow that the sun does not shine. The blind must trace the cause back to themselves and their eyes. In the same way, you have yes in your mind that are shrouded in darkness because of sins and evil deeds.
For Theophilus the best approach to help those who are questioning God’s existence is to invite them to examine their own motives, weaknesses and strengths. In doing this, they will become ever closer to unleashing religious faith and being able to see the brilliance of God’s light.
Firth Sunday of Lent - March 21, 1999
Cycle A Readings: Ez 37:12-14; Rm 8-:8-11; Jn 11:1-45
Outline:
1) The call of the hostage Ezekiel
2) The Promise of the conquest of death.
3) The actions of Jesus at the tomb of Lazarus.
4) The indwelling of the Holy Spirit gives us unfailing hope
Ezekiel was the first to receive the prophetic call outside the boundaries of the holy land. He received his calling when he was being held hostage far from his home. He received his calling while living with thousands of other hostages in the condition of a slave. All those around him were buoyed up by a false hope and an expectation that they would soon be returning home. Ezekiel had the unpleasant task of telling them that they would never return home. At first, they refused to believe this prophet of doom but eventually when Judea fell to the Babylonians and all the people were carried into exile, Ezekiel’s fellow hostages were forced to admit that he was right. At that point, they began to despair.
Ezekiel, however, reversed himself and began to preach a return home and a hope for the ancestors of the hostages. The promise he gave to them was that Israel would be re-established as a nation. This came to pass. Beyond hat he promised something even more startling. Death itself would be defeated and the graves would ultimately give up their dead. This promise found its first fruits in Christ and we believe it will find its ultimate fulfillment in the lives of all of humanity.
The promise of Ezekiel could never find its fulfillment outside of God’s power. Only, God can open the graves and call to life the lifeless.
In the Gospel, we see a literal fulfillment of Ezekiel’s prophecy when Jesus commands Lazarus to leave the tomb. The apostles themselves for the longest time underestimated or misunderstood the power and identity of Jesus. They did not wish to go to Judea because of the dangers involved. They warned Jesus of the possible consequences of his return. When they realized Jesus could not be discouraged, Thomas said, "Let’s go with him and die." The apostles were focused on death because they did not realize that Jesus was the absolute Lord of Life.
Martha meets the Lord and affirms his ability to have saved her brother. She also demonstrates her faith in the final resurrection. Jesus, however, reveals that he himself is the resurrection and the life. Martha proclaims her belief in his word and shows an understanding of Jesus that appears to have been deeper and more accurate than the apostles.
Jesus, knowing their pain and feeling of separation from Lazarus, weeps. He loved the entire family deeply. But what he did was meant to deepen the faith of all who were present and to affirm the faith of all who would come after them. He called Lazarus from death to life. In the process, his own apostles stopped worrying about death and began to rejoice in life. Many of the others who had been skeptical or hostile towards Jesus suddenly began to believe. Their hearts of stone were transformed by the event they witnessed. Lazarus was set free from the bond of death and countless people throughout the ages have been freed of their ignorance of God because of this miracle.
In the story, Martha proves to be an extraordinarily perceptive woman. In the story, Martha was able to think clearly even in the midst of her sorrow and to cling to her religious convictions. In the story, Martha has her faith and understanding vindicated by the actions of Jesus. When faced with similar tragedies, we need the wisdom of Martha and courage to continue to believe even when our spirits are shattered.
We are able to do that when the very spirit of God dwells in us. This is the insight we have today in Paul’s letter. When the spirit of God is in us death is powerless. When the Spirit of God is in us, we might weep like Jesus, Martha, and Mary at the tomb, but the grave will never cause us to despair.
Passion Sunday – March 28th, 1999
Cycle A Readings: Is 50:4-7; Phil 2:6-11; Mt 26:14, 27:66
Outline:
1) The Triumphal entry
2) Christ, brother to all who suffer from injustice
3) St. Ephrem and the tree of life
In the first Gospel reading on Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, we see the majority of the people welcome Christ with loving and loud shouts of praise. They were thrilled that he was coming into their midst and felt the spirit of God stirring in their hearts. Christ welcomed and delighted in their love, support and acclamation. In holding our palms, in taking them home, in reverencing them, we commemorate those people who welcomed Christ in the name of humanity. We need to cling to our faith as firmly as we hold our palms. Like the people who lined the streets of Jerusalem to give glory to Jesus, we are to acclaim Christ in our actions and words.
Today, we also have the solemn reading of the Passion. This is why our liturgy most properly is referred to as Passion Sunday. The reading of the Passion is both long and stirring.
By recounting Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem and his betrayal, arrest, trial and execution we are faced with a frightening paradox that preachers have dwelt on for centuries. Usually, the fickleness of people is stress and the changeableness of people’s attitudes. This, however, is simply not the case. Two distinct groups are dealt with. The majority of the citizenry were impressed with Christ even though they were not his disciples and a small minority were adamantly opposed to him for a variety of religious and political reasons.
The people that greeted him the week before with such enthusiasm simply didn’t know what was happening, couldn’t think of a way to help, or were afraid to get involved. As a result, all those who have suffered unjustly throughout the ages because of human apathy or political processes have a companion in Jesus, the suffering servant.
The meaning of the Passion is summed up for us in today’s hymn to Christ found in Paul’s letter to the Philippians. This hymn, this song, echoes down through the ages and in a few poetic lines sums up the meaning and message of the Psalms.
In a way, this mall hymn to Jesus sums up the entire history of salvation as well as its culmination on Calvary. In the book of Genesis we see humans described as being created in the image or form of God. The man and woman attempted to grasp at divinity by deciding for themselves what is right and wrong and disregarded the law of the Creator. They looked for fulfillment and glory in rebellion. Their story is the story of every human being with the exception of Jesus and his mother, Mary. All others have rebelled and attempted to be gods and ended up being demons. Jesus was in fact in the form of God but "did not grasp at divinity. Rather, he emptied himself and took on the form of a slave."
This emptying took place in his birth, his public giving to others and finally in his passion and death that we read about.
In the Adam and Eve account of Genesis, besides the forbidden tree of the "knowledge of good and evil," there was another tree in the garden, the "tree of life." Once the couple had sinned they could no longer partake of that tree. Today, in the passion account we come to know where that tree reappeared in history. It reappeared on Calvary. Now, we are free to partake of the fruit of the tree of life. That fruit is the body of Christ, the suffering servant who died for love. Adam and Eve stole the forbidden fruit and suffered death, we are offered the fruit of the womb of the Virgin who died for us. If we accept it, we are filled with life.
The ancient St. Ephrem expressed the mystery of Calvary in the following fashion:
He who was also the carpenter’s glorious son set up his cross above death’s all consuming jaws, and led the human race into the dwelling place of life. Since a tree had brought about the downfall of mankind, it was upon a tree that mankind crossed over to the realm of life.
By accepting our status as human beings and creatures of God we position ourselves to receive the gift of divine life. If we are able to remain open to the Lord of Lord’s, we will become ever more human. Our spirits will be nourished by God and we ourselves will be transformed into life-giving fruit for a spiritually starved world.