Word to the Wise
Sunday, March 3, 2024 - 3rd Sunday of Lent - B
[Exod 20:1-17 or 20:1-3, 7-8, 12-17; 1 Cor 1:22-25; John 2:13-25]"What sign can you show us for doing this?" [John] Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called, Jews and Greeks alike, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. [1 Cor.]
What does a "sign" do? I dare to say that for most of us a sign points to something besides itself. It can tell us about the speed limit or where the restrooms are or indicate the building we are looking for. There is another sense we give to the word "sign" when we speak of "signing" our name to something. Our signature is equivalent to our person. It is a word that commits us. We Catholics speak of the "Sign" of the Cross," which, in certain circumstances, identifies us as Catholics, but is also a prayer that evokes our faith and our baptism.
The Gospel According to John treats each of Jesus' deeds as "signs" which point to Jesus' identity. For Jews, the authenticity of a prophet - the proof - of his identity would be the signs he could work. For "Greeks," what would be more important would be the words and content of "wisdom" that a philosopher offered. The cleansing of the temple in today's gospel passage was meant to point to a new temple and focus of worship - Jesus himself!!! In short, Jesus IS the sign of God because he IS God. His death by crucifixion would be considered shameful by Jews and make no sense to Greeks. [cf. Acts 17:22-34]. Yet, the cross has become the universal "sign" of Christianity.
The cross itself is an object with a meaning that we often give to it beyond what happened on Good Friday. Salvation, however, comes from faith in the one who died on the cross. He is himself the "Sign!" AMEN