When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who had come with her weeping,
he became perturbed and deeply troubled, and said,
“Where have you laid him?”
They said to him, “Sir, come and see.”
And Jesus wept.
he became perturbed and deeply troubled, and said,
“Where have you laid him?”
They said to him, “Sir, come and see.”
And Jesus wept.
John 11:33-35
What are we invited to experience in these words of St. John's gospel? Simply put: the humanity of the Son of God. Weeping so often is perceived as weakness. When there is the death of a friend or loved one, many experience the need for a handkerchief or tissue paper. Is there something more than loss that brings about the moist eyes? What do we call it? Sympathy or concern, perhaps compassion. Perhaps we might have a deeper insight into ourselves and into Jesus if we look upon this event in Jesus' life and the various similar moments in our own lives as solidarity, sharing the pain of another person.
In today's gospel verse we look upon the pain of loss that Martha and Mary are enduring because their brother, Lazarus, had died. We also are invited to read two words that speak volumes about Mary's son: Jesus wept. We stand watching the man whose heart is moved by the loss of a friend and the overwhelming confusion of the dead man's sisters. It is clear Jesus is feeling the sisters' loss and their personal concern about their future: what lies ahead for them. This moment in the life of Jesus is much more than our viewing him in tears. We are watching the Son of God in one of the sadder moments human beings experience.
There is another time when "Jesus wept." From a vantage point outside the city of Jerusalem, Jesus looked out to the city and he wept. Why? What did he see? He saw the confusion and the loss of so many people. Imagine what Jesus would do today were he in any city of our world today. Perhaps he would weep. More likely he would sob as he would look upon so much evil, so much hatred, so much war in distant lands as well as in families and communities. What is the reality that brings him to this emotional state? His mission. Jesus knew he was sent by his Father to bring sinners from their confusion and loss to salvation. What he saw and would see today was and is overwhelming. Look closely! You see the infinite compassion that rests in the heart of the Son of God. What you see in these events is Jesus being one with humanity. Solidarity!
This is what the Pastor of the parish where I reside is doing this weekend. Last week he challenged parishioners to seek out a friend or relative who had fallen way from practicing his/her religion. The parishioner was asked to invite that person to return with the parishioner to one of the weekend Masses. We are challenged to see the confusion and loss that may be filling the heart of that friend or relative and to bring him/her to know once again that Jesus has wept for him/her at some point in their lives of distance from his Church.
Without doubt that exercise, if practiced, surely is a fellow Christian and Catholic seeking to demonstrate personal love and compassion for a friend or relative. This exercise turns tears of sadness into tears of joy. Hopefully the returning person will find the grace of reconciliation a genuine experience in love and peace -- the love and peace of Jesus Christ.
