March 14, 2013       Daniel Daring       Daniel's previous reflections

Go and sin no more – Fifth Sunday of Lent
            Isaiah 43:16-21; Philippians 3:8-14; John 8:1-11

In Harper Lee’s famous novel, To Kill a Mocking Bird, a white attorney, Atticus Finch tries to defend a black young man, Tom Robinson, falsely accused of a raping a white woman. Despite presenting the evidence that Tom was innocent, Finch’s attempt failed; the jury – all white – sentenced the black man to prison. Racism was so embedded in their hearts that they found it impossible to make a decision against the whole white community of Maycomb, Alabama. After being sentenced, the innocent Tom tries to escape from prison and ends up being killed by the police.

In John’s Gospel, Jesus defends the life of a woman caught in the act of adultery. Although the woman was guilty, she was acquitted and set free. Why such a difference? It seems that David was right when he said long time ago: “Let us fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercy is great; but do not let me fall into the hands of men” (2 Samuel 24:14).  

Law  

The Gospel of John has this statement: “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17). Law is one of the most sought after studies in our contemporary world. To be a lawyer means to be assured of status and position in society. To be a cannon lawyer in the Catholic Church is a first step towards becoming a bishop. I do not know how many laws are in the present secular judicial system. I know that we have 1752 canons in the Code of Canon Law of our Church.

It is said that law administers justice. But justice for whom? Our prisons are filled with poor people, who are charged with petty crimes, while crooks and real law breakers are walking freely. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought to Jesus only the woman. It needs two to commit an act of adultery. Where was that man? On December 13, 2005 Stanley Williams – the co-founder of a youth gang in USA, convicted of killing four people, and sentenced to death – was executed in California. In 2001 he was nominated for a Noble Peace Price for his efforts to reduce street violence and helping many young people to stay out of the streets. Despite showing the fruits of conversion, Stanley was not shown mercy by the judicial system.

 “Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, says the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?” (Ezekiel 33:11). It seems that we want the wicked to be dead, and to be dead soon. We do not bother ourselves with bringing them to Jesus in order to ask his opinion or to entrap him. We do not believe in their conversion. We decide quickly - upon a little evidence, or even without any evidence - about the guilt of others, and we are ready to stone them. The best example is provided by those who stoned Iraq and now are planning to stone the people of Iran as well. Yes. Law was given through Moses and according to it we should execute its violators. But where is Jesus Christ with his grace and truth?  

All have sinned  

All Christians are familiar with this famous passage of Paul, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Jesus threw this passage into the face of the woman’s accusers: “If anyone of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8:7). The reason for going to war in Iraq was  "weapons of mass destruction". How much of that kind of weapon is in the hands of the US militaries? The reason to go to war in Iran is the nuclear weapon allegedly being developed by Iranians. How many nuclear warheads and atomic bombs are in the hands of US militaries? Before we ever attempt to stone anyone, let us examine our conscience; let us look carefully into ourselves. The woman deserves the death penalty. Alright. How about us? If she is not allowed to commit adultery how come we are allowed; if USA, Russia, China, India, Pakistan, and the European Union are allowed to have nuclear energy and nuclear armaments, why can't others have them? Either everybody is judged by the law or nobody is judged. Orwell’s famous quote, - “all are equal, but some are more equal than others” – may work well in the world, but it leads to the perversion of justice. We all stand under the judgment of the law and we all deserve death penalty, be it for adultery, or waging unjust war against innocent nations.  

Grace - Sin no more  

The truth about our God is at best expressed in the passage from the Book of Ezekiel: “As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! Why will you die, O house of Israel?” (33:11). God does not want us to be stoned, because of our sins. He wants us to repent and begin a new life. “Neither do I condemn you – Jesus declared. Go now and leave your life of sin” (John 8:11). This is what is meant by the statement that Jesus brought grace into this world: instead of condemnation, acquittal; instead of death, life.

“Paid in full” is the message we often find on the leaflets coming from Evangelical Churches. It means that Jesus’ death atoned for all our sins. “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,” declared Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:3. And Peter said that as the consequences of His death for our sins, we should not longer live for ourselves, but for God and righteousness (1 Peter 2:24). To be free from death, to be acquitted from the power of the law, means to rid our lives of sin, to begin a new life by God’s grace.  

Conclusion  

The story of the woman caught up in the act of adultery reminds us about the purpose God has for each one of us. It has nothing to do with punishment and death; it has everything to do with salvation and life. God “wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4); “He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). It is so easy to find reasons for condemning and stoning other people. We call it "upholding the rule of law". It takes Jesus to convince us that we also deserve to be condemned and stoned. However, Jesus also helps us realize that there is a better way than stoning: it is life under the grace and truth. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”