Lenten Moments of Mercy: Fifth Sunday of Lent

Fifth Sunday of Lent   The disciplines of Lent bring with them the promise of renewal.

Scripture “I am about to do a new thing;       now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness       and rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:19   Reflection The season of Lent brings with it the promise of spring. We are moving out of winter, spring flowers will be budding out of the ground, and the vestiges of the season of cold weather will soon be a memory. Isaiah promised a similar renewal; he told the people that the memories of the hard travels they have had were in the past: “Do not remember the former things, / or consider the things of old” (Isaiah 43:18). Rather, he encouraged them to look forward to the newness God was creating for them. Even though he was in prison when he wrote his Letter to the Philippians, Paul did not let his imprisonment or the memories of past persecution dampen his hope in Christ. “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). In today’s Gospel reading, we hear the story of the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1‒11). The religious authorities brought the woman accused before Jesus for judgment. (Note, the man involved was equally guilty and subject to the same penalty, but we hear nothing of him.) The woman was nothing but an excuse for the authorities to entrap Jesus. She was not named―she was an object in their eyes, truly a person on the periphery of her society. Should Jesus have excused her, he would have been criticized for not obeying the Law. If he told the authorities to carry out the judgment and stone her to death, he would have been seen as heartless. Jesus stooped to the ground and, ignoring the authorities, traced lines in the sand. He then stood and told the authorities, “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7). He then stooped to the ground once again. Those who were ready to stone the woman disappeared. Accepting the woman as a person, Jesus asked who was there to condemn her. “No one, sir,” she said. Then Jesus replied, “Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again” (John 8:11). In a personal encounter with Jesus, the woman had received mercy as only God can give, and she was offered the possibility of a new life in a new relationship with God. Jesus offers us that same possibility when we approach him with a contrite heart. Image: Palma il Vecchio, Christ and the Adulteress

Pope Francis “Have you thought about God’s patience, the patience he has with each one of us? That is his mercy. He always has patience, patience with us, he understands us, he waits for us, he does not tire of forgiving us if we are able to return to him with a contrite heart. ‘Great is God's mercy’, says the Psalm.” Angelus, 17 March 2013   Lenten Action ► Reflect on this Sunday’s Gospel with Arts & Faith: Lent and the Sunday Connection. ► Pray with a 3-Minute Retreat on “The First to Throw a Stone.”   Prayer Help us, O Lord, to approach you with a contrite heart so we may receive your mercy.

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