Tuesday of the Fourth Week in Lent
Ezekiel
47:1-9, 12 — John 5:1-16
March 16, 2010
Scripture readings from Holy Mass: CLICK HERE
Verse for Recollection throughout the Day:
“Then he
brought me /
to the bank
of the river, /
where he had
me sit.”
[Ezekiel 47:6]
Reflection:
Today’s
Gospel passage narrates the “third
sign” of John’s account. Each of
these seven signs (from John 2-12)
bring us closer to Jesus’ Passion, Death and Resurrection.
This third
sign is like the second in that Jesus demonstrates the
immediacy of His divine power. The ill man explains that he has not been
cured because he cannot reach the
healing waters. But Jesus does not help
the man into the waters. He does not
even explain that the waters are unnecessary for the man’s healing. Jesus simply says, “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.”
One of the
unique marks of this third sign is that it is a turning point
in John’s gospel account. The last
sentence of the passage ominously tells us that it was because of this sign that
“the Jews began to persecute
Jesus[,] because he did this on a sabbath.”
A third point to notice about this narrative,
and on which I ask you specifically to reflect, is that Jesus would not have
been identified and subjected to persecution (at least, not this early) by the
religious officials if He had not re-appeared “in the Temple area” to speak to the cured man a second time. And what does He say to him? “[D]o not sin anymore,
so that nothing worse may happen to you.”
Just as Jesus points the man’s attention away from the
pool’s water towards His own divine power, so Jesus points his attention away
from his physical ailment and towards
the state of his spiritual health. It is for the sake of this attention that Jesus
first becomes a subject of persecution.
Reflection Questions:
What does Jesus
want from me? What do I need to focus my
attention on more squarely in my spiritual life?
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Please
pray for these intentions:
special intention
of V.
special intentions of E.
special intention of M.
special intention of L.
special intention of S.
prayers for a 16-year old — D. — who is on
the wrong path
special intention of J.
special intention of T.
special intention of R.
special intention of N.
repose of the soul of Father Richard Stuchlik
special intention
of Father Hoisington
You
are invited to submit your own petitions to Father Hoisington by means of the Reflections Facebook group, or to his email address: hoisingtont@cdowk.org. You may either give a brief description of
your intention, or simply list “a special intention”, after which your first
initial would be listed. These intentions will be prayed for until Easter,
unless you indicate a specific ending date for your prayers.
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And please remember to invite your
friends to join the “Reflections on the Sacred Liturgy” group on Facebook, or
to follow the Reflections blog at: http://reflectionsonthesacredliturgy.blogspot.com/
