4th Week of Lent
24th March 2023 (Friday) Readings and Reflection
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Reading of the Day
First Reading: Wisdom 2:1a, 12-22
Ungodly men reasoned unsoundly, saying to themselves, "Let us lie in wait for the righteous man, because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions; he reproaches us for sins against the law and accuses us of sins against our training. He professes to have knowledge of God and calls himself a child of the Lord. He became to us a reproof of our thoughts; the very sight of him is a burden to us, because his manner of life is unlike that of others and his ways are strange. We are considered by him as something base, and he avoids our ways as unclean; he calls the last end of the righteous happy and boasts that God is his father. Let us see if his words are true, and let us test what will happen at the end of his life; for if the righteous man is God's son, he will help him and will deliver him from the hand of his adversaries. Let us test him with insult and torture, that we may find out how gentle he is and make trial of his forbearance. Let us condemn him to a shameful death for, according to what he says, he will be protected." Thus they reasoned, but they were led astray, for their wickedness blinded them, and they did not know the secret purposes of God or hope for the wages of holiness or discern the prize for blameless souls.
Psalm 34:17-18, 19-20, 21 and 23 (R. 19a)
R/. The Lord is close to the broken-hearted.
Gospel : John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30
At that time: Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him. Now the Jews' Feast of Booths was at hand. But after his brothers had gone up to the feast, then he also went up, not publicly but in private. Some of the people of Jerusalem therefore said, "Is not this the man whom they seek to kill? And here he is, speaking openly, and they say nothing to him! Can it be that the authorities really know that this is the Christ? But we know where this man comes from, and when the Christ appears, no one will know where he comes from." So Jesus proclaimed, as he taught in the temple, "You know me, and you know where I come from. But I have not come of my own accord. He who sent me is true, and him you do not know. I know him, for I come from him, and he sent me." So they were seeking to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come.
Daily Gospel Reflection
The Reflection by Fr. Thumma Mariadas Reddy MSFS{alertWarning}
Main Theme: Just one, obnoxious!
Indicative: The Jews of Jesus’ time rejected Jesus and constantly persecuted him and tried to kill him because they really did not “know” his divine identity{alertSuccess}
1. It is really strange that already from John chapter 5th itself, the Jews decide and plan to kill Jesus. He just began his first sign in chapter 2 with the wedding at Cana. Thereby already he began to manifest his divine power. But immediately we have the cleansing of the temple whereby he begins to get into a confrontation
2. This clearly indicates that Jesus was not inhibited or intimidated by human forces or pressures. He did not want to waste his time in a skill-gathering, well-equipping preparation. With no delay, he plunges deep into his mission
3. He knew very well that the Jews were trying to kill him. But that does not deter him from teaching openly at the Jewish feast of the Tabernacles. He does not budge from declaring that he is sent by the Father and he came from Him
4. He is not afraid to expose their shallow knowledge of him. He openly affirms that they neither know him nor the Father. What they know is only his earthly origin, like Where? When? How?
5. Jesus really fits into the figure of the Just one in the first reading, against whom the wicked plot because he was a “thorn in the flesh” for them. He was different from others and not like others
6. He would cause so much discomfort and annoyance for them. He is a hardship for them. But who is this just one? What does he do? We gather various elements in the first reading. A just man is obnoxious to the wicked. He sets himself against their doings. He judges them debased, and holds their ways as impure. Thereby, he keeps himself aloof from their company. He reproaches them for their transgressions of the law and violations of their training
7. He conducts himself as a child of God and possesses knowledge of God. He stands firm amid their numerous tests.
8. On the other hand, the enemies of Jesus quite rightly resemble the enemies of the true prophet. They are wicked. They plan to put him to the test, whether God will come to his rescue and whether he would persevere when he is tested. They try his patience with revilement and torture. They plot to condemn him to a shameless death. But they err in their thinking. They are blinded by their wickedness. They fail to know God’s counsels and discern the holy souls’ reward
Imperative: On which side are we – the Just or the Wicked? Are we like the just man, remaining faithful to God in faith and perseverance? Or do we behave like the wicked with no depth and fidelity?{alertSuccess}