Exodus (3:1-8a, 13-15) Corinthians (10:1-6, 10-12) Luke(13: 1-9)
The readings of the 3rd Sunday of lent invite us to reflect deeply on our relationship with God and his call for conversion and repentance. Today’s first reading tells us of Mosses’ call. Mosses’ is a sematic idiom denoting urgency and familiarity. Moses’ approach and God’s calling emphasize divine initiative, we all know Moses’ story: how he was saved from the waters of the river Nile by Pharoah’s daughter, grew up as a prince in Pharaoh’s court, had to run into the desert when he killed an Egyptian to defend a Jew, and settled there to a shepherd’s life apparently for food, after having married Zipporah, the daughter of Jethro, a local priest. Mosse’s tending Jethro’s sheep near Horeb (often equated with Sinai) represents a shift from Egyptian culture to the wilderness, where God reveals Himself.
God showed himself to Moses in the form of a burning bush that was not consumed as it burnt. The burning bush is a theophany (divine appearance) symbolizing God’s presence, yet not consuming the bush: indicating divine mystery and sustenance. In other words, God will never cease to be God. But when Moses least expected it, there came Yahweh’s call: he was to go back to Egypt, apparently on an impossible task, to free his people from Pharaoh’s slavery. On hearing what God wanted him to do, Mosses was frightened for two reasons: because he might still be sought for in Egypt on account of his killing the Egyptian, secondly above all because he felt totally unfit to carry the task God wanted to entrust him with. God reassured Mosses that those who sought his death in Egypt were no more. Mosses asked God what his name was. Mosses’ concern reflects ancient beliefs that knowing a deity’s name grants authority over it. According to this belief, no divinity could deny real name and also the Israelites needed assurance of who was sending Mosses. God’s answer to Mosses as mysterious: I AM who I AM and proceeded to give himself a title that reminded forever dear to the Israelites “the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob” It would take a long time and plenty of wonders by Mosses to break down Pharaoh’s pride and reluctantly grant freedom to the people of Israel. Lent is a time to recover our spiritual freedom. The best way to attain it: to help others recover theirs only the lord. He can set free, and he longs to do it, and let us give Him a free hand.
In today’s gospel passage we see Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem where he addresses current events and shares a parable to emphasize the urgency of repentance. At the time Judea was under Roman rule and tensions were high between the Jewish people and their oppressors. Around this time, Pilate sought to improve Jerusalem’s water supply using Temple funds, a decision that outraged the Jews, when protest erupted, he sent disguised soldiers among the crowd with orders to disperse them using cudgels. However, the soldiers responded with excessive violence, resulting in numerous deaths, likely including Galileans. This incident may have fueled the hostility between Pilate and Herod, which only ended when Pilate sent Jesus to Herod for trial (Luke 23:6-12). The collapse of the tower of Siloam was likely a known tragedy, possibly linked to construction accidents of Roman projects in Jerusalem. The eighteen victims remain obscure, but an interesting detail emerges from the original text: rather than being called “sinners” they are referred to as debtors. Some speculate that these individuals had worked on Pilate’s controversial aqueduct project, funded by temple money, if so, public sentiments may have viewed their wages a s stolen from God and believed their deaths were divine retribution for participating in the project. People inform Jesus about Galileans whom Pilate had killed while offering sacrifices. Jesus challenges the assumption that these victims were more sinful than others.
He rejects the idea that suffering is always divine punishment and instead calls everyone to repentance. Jesus went on to say that if his hearers did not repent, they would perish. Sin is the cause of all human suffering and sorrow. To die at home or elsewhere, in one’s own bed or in the fields, matters little. There is only one real tragedy worth fearing, and it is, to die unrepentant. Therefore, Jesus tells us, hasten to repent, lest the final tragedy overtakes you; if it does, it will stay with you forever. It is not enough to avoid evil in order to be saved; our life every day, every single day of it must yield fruit, real fruit in God’s eye.
The second part of today’s Gospel stresses this point through a parable, the parable of the fig-tree. In Palestine it is a very common tree. There was one by the side of every house, family and friends gathered in its shade, and in summer it yielded a delicious, nourishing fruit. In the parable, there is a moving dialogue between the owner of the tree and the farmer looking after it. It did not take long for those listening to Jesus to catch its meaning, at least in part. The tree was a symbol of the people of Israel, God had chosen it from among all the nation and looked after it with loving care (Jeremiah 8:13). Israel was called to yield double fruit: to be a sign of God’s love for all the nations, and to announce him to all the other peoples. Israel disappointed God at every stage; the only fruit it yielded was the bitter fruit of sin.
So, in the Gospel Jesus emphasizes the importance of repentance, it teaches us that growth often begins with acknowledging our shortcomings and making a conscious decision to change. Personal reflection can lead to spiritual and moral growth. The parable of the fig tree illustrates God’s patience and desire for us to bear fruit. This serves as a reminder that while growth may take time, it is essential to remain hopeful and persistent in our development both personally and spiritually.