“Remember that you have only one soul; that you have only one death to die; that you have only one life which is short and has to be lived by you alone’ and that there is only one glory, which is eternal. If you do this, there will be many things about which you care nothing.”
— St. Teresa of Avila
Every time I enter Resurrection Cemetery in Moon Twp. in the lead car before the hearse and pass through the entrance gate, there stands the Resurrected Lord -- “I am the Resurrection and the Life” (John 11:25). Invariably, in seeing this statue of the Risen Lord, I instinctively bless myself and pray that as mortal life is ended our new life in Christ will be celebrated.
The prophet Ezekiel (30:7) on this 5th Sunday of Lent gives us the promise of God: “I will open your graves and have you rise from them ... I will put my spirit in you that you may live.” The Prophet Ezekiel speaks of “dry bones," where we can feel lifeless, dull, irritable, like we have run out of gas, or are dead inside. Ezekiel describes a condition where one is down a long road of discouragement or lost enthusiasm. We find ourselves going through the motions, dragging along and completely lifeless. Perhaps we feel like we are wiped out or that we're becoming un-glued or we don't have our act together or we're falling apart or we can't get past what is breaking us. No one goes through life without dry, dark-valley experiences. God desires to impart His breath, His very essence, His Life into us anew. God's breath and Spirit sustain and enliven us with new energy, hope and a revived life. Ezekiel's vision of restoration of Israel during the exile in Babylon (587-538 BC) brings a breath of hope to the despondent, then and now. Perhaps we are in deep depression when our inner world is bleak and dark.
Perhaps we mourn a loved one, and we wonder if joy will ever return. Perhaps we've lost our dreams and enthusiasm and passion for life through failure, rejection or loss. Perhaps we're in the ditch of financial debt in which the black-hole gets darker and bigger. Perhaps we're caring for a loved one whose health only declines and worsens. Perhaps we think of those in AA on Wednesday nights and NA on Sunday night who come to our parish, living in the grip of addiction. Perhaps we can't find a way to live in forgiveness with one's self, God, the Church and one another. Perhaps we've experienced failure in a relationship or work situation that has life at an impasse or standstill. Perhaps we have not been as faithful to our Lenten disciplines and have failed new inner growth. Perhaps we are “digging our own grave” through sin. If any of these experiences or situations cause us to feel devoid of God's presence, let us feel God's breath come into our dry bones so that we may come to life.
In the Gospel today Jesus says to Lazarus, “Lazarus, come out!” (John 11:43). The raising of Lazarus from the dead foreshadows Jesus' own Resurrection on Easter Sunday 2 weeks away, and our own hope for salvation in Jesus Christ. In calling Lazarus, He calls each of us to come out of our tombs, to a brand new life. Jesus, the “Life-giver," raises hope and calls us to take steps to freedom. The Risen Christ desperately wants to reach into our own dark and worn places and pry us out to be free. Lent is the opportune time to roll away the stones that cover our graves of sin in order that we may enter a richer, new and fuller life with Christ. May we never underestimate the amount of healing, hope and forgiveness Jesus brings to our daily walk. The older one gets the more one hits the walls of one's limitations. However, the unlimited grace of God supplies for our deficiency. Hope springs eternal for the Christian and is in every season. Before every homily that I deliver, I say a prayer to the Holy Spirit that one soul be touched.
As the saying goes, there are two things that are certain in life: death and taxes (extended to April 18th this year!) Death for the Christian is not an end but a change. Yes, taxes cost us, but they also provide needed benefits. More certain than taxes and death, is God's promise to make all things new.
In the Way of the Cross Stations that we use for Lent, on the 14th Station, when Jesus is laid in the tomb, I like the reflection: “Almighty and Eternal God, on the edge of sadness when all seemed lost, You restored to us the Savior we thought defeated and conquered. Help us, we beg you, so to empty ourselves of self-concern that we might see Your hand in every failure and Your victory in every defeat. These things we ask in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns forever with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”
