Third Sunday of Lent - C March 7, 2010

Exodus 3: 1-8a, 13-15 1 Corinthians 10: 1-6, 10-12 Luke 13: 1-9

Just about a week short of a month ago, we were surrounded by all types of reminders of what is known as “Valentine’s Day.” A couple of months ago it was “Santa Claus” who was a central figure, it seemed, in everyday life. And in ten days, a good deal of the interest and activity of many persons will be focused on “St. Patrick’s Day.”

I find it fascinating that three different individuals in the life and history of the Catholic Church commands such attention of a broad and very secular segment of American life, especially, but also in other parts of the world. What it appears to come down to us that some qualities identified in Saints Valentine, Nicholas and Patrick, are viewed as important parts of our human personality so that they seem to summarize different elements of what we are which we enjoy recalling and celebrating. In this way, these individuals of the Catholic tradition stand as signs or symbols of these qualities. In the case of Santa Claus, which is, after all, a corruption of the name St. Nicholas, it is the spirit of generosity which is the basis of our loving God’s very creation of the universe; in the case of St. Valentine, it is the spirit of communication, especially of love, which is the basis of the Revelation, the Word of God, in the Scriptures; and in St. Patrick, it is the spirit of identification of a people, a nation, which can stand as a reminder to us that it is through a people, the Chosen People of the Old Testament and the People of God, in the New Testament, that the presence of God in the world is revealed, is to be known.

These three persons, and what they symbolize, point to how important signs are as part of how we live, of how we define ourselves, and of how we celebrate. It is the value and importance of signs or symbols that I believe we can understand as part of the message of God that we have heard in the Scriptures today. In a particular way what we heard today can suggest a development of our understanding of the signs and symbols of God’s loving presence especially as a part of our effort to grow during this season of Lent in an appreciation of the death and resurrection of Christ in our lives.

In the story from Exodus and the account of the burning bush, I believe we can recognize two important signs of God’s presence. The bush burns but is not consumed. God’s presence is powerful but not destructive. God’s name is “I AM.” It is not, “I do this” or “I do that.” I AM. I am presence; I am existence; I am being. I am the source of all that is, all that is experienced. All that we have, all that we are, can ultimately find its beginning and basis in God.

In the discussion that Jesus has with his followers about the historical events of the martyred Galileans and the collapse of a tower, it is not so much a natter that it is wrong to look at such occurrences and seek some insight into the reality of God’s presence. Rather, what Jesus appears to suggest it that it is necessary to probe beyond the immediate event, and see a much deeper reality revealed. The truth is that in giving us life, God gave us free will. This will can be used for good or for evil. This happens according to our choices, our decisions. God is present to us, but God does not control or manipulate. We are to live this gift of life that is ours in a way like a fig tree. Life has a source in God - I AM. But the effectiveness of that life is our task, our duty. Like the cultivation and fertilization of the fig tree, it is our action, in partnership with the presence of God, that produces results for good.

The death and resurrection of Christ, is the central mystery of our Faith. We declare this at every Mass, after the words of Institution or the consecration of the Mass. These are savings acts of God on our behalf, similar to those that the people of the Old Covenant with God enjoyed. How they either understood or did not understand the presence of God in their midst made a difference. St. Paul is counseling us, encouraging us, as he did the Christians at Corinth, to understand and appreciate more deeply what we believe, what we know about our faith, because the effectiveness and impact of our faith will depend on us.

We need to explore the ways, in the very routine elements of our daily lives, how the love of God for us, expressed in the death and resurrection of Christ, effects who and what are important to us, and how we express that importance in our living. God, and God’s love, will be known in and through us. We are to be the signs, the symbols of God’s love active in our world today. It is up to us to explore, to consider, to think through how it is that, in the ordinary aspects of our daily lives we can reflect the love and the goodness of our gracious God.