Jn 8:1-11
[or Jn 11:1-45]
1Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area, and all the people started coming to him, and he sat down and taught them. 3Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and made her stand in the middle. 4They said to him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. 5Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” 6They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.
7But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8Again he bent down and wrote on the ground. 9And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone with the woman before him. 10Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11She replied, “No one, sir.” Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, [and] from now on do not sin any more.”
When Mercy Triumphs over Misery
Year C makes extensive use of Luke’s Gospel. The Gospel readings of Lent are taken from Luke, except this Sunday’s Gospel about the woman caught in adultery, which is from John.
In the two preceding Sundays we heard Jesus’ call to conversion (Lk 13:1-9) and the parable of the Prodigal Son (Lk 15:1-3, 11-32). Today’s Gospel story develops further the theme as it illustrates perfectly what Jesus declares, “I do not judge anyone” (Jn 8:15). Like the prodigal son, the woman is saved, literally from a certain death, and is given a new lease on life. The episode appears to be an early, free-floating tradition that did not find a secure place in the written gospels. While it is now fixed in John, it does not appear in some earlier manuscripts of the Fourth Gospel; other manuscripts insert it in Luke. Because it exhibits Lucan characteristics, many Bible scholars believe that it could have been written by Luke.
The scribes and the Pharisees think they have caught Jesus in a trap. If Jesus agrees to the stoning, the religious leaders will tell the people who are hanging on his words: “He is preaching mercy and yet he condemns a woman to death without listening to her side, which is contrary to the Law.” On the other hand, if Jesus pardons her, he will be accused of making light of the Law, and will lose his credibility before the people. The snare is a perfect one: whatever answer he gives, Jesus is caught.
Jesus’ answer is first of all silence. Then he bends down and writes on the ground. We are intrigued and try to guess or imagine what he writes.
The silence allows us to weigh the gravity of the act, done out of either a burning zeal for the Law or a desire to get rid of Jesus. The woman is being sacrificed as a helpless pawn. Do her accusers mind that a human life is at stake? The pause also allows us to prepare our hearts to respond appropriately to his challenge: “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”
The words of the Lord should obviously not be taken to mean that we should do away with the justice system. Jesus’ answer does not mean that because we ourselves are sinners, we are forbidden to render justice or pronounce a sentence. The justice system is sustained by the laws of the land; it has its uses, and it has its flaws.
The words of Jesus strike more directly the human heart, the seat of decisions and actions. We are urged to scrutinize our intentions when we judge others or hale them to court. Do we wish to right a wrong? Or are we driven by hatred and the desire for revenge? Incidentally, in France today, witnesses in criminal cases take an oath to speak without hatred.
Beyond this, we should remember our calling as Christians. We should do more than what civilized and decent people, who are not Christians, normally do. What credit is it to us if we respect, forgive, and love only those who do the same to us (see Lk 6:27-34)?
Conscious that we are sinners ourselves, we should be very circumspect about judging. We should try to reconcile the demands of justice and mercy in our dealings with one another. Ironically, those who demand their “pound of flesh” are almost always unjust. Genuine saints, while conscious of the gravity of sin, show admirable sensitivity and mercy toward sinners. They are the true personification of Jesus, the merciful Lord.