Homily: March 27, 2026, Saturday of the Fifth Week in Lent (Hardness of Heart)

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 “So from that day on they planned to kill him.”

These are very strong and shocking words from today’s Gospel. During this season of Lent, we have been praying often in the responsorial psalm: “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”

Every morning, priests and religious pray this line in the Divine Office. It is like a daily reminder, a warning—to keep our hearts open to God.

But in today’s Gospel, we see the opposite.

The Pharisees and the chief priests witnessed so many miracles of Jesus. And the final one—the raising of Lazarus after four days in the tomb—is something truly extraordinary.

That one miracle alone should have led anyone to faith.

But instead of believing, they decide to kill Him. Why?

Because their hearts had become hard.

They chose not to see. They chose not to listen. They chose not to believe.

They closed their eyes to the truth and shut their ears to God’s voice.

And this is where today’s Gospel speaks to us.

Hardness of heart does not happen in one moment. It happens slowly—when we repeatedly ignore God’s voice, when we resist His grace, when we justify our sins, when we refuse to change.

Lent is a time to examine our hearts. Are we open to God?

Or have we allowed certain areas of our lives to become hard?

Today, let us pray in a special way for those whose hearts have become hardened—those who have turned away from God, those who resist the Gospel of life and love.

And let us also pray for ourselves:

That when we hear His voice, we may not harden our hearts,

but respond with humility, faith, and love.

Amen.


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