Fifth Sunday of Lent
- Fr. LE Polansky
- Apr 5
- 4 min read
There were once two monks, an elderly wise one and his young companion, who were traveling by foot across the countryside. Early one morning, they came to a stream. The waters were fast and the current strong. At the near side of the bank stood a young woman searching for a place to cross safely. She looked frightened. The woman asked the two approaching monks for help in crossing. The younger monk ignored her. The elderly monk kindly picked her up piggyback style, and all three made it to the other side. There the elderly monk set her down. With words of thanks, she departed. For the rest of the morning and all that afternoon, the younger monk was silent, his ill mood obvious. As the sun began to set, the elderly monk asked the younger one what was troubling him. The younger monk said: “You know that we are not allowed to speak with women, let alone touch them. Yet, you picked that young woman up, and carried her across that stream! How could you?” The elderly monk replied: “Yes, I carried that woman across the stream this morning and left her on the other side. But my question for you is this … Why are you still carrying her?”
Entrance Antiphon: Ps 43(42):1-2 –“Give me justice, O God, and plead my cause against a nation that is faithless. From the deceitful and cunning rescue me, for You, O God, are my strength.”
First Reading: Is 43:16-2 – “See, I am doing something new and I give my people drink.”
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6 – “The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.”
Second Reading: Phil 3:8-14 – “Because of Christ, I consider everything as a loss, being conformed to His death.”
Verse Before the Gospel: Jl 2:12-13 – “Even now, says the Lord, return to Me with your whole heart; for I am gracious and merciful.”
Gospel: Jn 8:1-11 –“Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”
Communion Antiphon: Jn 11:26 – “Everyone who lives and believes in Me will not die for ever, says the Lord.”
Lent is a season of spiritual renewal as well as a season of repentance and forgiveness. When we have received the Sacrament of Reconciliation and have received absolution from a priest, our sins are gone. There is no longer a need to look back at them. It is time to move forward, hold our head high, welcoming the good and graced things to come.
Easter is only a few weeks away. And throughout Lent, we should be seeking God’s forgiveness and mercy. What prevents us from doing just that? God forgives. God’s mercy and love have no limits. That is hard to hold onto for many people. Someone once said that the hardest person to forgive is often ourselves. It may be wise to ask the Holy Spirit to help you embrace God’s love and forgiveness with total confidence. The call to renewal is constant throughout our lives. We human beings we are prone to trip up, in other words, to sin. We need to remember that God is always present, always ready and willing to help us up and walk life’s pathways with us.
Many people think to themselves: “If only I could begin again, if only I could start all over, things would be better.” The good news of the Lenten season and of the coming Easter season offers all of us those good things. We celebrate the Resurrection event of Jesus every year. Like the woman in today’s Gospel, Jesus is present in our lives … not to condemn … but to love and forgive. Mother Church is a caring and compassionate mother. The Church offers us a constant source of spiritual refreshment through the sacraments. We are all called to take advantage of those fountains of grace and to drink our fill. Once refreshed, we are again vibrant children of the light. Share that incredible light with those you meet in your daily life, not so much in what you say, but in how you live.
Those in the various OCIA programs across our Diocese and those who are in the RCIA process in our parish are looking forward to the Easter Sacraments of Welcoming … the Sacraments of Initiation: Baptism, First Communion, and Confirmation. By our active participation in the Liturgy of Eucharist, we should also be constant sources of inspiration and compassion. Ultimately, Lent is traditionally a season of joy that looks forward to Easter morning. During Lent we turn our lives around and find our way back to God … much like the younger son in the Parable of the Merciful Father that we heard last weekend. Living as a child of the light gives strength and encouragement to those who wish to join our faith tradition. Trying to live the way of Jesus is always challenging: No one is an expert. We are all prone to take a wrong turn in life. Embracing our faith is a sure way to live life in Jesus’ spirit of light. With the spirit of the risen Jesus in our hearts, we may look forward. The need to look over our shoulder is gone.
Besides looking forward to Easter, we will soon celebrate the most sacred time on the Church calendar and in our faith … Palm Sunday and the week that commemorates Jesus’ passion and death. As our most sacred days of the Church year approach, it is the time and opportunity to deepen our faith in the Real Presence of Our Lord. As we receive Him in Communion, He will become our strength.
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