Homily for the Fifth Sunday of Lent

© Rev. John Druther

My brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus, Praise be the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ!  Welcome to today's celebration of the Holy Mass on the Fifth Sunday of Lent. During the past month, our spiritual journey has been one of repentance so we may all, by the grace of God the Father and the power of the Holy Spirit, experience a transformation to become in the likeness of Christ.

Picture the scene in today's Gospel. Everybody is mumbling, everybody is talking about what is going on. The Pharisees throw a lady down in front of Jesus and they put a question to Him. "What's the answer to this problem, Jesus?"

The Pharisees are dragging a woman to Jesus caught in the act of adultery. In the Law of Moses, there is mutual condemnation for both partners in adultery. But, the scribes and the Pharisees drag only the woman before Jesus. The poor woman is a pawn in the conflict between the Lord Jesus and the leaders of the Jewish people. They want to prove that Jesus' words of compassion are in conflict with the Law of Moses. They could care less about the woman involved. Nor are they so concerned with her sin. They are enlightened enough to know that there is a man who is also guilty of adultery, but in their times, it is always the women's fault.

We see standing before Jesus a woman who sought joy so desperately that she was willing to jeopardize her marriage, her family, her good name, and her life. But she did not receive joy, maybe not even pleasure. No doubt the man had told her how pretty she was, that she could count on him, that she meant more to him than life itself. But when trouble came, he disappeared. What the woman dreaded most was now happening. She got caught - and there was no one to defend her. She could not have been more alone - or more bitter. Sounds like a scene taking place today, in the 21st century.

The woman is frightened. She is humiliated. She feels dirty. Throughout history writers have suggested that she was practicing the ancient trade, but there is nothing in the Gospel that says that. We really know nothing more about her other than, in our modern terminology, she had an affair. And she was caught. Now, she expects to be killed. She looks at this crowd of leading citizens, ashamed of herself. Maybe she even hopes to die rather than live with the disgrace.

The woman is brought to Jesus because the Scribes and Pharisees want to test Him. Here is another interesting point, in the normal way of things the woman would have been brought before the Sanhedrin and sentenced to death. But there is evidence that in AD 30 the Romans removed the death sentence from the Jewish authorities. That is also why Jesus was tried by Pilate and not by the Jews. Pilate said to them. "Take him yourselves and try him according to your own law. They replied 'We are not allowed to put anyone to death.'"

Since the woman could not be condemned to the punishment required by the Jewish law, she was used instead as a pawn to trick Jesus. If Jesus had followed the letter of the Jewish law, and said that the woman ought to be sentenced to death, then the mob, agitated by the Scribes and Pharisees, would have surely carried the punishment out immediately. If that were to happen then Jesus could easily have been hauled up before the Roman authorities and accused of inciting the crowd and thereby causing the woman's death.

Or, as many writers suggest, the whole thing was a set up job. Perhaps her husband knew she was having an affair and gathered witnesses together and burst in on the woman and her accomplice in order to provide the Scribes and Pharisees with an excuse to put Jesus on the spot.

And there is mystery here, too. Jesus bends down and begins writing in the sand. It's the only event recorded in all of the Gospels in which Jesus is reported as writing something. His finger, instead of being pointed either at the Romans, or at the Pharisees, or at the woman herself, is pointed into the ground. His finger of accusation is writing something in the sand. Quietly displaying a certain amount of patience and peace, He is very calm. What was it that Jesus was writing on the ground? Was He simply poking the ground a few times with His head bowed in shame and embarrassment at what the Scribes were trying to do . Or did He, as some think, actually begin to write on the ground the sins of the accusers for everyone to see? The Gospel doesn't tell us. The mystery has never been solved.

Jesus, though, knew what was going on. He was not pleased with the woman's conduct, but He did have compassion for her. He was more upset with the crowd that was using her in a far more terrible way than the person with whom she sinned. He knew how she was feeling about herself. He needed to restore her dignity to her, as well as protect her life. "Let he who has never sinned throw the first stone. What, is there no one to accuse you? Then go, but sin no more."

For being the smartest people of their time, you would think that the Scribes and Pharisees would catch on a little quicker, but the Gospels are full of stories in which they challenge Jesus' teachings, only to end up frustrated and embarrassed by His penetrating responses. Unfortunately, being smart and learned is no protection against being arrogant.

Jesus came upon a lady filled with shame and treated her with charity. Who was this woman? We really don't know. What we do know is this, she was healed by the Lord's love. Our love also can heal those full of shame. The Christian is called to throw love instead of stones.

As we near Holy Week, a good person to walk with is the woman rescued by Jesus. She joined her own pain to the suffering of Jesus. And she, perhaps more than most others, knew the great joy of forgiveness. With her we can pray the beautiful words of today's Psalm: The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.
Jesus forgives sin. He doesn't ignore it; He knows it for what it is-a fundamental and personal rejection of God. He doesn't brush it aside, but neither does he make a mountain out of a molehill. He is not shocked or upset. He forgives and invites the sinner to convert, to turn from their evil ways and embrace the good.

"Even now, says the Lord, return to me with your whole heart for I am gracious and merciful. Jesus is ready to bend down once more, not just to write a message on the ground but to enter our very hearts and fill us with his Eucharistic presence so that we can, in fact, become like God. Amen!