Fr Agustinus Sutiono O.Carm

Some people told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices. We do not know what was the purpose of reporting that news to Jesus. Probably, they wanted to remind Jesus to be careful to the cruelty of Pilate due to the fact that Jesus too was originally from the same región. However, looking at the response given by Jesus, we can think that Jesus revised their thought about stereotyping others as full of sin. To think in that way, they wanted to highlight that the people of Galilea, including Jesus himself, were sinful. The reality of suffering, sadness and misery, according to this people, were evidence of the existing sin. In another Word they wanted to convey a message to Jesus himself: “Preach to your self and your people”. That was a subtle rejection.

Jesus caught the intention and addressed it wisely, saying: “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were greater sinners than all other Galileans? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they did! Or those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them, do you think they were more guilty 
than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem? By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent,
you will all perish as they did!” There might be connection between misery or sufferings or misfortune to the reality of sin. However, Jesus did not emphasize it. Instead, we are to be aware of our own sin when we find before our eyes that other people experience something bad in their life. We are not to call to judge others as sinful, rather, we are to be vigilant to our own failings and not proceed with our stubborness.

Jesus suffered a lot and so did the saints. They were no immune from sufferings, problems, and bitterness. There were so many examples: The pious Job, Paul, the apostles, Saint Bernadette, Saint John of the Cross, and many others. Sufferings, misfortunes, difficulties or problems may come and go in our life. But they are not to be seen as signs of the many sins that someone may have. If they happen to others, they are not to let us judge others as sinful but they may become a reminder for us to repent. If they happen to ourselves, they are not a moment for us to show anger and dissapointment to God, but they are signs for us to come closer to God who will help us see clearly what may be his will on those saddening situation. God gives us a chance to revise our way of living and always expects us to yield a good fruit. A sinner is someone who is in a state of being incapable of yielding good fruit of love and good spirit. Thus, a call to repent means a call to cultivate the ground of our heart, fertilise it with the words of God and yield good deeds.