As we enter the last couple weeks of Lent, a most powerful reflection has sat on my heart that I wish to share:
“Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep [Gate] a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes. In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled. One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him, ‘Do you want to be well?’” – Jn. 5:2-6.
At first glance, the answer seems obvious, but the Gospel reveals something deeper. After 38 years, the man’s suffering had become familiar, even formative. His identity was shaped by it.
In asking this question, Christ is not seeking information; He is inviting transformation.
To be made well is not simply to be healed; it is to step into a new way of living. It requires letting go of what has defined us, even when it is burdensome, and embracing the responsibility, freedom, and vulnerability that come with conversion. There is a real tension here: It can feel easier to remain where we are—to explain, to justify, even to dwell in our limitations—than to rise and be changed.
Lent confronts us with this same question. Do we truly desire the wholeness Christ offers? And if so, are we willing to surrender what is comfortable, familiar, or self-defining in order to receive it?
Christ’s invitation is clear, but our response must be intentional. — Headmaster Eric Schreiber
St. John Paul II Classical School and Chesterton Academy are of the Green Bay Area Catholic Education (GRACE) School System. They are private Catholic classical schools serving Montessori preschool and elementary through high school. They have open enrollment and provide an individualized education in an integrated faith-based environment. Each child is supported not only academically, but spiritually. Learn more by scheduling a visit.
