Hear Him

Hear Him

March 16, 2013

Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent

“Let us destroy the tree in its vigor; let us cut him off from the land of the living, so that his name will be spoken no more.”  But, you, O LORD of hosts, O just Judge, searcher of mind and heart, Let me witness the vengeance you take on them, for to you I have entrusted my cause!  Jeremiah 11:19-20

Nicodemus, one of their members who had come to him earlier, said to them, “Does our law condemn a man before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?”  They answered and said to him, “You are not from Galilee also, are you?  Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”  John 7:50-52

Piety

Father, help us to put away of selfish pursuits and be the change that we seek in the world around us.  Jesus, only you can make us see clearly in the dim light of this world until we can see you in your perfection.  Holy Spirit, send forth the gifts of wisdom so we know what is right and good and true.  Amen.

Study

Do you know that there is NO patron saint of change?  We have patron saints for countries and cities, causes and professions but in 2013 years of tradition, we have no patron saint whose life was connected to change.

Yet in our Little Lenten Instruction booklet, change is the constant message connected to all others.  We all remember that famous lines at 1 Corinthians 13:11.  When I became an adult, I put away childish things.   In that spirit, therefore, I nominate Nicodemus to be the Patron Saint of Change. He undergoes this transformation right before our eyes in John's Gospel. 

He is not knocked off his horse.  He does not get sent to prison by the Romans.  He does not run and hide when Christ is hung on the cross.  Slowly, like a simmering chili, Nicodemus warms up to the Christian Ideal espoused by the Nazorean.  At first, he slips away under cover of darkness to learn from Jesus in the middle of the night.

While most anyone who watches a football game can tell you that the most famous -- or at least publicized passage in the Good News is John 3:16, do you recall that those words were spoken to Nicodemus that fateful night?

That night school lesson must have had an impact on "St. Nicodemus."  Today we find him in broad daylight in the temple with his confreres.  He has listened to Jesus and he implores others to listen to Him as well before condemning Jesus.  Unfortunately, once again they fail to listen to him. 

We will meet up with him one more time long after the Apostles have scattered and hid themselves away.  Nicodemus will be at the foot of the cross, taking the body of Jesus to a proper burial -- turned fully to the corporal and spiritual works of mercy.

Action

Beginning Easter week and continuing each month through Labor Day, the USCCB's Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development will offer a series of messages that speak to the ongoing effects of the economic crisis.  These messages apply our faith perspective to problems affecting our communities: hunger, income inequality, immigrant justice, access to economic opportunity, and environmental degradation; all things that impact the most vulnerable.  In preparation, we invite you to take a look at our teaching on economic life articulated in the bishops' statement Economic Justice for All - a key document that remains very relevant today. 

Instead of just tracking how now-rising the stock market affects the balance in your retirement account, check out this Catholic framework for an economic life:  http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/economic-justice-economy/index.cfm.