Homily for the Fifth Sunday of Lent - Year C

The readings for the Fifth Sunday of Lent - Year C may be found at:  

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/040322-YearC.cfm

Lent is flying by.  

This week we celebrate the last Sunday of Lent as Palm Sunday is one week away.

That makes today a good time to pause, take a breath and reflect on our preparation for Easter.  

It’s also a good time to be a little uncomfortable.   

I know I am.

Which brings us to the story of the adulterous woman.

As we heard in the gospel, this woman is brought before a mob with stones in their hands, ready to deliver swift justice.  

We see the Pharisees trying to trap Jesus by forcing Him to decide whether to condemn this woman to death or to publicly dismiss The Law that considered adultery a capital crime.  Very dramatic.  

Literally, a life and death situation.

As I reflected on this story this week, for some reason, I kept hearing the opening to the television show “Law and Order” - “the people are represented by two separate and distinct groups…the police who investigate crime and the district attorney who prosecute the offenses….these are their stories.”  

Except, in this story, the investigation and prosecution were being handled by one stone-wielding mob.

When the Pharisees ask Jesus to weigh in, He does something odd.  He writes on the ground.  He pauses.  He looks almost disinterested in what’s going on around Him.  

We don’t know what He wrote on the ground, but it disconnected Him from the drama.  He dismisses the drama, choosing not to escalate further.  

How often do we dismiss drama instead of being dragged into an emotional situation in our life?  Probably not often enough. 

And how often, instead of de-escalating, do we become judge, jury and executioner just like that mob?

Especially on social media or when talking with friends.  

Do we dismiss the drama, accusations and gossip or do we weigh in, showing how good we are in the process?

In the midst of this dramatic scene, Jesus rises and says “Let the one among you who is without sin, be the first to throw a stone at her.”  

While awesome, there may be no more misused line in all of scripture.  

How often do we take these beautiful words of Jesus to justify our own sinfulness?  

We can also take those words to mean that none of us have any right to speak to anyone about their transgressions because not a single one of us is without sin.  

And if that’s what we take out of Jesus’ words, we all lose.  

We are all in this together.  

We have a responsibility as Christians to love and forgive each other.  That’s the legacy that our Lord has given us.

What we don’t have the right to do is to water down the expectations God has for us and to minimize when we fall short because “people in glass houses, don’t throw stones”.

As Christians we should be forgiving not judging each other.  But we shouldn’t ignore when we see each other going astray, no matter how uncomfortable it is to do so.

And when we come upon these uncomfortable situations, we need to approach them, not with stones, but with open arms, with caring, love, mercy and self-reflection.  

The uncomfortable message I want all of us to take away today is about mercy and judgement.  It’s not an either or situation.  

Every single one of us will be judged.

Every single one of us needs mercy.

That’s why our Lord has given us the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  

We need to encourage each other to go - regularly.

We need to go to confession for the grace of forgiveness, but also to keep our own sinfulness fresh in our minds. 

People who go to confession regularly are frequently more compassionate.  That’s probably because it’s easier to be merciful how we have fallen short is fresh in our minds.

When we see sinfulness, that is not the time to pick up a stone and condemn, but instead to remember how we have sinned and been forgiven. 

Confession makes us more merciful, quicker to forgive and less self-righteous.  

And our sins can’t be forgiven if we don’t confess them in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, period.

The Sacrament of Reconciliation gives us the opportunity to bring our sins to Jesus through a priest to receive our Lord’s mercy and absolution.

And we all need that.

Just like the woman in today’s gospel, there will come a time when we will face God.  

Standing before God, vulnerable, with our sins exposed. 

We will all crave mercy and not the judgement we deserve.

Like Lent, our lives are flying by.  

Let’s get comfortable with being uncomfortable.   

There is still time to make a good examination of conscience and sacramental confession….but the close is ticking.