Daily Gospel Reflection
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March 30, 2020
Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him and he sat down and began to teach them.
The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery; and making her stand before all of them, they said to him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” They said this to test him, so that they might have some charge to bring against him.
Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground.
When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, sir.”
And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.”
For me, this passage illustrates the difference between how the Old Testament and New Testament instruct us to respond to wrongdoing. The Old Testament, most notably the book of Exodus, tells us it is appropriate to respond with fair retribution: “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” On the other hand, the law of Christ in the New Testament instructs us to respond to the sinner with love and forgiveness. We are called to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. So, which one is right?
In my first year teaching high schoolers, I followed what some might consider the Old Testament method. Refusing to do class work? Publicly reprimand! Abusing your technology? Detention! Address me with disrespect? Then I treat you the same.
Eight months in, I was exhausted. I did not enjoy going to school because I expected my students to frustrate me. Why don’t they change their behavior? Don’t they feel bad for disappointing me? I asked these questions to myself and in prayer.
Finally, I decided to change my approach. Instead of responding with anger and resentment, I chose to treat my students with love and forgiveness. I switched to the New Testament method. It was difficult at first, and continues to be in my second year. It takes effort, and I fail often. However, responding to the mistakes of my students with patience and forgiveness has reignited my love for them and for teaching.
What good would come if Jesus had allowed the crowd to stone the woman? Likewise, what good would come if I had continued to scold my students? None. By following Christ’s example of mercy, we become more able to love and forgive others.
Prayer
“But for the grace of God there go I.” How true we say, O Lord, as we pray to you that we not judge others’ sins and that we not add our own sins to the lives of others. Give us your sensitive heart that saw the woman taken in adultery all alone and greatly embarrassed, swept up in a rush to judgment, in the absence of friends, no one interested in any extenuating circumstances – all the hidden cruelty. We acknowledge that we too are all too quick to judge. Give us your heart of unconditional love and ever-patient forgiveness. Amen.
Saint of the Day
St. John was a seventh-century monk who was known as “the Scholar” until people referred to him after his famous written work, the Ladder (“Klimax”) of Divine Ascent.
Scholars believe he came from Palestine and was a student of St. Gregory Nazianzen. When John was 16, he joined a community of monks living on Mt. Sinai. He was placed under the direction of an older monk, who helped him master his desires and behavior.
When John was 35, his mentor died, and he went to live in a hermitage. He spent the next 40 years seeking perfection in solitude and prayer and study—it is said that he was one of the most learned of the desert fathers.
Many people sought him out for spiritual direction because of his wisdom. He had a gift for helping people find healing for their troubled and disordered souls.
Over time, he collected his insights into his work, the Ladder of Divine Ascent, which described 30 degrees towards attaining spiritual perfection—the first being renunciation and the last being full incorporation of the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love. The work had a profound effect on the development of Christian spirituality. The icon shown here depicts St. John leading monks up a ladder that leads to Jesus.
When John was 70, the abbot of a nearby monastery passed away, and John was selected to replace him. When a severe drought devastated the region, the people asked him to pray for relief, and rain came. John was so well-known at the time that Pope St. Gregory the Great wrote to him to ask for his prayers, and to send resources to assist the monastery in hosting the many pilgrims who traveled there to be in the presence of the holy man. John died in 649 of old age.
St. John Climacus, you sought perfection in the desert and left behind a profound guide to spirituality, pray for us!
Image Credit: (1) Our featured image of St. John Climacus is in the public domain. Modified from the original. Last accessed February 6, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons. (2) The icon "Ladder of Divine Ascent" is also in the public domain. Last accessed February 6, 2025 on Wikimedia Commons.
