Tag: Lent

“Return to me with your whole heart.” | Ash Wednesday

From the responsorial psalm: “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. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (6:1-6, 16-18, today’s readings)

“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.”

Jesus teaches the disciples how to give alms, pray, and fast. First he tells the them how not to do it, as the hypocrites do, and then he tells them in what way to do it and why. He defines hypocrites as those who “perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them.” Whether giving alms, praying, or fasting, those who do it for public recognition, Jesus says, have already received their reward. When done without drawing attention to them, the Lenten observances of prayer, almsgiving, and fasting become a private conversation between the original giver of the gift and we who give back to God what is his. “And your Father who sees in secret,” Jesus says, “will repay you.” Lent is a time of remembering Whose we are and making our way back wholeheartedly to be reconciled to him, the font of mercy.

God, strengthen me today and throughout Lent as I consider the Gospel acclamation: “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” Jesus calls attention to you six times as he teaches the disciples the way to fast, pray, and give alms. In teaching these observances, Jesus leads us into a genuine, private relationship with you, Our Father. Give me the grace of sincerity and humility this Lent as I seek to deepen my connection with you, Lord, rather than seeking recognition from others. Help me keep pure my attitudes and intentions behind anything I do out of authentic piety. You are the giver of every good gift, Lord; show me how to make a wholehearted return 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.

“My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.”| Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Lent

From the responsorial psalm: “The LORD is faithful in all his words and holy in all his works. The LORD lifts up all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down. The Lord is gracious and merciful.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (Jn 5:17-30)

Jesus answered the Jews: “My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.” For this reason they tried all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God.

Today’s Gospel continues where yesterday’s left off. Because Jesus told the man he cured to pick up his mat and walk, some of the Jews who learned of this began to persecute Jesus for encouraging the man to work on the sabbath by carrying his mat. When Jesus is questioned, his persecutors accuse him not only of breaking the sabbath but making himself an equal to the Father. But as the Father does, the Son also does. Jesus does the will of his Father, and like the Father, he “raises the dead and gives life,” and as the Son of Man he will call all who are in tombs to come out, either to the resurrection of life or to the resurrection of condemnation. The Son does the work of the Father; as a just judge, he works to accomplish his Father’s will.

God, help me imitate Jesus, who says, “My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.” I have many questions about how I am to work today, how the day and how the week will play out. From the untold number of decisions I will make today and act on, give me the grace to remember that my work is to do your will, and the grace to understand and accomplish it. What possible hesitation or fear do I have of working throughout the day if I am committed to knowing your will and doing it? Father, you gave me life and sent me for a purpose no one else can fulfill. For the sake of your glory, Lord, help me do your work today.

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.

“Do you want to be well?” | Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent

From the responsorial psalm: “God is our refuge and our strength, an ever-present help in distress. Therefore we fear not, though the earth be shaken and mountains plunge into the depths of the sea. The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (Jn 5:1-16)

After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him, “Look, you are well; do not sin any more, so that nothing worse may happen to you.” The man went and told the Jews that Jesus was the one who had made him well. Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus because he did this on a sabbath.

In Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate, Jesus sees a man who is blind, lame, and crippled, and has been ill for thirty-eight years. Nobody assists him to reach the healing pool of Bethesda, which means “house of mercy” or “house of grace.” When Jesus first encounters him, he asks if he wishes to be well and then tells him to pick up his mat and walk. “Immediately,” John says, “the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.” Jesus then slips away through the crowd as Jews witness the man carrying his mat on the sabbath. When they are able to identify Jesus as the one who told the man to pick up his mat, they begin to persecute Jesus for profaning the sabbath. There are things worse, Jesus suggests to the man he cured, than being ill for decades. Worse than that is sin and its burdens; worse than that, those who reject and persecute Jesus, the very one who has the power over sin, illness, and death.

God, just as Ezekiel witnesses the life-giving water flowing from the sanctuary and its healing effects, the man by the pool experiences divine restoration and healing through the command of your Son: “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.” More than divine marching orders, Jesus’ command is a response to the question he poses: “Do you want to be well?” In your initiative, Lord, you quietly invite me with the same question to receive your healing. Give me the grace today to answer honestly, Do I want to be well? I would do well to accept all you offer from your house of mercy.

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.

“You may go; your son will live.”| Monday of the Fourth Week of Lent

From the responsorial psalm: “Sing praise to the LORD, you his faithful ones, and give thanks to his holy name. For his anger lasts but a moment; a lifetime, his good will. At nightfall, weeping enters in, but with the dawn, rejoicing. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (Jn 4:43-54)

Now there was a royal official whose son was ill in Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, who was near death. Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe.” The royal official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” Jesus said to him, “You may go; your son will live.” The man believed what Jesus said to him and left.

The Galileans welcome Jesus as he enters Galilee because they had seen the miracles he performed while at the feast in Jerusalem. From among the people whose faith in him was strong, Jesus encounters a royal official whose child was sick to the point of death. In seven words, “You may go; your son will live,” Jesus cures the child of the illness, and the official learns of this from a messenger while he is on his way back home. As a result, John tells us “he and his whole household came to believe.” In this miracle, Jesus gives us a glimpse of the love of the LORD that Isaiah speaks of in the first reading: “Lo, I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; The things of the past shall not be remembered or come to mind. Instead, there shall always be rejoicing and happiness in what I create.”

God, just as the father reveals great faith in the power Jesus has with mere words, give me the grace of complete trust in you in this world and in the life of the world to come. Trust is essential. As the psalmist says, there is nightfall in this life; there is the pit, the netherworld; there is weeping. And while facing this, just as the father faced his son’s death, what is the song the psalmist hears in his mind and heart? “O LORD, you brought me up from the nether world; you preserved me from among those going down into the pit. I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me.” Be with me, 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.

“Whoever lives the truth comes to the light.” | Fourth Sunday of Lent

From the responsorial psalm: “May my tongue cleave to my palate if I remember you not, If I place not Jerusalem ahead of my joy. Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (Jn 3:14-21)

“And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed. But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.”

Jesus answers this question Nicodemus poses to him: “How can a person once grown old be born again? Surely he cannot reenter his mother’s womb and be born again, can he?” Jesus tells Nicodemus that to be born again one must be born of water and Spirit. And then he tells him, “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” Being born of water and Spirit in the Son of Man who was lifted up on a cross is the way to eternal life. As John goes on to tell us, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.”

God, help me always choose to come to the light. By being lifted up on the cross, Jesus gives all of us the means to be saved from the consequences of sin and to receive eternal life. In the areas of unbelief, help me believe that your Son Jesus is the Savior and the means of salvation. Give me the grace, Lord, to come into the light and remain in your truth.

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.

“O God, be merciful to me a sinner.” | Saturday of the Third Week of Lent

From the responsorial psalm: “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. It is mercy I desire, and not sacrifice.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 18:9-14)

“But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, ‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’ I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Jesus compares the piety of the tax collector with the piety of the Pharisee. Luke tells us that Jesus addressed this parable “to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else.” In prayer, the Pharisee thanks God by his own standard—that he, like the rest of humanity, is not “greedy, dishonest, adulterous.” Going further, Jesus describes external practices that set him apart from the tax collector. He fasts twice a week and pays generous tithes. But Jesus sees this as superficial piety, leaving great leeway to compartmentalize piety and forget the two great commandments: love of God and love of neighbor. As the LORD speaks through Hosea in the first reading: “Your piety is like a morning cloud, like the dew that early passes away. . . . For it is love that I desire, not sacrifice.”

“O God, be merciful to me a sinner.” Lord, let the words of the tax collector be on my lips and in my heart today. I have the words of Saint Paul to consider as well: “Depart from me Lord, for I am a sinful man.” And if I think for a minute that this is a guilt complex, some kind of self-inflicted scrupulosity, give me the grace to call to mind every good gift you give me. I fail time after time, missing the mark, and needing the sacrament of reconciliation to restore me to you. Teach me, Lord, to humble myself in your presence.

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 Lord our God is Lord alone!” | Friday of the Third Week of Lent

From the responsorial psalm: “‘If only my people would hear me, and Israel walk in my ways, I would feed them with the best of wheat, and with honey from the rock I would fill them.’ I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mk 12:28-34)

Jesus replied, “The first is this: Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these.”

In response to the scribe’s question, “Which is the first of all the commandments”? Jesus replies with the Shema Yisrael, a prayer read aloud in Jesus’ time and still recited by Jewish people today. The second, Jesus tells the scribe, is love of neighbor. When the scribe agreed with Jesus, saying, “Well said, teacher,” Jesus said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” Today’s Communion antiphon summarizes the Gospel passage, where the scribe’s words complement those of Jesus perfectly: “To love God with all your heart, and your neighbor as yourself is worth more than any sacrifice.”

God, help me stop for just a moment to anticipate all that I will encounter today in light of two commandments: to love you with all my heart, understanding, and strength, and to love my neighbor as myself. These two commandments encompass every decision I will make today. Give me the grace to remember these commandments and to hold myself accountable to them. As I move throughout the day, choosing the way that I should go, let me call to mind the words of Hosea: “Straight are the paths of the LORD, in them the just walk, but sinners stumble in them.”

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 Kingdom of God has come upon you.” | Thursday of the Third Week of Lent

From the verse before the Gospel: “Even now, says the LORD, return to me with your whole heart, for I am gracious and merciful.”

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Lk 11:14-23)

“But if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons, then the Kingdom of God has come upon you. When a strong man fully armed guards his palace, his possessions are safe. But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him, he takes away the armor on which he relied and distributes the spoils. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.”

The language Jesus uses to describe exorcism clearly shows his divine identity and connection with the Father. Even more, by giving evil a name, Beelzebul, he leaves no doubt about the reality of demonic powers at large throughout the world. Although strong, Beelzebul does not have power over the undivided authority of God to cast him out. Jesus is the stronger one who overcomes him, eliminates his armor, and distributes the spoils of victory. In Christ’s initiative to unite himself to us with our free consent of the will, the Evil One’s power to divide falls to dust. Like the mute man Jesus exorcises, when we align ourselves with Christ, the stronger man, we proclaim his holy name: “Come, let us sing joyfully to the LORD; let us acclaim the Rock of our salvation. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”

Father in heaven, by your finger Jesus drove out demons and restored people to wholeness. Let me ponder for a minute the areas of my life where I am mute, unable to speak of you in gratitude and praise. The spoils I have, Lord, I would count as meager, yet you attack and overcome anything in me that guards the possessions that belong to you—joy, freedom from sin, my desire to know and do your will. Give me the grace to open the door to your mercy so you can enter and cast out from me what does not belong.

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.