h-lent 3 Scrutinies a

March 29, 2009

Fifth Sunday in Lent (B)

Rev. P. Del Staigers

Jer 31:31-34 X Heb 5:7-9 X John 12:20-33

Note to those preaching the “A” cycle of readings: The Roman Lectionary offers two options of readings for this weekend: the “B” cycle of readings, and the “A” cycle, used for the Third Scrutiny as part of the preparation for those in the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. This sample homily is written for the “B” cycle, but could be easily adapted for “A” cycle in liturgies where the Elect of the Church are present. The account of the Raising of Lazarus offers the opportunity to preach on the gift of life; though raised from the dead, Lazarus will one day die. Jesus and Lazarus will meet again. For now, Lazarus is given more time with Martha and Mary, maybe making the point that this life is important, even an integral part of heaven to come. The Son of God is glorified even in death, and the death of Lazarus foreshadows what the church will be remembering in the weeks to come, not merely in the past tense, but the present. “Untie him and let him go” continues to be the invitation for followers of Christ to witness to His saving power, both in life and in death.

Last week an auditorium at the Dayton Art Institute was packed with people to watch the world premiere of the HBO documentary, They Killed Sister Dorothy. The movie is being released this week, but people from Sister Dorothy’s hometown were invited to see it first.

Sister Dorothy, a member of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, spent most of her ministry in Brazil working to give the poor of the Amazon Region a voice. Sister Dorothy was martyred sixteen years after Chico Mendez was murdered for standing up for the rights of the poor, as well as refusing to be intimidated because of land disputes which resulted in mass deforestation in Para state, specifically “lot 55” of the Amazon forest.

After watching the movie, there was time for comments and questions with the producer of the movie, as well as Sister Dorothy’s brother, who has been integral in the making of this movie. David, Sr. Dorothy’s brother recounted events which had caused him to believe that “Dot” knew that her life may be ended by those she had angered by her unrelenting dedication to her Gospel beliefs.

One of Sister Dorothy’s colleagues commented about her time after Sr. Dorothy’s assassination and burial on the land she loved so much. She stated that “Sr. Dorothy was not buried, she was planted. Her work continues to grow, change is happening.” A silent, maybe even stunned audience broke into applause with these words.

Philip and Andrew stood in the presence of Jesus at the hour that had come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Though they did not yet understand all that Jesus was saying to them, they did know that they “would like to see Jesus.”

Did they know what they were really asking? Did they know that His blood would soak the earth to transform not only its meaning, but also its future? And surely they could not have completely understood that glorification also involves suffering, even death.

“Amen, amen, I say to you,

unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies,

it remains just a grain of wheat;

but if it dies, it produces much fruit.

Those who witness to the power of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection – those who follow closely to the example and will of Christ, come to believe that they are not saved “from this hour.” For most of us, we do not witness to the point of death, but we nonetheless witness with our entire life. We are all a grain of wheat, dying to self so that our lives bear much fruit.

As the Midwest sun warms the chilled earth, we are reminded vividly of this truth as the wheat planted last fall is turning to lush fields of verdant new life. The death of winter is coming to an end. The seed that appeared to be dead for these past months is now springing to life.

Lent gives us the opportunity to examine our own willingness to die to all that stands in the way of our following the Lord completely. We are asked to discern how serious we are in our desire to “see Jesus.” We are asked to make serious decisions about our own choices in following Jesus, our own acts of fidelity in regard to preserving our life in obedience to suffering. Not suffering for its own sake, but bearing the same Cross of Jesus so that we might see glory.

God’s law has already been written in our hearts. How willing are we to live out our witness to baptism? We were not merely buried with Christ, but planted with Him so that our lives might bear much fruit.

As the blood of the martyrs produces much growth for the Kingdom, the blood of Christ continues to nourish us on our journey. We were not merely buried with Christ, but planted with Him so that our lives might bear much fruit.

Sir, we would like to see Jesus!