REFLECTION:
The first two events reported in the gospel involve tragic death, and Jesus makes absolute that unless we repent, we also will die. Then in the parable of the fig tree, Jesus reveals the patience of God with us, despite our slowness to repent. How merciful is our God (see psalm)! This is God’s work of mercy: to take what is almost dead and coax it to new life. This is our work of repentance: to turn sinfulness toward God’s transforming mercy.
Connecting the Gospel
To our experience: Tragedy survived (for example, a near-fatal auto accident, a heart attack) is often experienced as a “wake-up call.” Lent, with its call to repentance, affords us the same reappraisal of what really leads to new life.
Reprinted with permission of Liturgical Press from: Living Liturgy