Karen Peck and New River: "Four Days Late"

As we continue our Sunday celebration, I offer this version of Karen Peck and New River presenting "Four Days Late":

 

Fifth Sunday of Lent

Today the Church celebrates the Fifth Sunday of Lent. The assigned readings are Ezekiel 37:12-14, Romans 8:8-11 and John 11:1-45. The Responsorial Psalm is from Psalm 130 (Psalm 130:1-8).

For one version of the Responsorial Psalm set to music, please visit:

YouTube: Responsorial Psalm / Fifth Sunday of Lent Year A / CBW#56 / Psalm 130 

The Gospel reading is as follows:

Now a man was ill, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who had anointed the Lord with perfumed oil and dried his feet with her hair; it was her brother Lazarus who was ill. So the sisters sent word to him saying, 'Master, the one you love is ill.' When Jesus heard this he said, "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."

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that he was ill, he remained for two days in the place where he was. Then after this he said to his disciples, "Let us go back to Judea." The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were just trying to stone you, and you want to go back there?"
Jesus answered,  "Are there not twelve hours in a day? If one walks during the day, he does not stumble, 
because he sees the light of this world.But if one walks at night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him."

He said this, and then told them, "Our friend Lazarus is asleep, but I am going to awaken him." So the disciples said to him, "Master, if he is asleep, he will be saved." But Jesus was talking about his death, while they thought that he meant ordinary sleep. So then Jesus said to them clearly, "Lazarus has died.  And I am glad for you that I was not there, that you may believe. Let us go to him." So Thomas, called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go to die with him."

When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, only about two miles away. And many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him; but Mary sat at home. Martha said to Jesus, "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."

Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise." Martha said to him, "I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day." Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?' She said to him, "Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world."

When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary secretly, saying, "The teacher is here and is asking for you." As soon as she heard this, she rose quickly and went to him. For Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still where Martha had met him. So when the Jews who were with her in the house comforting her saw Mary get up quickly and go out, they followed her, presuming that she was going to the tomb to weep there. When Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." 

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. So the Jews said, "See how he loved him." But some of them said, "Could not the one who opened the eyes of the blind man have done something so that this man would not have died?"

So Jesus, perturbed again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay across it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the dead man’s sister, said to him, "Lord, by now there will be a stench; he has been dead for four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. And Jesus raised his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you for hearing me. I know that you always hear me; but because of the crowd here I have said this, that they may believe that you sent me." And when he had said this, He cried out in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" The dead man came out, tied hand and foot with burial bands, and his face was wrapped in a cloth. So Jesus said to them, "Untie him and let him go."

Now many of the Jews who had come to Mary and seen what he had done began to believe in him.

Reflections related to these readings:

Community in Mission: Taking Back What the Devil Stole from Me - A Homily for the Fifth Sunday of Lent (21 MAR 26) 

Benedictine College: This Sunday, Five Lines You May Have Missed Reveal the Meaning of Lazarus (7 MAR 26)

Word on Fire: Jesus Wept (Cycle A * Lent * 5th Week)

The Pilot: Echoes: Scott Hahn: At Lazarus's tomb (20 MAR 26)

The Pilot: Echoes: Father Joshua J. Whitfield: Scripture Reflection for March 22, 2026, Fifth Sunday in Lent (18 MAR 26) 

The Pilot: Echoes: Archbishop Richard G. Henning: 'De profundis' (20 MAR 26) 

The Quiet Corner: A Deep Faith in Jesus as Savior is expected of every authentic Christian (19 MAR 26) 

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the blessings You bestow on single parents as they face their daily challenges.

Elizabeth Scalia on St. Patrick's Breastplate and Mid-Lent Terrors

"Well, here we are in mid-March and mid-Lent and once again I am renewing my annual quest to memorize the Lorica of St. Patrick, in its fullness.

"The effort is not confined to the season; in fits and starts I work at it during the year, but the task is always re-embraced in these dreary days when the weather goes fickle, and spring's arrival seems like a trickster's promise. Easter looks so far off, right now, because our Lenten practices -- begun with such a sense of adventure and optimism -- have begun to feel like a muddy slog through the hell of ourselves, full of faceplants and failures.

"It happens to all of us, and good writers and preachers remind us that failure is the whole point of Lent; its value comes in realizing that we are powerless to advance spiritually under our own steam. . . ."

In a recent commentary, writer Elizabeth Scalia reflected on the relationship between St. Patrick's Breastplate, Lent, and the battle between light and dark continuing around us.

To access Ms. Scalia's complete post, please visit:

The Pilot: Echoes: Elizabeth Scalia: St. Patrick's Breastplate and the terrors of mid-Lent (19 MAR 26)

Reflection Starter from Pope Leo XIV

"Jesus tells us today what He once said to Martha, Lazarus's sister: 'I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.' (Jn 11:25-26)" - Pope Leo XIV

Artie Shaw And His Orchestra: "Stardust"

As this blessed week draws to a close, I offer this version of Artie Shaw and his Orchestra presenting "Stardust":

 

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of the coming of the season of spring.

The Traditions of St. Joseph's Day

Are you looking forward to eating some Zeppole di San Giuseppe this week? It's the Southern Italian pastry made of fried dough and custard that is a fixture of St. Joseph’s Day, which we celebrate every March 19th. The Zeppole tradition stems from a legend that claims Joseph sold sweets to earn a living after he fled to Egypt with Jesus and Mary. Other traditions also abound surrounding the celebration of this feast day, especially in Italy, where it serves as their nation's Father’s Day.

One particular Sicilian legend recounts a drought in the Middle Ages that came to an end after prayers for the intercession of Saint Joseph brought rain. Those rains gave life to the fava bean, an important crop that helped relieve the famine sweeping Sicily. Gatherings were held to honor Saint Joseph's intercession and give thanks to God, establishing traditions now celebrated yearly. And the fava bean, featured in those first celebrations, remains a component of devotional altars assembled for the feast in our day.  Also tracing to this Sicilian legend is the practice of designating a table of food for donation to the poor on Saint Joseph's Day, grounded in the people's experience of being without food, a memory that leads to a commitment to generosity towards those struggling with hunger and poverty.

This provides such a beautiful connection to Saint Joseph because the Holy Family certainly experienced their share of hardship and doing without in this world. These traditions surrounding the Feast of Saint Joseph draw us deeper into the Gospel and the story of Joseph caring for Mary and Jesus, even to the point of having the humility to seek and accept help in times of need.

These traditions also draw us into the teachings of Christ, who said of those who feed the hungry, "Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me."  In other regions of Italy, bonfires are lit on the eve of Saint Joseph's Day, starting the celebration early in a way that evokes a sense of wonder befitting the figure of Saint Joseph. The man chosen by God to care for Mary and Jesus must have commanded tremendous admiration from them, and the bonfires honor him appropriately.

Those bonfires also inspire the awe we should have for Saint Joseph as a model of fatherhood. That awe is based somewhat on the mysterious nature of Joseph, because we don't hear a lot about him in scripture. We get glimpses of his heroism in his obedience to God, sacrificial nature, and love for Mary and Jesus.

And this is so much how children experience awe in relation to any good father. They see a man who relates to them in their world, but our fathers are always more complex than the countless functions they provide in service to family. Getting to know them fully is a journey of discovery over a lifetime.

Saint Joseph provides a perfect lens through which to understand fatherhood because he checks all the boxes for what a loving and loyal husband and father should be in the glimpses we get of him. But he also opens our minds to fatherhood as mystery. In this way, our celebration of Saint Joseph on his feast day should awaken us to the mystery of our own fathers, and other fathers we know, so that we can support them in their great journey to care for their families.

This essay is this week's "Light One Candle" column, written by Fr. Ed Dougherty, M.M, of The Christophers' Board of Directors; it is one of a series of weekly columns that deal with a variety of topics and current events.)

Background information:

The Christophers

Reflection Starter fro St. Philip Neri

"Bear the cross and do not make the cross bear you." - Saint Philip Neri

Thank You, Lord

Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of time spent before the Blessed Sacrament.

Fr. Joe Newman, OSFS,, on Lent and Unfinished Projects

"I hesitate to even write this, because I know my community will bring it up at dinner.  But the things I try to hide about myself are already visible to them.  They know.  So here it is: I start projects and don't finish them. . . .

"At this point in our Lenten journey, many of us may feel like unfinished projects. The initial fervor fades.  Prayers go unsaid.  Fasting falters.  Acts of charity remain on the to-do list.  So what now?"

In a recent commentary, Father Joe Newman, OSFS, reflected on Lent as a time for being attenttive to God instead of focusing on spiritual projects.

To access Fr. Newman's complete post, please visit:

De Sales Weekly: Provincial Reflection: Lent & Our Unfinished Projects (19 MAR 26)

Reflection Starter from St. Francis de Sales

"When your heart has fallen raise it gently, humbling yourself before God, acknowledging your fault, but not surprised at your fall." - Saint Francis de Sales