FROM DEATH TO LIFE
First Reading: Ezekiel 37: 12-14
Second Reading: Romans 8: 8-11
Gospel Reading: John 11: 1-45
* First reading is from the book of Prophet Ezekiel. Ezekiel assures the people of Israel who are under the slavery of Babylon that the Lord God will restore them from their slavery and misery. He compares their captivity in terms of death and that of their liberation and return home, in terms of resurrection and spiritual renewal. He promises them that they will know and experience Yahweh as their Lord and Saviour.
*Second reading is from St. Paul's letter to Romans. Paul reminds the Christian community in Rome and all of us that those who live according to the flesh live in accordance with their natural inclinations. But we are in the Holy Spirit and hence belong to Christ. Paul further assures us that it was the Holy Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead. The same Spirit lives in us. So the Spirit of God will give life to our mortal bodies.
I am the resurrection and the life Today's Gospel reading is from St. John. A vivid account of the death of Lazarus and subsequently how Jesus raises him from the dead is given. This miracle is the seventh and the most spectacular of the signs performed by Jesus, which includes: the wedding feast at Caana, woman at the well, the healing of the royal official's son, the miracle of five loaves, walking on the water, healing of the blind man and finally, raising of Lazarus (from the dead). By the time Jesus arrives at Bethany, Lazarus was truly dead and buried for many days. Martha voices her regret that if Jesus had come early, things would have been different. But Jesus' absence is very essential to the whole story. Jesus explains that through the death of Lazarus, "the Son of Man will be glorified". Death of Lazarus serves to show that Jesus is the life giver. The name Lazarus means helpless. He is dead, lifeless in the tomb with a stone in front and the smell of decay inside. This is the state of Lazarus before being raised to life. Jesus wants us to step out of our tombs. When Martha tells Jesus that she knows her brother will rise again at the resurrection, Jesus assures her, "I am the resurrection and the life". When Jesus becomes the mainstay of our lives, we can experience resurrection here and now. Jesus is the Lord of life. If we believe in Him, death is something that only affects our physical bodies. We will still live even after our physical lives are over. For the last three years we are experiencing death culture due to covid-19 infections and consequent deaths all over the world. Today's Gospel reassures us that death is not the end. It should help us to overcome our pains and frustrations just like Martha and Mary when Lazarus died and was buried but subsequently brought back to life by Jesus that day.
"While the resurrection promises us a new and perfect life in the future, God loves us too much to leave us alone to contend with the pain, guilt and loneliness of our present life." - J. Macdowell
"He alone can believe in immortality who feels the resurrection in him already." - F.W. Roberts
"Every parting gives a foretaste of death, every coming together again a foretaste of the resurrection." - A. Schopenhauer
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