Gospel Reflection Sunday March 17th 2024 – Fifth Sunday of Lent

By Fr Brian Maher OMI

Gospel Reflection for Sunday March 17th 2024 | Fifth Sunday of Lent

The 2004 film “The Passion of the Christ”, produced by Mel Gibson, was a powerful depiction of the last twelve hours of Jesus’ life – the hours of his suffering and death. Some people loved the movie, seeing in it the stark and real nature of the sacrifice Jesus undertook for us. They argued that the ‘Cross’ was real and had to be faced, rather than something to be sugar-coated and its impact diminished. Others argued that the movie was an unhealthy glorification of suffering, where the torture and agony of Jesus became an end in itself, with only a very brief depiction of the Resurrection. In effect their argument was that the movie lacked balance.

At the time of its release I was principal of a Catholic High School in Australia. Some of our RE teachers wanted to show the movie to everyone in the school – ages 11 to 17. A few suggested it would only be suitable for senior students while some others said it should not be shown at all.

For better or worse I sided with the last group and the movie was not used in classrooms to depict the Easter story. In defence of the film, I will say that if its intention was to provoke discussion it definitely succeeded. Many a lively staffroom dialogue following, some colleagues going so far as to suggest that the action of the movie should be reenacted in the middle of the cricket oval – with yours truly front and centre. They were joking, of course……I think!!

At the heart of the views mentioned above is a very real and hugely important question; why did Jesus have to suffer and die as he did? Did he choose it or want it? Was it forced upon him by the Father? Was it simply an ‘accident’, brought about by the life he lived and the things he said?

To a large extent our entire faith rests on our answer to this question. After all, it was St. Paul who said, “…but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block for Jews, for Greeks, foolishness; but for those who are called, both Jew and Greek, Christ the power and wisdom of God.”

This week’s Gospel gives us John’s ‘answer’ to the question of Jesus’ suffering and death. Any reader of John’s Gospel will know that it is highly reflective, bringing almost one hundred years of thought and prayer to the questions surrounding the life, death and resurrection of Jesus and the missionary outreach of the Church. At times John’s reflections are condensed and need careful unpacking to get to the intended meaning.

However, when it comes to the Cross of Jesus, John’s meaning is not overly complicated.

In a single word it can be captured by the word ‘glorified’. Jesus died (and rose again) so that, through him, the Father would be glorified.

For John, the entirety of Jesus’ life, every word and act, every parable and miracle, everything leading to his death, resurrection and ascension is a single, unified action of ‘glorification’. There can be no separation of life, death, resurrection and ascension; all of them together bring about the ‘glorification’ of God.

In this way the Cross (suffering and death of Jesus) is one part, one essential part, of an eternal love-story between God and his creation. It is a story of life, hope and joy. Mysteriously, even the awfulness of the Cross is filled with hope because it is inevitably followed by the resurrection. There is no overlooking of the cross by John, no diminishing of its agony. It is a necessary first step on the way to resurrection, just as resurrection is a necessary follow-on to the cross. All of it leads to the ultimate ‘glorification’ of God and the coming of the Kingdom of God.

The grain of wheat MUST fall on the ground and die if it is to spring to new life and produce a harvest. Only when, “I am lifted up from the earth” (on the cross) will I be able to “…draw all people to myself.” (resurrection, ascension, coming of the Spirit)

We can argue and disagree as to whether “The Passion of the Christ” gives us a balanced view of the place of the Cross in the overall work of salvation. Our arguments and disagreements are good and worth while if they help us to clarify for ourselves the meaning of pain and suffering in our own lives and in the life of our world.

Our journey through Lent is a preparation for the mystery of Easter, and Easter lies at the very heart of our faith. In a few weeks we will be asked, once again, to walk the last days of Jesus’ life with him.

Just as Jesus’ “…heart was troubled” as he prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, so too should our hearts be troubled as we try to situate the place of the Cross in our lives.

Non-believers constantly throw the existence of pain, suffering and death in our faces, telling us that until we can adequately explain them, then believing in a God of love is impossible. Exactly why we think what they say is new or original beats me! In truth they are saying exactly what St. Paul said, “…we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block for Jews, for Greeks, foolishness; but for those who are called, both Jew and Greek, Christ the power and wisdom of God.”

As Christians we are ‘those called’ to see in the person of Jesus “the power and the wisdom of God.” It is the totality of Jesus’ life that reveals a God of love to us. We cannot and must not run away from the reality of pain and suffering and death in our lives. They are stark and real and they “trouble our hearts” when we encounter them. They also troubled the heart of Jesus as he saw them galloping towards him. Truly, the metaphor… “his sweat became as blood…” sums up for us just how troubled he actually was.

Today, in our Gospel, John shares with us his understanding of where suffering and death fit with a God who is Love. They are, for him, one part of a much bigger work, constantly at play in our lives and in the life of creation. The seed must fall in the ground and die if it is later to produce a harvest. This reality is all around us. It is in the bread we eat, in the wine we drink, in ourselves and in our world.

If we make of it an end in itself then of course it is cruel and meaningless. If the seed falling in the ground and dying is the end of the story, then I too can’t believe in a God who would allow this to happen.

But it is not the end! The seed produces new life which produces a new harvest of goodness and plenty. In Jesus life the pain and suffering of the Cross led directly to the Resurrection and to a new and ‘glorified’ life of hope and joy.

John calls it ‘glorification’ – the entire work of life, death, resurrection and ascension, by which Jesus is revealed as Messiah and his Kingdom is revealed to our world. It is for each one of us to arrive at our own understanding of where pain and suffering fit in our lives. Today’s Gospel is a good starting point for this reflection. By entering into Holy Week sincerely and in prayer, we can take another step in our journey.

However, it is worth our while letting the wisdom of Pope Francis guide us in our journey. “Faith always remains something of a cross; it retains a certain obscurity which does not detract from the firmness of its assent. Some things are understood only from the standpoint of this assent, which is a sister to love, beyond the level of clear reasons and arguments.”  (EG. 42)

We will never ‘explain’ the reality of pain and suffering and death in our lives. Nor will we ever ‘explain’ the reality of love in our lives. Yet both are present and both are real. John tells us that all of life, and death, and new life, are part of one single movement towards ‘glorification’ – God’s revelation of his Kingdom through the life and person of Jesus.

We must never run from the reality of pain and suffering in our lives. If we do so we can never get to the Resurrection and a ‘new’ and glorified life in Christ.

However, and this is important, we must also never run from the reality of Resurrection in our lives, and I sometimes think we are guilty of this more often than we think. We see the seed falling to the ground and dying. We see all around us the pain and suffering and death in Gaza, Ukraine, Haiti and so many other places. We see around us global warming, suffocating pollution, the poisoning of our rivers and seas and we become despondent, critical, judgemental. “Our hearts become troubled…” and we run away, just as the disciples ran away after Jesus was arrested. We allow suffering, death, pain to become ends in themselves and of course life becomes meaningless and confusing.

This must never happen to us! In the darkest of places resurrection is not only possible; it is already present. It is what our faith shows us in the life of Jesus. The values he lived by, his unwavering reaching out to the excluded, his courageous condemnation of hypocrisy led him to the Cross and then through it to the Resurrection. The resurrection was not a kind of ‘gift’ given to Jesus as a reward for his life. Resurrection was an integral part of his life; it was there from the beginning; it had to happen. Without it God died on the cross…and God cannot die!!!

Wherever the seed falls to the ground and dies, we know already that the harvest is on the way. In the cold, wet months of winter we may not see it but we know that it is there. Our faith tells us that after pain and suffering comes Resurrection. Even when we don’t see it, it is there.

As Christians we are the ones called to witness to this. In our words, in our deeds, we must witness to hope and the Joy of the Gospel.

But first we have to be convinced ourselves!

Lent is our opportunity to pray and reflect on the Gospels so that our journey through Holy Week truly ends with Resurrection, hope and joy.

Many thanks,

Brian.

If you have any comments, questions or thoughts on this scripture reflection, please feel welcome to email me at b.maher@oblates.ie