Passion Sunday [C]
PASSION SUNDAY (CYCLE C)
If I were to pick my favorite Gospel, I would probably vote for either Matthew or John. But in practice, the Gospel I recommend the most would be the one written by Luke. He tells us what we need to hear. The trouble is, there are a significant number of Catholics who see the Bible as an ornament rather than a resource. It’s something that looks impressive on a coffee table or a bookshelf. You shouldn’t be expected to actually open it up and read it. I find myself pleading with these individuals: I know it’s a really thick book; I know it deals with events that happened a long time ago, on the other side of the world; I know there’s a lot of dry material, and that some of the passages are confusing. Can I at least talk you into reading two chapters? See if you can manage your way through chapter fifteen and chapter twenty three of Luke’s Gospel.
What’s so special about these two chapters? They highlight the Lord’s brand of radical mercy. It’s a theme that runs through the whole Gospel, but it manifests itself most prominently in chapters fifteen and twenty three. Chapter fifteen features the parable of the Prodigal Son. He makes his return, because his stomach is growling. He doesn’t think about patching things up with his father until his own personal situation becomes absolutely desperate. Then, driven by intense hunger, he sets a course for home. In other words, his contrition falls well short of being perfect contrition.
Does the father care? Not at all. His response makes it very clear: I’m just glad that you are here, back in my presence. Whether your motives are pure or whether they are deficient, I simply want you to know that you are loved. By extension, we need to understand that our Heavenly Father is waiting, very eager to welcome us back into his presence. He would rather have you in his presence, bearing your baggage and your hang-ups, than to not have you in his presence. Therefore, go to him, however lacking your motivations may be. Go to him, however lacking your level of devotion, your level of love, your level of virtue.
Meanwhile, chapter twenty three takes center-stage this weekend, as we observe Passion Sunday. Note especially verses thirty nine through forty three. The Good Thief is being granted the ultimate gift—access to Paradise. His life would appear to have been a misspent life. But in his final hour, he manages to display a measure of reverence. And for Jesus, that’s enough. He prefers to focus on those few moments of reverence, not on the preceding years of waywardness. It’s almost as if the Lord is just looking for an excuse; he’s looking for an excuse to save. If Jesus was looking for an excuse to condemn, then the Good Thief would fall short on many counts. Instead, the one count of reverence outweighs the previous accumulation of negative counts.
By way of conclusion, I’ll reference a comedy legend named W.C. Fields. He’s remembered for his talent, and also for being a complete rogue of an individual (even if a lovable rogue). Late in life, with his health beginning to fade, Fields was observed reading a Bible. Upon being questioned about this uncharacteristic behavior, he responded by explaining it this way: I’m just looking for loopholes. Let’s hope he found his way to the Gospel of St. Luke. Let’s hope and pray that he spent some quality time reflecting on those two crucial chapters: chapters fifteen and twenty three. And furthermore, do yourself a favor by either discovering or rediscovering the Gospel that speaks so profoundly to the theme of Divine Radical Mercy.