Christ and the Woman Taken in Adultery
Palma Vecchio
1510-11
Oil on canvas, 82 x 70 cm
The Hermitage, St. Petersburg
Saint John Baptist de la Salle, Priest
Neither do I condemn you. (John 8:11)
In Victor Hugo’s classic novel Les Miserables, the main character, Jean Valjean, is imprisoned several years for stealing a loaf of bread. When he is finally released, he is so desperate for money that he steals a pair of silver candlesticks from a kindly bishop—only to be arrested again. Knowing he is guilty, Valjean fears a return to prison. But the bishop surprises him by telling the police that Valjean didn’t steal the candlesticks; the bishop had given them to him as a gift. Speechless in the face of such mercy, Valjean turns his life around completely. From that day on, he leads a life of generosity and charity, treating other people with the same compassion that he had received.
In today’s Gospel reading, we find a woman who, having been caught committing adultery, is also well aware of her sin and trembling in fear of the punishment that she surely deserved. But like Valjean, she too was stunned to find that rather than condemnation, she received mercy. Instead of being met with stones, she felt the healing touch of Jesus’ words. And her heart was so softened by them that she was prepared to respond in love when he told her, “Go, and from now on do not sin any more” (John 8:11).
Both stories show us what conversion looks like. Someone who is headed in one direction—toward selfishness and sin—has an encounter with God’s deep love and mercy and begins to move in a completely different direction. Touched by love and moved by grace, he or she becomes a new creation.
Lent is a time of conversion for all of us—even those of us who have been following the Lord for years. Is there an area of your life where you are heading in the wrong direction? Bring it to the Lord. Let him show you his mercy so that you can turn it around. Take it to Confession so that you can hear the stunning, surprising, life-giving words that have saved so many other people: “Neither do I condemn you. Go and do not sin any more.”
“Oh, the love and mercy of God—where would we be without it! Lord, thank you, thank you! Your mercy endures forever!”
Daniel 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62; Psalm 23:1-6