Reflection for April 3, 2022

Fifth Sunday of Lent (C)

Isaiah 43:16-21 | Psalm 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6 | Philippians 3:8-14 | John 8:1-11

​When people have done something wrong to us we often feel angry and want them to be punished, don’t we? But in today’s gospel Jesus teaches us that this isn’t always the right way. After all, we’re not perfect either are we? The readings for the Fifth Sunday of Lent teaches us to forgive those who treat us unfairly and to try to make a change – to do what is right, and to help others to feel God’s love in the way that we treat them. 

After two years of splitting up with her longtime partner, Gail excitedly told her friends a  chance encounter with her ex-boyfriend who cheated on her. "Hey, today was great!" She said. One of her friends asked, "What happened?" "I ran into my ex today!" She answered. Another friend asked, "You are not getting back together, are you? "We never exchanged numbers or anything, we weren't even friends for the longest time." She said. Another friend asked, "So what is so great about running into him again?" "O Well...I was in my car!" She exclaimed.  

Our first reading is telling us not only to "move up" but also to "move on". The prophet Isaiah consoles the Israelites exiled in Babylon by proclaiming approaching salvation and the end of their exile. The Israelites were disheartened. They're demoralized. They're losing their call to be God's chosen people. When we are in the middle of crises, we can't help but look back to the good old days when our life was happy, when we're surrounded by friends, when our work was immense, and when our pleasures were abundant. The text has an important message for us: To look forward to something new, to hope. God wants us to stop thinking about the past wonders of the exodus from Egypt. He wants us to hope for a "new and greater exodus". God is preparing another exodus that shall outmatch the first. God wants us to move on and be locked up in hope, trusting that He can bring about something new in our life. 

Junie, 7 years old, was diagnosed with a severe heart defect. This was before MRIs or CT scans or other advanced technology. But his heartbeat was irregular, and he was not expected to live very long. His family happened to live in a small city that was the home of Dr. Ramiro Cruz, one of the country's most respected cardiothoracic surgeons. Dr. Cruz was a crusty old character, near retirement, and usually refused to work with children. After hearing the pleas of the boy’s parents, he finally conceded to take the youngster as a patient. After the examination, Dr. Cruz knew that surgery was required and that it would be very risky. There was something badly wrong with the boy’s heart. The old man told the boy, “Junie, I’m going to try to fix your heart. I will have to cut it open, and I’m not sure what I will find there.” Junie brightened when he said this, and said, “Don’t worry, Doc, when you cut open my heart, you’ll find Jesus, ‘cause he lives there!” Dr. Cruz was silent. Dealing with life and death on a daily basis had embittered him horribly, and he had long ago abandoned any pretense of faith. As they prepared for the surgery, Dr. Cruz was determined that the little boy understood what was happening, so he repeatedly warned him of the risks involved in this surgery. Each time Junie smiled and said, “Don’t worry, Doc. When you cut my heart open, you’ll find Jesus, ’cause he lives there.” In this process the bitter old doctor began to have his own heart touched by this little boy. He was so ill! But he was so happy! On the day of the operation, just before they wheeled Junie into the operating room, Dr. Cruz tried one last time, and said, “I want you to be brave, because when I cut your heart open, I’m not sure what I will find.” Again, Junie beamed at him and said, “Don’t worry, Doc. When you cut my heart open, you’ll find Jesus, ’cause he lives there.” After the surgery, the doctor went to the waiting room to give some horrible news to the parents: Junie had died on the operating table and he had been unable to save him. They were people of great faith, but now they were deeply upset and agitated. As the father grasped for something to explain what had happened, he asked the surgeon, “Doc, when you opened his heart, what did you find?” And the hardened, cynical old man gave the slightest of smiles and said, “I believe I found Jesus.” And for the first time in many years, his tears flowed, too.

In his letter to the Philippians, the apostle Paul was explaining the great shift that occurred in his life as a result of knowing Jesus. In the past, he focused on the pursuit of righteousness through a zealous devotion to the observance of the Jewish law. He firmly and unquestionably believed that fulfillment of this law made him righteous before God. He was so zealous for the strict observance of the Jewish law that he persecuted the early church. However, the experience of the Risen Christ utterly changed his understanding. The law itself is insufficient for righteousness because righteousness comes only in knowing, loving and serving Jesus. A life in Jesus lets us walk in utter newness. This newness means that we have a new purpose to live for. 

Katherine was sitting with some friends in a hotel lobby that was lined with mirrors. As she glanced around the room she noticed a group of people some distance away seated around another table. Being very nearsighted, she couldn’t tell what they were doing, but she observed one particular lady with a very unfriendly expression on her face. It was an expression that Katherine just didn’t like very much. The lady was looking in the direction of Katherine and her party and seemed to be listening intently to their discussion. Annoyed by this suspicious character, Katherine suggested to the others in her group, “Let’s not speak so loudly; those folks over there are sure to hear us.” Immediately her friends burst out laughing at her expense, for she had really been seeing her own image reflected in one of the large mirrors on the wall. Isn’t that typical? Most anytime we start pointing fingers at someone else, we find ourselves caught as well.

In today's Gospel, the teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They put to Jesus the question of what ought to be done in this case. The Old Testament states clearly that those caught in the act of adultery were to be stoned to death. In asking Jesus for a verdict, the leaders lay a trap for him. Under Roman occupation, however, the Jewish people did not have the authority to execute people. If he agrees with the law of Moses and calls for the stoning of the woman, the leaders would have a reason to accuse him before the Roman authorities who had the exclusive right to pass a death sentence. If Jesus sets the woman free, then they would accuse him of violating the law of Moses by condoning adultery. Either answer, yes or no, will support the Pharisees' case against Jesus. In Leviticus 20:10 and Deuteronomy 22:22, the penalty for adultery was death for both the man and the woman. Note that the woman was caught in the act, which means that the man also must have been present, and the law is quite clear that in a case of adultery both parties are to be put to death. But when the leaders of the Jews submit the case to Jesus for judgement, they have no man in tow. This is blatant abuse or disregard of the legal procedure. And this really makes me wonder if these teachers of the law ever worked for a certain presidentiable known for his 'intentiona' disregard for the law! Jesus avoids the trap, however, by offering an answer that was not anticipated by those who posed the question. Jesus did not contradict the law nor declare the woman guiltless. He left the matter to their own consciences. After writing on the ground with his finger, he addresses those who stand before him and suggests that the one without sin cast the first stone. Reduced to silence, they were all forced to admit the hypocrisy of their self-righteousness. Realizing their arrogance in judging another, they all walked away and left her standing there before the only one who was truly righteous. Jesus then incarnates God's justice and deep compassion by not judging but counselling her to sin no more. Instead of judging, he enables both accusers and accused to come to a deeper realization of God's great love and care for all. Jesus makes all things new. One encounter with Jesus — that's all it takes to shake up and radically transform a person's life. <enrique,ofs>