MUSINGS

The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

Readings: Proverbs 8:22-31; Psalm 8; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15

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       “He will guide you to all truth.”

      This is one of the many tasks of the Holy Spirit that we discover as we study Scripture. God has sent the Holy Spirit to guide us to all truth, but He does so much more than that. We are told that the mystery of the Holy Trinity is a central belief of Christian faith and life. Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity to begin to plumb the depths of the Church’s understanding of that central mystery, and it will be the Spirit who guides us to discern and discover new insights into that mystery.

       Jesus has been telling us in the Gospels in the last few weeks that “the Father and I are one.” Today He tells us that “everything that the Father has is mine,” and the Spirit will declare these things from the Father and the Son to us.

       St. Paul tells us that we have “gained access by faith to this grace in which we stand” through the work of Jesus justifying us by His death and resurrection. Because of this grace, God will transform us so that we become His children. Due to our sinful nature, He often uses affliction to mold us and that molding allows us to receive “the love of God [that] has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.”

      The mystery of the Trinity gives us access to God in ways no other faith tradition allows. In the Collect, the opening prayer at Mass, we pray, “God, our Father, who by sending into the world the Word of truth and the Spirit of sanctification made known to the human race your wondrous mystery.” It is the Son who opens the way for us to truly know God and it is the Spirit who enlightens our hearts and minds to truly accept and live that teaching.

       In the first reading, the writer of Proverbs tells us about Wisdom—the Spirit of God—and how He “found delight in the human race.” God delights in us! He proves that by welcoming us into His family—the Holy Trinity—to become part of Him. The psalmist tells us, “What is man that you should be mindful of him? … You have made him little less than the angels.” Our call is to be the children of God. God desires to raise us up to Himself, to make us one with Him, so that we would experience His overflowing love and it would transform us to be like Him.

       In the mystery of the Trinity, the way is open to us to experience God fully, to become truly one with Him. Let us rejoice in the revelation of this mystery that helps us deepen our understanding—and our relationship—with our God.

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Vigil Mass of Pentecost

Readings: Genesis 11:1-9; Psalm 33; Exodus 19:3-8a, 16-20b; Deuteronomy 3; Ezekiel 37:1-14; Psalm 107; Joel 3:1-5; Psalm 104; Romans 8:22-27; John 7:37-39

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      “I will put my spirit in you that you may live.”

      These words of prophecy spoken through Ezekiel are now fulfilled in the outpouring of the Spirit at Pentecost. Jesus tells us in John’s Gospel, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink … Rivers of living water will flow from within him who believes in me.” John then tells us something that seems very odd: “There was, of course, no Spirit yet.”

      What does John mean by those words? Of course, the Holy Spirit existed. He has for all eternity. I believe John is saying that the Spirit had not yet been poured out on the whole earth and on all people like the prophet Joel describes: “I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh.”

      We have seen evidence of the Spirit throughout salvation history. We see the Spirit of God described as fire and smoke and a trumpet blast in the reading from Exodus. We see Ezekiel being led out by the spirit of the Lord to receive the prophecy he was to give the people. Individuals or groups of people witnessed the Spirit in these circumstances, but after Pentecost, Paul tells us in the reading from Romans that all those who have received salvation “have the firstfruits of the Spirit.”

      Man, left to his own devices, can never attain to God. We look at the inhabitants of Babel in the reading from Genesis, how through their own ingenuity, desired to build a tower “with its top in the sky,” a euphemism for men making themselves their own god. God looks at their arrogance and determines that “nothing will later stop them from doing whatever they presume to do.” How true that is today. The psalm, however, declares that “The Lord brings to nought the plans of nations; he foils the designs of peoples.” He continues to watch over us, to draw us back to Himself.

      We, in our modern times, have lost the fear of God, one of the sevenfold gifts of the Spirit released at Pentecost. When the Spirit appears to Moses on Mount Sinai, it is with such power and glory “that all the people in the camp trembled.” In our own arrogance, we have lost that holy fear of God. Even in some Christian circles Jesus has become a best friend, a buddy just like us. Except He’s not. True, He loves us like a brother, but He is still God, our Lord and our King. He is not to be treated frivolously. The psalmist tells us “The fear of the Lord is pure.” May we fear the Lord with purity of heart, knowing His great love for us, but also recognizing how much we are not like Him and how far we have to go to become like Him.

      In Psalm 107, the psalmist tells us, “They went astray in the desert wilderness; the way to an inhabited city they did not find.” How far astray are we from the Truth of who Jesus is in our lives? Do we recognize that He is the Way—the only Way—to find the Father? Are we building our own city with its top in the sky instead of bowing and bending low before the majesty of our King?

      With Pentecost, we celebrate the outpouring of the Holy Spirit “upon all flesh,” as prophesied in Joel. We know, according to Psalm 104, that “When you send forth your spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the earth.”

      Let the Spirit come to you now. Let the Spirit “come to the aid of our weakness” and let Him create you anew, so that “rivers of living water will flow from within” you, and He will make you new again.

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Seventh Sunday of Easter

Readings: Acts of the Apostles 7:55-60; Psalm 97; Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20; John 17:20-26

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      “I will give to each according to his deeds.”

      Jesus, as He appears in John’s vision in the Book of Revelation says that He will “bring with me the recompense, I will give to each according to his deeds.” The dictionary defines “recompense” as a return for something done, suffered, or given. Jesus is making it very clear that the reward of eternal life is based on something we have contributed to the equation.

      The psalmist tells us, “Justice and judgment are the foundation of his throne.” What is “justice”? Again, the dictionary defines it as the quality of being impartial or fair. And again, it’s very clear that God is saying He does not overlook our sin. He is not mercy if there is no repentance.

      Jesus goes on to say in the vision from Revelation, “Blessed are they who wash their robes so as to have the right to the tree of life.” How do we “wash our robes”? We do this by removing sin from our lives, living rightly before God. And that is not something we can do in our own strength.

      Consider St. Paul. Look at the beginnings of his story from the Acts of the Apostles. He was not only a witness to the stoning of Stephen, but it appears that he may very well have been one of the chief instigators of it: “The witnesses laid down their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul.” It is the act of Stephen’s incredible prayer: “Lord, do not hold this sin against them,” that may have been the turning point for Saul. Never underestimate the prayer you make for another person; it could very well be the thing that brings them into the kingdom!

      Prayer is a starting point for holiness. As we pray, we grow deeper in our relationship with Jesus and we become more like Him as we spend time with Him. Jesus’ prayer in the Gospel was for us—“for all those who will believe in me through their word.” He prays, “I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one … that they may be brought to perfection as one.”

      It is the Spirit who dwells within us that guides us and helps us to draw closer to Jesus—to become one with Him. It is the Spirit who came upon Stephen that gave him the ability to offer his prayer for Saul and the others with him. And it is the Spirit who now empowers us to live godly lives, to be able to wash our robes to make us ready to enter the kingdom.

      “The Spirit and the bride [the Church] say, ‘Come.’ Let the hearer say, ‘Come.’” Come as you are, full of sin and selfishness and let Jesus wash it all away and make you clean to stand before the Father. Remember Jesus’ words to the woman caught in adultery: “Has no one condemned you? Neither do I condemn you.” Now is the time, now is the day of salvation. Come to the Lord and let Him fill you with His Spirit, that you may be able to lead a life worthy of Christ. Let His “abiding presence,” as it says in the Collect, or Opening Prayer, change you and make you into His image “that they may all be one.”

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Sixth Sunday of Easter

Readings: Acts of the Apostles 15:1-2, 22-29; Psalm 67; Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23; John 14:23-29

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      “May God have pity on us and bless us.”

      The word “pity” can evoke a lot of emotions in us. It tells us that we are not in a good place if God would have to have pity on us. Yet that, unfortunately, is the reality of the lived human condition. We start out well-meaning, full of zeal for the gospel, on fire for the Lord, but we end up with quarreling and division very much like what we see in the early Church in the first reading.

      There are always some who will misunderstand the mercy of God; in fact, I would venture to say that at some point in time, all of us have misunderstood His mercy in our lives. God always desires us to find “peace of mind,” so He works through our circumstances to bring us back to truth. He does this through the Holy Spirit working in us.

      In the Gospel, Christ tells the Apostles that He must go in order for the Holy Spirit to come. They must let go of their current understanding of their relationship with Jesus in order to find a deeper relationship with Him through the Holy Spirit who will dwell within them. He tells them, “Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.” Moreover, He gives them His peace. “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.”

      This peace is something new. It is found in the newness of life as members of the Church: the new Jerusalem. This is not like Jerusalem was before; there is no more temple and this place has no need of sun or moon, so says the reading from the Book of Revelation. The “Lord God almighty” is the temple and “the glory of God gives it light.” We are made new and Christ becomes the Light to our path.

      As we receive the Holy Spirit into our lives, as Church, we become witnesses of the power of God: “so may your way be known upon earth; among all nations, your salvation.”

      As we saw in the early Church, there is always a tension between this newness and the old life we should have left behind. God continues to give us opportunities to strip away the old self and embrace the new, but we as sinners do not always cling to Him and can easily lose our way. We indeed need God to pity us.

      We also need Him to bless us. Bless us with a fresh outpouring of His Holy Spirit so that we can continue to dwell in His peace and continue to live in mission for Him. Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Your faithful and enkindle in us (once more) the fire of Your love. Send forth Your Spirit and we shall be created, and you shall renew the face of the earth.

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Fifth Sunday of Easter

Readings: Acts of the Apostles 14:21-27; Psalm 145; Revelation 21:1-5a; John 13:31-33a, 34-35

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      “This is how all will know…”

      Do all know that you are a follower of Christ? Does everyone you meet see a difference in you that attracts them to Christ? Why are we not seeing the fruit of what Christ promised to His followers?

      Jesus tells us in the Gospel today, “Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.” We should love others the same way God loves us. How is that? Completely and totally. The Scriptures tell us elsewhere that “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son…” That Son came to give His life for you. Jesus says elsewhere in the Gospel of John, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

      Christ was willing to give His very life for you. That’s how much He loves you. I think too often we either forget or don’t even understand the truth of how much God loves us. We have closed ourselves off, often in fear, from the reality of what God desires to do in us.

      St. Paul says in the reading from Acts that God “had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.” Is our door of faith opened to Christ? We are promised by God, “Behold, I make all things new.” Are we ready for that newness of life? Are we ready to allow God to transform us?

      St. Paul also says in the first reading, “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.” Why? Because we are stubborn and hard of heart. The hardships we encounter are God’s way of chipping away at the walls we have built up and beginning to mold us into the sons and daughters He desires.

      Today, He is calling you to open the door of faith in your heart. Open it and let Him enter fully and completely and shower you with His grace, His mercy, and His “great kindness.” As He does, He will transform you, taking your stony heart and giving you a heart of flesh.

      They say you cannot give what you do not have. As you open yourself to receive the love of God, you will become able to love others as God loves you. Then all will see and all will know “that you are my disciples.”

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Fourth Sunday of Easter (Good Shepherd Sunday)

Readings: Acts of the Apostles 13:14, 43-52; Psalm 100; Revelation 7:9, 14b-17; John 10:27-30

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      “God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”

      Today is called Good Shepherd Sunday. If we follow Christ, then He is our shepherd and we are the sheep of His flock. As such, He has promised us many things. From the Book of Revelation, Jesus tells us that He will shelter us, He will feed us, He will protect us from harm. He will lead us “to springs of life-giving water,” which is the Holy Spirit, and He will “wipe every tear from their eyes.”

      Jesus tells us in the Gospel that He holds us in His hand. What safer place can there be? The psalmist tells us to “sing joyfully to the Lord…serve the Lord with gladness” because “his we are; his people, the flock he tends.”

      Are we joy-filled, knowing that we are in the hands of Jesus? Or are we like so many stubborn sheep that decide we know what is best for our lives, and so we wander frequently from the loving, protective hand of Jesus? Perhaps we have even felt stifled by being in His hand; there are so many things we would like to do but God seems to block us from doing them.

      In the first reading, when Paul and Barnabas told the Jewish leaders that they were rejecting God and would therefore “condemn yourselves as unworthy of eternal life,” they turned to the Gentiles and began to preach to them. The Scriptures tell us “the Gentiles were delighted” and “glorified the word of the Lord.” Do we experience true delight in the Lord when we realize that He is offering us salvation?

      In the Gospel, Jesus tells his disciples that “no one can take them out of my hand.” But we can choose to take ourselves out of His hand. We can choose to close our ears to His message as many of the people in Antioch did when Paul and Barnabas preached to them. We can choose to walk away from the free gift of salvation He offers us. Some walk away all at once and some walk away slowly, a little bit at a time, compromising on some of the things God has commanded us to do until finally they are so far away, they are also lost.

      The psalmist tells us, “The Lord is good: his kindness endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.” God is always calling, and His sheep recognize His voice. Do not reject the voice of God when He calls you. Follow Him and know His promise: “I give them eternal life, they shall never perish.” Then you too can be filled with joy as you receive all the blessings that the Lord promises.

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Third Sunday of Easter

Readings: Acts of the Apostles 5:27-32, 40b-41; Psalm 30; Revelation 5:11-14; John 21:1-19

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      “I will praise you Lord, for you have rescued me.”

      Peter had denied Jesus—three times! Yet Jesus still loved him and He called him to a special task in today’s Gospel: “Feed my sheep.”

      Simon Peter had failed Jesus, and he had failed Him miserably. He was very aware of his failure. He was ashamed of what he had done and I believe he felt like he could never live up to what Jesus had expected of him. So, he went back to what he knew: fishing. Here, he was comfortable. Here, he was not a failure. After all, hadn’t he made his living by the sea for years?

      When he encounters Jesus on the seashore and has breakfast with Him, Jesus addresses Peter. This is the first time in the Gospel since the resurrection that we see Jesus directly speaking to Peter and I’m sure Peter’s failure was uppermost in his mind when Jesus singled him out to speak to him.

      Jesus begins by addressing him as Simon. Not Peter, the name He Himself had given to Peter. Jesus knows Peter sees himself as a failure and wants to return to his old life, to just be Simon the fisherman instead of Peter the apostle. So, Jesus meets him where he is at. He asks him if he loves Him. In so asking, He is saying, will you choose to walk away when I have called you to something greater? Or do you love Me enough to stay the course?

      In this exchange, Jesus is ever drawing Peter closer to the realization that if he has been called, he will be equipped to do what God has called him to, and not through his own abilities. Jesus even showed him that his abilities as a fisherman were from God as well! Peter is finally challenged with the words that determine the rest of his life: “Follow me.”

      Through the power of the Spirit, Peter is able to answer that call and follow Christ, even if it means death, something he claimed he would do on Holy Thursday night, but now, in the first reading, we see him actually do. He is a changed man. He now recognizes that God has indeed rescued him—rescued him from a mere existence to a glorious calling to lead the Church.

      “You preserved me from among those going down into the pit,” the psalmist tells us. He continues, “O Lord…have pity on me…be my helper. You changed my mourning into dancing.”

      How many times have we failed God? How many times have we said, “This is too hard; I want to go back to my old way of living”? But God cuts through the barriers we erect and He shows us that we cannot even live our old life without Him. If we have accepted His call, “Follow me,” then we must let Him direct us and sometimes “lead us where we do not want to go.” But, in so doing, we will find the happiness we seek, and we will one day stand before the throne of God and praise Him forever with all the angels and saints: “Be blessing and honor, glory and might, forever and ever.”

      God has indeed rescued us, some from a life of sin, and some simply from a life of mediocrity, and He has called us to follow Him, even if it means all the way to Calvary. He turns to each of us now and asks, “Do you love Me?” How will you answer?

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Second Sunday of Easter (Sunday of Divine Mercy)

Readings: Acts of the Apostles 5:12-16; Psalm 118; Revelation 1:9-11a, 12-13, 17-19; John 20:19-31

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      “…and they were all cured.”

      We see in the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles that these men who were only days earlier cowering in fear, these same ones who had abandoned Jesus in the hour of His greatest suffering, were now boldly proclaiming the mighty works of God in the temple, so much so that people were in awe of them and maybe just a little fear. They also had hope. They knew that the apostles had healed the beggar; now they brought their sick and even “those disturbed by unclean spirits” and, in the name of Jesus, they were all cured!

      We call this Divine Mercy Sunday and the healing we need the most is for our sin-sick souls. We doubt and we fear, as did the apostles in the early days after the Resurrection, but Jesus desires to come and be in our midst, to show us His wounds, to breathe the Holy Spirit on us in order to prepare us for the mighty works He has commissioned for us.

      Why did He show them His wounds? To prove that it was indeed Him and that He had really gone through all of that suffering? I read a meditation that suggested that Jesus shows us His wounds so that we will not be afraid to show Him ours. His desire is to redeem us. We cannot receive mercy until we acknowledge our wretchedness; our complete need for His mercy. It is only then we can receive the healing that we so desperately seek.

      At Mass, the priest told us that we are so afraid of our wounds, but our wounds do not define us; it is the love of the Father that gives us our dignity and our worth. He suggested that we could use our wounds, the remnants of our forgiven sin, to show others the mercy of God, to show them that it is He who heals us and makes us whole.

      The psalmist tells us, “I was hard pressed and was falling, but the Lord helped me.” The one who, according to the reading from Revelation, “was dead, but now I am alive forever and ever,” it is He who can touch us and heal us through His resurrection power.

      Come to the Lord. Present Him your sin, your woundedness, your suffering, and let Him transform it by His touch, that you may be made whole. Then you will rejoice and be able to acclaim with the psalmist, “This is the day the Lord has made, let us be glad and rejoice in it.”

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The Easter Vigil in the Holy Night

Readings: Genesis 1:1-2:2; Psalm 104; Exodus 14:15-15:1; Isaiah 55: 1-11; Isaiah 12; Ezekiel 36:16-17a, 18-28; Psalm 51; Romans 6:3-11; Psalm 118; Luke 24:1-12 (readings vary)

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      “Their story seemed like nonsense.”

      To the outsider—a nonbeliever—a great deal of our faith must seem like nonsense. Yet we believe it is all true. In the first reading, we learn that “the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed” in six days and “God saw how good it was.” Nonsense.

      In the reading from Exodus, the Israelites stand on the banks of the Red Sea, trapped, with nowhere to go to flee the pursuing Egyptians. God speaks to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to go forward.” Nonsense. When God saved them miraculously by parting the Red Sea just long enough for them to pass through it, and they “beheld the great power that the Lord had shown…they feared the Lord and believed in him.”

      The reading from Isaiah tells us, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.” What appears to be nonsense to the mind not enlightened by faith becomes the miraculous when faith is ignited.

      Who would believe the words of the prophet Ezekiel: “I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit within you…and make you live by my statutes”? Only one who has been transformed by the power of God. St. Paul tells us in Romans, “that the old self was crucified with him, so that our sinful body might be done away with.” He also tells us, “If we have grown into union with him through a death like his, we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.”

      It is in the resurrection of Christ that we find our new life. We have died with him in the waters of baptism, and we have renewed that commitment through these forty days of Lent. Now, as we experience the resurrection, let us take it in and realize it has the power to transform us and make us new. The Exsultet, or Easter Proclamation, sung after the lighting of the Easter Candle, tells us “our birth would have been no gain had we not been redeemed. O wonder of your humble care for us! O love, O charity beyond all telling, to ransom a slave you gave away your Son!” In that mystery—nonsense to the unbelieving world—we find our hope, our joy, our peace.

      When we come to the empty tomb, let us see the miracle of Christ’s resurrection and recognize the wondrous mystery of our new life in Christ, so that we, like Peter, can leave there “amazed at what had happened.”

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Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord

Readings: Luke 19:28-40; Isaiah 50:4-7; Psalm 22; Philippians 2:6-11; Luke 22:14-23:56

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      “The Master has need of it.”

      The disciples were instructed to speak these words to anyone who would question their actions when they took the colt and brought it to Jesus. The owners, on hearing these words, willingly allowed the colt to be taken. This was to fulfill a prophecy spoken by the prophet Zechariah: “Behold: your king is coming to you…riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

      Christ was obedient to His Father. He would fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament. The reading from Philippians tells us, “He humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” In the reading from Isaiah, the prophet tells us: “I have not rebelled, have not turned my back…I have set my face like flint, knowing that I shall not be put to shame.”

      In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus confirms His obedience: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, not my will but yours be done.” Later, on the cross, Christ will cry out the words of Psalm 22: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” Even in the midst of this feeling, Christ remains obedient.

      There are times in our lives when God calls us—the Master has need of us. Will we be obedient to follow Him as Christ did, even to the point of death? The psalmist tells us, “I will proclaim your name to my brethren; in the midst of the assembly I will praise you.” Will we also heed that call, regardless of what comes against us? Will we set our faces like flint and continue in the will of the Father even if it means our very lives would be threatened, or even when we feel abandoned by God?

      As we walk through the Passion of Jesus today, let us not just be bystanders in the crowd, wringing our hands and weeping like the daughters of Jerusalem, but let us step forward and carry the cross with Jesus to the summit of Calvary. If we join with Jesus, we know what awaits us there, but we also know “the Lord God is my help, therefore I am not disgraced.” Resurrection awaits only those who have been crucified with Christ, but rejoice, because as “God greatly exalted him,” He also will exalt us.

      If the Master has need of you today, will you be obedient and answer the call?

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Fifth Sunday of Lent

Readings: Isaiah 43:16-21; Psalm 126; Philippians 3:8-14; John 8:1-11

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      “Has no one condemned you?”

      We are all familiar with the story of the woman caught in adultery; how the crowds brought her to Jesus and made her stand in the middle of them while they accused her of crimes that warranted death, according to Mosaic law. They did this to test Jesus, not because they really desired to follow the law. He knew their hearts.

      It has been suggested that what Jesus bent down and wrote on the ground were the sins of the people gathered around the woman. For them to so arrogantly parade this woman’s sin before everyone, they would now see their own sins displayed before that same crowd. Jesus would not be manipulated by these people, but would show the true heart of God.

      Throughout the Bible’s history, God has shown again and again His mercy to His people. In the first reading, He alludes to their deliverance from Egypt; how the Egyptians were stopped in their pursuit of the Children of Israel: “they lay prostrate together, never to rise, snuffed out and quenched like a wick.”

      The psalmist also recounts God’s deliverance, this time from the land of Babylon. “When the Lord brought back the captives…then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with rejoicing.”

      St. Paul recalls his deliverance by God from a life of self-righteousness. “I consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus.”

      Do we celebrate God delivering us from “the desert” of sin that we have lived in? Have we first felt the shame of our sinfulness that the adulterous woman must have felt? Have we stood before Jesus, humiliated by our weakness, feeling condemned, with no one to plead our cause? Yet, Jesus stands before us, looks us straight in the eye, and tells us that no one is condemning us, not even God himself.

      We can feel that way in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. We must tell our sins to another person, facing our shame for what we have done. Rather than condemn, the priest, acting in the person of Jesus, tells us, “neither do I condemn you…Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”

      Suddenly, “in the desert, I make a way, in the wasteland, rivers.” God has changed our mourning into rejoicing. “Although they go forth weeping…they shall come back rejoicing.”

      The story is not over yet. St. Paul tells us, “not that I have already…attained perfect maturity.” He knows that we will fall again, but he also knows that because “I have indeed been taken possession of by Christ Jesus,” he can continue to strive after Christ, “forgetting what lies behind but straining forward to what lies ahead.” The reading from Isaiah tells us, “The things of long ago consider not; see I am doing something new.” Christ is transforming us so that we might become the people whom “I formed for myself, that they might announce my praise,” as we declare, “The Lord has done great things for us; we are glad indeed.”

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Fourth Sunday of Lent

Readings: Joshua 5:9a, 10-12; Psalm 34; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21; Luke 15:1-3, 11-32

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      “This son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.”

      We are all familiar with the story of the Prodigal Son. How the younger son of a man takes his inheritance and squanders it all, then returns repentant to the father, who accepts him with love. It is the genuine sorrow of the young man—and regret—that causes him to return to his father. “I have sinned against heaven and against you,” he says. Yet the father will hear none of that. He runs to his son and embraces him, calls the servants to give him the finest robe and a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet, and a fatted calf to celebrate his return. His joy is overwhelming. He had lost his son, who was as good as dead to him by the choices the son had made. Yet the father’s love forgives all that in an embrace, and does not linger on the fault, but rejoices in the return of his son.

      When the son realized his folly, he had a change of heart. He knew he was not even worthy to be called the man’s son anymore. He only hoped for a little mercy from the one he had offended so gravely. Yet, that is not how the father reacted. The father began anew with the young man.

      That newness of life is a running theme through the readings today. St. Paul tells us “whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away.” “This son of mine was dead,” the father in the Gospel echoes. Do we understand that we, who have a habit of turning away from God and His goodness, also receive new life when we return to Him?

      “Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,” the psalmist tells us. Know that when you turn to Christ, He will make you new. You can feel that by your sin you are unworthy of His love—and by rights, you actually are unworthy—but that does not stop Him from embracing you and loving you and declaring once more that you are His beloved son (or daughter).

      When the Israelites wandered in the desert, God provided for them manna as their food. When they reached the Promised Land, the manna stopped. God wanted to show them that the old order was done with and now He was doing something new. They had passed from the old life into new life in Him. “Today I have removed the reproach of Egypt from you.” No longer were they slaves; now they were free.

      That is our call. It’s time to stop living in the desert of our sinfulness and regrets. It’s time to “get up and go to my father” and let Him shower you with His love. He has the royal robe of sonship waiting, the ring of His authority, the sandals of zeal for the gospel, and the banquet of the Eucharist prepared for you. Do not delay. Now is not a time to wallow in self-pity or fear of rejection. Get up and turn to Him. As you do, He will run to you and embrace you and declare you once again to be His beloved child. “Let my soul glory in the Lord,” for He has removed the “reproach of Egypt” from you and you can begin life anew in Him.

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Third Sunday of Lent

Readings: Exodus 3:1-8a, 13-15; Psalm 103; 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12; Luke 13:1-9

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      “Whoever thinks he is standing secure should take care not to fall.”

      These words of warning from St. Paul might frighten us if we have become comfortable in our faith. If we have determined that we have it all together and are living good lives, this reminder tells us how easy it is to become caught up in self-righteousness instead of the righteousness of God. Were we not also baptized into the faith and ate the spiritual food and drank the spiritual drink that the Church gives us? St. Paul tells us, “God was not pleased with most of them…”

      Jesus gives warning to the people of Galilee in words that are even stronger than the words of Paul. “If you do not repent, you will all perish as they did!”

      Should we be fearful? Is there no hope? The psalmist gives us the remainder of the story by completing the picture for us. “He pardons all your iniquities, heals all your ills. He redeems you life from destruction…Merciful and gracious is the Lord, slow to anger and abounding in kindness.”

      How do we fit these two images of God together: the God who in justice will condemn and the God who in mercy forgives? The key is repentance.

      If we determine that we are “standing secure” because we have done all the “right” things, that is when we are in danger of God’s wrath. But, if we recognize that we are sinners in need of a savior, then God in His mercy will come to us, forgive us our sins, and heal us.

      Moses recognized the holiness of God in the first reading. He also realized how inadequate he was to do what God commanded him. Yet, because God was going with him, he would be able to accomplish all that God desired him to do. It is the same for us. We cannot be holy in our own strength. We must rely on God, who is always with us, to give us the strength to overcome our sinfulness and live the life He has called us to.

      Jesus tells the story of the fig tree that has not borne fruit even after three years of cultivation. The owner of the tree determines to cut it down for its lack of fruitfulness. The gardener intervenes and tells the owner, “leave it for this year also…it may bear fruit in the future. If not, you can cut it down.” Jesus desires to give us one more chance. There is a prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours that says that God will “even add days and years to our lives in order to bring us wisdom.” He is always giving us one more chance to repent and be saved.

      God gives us all that we need in order to repent. In the Collect, the opening prayer, we pray, “O God… who in fasting, prayer, and almsgiving, have shown us a remedy for sin…” We use these “tools” of God’s mercy to help us refrain from sin and grow more into the character of God, as we learn to love Him more and to serve our neighbor out of love for Him, and thus “fulfill the whole of your commands,” as the closing prayer proclaims.

      So, do not be frightened when God warns you of impending doom. Instead, repent and receive God’s mercy, knowing that “as the heavens are high above the earth, so surpassing is his kindness toward those who fear him… Bless the Lord, O my soul.”

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Second Sunday of Lent

Readings: Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18; Psalm 27; Philippians 3:17-4:1; Luke 9:28b-36

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      “He will change our lowly body…”

      We are only in the second week of Lent, a time of increased fasting and praying and almsgiving, a time of introspection and really looking at our lives and deciding to make changes to draw us closer to God. With the sacrifices comes discomfort as we begin to shake the status quo. Yet God, who knows our fickle hearts, already gives us the promise of new life that awaits us if we but persevere.

      In the Preface, the priest prays, “On the holy mountain he manifested to them his glory, to show, even by the testimony of the law and the prophets, that the Passion leads to the glory of the Resurrection.” The apostles, Peter, John, and James, experienced a little of the glory of the Resurrection when they witnessed Jesus transfigured before them: “his face changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzling white.”

      Jesus had to undergo the crucifixion before He would reach the glory of the Resurrection. He had already explained to His disciples how He “must suffer greatly … and be killed,” and now He was showing them the glory that would come to Him after the Resurrection.

      The presence of the Father comes in the form of a dark cloud that frightens them, much as the dark cloud of God’s presence frightened Abram in the first reading. Yet, the presence of God should not frighten, as this is when God made His covenant with Abraham to bless Him. This is also when the Father spoke to the disciples to tell them, “This is my chosen Son, listen to him.”

      When Jesus spoke in His transfigured state, He talked with Moses and Elijah about the “exodus that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem.” As Moses had led the Israelites out of Egypt in the first Exodus into the Promised Land, so Jesus will lead His people out of the slavery of sin into the Promised Land of heaven. This new exodus must pass through Calvary. When we experience our own Calvary, we may forget the Promised Land that awaits us. This transfiguration event gives us hope of the resurrection yet to come in our own lives.

      The psalmist tells us, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear?” We need fear no one as we walk through the dark valleys of life if we hold onto the truth of the Resurrection. Do not let your minds be “occupied with earthly things,” St. Paul tells us in his letter to the Philippians. Rather, remember that “our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior.” Cry out with the psalmist, “Hear, O Lord, the sound of my call; have pity on me, and answer me … Your presence, O Lord, I seek.”

      Know that suffering in this world is temporary, but that glory awaits us in heaven. Let Christ transfigure you that you may be able to pray with confidence the words of the Prayer after Communion: “we make thanksgiving to you, O Lord, for allowing us while still on earth to be partakers even now of the things of heaven.”

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First Sunday of Lent

Readings: Deuteronomy 26:4-10; Psalm 91; Romans 10:8-13; Luke 4:1-13

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      “Because he clings to me, I will deliver him.”

      The Lord speaks through the psalmist to tell us that He is our hope, He is our salvation, He is all we need. He is the very bread that feeds us, Jesus reminds us in the Gospel. When Jesus was tempted by the devil in today’s reading, we see the first temptation is that of food, to satisfy the hunger of the body which Jesus was experiencing. Jesus rebuked Satan by reminding him that there is a greater hunger in all of us that can only be filled by God through His Word Jesus.

      We fast during Lent so that these lesser hungers, the hungers of our physical body, can be disciplined, can be overcome, so that we can focus on our true hunger, which is hunger for the God who made us. When we have stripped away all the lesser hungers and they no longer occupy our thinking, then we can focus on this deeper hunger, this hunger for God.

      We present ourselves before God, offering our “first fruits” as the first reading talks about. Our first fruits are the best of our lives: our talents, our skills, our abilities, our very lives. As we offer them to the Lord, we remember how God has been faithful to us throughout our lives, how He has protected us in times of trouble, how He has lifted us up in times of darkness, how He has freed us from our sins in the times we have failed to live out His commands. We acknowledge that all we have and are is gift from Him.

      God has indeed been with me “when I am in trouble.” He has sheltered me and not allowed evil to befall me. He has lifted me up and set me on high. So, I am able to “tread upon…the viper” when he comes at me to torment me and attempt to draw me toward evil by offering me satisfaction for my bodily hungers, worldly power over people and circumstances, and pride in my own abilities and accomplishments, the same three temptations Jesus experienced.

      St. Paul tells us to “believe in our hearts” in the resurrection, to “confess with our mouths” that Jesus is Lord. “No one who believes in him will be put to shame,” he continues. We show our belief in Him when we call upon him “when I am in trouble.” In the closing prayer, we pray “that hope may grow in tribulation, virtue be strengthened in temptation, and eternal redemption be assured.” We grow through the struggles because we see our limitations and we know that the only hope we have comes from God as we call upon Him to save us.

      The Lord continues to speak in the psalm: “He shall call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in distress; I will deliver him and glorify him.”

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Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Readings: Sirach 27:4-7; Psalm 92; 1 Corinthians 15:54-58; Luke 6:39-45

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      “The fruit of the tree shows the care that it has had.”

      The book of Sirach compares the care of a tree to the “bent of one’s mind.” Jesus, in the Gospel, also talks about trees and their fruit. He compares a good tree to a good person and the “store of goodness in his heart.” These parallel images are meant to show us that our interior disposition will always come out in our actions and especially in our speech. We can’t hide the truth from the outside of who we are on the inside.

      How do we become the “good person” that Jesus refers to in the Gospel? How do we become the “just one” as the psalmist describes them? It is only in surrender to Jesus that we can reach our full potential, that we can become the “good person” that Jesus describes. Sirach tells us that “when a sieve is shaken, the husks appear.” It is in adversity that the darkness of our hearts is revealed and can be dealt with by the Lord. Sirach goes on to say, “the test of what the potter molds is in the furnace, so in tribulation is the test of the just.”

      God takes us through trials and tribulations to mold us into what He desires us to become: that “good person” he refers to today. He wants us to bear good fruit, but like any gardener, he has to cultivate us by tilling the soil, fertilizing it, and pruning the deadwood from our branches.

      He wants to disciple us, to teach us His way and to have us follow in it so that we would become, as He tells us in the Gospel, “like his teacher.” Unfortunately, our hardness of heart has made us blind to our own faults and we lead others astray because we do not see the full truth of life in Christ. So, Jesus will remove the “wooden beam” that blocks our vision, that keeps us from seeing the whole truth of our lives. That process will often be painful.

      We have to remember that Christ has already won the victory for us; He has removed our sin, which St. Paul tells us is the “sting of death,” the thing that holds us back from being fully alive. Because He has won the victory over sin and death for us, we can become the good tree that bears good fruit. The psalmist even tells us that we will “flourish” and “bear fruit even in old age; vigorous and sturdy shall they be.”

      The sign of our new life will be our speech. Sirach tells us, “one’s speech discloses the bent of one’s mind.” Jesus echoes that by telling us, “from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.” If we have surrendered ourselves to Christ and allow Him to take us through tribulation to prune us and disciple us, then our lives will be transformed and it will show in our speech and, as the psalmist tells us, we will be “declaring how just is the Lord, my rock, in whom there is no wrong.”

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