By Msgr. Joseph Prior • Posted April 4, 2025

(See the readings for the Fifth Sunday of Lent)

A woman had been told that her son had suddenly died, and the news left her in shock. She described feeling like she had been kicked in the gut. As the new reality settled in, a darkness overtook her spirit. She felt like she had been buried with her son. Death was real to her, present at every moment.

Life became a drudgery as the days turned to weeks, the weeks to months and the months to years. She later recalled that her path to life began when she read the Gospel account of Jesus’ raising of Lazarus.

The death of a loved one is a great sorrow. Many who have had this experience might well relate to the woman mentioned above. We feel the loss. Sometimes shock might be involved. The sadness and sorrow that comes can readily be described as darkness. The grief may even feel painful. Hope seems to be lost in that darkness and we look for glimpses of light.

The account we hear this Sunday (Scrutiny Year A readings) of Jesus’ raising of Lazarus perhaps offers us some insights into the experience and where we might find God even in the darkest of places. Martha and Mary are experiencing grief, sorrow and sadness at the loss of their brother. Jesus comes to them and enters into their grief. He too is experiencing the loss. He grieves. So much so that he weeps in sorrow. In a sense he enters into their darkness.

Jesus who is the “light of the world” brings light to that dark place just by being there. His presence begins to lift the darkness. Martha and Mary are women of faith who turn to him for comfort and help.

“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you,” said Martha as she met Jesus on his arrival outside the city. When Mary later comes out to meet him, she says similar words.

Lazarus is enveloped in darkness. He is dead. His body was wrapped in burial cloths. He has been in the tomb for four days. Jesus asks the sisters where the tomb is located. They go there with the townsfolk. Jesus asks that the stone be rolled away from the tomb. Martha’s reply highlights the depth of darkness: “Lord, by now there will be a stench; he has been dead for four days.”

After praying to the Father Jesus says, “Lazarus, come out!” And Lazarus comes out of the darkness into the light. He is fully wrapped in the burial cloths so Jesus says, “Untie him and let him go.” Lazarus has been restored to life through the One who is “the resurrection and the life.”

Lazarus’ restoration to life is a “sign.” In the beginning of the account, the sisters had sent word to Jesus that Lazarus was ill. When Jesus received the message, he said to his companions: “This illness is not to end in death, but is for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” He waits two days before returning. Before leaving he tells the disciples: “Lazarus has died. And I am glad for you that I was not there, that you may believe. Let us go to him.”

In restoring Lazarus to life, Jesus gives a “sign” that he is the resurrection and the life. And through this “sign” he invites everyone into the light of faith. He is the “light that shines in the darkness.” Faith draws the believer into his light.

The raising of Lazarus also points forward to Jesus’ resurrection. There are some notable differences that the evangelist highlights through his telling of the event. Jesus needs no one to roll back the stone from the tomb. When the disciples go into his tomb they find it empty and the burial cloths neatly rolled up and piled where he had laid.

Jesus’ resurrection is not a restoration of life as with Lazarus. Someday Lazarus will die. Jesus however has passed through death and in rising from the dead has broken its power over him. He will not die again but lives forever. It is this life that he shares with us. Faith, again, draws us to him and leads us to share in his life.

The sadness, sorrow and grief come to many who experience the loss of a loved one. Many people describe the experience as a “darkness.” There are also other situations in life where we might have a similar experience in which hope seems lost or severely diminished. When fear or anxiety creep into life; when apprehension or uncertainty arise in our hearts; when security or safety are threatened; any of these situations might leave us feeling alone and helpless.

We are reminded today that we are not alone. Jesus enters into our experience of darkness all the way to the point of death. As he enters, he brings light and this light has the power to dispel darkness, to restore hope and to lead us to life.

The woman I mentioned at the beginning was not a Christian when she lost her son. In dealing with her sorrow and grief, she looked for avenues of relief. At first she tried to handle it on her own but this led nowhere. She then looked into some generic spiritual approaches along with some eastern methods of relief but none of these had helped.

She came to the account of Jesus’ raising of Lazarus through a friend who was a Christian. It was this friend who led her to Christ Jesus. It was he who lifted the darkness and she came to believe, like Martha, that Jesus “is the Christ, the Son of God.”

***

Msgr. Joseph Prior is pastor of Our Lady of Grace Parish, Penndel, and a former professor of Sacred Scripture and rector of St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.