Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Lent B-1

(Optional Memorial for Saint Patrick, Bishop)

Proper for the Memorial of St. Patrick

Biographical information about St. Patrick

“Madonna and Child with the Lamb of God” 
by Cesare da Sesto, 1515

Readings for Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Lent [1]

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]

Readings and Commentary:[3]

During the Fourth Week of Lent (especially in cycles B and C when the Gospel of the man born blind is not read on the Fourth Sunday of Lent) option Mass Texts are offered.

Reading I: Isaiah 49:8-15

Thus says the LORD:

In a time of favor I answer you,

on the day of salvation I help you;

and I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people,

To restore the land

and allot the desolate heritages,

Saying to the prisoners: Come out!

To those in darkness: Show yourselves!

Along the ways they shall find pasture,

on every bare height shall their pastures be.

They shall not hunger or thirst,

nor shall the scorching wind or the sun strike them;

For he who pities them leads them

and guides them beside springs of water.

I will cut a road through all my mountains,

and make my highways level.

See, some shall come from afar,

others from the north and the west,

and some from the land of Syene.

Sing out, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth,

break forth into song, you mountains.

For the LORD comforts his people

and shows mercy to his afflicted.

But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;

my Lord has forgotten me.”

Can a mother forget her infant,

be without tenderness for the child of her womb?

Even should she forget,

I will never forget you.

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Commentary on Is 49:8-15

This reading from Isaiah is a part of the second “Servant of the Lord” oracles. In this segment, the servant promises salvation to the captives and light to those in darkness. He has led the people by pleasant and safe paths and has shown mercy. The response from Zion is “the Lord has forsaken me,” to which we hear the tender response: “Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you.” God’s fidelity and faithfulness are assured.

CCC: Is 49:13 716; Is 49:14-15 219 , 370; Is 49:15 239

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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 145:8-9, 13cd-14, 17-18

 R. (8a) The Lord is gracious and merciful.

The LORD is gracious and merciful,

slow to anger and of great kindness.

The LORD is good to all

and compassionate toward all his works.

R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.

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.

R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.

The LORD is just in all his ways

and holy in all his works.

The LORD is near to all who call upon him,

to all who call upon him in truth.

R. The Lord is gracious and merciful.

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Commentary on Ps 145:8-9, 13cd-14, 17-18

This song of praise has an acrostic pattern (aleph, beth, etc.). In the first strophes the goodness of the Lord is extolled, quoting Exodus 34:6-7. God’s covenant is extended to all peoples. The passage continues celebrating God’s mercy to those who are “bowed down” – overcome by hardship –and concludes with the psalmist’s faith in God’s faithfulness to those who call upon him in genuine need.

CCC: Ps 145:9 295, 342

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Gospel: John 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.

Jesus answered and said to them,

“Amen, amen, I say to you, the Son cannot do anything on his own,

but only what he sees the Father doing;

for what he does, the Son will do also.

For the Father loves the Son

and shows him everything that he himself does,

and he will show him greater works than these,

so that you may be amazed.

For just as the Father raises the dead and gives life,

so also does the Son give life to whomever he wishes.

Nor does the Father judge anyone,

but he has given all judgment to the Son,

so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father.

Whoever does not honor the Son

does not honor the Father who sent him.

Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word

and believes in the one who sent me

has eternal life and will not come to condemnation,

but has passed from death to life.

Amen, amen, I say to you, the hour is coming and is now here

when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God,

and those who hear will live.

For just as the Father has life in himself,

so also he gave to the Son the possession of life in himself.

And he gave him power to exercise judgment,

because he is the Son of Man.

Do not be amazed at this,

because the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs

will hear his voice and will come out,

those who have done good deeds

to the resurrection of life,

but those who have done wicked deeds

to the resurrection of condemnation.

“I cannot do anything on my own;

I judge as I hear, and my judgment is just,

because I do not seek my own will

but the will of the one who sent me.”

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Commentary on Jn 5:17-30

In the Gospel from John, Jesus has already angered the Jews by violating the Sabbath. (This passage immediately follows the story about the cure of the paralytic at the pool of Bethesda.) Now he really upsets them by apparently blaspheming, saying God is his own Father. Almost as if to cement his fate, he makes sure we understand that he did not make that statement casually. Rather he paints a complete analogy of biological father and son. Jesus goes on to state that the authority to judge the actions and lives of others has also been given to him. The inheritance is complete.

Failure to hear and believe will result in resurrection to condemnation. "Another work of the Son is that of judgment, a divine prerogative that the father has given him (cf. John 3:35).  Again it is brought out (cf. John 3:18) that judgment takes place not only at the end of time but in the here and now, on the basis of acceptance or rejection of Christ." [4]

The passage concludes with the promise of salvation to those who hear and understand; that salvation is eternal life.

CCC: Jn 5:16-18 594; Jn 5:18 574, 589; Jn 5:19 859, 1063; Jn 5:22 679; Jn 5:24-25 994; Jn 5:24 1470; Jn 5:25 635; Jn 5:26 612, 679; Jn 5:27 679; Jn 5:28-29 1038; Jn 5:29 998; Jn 5:30 859, 2824

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Reflection:

The oracle of the “Servant of the Lord” from Isaiah predicts the statement made by Jesus in the Gospel.  The servant comes, according to the prophet, to lead the people by safe paths to salvation.  He even predicts the lack of recognition by Zion. They have forgotten God’s earlier mercies in bringing the people out of bondage in Egypt, and now cry out that God has forsaken them.

In the Gospel, Jesus has revealed that he is the Son of God in unequivocal terms.  He goes further to say that God has willed to His Son the authority to judge, the ability to hand out rewards for faithfulness, and punishment for wickedness.  Just as Isaiah uses the analogy of parent and child at the end of the first reading (“Can a mother forget her infant”), Jesus makes it clear that he is the Son of God, and the power and authority that is in the Father is also in the Son.  Unequivocally they are one; an extension of one another.

From a practical perspective we must ask ourselves: what must we do in response to the scriptural message?  The answer is also scriptural. The Lord calls on us to cease our unbelief and believe. In this belief there is a great blessing, because just as the Lord reserves the right of judgment at the end of time, he also judges in the here and now.  His promise of the resurrection starts, not just when we die, but even now.  His judgment, which can bring blessed peace or the groan of pain, begins in this life and extends to eternal life.

We say to this: “But I do believe.” 

And the Lord will say, “By your actions I will know you.” 

Today’s scripture reminds us of the promise of eternal life, and encourages us not to forget the good things the Lord has already done for us.  He has given us life and we praise him.  He has given us the path to salvation and we praise him.  He has laid down his human life for us, endured suffering and death, so that we might join him with all the angels and saints and be spared from condemnation.

Pax

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[1] The picture is “Madonna and Child with the Lamb of God” by Cesare da Sesto, 1515.

[2] S.S. Commemoratio

[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.

[4] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc., © 1968, 63:84, p. 434.

Tuesday of the Third Week of Lent B-1

(Optional Memorial for Saint Frances of Rome, Religious)

Proper for the Memorial of St. Frances of Rome 

Biographical information about St. Frances of Rome

During the Third Week of Lent (especially in cycles B and C when the Gospel of the man born blind is not read on the Fourth Sunday of Lent) optional Mass Texts are offered.

“Christ on the Cross” by Jacques-Louis David, 1782

Readings for Tuesday of the Third Week of Lent [1]

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]

Readings and Commentary:[3]

Reading I: Daniel 3:25, 34-43

Azariah stood up in the fire and prayed aloud:

“For your name’s sake, O Lord, do not deliver us up forever,

or make void your covenant.

Do not take away your mercy from us,

for the sake of Abraham, your beloved,

Isaac your servant, and Israel your holy one,

To whom you promised to multiply their offspring

like the stars of heaven,

or the sand on the shore of the sea.

For we are reduced, O Lord, beyond any other nation,

brought low everywhere in the world this day

because of our sins.

We have in our day no prince, prophet, or leader,

no burnt offering, sacrifice, oblation, or incense,

no place to offer first fruits, to find favor with you.

But with contrite heart and humble spirit

let us be received;

As though it were burnt offerings of rams and bullocks,

or thousands of fat lambs,

So let our sacrifice be in your presence today

as we follow you unreservedly;

for those who trust in you cannot be put to shame.

And now we follow you with our whole heart,

we fear you and we pray to you.

Do not let us be put to shame,

but deal with us in your kindness and great mercy.

Deliver us by your wonders,

and bring glory to your name, O Lord.”

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Commentary on Dn 3:25, 34-43

The reading from Daniel is the Prayer of Azariah (Abednego), one of Daniel's three companions who were thrown into the furnace at the command of King Nebuchadnezzar because they would not worship the idol made of gold, which the king had made.

Azariah’s prayer is for the whole people of Israel, who are in dire straits. The final verses of the prayer express the penitential ideal, that God will accept a humble and contrite heart in lieu of the animal sacrifice required of their tradition at that time. (see also Psalm 51:18-19; Joel 2:13)

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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 25:4-5ab, 6 and 7bc, 8-9

R. (6a) Remember your mercies, O Lord.

Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;

teach me your paths,

Guide me in your truth and teach me,

for you are God my savior.

R. Remember your mercies, O Lord.

Remember that your compassion, O LORD,

and your kindness are from of old.

In your kindness remember me,

because of your goodness, O LORD.

R. Remember your mercies, O Lord.

Good and upright is the LORD;

thus he shows sinners the way.

He guides the humble to justice,

he teaches the humble his way.

R. Remember your mercies, O Lord.

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Commentary on Ps 25:4-5ab, 6 and 7bc, 8-9

Psalm 25 is an individual lament. The sinful psalmist prays that “your ways” be made known. This request directs us to repentance and ultimately guides us to justice. In the first strophe of this hymn, we hear support for our belief that God answered the prayers of our ancient ancestors. Their trust was justified. The song continues as an individual prayer asking for guidance and salvation.

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Gospel: Matthew 18:21-35

Peter approached Jesus and asked him,

“Lord, if my brother sins against me,

how often must I forgive him?

As many as seven times?”

Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.

That is why the Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king

who decided to settle accounts with his servants.

When he 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.

When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants

who owed him a much smaller amount.

He seized him and started to choke him, demanding,

‘Pay back what you owe.’

Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him,

‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’

But he refused.

Instead, he had him put in prison

until he paid back the debt.

Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened,

they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master

and reported the whole affair.

His master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant!

I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to.

Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant,

as I had pity on you?’

Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers

until he should pay back the whole debt.

So will my heavenly Father do to you,

unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart.”

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Commentary on Mt 18:21-35

This passage begins with the discourse on “forgiveness.” Peter asks the question that paraphrases one asked in the book of Genesis by Lamech (Genesis 4:24). He is looking for guidance in the form of a finite amount of forgiveness, and in answer receives the command that forgiveness must be infinite (represented by the multiples of seven and ten).

To emphasize this need for forgiveness, the Lord launches into the parable of the Unmerciful Servant.  The moral of this particular parable is that the measure we use to judge others is the same measure that will be used by God to measure us, when we come before him. “The model is the forgiveness of God, which knows no limit; and neither should man's forgiveness. If man does not forgive, he cannot expect forgiveness; if he does not renounce his own claims, which are small, he cannot ask God to dismiss the claims against him.” [4]

CCC: Mt 18:21-22 982, 2227, 2845; Mt 18:23-35 2843

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Reflection:

Heavenly Father, we humbly pray that those suffering from the coronavirus be returned quickly to full health by the power of your Son’s healing presence, and those in fear be calmed through the Holy Spirit.

In Christ’s name we pray. – Amen.

We recently reflected about the differences between the good and moral person and the Christian. Scripture today causes us to focus on another tenet of our faith – forgiveness. A question for you: can a good and moral person be considered so if they do not forgive a person who has wronged them? We propose that in the terms of society, the answer is “yes.” Going even further, a good and moral person would not be faulted for using the legal system to seek retribution from one who had wronged them using all the means at their disposal, attempting to gain monetarily from the situation.

If we call ourselves Christian, as a people who follow the teaching and example of Christ, we are called to go beyond even simple forgiveness. By simple forgiveness we mean communicating forgiveness to one who has wronged us, but holding anger in our hearts for the injustice for which, at some future time, we might exact revenge. Christ says the same thing: simple forgiveness is not enough; he calls us to forgiveness from the heart. It is a difficult thing, and we must differentiate forgiveness of a person and acceptance of a deed.

Just as a parent chastises a child for doing something wrong, but loves the child who did it, we are called to, as the saying goes, “hate the sin, but love the sinner.” Sometimes this can be very difficult because we associate the sinner with the sin. For example we might find it very difficult to love Adam Gadahn. Gadahn, 31, an American of Jewish descent was born Adam Pearlman in California. He has been called the "American face of Jihad," after producing numerous videos allegedly for Al Qaeda. He was deemed a traitor by the U.S. and in Oct. 2006 he was indicted for treason and giving aid and comfort to terrorists after the testimony of an FBI agent. Such a person we might feel was inherently dangerous to us, one so twisted by hate that forgiveness would not be an option. Yet, we are asked to love Adam and mourn his fall from grace as his parents would, but certainly his native faith community would not. Forgiveness is the commandment of Christ whose ultimate forgiveness we celebrate daily. It is that uniquely Christian call, at the heart of our actions, which labels us a “Christian.”

Today we are asked to be a people of forgiveness. We are called to go beyond legal justice, to Christ’s justice, which included forgiveness even for his own crucifixion. By setting this standard in our lives, we are assured that the same mercy and forgiveness will be shown to us as we stand before the Great Judge on the last day.

Pax

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[1] The picture is “Christ on the Cross” by Jacques-Louis David, 1782.

[2] S.S. Commemoratio

[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.

[4] Jerome Biblical Commentary, Prentice Hall, Inc., © 1968, 43;127.

Monday of the Third Week of Lent B-1

(Optional Memorial for Saint John of God, Religious)

Proper for the Memorial of St. John of God

Biographical information for St. John of God

During the Third Week of Lent (especially in cycles B and C when the Gospel of the man born blind is not read on the Fourth Sunday of Lent) optional Mass Texts are offered.

“The Prophet Elisha and Naaman” by Lambert Jacobsz, c. 1615.

Readings for Monday of the Third Week of Lent [1]

Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]

Readings and Commentary:[3]

Reading I: 2 Kings 5:1-15ab

Naaman, the army commander of the king of Aram,

was highly esteemed and respected by his master,

for through him the LORD had brought victory to Aram.

But valiant as he was, the man was a leper.

Now the Arameans had captured in a raid on the land of Israel

a little girl, who became the servant of Naaman’s wife.

“If only my master would present himself to the prophet in Samaria,”

she said to her mistress, “he would cure him of his leprosy.”

Naaman went and told his lord

just what the slave girl from the land of Israel had said.

“Go,” said the king of Aram.

“I will send along a letter to the king of Israel.”

So Naaman set out, taking along ten silver talents,

six thousand gold pieces, and ten festal garments.

To the king of Israel he brought the letter, which read:

“With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you,

that you may cure him of his leprosy.”

When he read the letter,

the king of Israel tore his garments and exclaimed:

“Am I a god with power over life and death,

that this man should send someone to me to be cured of leprosy?

Take note! You can see he is only looking for a quarrel with me!”

When Elisha, the man of God,

heard that the king of Israel had torn his garments,

he sent word to the king:

“Why have you torn your garments?

Let him come to me and find out

that there is a prophet in Israel.”

Naaman came with his horses and chariots

and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house.

The prophet sent him the message:

“Go and wash seven times in the Jordan,

and your flesh will heal, and you will be clean.”

But Naaman went away angry, saying,

“I thought that he would surely come out and stand there

to invoke the LORD his God,

and would move his hand over the spot,

and thus cure the leprosy.

Are not the rivers of Damascus, the Abana and the Pharpar,

better than all the waters of Israel?

Could I not wash in them and be cleansed?”

With this, he turned about in anger and left.

But his servants came up and reasoned with him.

“My father,” they said,

“if the prophet had told you to do something extraordinary,

would you not have done it?

All the more now, since he said to you,

‘Wash and be clean,’ should you do as he said.”

So Naaman went down and plunged into the Jordan seven times

at the word of the man of God.

His flesh became again like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

He returned with his whole retinue to the man of God.

On his arrival he stood before him and said,

“Now I know that there is no God in all the earth,

except in Israel.”

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Commentary on 2 Kgs 5:1-15ab

This story of the conversion of Naaman through Elisha’s office as prophet has some interesting historical and ritual material. First, it is ironic that the King of Aram, which was an antagonist of Israel, would send one of his key advisers to Israel. That is why the King of Israel tore his garments. He assumed that Aram was making an unreasonable request in order to provoke physical hostilities between the two countries.

Next we see Elisha not coming out of his house to instruct Naaman, but sending word to him. He did so in part because to come into the presence of one with leprosy could have caused him ritual impurity (see Leviticus 13-14). Clearly Naaman did not know this, since he complained about it. Finally, the Jordan River, from a hygienic perspective, is not as clean as the clear springs of Damascus. It is, at the best of times, muddy. The requirement that Naaman plunge himself into the water seven times is significant in that the number seven is, in Hebrew numerology, the perfect number, symbolic of completeness. This would also be in line with the ritual cleansing prescribed in Leviticus 14:8. The lesson taught was that Naaman, washed clean of his transgressions (outwardly expressed as leprosy) was given the salvation only the God of Israel could provide (not some magical ritual performed by the prophet himself). The healing accomplished was to bring Naaman to confess that there is no god but God (in Israel).

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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 42:2, 3; 43:3, 4

R. (see 42:3) Athirst is my soul for the living God.

When shall I go and behold the face of God?

As the hind longs for the running waters,

so my soul longs for you, O God.

R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.

When shall I go and behold the face of God?

Athirst is my soul for God, the living God.

When shall I go and behold the face of God?

R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.

When shall I go and behold the face of God?

Send forth your light and your fidelity;

they shall lead me on

And bring me to your holy mountain,

to your dwelling-place.

R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.

When shall I go and behold the face of God?

Then will I go in to the altar of God,

the God of my gladness and joy;

Then will I give you thanks upon the harp,

O God, my God!

R. Athirst is my soul for the living God.

When shall I go and behold the face of God?

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Commentary on Ps 42:2, 3; 43:3, 4

Psalms 42 and 43 form a single continuous song.  It is an individual lament for a return to Jerusalem where God may be encountered in the temple.  The hind (female red deer) longing for water is used to provide the allusion to baptism, bringing belief out of unbelief.

CCC: Ps 42:3 2112

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Gospel: Luke 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.

Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel

in the days of Elijah

when the sky was closed for three and a half years

and a severe famine spread over the entire land.

It was to none of these that Elijah was sent,

but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon.

Again, there were many lepers in Israel

during the time of Elisha the prophet;

yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”

When the people in the synagogue heard this,

they were all filled with fury.

They rose up, drove him out of the town,

and led him to the brow of the hill

on which their town had been built,

to hurl him down headlong.

But he passed through the midst of them and went away.

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Commentary on Lk 4:24-30

This Gospel passage places Jesus at his home town speaking in the synagogue. The people there were questioning his authority, since they knew him as a child and knew his family. These verses give his response to their challenge to his status and authority.

We understand why the people were upset when we consider that, in his analogy explaining why he could accomplish no works from God to satisfy them, he used Elijah going to a widow in Sidon (not in Israel, see 1 Kings 17:9ff), and Elisha curing Naaman (a Syrian not an Israelite, see 2 Kings 5:1ff). This would have placed Jesus on a par with the great prophets, blasphemy in the eyes of his old neighbors. Perhaps even more upsetting to the people would have been that their God would not reveal himself because of their lack of faith. (Ironically, Jesus, who we know is God, was revealing himself. The people just could not see it.)

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Reflection:

Heavenly Father, we humbly pray that those suffering from the coronavirus be returned quickly to full health by the power of your Son’s healing presence, and those in fear be calmed through the Holy Spirit.

In Christ’s name we pray. – Amen.

As we hear Jesus speak to his friends and relatives in the synagogue at Nazareth, it is easy for us to understand why Jesus is frustrated at their lack of faith.  Here they are, people that had the honor of growing up with him, knowing him as youth and man, yet they did not understand his divine nature.  They scoffed and rejected his attempted revelation.  In fact, many of them probably thought he had, as they say, “gone off his nut.”  His experience with his eccentric cousin John (the Baptist), and his sabbatical in the desert immediately following, must have caused him to come “unhinged.”

Jesus, of course, saw all of this in their faces and heard what was behind their words.  He would have felt intense sorrow, knowing that because of this familiarity and presumed understanding, his own friends and family would not be able to accept the great gift God had offered them.  An analogy might be if we were able to invent a treatment that would cure any disease somehow, and then offered it freely to those in our community hospital, but they would not accept it because we did not have credentials as a pharmacist. 

And what lesson do we take away from the Gospel?  Don’t we fall into the same trap?  Do we listen to those around us with the attention we would pay to a prestigious expert on the subject at hand?  We commonly miss God’s revelation because we do two things.  First, we judge the source, and if, in our opinion, that source is less credible than the wisdom we suppose we have already amassed, we tune it out. We ignore it.  Second, we just plain don’t listen.  Our own voice gets in the way of our auditory canals and we don’t hear what we should.  This is especially true in, of all places, prayer.  We are so busy telling God what we want that we don’t listen to his answers.

In the very truest sense, this is exactly the sin those ancient Hebrews committed when Jesus spoke to them in the synagogue.  They were not really listening.  This then is the lesson we take with us today.  It is rather complex and very difficult.  First we must surrender our own pride and sense of superiority and listen intently to those with whom we communicate (even our children).  The word we hear may be life-changing.  Second, as a people of prayer, we must listen to God’s response with our hearts, not simply bombard the Lord with our words.  Let that be our prayer today, that our ears will be open that we might hear.

Pax

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[1] The picture is “The Prophet Elisha and Naaman” by Lambert Jacobsz, c. 1615.

[2] S.S. Commemoratio

[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.