The readings and reflections follow this short introduction to the days of Lent.
THE JOYFUL SEASON OF LENT
Easter: the feast of the glorification of Jesus
The heart of the Christian Faith is the glorification of Jesus. Jesus a man like everyone else met the opposition of the powers of his day. They brutally killed on a Cross but God raised him to glory. He was always God but emptied himself of divine power to become a human being (Philippians 2:6-11). As a man he was weak, ignorant and vulnerable. He lived the same kind of life as each of us. He came to transform human life (John 10:10).
As a result of living his human life for God, he was raised to glory. Jesus passed from the life we all know to the life of God. We call it ‘the life of glory’.
Jesus offers this life now to us. It is his free gift to anyone who accepts him as Lord and Saviour (Revelation 3:21). Jesus received the divine life of glory in his body at his Resurrection. Every Sunday we celebrate his Resurrection and our own hope for a share in it.
Once a year at Easter we celebrate it on a grand scale. Easter towers above the ordinary Sundays. Lent is a joyful preparation for the feast of the glorification of Jesus. We also share in it now by faith (1 John 3:2). During Lent with the grace which is abundantly available we prepare to welcome the Risen Lord into our lives as the seed of our own everlasting life in Him.
Lent and Baptism
Lent is about Baptism. Why? We come to know Jesus and to believe in him as Lord and Saviour. But then we feel urged to make a public profession of this faith and join the community of those who believe in him. Baptism is the public step by which we proclaim for the whole world to know that we belong to Christ Jesus.
Baptism is like a marriage. In fact it is deeper than any marriage. Jesus has already chosen me as his own and now I choose him. I leave everything to belong to him. From now onwards I live for him and he becomes my life. And when I die I will die for him, to be united to him for ever, not any longer in faith but in vision. “I have called you by name, you are mine” (Is. 43:2). Baptism is my response to this call and “we will dine together” (Rev. 3:20).
Like everything human in this world this too is imperfect. I need to renew the gift of myself to him. I need to renounce again everything that displeases him and embrace everything that pleases him. I need to listen to his Word and return to him wholeheartedly. Lent is the time I come back to the one who has chosen me and longs for me.
The climax of Lent is the Easter Triduum when from Thursday till Sunday we meditate on and celebrate the Lord’s Passion and Resurrection. He underwent this for us. On Holy Saturday night we gather in vigil to celebrate his return to us as the glorified Saviour. Each year it is to be a new experience. The solemn moment of these forty days is when we once again publically renounce our sins which crucified him and then proclaim our faith in him. This faith unites us to him. We welcome our Risen Lord and Saviour into our lives in a new and real way.
Lenten Practice
This is a time of spiritual preparation and of our return to Jesus, like a husband or wife humbly returning to their spouse whom they have hurt or abandoned. We should be serious about our return to him by listening to his Word each day and by spending time praying to him over the Word we have heard.
What about fasting? We must fast from sin and the occasions of sin. Any physical fasting must be a sign to Jesus that we want to give up all that displeases him.
What about prayer? We must give time daily to being in the conscious presence of Jesus. Prayer is not using words. Do you want to love Jesus? Then spend time with him. Your desire and your responsibilities in life will determine how much time you spend with him in love.
What about acts of charity? We don’t do charity but we share what we have with those in need. We make a responsible decision as to what we don’t need to fulfil the responsibilities of our life and like Zachaeus (Luke 19:1-10) we share what we have with those in need. “Where your treasure is there is your heart”. Our love for Jesus and for our brothers and sisters will determine how much we share with them.
By Easter time may we be closer to Jesus in spirit and more like him in our daily life. May we prepare well for the ‘Easter Embrace’.
May Lent be a joyful renewal of our love for Jesus and as we love Jesus may we also love his sheep (John 21:17).
Reading 1
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
Ash Wednesday
March 9, 2011
The readings from Wednesday to Saturday set the tone of Lent and teach us how to practice this season of grace.
Reading 1
Even now, says the LORD,
return to me with your whole heart,
with fasting, and weeping, and mourning;
Rend your hearts, not your garments,
and return to the LORD, your God.
For gracious and merciful is he,
slow to anger, rich in kindness,
and relenting in punishment.
Perhaps he will again relent
and leave behind him a blessing,
Offerings and libations
for the LORD, your God.
return to me with your whole heart,
with fasting, and weeping, and mourning;
Rend your hearts, not your garments,
and return to the LORD, your God.
For gracious and merciful is he,
slow to anger, rich in kindness,
and relenting in punishment.
Perhaps he will again relent
and leave behind him a blessing,
Offerings and libations
for the LORD, your God.
Blow the trumpet in Zion!
proclaim a fast,
call an assembly;
Gather the people,
notify the congregation;
Assemble the elders,
gather the children
and the infants at the breast;
Let the bridegroom quit his room
and the bride her chamber.
Between the porch and the altar
let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep,
And say, “Spare, O LORD, your people,
and make not your heritage a reproach,
with the nations ruling over them!
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’”
proclaim a fast,
call an assembly;
Gather the people,
notify the congregation;
Assemble the elders,
gather the children
and the infants at the breast;
Let the bridegroom quit his room
and the bride her chamber.
Between the porch and the altar
let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep,
And say, “Spare, O LORD, your people,
and make not your heritage a reproach,
with the nations ruling over them!
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’”
Then the LORD was stirred to concern for his land
and took pity on his people.
and took pity on his people.
The appeal is not primarily to fast or weep but to come back to God like the prodigal son came back and to the same welcome too. Weeping and fasting, traditional practices of Jews and Christians are signs of our change of heart and way of thinking. If we want to return to our Father, something not yet revealed to the author here, we should want to fast first from our sins. Let us fast from our pride by learning to be humble, from our envy by learning to love others truly, from our avarice by being liberal in our physical sharing with those in need, from our anger by learning to be meek, from our lust by learning to be pure and single-minded in our love, from our greed by self-control in eating and drinking and from our laziness by diligence in fulfilling our responsibilities. Let us always remember that justice practiced with love is a pleasing and necessary offering to God.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (see 3a) Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
Reading 2
Brothers and sisters:
We are ambassadors for Christ,
as if God were appealing through us.
We implore you on behalf of Christ,
be reconciled to God.
For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin,
so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.
We are ambassadors for Christ,
as if God were appealing through us.
We implore you on behalf of Christ,
be reconciled to God.
For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin,
so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.
Working together, then,
we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.
For he says:
we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.
For he says:
In an acceptable time I heard you,
and on the day of salvation I helped you.
and on the day of salvation I helped you.
Behold, now is a very acceptable time;
behold, now is the day of salvation.
behold, now is the day of salvation.
God has given us autonomy. We can think and decide for ourselves. With great respect for us God appeals to us not to misuse this gift by deliberate sin. Jesus, his own sinless Son, has offered the perfect and pleasing Sacrifice which has won for us the forgiveness that God always wanted to give us. ‘Now’ is the moment which is in our hands. Whatever the bonds of our sin we can return to the Father like the Prodigal Son. The Father will do the rest. If we truly want to be reconciled with God, grace will not be lacking. The sins of all mankind can be drowned in the ocean of God’s love for us.
Gospel
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
When you give alms,
do not blow a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise of others.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
“Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father.
When you give alms,
do not blow a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the praise of others.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
“When you pray,
do not be like the hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room,
close the door, and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
do not be like the hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room,
close the door, and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
“When you fast,
do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.
They neglect their appearance,
so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast,
anoint your head and wash your face,
so that you may not appear to be fasting,
except to your Father who is hidden.
And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.”
do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.
They neglect their appearance,
so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast,
anoint your head and wash your face,
so that you may not appear to be fasting,
except to your Father who is hidden.
And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.”
The days before Sunday set the spirit of Lent. We need to reflect on the readings carefully. Today’s message is that whatever we do should be for God and our good only. We need to beware of vanity. We like to make a good impression. During Lent we need to pray, fast and give alms but in a way known to God only. Prayer is to be spending time with God in Christ, a personal meeting with him. Fasting is a sign of our longing to be with Christ and should be known to him alone. Almsgiving which may be the hardest is to help others even though we may need what we give. Alms must show our love and be a personal act of love for those in need. Prayer, fasting and almsgiving are to reveal our change of heart. Will you come closer to Jesus this Lent?
Thursday
After Ash Wednesday
March 10, 2011
Reading 1
Reading 1
Moses said to the people:
“Today I have set before you
life and prosperity, death and doom.
If you obey the commandments of the LORD, your God,
which I enjoin on you today,
loving him, and walking in his ways,
and keeping his commandments, statutes and decrees,
you will live and grow numerous,
and the LORD, your God,
will bless you in the land you are entering to occupy.
If, however, you turn away your hearts and will not listen,
but are led astray and adore and serve other gods,
I tell you now that you will certainly perish;
you will not have a long life
on the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and occupy.
I call heaven and earth today to witness against you:
I have set before you life and death,
the blessing and the curse.
Choose life, then,
that you and your descendants may live, by loving the LORD, your God,
heeding his voice, and holding fast to him.
For that will mean life for you,
a long life for you to live on the land that the LORD swore
he would give to your fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”
“Today I have set before you
life and prosperity, death and doom.
If you obey the commandments of the LORD, your God,
which I enjoin on you today,
loving him, and walking in his ways,
and keeping his commandments, statutes and decrees,
you will live and grow numerous,
and the LORD, your God,
will bless you in the land you are entering to occupy.
If, however, you turn away your hearts and will not listen,
but are led astray and adore and serve other gods,
I tell you now that you will certainly perish;
you will not have a long life
on the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and occupy.
I call heaven and earth today to witness against you:
I have set before you life and death,
the blessing and the curse.
Choose life, then,
that you and your descendants may live, by loving the LORD, your God,
heeding his voice, and holding fast to him.
For that will mean life for you,
a long life for you to live on the land that the LORD swore
he would give to your fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”
We see the events of the Old Testament as a preparation for the promises of the New Testament. We too are on the way to the Promised Land. This is not Canaan but the Promised Land of life with God for all eternity after this rather short life is over. We too like the Israelites of old are making our way through a desert, the desert of life with all its difficulties and tragedies. God through his Word proclaimed to us by his Church offers us the way that leads to Life. Jesus is the Way. Jesus is also the Life. Lent is a time to open our eyes to reality. Those who are wise will choose Jesus. They will make Lent a time to work at their relationship with Him – through prayerful reading of the Scriptures and the daily prayer of being in his presence.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (40:5a) Blessed are they who hope in the Lord.
Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.
Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.
Gospel
Jesus said to his disciples:
“The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected
by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed and on the third day be raised.”
“The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected
by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed and on the third day be raised.”
Then he said to all,
“If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself
and take up his cross daily and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
What profit is there for one to gain the whole world
yet lose or forfeit himself?”
“If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself
and take up his cross daily and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
What profit is there for one to gain the whole world
yet lose or forfeit himself?”
If Jesus died because we sinned then each of us is responsible for his death. It was not only the elders and chief priests. It was as much you and me. Then if we have a change of heart we must detest our sins. Sin comes from our evil desires and so we need to renounce these and follow Jesus by obeying him in all things. Jesus lost his life in this world because he put his Father first. He was rejected by one group after another till he was murdered on the Cross. During Lent we need to fall in love with Jesus and his Word and then following him will be the joy of our life. We will gladly give up everything for him. Do you see your religion as rules, rituals, regimentation or falling in love? How can you begin to see religion differently?
Friday
After Ash Wednesday
March 11, 2011
Reading 1
Reading 1
Thus says the Lord GOD:
Cry out full-throated and unsparingly,
lift up your voice like a trumpet blast;
Tell my people their wickedness,
and the house of Jacob their sins.
They seek me day after day,
and desire to know my ways,
Like a nation that has done what is just
and not abandoned the law of their God;
They ask me to declare what is due them,
pleased to gain access to God.
“Why do we fast, and you do not see it?
afflict ourselves, and you take no note of it?”
Cry out full-throated and unsparingly,
lift up your voice like a trumpet blast;
Tell my people their wickedness,
and the house of Jacob their sins.
They seek me day after day,
and desire to know my ways,
Like a nation that has done what is just
and not abandoned the law of their God;
They ask me to declare what is due them,
pleased to gain access to God.
“Why do we fast, and you do not see it?
afflict ourselves, and you take no note of it?”
Lo, on your fast day you carry out your own pursuits,
and drive all your laborers.
Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting,
striking with wicked claw.
Would that today you might fast
so as to make your voice heard on high!
Is this the manner of fasting I wish,
of keeping a day of penance:
That a man bow his head like a reed
and lie in sackcloth and ashes?
Do you call this a fast,
a day acceptable to the LORD?
This, rather, is the fasting that I wish:
releasing those bound unjustly,
untying the thongs of the yoke;
Setting free the oppressed,
breaking every yoke;
Sharing your bread with the hungry,
sheltering the oppressed and the homeless;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am!
and drive all your laborers.
Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting,
striking with wicked claw.
Would that today you might fast
so as to make your voice heard on high!
Is this the manner of fasting I wish,
of keeping a day of penance:
That a man bow his head like a reed
and lie in sackcloth and ashes?
Do you call this a fast,
a day acceptable to the LORD?
This, rather, is the fasting that I wish:
releasing those bound unjustly,
untying the thongs of the yoke;
Setting free the oppressed,
breaking every yoke;
Sharing your bread with the hungry,
sheltering the oppressed and the homeless;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am!
We may be regular to church and saying prayers etc. Let us not think the call for repentance is not for me, ‘I have come back to the Lord’. The word for ‘repentance’ actually means to change our way of thinking, to have a new view on life, a total change of heart. We must have the same mind as Jesus has. External practices whether of fasting, saying prayers, and acts of penance are useless without a change of heart. Jesus is our model. Let us take time to examine our life in the seven areas of weakness: pride, envy, avarice, anger, lust, gluttony and sloth. How much love, justice and peace are in our life? Notice God wants us to go out to others in their needs. For instance do we spend money on lavish celebrations while we harden our hearts to people suffering even in the next street? God wants us to look around us and not just up to him. Lent is the time to change the way we think and see things.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (19b) A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
Gospel
The disciples of John approached Jesus and said,
“Why do we and the Pharisees fast much,
but your disciples do not fast?”
Jesus answered them, “Can the wedding guests mourn
as long as the bridegroom is with them?
The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them,
and then they will fast.”
Jesus sees himself as the bridegroom. He is not just the founder of an organisation with world-wide tentacles. He calls each of us to have a personal and loving relationship with him. We are to be a community of lovers – first lovers of Jesus and then of one another. This is his church and nothing else. The Community of believers is his Bride and each member of the community is called to intimacy with him. Lent is the time to realize this again and develop our relationship with our Bridegroom. It is not a period of empty penitential acts but a time of joyous preparation for the embrace of Jesus on Easter Sunday. While in the body, Paul says, we are away from Christ. Do you feel the loss? Do you long for Jesus? Can you say, for me life is Christ? Is this not to be a ‘bride’?“Why do we and the Pharisees fast much,
but your disciples do not fast?”
Jesus answered them, “Can the wedding guests mourn
as long as the bridegroom is with them?
The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them,
and then they will fast.”
Saturday
after Ash Wednesday
March 12, 2011
Reading 1
Reading 1
Thus says the LORD:
If you remove from your midst oppression,
false accusation and malicious speech;
If you bestow your bread on the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted;
Then light shall rise for you in the darkness,
and the gloom shall become for you like midday;
Then the LORD will guide you always
and give you plenty even on the parched land.
He will renew your strength,
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring whose water never fails.
The ancient ruins shall be rebuilt for your sake,
and the foundations from ages past you shall raise up;
“Repairer of the breach,” they shall call you,
“Restorer of ruined homesteads.”
If you remove from your midst oppression,
false accusation and malicious speech;
If you bestow your bread on the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted;
Then light shall rise for you in the darkness,
and the gloom shall become for you like midday;
Then the LORD will guide you always
and give you plenty even on the parched land.
He will renew your strength,
and you shall be like a watered garden,
like a spring whose water never fails.
The ancient ruins shall be rebuilt for your sake,
and the foundations from ages past you shall raise up;
“Repairer of the breach,” they shall call you,
“Restorer of ruined homesteads.”
If you hold back your foot on the Sabbath
from following your own pursuits on my holy day;
If you call the Sabbath a delight,
and the LORD’s holy day honorable;
If you honor it by not following your ways,
seeking your own interests, or speaking with malice
then you shall delight in the LORD,
and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;
I will nourish you with the heritage of Jacob, your father,
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
from following your own pursuits on my holy day;
If you call the Sabbath a delight,
and the LORD’s holy day honorable;
If you honor it by not following your ways,
seeking your own interests, or speaking with malice
then you shall delight in the LORD,
and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;
I will nourish you with the heritage of Jacob, your father,
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
God wants our religion to be firmly located on the ground. He wants us to be his true sons and daughters in the world in which we live today. He abhors any kind of oppression of one person on another. So should his children. He wants us first to establish justice in our own lives where we have influence to act. Then he wants us to move out and liberate others. His desire is that all mankind enjoy his blessings. He will not tolerate those who grab everything they can for themselves. The unjust will pay a high price one day for their injustice. Let us not be among them. Likewise he wants us to celebrate his “holy day”. In the Christian era this is Sunday. To celebrate Sunday is to praise and worship, listen to his Word, rest from our labours and have fellowship with everyone. It is a day to remember those in need.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (11ab) Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth.
Incline your ear, O LORD; answer me,
for I am afflicted and poor.
Keep my life, for I am devoted to you;
save your servant who trusts in you.
You are my God.
Incline your ear, O LORD; answer me,
for I am afflicted and poor.
Keep my life, for I am devoted to you;
save your servant who trusts in you.
You are my God.
Follow Me
Gospel
Jesus saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the customs post.
He said to him, “Follow me.”
And leaving everything behind, he got up and followed him.
Then Levi gave a great banquet for him in his house,
and a large crowd of tax collectors
and others were at table with them.
The Pharisees and their scribes complained to his disciples, saying,
“Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”
Jesus said to them in reply,
“Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do.
I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners.”
He said to him, “Follow me.”
And leaving everything behind, he got up and followed him.
Then Levi gave a great banquet for him in his house,
and a large crowd of tax collectors
and others were at table with them.
The Pharisees and their scribes complained to his disciples, saying,
“Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”
Jesus said to them in reply,
“Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do.
I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners.”
As Jesus walked by he looked intently at Levi and into his heart. He saw that Levi was open to the Gospel and he calls him. To be a disciple we have to leave everything. Levi is wealthy since he can throw a great banquet for Jesus. He leaves all this to follow the man who has nowhere to lay his head. The people who attend the banquet are tax collectors and other outcasts who through their professions don’t obey the Law of Moses. The Pharisees are scandalised. By mixing with these people Jesus himself becomes unclean nor can he be sure that they keep the law about food. But as a doctor spends his time in a hospital so Jesus spends his time among sinners. He has come for them. He has come for you and me. Are you a disciple? Have you left everything to follow Jesus?
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