Meditation Minute

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

"Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial.”

Gospel Reading: John 12:1-11

Six days before Passover Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. They gave a dinner for him there, and Martha served, while Lazarus was one of those reclining at table with him.  Mary took a liter of costly perfumed oil made from genuine aromatic nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair; the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.  Then Judas the Iscariot, one of his disciples, and the one who would betray him, said, "Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days' wages and given to the poor?" He said this not because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief and held the money bag and used to steal the contributions. So Jesus said, "Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me." The large crowd of the Jews found out that he was there and came, not only because of him, but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. And the chief priests plotted to kill Lazarus too, because many of the Jews were turning away and believing in Jesus because of him.

Welcome to Holy Week, the last week of Lent.  We are approaching the shortest liturgical season of the church – the Triduum.  You are in the final stretch of Lent and should be focused on the Last Supper, the Crucifixion and ultimately the Resurrection.  Jesus has entered Jerusalem and the crowds are excited to see Jesus because of the miracles that he has performed, yet others are plotting to kill him. Jesus is entering your house this week.  How do you welcome him?  During season of Lent, we are called to let Jesus in to our heart and into our lives so that we might unit with his suffering on the cross and ultimately his defeat of the grave. Have you opened the doors to your soul and given him extravagant gifts of love and joy? Like the fragrance of the oil, does your love for God also fill the room with the sweet smelling fragrance of unconditional love?  In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus is having supper with Lazarus, Mary and Martha. Mary took some very expensive oil and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The gospel reading says, “the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.” Mary takes the most precious thing that she owns and uses it to honor Jesus. She puts herself at the feet of her Lord to show how much she truly loves him. She does not hold back the extravagance of her love for him. The sweetness of this gift is not only presented to Jesus, but the fragrance that spreads through the room is shared by all. We too are called to give our most treasured possessions to God.

There is a second subplot going on in today’s gospel.  Judas is mad at Mary for what she did. Judas says to Christ, “Why was this oil not sold for three hundred days' wages and given to the poor?” The gospel reading tells us that Judas says this not because of his concern for the poor but because of his own greed. What treasures do you hold back from Christ? Has greed held you back from your commitment to Jesus Christ. During lent, we are called to pray, fast and give alms. Judas was not truly committed to Christ, therefore, his greed for money controlled him. As we will see later, money will eventually be his demise as he sells out Jesus to the Sanhedrin.  Judas lost track of prayer, fasting and almsgiving for the material riches of this earthly world. Lent is a time to learn to shed off those earthly desires and to take up your cross even to the point where it hurts. It is not too late. Renew your commitment this last week. Make extra efforts to attend mass on Thursday and Friday; attend reconciliation service and commit to prayer. Be prepared for the eternal life which Jesus brings to us on Easter. Lent is a time to form habitats which hopefully will prepare us for the kingdom of heaven.  Be ready to celebrate Easter with all the extravagance that Mary celebrated with Jesus during that meal.

A Simple Prayer

Lord, may my love for you be extravagant.

May I the will to offer all that own.

Because everything I have is a gift from you to me.

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon