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West Green
4 Vincent Road, London N15 3QH
Parish Office Tel No: 020-8888-5518 E-mail: westgreen@rcdow.org.uk
Facebook: West Green - St John Vianney Church
Our website: http://stjohnvianneywestgreen.co.uk/
(SJV Parish Centre 020-8888-5518)
Dear Parishioners,
Quite often when I have conversations with people about God or faith, I come across the
questions: If God exist, why are there so many bad things in this world? If God loves
me, why is there so much suffering in my life? If God is all powerful, why didnt he stop
all the terrible wars and disasters? They are deep existential questions that are not easy to
answer, and are often the main reason for people to not believe in God or for losing faith.
In todays gospel, we come across a similar mystery. Jesus loved Lazarus it was
mentioned three times in the reading, emphasising the importance and truth of this love:
Jesus REALLY cared about Lazarus. And yet, he didnt heal Lazarus of his illness. He
didnt rush to go to him, and stayed where he was for two more days. Lazarus died and
Jesus wept: because death IS a sad and painful reality, and Jesus experienced this for
real and truly knew the depth of grief. Jesus loved, with a love that doesnt manifest itself
by solving all the problems or avoiding pain, but embraces it all.
But there is another reality that is stronger than death: that of Life or, better still, Eternal
Life. And here we begin to see Jesus actions and words under a different light. Jesus truly
wept and experienced sadness, but he did not despair. He knew that Lazarus is not truly
dead, and that even though he dies, he will live and I suspect he was not only referring
to the fact that he was about to bring him back to life there and then. Indeed, this is true not
only for Lazarus, but for all those who have faith. As he said to Martha, Whoever lives
and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?
Do I believe this? Do we really believe in Eternal
Life, and that death is not the end? This is a call to
a faith that will change how we live completely.
It has the power to transform every aspect of our
lives: how we deal with sickness and death (others
and our own); how we love the people around us;
what we do with our lives and understanding the
purpose of it; how to set priorities; etc. When we
live in the reality of Eternal Life, it enables us to
live with peace and hope, and to have the courage and strength to love to the end.
Perhaps, Gods way of answering our existential questions is by asking us a question in return:
If you believe in me, even though you die you will live... do you believe this?