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3rd Sunday of Lent, Cycle C
Holy Family Parish, Newark, Delaware
March 24, 2019
Does God Punish Us?
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
Does God Punish?
Over the years, I have heard some Christian groups condemning various kinds of people outside their denomination. They have labelled certain other groups or kinds of people as sinners or as unsaved.
And in their opinion, because these other folks are so bad, God has punished them and allowed really bad things to happen to them. In fact, the bad things or punishments serve as proof that God condemns them.
So, some folks may have fallen on very hard times financially or may have contracted a serious sickness or may have died, and some Christian groups would say that this is God punishing them for their sins, punishing them for being evil, sinful people.
God Does Not Punish
Well, in today’s Gospel, Jesus debunks this way of thinking. Let’s take a look at what’s happening.
Some folks mention a recent event to Jesus. Apparently, some people up in Galilee were put to death by the Roman Governor, Pilate.
They were thrown into a fire that they themselves had been using for their religious sacrifices to God. Jesus quickly realizes that the people around him are talking about this because they think that these Galileans who were killed must have done something wrong.
They must have been really bad sinners so it must have been God punishing them. But Jesus says: “No way!”
“They weren’t any more sinful than any of you. You can’t say this and think that way.”
Jesus himself then raises another example. A building had recently collapsed and some people were killed.
And again, Jesus insists that these people weren’t any more sinful that anyone else. This was not God punishing them for being bad or sinful persons.
Not Punished for Sin
What is clear is that Jesus is teaching us something here about our image or understanding of God.
The point is that God is not a punisher. Yes, sometimes bad things happen to us.
But bad things don’t just happen to bad people. They happen to good people too.
They just happen. God is not a punisher.
If we look at the thrust of the Gospels, Jesus’ predominant theme is that God loves us – unconditionally and forever. And a loving God does not, ever, turn his back on us and punish us.
God is not playing a reward/punishment game with us. God just loves us and keeps loving us when we foul up and do wrong, and keeps trying to draw us into his way of love.
It’s a bit like me standing here in the sanctuary facing the tabernacle. I am facing Jesus in the Eucharist.
I can turn around and turn my back on Jesus and the tabernacle. But Jesus is still there, still looking at me and offering himself to me and drawing and loving me.
Punished by Sin
Several noteworthy, current Catholic theologians put it this way.
We are not punished forour sins; we are punished by our sins. Let me trepeat that: We are not punished forour sins; we are punished by our sins.
This is really a key point and perhaps can be a real shift in our understanding. So, yes, you and I can and do sin, but it is really our sins that punish us.
For example, if I choose to continue holding a grudge against someone, the bitterness and vengeance in my heart really eats away at me and distorts and disfigures me as a person. That behavior hurts or punishes me.
Or if I overeat or overdrink, the result is that at worst, I may develop coronary problems or liver disease, and at least not feel well. My behavior hurts or punishes me.
The point then is that we not punished forour sins by an all-loving God. To the contrary, we are punished byour sins – to the sadness and disappointment of our loving God.
Repentance
At the conclusion of today’s passage, Jesus gives us the image or parable of the fig tree.
Scripture scholars tell us that Jesus is not saying that he is going to cut us down as someone might cut down a tree that is bearing little or no fruit. Instead, by his example Jesus is trying to shake us up a bit.
It’s as if he’s grabbing us by the scruff of the neck and shaking us, saying: “Wake up, Nicholas! Turn back to the Father; come back to Jesus!”
“Name the sin in your life and repent of it, because if you don’t that very sin will continue to punish you and it might well end up punishing you for all eternity.”
“Just turn around and look at your loving God! And respond to that love and you’ll be fine.”
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