Sunday, March 17, 2024
Last year, I went to pay my aunt a visit to her home in northern California. My aunt and my now-deceased uncle have now been in that home for almost 50 years, and their backyard is bejeweled with several healthy fruit trees. A favorite of mine is a lemon tree that produces lemons the size of small grapefruits- the most enormous lemons I have ever seen. The tree is so productive that my aunt regularly shares its produce with friends and neighbors. The tree was planted many years ago, perhaps decades before my aunt and uncle moved into the house. To think of all the fruits that tree produced in all these many years, the number of people who benefited from it, and it all started with a lemon seed that someone planted is truly astounding!
This tree is what I thought about when I read, “unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat” (John 12:24). A seed so tiny and indistinct can nurture many when it gives itself up. Like the lemon seed, a grain of wheat staying within its hard shell does not do much good for us. However, when it gives up being a seed and opens itself to the ground, it can begin to sprout shoots that become wheat that can be used for food. When Jesus said the hour had come and gave the example of the grain of wheat, He was speaking of His own impending journey to the cross. St. John the Beloved recounted these words spoken by Jesus: “when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself.” (John 12:32). I wonder if the disciple that Jesus loved knew what Jesus meant by “lifted up”? Did St. John know at that time that Jesus would die and would rise again after three days? If he didn’t, then by the time he wrote the Gospel after the death and resurrection of Jesus, he was sure of it.
Two weeks ago, on the Third Sunday of Lent, we read about God giving Moses the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai. Moses taught the people these commandments, and they were passed on from one generation to the next. This Sunday, the Prophet Jeremiah tells us about a new covenant not written on stone tablets or the pages of books. The new covenant is written directly in the hearts of people by the Creator. God’s purpose in establishing this new covenant was to heal and restore His relationship with us. The Author of everything that lives wants us to open our hearts to Him that He may dwell in them. He wants to be known to us and to forgive and no longer remember our iniquities.
By His death, Jesus gave us life. “For just as in Adam all die, so too in Christ shall all be brought to life.” (1 Corinthians 15:22). We need to open our hearts to the covenant God wants to have with us. Just like a gardener prunes dead or diseased parts to keep shrubs and trees healthy and thriving, we must not cling to parts of us that keep us from growing in the Lord and producing fruit. Let us examine our conscience and make this pruning practice ongoing and not only during this Lenten season.
Go in Peace to Love and Serve the Lord.