FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT
7 APRIL 2019
The
Gospels tell us that Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus very much. Saint Luke says that Jesus was a guest at
their home. If there had been no room in
the Inn for his birth in Bethlehem, there certainly would be no room in the Inn
when he visits Jerusalem. Because they are
such close friends, Martha and Mary do not hesitate to send a message to Jesus
telling him that their brother is seriously ill. Amazingly, Jesus does not respond to their
urgent request. Instead, he remains two
more days in the place where he was.
When Jesus
finally decides to go to Bethany, it is too late. Lazarus has been dead for four days. There is absolutely no hope for him. When he arrives at the suburbs of Bethany,
Martha complains that her brother would never have died if he had responded to
her plea. The fact that she openly
confronts Jesus demonstrates their closeness.
We are more comfortable complaining to someone close to us. Even though Jesus had not responded to her
desperate request, she does not give up her faith in him and calls him “Lord.” In the midst of her pain and sorrow, she
trusts his words that he is the resurrection and the life. The sisters will soon understand that the
raising of their brother is a sign pointing to a much greater raising from the
dead: the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In this greatest sign in the Gospel of John,
Jesus resuscitates Lazarus. Lazarus
comes out of the tomb bound with the burial cloths. He will die again. When Jesus emerges from his tomb, the burial
cloths are laid neatly to the side. Changed,
he will never die again. He promises
that those who die with him will also rise with him.
We can
identify with both Martha and Mary. We
have prayed fervently for very good causes.
We have begged the Lord to spare our loved ones from the ravages of
cancer or from danger or from death itself.
Those fervent prayers many times are not answered. Like both Martha and Mary, we can cry out in
prayer to the Lord, expressing our frustrations and anger that he seems to have
been absent to our pain. But Martha and
Mary remind us that the Lord loves us, just as much as he loved them and their
brother. Raising Lazarus from the dead
is a sign to us that he is present to us in our darkest hours, even when we do
not feel that presence.
Most
importantly, raising Lazarus from the dead reminds us of the Mystery that we preparing
to celebrate at Easter – the Lord’s Resurrection from the dead. Saint Thomas Aquinas said that faith in the
Resurrection accomplishes four realities.
It helps remove sadness when our loved ones die. It removes the fear of death when faced with
our own death. It makes us more diligent
to perform good works, because we want to share in the resurrection. It draws us away from doing evil because of
fear of punishment.
At the
10:00 Mass, we will pray the final Scrutiny over the Elect. We will pray that whatever remains dead in
them will be healed. We will support
them as they prepare to go down into the waters of baptism, as Christ went down
into the depths of the tomb. We will
rejoice with them as they rise from the waters with all their sins forgiven are
one with Jesus Christ.
Those good people
invite us to reflect on our own baptism.
We have not always lived our baptismal promises. We have not always given ourselves in
sacrificial love to others. We have not
allowed others to help us to roll away those stones in our hearts that keep us
from repentance. That is why the Lord
has given us the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Please come to the Penance Service on Tuesday night. FB 2 promises to call us to repentance, and
he promises to be short. There will be
20 of us priests for individual confession and absolution. There will be time for a good examination of
conscience. The Lord wants us to leave
the stench of our sins in the tomb of his mercy and to renew our trust that he
is the resurrection and the life.
No comments:
Post a Comment