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Theo Tigno•
3/13/2005 11:41 pm
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Monday in the Fifth Week in Lent |
John 8:1-11
Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area, and all the people started coming to him, and he sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and made her stand in the middle. They said to him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?" They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger. But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them, "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." Again he bent down and wrote on the ground. And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone with the woman before him. Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" She replied, "No one, sir." Then Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more."
Dawg's thought:
Today's prayer intention is in thanksgiving for Pope John Paul II's release from the hospital.
In the intimacy found within any relationship, it is inevitable that things will be revealed. There are things that you will try to hide because we are afraid of not being accepted, or even worse, judged and condemned. When you read today's reading, did Christ come to condemn?
Although we know Christ came into this world to reconcile us and restore us, we have a fear within us because we know our hearts: we bear the same sinful inclination to judge. After all, if I can look at the faults in someone else, I look much better. This is a form of self-affirmation, and there are many Biblical references to how this can lead to evil. In today's reading, we see Christ's example of mercy. Did Christ come to condemn?
Yes, in today's reading, there is a very clear sin: adultery. One sin that is not defined, though, is the sin of the scribes and the Pharisees: envy. The condemnation they were seeking was not the condemnation of the woman caught in adultery; she was just a means to an end. The condemnation they were looking for was towards Christ. They envied Christ because when they looked at Christ, it revealed something within them that they did not want to see; something they did not want to bring to the light. Can we dare say that in the scribes and Pharisees relationship with Jesus there was an intimacy that revealed something within them? What did they fear as they looked into the eyes of Our Lord? What "shame" did they want to hide from Our Lord? Did Christ come to condemn?
We know the obvious answers. We know the obvious outcome. Yet, there is still that hesitation in our own lives. Do we fear intimacy with Our Lord because of the things that we want to hide? Do we fear intimacy with Our Lord because we know our own version of what justice should look like? Do we fear intimacy with Our Lord because we fear being judged or condemned? Did Jesus come to condemn? Take care and God Bless.
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