March 20, 2026
Friday of the Fourth Week of
Lent
Lectionary: 248
Reading
1
The wicked said
among themselves,
thinking not aright:
"Let us beset the just one, because he is obnoxious to us;
he sets himself against our doings,
Reproaches us for transgressions of the law
and charges us with violations of our training.
He professes to have knowledge of God
and styles himself a child of the LORD.
To us he is the censure of our thoughts;
merely to see him is a hardship for us,
Because his life is not like that of others,
and different are his ways.
He judges us debased;
he holds aloof from our paths as from things impure.
He calls blest the destiny of the just
and boasts that God is his Father.
Let us see whether his words be true;
let us find out what will happen to him.
For if the just one be the son of God, he will defend him
and deliver him from the hand of his foes.
With revilement and torture let us put him to the test
that we may have proof of his gentleness
and try his patience.
Let us condemn him to a shameful death;
for according to his own words, God will take care of him."
These were their thoughts, but they erred;
for their wickedness blinded them,
and they knew not the hidden counsels of God;
neither did they count on a recompense of holiness
nor discern the innocent souls' reward.
Responsorial
Psalm
Psalm 34:17-18, 19-20, 21 and
23
R. (19a) The
Lord is close to the brokenhearted.
The LORD confronts the evildoers,
to destroy remembrance of them from the earth.
When the just cry out, the LORD hears them,
and from all their distress he rescues them.
R. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
Many are the troubles of the just man,
but out of them all the LORD delivers him.
R. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted.
He watches over all his bones;
not one of them shall be broken.
The LORD redeems the lives of his servants;
no one incurs guilt who takes refuge in him.
R. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted.
Verse
Before the Gospel
One does not live
on bread alone,
but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.
Gospel
Jesus moved about
within Galilee;
he did not wish to travel in Judea,
because the Jews were trying to kill him.
But the Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near.
But when his brothers had gone up to the feast,
he himself also went up, not openly but as it were in secret.
Some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said,
"Is he not the one they are trying to kill?
And look, he is speaking openly and they say nothing to him.
Could the authorities have realized that he is the Christ?
But we know where he is from.
When the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from."
So Jesus cried out in the temple area as he was teaching and said,
"You know me and also know where I am from.
Yet I did not come on my own,
but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true.
I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me."
So they tried to arrest him,
but no one laid a hand upon him,
because his hour had not yet come.
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/032026.cfm
Commentary on Wisdom 2:1,12-22
Today’s reading
comes from early on in the Book of Wisdom, in a passage describing life as seen
by the godless (the “ungodly”, see chap 1). We often feel that if we are good
and virtuous and, even more, because we are good and virtuous,
people should be inspired to follow and imitate our good example. However,
experience tells us that many times exactly the opposite happens, and people
feel somehow threatened by or resentful of our good behavior.
The description of
the animosity directed against those who live good and virtuous lives is well
put in today’s reading, and it applies so perfectly to how Jesus was treated—so
much so that some people see in this passage a prophecy about Jesus. However,
it also applies to hundreds of others down the ages whose goodness has been
resented, whose behaviour is seen as a condemnation and a threat to those with
different values. Such individuals, as a result, have been persecuted and even
killed.
In the passage,
the “ungodly”, who are speaking about a prophet (called “the righteous man”)
say:
Let us lie in
wait for the righteous man, because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our
actions.
It is because the
prophet’s words are felt to be true that they create feelings of guilt in those
against whom they are directed.
Again, the
“ungodly” say:
He [the righteous man] reproaches us
for sins against the law and accuses us of sins against our training.
The reproach is
not denied, but it is strongly resented:
He professes to
have knowledge of God,
and calls himself a child of the Lord.
He became to us a reproof of our thoughts;
the very sight of him is a burden to us…
Of course, “the
righteous man” is the very person whom Scripture says should be respected and
protected. And that claim is not denied by the “ungodly”, but such a one is
seen as an obstruction to how they live.
And then there
follows a good description of the “righteous man”:
…his manner of
life is unlike that of others, and his ways are strange.
How true of Jesus
and of many of his most faithful followers!
Subsequently comes
the justification for violent action to remove the source of criticism. If the
prophet is really a spokesperson for God, then surely God will protect him
against any violent attack.
Let us test him
with insult and torture,
so that we may find out how reasonable he is
and make trial of his forbearance.
Let us condemn him to a shameful death,
for, according to what he says, he will be protected.
It is exactly what
happened to Jesus at the hands of his opponents as his enemies mocked him
during his trial:
Some began to
spit on him, to blindfold him, and to strike him, saying to him, “Prophesy!”
The guards also took him and beat him. (Mark
14:65)
And again, on the
cross:
In the same way
the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking him…He
trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he wants to… (Matt 27:41-44)
This has happened
to many down through the centuries and it will happen in our times as well—and
for exactly the same reasons. We call such dedicated followers martyrs,
from the Greek word for ‘witness’. They give striking witness to the values of
the Kingdom.
Those who carry
out these actions can convince themselves that what they are doing is right:
Thus they
reasoned, but they were led astray, for their wickedness blinded them, and they
did not know the secret purposes of God…
Their aim is to
obliterate the source of their discomfort, but the result is often the very
opposite. It is a very dangerous thing to create martyrs. We remember the early
Christian saying from the writings of Tertullian:
The blood of
martyrs is the seed of faith.
Jesus himself has told
us not to be surprised that we too will be misunderstood and treated as he was.
The following of Christ involves what is called a ‘counter-witness’ to the
prevailing values in our societies. Such a counter-witness will often be deeply
resented, attacked, rubbished and ridiculed, and it may invite even violence
and death.
Of course, we also
have to be very careful that our witness is based on truth, integrity and love;
we have to be careful to avoid any taint of Pharisaism or superior elitism,
which we can fall into so easily. It is God we are proclaiming, not ourselves.
As we approach
Holy Week, we need to reflect on these things and see how they fit into our
lives. Whose side am I on? If I had been on Calvary, with whom would I have
been standing? In issues of truth and justice in my own society, where am I
seen?
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Commentary on John 7:1-2,10,25-30
In today’s Gospel
we move to the 7th chapter of John, skipping chapter 6 on the Bread of Life,
which will be read at another time in the liturgical cycle. We are told that
Jesus was confining his activities to Galilee. He did not want to go to Judea
and the vicinity of Jerusalem because there were people there who wanted to
kill him. Jesus does not expose himself unnecessarily to danger. He knows that
a time is coming when the final conflict will be inevitable, but that time is
not yet.
It is the time of
the Feast of Tabernacles and (though not contained in today’s reading) his
family are urging him to go up to Jerusalem for the feast and show himself to
the world. He tells them the time is not ripe for him to do this, but later on,
after his family have left for the city, he goes privately and unbeknown to
others. However, in Jerusalem, Jesus goes to the Temple area and begins to
teach openly, to the amazement of his listeners:
How does this
man have such learning, when he has never been taught? (John 5:15)
A marvelous
example of Johannine irony—the Word does not need to study the Word!
Jesus is a source
of some confusion in the minds of many people. On the one hand, the people are
aware that Jesus has become a target of their religious leaders, and yet he
goes about openly and speaking freely and without fear.
Jesus would not be
Jesus if he were to keep his message to himself. The Word of God cannot remain
silent. On the other hand, the people are also confused about the identity of
Jesus. Is he allowed to speak freely because the leaders now believe he really
is the Messiah-Christ? But everyone knows where Jesus comes from (Nazareth in
Galilee). How, then, can he be the Messiah?
Jesus then tells
them:
You know me,
and you know where I am from.
That is only
partially true; rather, they think they know.
I have not come
on my own. But the one who sent me is true…I know him because I am from him,
and he sent me.
And, if they do
not know the Father, how can they know the Son? And vice versa.
This only angers
his listeners who know what he is implying, but they cannot arrest him there
and then because “his hour had not yet come.” The time of his arrest will only
be in accordance with God’s plan.
Do we really know
who Jesus is? There are many conflicting opinions out there. We can only know
the real Jesus by reading the Scriptures under wise and perceptive guides who
can help us penetrate the deeper meaning beneath the literal text. We can also
learn a lot by prayer and contemplation. Lent is an excellent time for us to do
both and, better still, to begin making it a practice that goes far beyond
Lent.
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https://livingspace.sacredspace.ie/l1046g/
Friday,
March 20, 2026
Season of Lent
Opening Prayer
Our God and Father,
we claim to be Your sons and
daughters, who know that You love us, and that You call us to live the life of
Jesus, Your Son.
Give us the courage to live this life consistently not
to show off, not to reprove others, but simply because we know that You are our
Father and we Your sons and daughters, brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ,
our Lord.
Gospel Reading - John 7: 1-2, 10, 25-30
Jesus moved about within Galilee; he did not
wish to travel in Judea, because the Jews were trying to kill him. But the
Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near. But when his brothers had gone up to the
feast, he himself also went up, not openly but as it were in secret. Some of
the inhabitants of Jerusalem said, "Is he not the one they are trying to
kill? And look, he is speaking openly, and they say nothing to him. Could the
authorities have realized that he is the Christ? But we know where he is from.
When the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from." So, Jesus cried
out in the temple area as he was teaching and said, "You know me and also
know where I am from. Yet I did not come on my own, but the one who sent me,
whom you do not know, is true. I know him, because I am from him, and he sent
me." So, they tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him,
because his hour had not yet come.
Reflection
Throughout the chapters from 1 to 12 of the
Gospel of John, one discovers the progressive revelation which Jesus makes of
himself to the disciples and to the people. At the same time and in the same
proportion, the closing up and the opposition of the authority against Jesus
increases, up to the point of deciding to condemn Him to death (Jn 11: 45-54).
Chapter 7, on which we are meditating in today’s Gospel, is a type of
evaluation in the middle of the journey. It helps to foresee what will be the
implication at the end.
•
John 7: 1-2, 10: Jesus decides to go to the
feast of the Tabernacles in Jerusalem. The geography of the life of Jesus in
the Gospel of John is different from the geography in the other three Gospels.
It is more complete. According to the other Gospels, Jesus went only once to
Jerusalem, the time when He was taken and condemned to death. According to the
Gospel of John He went at least two or three times to Jerusalem for the feast
of the Passover. This is why we know that the public life of Jesus lasted
approximately three years. Today’s Gospel informs us that Jesus directed
himself more than once to Jerusalem, but not publicly, but hidden, because in
Judah the Jews wanted to kill Him.
•
In this chapter 7 as well as in the other
chapters, John speaks about the “Jews” and of “you Jews,” as if he and Jesus
were not Jews. This way of speaking shows the situation of a tragic breaking
which took place at the end of the first century between the Jews (Synagogue)
and the Christians (Ecclesia). Throughout the centuries, this way of speaking
in the Gospel of John contributes to anti-Semitism. Today, it is very important
to keep away from this type of division so as not to foster anti-Semitism. We
can never forget that Jesus is a Jew. He was born a Jew, lives as a Jew and
dies as a Jew. He received all His formation from the Jewish religion and
culture.
•
John 7: 25-27: Doubts of the people of Jerusalem
regarding Jesus. Jesus is in Jerusalem and He speaks publicly to those who want
to listen to Him. People remain confused. They know that the authorities want
to kill Jesus and He does not hide from them.
Would it be that the authorities have come to believe in
Him and recognize that He is the Messiah? But how could Jesus be the Messiah?
Everybody knows that He comes from Nazareth, but nobody knows the origin of the
Messiah, from where He comes. In reality, they did not know or acknowledge
where He came from, which was from God, thus fulfilling their own definition of
the origin of the Messiah, even though they did not see it!
•
John 7: 28-29: Clarification on the part of
Jesus. Jesus speaks about His origin. “You know me and you know where I come
from.” But what people do not know is the vocation and the mission which Jesus
received from God. He did not come on His own accord, but like any prophet He
has come to obey a vocation, which is the secret of His life. ”Yet, I have not come
of My own accord but He who sent Me is true, and you do not know Him. But I
know Him, because I have My being from Him and it was He who sent Me.”
•
John 7: 30: His hour had not yet come. They
wanted to arrest Him, but no one laid a hand on Him, “because His hour had not
yet come.” In John’s Gospel
the one who determines the hour and the events which will
take place are not those who have the power, but it is Jesus. He is the one who
determines the hour (cf. Jn 2: 4; 4: 23; 8: 20; 12: 23, 27; 13: 1; 17: 1). Even
up to the time when He was nailed to the Cross, it is Jesus who determines the
hour of His death (Jn 19: 29-30).
Personal Questions
•
How do I live my relationship with the Jews?
What have I done to study or become informed about the Jewish tradition Jesus
lived?
•
As Christians we are sent to proclaim the Word.
Do we do it openly, or travel in secret out of fear?
Concluding Prayer
Yahweh ransoms the lives of those who serve Him, and there
will be no penalty for those who take refuge in Him. (Ps 34: 24)
