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ArchiveLent 2010Fifth Sunday of Lent    September 8, 2010
Fifth Sunday of Lent Minimize
 

 

The enemies of Jesus tried to set a trap for him (John 8, 1-11). If he condemned the woman who had been caught in the act of committing adultery, he would have shown total lack of compassion, and this would have hampered his mission by damaging his reputation with the ordinary people.
 
If, on the other hand, he failed to condemn her, he would have been denying the validity of the Jewish law – a very serious matter. What was he to do? It seemed he couldn’t win.
 
He did win, however. In very dramatic fashion, Jesus forced the accusers of the adulteress to face up to their own sinfulness. They may not have been guilty of adultery. But they were certainly not free from sin, and thus they were not in a position to condemn another sinner.
Jesus refused to condemn the adulteress, but this did not mean that he condoned her sin. On the contrary, he told her quite firmly: “Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.” In like manner, Jesus does not condemn us; but he does call us constantly to turn away from sin. Lent is a time when we try to take this call of our Saviour more seriously than usual.

 

  
 
 
Gospel Readings for the weekdays of the Fifth Week of Lent Minimize
 

 

Monday                                     John 8: 12-20
Tuesday                                    John 8: 21-30
Wednesday                               John 8: 31-42
Thursday (The Annunciation)       Luke 1: 26-38
Friday                                       John 10: 31-42
Saturday                                   John 11: 45-57

 

  
 
 
This week Minimize
 

 

Think about it:
 
How frequently are you, in practice, more judgmental of others than you are of
yourself?
 
Listen to it:
 
Read the story slowly, and try to imagine that you are there in the crowd in front of Jesus as this dramatic scene unfolds.
 
Talk about it:
 
Ask your friends how they would have reacted had they been present on this occasion – and tell them, honestly, how you would have reacted.
 
Learn from it:
 
Try to be a little less harsh in your judgment of the failings of others, and a little firmer in your assessment of your own failings.
 
Pray about it:
 
Lord, help me to own up to my own failings that I may be more tolerant of the failings of others. Amen.
  
 
 
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