Seeing our own sinfulness.

From Safari….

From my childhood, I remember the roadrunner cartoons. Wile E Coyote was constantly planning ways to trap the roadrunner in hopes of getting a meal. His traps failed, and the roadrunner was free to run.

The Gospels are sprinkled with stories of the scribes, Pharisees and Jewish leaders plotting to trap Jesus. Today’s Gospel is an example. They bring a woman before Jesus who was caught in the very act of committing adultery. This time they had an

iron-clad case, they would finally get Jesus out of the picture.

The dilemma for Jesus --- if he agreed to the Law of Moses

that a woman should be stoned, Jesus would lose the respect of

the sinners and others, who found hope in his words of mercy

and love. The Romans had also taken away from the Jews the

right to take the life of another. If Jesus agreed to stone the

woman, he would be in violation of the Roman law. If Jesus

said no to stoning, he would be seen as one turning from the

very word of God. How could he be the Son of God, for he is

straying from God’s word. Again, people would turn away

from him and, they could point him out as a false teacher.

Jesus, however, responds in an unexpected way. Let the one

without sin, be the first to cast a stone at her. In that simple

statement, Jesus moves the focus away from the sin of the

woman, to the hearts of those who were ready to stone her.

Where they free of sin? Even if someone were free of sin, to

stand ready to stone her would itself be a sin of pride.

Jesus in this action teaches that God’s law is not an instrument

of condemnation, but is a guide to help believers live in a

godly way. In addition, John writes, “Jesus did not come into

the world to condemn it but to save the world; not to lose

anything of what the Father has given him.” So, when the

woman is alone with Jesus, he does not condemn her but gives

her life. And In this new life she is to sin no more.

Mark Mossa reflecting on this passage from John, writes, “I’d

always found it pretty easy to get behind tough punishments

for drug users until the summer I was assigned as chaplain to a

drug and alcohol rehabilitation center. As an outsider, I

expected to be uncomfortable with the group. But I soon

discovered that many of the clients weren’t all that different

from me. With great remorse, they described how they had

stolen from and hurt their families in order to satisfy their

uncontrollable cravings.

It forced me to reflect on how I had hurt people I loved, not

because I was controlled by an addiction, but merely in pursuit

of selfish desires for pleasure or success. How could I condemn

them when I had committed similar wrongs, without even a

destructive addiction to attribute it to? Awareness of my own

sins underlined my need to meet them not with judgment but

with compassion.”

Like the crowd in the Gospel, how easy is it to point fingers?

Yet you and I often hurt others because of our selfishness,

our seeking pleasure at any cost, our desire for success or to

look good before others. Wayne Teasdale, a spiritual writer,

writes, "We can only judge others if we can fulfill two

conditions: that we know the other's heart totally, and that

we love them unconditionally. Only God can possibly meet

these two conditions, therefore only God can judge."

We come before God, and he does not condemn us;

through the actions of his Son, the grace of forgiveness is

ours. Hear God say to you today, “Neither do I condemn

you, go, and from now on, do not sin anymore.”

On a personal note. Reaching the age of 70 this year, my

plan was to retire. Plans took a different turn three weeks

ago, when the Priest Personnel Committee of the Diocese

asked if I would stay on as pastor at St. Francis Xavier and

St. Stephen for another year. The request was made to

allow “The All Things New” planning process to develop

plans for all the Area Catholic Communities. After prayer

and discussion, I did agree to stay on next year.

Fr. Ron