FIRST SATURDAY OF THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT, APRIL 5, 2025

Norman Rockwell (1894-1978), “The Gossips,” 1948. Painting for The Saturday Evening Post cover, March 6, 1948.

Oil on canvas. Private collection.

©SEPS: Curtis Publishing, Indianapolis, IN

MASS READINGS:

Gospel

John 7:40-53

Some in the crowd who heard these words of Jesus said, "This is truly the Prophet." Others said, "This is the Christ." But others said, "The Christ will not come from Galilee, will he? Does not Scripture say that the Christ will be of David's family and come from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?" So a division occurred in the crowd because of him. Some of them even wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him. So the guards went to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, "Why did you not bring him?" The guards answered, "Never before has anyone spoken like this man." So the Pharisees answered them, "Have you also been deceived? Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed." Nicodemus, one of their members who had come to him earlier, said to them, "Does our law condemn a man before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?" They answered and said to him, "You are not from Galilee also, are you? Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee." Then each went to his own house.

REFLECTION

 "Does our law condemn a man before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?"

Several years ago when I was a new parishioner, someone told me not very nice things about another person. It was totally unsolicited; unfortunately it took several years for me to change my first opinion of that person. In fact, once knowing them was a great delight and taught me a big lesson on how not to even listen to gossip.

Gossip is everywhere and it should be avoided --in fact run away as fast as possible, before it damages our thoughts, our actions and our relationships. After the damage of gossip, everyone goes to his own house and the truth will be very hard to learn.

“Men remain in ignorance as long as they hate, and they hate unjustly as long as they remain in ignorance.”

― Tertullian

(early church father)

God Bless You