Jesus enters the city in secret to attend the festival but is recognised nonetheless. Some wonder if he could be the Messiah, while others dismiss the possibility. We know who he is, they reason. This peasant Jew from Galilee does not conform to their expectations. However, Jesus is far more than they know, far more than he seems. In their rush to judge him and in their superficiality, they are missing God’s very presence in their lives.

Despite the authorities’ intent to kill him, he is not arrested. His ‘hour’ has not yet come. Jesus doesn’t fall unwittingly into the hands of his enemies, a helpless victim of their malicious plot to kill him. He is fully aware of their intention to harm him and remains steadfast in his mission. He knows the ‘hour’ will come when he must mount the cross for the salvation of the world.

As we continue our Lenten pilgrimage, we walk with Jesus as his ‘hour’ draws near. Let us learn from his steadfastness. Let us also be mindful of the ways we can casually judge and dismiss someone. Perhaps it’s the way they speak or dress. Perhaps it’s because ‘we know them’ – and so rule out the possibility that the Holy Spirit can be working within them and through them.

This Lent, let’s not just give up chocolates or digital entertainment. Rather, let us be steadfast in virtue. Instead of chocolate, let us give up the bad habit of casting judgment on our brothers and sisters or simply dismissing them. The way God works is not always apparent to us. In closing ourselves off to a brother or sister, we might well be dismissing the hidden presence and purpose of God in our lives.

by Fr Michael Grace