Homily – Sunday, the 16th March 2025
Reading: Luke 13:31-35
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today’s Gospel passage for our meditation comes from Luke 13:31-35. In this passage we can see two key moments: first, Jesus is warned that King Herod wants to kill Him; second, He laments the situation of Jerusalem, the city that resists God’s prophets. We can let the text speak to us from the perspective of those who face oppression or marginalization, allowing ourselves to be challenged to commit to the project of justice and compassion that God proposes for us.
We hear in the Gospel that some Pharisees warn Jesus, “Leave here and go somewhere else, because Herod wants to kill you.” This king, remembered for silencing those who threatened his authority, had already executed John the Baptist and now seemed to have the same intentions for Jesus. We see in Herod the symbol of every political or social structure that persecutes those who fight for justice. Even today, we still find “Herods” that violate human dignity: in exclusionary migration policies, in oppressive regimes, in economic systems that exploit the weakest, or in private deafness of those who fail to see beyond themselves. But the account shows us that Jesus is not intimidated. He calls Herod “that fox” and, without fear, declares that He will continue casting out demons and healing the sick. His liberating mission is not defined by human power but by God’s plan, which transcends any earthly threat.
In His response, Jesus speaks of “completing His work on the third day,” pointing to the Resurrection. The Resurrection is not merely an individual or spiritual event; it is the certainty that life prevails over death and that justice prevails over oppression. No matter how much people attempt to bury the truth, hope rises again, and God’s liberation cannot be definitively silenced. No matter how much unjust structures seem to prevail, we know that the Resurrection happens and will continue to happen.
Next, we hear one of the most moving moments of the Gospel: Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem, the city that stones the prophets and kills God’s messengers. With a tenderness filled with sorrow, He exclaims that He wanted to gather her children together like a hen gathers her chicks, but they were unwilling. Jerusalem symbolizes a religious and social system that, over the centuries, has rejected the voice of those who denounced injustice and proclaimed God’s will. Today we ask ourselves how often our societies, churches, or even we ourselves close ourselves off to God’s call, prefer to ignore denunciations of injustice, and turn our backs on those who suffer. Sometimes our own comfort, our own well-being blinds us, makes us deaf to the needs of others. Yet Jesus’ complaint is not that of an angry judge, but of a God who suffers at the rejection of His love. God is hurt by our deafness. Those who have children can likely feel the same way when their children make a bad decision or commit a mistake; parents suffer, and rather than simply scold, they feel pain for the consequences that may befall their little ones.
Finally, Jesus’ words warn that the house of Jerusalem will be left desolate and that it will not see Him again until the day comes when they exclaim, “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.” Here the result of rejecting divine liberation is described: loneliness, spiritual orphanhood, but also a glimmer of hope for an eventual reunion. There is a possibility of conversion and of recognizing Christ as God’s envoy, which means embarking on a path of reconciliation and transformation. For us Christians, this horizon is the goal of every fight for justice: a day when oppressive structures are defeated, hearts open to truth, and everyone can joyfully acclaim the Lord.
This Gospel speaks directly to our lives today. How many times have we faced threats, injustices, or systems that try to silence our faith and our aspirations? How many times have we felt like “foreigners” not just physically, but also because we uphold values that challenge the world’s selfishness? Just as Jesus stood firm before Herod, we too must persevere, remembering that the power of this world is limited and that true strength comes from God. Similarly, as we contemplate Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem, we recognize that sometimes our societies and even our own attitudes reject God’s protective, liberating hand.
To embody the message and the hope of this text, we can perform a brief gesture. I invite you, if possible, to stand and close your eyes. Let us take a moment of silence to think of a situation of injustice, oppression, or fear present in our lives or in the life of someone close to us. It might be discrimination, the loneliness of migration, labor exploitation, or lack of opportunity. Let us also become aware of a small action we can take during the week to do our part and lay foundations for more humane relationships—maybe saying “good morning” to people we pass on the street, visiting someone who is sick, helping someone with a task, or carefully considering all options in upcoming elections. We might pray, “Good Father, here we come with our struggles and fears. Grant us strength to face the ‘Herods’ of today, and tenderness to embrace the weak and the oppressed. Fill us with hope for the day when everyone proclaims, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’ Amen.”
When we finish this brief exercise, we return to our places, remembering that Jesus did not flee from the threat of death but continued on His path, trusted in the victory of the Resurrection, and called Jerusalem to repentance. The Lord shows us that if we experience desolate homes or indifferent societies today, we should not lose hope, for the time of welcome and reconciliation will come when we open ourselves to God’s plan. Let us live, then, with the same courage as Christ, aware that the final word does not belong to oppression or sin, but to the new life that springs from the Resurrection. And so, with our actions and our words, let us constantly proclaim, “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.” Amen.
Roberto Abrego
16th March 2025
Freiburg Anglican Church 
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