Lent Week 5: Saturday
God’s Solution
In this penultimate weekend prior to Holy Week, the Lord speaks to us about his vision of peace and unity. Ezekiel prophesies about God’s plan to bring his people together, under one prince, one shepherd. With the people, he will make a covenant, making them his own people, and he becoming their God. This covenant is the Lord’s way of initiating a relationship with humanity. In a covenant, the parties stand on equal ground, and so God will meet the people on their terms, where they are. Such is the act of divine condescension towards the people he cherishes as his children.
In the gospel, the concern is also that of unity. Here we find that there are two types of unity. The first one, is the unity constructed by human efforts, a political unity. The chief priests and Pharisees are afraid that the Romans will come and take away their country from their grasp. They convene to discuss ways to preserve their status quo which is not shaken by the presence and the preaching of Jesus. They decide a treacherous move: the death of Jesus in order to maintain the situation of the land. This political unity is fueled by fear, threat, and the desire to preserve control.
But there is another type of unity, the one devised by God, a divinely inspired unity. This unity will come from the initiative of God to send his Only Son to voluntarily offer himself for the salvation of all. Jesus will die for the nation but also for all the “dispersed children of God.” Such unity stems from an overflowing offer of love, reconciliation, and salvation.
As the Lord Jesus gives himself for his brothers and sisters, he fulfills the vision of the prophet. He is the Prince of Peace leading all people to harmony and understanding. He is the Shepherd watching over the people of the covenant by his faithfulness and care for the needs of all. The unity he brings springs not from political action, but from divine love and faithfulness.
Let us ask the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Sorrowful Mother, to help us pray for unity, understanding and peace before her Son, the Prince of Peace. In our troubled times, we cannot rely simply on human strategies for peace and unity; we need to listen to the promptings of the Spirit of God who works these same goals through the authentic sacrifice of Jesus.
