INTRODUCTION
“In Him, the hope of blessed resurrection has dawned, that those saddened by the certainty of dying might be consoled by the promise of immortality to come. Indeed for your faithful, Lord, life is changed not ended, and, when this earthly dwelling turns to dust, an eternal dwelling is made ready for them in heaven” (preface of the dead 1).
On this Fifth Sunday of Lent, the readings point our attention to resurrection hope as a defeat over death in the mortal body thanks to Jesus who died and rose from the dead.
FIRST READING: Ezekiel 37:12-14
The prophet Ezekiel was a priest ministering in the Temple of Jerusalem before the year 597 B.C when king
Nebuchadnezzar took over the city. The prophet in the company of king Jehoiachim was among the first deportees to babylonian exile. Successively after few years, the babylonian soldiers raided Jerusalem again and evacuated many into exile.
Therefore the first reading today places us in the context of the babylonian exile. And the image painted by the author about the valley of the dry bones is a description of a battlefield that saw the destruction of Jerusalem and the ruin of its inhabitants. In this prophetic vision, Ezekiel assures his fellow Jews that their period of captivity is about to end. Thus the description of bones rising from their graves is a message of hope that captivity will not have the final word; that through the Spirit of God, the devastated nation will rise beyond their present catastrophe and return to their homeland.
SECOND READING: Romans 8:8-11
This passage of Paul’s letter to the Romans is one of the favourite passages for Christian funerals.The Apostle reminds the Christian community of Rome caught up in the culture of death and persecution and who were no less afraid of the finite nature of the earthly existence that though the mortal body will bow to death (death as a consequence of sin), but since they have been justified by faith through Christ, death will not have the final word, for they will rise to life on the last day thanks to the resurrection of Christ (the hope of our resurrection).
GOSPEL: John 11:1-45
The Gospel is a fulfilment of Ezekiel’s prophesy of the dry bones and the grave and a foretaste of the definite resurrection of the mortal body as St. Paul pointed out.
It is only John who recorded the miracle of bringing Lazarus back to life. There were other cases whereby Jesus brought dead persons back to life, like the little daughter of Jairus (Mt 9:18-26; Mk 5:22-43; Lk 8:41-56) and the son of the widow of Nain (Lk 7:11-17). I used the expression ‘bringing back to life’ instead of resurrection because the term resurrection in its strict theological sense is a Christian mystery which only Christ had been able to accomplish in the history of humanity and which he will accomplish in the life of believers only at the end of time.
LET’S LOOK AT SOME THEMES
“LORD HE WHOM YOU LOVE IS ILL.” This was the message Jesus got from the sisters of Lazarus and in response he said, “This illness is not unto death; it is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by means of it.” The emphasis made by Mary and Martha reveals that Lazarus is simply an image of man loved by his God. However, this love does not exonerate him from suffering. But it’s interesting to know that this suffering cannot have the final word. This is why Jesus said “this sickness is not unto death.” Sickness and death are two realities that threaten the peace of man, and their close connection is noticed in the fact that one triggers the thought of the other. The death Jesus speaks of is in reference to the last enemy of man. Hence, bringing Lazarus back to life will be an anticipation of his power to defeat this last enemy of man at the end of time.
“LET US GO INTO JUDEA AGAIN.” The disciples of Jesus were shocked to hear him opt for such a move after he barely escaped death from the Jews. This expression captures the motive of Jesus’s mission that is, for the sake of his love for man (who though sinful and rebellious), he must climb the hill of Jerusalem. Yes he must go back to the danger zone to save his miserable creatures even at the cost of his own life.
“LORD IF YOU HAD BEEN HERE, MY BROTHER WOULD NOT HAVE DIED.” This was a statement made by Martha and Mary at different occasions in the passage. It is an expression of a man of suffering who feels that his God is far away. I could imagine Mary and Martha saying: “Lord why? We sent you text messages. We called your phone several times. We even sent someone to tell you to hasten up before he dies, yet you delayed. Lord why? You do not have a single idea of what we went through watching our only brother die. We waited until he gave up his ghost. We thought you could still make it. Lord why? Even at the funeral you were nowhere to be found. Now the death watch is over. It is already four days gone. We truly do not know why it took you so long to come. Lord why? What did we do to deserve this?”
These imaginary questions of Mary and Martha tells us the type of relationship that exists sometimes between man and his God. We all live the experience. Yes faith in God cannot be lived in silence. Faith is faith when it is able to ask questions: “Fides quaerens intellectum” (faith seeking understanding of St. Anselm of Canterbury).
“JESUS WEPT.”
1. This is an affirmation of the humanity of Jesus:
He wept because of the misery of man who has fallen helpless in the hand of death.
2. He wept because on the faces of Mary and Martha were written the suffering of a helpless humanity begging her God for mercy.
3. He wept because sin has succeeded in disfiguring the image of God in man.
4. He wept because he wanted to take their tears to himself and give them his joy. Yes he needed to weep in order to express the true face of “God with us”, close to us, feels with us…
“HE LIFTED UP HIS EYES AND SAID, FATHER…“
This verse is strictly catechetical because it teaches the divine Sonship of Christ. John points the attention of his readers to heaven affirming that Jesus did not come on his own accord, but sent by the Father. The verse is equally instrumental in the whole narrative because the Jews had always doubted that Jesus came from the Father. Thus the lifting up of his eyes to heaven and the prayer address to the Father and consequently the bringing of Lazarus back to life were proof of the source of his power to those who once accused him of working through the power of Belzebul.
“LAZARUS, COME OUT!”
To understand my reflection, we must allow ourselves to enter into the spirit of the passage by moving beyond the ordinary. There is something that transpired between Jesus and Lazarus at this moment. At the very moment Jesus arrived, Lazarus was at alert. He knew that Jesus had arrived. The power of our Lord is so enormous that wherever he steps in, everything both animate and inanimate listens. Hear this! Jesus did not say “Lazarus arise.” He said rather, “Lazarus come out!” He did not negotiate with death. He commanded it. I could imagine his voice saying: “You death, listen to me. I knew him. We was my subject just like you. But I purposely delayed my coming on time just to allow you to take him for some time. You have held him captive for four days. You have managed to convince all those around him that it is over and nothing to do about it again. You have even deceived Martha that by now he will be smelling. But now I command you to take your filthy hands off him!” And guess what? Lazarus came out.
LIFE MESSAGE:
1. TOMBS OF PROBLEM
There are moments in life when we feel hidden behind a heavy stone of problems. We struggle to come out but to no avail because the stone is too heavy and our hands and feet are also bound by the problem. We cry for help but non seems to come. Friends and relations are desirous to help but they are limited because it is apparently beyond their power. Let us at this moment imagine those living with terminal phase of CANCER. What about the patients of COVID-19 at an intensive unit? What about other extreme cases and problems? Don’t they look like Lazarus in the tomb of problem? But the Gospel tells us that no situation is extreme for our God. Even when he has taken much time to come to our rescue, let us remember that he did it in the case of Lazarus who was already decaying with his problem. It does not matter when he comes, but he will always come. He does not need to raise us up from the immediate problem for us to believe that he is present. Yes, sometimes he allows the Lazarus in us to go (that which is so precious to us and which we think without it we cannot survive). The good news is that while we think that all hope is gone, he gives us comfort and strength to face the future with courage. Let us think of how people still survive even when the one they consider as the pillar of their life is no more. It can only be the Lord’s doing.
2. NOTHING SMELLS OUR GOD
Martha retorted, “Lord by now we will smell because it is already four days gone.” ‘O poor Martha how I wish you will understand the power of the one standing before you?’ When we have spent many years in the same problem we are tempted to lose hope because “it is now four days and smelling, and there is nothing anyone can do about it.” Jesus who stands before Lazarus is telling us, “I did not just come to raise a fresh corpse but a decomposed corpse. Yes, it is an extreme situation in the eyes of men but with me nothing is extreme.” Friends, have we ever thought about what happened to the smell that Martha spoke about even as they went ahead to remove the stone? Little did Martha know that he who commanded that the stone be removed had long taken care of the smell. And Lazarus came out with a sweet fragrance instead of odour. May our God in Jesus exchange your decayed situation with a fresh solution.
3. NO FRIEND LIKE JESUS
For the sake of love he came to Bethany at the expense of his own life.
For the sake of love and without hiding his feeling, he wept.
For the sake of love still he lifted his gaze to heaven and pleaded to the Father on their behalf. He gave them back their only brother.
Every single day is a renewal of his love for us. But sometimes we are tempted to think that he does not love us, simply because he did not “raise our own Lazarus from death.” What has he not done for us? Do we think that our present problem is more than the debt he paid on the cross by uniting us back to the Father?
Have we ever imagined how heavy and crushing the cross was? He did nothing to deserve it, but because he fell in love with us, he could not say no. Who could ever do that for the sake of love if not Jesus?
PRAYER
Lord you answered Mary and Martha and gave them back their lost hope. We humbly implore you to hear our cry for mercy upon our world sickened by the viral epidemic and heal us. Amen.
PAX VOBIS!
