4th Sun Lent Year A Readings 2015 (2nd Scrutiny; Jn 9:1-41)

Today, we celebrate the second of three Scrutinies that the Elect will go through on their journey to become full members of the Catholic faith community.  The Scrutinies are more than special liturgical rites for those preparing to be baptized at Easter.  This is a designated period in their journey that allows for a more intense soul-searching and careful consideration of their decision.  They need our prayers and encouragement, for their decision ultimately leads to a different way of life.  Their choice makes me wonder whether I would have done the same.  Had I not been born and raised Catholic, were I not a cradle Catholic as they say, I wonder if I would choose to become Catholic?  I’m not sure of the answer.  

What leads a person to make that sort of decision is an interesting question. When pressed for an explanation, some say that they have found a spiritual home in the Catholic Church, many for the first time in their lives.  Others say their spouse or their children inspired them to become Catholic.  Still others claim that the teachings of the Church on issues close to their hearts are so compelling that their choice was an easy one.  However one explains it, I suspect that such a choice ultimately boils down to a matter of conscience.  In one way or another, the choice just has to feel right in your gut of guts, and that is perhaps the only good reason to become Catholic. 

   

What this conversion means, however, can be stated in different ways.  The more recent converts, for example, are usually very enthusiastic in the practice of their newfound faith.  Their zeal stems from a deep appreciation for what Catholicism has to offer.  The veteran Catholic, on the other hand, often takes a more low key approach to practice.  This can lead to the perception that veteran Catholics do not fully appreciate what they have in the faith.  This approach has another meaning, however.  Many veteran Catholics have learned to walk in faith without much flourish or fanfare.  For them, this is part of what it means to be Catholic.  Thus, a low key approach to practice does not necessarily reflect a lack of appreciation for what Catholicism has to offer.  

There is also more than one way to explain what “convert” means in a Catholic sense.  Although it is true that a convert is one who comes to Catholicism from another faith tradition or background, this is not the full story.  A true convert is one who has made the Catholic way of believing his or her own.  This is a necessary step for those who become Catholic as much as it is for those who have been Catholic all of their lives.  Making the faith one’s own, so to speak, is ordinarily the culmination of a spiritual process that often takes place after one reaches adulthood.  In this sense, it is more accurate to say that, sooner or later, we are all converts to Catholicism. 

Indeed, the gospel for today calls attention to the kind of faith conversion that all of us must go through. The idea in this gospel story is to turn from darkness to light by believing in Jesus.  The healing of the man born blind is a symbol for this turn, or conversion in faith. The process is highlighted in the arguments that follow the healing.  

 

In these arguments, the central focus is on what happened and who made it happen.  The arguments themselves are carried out primarily by three groups of people who cannot see.  First are the disciples. They have been with Jesus for a long time, and yet they cling to the assumption that sickness and disability are punishment for sin.  Jesus explains to them that these are not punishment at all, but something that a true follower of his will seek to alleviate.  Jesus makes this point when he says to the disciples, “We have to do the works of the one who sent me while it is day.”  In other words, alleviating the suffering of others goes to the heart and soul of what it means to be a true convert in faith.    

Second among those who cannot see is the blind man himself.  Jesus touched the blind man in his physical weakness in a way that eventually moved him to a spiritual awakening.  This progression is revealed in what the man says of Jesus when asked about his cure.  At first, the man only identifies Jesus by name as the one who cured his blindness.  Pressed for more details by the Pharisees, the man digs deeper and describes Jesus as a prophet, as one sent by God.  Lastly, the man experiences complete conversion when he later encounters Jesus for a second time and confesses his belief in Jesus.  The authenticity of his conversion is revealed when the man worships Jesus.  This progressive awakening in faith is often the path that we too travel in our own spiritual journey.  And like the man born blind, we can be sure that Jesus will meet us where we are with his healing touch. 
     

Our hope and prayer is to avoid the predicament of yet a third group among those who cannot see, namely, the Pharisees. They claimed to know God’s Word and God’s Law, but failed to live its spirit.  Jesus condemns their blindness as the worst sort because they refuse to see him as the light of the world.  In fact, they find every reason not to believe in Jesus.  They try to explain away the miracle of the healing rather than accept what their eyes were telling them. 

Spiritual enlightenment is one of the primary goals we focus on during Lent.  This is true for the Elect as well as for those of us who are already Catholic.  We all need to be enlightened and to grow in faith.  We still need conversion, and conversion is what the Scrutinies are all about.  Conversion means leaving behind one way of life and taking up another.  And, the way that we seek is the way of the Lord.  This conversion is a spiritual rebirth and gift of faith from Jesus, the Light of the World. During Lent, we prepare to receive this light in order to celebrate our gift of faith once again at Easter.      

4th Sun Lent Year B 2015 (Jn 3:14-21)

The focus of today’s gospel is the love of God.  There are many things one might say about love—whether human or divine—but two are prominent in this gospel message.  One is to say that when we love someone, we desire to be close to that person.  Love always seeks an intense personal closeness—an emotional, spiritual and physical bond—that melts the two hearts into one.  Closeness is what we want most of all when we love someone.  We want to spend time with them, talk with them, get to know them if we don’t already, and share our life with them.  This does not always happen, we know, but this is the experience most of us want—to be physically and emotionally close to the one we love. 

 

The other thing to say is that love thrives on the hope that it will be reciprocated.  We first and foremost want those whom we love to return our love, to love us back, so to speak.  We often look for signs in that regard.  And, as long as those signs are there, we feel satisfied in the relationship.  A failure to return love, on the other hand, is often the cause of much hurt and disappointment in a relationship.

 

The gospel message for today shows that God is not different from us in these two respects.   Because he loves us, God desires to be close to us both in spirit and in body, and to have his love returned.  God was not content to remain hidden away in his heaven, unseen and unapproachable by us except in spirit and prayer.  Rather, his profound love for us compelled him to send his only Son to live among us, to be one of us, to be like us in every way. 

 

During his life on earth, Jesus demonstrated in clear terms that our relationship with God is an intense personal relationship of love, even insisting that we call God “Daddy” in today’s lingo.  Jesus also made it plain that he loves the father by loving us.  In fact, Jesus loves us in the same way that the father loves him.  For, he says to his disciples, “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love” (Jn 15:9).  The question is, how do we remain in God’s love?  How do we love God back?

Jesus provides the answer when he asks us to keep his commandments.  For he says to his disciples, if you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love (Jn 15:10).  This is how others will know that we are his disciples.  By imploring us to remain in his love, Jesus is asking to have his love returned; he wants us to love him back.  This is the reason behind the two great commandments of love for God and neighbor.  And, the Apostle John reminds us that we must not give mere lip service to these commandments.  Rather, he insists that we must love in deed and in truth (1 JN 3:18).  "Actions—not words" is the guiding principle in returning our love to God. 

We know what those actions are.  Jesus proved his love for us to the greatest extent by giving his life for our sake, and now he wants his love returned through service to God and neighbor.  He is our model.  We would do well to imitate Jesus by feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and imprisoned, welcoming the stranger, and giving shelter to the homeless. 

 

Our service does not end with taking care of bodily needs, however.  We are also called to provide spiritual care—to comfort others, to counsel others, to forgive others, to pray for the living and the dead.  All these very ordinary deeds done in the name of Christ are true works of mercy.  They are signs that we are returning our love to God, and God will not fail to notice.  Jesus assures us that, whoever gives a cup of water to drink in his name will have their reward (Mk 9:40).

During Lent, we often focus on caring for the needs of others.  Three traditional practices associated with Lent provide opportunity in that regard—prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.  We usually think of almsgiving in terms of giving money to the poor.  According to the Psalmist, "Blessed is he that considers the needy and the poor" (Ps 40:2).  Notice that the Psalmist says “considers” rather than “gives” to the needy and the poor.  This way of putting it suggests that anything done to assist the needy and the poor out of genuine charity is almsgiving.  Thus, almsgiving includes much more than giving money to the indigent.  Every deed carried out to benefit our neighbor in the name of Christ, no matter how small, is almsgiving.  How our actions affect the poor are worth considering. 

When it comes to prayer, Jesus is our first model.  We read in Scripture that Jesus often went out alone to a secluded place and prayed.  Rarely is the content of his prayer revealed to us.  What we do know, however, suggests that during his prayer Jesus spoke openly and honestly with his heavenly Father, holding back nothing.  Since he came to do the Father’s will, we can be sure that he spent time in prayer discerning what the Father might want.  Sometimes prayer is the only way we learn how to help others. 

   

Almsgiving and prayer are two legs of a traditional Lenten practice.  The third is fasting.  We usually think of fasting as giving up something, a favorite food or treat. This is certainly appropriate.  Vatican II in fact encouraged the renewal of this practice, especially before celebration of the Easter Vigil.  But, there are other ways of fasting.  In a less dramatic way, for example, we might give up criticizing or judging others.

The prophet Isaiah offers more insight into what it means to fast.  Isaiah quotes the Lord when he says, "This, rather, is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own" (Is 58:6-7).

Sometimes it is easier to help a stranger than our own.  Lent is also a time to consider how well we love those closest to us.  They too need our alms, prayers, and fasting.   

B 6 Sun 15 (Mk 1:40-45)

            The story about the man with leprosy in today’s gospel is a story about faith in God.  Today, we tend to think of faith in rather basic terms.  For many, faith is merely the belief that God exists, while the content of faith itself is a set of beliefs about God. This modern understanding of faith does not do justice to how the ancient Hebrews understood faith.  For them, faith was a two way street.  God wanted and sought out a relationship with his people, and they entered that relationship by placing their hope and trust in God. As a result, their lives centered on their faith, which in turn, shaped and influenced the way they lived.

            This is the background for the story about the leper’s faith in God.  That story begins with the first reading from the Book of Leviticus.  The ritual provisions in Leviticus spelled out the way members of the faith community were to conduct themselves in the face of contagious disease.  Those provisions led to a rather gloomy predicament for lepers in the ancient world.  Lepers were forbidden to come into the city, or to live with any others.  They had to live apart as though they were dead persons (Josephus). 

            Lepers lived apart for both practical and religious reasons. From a practical standpoint, lepers had a contagious disease that required living in isolation to limit the spread of the disease.  From a religious standpoint, the leper also was considered unclean under Mosaic Law because the disease itself was viewed as a punishment for sin.  Thus, the leper was no longer holy before God.  For this reason, the leper was cut off from the living faith community, and stood to forfeit for all time his or her relationship with God and with all others.

            The only available remedy for leprosy in the ancient world was to be healed through a direct intervention by God (Ex. 15:26), or through an appeal to God’s mercy and compassion by a prophet, such as Moses or Isaiah (Ex. 15:25; II Kings 2:21; II Kings 20:7–8).  Either way, the one who was afflicted was expected to pray and fast for healing. 

            The fortunate person who experienced a cure, however, still had to undergo a process of purification as specified in the Book of Leviticus.  First, the person went to the priest, who would affirm that a cure had taken place. Only then would the priest initiate a purification process (Dt. 24:8–9). The priest did nothing to promote or bring about the cure, however. His rituals were performed only to affirm that the disease had indeed passed, and to declare the person clean through the process of purification.  Once made clean in this manner, the person could rejoin the community of the living.   

            This context gives deeper meaning to the story in Mark’s gospel.  Notice that the man with leprosy does not ask Jesus for a cure.  Rather, he begs Jesus to make him clean, for he longs to be part of the living community.  He says to Jesus, "If you wish, you can make me clean."  This approach alone reveals the leper to be a man of belief and humble courage.  For, under Mosaic Law, because he still had the disease, he should not have approached Jesus, or any other person for that matter.  And, under the Law, Jesus should not have touched him. His desperate need to be among the living once again, however, compels the leper to seek Jesus with trust and hope.  And, in his compassion, Jesus meets the man where he is.  Their encounter shows that hope, trust and compassion are the more compelling aspects of faith than are law and ritual. It also shows that the relationship between believer and Jesus is personal.

            The actual request of the leper in these circumstances reveals even more about faith in God.  In essence, his request acknowledges Jesus’ divine power to heal, as well as his divine authority to forgive sins and welcome the sinner back into the faith community.  The leper approaches Jesus with hope to be made clean, and he trusts Jesus to respond with compassion. 

            In placing his hope and trust in the person of Jesus Christ to make good on his request, the leper reveals the true nature of faith in God.  True faith is a matter of hope and trust in God.  And, Jesus responds by affirming the authenticity of such faith when he ignores all religious and social taboo and stretches out his hand, touches the man, and says, “I do will it. Be made clean."  

             The life and mission of Jesus makes clear that he is willing to respond to us, and that he yearns for us to seek him with all boldness and without fear. For this reason, Jesus does not restrict who may seek him.  Clearly, the man with leprosy sought Jesus WHEN he was in need of healing, BEFORE he was clean.  Jesus is not saying:  Go get holy, and then knock on the door.  Rather, Jesus is saying:  Knock on the door and I will open it; I will show you how to be holy.  Seek and you will find.  From this personal standpoint, the question may be:  What do we want from Jesus.  What do we ask for?  What do we seek?  Why do we knock?  

            The encounter between Jesus and the man with leprosy demonstrates that we can approach Jesus no matter what our circumstances.  Jesus meets us where we are.  He looks for faith and is eager to respond to the faith that each of us can muster, however little or much that might be.  The leper shows that we can trust that Jesus will respond to our needs with compassion.  That is the nature of love, and the love of Jesus for each of us is reason enough to place our hope and trust in the Lord.

Mark 2:23-28 Keep Holy the Sabbath

The Pharisees should have felt blessed to have Jesus in their presence, and yet, they often were offended by his deeds.  In the gospel story for today, their offense stems from their strict interpretation of the commandment to keep holy the Sabbath.  Their interpretation was in part based on the connection of the Sabbath with God’s rest after the six days of creation (Ex 20:11). 

           

For the ancient Hebrew, God’s resting served as an example for human resting and for protesting the servitude of work and the worship of money (Ex 31:17, 23:12). The Sabbath also served as a reminder of Israel’s liberation from bondage (Dt 5:15).  This significance motivated the Pharisees to insist that the commandment to keep holy the Sabbath prohibited work of any kind, including the picking of grain from the field. 

Clearly, Jesus understood the historical and religious significance of the Sabbath, and he faithfully followed the commandments of God. But, he strongly disagreed with the Pharisees’ interpretation of how this particular commandment should be applied. For this reason, they took offense at his allowing the disciples to pick grain on the Sabbath.

           

Jesus responds to their offense with an authentic interpretation of the commandment when he says, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” Jesus declares with all authority that the Sabbath is for doing good rather than harm, for saving life rather than killing (Mk 3:4).  In other words, Jesus responds with a compassionate focus on authentic good deeds, not blind adherence to ritualistic behavior. 

           

Jesus will say to the Pharisees more than once, “You are more interested in doing religion than in doing justice.  You are more interested in miracles than in caring for the poor, the vulnerable, the outcast, the sick, and the marginalized.  You are more interested in religious ritual and celebration than in loving sacrifice for others.  You substitute following religious rules for doing God’s will.  No wonder the message of Jesus offended the Pharisees of his day.

           

The message that Jesus preached so long ago remains to this day a call to follow him, to live a certain kind of life, to be a certain kind of person.  The decision to follow Christ is a decision to be a person who is loving, kind, patient, understanding, merciful and just towards others, especially the poor and vulnerable members of society.  As St Paul puts it, the Christian way of life is life in the Spirit.  The Spirit of God helps us be the kind of person we are called to be.

           

This is what motivates Jesus to say to his disciples, “Blessed is the one who is not offended by me” (Mt 11:6).  The actions of Jesus are an invitation to follow him, not a reason to be offended. Following him is a blessing that leads to eternal life.  We are indeed blessed that God so loved us that he became one of us in the person of Jesus Christ.  We are blessed that Jesus is like us in every way, as St. Paul says—in failure and success, in sorrow and in joy, in doubt and in faith—in all ways except sin.  Jesus came to show us who the Father is and how we can get to his home.  This is the good news that Jesus preached so long ago.  And, we are truly blessed to hear his message once again.