Homily: March 6, 2026, Friday of the second monday in Lent (Cruelty- Salvation )

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 “They then sat down to their meal.”

This scene from today’s first reading really hit me. Joseph’s brothers had just stripped him of his robe, thrown him into an empty cistern, and abandoned him, knowing well that would kill him. And what did they do after that cruel deed?

Scripture says: they sat down to eat their meal.

It is shocking. Their brother is suffering nearby, crying for help, yet they felt nothing, they calmly continued their day, with a meal, like nothing unusual happened.

That behavior made an already cruel act more evil.

When I read this passage, it reminded me of a scene from the movie ‘The Passion of the Christ’. In that film, Jesus spent the night in a dungeon in the house of the high priest. He was captured, trapped, waiting for death. The detail of this scene is not found in the Bible, but was vividly described by Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich from her mystical visions. And truly, there is a dungeon behind what is believed to be Caiaphas’s house in Jerusalem, which exists till today. So it is highly possible that Jesus did spend the night there after his arrest.

Joseph in the cistern.

Jesus in the dungeon.

Both were alone, rejected, abandoned and trapped. Joseph was betrayed by his own brothers. Jesus was rejected by His own people.

And here is a similar irony in both situations: Joseph’s brothers had no idea that the one they were removing from their lives would one day be the one to save them from disaster. Similarly, those who persecuted and killed Jesus did not know that He is the Messiah who would save them from eternal condemnation.

Sadly, this pattern repeats itself throughout the history of humanity, into the present day and will keep going.

Killing of the innocent, cruelty against the weak, evil against the good are as real today as in the past.

Recently in our own parish, we lost the life of a young boy to a senseless shooting. He was only fourteen – a young joyful boy, loved by many, with a potentially good future ahead of him. In just an instant, this life is gone.

Around the world now, wars continue to claim lives by the thousands. Every year, millions of unborn babies are thrown away like unwanted thrash through induced abortions. Yet, every one of those lives was created in the image and likeness of God.

And what do the people who commit these offences do after they kill?

They sit down to their meals like nothing meant anything. They are numb to the truth of their sins.

Today’s readings invite us not to become numb. They invite us to keep our hearts alive and compassionate. To feel, to know, to be moved.

Joseph’s tragic experience eventually became the path through which God saved many lives. And Jesus’ suffering and death is the way God saved the whole humanity.

So today let us pray for the protection of every human life. Let us pray for those who are victims of violence, war, or injustice. And let us ask God to keep our hearts sensitive and compassionate to those who suffer and are vulnerable.

Amen.


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