Photo from the moive, 'Passion of Christ'

 

Lent: Week Five

The Woman Accused of Adultery

 Sr. Michele Bisby, Provincial of the US Province

The Gospel of John recounts the story of a woman accused of adultery.  The Scribes and Pharisees brought her to Jesus, who was teaching in the Temple.  Their rigid adherence to the Law seemed to overshadow any compassion for the woman.  They saw her merely as a trap to ensnare Jesus and test his loyalty to the Law of Moses.  Their focus was on her sin, punishment, and Jesus as her judge.  The law prescribed stoning for such a woman (the same fate that Jesus’ own mother once faced).  Jesus turned the mirror from the woman to her accusers, admonishing them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw his stone at her first”.

In 2013, Pope Francis responded similarly when asked about sexual sin.  He said, “Who am I to judge?”  Later, he elaborated on his comments, emphasizing the importance of treating all people with delicacy and avoiding marginalization.  "There are no situations we cannot get out of, we are not condemned to sink into quicksand, in which the more we move the deeper we sink.  Jesus is there, his hand extended, ready to reach out to us and pull us out of the mud, out of sin, out of the abyss of evil into which we have fallen."

We are not judged on our sin, but our love.