Tag: lazarus

Memorial of Saints Martha, Mary, and Lazarus

From the responsorial psalm: “Since they have provoked me with their ‘no-god’ and angered me with their vain idols, I will provoke them with a ‘no-people’; with a foolish nation I will anger them.” You have forgotten God who gave you birth.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (Jn 11:19-27)

“Your brother will rise.” Martha said to him, “I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and anyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.”

As the friends of Martha and Mary comforted them after their brother’s death, Martha hears that Jesus is coming and goes out to meet him. Martha, the one whom Jesus says is anxious and worried about many things, meets Jesus as Mary sits at home, probably overcome with grief. Martha tells Jesus that if he had been there, Lazarus would not have died. Yet, she shows faith in saying to him, “But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.” When Jesus tells her that he is the resurrection and the life and that whoever believes in him even if he dies will live, he invites Martha to profess her faith. “Do you believe this?” Martha begins by saying, “I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God.” After his passion, death, and resurrection, how much more poignantly Christ asks each of us this question in his full presence in the Eucharist and in the Blessed Sacrament.

God, as I consider the dialogue between Jesus and Martha, I am struck by her faith in Jesus after her brother’s death. The faith is grounded in her trust in the relationship Jesus has with you as his loving Father. “But even now I know that whatever you ask of God . . .” Be with me today, Lord, as I hesitate to trust in your goodness and providence. Make clear to me that, like your Son, you hear and answer my prayers no matter how minor or grave any situation might seem to me. Saints Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” | Wednesday of the Third Week of Lent

From the verse before the Gospel: “Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life; You have the words of everlasting life.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 5:17-19)

Jesus said to his disciples: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.”

“Until heaven and earth pass away,” Jesus goes on to say, “not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place.” The law Jesus speaks of refers to his present day and to the time of the new heaven a new earth after his resurrection. In fulfilling the law and the prophets, Jesus brings to completion what is already present during his life and fulfilled through his death and resurrection—perfect obedience to the will of the Father. Therefore, Jesus teaches, “whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.”

God, help me understand that Jesus Christ your Son is the capstone. Through his life, death, and resurrection, he fulfilled the law and the prophets—all of salvation history—as the Messiah, the incarnate Word. With Christ comes a new heaven and a new earth, salvation for all and the hope of the resurrection. Lord, just as Moses spoke to the Israelites about your statues and decrees, urging them to observe your commandments, help me keep these words in mind today, which find their fulfilment in Christ: “However, take care and be earnestly on your guard not to forget the things which your own eyes have seen, nor let them slip from your memory as long as you live, but teach them to your children and to your children’s children.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“Not seven times but seventy-seven times.” | Tuesday of the Third Week of Lent

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 18:21-35)

When [the king] began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt. At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, “Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.” Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan.

Jesus tells Peter a parable in response to his question: “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” After Jesus relates the story of the king who shows compassion and forgives the servant, he then reveals the shadow side of the servant, which emerges as he encounters a fellow servant who owes him a much smaller debt. “Pay back what you owe,” he demands. And although the fellow servant begged for him to be patient in paying back the debt, the servant refused and had him put in prison. When the fellow servants reported to the king what they had witnessed, he had the servant brought before him and, as Matthew tells us, handed him over to torturers until he paid back his entire debt. Jesus finishes by saying, “So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart.” Can the words of Jesus on the necessity of forgiveness be any clearer?

God, from what I have learned through experience, complete forgiveness is impossible when I rely only on my own capacity. In those moments when I meet with unforgiveness, complete what I can’t accomplish if left to myself. Give me the grace needed to be merciful with others just as you are merciful with me. How often, Lord, must I forgive my brother? I can’t fathom the number; let me trust in the constant aid of your mercy.

From the responsorial psalm: “Remember that your compassion, O LORD, and your kindness are from of old. In your kindness remember me, because of your goodness, O LORD. Remember your mercies, O Lord.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Monday of the Third Week of Lent

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 4:24-30)

Jesus said to the people in the synagogue at Nazareth: “Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place. “

In his hometown at the synagogue in Nazareth, Jesus has just read from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah, proclaiming that through him the scripture is fulfilled in their hearing. But when Jesus reminds the people of the prophets Elijah and Elisha, they become angry because Jesus makes clear that God’s grace is meant for all people, including non-Israelites. They rise up to drive Jesus out of town to hurl him headlong over the edge of a hill, but his time had not come. “But he passed through the midst of them,” Luke tells us, “and went away.” The inclusive nature of God’s plan meant that even among his closest family and neighbors Jesus faced opposition and hard-heartedness even as God is so willing to pour upon his people grace and salvation.

God, open my heart today to the opportunities you present to me to receive your grace and be a means of grace to others. Just as Naaman wrestled with pride and his own expectations before being healed in the Jordan by your grace, I have to confront and renounce my own expectations about how you operate through the ministry of others, especially through the people closest to me. Help me see beyond the mundane that in my own hometown, abroad, and within my family I will find the opportunity both to bear and to hear your message—”to bring glad tidings to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free.” Give me your grace, Lord, to receive it and give it away.

From the responsorial psalm: “Send forth your light and your fidelity; they shall lead me on And bring me to your holy mountain, to your dwelling-place. Athirst is my soul for the living God.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“The temple of his body.” | Third Sunday of Lent

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (Jn 2:13-25)

The Jews said, “This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and you will raise it up in three days?” But he was speaking about the temple of his body. Therefore, when he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they came to believe the Scripture and the word Jesus had spoken.

As Jesus drives out the merchants and money changers from the temple, he drives out with them what they sold: oxen, sheep, and doves. To those who sold doves, the offering of the poor, he said: “Take these out of here, and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.” In order to identify himself as the new temple, Jesus cleansed the temple of its baggage. “Destroy this temple,” he says to the Jews who look for a sign from him, “and in three days I will raise it up.” Jesus is the sign and the signified, the temple of the body, the one who points to the Father and the temple where the Father dwells. John concludes the passage by bringing the context of the Passover to Jesus’ actions in the temple. During that time, John tells us, “many began to believe in his name when they saw the signs he was doing.”

Father in heaven, help me recognize in Jesus the temple of the body. True God and true man, Jesus knows human nature and from that nature spoke the command to love you above all else and love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Teach me, Lord, to see that wherever you dwell, there is holiness unblemished by material concerns and a call for true reverence and worship. Give me the grace to comprehend what I have in the Blessed Sacrament—that the body of Christ is there in the real presence. Keep me in your care, Lord, with the conviction to keep holy what is holy and worship you in reverence with my whole heart.

From the responsorial psalm: “The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the command of the LORD is clear, enlightening the eye. Lord, you have the words of everlasting life.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“He was lost and has been found.” | Saturday of the Second Week of Lent

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 15:1-3, 11-32)

The father said to him, “My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.”

In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, Jesus responds to the Pharisees in a way that is relevant for all of us. As the passage begins, the Pharisees criticize Jesus because of the tax collectors and sinners who are drawn to him and listen to him. In the parable, the son demands his inheritance and then squanders it within days, living loosely and sinfully. After spending all he has, a severe famine strikes and the son finds employment tending swine. Far from home and at last coming to his senses, the son says to himself: “I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.'” While the son is a long way off from his house, the father sees him and runs out to meet him and embraces and kisses him. Then they begin celebrating with a feast. The older son, disturbed by what this might mean, questions his father. The mercy the father shows for both sons is just and proportional. So it is with God: his mercy is inexhaustible and available to all who humbly seek him and repent.

God, this message is meant for all; it is a universal call to repentance, not for the sake of wallowing in weakness but to see and experience the mercy you extend to all. Help me see that this story is meant for all but also your word speaking to me personally. The prodigal son recognizes wrongdoing and the need to return home to the father; the father forgives the son and celebrates his return in the joy of reconciliation. Thank you, Father, for your mercy; in your mercy restore me!

From the responsorial psalm: “He will not always chide, nor does he keep his wrath forever. Not according to our sins does he deal with us, nor does he requite us according to our crimes. The Lord is kind and merciful.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Friday of the Second Week of Lent

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 21:33-43, 45-46)

Therefore, I say to you, the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruit.” When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they knew that he was speaking about them. And although they were attempting to arrest him, they feared the crowds, for they regarded him as a prophet.

The parable Jesus tells the Pharisees represents the repeated rejection and mistreatment of God’s chosen messengers throughout salvation history. The servants in the parable sent by the landowner represent the prophets who were sent to the people of Israel to reconcile them with God through repentance. Instead of responding positively to their message, though, the tenants respond with violence and disregard for their authority, just as the religious leaders rejected the landowner’s son, Jesus the Messiah. In this parable, Jesus calls us to be receptive to his word and to be faithful disciples in obedience to the Father as his people.

God, help me understand the meaning of this parable as it relates to me in the modern day. Throughout salvation history, you have spoken to your chosen people through the prophets and through your commandments. Jesus is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets. Give me the grace to see the big picture: you sent your messengers first, and they were mistreated. In the fullness of time, you sent Jesus, whom they rejected and killed. Jesus paid the ultimate price for us; what greater love is there? Help me listen out for you in the scriptures and as you speak to me through the events of this day. Let me hear your voice, Lord!

Verse before the Gospel: “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son; so that everyone who believes in him might have eternal life.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

“If someone should rise from the dead.” | Thursday of the Second Week of Lent

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 16:19-31)

And [the rich man] cried out, “Father Abraham, have pity on me. Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am suffering torment in these flames.” Abraham replied, “My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.”

In this parable directed to the Pharisees, Jesus paints a stark contrast between the lives of two men: a rich man and a beggar named Lazarus. Lazarus, covered in sores, longs for the scraps discarded by the rich man. But after their deaths, their fates dramatically reverse. The rich man ends up in the netherworld, a place of torment, while Lazarus is carried by angels to the bosom of Abraham and exists in comfort and peace. The rich man, in his torment, sees Lazarus in the distance and calls out to Abraham for mercy, but Abraham explains that a great chasm separates them, making it impossible for Lazarus to help him. Abraham affirms that if the brothers of the rich man do not listen to the teachings already available to them—just as some who witnessed Christ’s resurrection are not persuaded—even a miraculous sign would not convince them. The reversal of fortune that the rich man experiences is a reminder that however great earthly wealth and status become, they count for nothing in one’s eternal destiny.

God, just as Lazarus lay at the door of the rich man unnoticed, opportunities large and small lie at my feet day after day, placed there by you, which I can choose to see or not see. The poverty that Lazarus experienced, though punishing to the body and to spirit, was nothing like the absolute state of destitution that the rich man experienced after death. Lord, give me the grace today—and whenever you present the opportunity to me—to recognize in the moment the need for compassion, justice, and attentiveness to your teachings. Teach me your mercy, Lord!

From the responsorial psalm: “Blessed are they who hope in the Lord. He is like a tree planted near running water, that yields its fruit in due season, and whose leaves never fade. Whatever he does, prospers.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Memorial of Saints Martha, Mary and Lazarus

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Jn 11:19-27)

Jesus said to [Martha], “Your brother will rise.” Martha said to him, “I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and anyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.”

On the Memorial of Saints Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, the Gospel according to John relates the story of Jesus raising his friend Lazarus from the dead. It also conveys the depth of his friendship with these three siblings. In other Gospel accounts, Martha is busy in the kitchen while Mary sits at the feet of Jesus, listening to him. But in this passage, Martha approaches Jesus, expressing her faith in him: Martha goes out to meet Jesus after Lazarus’s death. She expresses her faith in Jesus by saying, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” She goes on to express even greater faith in Jesus as he asks if she believes he is the resurrection and the life. “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.”

God, through his death and resurrection, your Son offers me and all who believe in him the promise of eternal life. Help me today strengthen my faith in you by imitating Martha in going out to meet Jesus, who alone is the resurrection and the life. Just as Mary, Martha, and Lazarus welcomed Jesus into their home, let me learn from their example; grant me the grace of friendship with your Son, the one who is coming into the world to save us for eternal life. Jesus, I trust in you.

From the Gospel acclamation: “I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will have the light of life.” Saints Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Monday of Holy Week

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

The large crowd of the Jews found out that he was there and came, not only because of him, but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. And the chief priests plotted to kill Lazarus too, because many of the Jews were turning away and believing in Jesus because of him.

Before Passover and after Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead, Jesus goes to the house of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus for a dinner they invited him to. John tells us that Mary takes a liter of costly perfumed oil and anoints the feet of Jesus and dries them with her hair. At this, Judas Iscariot complains, saying that the oil should have been sold to give to the poor. He says this not because he cared about the poor but because he held the money bag and would steal from it. Jesus says to Judas: “Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.” Seeing large crowds of Jews go to see Jesus there, the chief priests plot to kill Jesus and Lazarus. Because of Lazarus, many people were coming to believe in Jesus. In Jesus’ rebuke of Judas, there is tenderness toward Mary’s anointing. During Holy Week, what little extravagance of love can I offer the Lord?

God, you are outside of time; yet, your Son recognizes his time on earth was coming to an end. Mary sits at the feet of Jesus, just as he would soon be at the feet of the Twelve, the servant of servants washing them clean of sin. Help me understand the paths of those who came to believe in you, whether through their heart or head. Before Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, Mary said to him: “I have come to believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God.” Others came to believe in you through the works your Son performed while on earth, witnesses to his many miraculous healings. In the first reading from Isaiah, you say: “I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the hand.” There is only so much time to come to believe in you, Lord, and remain firm in belief; take initiative, take me by the hand.

God, grant me the grace today to use the things of this world for your glory. Creator of heaven and earth, you are a light for the nations. Open my eyes today to see the light and do what is pleasing to you.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

https://youtu.be/2W-KSOPWWBY

Readings