Lent Wk 5th: Saturday 9th April, 2022 April 9, 2022
Reflection on the WORD
Evil against God: In today’s Gospel, the chief priests and Pharisees were determined to kill Jesus because they were threatened by His preaching that was winning the hearts of many followers. Ponder on: Are we afraid to live and defend the Truth of Jesus’ Gospel? Evil forces are determined to destroy the Good News.
John 11:46-53
Some of the Jews went to the Pharisees to tell them what Jesus had done. Then the chief priests and Pharisees called a meeting. ‘Here is this man working all these signs,’ they said, ‘and what action are we taking? If we let him go on in this way everybody will believe in him, and the Romans will come and destroy the Holy Place and our nation.’
One of them, Caiaphas, the high priest that year, said, ‘You do not seem to have grasped the situation at all; you fail to see that it is better for one man to die for the people, than for the whole nation to be destroyed.’ He did not speak in his own person, it was as high priest that year he made this prophecy that Jesus was to die for the nation - and not for the nation only, but also to gather together in unity the scattered children of God. From that day they were determined to kill him.

Today's Pointers on God's Word
As you read the passage what words, phases or meanings caught your attention?
- •In today’s Gospel Caiaphas prophesied that it would be better for Jesus to die for the people than for the whole nation to perish. Such words are clearly words of fear and confusion; words deeply rooted in insecurity and vengeance.
- •Jesus proclaimed the Good News of Salvation with great courage, and paid the price of His death on the Cross willingly, in order that all nations may be saved.
- •Do we rationalise our lack of desires to accept Jesus into our lives because of our emotional needs and complications in life to lead to think like Caiaphas, the chief priests and the Pharisees? If so, what are these complications?
