Fourth Sunday of Lent
Josh 5:9-12; 2 Cor 5:17-21; Lk 15:1-3 & 11-12 (Year C)
"The Lord said to Joshua, ‘Today I have taken the shame of Egypt away from you.’" The words spoken to Joshua announced a new beginning for the children of Israel. They had endured the slavery of Egypt and the years of rootless wandering. Now at last they were established securely, free at last to celebrate the Passover as inhabitants of the Land.
Subsequent history demonstrated the frailty of this new beginning. The bright promise of Israel’s new kingdom soon became a litany of infidelity and missed opportunities. Despite their many blessings, they had not only transgressed, they had also become a people devoid of any sense of the love that had called them into being.
