Sunday March 14, 2021, Fourth Sunday of Lent (B)
Gospel Jn 3: 14-21
Jesus said to Nicodemus: “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish
but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed. But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.
Ebanjelioa Joan 3: 14-21
Jesusek esan zion Nikodemori: 14 Moisesek basamortuan brontzezko sugea hagan jaso zuen bezala, halaxe izan behar du jasoa Gizonaren Semeak, 15 harengan sinesten duten guztiek betiko bizia izan dezaten. 16 «Izan ere, Jainkoak hain maite izan zuen mundua, non bere Seme bakarra eman baitzion, harengan sinesten duenik inor gal ez dadin, baizik betiko bizia izan dezan. 17 Zeren Jainkoak ez baitzuen Semea mundura bidali mundua kondenatzeko, haren bitartez salbatzeko baizik. 18 Harengan sinesten duena ez da kondenatua; sinesten ez duena, ordea, kondenatua dago jadanik, ez baitu sinetsi Jainkoaren Seme bakarrarengan. 19 Hauxe da kondenaren arrazoia: argia mundura etorria dela eta gizakiak ilunpea maiteago izan duela argia baino, beraren jokabidea gaiztoa delako. 20 Izan ere, gaizki jokatzen duenak gorroto dio argiari, eta ez da hurbiltzen argitara, beraren jokabidea agerian geldi ez dadin. 21 Egiaren arabera ari dena, ordea, argitara hurbiltzen da, beraren egintzak Jainkoaren borondatearen arabera eginak direla ager dadin».
The one who lives truthfully, arrives to the Light
Often, we hear and even say, that modern man does not want to hear about God. My personal experience tells me that it is not true. More than ever, people want today to hear about God, but not with insincere language or inconsistent actions, which betray truth. People today cannot stand words, which do not correspond with actions, or words full of clichés and ready-made catch phrases. People today look for something more than a conventional idea of God. People look for a coherent life-style.
When facing with the mystery of God, personal integrity, sincerity and coherence are the vital questions. Staying in truth, not to deceive oneself nor others. Pope Leo XIII used to say, “God does not need our lies.” Neither God nor the Church or faith lose anything with the truth. Moreover, a coherent truth brings us closer to God. Therefore, we must rejoice in something that may go unnoticed, but it is enormously positive. The modern atheism is forcing us believers to purify our image of God. With its objections and criticisms, it is urging us to greater sincerity and truth. When we see that our own children do not wish to come to church, it forces us, adults, to consider what kind of God’s image we try to portray on them.
True theology is not triumphalist, but humble. God does not impose on anyone. God invites us to trace HIM on the many paths we find in our lives. It is like the wind: “you hear it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes to.” We must announce the unfathomable mystery of God’s love, and not our doctrinal or cultural adhesions, which, often, hide God’s tenderness, compassion and love for every human being.
The late Hungarian theologian, Ladislaus Boros SJ (+1981), once said that the most dreadful form of atheism that threatens us all is “the atheism of insincerity.” It is true. Some call ourselves believers and others agnostics, but the truth is that only those who lead a coherent life-style are near to God. We all can make mistakes, but only to the one who is searching the light, God will come to meet him on the way.
Often under dogmatic attitudes or the agnostic apathy, we hide a lack of courage to approach sincerely the living and true God. Therefore, we should heed the words of Jesus: “Whoever performs the truth approaches to light.”
El que vive en la verdad, llega a la Luz
A menudo, escuchamos e incluso decimos, que el hombre moderno no quiere oír hablar de Dios. Mi experiencia personal me dice que esto no es verdad. Más que nunca, la gente quiere hoy oír acerca de Dios, pero no con lenguaje insincero o acciones inconsistentes, que traicionan la verdad. La gente de hoy no puede soportar palabras, que no se corresponden con acciones, o palabras llenas de clichés y frases preconcebidas. La gente de hoy busca algo más que una idea convencional de Dios. La gente busca un estilo de vida coherente.
Cuando nos enfrentamos al misterio de Dios, la integridad personal, la sinceridad y la coherencia son las preguntas vitales, importantes. Permanecer en la verdad, no engañarse ni a los demás. El Papa León XIII solía decir: “Dios no necesita nuestras mentiras”. Ni Dios ni la Iglesia o la fe pierden nada con la verdad. Además, una verdad coherente nos acerca a Dios. Por lo tanto, debemos regocijarnos en algo que puede pasar desapercibido, pero es enormemente positivo. El ateísmo moderno nos está forzando a los creyentes a purificar nuestra imagen de Dios. Con sus objeciones y críticas, nos está obligando a vivir con mayor sinceridad y verdad. Cuando vemos que nuestros propios hijos no desean venir a la iglesia, ello nos obliga a nosotros, adultos, a considerar qué tipo de imagen de Dios tratamos de mostrarles.
La verdadera teología no es triunfalista, sino humilde. Dios no impone a nadie nada. Dios nos invita a buscarlo en los muchos caminos que encontramos en nuestras vidas. Es como el viento: “lo oyes, pero no sabes de dónde viene ni a dónde va”. Debemos anunciar el misterio insondable del amor de Dios, y no insistir en nuestras adhesiones doctrinales o culturales, que, a menudo, esconden la ternura, la compasión y el amor de Dios por cada ser humano.
El teólogo húngaro, Ladislaus Boros SJ (+1981), ya fallecido, dijo una vez que la forma más terrible de ateísmo que nos amenaza a todos es el “ateísmo de la insinceridad.” Esto es verdad. Algunos se llaman creyentes y otros agnósticos, pero la verdad es que solo aquellos que llevan un estilo de vida coherente están cerca de Dios. Todos podemos cometer errores, pero solo para el que está buscando la luz, Dios vendrá a su encuentro en el camino, mostrándole Su luz.
A menudo, bajo actitudes dogmáticas o la apatía agnóstica, escondemos una falta de valentía para acercarnos sinceramente al Dios vivo y verdadero. Por lo tanto, debemos prestar atención a las palabras de Jesús: “Quien realiza la verdad se acerca a la luz.”