From the earliest days of the Church’s history--the post-Pentecostal experience to about mid-second century CE—dating “…back to the ancient Jerusalem liturgy” the Church has selected stories from John’s Gospel to be read at Mass during Lent. In the renewal of the Sacred Liturgy called for by the Council Fathers of Vatican II (1962-1965) three critical Biblical stories from the New Testament focus upon initiation into the Christian community. These magnificent stories of faith were restored to their rightful place within the Lenten Eucharistic liturgies in the post-Conciliar era. These Biblical narratives which focus on the coming to, as well as growth in faith as an intentional disciple of Jesus Christ, were brought forth from a much earlier time in the Church’s history. They were inserted once again into a revised Catechumenate Process celebrated at three key moments during Lent. Those stories of Water, Light, and Life are considered by a number of scholars, most notably Fr. Raymond E. Brown, SSS, to be the most sacred narratives in the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ public ministry which are proclaimed at mass during Lent on the third, fourth, and fifth Sundays. Those key stories are The Samaritan Woman at the Well (John 4: 5-42); The Healing of the Man born Blind (John 9: 1-41); and the Raising of Lazarus from the Dead (John 11: 1-45).

The late Fr. Raymond E. Brown, SSS, America’s pre-eminent scholar on John’s Gospel in the 20^th century, believed that these crucially important stories of faith from that gospel writer are what the very heart of Lent is all about; Baptism into the very life of Christ. So the Church gives permission for them not just to be read in the assigned first year of the liturgical cycle “A” but in the second and third-year cycles (“B” and “C”) as well, “so that there may never be a Lent in which they are not proclaimed”. This is truly idealistic for many liturgists and pastors do not believe that to be true for they only use these beautiful stories of faith from Saint John during the “A” cycle of gospel readings (Matthew’s Gospel) proclaimed during Lent. It is a shame that a great majority of the Catholic Christian Community will not hear those rich stories of faith this year. Instead, the faithful will hear the Gospel accounts prescribed for this year’s Lenten season coming to us from the work of St. Luke.

One might ask; Why are these stories given such prominence during Lent? Because during this season, from our earliest days as a Christian community, people were being prepared for Baptism and John’s stories fitted beautifully into the entire process of Christian initiation. In time the three narratives were read at specific stages in the Lenten preparation of catechumens for the reception of the Sacrament of Baptism to take place at the Easter Vigil liturgy. Not only are these stories fitting for those preparing to be baptized into the Catholic Church at Easter, but they still serve admirably in reflecting on the implications of our own baptismal faith as intentional disciples of Jesus Christ.

In the next few Lenten biblical reflections I send out to you I will talk about the relationship that Jesus has with the main character in each of these three powerful Biblical narratives. My intention is to show how one comes to faith in Christ over time in the midst of the experiences of life itself. This is especially true if one is open to the invitation of grace to a relationship with Jesus the Christ. 

These unique stories of faith from John’s Gospel will not be read at any of the liturgies the next three weekends at St. Bernadette. That is at the discretion of the local pastor in consultation with the parish liturgist whether to use the readings from the current “C” cycle from Saint Luke or to use the readings from John’s Gospel when the Church is in the “A” cycle of readings. Those gospel narratives will be proclaimed next year when we are using the “A” cycle of readings at mass for 2023. For this year Fr. Pepper and David Zorn have decided to use the readings from the “C” cycle, St. Luke’s Gospel, which has been prescribed by the Church for all of 2022, and not the stories from John’s Gospel.

*The Major resource used as research material for the creation of this article was a Catholic  Update by Fr. Raymond E. Brown, SSS, published by St. Anthony Messenger Press in the late  1980s.

 

Written by Bob Sugrue