Homily
[2] Fifth Sunday of Lent Year C: Fr. Michael U. Udoekpo
Readings: Isa 43:16-21; Ps 126:1-6; Phil
3:8-14 and John 8:1-11
“When the Lord Delivered Zion from Bondage It
was Like a Dream…” (Ps 126)
These
words of the psalmist sum up the one of the central themes of today’s reading: the
redeeming power of God. The Lord will never abandon his pilgrim Church, of
saint and sinners, including the “woman caught in the very act of committing
adultery,” in today’s gospel passage.
God’s
reassurance never to abandon us, no matter the thickness of our wilderness, of our
brokenness and struggles seeking redemption, is off course, traceable to the
first reading (Isa43:16-21). Second Isaiah takes us back to the events of the
exodus. God saved and protected Israel in the wilderness. Encouraging those in exiled,
the frustrated, those who had lost their homes, their relatives, their
properties, their temple, their freedom to worship, their fundamental human
right, to the Babylonian military, Isaiah’s says, God “makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters, who brings out
chariot and horse, army and warrior… I will make a way in the wilderness and
rivers in the desert.”
The joy
and hope of this freedom finds expressions in Psalm 126: An interesting prayer;
“When the Lord brought back captives from
Zion, it was like a dream, then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our
tongue with great joy. Then they said among the nation, “the Lord has done
great things for them.” The Lord has done great things for us; we were glad.
Restore our fortunes, O Lord, like the torrents in the southern desert. Those
that sow in tears shall reap with joy. Although they go forth weeping, carrying
the seed to be sown, they shall come back rejoicing, carrying their sheaves.”
What a joyful
and a hopeful prayer for Lent, especially in this year of Mercy. It
acknowledges God’s watchfulness over us. It acknowledges God’s blessings, his divine
mercies both in the past, and in the present. It appeals for the future, since
we are sinners seeking forgiveness and journeying to that Promised Land!
Look at
the woman in today’s gospel- the figure of a sinner, like any of us! In spite
of the insinuation of the Scribes and the Pharisees, Christ insists she deserves
forgiveness. She deserves to live, and not to be stoned to death. The God of
Lent is gracious and merciful! The Christ of Lent is forgiving. He loves us to
the Cross!
Saint
Paul in all his missionary works and imperfection acknowledges this too.
Addressing the church in Philippi, Paul says,
“It is not that I have already taken hold of
it (kingdom of God) or have already attained perfect maturity, but I continue
my pursuit in hope that I may possess it… Just one thing, forgetting what
lies behind, but straining forward to
what lies ahead, I continue my pursuit toward the, goal, the prize of God’s
upward calling, in Christ Jesus (Phil 3:8-14).
Whatever form our captivities, dryness, sins, weaknesses and
life challenges may take, Lent invites us to re-acknowledge God’s power of
freedom, his love, his mercy, his compassion, his forgiveness, his liberation,and redemption manifested in Christ and his values, for when the Lord delivered Zion from bondage it was like a dream!
