5TH WEEK OF LENT

Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground. 

When we are in the midst of a tense encounter with someone, our posture usually reflects the tension of the confrontation. Our jaw may be clenched, our chest may feel tight, and our shoulders are probably locked into position. But in today’s Gospel reading, when a group of Jewish leaders confronted Jesus with a morally fraught question about a woman caught in adultery, his reaction was anything but tense. He quietly bent down and wrote in the sand. Why?

Even though we don’t know what he was writing, it seems that the time Jesus spent bent over like that gave everyone time to reflect, and diffused a charged situation. As a result, when he stood back up and said that the one without sin should cast the first stone, he was speaking to a quieter, less volatile group.

Simply by bending down, Jesus bent the people’s accusations toward peace, their condemnation toward compassion, and their hatred toward mercy. He used that gesture to teach everyone there, and us as well: Don’t let your emotions rule you. Pause and ask the Spirit to be present. Take a couple of deep breaths and let the peace of God intervene.

It’s not just in tense situations that we should pause to welcome the Spirit. It’s just as important when we come face-to-face with our own inner conflicts, especially the conflicts caused by our sins. Rather than give in to guilt or shame—or angrily shift the blame to someone else—we can take a moment to quiet our hearts and ask the Spirit to give us his perspective. We can recall Jesus’ words, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more” (John 8:11). Then we can let the assurance of God’s mercy, coupled with his call to holiness, help us to stand up straight and take the next steps toward reconciliation.

This practice of bending down and seeking the Spirit is what Lent is about. This whole season, God is inviting us to pause and ask the Spirit to shift our focus. In the two weeks that remain before Easter, may we all practice bending our hearts toward the peace that only the Lord can give!

“Holy Spirit, make me an instrument of your peace.”

Daniel 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62
Psalm 23:1-6
John 8:1-11