The WORD in Other Words by Fr Francisco Estepa SVD (Philippines)
Monday 5th Week of Lent
Daniel 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62 or 13:41c-62 John 8:12-20
In the US, a man kicked a mad dog that attacked a lady. The dog died. Paper reports: “Local hero saves lady from mad dog.” Man says: “I‘m not American.” Paper changes report: “Foreign hero saves lady from mad dog.” Man says, “I am an Arab.” Breaking News: “Terrorist kills innocent dog.”
One‘s bias colors one‘s perception of reality just as the story above shows. The same is true in the gospel reading for today. The Pharisees could not understand what Jesus was saying because of their bias. Their way of thinking was judgmental from Jesus‘ perspective.
Jesus spoke of His intimacy with the Father which the Pharisees could not comprehend. Thus, the latter asked for a verification which for Jesus was not necessary since His testimony already verified His oneness with the Father. Such teaching of Jesus could not be accepted by the Pharisees. They already pre-judged Him and anything He said would be taken negatively and used against Him.
We, too, have our own biases. During this time of Lent, let us ask the Lord to help us be aware of our biases and ask God to heal us from these.
Éditions Verbum Bible 
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