Harold Kushner, a Rabbi in a local congregation in Boston wrote a book entitled: “When bad things happen to good people”. He explains in the book why he wrote the book. He was compelled by a personal tragedy to rethink everything he had been taught about God. His 3-year-old son Aaron had a unique disease called progeria (rapid aging”), he would never grow beyond 3 ft tall, he would have no hair on his head or body, and he would look like an old man when he was still only an adolescent. He explains how he felt a deep sense of unfairness especially in his situation because he felt he was living a deeply religious committed life. He accepts that maybe he should suffer but why this young child had to suffer. He continues saying that he wrote this book for those people who want to go on believing but whose anger at God made it hard for them to hold onto their faith and be comforted by religion. He found a lot of comfort in his faith and religion. Today we continue with these wonderful readings from the gospel of St. John and today they reach a crescendo with the story of Lazarus. The entire reading today focuses on death, but death does not have the final word, death is treated with a certain flippancy (levity). Jesus heard that Lazarus was gravely sick, you would think that he would hurry to Judea to see him, but the gospel; says he purposely delays giving Lazarus time to die. “Lazarus is dead and for your sake I am glad I was not here because now you will believe. This sleep of Lazarus will be for the manifestation of God’s glory.” Everything in our lives is conditioned by the finality of death, we make wills, we fear death, and we fear terminal sickness (death sentence). Jesus tells us that death is not the ultimate reality. When Jesus arrives in Judea Lazarus was 4 days dead and he was in a sealed tomb, this is evocative of the irreversibility of death. Martha and Mary had confidence in Jesus, they still trusted in the face of death. We must hear the quiet and trusting voice of faith that reminds us that it is never too late. Hear this voice in Martha who speaks to Jesus for us, even amid the impossible, ‘Even now, I am sure, that God will give you what you ask.’  Jesus is there not to remedy the situation, but to be present with us. Nothing is too late for God. Jesus wept, he cared for them. Jesus weeps for us as well. He knows our pain; he knows that death is a powerful enemy that can wreak havoc in our lives. As we prepare to celebrate Holy Week, let us look forward to Easter Sunday when we will celebrate Christ’s victory over death. If we adhere strongly to our faith, we also will conquer the fear of death, and come Easter we will celebrate with the Risen Christ life without end.