PEACE-LENT 2023 - Fifth Sunday in Lent
March 26, 2023: Ezekiel 37:12-14; Romans 8:8-11; John 11:1-45
The signs of life are newness, change, growth, freshness and development. We are called to be People of Life. Being people of life is not easy today, because we live in a culture of death. Death is signified by a state of stand still, a state of no change, a state of decay, a state of giving up, a state of discouragement. The world today is filled with these signs - everyone seems to be giving up very easily. People see corruption and mismanagement, but they give up that nothing can be done - this becomes the source of a restlessness. People see sinfulness and decadence, but give up saying that is the order of the day- that proves to be a distinct origin of peacelessness. Can these be signs of a people of life? Can a Christian take this stand towards life?
The Word this Sunday invites us to be People of Life... because we are children of the God of Life. God gives us life and constantly renews us. In the first reading, we are invited to reflect through Prophet Ezekiel, the gift of Life that is given to us by the very author of life, that is God. In faith we have a relationship built between God and us: You shall be my people and I shall be your God... that is the alliance that God has made with us, and is faithful to. You shall be my children and I shall be your father and mother; You shall be my flock and I shall be your shepherd; You shall be my beloved and I shall fill you with my love... says the Lord.
That promise of life is a source of peace, the depth of true sense in life. Today the Lord promises us amidst all the darkness of the world and the shadow of death, to fill us with God's Spirit and make us live. As those dry bones, gathered together and stood up to life, so can we rise up in this world as people of life, living a life of Faith.
We are constantly challenged and threatened by the darkness that surrounds us, as the darkness that surrounded Lazarus in the tomb. Lord it's been four days since he has been laid there, they said. Four days... the Jews believed that from the fourth day after death, the process of decay began. The decayed body comes to life, the situation of total hopelessness is brought to life by the Hope of Resurrection... Jesus declares, I am the Life and Resurrection. In Baptism we are all united to the death of Christ on the Cross, and that gives us the hope of sharing the Resurrection of the Lord.
Resurrection is the promise of the deepest of all peace, the eternal peace that God alone can give. That promise rests on the call that we have received to live as People of life, people who look to the light, people who look up to resurrection, people who are filled with joy and optimism, people who live a life of Hope.
If we are people of life, it has to be seen in our daily life... we cannot live a life that is like anyone else and call ourselves people of life. We cannot grumble and mourn like everyone and call ourselves people of life. We cannot give up and groan like the rest of the world and call ourselves people of life. We cannot just succumb to sinfulness and evil and still call ourselves people of life. St. Paul in the second letter makes it clear to us...we are to live our life in the Spirit, not the life of flesh. Life in the Spirit is filled with light, radiance, joy and above all, Love. The Spirit of the Risen Lord has to fill our life and thus we will be light to the nations, witness of God's love to the people around, testimonies of the Resurrection that is promised to us and signs of the eternal life that we are called to.
That is the guarantee of peace, our own and that of the whole humanity. The foundation is love...to live a life that is filled with love, love for God who loves us abundantly and love for our brothers and sisters, with respect and dignity to each and every child of God. We will stand for, radiate and uphold life as people of life, living a life of Love.
Let us heed the call that the readings give us today: to be people of life, in faith, in hope and in love. Turning to the God of life in faith, beholding the gift of life and resurrection in hope and living a life in the Spirit, in a true sense of love... is a sure way to peace at heart and peace of the humanity.