Homily, Fifth Sunday in Lent, April 7, 2019

We have made finger pointing into a fine art, and almost everyone seems to be in on the creation of this art form.  We have gotten so good at it that we can easily expect to see the worse in almost anyone.  I was walking through the office on Wednesday afternoon.  One of our parishioners was getting amass said for one of her friends; and she asked me: “is there anything sacred left in the world?”  I said, “absolutely!”  Everything is sacred.

Our world, all of creation, every star, planet, tree, bush, creature,  all of humanity is soaked in Christ, is soaked in Christ.  Problem is, we are so obsessed with all that is going wrong, all the doing of things they way we would never dream of doing them, so negatively obsessed it is hard to see the Good, the True and Beautiful.  We are so obsessed that we don’t even appreciate ourselves; afraid to make a mistake, and we beat ourselves up for days, and a lot longer, when we do  make a mistake.  Problem is, we expect that God does this to us as well.  We mumble and grumble at all those who seem to get away with murder, or worse.  All this does nothing except to drag us down into a huge pity-party pit.

Something wonderful is happening in today’s Gospel.  Oh, yes, there is finger pointing, blaming and shaming but that all takes a back seat to what Jesus is doing for a beleaguered woman.  A sea of finger pointing, shaming and blaming crashes in on Jesus as he is teaching.  The scribes and Pharisees are trying to humiliate, not only the Woman, but Jesus as well, right in front of all who were listening to him.  How does one find a way out of such a si situation. The battle lines are drawn, and they are very clear.

I imagine Jesus taking a deep breath — then he bends down and starts doodling on the ground.  I doodle when I’m thinking — do you?  Time passes.  A very deep hush settles upon everyone gathered there.  Jesus begins to start writing; and since this event we’ve wondered what in the world Jesus wrote on the ground that day.

There is a hint in what Jesus says to the  scribes and Pharisees, “let the one without sin cast the first stone.”  I can see the Pharisees and scribes bending down close to Jesus to see what in the world he was writing.  It has often been suggested that in this quiet, private moment Jesus was listing all their sins; and as they recognized their failures, they walked away, one by one; until it was only Jesus and the woman.

Between them there is no finger pointing, no blaming or shaming — only acceptance and in the acceptance — healing. If  In this silent, private moment Jesus makes her, with all her faults, the most important person in his life.  She, who had to live in the shadows can now live in the full light of day.  Pope Francis said last week that the person is far more important than any sin they may have committed.  Jesus, offered not a single word of correction, Jesus didn’t even mention her sin — because it didn’t matter — she mattered, and he told her to go don’t live in darkness but live in the full light of day-

This needs to be our prime directive; to care more about people rather than the sins they may commit.  The church has been very good at naming sin, and blaming people for it —- we need to become known as a people and a place of healing and compassion, not of shaming and blaming.  We need to draw each other out of the shadows, draw them into the circle of our life — with all our faults, and let the healing power of Christ take care of the rest.

When I entered the rooms of AA to recover from alcoholism no one had to point a finger, shame or blame me (though I am sure some did) I had done enough of that myself.  The fellowship of AA never said I had to stop drinking (the only requirement of AA is a desire to stop drinking).  I did stop, and I have stayed stopped for over 32 years because AA gave and gives me a new way to live.  This is what we as church ought to be doing, seeing the person, not the sin, accepting all those not here today , no matter what, no exceptions; and offer them the life that is freely given to us in the Eucharist we celebrate today, and let Christ take care of the rest.