HOMILY for March 11, 2018: 4th Sunday in Lent, Cycle B

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4^th Sunday of Lent, Cycle B

Terranova Hermitage

March 11, 2018     

What if…?

By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato

What If…?

Let’s think about the weather for a moment. What if we had a large and powerful low pressure system?

What if this happens in the late winter, instead of the late summer? Then the pressure inside this low pressure system drops dramatically and quickly.

This is something that the meteorologists – as I recently learned – something that the meteorologists call a bomb cyclone. What if this system sets up along the northeast coast of our country in early March?

There would be lots or rain or snow and very strong winds. Lots of trees and power lines would come down and lots of homes would be left without electricity. 

So, what if? And, of course, that “What if” happened just a week ago.

What If God…?

With that in mind, let’s look at another “What if.”

What if God were pure love? Simply love, love itself?

Saint John, the writer of today’s gospel, in a separate letter says three simple words: “God is love.” So, God is complete love and completely loving.

Well then, what if God loves the world? Saint John says this in today’s gospel: “God so loved the world.”

Again, what if God so loves the world that he becomes part of it? God, God the Son takes on our humanity?

Saint John says this. “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.”

I have to think that God does this to show us in a very personal way what his love is like. He also wants us to be certain and have no doubt about his love for us.

What If God’s Son…”

Okay, but what if God the Son ends up being rejected, crucified and put to death?

Well, for sure, it’s hard to believe that God the Father – who is pure and complete love – it’s hard to believe that the Father wants this to happen. And it’s hard to believe that the Father required this as the way to forgive or atone for human sinfulness.

No, a loving God would never expect this. So, this must have happened because of us.

It seems as if we just rejected a God who is not vindictive and punishing and excluding. We just couldn’t deal with a God who is pure love – who is compassionate, forgiving and inclusive – maybe especially this – inclusive of all persons absolutely and unconditionally.

This turned our picture of God upside down. If we accepted Jesus, we would have to re-think how we saw God and even what we ourselves were to be like and how we were to live.

The result was that we tried to do way with the Son, just get rid of him. But, of course, the Son, being God, being pure and complete love, patiently endured what we did to him and even forgave us as he was dying.

Conclusion

Of course, I am really saying that all of these “what ifs” have happened – much like that storm happened last week.

And I am even saying that these “what ifs” are still happening. God remains loving of each one of us every moment and every day of our lives.

This is the Good News – that’s what the word Gospel means – the Good News of Jesus, the Son. It is the core message of the New Testament that sometimes gets ignored or distorted, but it is there.

And what this message does is remove fear and unnecessary guilt and shame. Our primary feeling about God is no longer has to be fear – being afraid of God.

And our primary feeling about ourselves in relation to God no longer has to be guilt or shame. Now, we can feel ennobled and worthy in relation to God.

Why? Because we are loved; God loves us and God is love.

And now we can feel confidence and trust in our relationship with God. Why? Because God is love and God loves us.

That is the Good News of Jesus Christ. And that one sentence in today’s Good News leads me to all of this: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.”