Father Koch: Sinners need to be wary of accusing others of being sinful
April 4, 2025 at 12:00 a.m.
Gospel Reflection for the Fifth Sunday of Lent
A woman caught in the act of committing adultery was dragged before Jesus so that he could pronounce judgment against her. Likely petrified she has been completely objectified by the Pharisees and was then drenched in both shame and a loss of her human dignity. His admonition that the one without sin should throw the first stone reminds each one of them of their sinfulness. While Jesus forgives her, the message seems to be that she should never have been accused in the first place. God alone is our judge. No one needs to exercise mercy more than do other sinners.
Of all the circumstances in which Jesus finds himself during his public ministry, this one is likely the most frustrating. The level of self-righteousness and hubris that comes oozing through the charges of the Pharisees who present this woman to Jesus is palpable in this moment.
The entire event seems like a set-up. They knew this woman, and they knew where to find her. They knew where Jesus was and likely had staged the entire scene to trap him. They want him to make a sudden misstep by asking him an either-or question. They have done this in other circumstances before, but here he is not speaking about something theoretical. He is looking at a real person, and a human life is at stake.
If he says “yes” he risks the ire of the Romans. They had forbidden the Jews to exercise their practice of stoning. The state alone had the right to do this. While we know that a mob in a furious rage stones Stephen the first martyr, that was a different citation, and some punishment should have been exacted. We know nothing of that.
Saying “no” here would put Jesus at odds with the Mosaic Law. Although not sanctioned at that moment, the expectation of the Pharisees was that someday they would again have the right to exercise this antidote for a sinner in their community.
Jesus, as always, chooses the narrower path; one that was not envisioned by the Pharisees: “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”
This may be the most powerful single line Jesus delivered in the course of his ministry.
Jesus has at this moment drawn everyone’s attention to the depth of their own consciences. As filled with hubris as this mob is, not one of them would have dared to hurl the first stone. The Jewish people knew they were sinners and that they lived in need of God’s mercy. They had very specific atonement sacrifices and annually observed a day of Atonement, Yom Kippur.
No one could possibly stand there and claim to be without sin. Likely there were some there who were well-aware of some of the sins of the others. There was no way out of this situation except to walk away.
Jesus forgives the sins of the only person left in front of him – the woman dragged there. He not only forgave her sin but admonished her to sin no more.
What about the others? They walked away reminded of their own sinfulness. Did they experience a change of heart? Did any of them appear at the Temple to seek forgiveness and make sacrifice for the sins that Jesus alerted within them? We do not know. We do know that they will continue to seek ways to trap and eliminate him. We know that soon enough they will have him on trial, having conspired with the Romans to eliminate him from the scene.
We learn that we must always be careful here. Pointing out the sins of others, indeed reveling in their downfall, is always only ever a passing feel-good moment. Our own sins will come back to us, and our own conscience will convict us, not only of the prior sins, but especially of our hubris in calling attention to the sins and shortcomings of others.
Social media makes it very easy for us to drag others before the public square and highlight their sins, failures, and weak moments. We all have them. Perhaps Jesus today would say: “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to post this about her.”
Father Garry Koch is pastor of St. Benedict Parish, Holmdel.
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Gospel Reflection for the Fifth Sunday of Lent
A woman caught in the act of committing adultery was dragged before Jesus so that he could pronounce judgment against her. Likely petrified she has been completely objectified by the Pharisees and was then drenched in both shame and a loss of her human dignity. His admonition that the one without sin should throw the first stone reminds each one of them of their sinfulness. While Jesus forgives her, the message seems to be that she should never have been accused in the first place. God alone is our judge. No one needs to exercise mercy more than do other sinners.
Of all the circumstances in which Jesus finds himself during his public ministry, this one is likely the most frustrating. The level of self-righteousness and hubris that comes oozing through the charges of the Pharisees who present this woman to Jesus is palpable in this moment.
The entire event seems like a set-up. They knew this woman, and they knew where to find her. They knew where Jesus was and likely had staged the entire scene to trap him. They want him to make a sudden misstep by asking him an either-or question. They have done this in other circumstances before, but here he is not speaking about something theoretical. He is looking at a real person, and a human life is at stake.
If he says “yes” he risks the ire of the Romans. They had forbidden the Jews to exercise their practice of stoning. The state alone had the right to do this. While we know that a mob in a furious rage stones Stephen the first martyr, that was a different citation, and some punishment should have been exacted. We know nothing of that.
Saying “no” here would put Jesus at odds with the Mosaic Law. Although not sanctioned at that moment, the expectation of the Pharisees was that someday they would again have the right to exercise this antidote for a sinner in their community.
Jesus, as always, chooses the narrower path; one that was not envisioned by the Pharisees: “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”
This may be the most powerful single line Jesus delivered in the course of his ministry.
Jesus has at this moment drawn everyone’s attention to the depth of their own consciences. As filled with hubris as this mob is, not one of them would have dared to hurl the first stone. The Jewish people knew they were sinners and that they lived in need of God’s mercy. They had very specific atonement sacrifices and annually observed a day of Atonement, Yom Kippur.
No one could possibly stand there and claim to be without sin. Likely there were some there who were well-aware of some of the sins of the others. There was no way out of this situation except to walk away.
Jesus forgives the sins of the only person left in front of him – the woman dragged there. He not only forgave her sin but admonished her to sin no more.
What about the others? They walked away reminded of their own sinfulness. Did they experience a change of heart? Did any of them appear at the Temple to seek forgiveness and make sacrifice for the sins that Jesus alerted within them? We do not know. We do know that they will continue to seek ways to trap and eliminate him. We know that soon enough they will have him on trial, having conspired with the Romans to eliminate him from the scene.
We learn that we must always be careful here. Pointing out the sins of others, indeed reveling in their downfall, is always only ever a passing feel-good moment. Our own sins will come back to us, and our own conscience will convict us, not only of the prior sins, but especially of our hubris in calling attention to the sins and shortcomings of others.
Social media makes it very easy for us to drag others before the public square and highlight their sins, failures, and weak moments. We all have them. Perhaps Jesus today would say: “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to post this about her.”
Father Garry Koch is pastor of St. Benedict Parish, Holmdel.