Claire Smith

Scripture:

Jeremiah 11:18-20
John 7:40-53

Reflection:

As we journey through this Lenten season, the daily Scriptures increasingly reveal the growing conflict that will ultimately lead to Jesus’ crucifixion.

Today’s Gospel highlights deep divisions in the group of people who surround Jesus from its opening verses to its final line. First, we hear how the crowd is split. Some declare Jesus to be a prophet, while others insist, he is more than a prophet, calling him the Christ. Following this, disputes arise over his origins. John sums up that section with these words, “So a division occurred in the crowd because of him.”

The division extends beyond the crowd. The Pharisees clash with the guards, who are hesitant to arrest Jesus. Even among the Pharisees themselves, there is conflict and division. Some are quick to condemn Jesus without even following their law. Others caution against judgment without following the law.  

The final line is brazenly symbolic of this division; “Then each went to his own house.” It is a striking image of separation. In a sense, John has mapped out a picture of how diabolical divisions can be.  The divisions John has named have torn the fabric of their community.

Remember, this passage comes from the Gospel of John, nicknamed by some the Gospel of Belief.  Throughout John’s Gospel, we see a sharp contrast between believers and unbelievers. Every sign, every encounter is an encouragement leading people to believe.  Layered through this whole gospel is the great division of believers and non-believers. Scripture scholars remind us of how this reflects the troubles that existed within the post-resurrection Johannine community.

Listening to John’s Gospel, the author creates a duality between believers and unbelievers much like the “us” and “them” language of today’s reality. Do you see the numerous parallels between John’s divided community and our modern divided world? A significant difference is how John’s divisions were centered on religion, not politics. 

In today’s divided world, we have become overly cautious about everything we say, knowing that it will inevitably be viewed through a political lens. Almost everything is interpreted as a political statement. Sadly, we have lost the ability to see actions and motivations through other equally valid perspectives, such as economics and religion. So, when people ask me to help sift through it all, I merely say we have to be true to our discipleship. Jesus was pretty simple. He told us to love people and care about people.

Using the lenses of politics to pollute Jesus’ instructions is sinful. It doesn’t get more basic than Matthew 25: When I was hungry you gave me food. When I was thirsty, you gave me drink… To summarize, when I was a person in need, you helped me. And Jesus sums it up by saying, “Whatever you do to the least of my brothers and sisters, you do to me.” These simple and basic words continue to challenge us two thousand years later.

Fr. David Colhour, C.P., is the Provincial Superior of Holy Cross Province. He resides in Chicago, Illinois.

Scripture:

Wisdom 2:1a,12-22
John 7:1-2,10,25-30

Reflection:

“…they were trying to kill Him…”

Jesus came to our world with a living message of unity, forgiveness, hope and unconditional love – His life both a gift from God and a challenge to contemporary people!  His preaching, teaching, signs and miracles came to be seen not as a means to personal salvation but rather as threats to safety and the status quo.  The spiritual leaders of Jesus’ time felt that His death was necessary for their “safety” …and “they were trying to kill Him…”

Today’s first reading from the Book of Wisdom supports the plot Jesus later faced: 

“…the wicked said among themselves, thinking not aright: ‘Let us beset the just one, because he is obnoxious to us; he sets himself against our doings, reproaches us for transgressions of the Law and charges us with violations of our training.  He professes to have knowledge of God and styles himself a child of the Lord.  To us he is the censure of our thoughts; merely to see him is a hardship for us, because his life is not like that of others, and different are his ways…”

Jesus was a living “thorn-in-the-side” for the wicked spiritual leaders of his day – “…and they were trying to kill Him…”.

As 21^st Century believers, we know that Jesus’ eventual suffering and death on the cross was not the end of His ministry of forgiveness, reconciliation and selfless love, but rather His means to sharing eternal life and salvation for all humankind.  My favorite saying from an author of long ago:   “Good Friday didn’t spoil the weekend…”

We are called to grow as Jesus’ 21^st Century disciples as helped by Lenten journey, including its griefs and graces.  We are invited to be bold in living out our faith in Jesus.  He encourages us to live lives of charity, patience, justice, purity, prayerfulness, and respect for life in all its forms — combating the force of evil which exists in our 21^st Century world.  Jesus leads the way for us, reaching out to us and encouraging us from the wooden beams of His Cross on Calvary…hailed as “The Tree of Life”.

Our journey continues in this last half of Lent 2025, pilgrims of hope in and through Jesus Crucified!  May these grace-filled days renew us in every way and help motivate us to be credible disciples of Jesus Crucified by our love and service of our sisters and brothers worldwide.

Our Holy Founder, St. Paul of the Cross, pray for us!

Fr. John Schork, C.P. serves as the Province Vocation Director and also as Local Superior of the Passionist Community of Holy Name in Houston, Texas.  

Scripture:

Exodus 32:7-14
John 5:31-47

Reflection:

One of my teachers once said to me that he found John’s gospel good for meditation and hard to preach.

Perhaps there is some truth in that, although it is possibly tempered by one’s personal preferences and sense of how one wishes to receive and savour the ‘good news.’

Nevertheless, today’s reading from John tends towards an interpretation that favours the ‘good for meditation’ axis.

It is a rich tapestry of imagery and truth blended together into one of the discourses of Jesus. It has a myriad of ‘word images’ that nourish our faith and open doors to deeper contemplation and insight into the divine.

We are invited to contemplate being emissaries who ‘testify’ to the truth that is Jesus Christ.

We are invited to contemplate the possibility of seeing ourselves as a burning and shining lamp, albeit one that is far dimmer than the true source of light itself – Jesus Christ

We are invited to contemplate ‘hearing’ the voice of God, not in any supernatural way, but by listening to the Word of God.

We are invited to contemplate our relationship with Jesus, to “come to him.” Openly and wholeheartedly in order that we might have life itself.

We are invited to contemplate seeking Jesus above all, above the messages of the witnesses and scriptures that preceded him, and challenged at the same time to believe all that Jesus has revealed to us – that is, to believe his words.

Fr. Denis Travers, C.P., is the Provincial Superior of Holy Spirit Province, Australia.