HOMILY OF THE MONDAY OF THE FIFTH WEEK OF LENT YEAR B
Daniel 13:1-9.15-17.19-30.33-62, John 8:1-11
THEME: HUMAN WICKEDNESS AND DIVINE VINDICATION
Man judges based on his personal preferences and expectations. God vindicates according to his merciful love. When he applies his justice, the wicked cannot stand.
In our today’s first reading, Susanna was accused of adultery by the very elders who sought to lie with her. Her firmness and refusal to succumb to their devilish request ignited the death instinct in them. They falsely accused her so as to sentence her to death, but God was not silent. He had to rouse his spirit in the young boy Daniel, who wisely uncovered their evil plan. And the evil which they intended finally recoiled on them.
Furthermore, the case of the woman caught in adultery in our today’s gospel is another clear demonstration of God divine mercy. Man judges others based on how matters affect him or her. But before God, no man is fit to stand. No one is perfect. We are all at the mercy of God. Hence, no one has the right to condemn others. Jesus told them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 8:7-8. They all went away sorrowfully beginning with the eldest.
The elders were the chief actors in the first reading. There were the first to leave the stage from the gospel’s account. I pray that we do not grow in evil. Age is number. Wisdom is from above. It is evil to nurse evil with grey hair.
Moreover, the two readings show a kind of discrimination against the feminine gender. Susanna was to be executed without making recourse to the supposed man who slept with her. In the gospel, there was no mention of the man who committed adultery with this woman. Possibly, like the case of Susanna, some of her accusers must have had failed attempt to sleep with her. Now, the time has come to destroy what they could not conquer.
However, we live in a world where women can assume any position and perform incredibly well. When we look at women as the weaker sex incapable of refuting any form of shit, we may be missing the mark. It will surely bounce back. A help mate is not a second citizen. Respect is reciprocal.
May God rescue us from the hands of those who plot evil against us and I pray that our selfish desires will not plunge us into making judgement that can kill our Godly instinct. Amen.
Leave a comment