Homily for the Week of March 3, 2013

3rd week of Lent, C 2013 Exodus 3:1-8, Psalm 103,1 Corinthians 10-6, Luke 13: 1-9 We just respond to the Psalm prayer today with the expression: The Lord is kind and merciful. That spiritual focus shows up also in the short story about a fig tree which did not produce any fruit for 3 years. Because of that the owner wants to cut it down, but the owner decided to keep it for another year, and then he said it was OK to cut it down if did not produce any figs. For many of us when something tragic happens to us we are tempted to look at our lives to see if we have done anything wrong. If only I had not been speeding, the accident would not have happened and my daughter would not have lost her leg. And then we may blame God for punishing us for our recklessness. Instead our response to such a statement should be NO. NO, that is not how God does things. God is not narcisstic blaming us for what we might have done wrong. Accidents happen for a variety of reasons. However, God did not create up just to take up space in this world. He wants us to trust him, love him and to do good for others. We may not have the answer as to the WHY of suffering or sickness, but we can be sure that it is not punishment from God. In other words, suffering is not a sign of God's judgment any more than prosperity is evidence of God's approval. More importantly, we are to take no comfort from the sufferings of others, regardless of their religions, lifestyles or behavior. Instead of delighting in the so called punishment of others, Jesus challenges us to examine our own lives, and to realize that we will all be judged on how our life has affected others. When we mess up we many times may know the reason. In some cases they were not freely made. But these situations are not God’s way of shaking a finger at us and saying that we are a naughty person. For whatever reason, all too often we think of God as a get even God when things go wrong in our lives. We can so easily slip into thinking: I am being punished for being a bad person. I hope that our bible readings today will help to take away this type of thinking. The Lord is kind and merciful. God does not go around randomly punishing us when we do something wrong. Our first reading is about the Jewish people who had been wandering for years. They had been driven out of their homes not knowing when they would ever return. They found themselves as slaves in Egypt under the Pharaoh who used them for his own purposes. Moses is out in the Egyptian desert taking care of his father-in-law’s cattle when he notices a burning bush which keeps on burning without being consumed. He goes closer to find out what it might be. And then he hears a voice call out telling him to come no closer and asks him to remove his sandals. The voice identifies itself as the God of the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will lead you to a land flowing with milk and honey, the voice said. He was told to bring this good news to his family, But Moses wanted proof for those he was going to talk to that what he saw and heard was real. If I ask What is his name? what will I tell them? And God replied: I AM WHO AM. Tell them that I AM SENT ME TO YOU. The bush was for Moses a sign of God’s presence. The story of the useless fig tree has a lesson for all time and for all of us. God's mercy is infinite but our earthly life, during which he can obtain that mercy, is very finite. God's mercy can forgive sins no matter how bad they might be, but it cannot forgive even less serious sins unless the sinner is sorry and asks for forgiveness. Christ, our true mediator with God, is continually interceding for us, but unless we do our part by repenting and changing our behavior, his intercession will be of no avail to us. God wants each of us to be saved, but we must want salvation as much as God wants it for us. Think on this story of the fruitless fig tree today. If your conscience tells you that it applies to you, think also that Christ is interceding for you. He has obtained for you a moratorium, a period in which you can prove yourself fruitful. Use that gift of God with gratitude and you shall obtain the result that God wants, and that in all good sense, you should want as well. Throughout each day God places burning bushes in our life. But do we see them as signs of God’s desire to enter our own lives? Do we hear God speaking to us in these burning bushes? Do we call out in prayer to God, or just ignore the burning bushes until some other time when we feel more like getting to it. Maybe we are afraid to ask God the question: WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO? During this third week of Lent let us remind ourselves of our need to grow in holiness and in goodness. Let each of us this third week of Lent daily try to see some thing spiritual within the ordinary activities of each day, God, the Master Gardener, is always, always giving us more time. Surprisingly, it is often our faults and sins that can lead us closer to God and the need for Jesus.