Today is April 6, the Fifth Sunday of Lent.
At today’s Mass, we hear, “Again he bent down and wrote on the ground. And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone with the woman before him” (Jn 8:8-9).
Jesus is not perturbed by the accusations the leaders throw at Mary Magdalene. We have every reason to believe that they are true. Jesus himself alludes to this by telling her to sin no more. Nevertheless, as this raucous and dramatic scene unfolds, Jesus utters barely a word to answer Mary’s accusers.
Jesus writes on the ground and into the dirt instead. What did he write? No one knows for sure. But one thing is certain: the image reminds us of a more peaceful day. It reminds us of the day of creation. On the day God created man, he reached down to the ground and formed human beings out of the dirt.
‘Sin no more’
The image of Jesus writing in the dirt is an image of new creation. As the accusations are made against this woman and she waits for Jesus’s sentence, Jesus reveals himself as the one through whom this woman was created to begin with. He knows who she is better than any of her accusers. Jesus sees into her heart and breathes into it a new form of life that erases sin and gives the strength to live in holiness.
The accusers tire themselves out with their persistence. Jesus remains quiet and writes. As the accusers leave, silence descends and Jesus finally approaches Mary. Sin no more, he tells her. I do not condemn you.
During Lent, we can easily think of all the reasons why we should be condemned. Regrets from the past, memories of the ways we failed, acknowledgement of our weakness and experience of our inconstancy shout out their accusations against us. In the desert, when these voices tire themselves out, we notice that Jesus has been writing and waiting. As silence descends within us, he says, “Sin no more. I do not condemn you.”
Let us pray,
By your help, we beseech you, Lord our God, may we walk eagerly in that same charity with which, out of love for the world, your Son handed himself over to death. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
