Daily Gospel Reflection
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April 2, 2025
Jesus answered the Jews:
“My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.”
For this reason they tried all the more to kill him,
because he not only broke the sabbath
but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God.
Jesus answered and said to them,
“Amen, amen, I say to you, the Son cannot do anything on his own,
but only what he sees the Father doing;
for what he does, the Son will do also.
For the Father loves the Son
and shows him everything that he himself does,
and he will show him greater works than these,
so that you may be amazed.
For just as the Father raises the dead and gives life,
so also does the Son give life to whomever he wishes.
Nor does the Father judge anyone,
but he has given all judgment to the Son,
so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father.
Whoever does not honor the Son
does not honor the Father who sent him.
Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word
and believes in the one who sent me
has eternal life and will not come to condemnation,
but has passed from death to life.
Amen, amen, I say to you, the hour is coming and is now here
when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God,
and those who hear will live.
For just as the Father has life in himself,
so also he gave to the Son the possession of life in himself.
And he gave him power to exercise judgment,
because he is the Son of Man.
Do not be amazed at this,
because the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs
will hear his voice and will come out,
those who have done good deeds
to the resurrection of life,
but those who have done wicked deeds
to the resurrection of condemnation.
“I cannot do anything on my own;
I judge as I hear, and my judgment is just,
because I do not seek my own will
but the will of the one who sent me.”
A few months back, I heard someone say, “You know, I think that it’s just a ‘fathers and sons’ thing.” And it was one of those thunderbolt, super-simple comments that has rolled around in my mind ever since. So many little things come together to create that father-and-son bond.
I am sure reading that phrase made you think of something, too. Maybe it’s the Cat Stevens song “Father & Son,” or Kevin Costner’s “Hey Dad, do you wanna have a catch?” or something else entirely. No matter what it brought to mind, the notion of our relationships with our fathers is ubiquitous. The potential for love and strain, emulation and rejection, praise and desired appreciation, regardless of how great or terrible or completely non-existent a relationship we have with our fathers, is relatable as a part of our humanity.
There’s a great joke that the true miracle of the Last Supper was Jesus having 12 close friends in his mid-30s. Humor aside, I think the real miracle in today’s gospel—which, on one level, is about blasphemy and misunderstanding that Jesus is the Messiah—is the beauty of a right-lived relationship between a father and son.
As a human, Jesus embodies the best in us. And in his relationship with his Father, he tells us what we should strive for with our parents, our children, and ultimately with God the Father. The Incarnation is not just the lowering of Jesus to share our humanity; it’s also an elevation of us all to share in his body and his life with the Father.
So, do me a favor today. Consider what living in this kind of relationship with the Father would mean for you. And then, if you’re able to, give your Dad or a father figure in your life a call.
Prayer
Father in Heaven, we stand before you today and ask for the grace to do your will. We await the hour when you will call out to those in the tombs and for the dead to hear your voice. Breathe new life into us, so that we may hear your voice and act in accordance with your will. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. Mary of Egypt is a famous saint of the early church, whose passionate conversion to Christianity led her to the Judean desert. Her story is read on the fifth Sunday of Lent in the Eastern Orthodox Christian Church.
Most of the information we have about her life comes from St. Sophronius of Jerusalem, who recorded her biography in the seventh century. The legend begins with the story of a fourth-century monk called Zosima who travels to a monastery outside Jerusalem, searching for an elder who can teach him to follow the Lord with his whole heart.
While staying at this monastery, he is led into the desert and encounters a strange figure, who flees from him. Zosima feels sure this figure is a spirit of great holiness. He runs after her, calling out in the name of God to stop. She halts, but she commands him to look away, as she is not wearing any clothes. Zosima provides her with his cloak so they can converse.
The figure is Mary of Egypt, and, now clothed, she begins to speak with Zosima. Holiness radiates from her. Zosima begs her to tell him how she came to be there, imploring her to tell the whole story and not let her modesty or humility prevent her. Mary of Egypt begins to tell the story of how she ran away from her home at a young age to the bustling metropolis of Alexandria. Consumed by her overwhelming lust and passion, Mary lived on the street of Alexandria as a prostitute, but often did not even accept money from her clients. She was completely devoured by her desire for love, for fulfillment, which led her, she says, to the depths of depravity.
She falls in with a group of men setting out on a sea voyage to Jerusalem, where she hopes to find even more potential customers in the crowds of pilgrims gathered for the great feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. Curious, Mary follows the crowds of pilgrims to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. But, as she approaches the doorway, she finds that an invisible force prevents her from entering. Three times, she tries to enter, and she begins to weep, frustrated and desperate to enter. She begins to understand it is her impurity and her sin that is preventing her from entering. Calling upon Mary for assistance, Mary of Egypt beats her breast and begs for forgiveness for her sins. She prays that the Mother of God might allow her to enter the church and pray in front of the Cross of Christ.
Suddenly, Mary is able to enter the church, and she makes her way to the foot of the cross, where she asks pardon for her sins. A voice instructs her to go across the Jordan into the Judean desert, and so Mary obeys. With just a few loaves of bread, Mary lives for seventeen years in the desert, purifying her body and soul, learning to rely entirely on God. Zosima is in awe of her wisdom and holiness, and Sophronius movingly recounts the tender reverence between the two holy figures. Zosima comes back to meet her one year later. The next year, Mary has died, and Zosima buries her body with the help of a lion.
St. Mary of Egypt is the patron saint of converts and chastity, of those with great desires who wish to bring their desires to the light of God. She is also the protector against skin diseases and fevers, as she surely had to deal with both in the desert!
St. Mary of Egypt, who followed Christ's call into the desert—pray for us!
Image Credit: Our featured image of St. Mary of Egypt is in the public domain. Last accessed February 13, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
