April 10, 2014
Thursday 5th Week of Lent
1st Reading: Gen 17:3–9
Gospel: Jn 8:51–59
Jesus said to the Jews, “Truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never experience death.” The Jews replied, “Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died and the prophets as well, but you say: ‘Whoever keeps my word will never experience death.’ Who do you claim to be? Do you claim to be greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets also died.”
Then Jesus said, “If I were to praise myself, it would count for nothing. But he who gives glory to me is the Father, the very one you claim as your God, although you don’t know him. I know him and if I were to say that I don’t know him, I would be a liar like you. But I know him and I keep his word. As for Abraham, your ancestor, he looked forward to the day when I would come; and he rejoiced when he saw it.” (…)
D@iGITAL-EXPERIENCE
(Daily Gospel in
the Assimilated Life
Experience)
An old couple who used to work as entertainers in Japan before they got engaged to each other celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. At his dinner speech the man said: “We got married when I was thirty and my wife was thirty too.” His speech was interrupted because her wife went ballistic. She was already a little deaf and she felt insulted because what she heard was: “We got married when I was DIRTY and my wife was DIRTY TOO.”
In today’s Gospel the Jews felt insulted by what Jesus said, not because they were deaf but because their minds were attuned only to earthly language. Jesus said: “Truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never experience death.” He was obviously talking about the spirit’s immunity from death.
The Jews found this statement off tangent with reality. They said: “Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died and the prophets as well, but you say: ‘Whoever keeps my word will never experience death.’” But Jesus was obviously referring to the spirit’s immunity from death, not the body. Did he fail as a teacher in imparting this concept to his listeners? No! As a teacher he was second to none in simplifying his message. He did so by using parables and by practicing what he preached. The problem was really in the level of spirituality of his listeners. They were too worldly to comprehend spiritual matters. Spiritual truths are revealed only to the humble, for only the humble are prepared to absorb spiritual realities.
In this season of Lent let us humbly acknowledge that our hearts are dirty and our minds are dirty too! Let us confess and strive to come out from this Lenten Season more sensitive to the language of the spirit.- Rev. Fr. Dan Domingo P. delos Angeles, Jr., DM. Email: [email protected]. Website: www.frdan.org.
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