Join Msgr. Don Fischer as he reads and delivers a short reflection on today’s gospel, followed by 3 1/2 minutes of contemplative music and a closing prayer. Msgr. Don hopes that today’s reflection on the gospel will empower you to carry the Word in your heart throughout the day.

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Gospel
John 11:45-56

Many of the Jews who had come to Mary
and seen what Jesus had done began to believe in him.
But some of them went to the Pharisees
and told them what Jesus had done.
So the chief priests and the Pharisees
convened the Sanhedrin and said,
"What are we going to do?
This man is performing many signs.
If we leave him alone, all will believe in him,
and the Romans will come
and take away both our land and our nation."
But one of them, Caiaphas,
who was high priest that year, said to them,
"You know nothing,
nor do you consider that it is better for you
that one man should die instead of the people,
so that the whole nation may not perish."
He did not say this on his own,
but since he was high priest for that year,
he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation,
and not only for the nation,
but also to gather into one the dispersed children of God.
So from that day on they planned to kill him.

So Jesus no longer walked about in public among the Jews,
but he left for the region near the desert,
to a town called Ephraim,
and there he remained with his disciples.

Now the Passover of the Jews was near,
and many went up from the country to Jerusalem
before Passover to purify themselves.
They looked for Jesus and said to one another
as they were in the temple area, "What do you think?
That he will not come to the feast?"

Reflection

The miracle that is spoken of in this gospel is the raising of Lazarus. Obviously, only God could raise someone from the dead. And the experience that people would have of seeing that kind of power in a human being would awaken them to something that would solve the problems of a dispersed children of God, bring them together into oneness.

The gift is knowing that God has the power to change people, to lift them out of a place of darkness. If you’ve ever experience deep darkness and come out of it, you know exactly what that miracle is about.

The Closing prayer

Father, we come to the end of your public ministry, and we recognize so clearly that the sin of the Jews was to absolutely say they knew who you were, but they didn't know who you were. Open our hearts to see you as you truly are so that we're not caught in an image of you that isn't you, that keeps us from the life that you promise us. And we ask this in Jesus name, Amen.

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