Homily: 5th Week of Lent - Wednesday - "The truth will set you free"

Scripture diagnoses a spiritual disease particularly deadly to man’s right relationship with God—the spiritual malady known as hard-heartedness..  Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and would not listen to Moses.  Jesus condemns the Pharisees for not understanding his parables or the meaning of his miracles because of their hardness of heart.  Paul talks of those “who are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.” 

The book of proverbs offers particular insight into the causes of hard-heartedness: “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy. Blessed is the one who fears the Lord always, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity.”  The concealing of transgressions—failure to acknowledge one’s sinfulness—is the leading cause of hard-heartedness.

Jesus’ audience in today’s Gospel seems particularly hard-hearted.  Jesus says to them, “you are trying to kill me, because my word has no room among you.”  What was the word that Jesus was preaching to them?  Freedom from sins.

Jesus’ audience had become so closed to the idea of needing a savior, that they wanted to kill Him, to destroy him, to erase him from their memory.  The hardened heart has no room for Jesus because it has no room for truth, particularly the truth that I have sinned and I need a savior.

Many people reject Catholic Christianity not for intellectual reasons but because they do not want to follow the moral teachings of Jesus Christ—they do not want to give up their sins.  The virulent attacks on the Church typically come from those who have adopted behaviors that are very contrary to Jesus’ teachings. 

Today, many people wish to be free.  But the freedom they seek is the freedom to do whatever they wish, whatever is their whim.  This is not the Christian notion of freedom.  Freedom is only truly real if it is based on the truth.  “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 

In these final days of Lent, may our hearts continue to be sanctified by our Lenten penances for the great celebration of our salvation in the Paschal mysteries for the glory of God and salvation of souls.