Fifth Sunday of Lent /
Msgr. Owen F. Campion
The Sunday Readings
The Book of Ezekiel provides the first reading for this weekend. Even a quick reading of the history of ancient Israel shows that there were very few periods of prosperity and calm. Indeed, only the reigns of David and Solomon might properly be considered as truly good times.
However, some times were more trying than others were. Certainly, the generations spent in Babylon were a miserable time. Confined in Babylon in wretchedness, and a minority, the Jewish exiles yearned for the day when they would be able to return to their homeland.
Ezekiel built upon this theme of hoping and expectation. As did all the prophets of his time, he saw a release from Babylonian bondage not as an accident or a happy turn of events. He saw it as a result of God’s mercy and of fidelity to God. Thus, in this reading, the Lord speaks, promising to breathe new life into the defeated, dejected people.
St. Paul’s Epistle to the Romans furnishes the second reading. Rome was the absolute center for everything in the first-century Mediterranean world, the political, economic and cultural heart of the empire. Its inhabitants came from everywhere, having brought with them a great variety of customs and beliefs. It was a sophisticated city. Paul wrote to the Christian Romans, among whom eventually he would die as a martyr.
This reading stresses two spiritual realities. The Christian is linked with God in Christ. So the Christian possesses the very life of the Holy Spirit, a life, of course, that will never die.
For its third reading, the Church this weekend presents the Gospel of John. Jesus went to Bethany, then a separate community but now a part of greater Jerusalem, summoned by Martha and Mary, who were anxious about their brother Lazarus, the Lord’s friend, who had died.
When Jesus at last arrived, Lazarus was dead. In fact, he had been dead for several days. Putrefaction had begun. Responding to the sisters’ faith, the Lord restores Lazarus to life.
Several important themes occur in the passage. First, of course, is the active, life-giving love of Jesus. In the mystery of the Incarnation, Jesus knows and expresses human love. Secondly, the faith of Martha and Mary is unqualified.
The Evangelist sees a parallel between the Resurrection of Jesus and the restoration of earthly life to Lazarus. In each account, mourning women are essential parts of the story. A stone closes the tomb. The body is dressed, and a face cloth, customary in Jewish burials of the time, covers the face. Finally, in each story, faith and human limitation have important roles.
Reflection
Next week, on Palm Sunday, the Church will invite us to learn, and to worship, in the most intense liturgical days of its year. Calling us to Christ, and with ancient drama and the most compelling symbolism, it will proclaim Jesus as Savior and Risen Lord.
This weekend, the Church prepares us for this experience, giving us the beautiful and wondrous story of Lazarus.
Echoing the Lord’s own Resurrection, today’s message is clear. If we are united with Jesus, as Lazarus and his sisters were united, then in God’s power we will have everlasting life.
However, we will only experience this eternal life if we seek Jesus, and if we seek Jesus with the faith uncompromisingly shown by Martha. Only Jesus can give us life.
The other readings reinforce this theme. For everyone, life can be taxing. Death awaits all. Ezekiel assures us that God will give us true life. It will be the life of holiness, the life that never ends.
St. Paul reminded us that this divine life abides only in Jesus. So, as Lent progresses, as Lent anticipates its culmination, the Church calls us to Jesus, the Lord of life. †