Fifth Sunday of Lent Cycle C

April 3, 2022

Cycle C

Review the Readings

Listen to the Readings

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Isaiah preached to the Jewish exiles in Babylon to give them hope that God would not abandon them. 

He reminded them that God would do that for them exactly what he had done for their ancestors who were in slavery in Egypt;  how he lead them out of their slavery through the Red Sea, destroyed their enemy and then even  took care of them during their journey in the desert.  God was there in difficult times.

 

 

In our difficult times this  reading can gives us encouragement, knowing that God will not abandon us no matter what our situation is.

 

We need to remember that we are on a  journey to the promised eternal life and that journey includes problems and difficulties.

 

It is so easy to ask God to take away all the problems, all the difficulties.   We do not trust God, and we fail to see that these are the very situations which help us to see if we trust God or not.

 

 

 

 

 

We know that Saint Paul suffered many hardships and difficulties and that he truly carried the crosses in his life. He truly believed that they were part of the journey for him to eternal life.

 

We live in a world that wants to teach us that we should never have any serious problems or difficulties.

Yet we know that problems and difficulties will happen to all people, but as Christians we know that they are a part of our journey to eternal life.

 

 

This Gospel  story of the merciful forgiveness for an adulterous woman by Jesus Christ can give us courage when we see our own failures, our own sinfulness.

 

 

God's love, mercy, and forgiveness is always there for us, but the difficulty is that often we are not willing to admit our failures, our sins, and then we will not experience God's forgiveness.

 

 

Lent has been a time when we, through prayer, fasting, alms giving,etc. we have had the opportunity to see our own sinfulness. 

 

Hopefully we have been able to see the times that we were uncharitable, judgmental, impatience, selfish, etc.

 

 

If there are souls in hell it is not because of their sins,

but of their pride in their refusing to see their own sins

and not being able to ask God for forgiveness.