Homily, 3-26-23; 5th Sunday in Lent, Cycle A:
Someone being raised from the dead, especially after being buried for multiple days, would seem like a pretty big deal to anyone who witnessed it. It would be life-changing to anyone who witnessed it, or it should be.
Earlier this month, I ran across an article about the story of Jonah being swallowed by the large fish, or whale as our folklore has it. I had always presumed that Jonah was somehow alive during his three days within the fish. But this article proposed that Jonah actually died, went to the Sheol, the land of the dead, and then was risen back to life. Jonah says: “I went down to the roots of the mountains; to the land whose bars closed behind me forever, but you brought my life up from the pit.” The event obviously made a big impression on Jonah, and became a great witness as part of the Hebrew scriptures. Jesus uses the story of Jonah as a sign of His coming death and resurrection. He said: “This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it, except the sign of Jonah. Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.”
Today we have the gospel story about Jesus raising His friend Lazarus from the dead. It is such a rich passage that can be preached and meditated on from so many different perspectives. We’re never really told much about Lazarus’ reaction to this dramatic event that gave him new life. We can wonder how his life changed after the experience. Because He was a living sign of Jesus’ power, the Pharisees wanted to put him to death along with Jesus. He faced death a second time.
But we do get some insights regarding those who witnessed the dramatic event. We can look at the story from the perspective of the anonymous group of mourners that came to comfort Mary and Martha at the time of the loss of their brother. We are told that many people came, and when Jesus and Mary and Martha went to the tomb, they followed. Some saw the human side of Jesus, recognized His emotions, and commented on how much Jesus must have loved Lazarus. Others groused that he could open the eyes of a blind man but didn’t do anything to prevent Lazarus’ death. But how did they react to Lazarus being raised from the dead?
Now I would expect that those mourners would surely have experienced a life-changing event. But, apparently, it didn’t have that effect on all the mourners who witnessed Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead. Our gospel passage concludes with these words; “Now many of the Jews who had come to Mary and seen what he had done began to believe in him.” The miracle led many to believe in Jesus, but not all, not even most. Many experienced the miracle and still refused to believe in Jesus, even though they saw someone being raised from the dead.
This refusal is reminiscent of the parable that Jesus told of the rich man and the poor beggar who sat by the gates where the dogs comforted him and licked his sores. Coincidentally, the beggar’s name was also Lazarus. After both Lazarus and the rich man had died, Jesus tells how the rich man was tormented in the netherworld while Lazarus was carried off by angels to the bosom of Abraham. The rich man made several requests as he cried out to Abraham in the distance. The last request was that Lazarus be sent back from the dead to warn his brothers so that they would change their ways and not suffer the same torment that he was experiencing. And in the parable, Abraham responds, “If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead.”
Those that are obstinate will not be persuaded even if someone should rise from the dead, whether that be Lazarus from the parable, Lazarus, Jesus’ close friend, or even Jesus Himself. We have not seen Jesus, or anyone else, be raised from the dead first-hand. But we have plenty of historical evidence that witnesses to the truth that it occurred. We may not have witnessed miracles, but we know that there are numerous ones documented by the Church that we can research and study. We can know about the life of Jesus, what He did and who He is. But are we still sometimes obstinate? Are we still reluctant to fully follow Him and live in the way that He taught us? Is our knowledge of Christ’s resurrection life-changing for us?
Why did many of the mourners refuse to believe in Jesus even after they experienced the miracle of someone being raised from the dead after four days in the tomb? Would belief requie a change in lifestyle? Did it go against everything that they wanted to believe, and so they set up barriers that allowed them refuse and disregard any new input that was contrary to their current position? Do we do this when we watch the news or scan through social media on the internet? We look for stories that confirm what we want to believe, and disregard those that are contrary. Is it the same in our faith life? Do we look for reasons to accept some of Jesus’ teachings, and reject others?
And so, as we approach the great feast of Easter, the feast of Jesus rising from the dead, let us reflect on how strong our faith is in that event; how well we know Jesus and truly belief everything that He did for us. Believe that He is truly God and worthy of all praise and honor. We reflect on whether our faith is life-changing. Does our belief in Jesus Christ cause us to live a life different from those around us who do not share that belief?