Gospel – John 12: 20-33
Some Greeks who had come to worship at the Passover Feast
came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee,
and asked him, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.”
Philip went and told Andrew;
then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.
Jesus answered them,
“The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
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.
Whoever loves his life loses it,
and whoever hates his life in this world
will preserve it for eternal life.
Whoever serves me must follow me,
and where I am, there also will my servant be.
The Father will honor whoever serves me.
“I am troubled now. Yet what should I say?
‘Father, save me from this hour’?
But it was for this purpose that I came to this hour.
Father, glorify your name.”
Then a voice came from heaven,
“I have glorified it and will glorify it again.”
The crowd there heard it and said it was thunder;
but others said, “An angel has spoken to him.”
Jesus answered and said,
“This voice did not come for my sake but for yours.
Now is the time of judgment on this world;
now the ruler of this world will be driven out.
And when I am lifted up from the earth,
I will draw everyone to myself.”
He said this indicating the kind of death he would die.
Reflection on the Gospel
Let us remember that we are in the holy presence of God.
Create a clean heart in me, O God. (Psalm 51)
I really love and appreciate the wisdom of the Church exhibited in the seasons of the Church year: Advent, Christmas, Lent, etc. Each season is packed with annual themes and imagery that guide and direct our prayer and faith life each year.
I love how Lent begins in the dead of winter, when the days are short, cold, and nasty. Then, at the culmination of Lent, Easter Sunday, the world is brimming with sunshine, flowers, green grass, and floods of life-giving rain that feeds and fertilizes the Earth… Did I paint a heart-warming picture? =)
Today is the fifth Sunday of Lent, and hopefully by now, glimpses of springtime weather, combined with our Lenten observances of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, have all helped thaw out the frozen fields of our soul and warmed our hearts of stone, readying us for the transforming joy of salvation that comes to us on Easter Sunday.
Reflection Questions
1. With two weeks left before Easter, how is your heart today?
2. What action(s) can you take today to ready better the field of your soul and your heart for the season of Easter?
3. Finally, repeat the words of today’s responsorial psalm, and pray awhile:
Create a clean heart in me, O God. (Psalm 51)
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Mr. Ciro F. Saverino
Contact, District of Eastern North America (RELAN)
Ciro first met the Brothers as a student at Christian Brothers Academy in Lincroft, New Jersey. Earning his teaching degree, Ciro returned to his alma mater to teach Spanish at CBA, and continues to discern his call to the Institute as a Contact.
Saint John Baptist de La Salle – Pray for us.
Live, Jesus, in our hearts – Forever!