Thursday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Readings for Thursday of the Fourth Week of Lent[1][2]
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible at Universalis

Commentary:

Reading 1 Ex 32:7-14

The commentary from the JBC is very good: “Yahweh informs Moses of the people's sin; these verses must originate from a source other than that of v. 18, where Moses appears ignorant of what is happening in the camp. Yahweh has divorced himself from this sinful people, for he refers to them as "your people." He intends to destroy the wicked and form a new nation. Moses now assumes the role of mediator and appeals to God's honor for his own name before the pagan nations as a motive to prevent the destruction of his people. As a second motive, Moses recalls the prom­ises accorded to Abraham. We note, however, the subsequent conflicting elements of the punishments in­voked by Moses (32:20,25-29) and the testimony of Yahweh (32:34).”[3]

Responsorial Psalm Ps 106:19-20, 21-22, 23
R. Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.

Psalm 106 is a national lament remembering the events from Exodus in the first reading. It reminds the people that Moses interceded and turned away God’s wrath.

Gospel Jn 5:31-47

Jesus continues his discourse as his revelation continues from the past few days. He now focuses on testimony other than his own to demonstrate that he is the Son of God. He starts with John the Baptist and then moves to the works he has performed in the Father’s name indicating that those give testimony that he is from God. Jesus finally points to Holy Scripture and tells the Jews that even scripture testifies to his identity.

In the final section of this passage, Jesus attacks the Jews for their lack of belief in him. He points out that he did not come seeking praise or glory for his own sake (“I do not accept human praise”). He goes on to tell them they do not see the truth but will believe a lie if it conforms to what they believe the truth should be. (“..you do not accept me; yet if another comes in his own name, you will accept him”)

The logic of the Lord’s words in the final verses crashes down on them. If they reject Jesus in favor of the glory that comes from false prophets then he does not need to condemn them, they are self condemned. He tells them that if they believed Moses (the author of revelation in the Old Testament) they would believe in him and are now condemned by Moses as well because by rejecting Jesus, they have disbelieved in the word of Moses.

Homily:

“The works that the Father gave me to accomplish, these works that I perform testify on my behalf that the Father has sent me.”

In the first reading from the Book of Exodus we find Moses asking God to hold back his wrath because the Israelites, seeking to see a symbol of God had formed a golden calf – a graven image. Moses succeeded in turning away God’s punishment.

Next in the Gospel of St. John we find Jesus continuing to try to help the decedents of the unbelievers at Horeb understand that He is the one true Messiah, the Son of God. Using Moses and the prophets Abraham. Isaac, and Israel who Moses identified, he tells them that if they cannot believe in the prophecy of their forefathers they have fallen.

The Jews cannot believe Jesus is the Christ because they have a different idea about what the Christ should be. They want to create the Messiah in their own image. And in that concept we must ask if we don’t do the same.

At the beginning of this post I quoted a section of the Gospel: “The works that the Father gave me to accomplish, these works that I perform testify on my behalf that the Father has sent me.” What would people say the Messiah looked like if they were to judge his identity by our actions?

As we struggle with our Lenten journey we need to look closely at what we do, what motivates our actions and ask; “ Is this for the Lord’s glory, or my own?”

Pax
[1] After 04/07
[2] The image presented today is “Moses and the Golden Calf” by Domenico Beccafumi, 1536-37
[3] All references to Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc.© 1968