Thursday, April 10, 2025

Thursday of the Fifth Week of Lent

(Genesis 17:3-9; John 8:51-59)

The bitter debate in today’s gospel between Jesus and “the Jews” likely reflects early New Testament times.  The Jews were reforming after the destruction of the Temple.  They saw Christians of Jewish heritage as apostates.  Like those in the passage attempting to stone Jesus, later Jews wanted to remove Christians from their synagogues.

Today many educational and commercial leaders have dismissed Christian beliefs as false claims.  Like “the Jews” of the gospel they do not believe that Jesus was divine or, for that matter, that a personal God exists.  They don’t accept his resurrection and ridicule the Eucharist as “hocus pocus.”  Particularly at this time of year Christians need to renew their commitment to Christ.

At the Mass on Easter we do just that.  Renewing our Baptismal vows, we, like Jesus responding to “the Jews,” declare our belief in a merciful God who became like us so that we may be like Him.  Like the founders of the American republic to the government they created, we pledge “our lives, our fortunes, and our honor” to our faith in Jesus Christ.


Wednesday, April 9, 2025

 Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Lent

 (Daniel 3:14-20.91-92.95; John 8:31-42)

"There is not any reasoning which can convince me, contrary to my senses, that three is one, and one three," wrote Abigail Adams rejecting the Christian doctrine of the Trinity.  She was not a theologian but the upright, intelligent wife of the second president of the United States.  The same difficulty vexes anyone who relies on common sense.   It is why the Jews reject Jesus in the Gospel of John.

The Jews know where Jesus is leading them when he says in today’s gospel, “I tell what I have seen in the Father’s presence…”  Earlier in the gospel it was stated that they tried to kill Jesus because he “called God his own father, making himself equal to God.”  Being monotheists, as today’s first reading amply testifies, they will not tolerate any suggestion of two Gods.  Neither should Christians.

It is hardly imaginable, much less intuitive, how the Son and the Father are one God.  Virtually skipping logic, we call it “mystery” but hold to the concept firmly as the guarantor of our redemption.  Indeed, we posit a third figure of the one God, the Holy Spirit who completes the work of our salvation.  It is because Jesus is God that his death and resurrection have universal application.  It is because he is God with the Father that our deaths as well will blossom into resurrection.

Tuesday, April 8, 2025

 

Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent

(Numbers 21:4-9; John 8:21-30)

The Israelites were not lost in the desert.  They did not need forty years to reach their goal.  They required such a lengthy time to be transformed into God’s people.   Today’s first reading presents a critical lesson in their transformation. 

God’s merciful hand has fed the Israelites.  Still, eating the same fare everyday is trying.  When they grumble, God sends poisonous snakes to teach them humility and patience.  Beyond the hard lesson, God shows mercy again.  He cures those bitten by the serpents when they look upon an image of what caused them misery.

In the gospel Jesus predicts a similar salutary effect when he is lifted on the cross.  Those who look on him should realize how he is there to replace them.  We are the ones who have sinned and deserve death.  However, Jesus, innocent of all crime, has taken our place in the death chamber.  Above all, he deserves our thanks, praise, and imitation.

Monday, April 7, 2025

 

Monday of the Fifth Week of Lent

(Daniel 13:1-9.15-17.19-30.33-62; John 8:12-20)

Jesus calls himself “the light of the world.”  He means that he brings clarity to a confused society.  Like Daniel in today’s first reading, Jesus enables the people to discern truth from falsehood.  On the surface Susanna, a beautiful woman who dismisses her servants, seems like an adulteress.  Likewise, the elderly men appear honorable.  Fortunately, Daniel discerns who is guilty and who is innocent.

In today’s gospel Jesus is in the position of Susanna.  At this point in the gospel his opponents have motives to want him dead.  He is winning the hearts of the people with his cures, his teaching, and his claim to be God’s Son.  When Jesus is raised both on the cross and from the dead, he will cast full light on the situation.  He will be vindicated of crime and, indeed, recognized as Savior of the world.  On the other hand, his accusers will be recognized as manipulators.

We will see the drama of Jesus’ trial and triumph unfold during Holy Week.  It is more than interesting.  It is our salvation if we recommit ourselves to him.  Let us prepare to do just that.

Sunday, April 6, 2025

FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT

(Isaiah 43:16-21; Philippians 3:7-14; John 8:1-11)

We are nearing the end of Lent. We can see the light at the end of the tunnel. The light shines with the hope that we may be renewed people. Our fat is not as limp as before. Our speech has been purified. We perform works of mercy with less resistance. But it is not yet time to cease the struggle. We must run the entire course as marathoners must complete 42 kilometers.

To take advantage of today's readings, let us reflect on a now famous saying. It is not from the Bible, Shakespeare or the sages of antiquity. It is attributed to the English Catholic playwright Oscar Wilde, although it is not exactly found in his writings. Nevertheless, it is full of wisdom as if it came from the lips of Mother Teresa. The saying goes, “Every saint has a past; every sinner has a future.” That is, saints were not born saints. They became so by overcoming temptations like those which confront us. Sinners, too, once they recognize their offenses, can reform and become saints.

Saint Paul was not always an apostle of Jesus Christ. In fact, he knew himself as Christ’s number one enemy. He persecuted Christ by imprisoning Christians. Then, he met the risen Lord in an unexpected encounter. As today's second reading says, “Christ has won me over.” It's not that he changed Paul’s life in the sense that he lost his zeal. But he directed his zeal in the opposite direction. Instead of persecuting Christ, Christ became the sole focus of his life. Instead of punishing Christians, he created them through his preaching. Instead of hating Christ, he wanted a “sharing of his sufferings.”

The woman who confronts Jesus in the Gospel committed a grave sin. Although adultery is not the worst of sins, its effects can be disastrous. It can destroy marriages and will undermine the upbringing of children. Furthermore, it leads other couples to suspicion and distrust. But this woman is not the only sinner in the Temple area that day. Jesus' challenge to the Pharisees reveals that they too have sinned.

Jesus offers the woman an opportunity to repent. As he will say in the next chapter of the Gospel according to John, he came not to "judge" (that is, to condemn), but to save. The woman, now forgiven by Jesus, has an open future. Now she can choose the path of holiness.

The first reading from Second Isaiah proclaims the spirit of Easter. God is “doing something new." He is, as it were, creating "a path in the mighty waters " of the sea of evil that often characterizes the world. Instead of giving in to impure, greedy, or aggressive desires, we live differently. Our hope is not in “happy thoughts” like partying and telling jokes. Rather, it is the fulfilling of the deepest longings of our hearts. We are looking forward to a life that knows no disappointment, much less death. We are talking about the reunion with our loved ones who have departed from the earth. Above all, we have in mind knowledge of Christ, our teacher, redeemer, and truest friend.

Yes, eternal life sometimes seems impossible. But the apostles have attested with their lives that this goal is achievable. Only with Christ, who has justified us and provides us with the Holy Spirit, is it possible. Only with the power of his resurrection can we be changed into God’s true sons and daughters.