Friday of the Fifth Week in Lent
A television drama many years ago told the story of two
angels – a good one and a bad one. In
the drama they were known as Mr. White and Mr. Black. The people of the place where the two angels
came could not distinguish who was the good angel. So they concocted a test to tell which of the
angels was the good one by having them sit down and stare at each other. The angel who first turned away his face would
be considered the inferior, and thus bad, angel. The staring match went on for hours with
neither angel flinching. Then a small
child slipped away from her mother and was going to enter into the electric
gaze of the two angels. Mr. Black
suddenly got up to save the child from destruction. Mr. White was declared to be the good angel
until someone objected. “Wasn’t really
Mr. Black the good angel,” the person reasoned, “for saving the child from
electrocution?” Of course, he was, and
Mr. Black became the hero whom the people followed.
In today’s gospel Jesus similarly asks to be judged not by the people’s prejudices but by his works. Has he not healed the sick and judged justly? Isn’t he worthy of being called “the Son of God”? Of course, he is.
And so are we worthy when we regularly assist the needy. We cannot consider ourselves sons or
daughters in the same sense as Jesus, the only begotten Son of God. We are born into a sinful condition and
sometimes falter in our good efforts.
Nevertheless, through the sacraments especially of Baptism, Eucharist,
and Penance we are made adopted children of God and heirs of eternal life.
