Discussion Questions
First Reading
2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23
1. “The God of their fathers (sent) his messengers to them, for he had compassion on his people.” Does God send messengers “early and often” now? What about to you personally? What can you do to “open your door wider” so that the messengers can get in?
2. “But they mocked the messengers of God.” Wangari Maathai was ridiculed for years for crying out against damaging forests. Because of her persistence, the Green Belt Movement, a re-forestation project in Kenya was started. Can you name some other people who have been rejected because of the messages they delivered?
Second Reading
Ephesians 2:4-10
1. In Diary of a Country Priest, the writer, George Bernanos, makes this statement: “Grace is everywhere.” Can this be true? Discuss.
2. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God.” Would you define grace as God’s own life? Is it grace that makes “prophets” bring problems that need fixing (climate, racial, immigration, hunger, prisons) to our attention?
Gospel
John 3:14-21
1. “For God so love the world that he sent his only Son … ” So what is your job? Who is going to tell the world about this love? Name some ways (other than preaching) that you can do such a thing. Might you run into difficulties at times? When this happens can you remember that you are not alone and that you will always receive the grace you need?
2. How does Pope Francis “help us see the true face of God”? Does he emphasize Jesus’ words to Nicodemus, “God so loved” and God “gave”?
Nicodemus was a Jewish elder who wanted to know the Master. Do Jesus’ words to him, God so loved, help us to see the true face of God? He has always looked at us with love, and for the sake of love he came among us in the flesh of his Son. He went in search of us when we were lost. In Jesus, he came to raise us up when we fell. In Jesus, he wept with us and healed our wounds. In Jesus, he blessed our life forever. The Gospel tells us that whoever believes in him will not perish. In Jesus, God spoke the definitive word about our life: you are not lost, you are loved. Loved forever.
Pope Francis' homily for 4 Lent B
March 14, 2021
Anne Osdieck
**From Saint Louis University