Dear brothers and sisters,

This week we celebrate the Fifth Sunday of Lent and again our Gospel, like last week with the parable of the prodigal son, gives us an im- age of the merciful heart of Jesus. He is confronted by the Pharisees with a woman who was caught in the act of adultery. His response was amazing. He knelt down and drew with His finger in the sand as He spoke with them. Saint Alcuin commented on this by saying, “The ground denotes the human heart, which yields the fruit either of good or of bad actions: the finger jointed and flexible, discretion. He instructs us then, when we see any faults in our neighbors, not immediately and rashly to condemn them, but after searching our own hearts to begin with, to examine them atten- tively with the finger of discretion.” (Canta Aurea, St Thomas Aquinas) We remember in Matthew 7:2 our Lord says, “For as you judge, so will you be judged, and the measure with which you measure will be measured out to you.” That is the lesson our Lord is teaching them, and us, in this inter- action. If we notice He did not say, do not stone her, and thus declaring her actions not sinful, but He said, “Let him who is without sin among you throw the first stone.” This shows us the great mercy He has for us and reminds us that He came to restore our relationship with God. We can see then what our Lord meant when He said, “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what is lost.” (Lk 19:10)

Our Lord makes all things new. He changed the life of that woman by forgiving her and wants to do the same for us. God’s mercy has an amazing effect on our hearts and this leads to true conversion. John Paul II once said, “We are not the sum of our weaknesses and failures; we are the sum of the Father’s love for us and our real capacity to become the image of His Son.” When we meet that love, in Jesus, it moves us to change in response. This is why Jesus says to the woman, “Go, and sin no more.” We are called to a new rela- tionship with God. We come as sinners, and we leave forgiven. God is with us. Christ heals us, fills us with joy, and challenges us to be saints. Go, and sin no more.

Peace,

Fr. Mike