The 5th Sunday of Lent on March 22, 2026 is one of the most spiritually charged days of the entire liturgical year. It is the last Sunday before Holy Week, the beginning of Passiontide, and the Sunday on which the Church proclaims the most dramatic miracle in the Gospel of John — the raising of Lazarus from the dead.
For anyone who has ever stood beside a tomb — literal or figurative — and wondered if God was too late, this Sunday offers an answer. Not a theological argument. A person. “I am the resurrection and the life.”
This complete guide covers the readings, homily themes, theological reflections, practical applications, and spiritual questions to carry into this week — everything you need to enter the 5th Sunday of Lent 2026 with depth, preparation, and faith.
What Is the 5th Sunday of Lent 2026?
The Fifth Sunday of Lent marks the final Sunday of the Lenten season before the solemnity of Palm Sunday on March 29, 2026. With Ash Wednesday falling on February 18, 2026, and five Sundays of Lent leading toward Holy Week, March 22, 2026 functions as the culminating spiritual summit of the season.
This Sunday also marks the start of Passiontide — the final, most intense phase of Lenten preparation during which the Church shifts its focus toward the Passion, suffering, and death of Christ. It is a week of deeper penance, quieter reflection, and sharpened expectation of what is coming.
The liturgical color for March 22, 2026 remains purple/violet — the color of humility, preparation, and longing for the Easter light that is now just days away.
| Lent 2026 Calendar | Date |
| Ash Wednesday (Day 1) | February 18, 2026 |
| 4th Sunday of Lent | March 15, 2026 |
| 5th Sunday of Lent | March 22, 2026 |
| Palm Sunday | March 29, 2026 |
| Easter Sunday | April 5, 2026 |
Scripture Readings for the 5th Sunday of Lent 2026
The 5th Sunday of Lent 2026 falls in Lectionary Year A, which assigns the most powerful Johannine readings of the entire cycle. The readings are:
- First Reading: Ezekiel 37:12–14
- Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 130:1–2, 3–4, 5–6, 7–8
- Second Reading: Romans 8:8–11
- Gospel: John 11:1–45
The Gospel Acclamation for today comes directly from John 11:25: “I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will never die forever.”
First Reading — Ezekiel 37:12–14
The Context of Ezekiel’s Prophecy
The Book of Ezekiel speaks to Israelites living in brutal exile in Babylon. They had lost their homeland, their Temple, and their sense of divine favor. Their suffering was not just physical — it was existential. They felt like people were already dead and buried.
God reassured His people that their sufferings and ordeals would be temporary and none of those hardships would be permanent. He promised He would lead them back to the lands of their ancestors — a promise that He Himself would fulfil in due time.
But within the immediate promise to Israel lay a deeper, universal one: that God would lead all of humanity — exiled from His presence through sin since the Garden of Eden — back to Himself. The dry bones are every soul that has felt forgotten, buried, finished. And God’s answer is the same today as it was in Ezekiel’s time: “I will put my spirit in you that you may live.”
Spiritual Application for Today
Our loving God is always ready to renew His Spirit within us whenever we find ourselves led astray by the temptation to selfishness. Putting God first is a grateful response that is very pleasing to Him. This reading invites you to name your own “exile” — the area of your life where you feel spiritually dry, hopeless, or shut out — and lay it before God with the trust that He has already promised to act.
Responsorial Psalm — Psalm 130
The Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday is one of the most beloved prayers in all of Scripture. It begins from the very bottom: “Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord.”
The refrain proclaimed repeatedly by the assembly today is: “With the Lord there is mercy and fullness of redemption.”
Not partial mercy. Not conditional forgiveness. Fullness. This is the spiritual anchor of the 5th Sunday of Lent 2026. No matter how deep the depths, God’s mercy reaches further. No matter how great the sin, His redemption is greater still. The psalm moves progressively from despair to hope — from crying out, to waiting, to trusting, to proclaiming God’s redemption to all.
Second Reading — Romans 8:8–11
Saint Paul’s Letter to the Romans provides the theological framework for understanding what the Lazarus story means for every believer, not just one family in Bethany.
Paul establishes a stark distinction:
- Those who live in the flesh — oriented toward self, sin, and earthly priorities — cannot please God.
- Those who live in the Spirit — with the Holy Spirit dwelling within them — already possess the life of God.
The crucial promise comes in verse 11: the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead now dwells in every believer. That means resurrection power is not a distant future hope — it is a present spiritual reality available to you today.
The reading from Romans teaches that the Spirit of God gives life to our bodies, just as it did for Jesus. On the 5th Sunday of Lent Year A, we are asked to trust in God’s promise. Even in sorrow or loss, He can raise us up.
Gospel — John 11:1–45: The Raising of Lazarus
The Seventh Sign of John’s Gospel
The raising of Lazarus is the seventh of John’s seven signs — a sign that tells us about Jesus and about ourselves, that he is the resurrection and the life and that such is our destiny for those who believe. As with any masterpiece, it is a story to be discerned from many angles.
“Delay Is Not Absence”
One of the most striking features of this Gospel narrative is what Jesus does not do immediately. He waits. When He hears Lazarus is dying, He stays where He is for two more days. By the time He arrives in Bethany, Lazarus has been in the tomb for four days.
Archbishop Weisenburger uses the story of Lazarus to remind us that delay is not absence or a lack of love. Everything Jesus does, ultimately, is to manifest the glory of God in our lives.
When our prayers seem unanswered, when God appears slow or silent, the story of Lazarus offers a radical reframe: the delay is not indifference. It is preparation for something greater than we could have arranged ourselves.
“Jesus Wept” — The Two Most Powerful Words
Before performing the greatest miracle in the Gospel, Jesus stops. He looks at Mary weeping, at the mourners gathered around her, and His spirit is deeply troubled. Then comes the shortest verse in the Bible, and perhaps the most important: “Jesus wept.”
He did not stand at arm’s length from human grief. He entered it. Completely. This is the God who meets you not only in your praise but in your tears. Not only in your faith but in your grief.
“Lazarus, Come Out!” — The Command That Changes Everything
With the stone rolled away and the tomb open, Jesus prays aloud to the Father — not for His own sake but for the faith of the crowd — then calls in a loud voice: “Lazarus, come out!”
And the dead man walks out, still bound in burial cloth.
Christianity is not some esoteric philosophy; it is humble friendship with God. It is simply knowing and loving Jesus enough such that you can recognize his voice even from the grave.
Jesus then turns to the crowd with a final instruction: “Unbind him, and let him go.” The miracle requires community. Others must help remove the signs of death. This is the Church’s role in every act of resurrection: to help one another shed the burial cloths and live freely in the life Christ has given.
Key Themes of the 5th Sunday of Lent 2026
The readings for March 22, 2026 converge on three powerful theological themes:
Resurrection as present reality, not only future hope. From Ezekiel’s valley of dry bones to Paul’s teaching on the indwelling Spirit to Jesus standing before Lazarus’s tomb, Scripture insists that God’s life-giving power is active now — not only at the end of time.
Friendship with God as the path to resurrection. The way we draw near to resurrection and life and light is by drawing near to Jesus, by loving him, by becoming his friend. This Sunday is not primarily about doctrine — it is about relationships.
Grief is not faithlessness. Jesus wept. Martha said “if you had been here.” These are not examples of weak faith. They are models of honest prayer — bringing real sorrow before a God who can handle our most painful questions.
Practical Lenten Application for This Week
As the 5th Sunday of Lent gives way to the most sacred week of the year, here are focused practices to carry from today through Palm Sunday:
- Read John 11:1–45 slowly, in full. Do not rush the story. Stay with each character — Martha, Mary, Nicodemus, the crowd, and Jesus — and notice where your own story shows up.
- Identify your “tomb.” What situation in your life feels irreversibly sealed? Bring it to prayer and offer it to the God who calls the dead by name.
- Fast more intentionally this week. Passiontide invites a deeper penance. One more meal offered in sacrifice. One more hour in silence. The desert is ending — Holy Week is beginning.
- Pray Psalm 130 daily. Let it be your prayer through the week. Start from the depths. Wait for the Lord. Trust in His mercy.
Conclusion
The 5th Sunday of Lent, March 22, 2026, stands at the edge of something vast. Behind you are thirty-two days of Lenten walking. Ahead lies Palm Sunday, the Upper Room, Gethsemane, Golgotha — and Easter. And today, the Church places before you the story of a man in a tomb and a God who refused to let death win.
The readings from Ezekiel, Psalm 130, Romans 8, and John 11 do not offer you a theological system to admire. They offer you a Person to trust. The same Spirit that opened the graves of God’s exiled people, the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, the same Power that called Lazarus by name out of four days of death — that Spirit dwells in you right now.
Lent has one more week. Holy Week is almost here. And the One who said “I am the resurrection and the life” has not changed His answer.
Robert Hugh Benson shares inspiring Bible verses and faith-filled reflections on Prayer Forest to guide readers toward peace, hope, and prayer.