Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 8, 1-11

Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area, 
and all the people started coming to him, 
and he sat down and taught them.
Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman 
who had been caught in adultery 
and made her stand in the middle.
They said to him,
“Teacher, this woman was caught 
in the very act of committing adultery.
Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women.
So what do you say?”
They said this to test him,
so that they could have some charge to bring against him.
Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.
But when they continued asking him,
he straightened up and said to them,
“Let the one among you who is without sin 
be the first to throw a stone at her.”
Again he bent down and wrote on the ground.
And in response, they went away one by one,
beginning with the elders.
So he was left alone with the woman before him.
Then Jesus straightened up and said to her,
“Woman, where are they?
Has no one condemned you?”
She replied, “No one, sir.”
Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you.
Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”

I don’t condemn you either

1) The mount. This is how the Gospel begins. Jesus returns from praying and talking with the Father. Because prayer clarifies your life and illuminates it. In the face of complex moments, praying helps you see things in a different way. Take your time to meet with God and with yourself. Give yourself that opportunity to become aware that you have been found by God and speak with Him in silence. Decisions are the product of an intimate silence, that’s where one finds the voice of clarity.

2) The stone. It represents the Pharisaical attitude that we all have, when we condemn our brothers or sists and kill them by stoning them, stoning with the judgement in our eyes, with our tongues or with our indifference. The only difference between this sinful woman and the Pharisees is that her sin had been visible, theirs was not. You and I judge people, or they judge us, but what’s the difference? Some people have a notorious sin, and yours might not be visible.

The gospel says that Jesus wrote on the ground. Saint Augustine says he was writing the sins of the Pharisees, that’s why they began to leave. They saw that their sins were written there. Look at your dominant sin before you condemn. If you can, of course.

3) Go. In Jesus she finds an opportunity to change, because that’s what this Lenten season, which is already coming to an end, is leading us to. God is giving you the opportunity to change and get out of the situation that condemns you or that gets you stoned by others. There is always the opportunity to change, the issue is that you must want to change. Come on! Today give yourself the opportunity to change your life, knowing that you are a forgiven sinner and loved by God.

God bless you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Always remember that something good is on the way!