Friday of the Third Week of Lent
Lectionary: 241
Lectionary: 241
Thus says the LORD:
Return, O Israel, to the LORD, your God;
you have collapsed through your guilt.
Take with you words,
and return to the LORD;
Say to him, "Forgive all iniquity,
and receive what is good, that we may render
as offerings the bullocks from our stalls.
Assyria will not save us,
nor shall we have horses to mount;
We shall say no more, 'Our god,'
to the work of our hands;
for in you the orphan finds compassion."
I will heal their defection, says the LORD,
I will love them freely;
for my wrath is turned away from them.
I will be like the dew for Israel:
he shall blossom like the lily;
He shall strike root like the Lebanon cedar,
and put forth his shoots.
His splendor shall be like the olive tree
and his fragrance like the Lebanon cedar.
Again they shall dwell in his shade
and raise grain;
They shall blossom like the vine,
and his fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon.
Ephraim! What more has he to do with idols?
I have humbled him, but I will prosper him.
"I am like a verdant cypress tree"–
Because of me you bear fruit!
Let him who is wise understand these things;
let him who is prudent know them.
Straight are the paths of the LORD,
in them the just walk,
but sinners stumble in them.
Return, O Israel, to the LORD, your God;
you have collapsed through your guilt.
Take with you words,
and return to the LORD;
Say to him, "Forgive all iniquity,
and receive what is good, that we may render
as offerings the bullocks from our stalls.
Assyria will not save us,
nor shall we have horses to mount;
We shall say no more, 'Our god,'
to the work of our hands;
for in you the orphan finds compassion."
I will heal their defection, says the LORD,
I will love them freely;
for my wrath is turned away from them.
I will be like the dew for Israel:
he shall blossom like the lily;
He shall strike root like the Lebanon cedar,
and put forth his shoots.
His splendor shall be like the olive tree
and his fragrance like the Lebanon cedar.
Again they shall dwell in his shade
and raise grain;
They shall blossom like the vine,
and his fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon.
Ephraim! What more has he to do with idols?
I have humbled him, but I will prosper him.
"I am like a verdant cypress tree"–
Because of me you bear fruit!
Let him who is wise understand these things;
let him who is prudent know them.
Straight are the paths of the LORD,
in them the just walk,
but sinners stumble in them.
Responsorial
PsalmPS 81:6C-8A, 8BC-9,
10-11AB, 14 AND 17
R. (see 11 and 9a) I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
An unfamiliar speech I hear:
"I relieved his shoulder of the burden;
his hands were freed from the basket.
In distress you called, and I rescued you."
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
"Unseen, I answered you in thunder;
I tested you at the waters of Meribah.
Hear, my people, and I will admonish you;
O Israel, will you not hear me?"
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
"There shall be no strange god among you
nor shall you worship any alien god.
I, the LORD, am your God
who led you forth from the land of Egypt."
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
"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."
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
An unfamiliar speech I hear:
"I relieved his shoulder of the burden;
his hands were freed from the basket.
In distress you called, and I rescued you."
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
"Unseen, I answered you in thunder;
I tested you at the waters of Meribah.
Hear, my people, and I will admonish you;
O Israel, will you not hear me?"
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
"There shall be no strange god among you
nor shall you worship any alien god.
I, the LORD, am your God
who led you forth from the land of Egypt."
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
"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."
R. I am the Lord your God: hear my voice.
Verse Before
The GospelMT 4:17
Repent, says the Lord;
the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.
the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.
GospelMK 12:28-34
One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him,
"Which is the first of all the commandments?"
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."
The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher.
You are right in saying,
He is One and there is no other than he.
And to love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding,
with all your strength,
and to love your neighbor as yourself
is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding,
he said to him,
"You are not far from the Kingdom of God."
And no one dared to ask him any more questions.
"Which is the first of all the commandments?"
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."
The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher.
You are right in saying,
He is One and there is no other than he.
And to love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding,
with all your strength,
and to love your neighbor as yourself
is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding,
he said to him,
"You are not far from the Kingdom of God."
And no one dared to ask him any more questions.
Meditation: "You are not far from the
kingdom of God"
What is the best and sure way to peace, happiness, and
abundant life? The prophet Hosea addressed this question with his religious
community - the people of Israel. Hosea's people lived in a time of economic
anxiety and fear among the nations. They were tempted to put their security in
their own possessions and in their political alliances with other nations
rather than in God. Hosea called his people to return to God to receive pardon,
healing, and restoration. He reminded them that God would "heal their
faithlessness and love them freely" (Hosea 14:4). God's ways are right and
his wisdom brings strength and blessing to those who obey him.
The grace and power of love and obedience
How does love and obedience to God's law go together? The Pharisees prided themselves in the knowledge of the law and their ritual requirements. They made it a life-time practice to study the 613 precepts of the Old Testament along with the numerous rabbinic commentaries. They tested Jesus to see if he correctly understood the law as they did. Jesus startled them with his profound simplicity and mastery of the law of God and its purpose.
How does love and obedience to God's law go together? The Pharisees prided themselves in the knowledge of the law and their ritual requirements. They made it a life-time practice to study the 613 precepts of the Old Testament along with the numerous rabbinic commentaries. They tested Jesus to see if he correctly understood the law as they did. Jesus startled them with his profound simplicity and mastery of the law of God and its purpose.
What does God require of us? Simply that we love as he
loves! God is love and everything he does flows from his love for us. God loved
us first and our love for him is a response to his exceeding grace and kindness
towards us. The love of God comes first and the love of neighbor is firmly
grounded in the love of God. The more we know of God's love and truth the more
we love what he loves and reject what is hateful and contrary to his will.
The love which conquers all
What makes our love for God and his commands grow in us? Faith in God and hope in his promises strengthen us in the love of God. They are essential for a good relationship with God, for being united with him. The more we know of God the more we love him and the more we love him the greater we believe and hope in his promises. The Lord, through the gift of the Holy Spirit, gives us a new freedom to love as he loves (Galatians 5:13). Do you allow anything to keep you from the love of God and the joy of serving others with a generous heart? Paul the Apostle says: hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us (Romans 5:5). Do you know the love which conquers all?
What makes our love for God and his commands grow in us? Faith in God and hope in his promises strengthen us in the love of God. They are essential for a good relationship with God, for being united with him. The more we know of God the more we love him and the more we love him the greater we believe and hope in his promises. The Lord, through the gift of the Holy Spirit, gives us a new freedom to love as he loves (Galatians 5:13). Do you allow anything to keep you from the love of God and the joy of serving others with a generous heart? Paul the Apostle says: hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us (Romans 5:5). Do you know the love which conquers all?
"We love you, O our God; and we desire to love
you more and more. Grant to us that we may love you as much as we desire, and
as much as we ought. O dearest friend, who has so loved and saved us, the
thought of whom is so sweet and always growing sweeter, come with Christ and
dwell in our hearts; that you keep a watch over our lips, our steps, our deeds,
and we shall not need to be anxious either for our souls or our bodies. Give us
love, sweetest of all gifts, which knows no enemy. Give us in our hearts pure
love, born of your love to us, that we may love others as you love us. O most
loving Father of Jesus Christ, from whom flows all love, let our hearts, frozen
in sin, cold to you and cold to others, be warmed by this divine fire. So help
and bless us in your Son." (Prayer
of Anselm, 12th century)
A Daily Quote for Lent: The fire of God's love, by Augustine of
Hippo,354-430 A.D.
"Gravity keeps everything in its own place. Fire
climbs up, while a stone goes down. Elements that are not in their own place
are restless until they find it. This applies also to us. My weight is my love;
wherever I go, I am driven by it. By the love of God we catch fire ourselves
and, by moving up, find our place and our rest." (excerpt from Confessions 13,9)
FRIDAY, MARCH
9, MARK 12:28-34
Lenten Weekday
(Hosea 14:2-10; Psalm 81)
Lenten Weekday
(Hosea 14:2-10; Psalm 81)
KEY VERSE: "There is no other commandment greater than these" (v 31).
TO KNOW: The scribes were the learned interpreters of the Law of Moses. They expanded the Law into 613 greater and lesser rules and regulations. One scribe recognized Jesus' skill as a teacher, and asked him which one of the Mosaic Laws was the greatest. Jesus recognized the scribe's sincere search for truth, and summed up the entire Law with two basic decrees that he saw as inseparable. They were the Laws upon which all the other commandments were based: to love God with one's entire being, and to love one's neighbor as oneself. The scribe saw how Jesus has combined two commands given to Israel by Moses (Deut 6:2 and Lev 19:18), and he declared that the love of God and love of neighbor was worth more than any religious acts that one could perform. Because the scribe understood this principle, he moved a step closer to God's reign.
TO LOVE: Is my love of God demonstrated by the way I love my neighbor? Do I have a healthy self-love?
TO SERVE: Lord God, help me to love you with all my heart, soul, mind and strength.
Optional Memorial of Saint
Frances of Rome, religious
Frances of Rome was born into a noble Roman family in 1384. At the age of 12 she married another Roman noble, Lorenzo Ponziani. She would have preferred to become a nun, but obeyed her father and became an exemplary wife and the mother of three children. In 1433, after Lorenzo's death, Frances and her companions founded a religious community of Oblates of the Tor de' Specchi (Collatines). Frances spent her life and fortune, both as a laywoman and religious, in the service of the sick and the poor, including the founding of the first home in Rome for abandoned children. Pope Paul V canonized Frances in 1608. Her tomb is beneath the high altar in the crypt of the Roman church which is now called Santa Francesca Romana. She is honored as the principal patron of all Benedictine oblates. On her feast day priests bless cars due to her patronage of cars and drivers. Although Frances never drove, legend says that when she went abroad at night, her guardian angel went before her lighting the road with a lantern, keeping her safe in her travels.
Saint Frances of Rome
Saint of the Day for March 9
(1384 – March 9, 1440)
Saint Frances of Rome’s Story
Frances’ life combines aspects of secular and religious life. A
devoted and loving wife, she longed for a lifestyle of prayer and service, so
she organized a group of women to minister to the needs of Rome’s poor.
Born of wealthy parents, Frances found herself attracted to the
religious life during her youth. But her parents objected and a young nobleman
was selected to be her husband.
As she became acquainted with her new relatives, Frances soon
discovered that the wife of her husband’s brother also wished to live a life of
service and prayer. So the two, Frances and Vannozza, set out together—with
their husbands’ blessings—to help the poor.
Frances fell ill for a time, but this apparently only deepened
her commitment to the suffering people she met. The years passed, and Frances
gave birth to two sons and a daughter. With the new responsibilities of family
life, the young mother turned her attention more to the needs of her own
household.
The family flourished under Frances’ care, but within a few
years a great plague began to sweep across Italy. It struck Rome with
devastating cruelty and left Frances’ second son dead. In an effort to help
alleviate some of the suffering, Frances used all her money and sold her
possessions to buy whatever the sick might possibly need. When all the
resources had been exhausted, Frances and Vannozza went door to door begging.
Later, Frances’ daughter died, and the saint opened a section of her house as a
hospital.
Frances became more and more convinced that this way of life was
so necessary for the world, and it was not long before she requested and was
given permission to found a society of women bound by no vows. They simply
offered themselves to God and to the service of the poor. Once the society was
established, Frances chose not to live at the community residence, but rather
at home with her husband. She did this for seven years, until her husband
passed away, and then came to live the remainder of her life with the
society—serving the poorest of the poor.
Reflection
Looking at the exemplary life of fidelity to God and devotion to
her fellow human beings which Frances of Rome was blessed to lead, one cannot
help but be reminded of Saint Teresa of Calcutta, who loved Jesus Christ in
prayer and also in the poor. The life of Frances of Rome calls each of us not
only to look deeply for God in prayer, but also to carry our devotion to Jesus
living in the suffering of our world. Frances shows us that this life need not
be restricted to those bound by vows.
Saint Frances of Rome is the Patron Saint of:
Motorists
Widows
Widows
LECTIO DIVINA: MARK 12,28B-34
Lectio Divina:
Friday, March 9, 2018
Season of Lent
1) OPENING PRAYER
God, we do not want to die;
we want to live.
We want to be happy
but without paying the price.
We belong to our times,
when sacrifice and suffering are out of fashion.
God, make life worth the pain of living it.
Give us back the age-old realization
that life means to be born
again and again in pain,
that it may become again
a journey of hope to You,
together with Christ Jesus our Lord.
we want to live.
We want to be happy
but without paying the price.
We belong to our times,
when sacrifice and suffering are out of fashion.
God, make life worth the pain of living it.
Give us back the age-old realization
that life means to be born
again and again in pain,
that it may become again
a journey of hope to You,
together with Christ Jesus our Lord.
2) GOSPEL READING - MARK
12:28-34
One of the scribes came to Jesus and
asked him, "Which is the first of all the commandments?" 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." The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher. You are
right in saying, He is One and there is no other than he. And to love him with
all your heart, with all your understanding, with all your strength, and to
love your neighbor as yourself is worth more than all burnt offerings and
sacrifices." And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding, he
said to him, "You are not far from the Kingdom of God." And no one
dared to ask him any more questions.
3) REFLECTION
• In today’s Gospel (Mk 12:28b-34), the
scribes and the doctors of the Law want to know from Jesus which is the
greatest commandment of all. Even today, many people want to know what is more
important in religion. Some say that it is to be baptized. Others say that it
is to go to church and to participate in the Sunday Mass. Others still say to
love our neighbor and to struggle for a more just world! Others are concerned
only with appearances and with tasks in the Church.
• Mark 12:28: The question of the doctor
of the Law. Some time before the question of the scribe, the discussion was
with the Sadducees concerning faith in the resurrection (Mk 12:23-27). The
doctor who had participated in the debate was pleased with Jesus’ answer. He
perceived in it His great intelligence and wished to take advantage of the
occasion to ask a question to clarify something: “Which is the greatest
commandment of all?” At that time, the Jews had many norms to regulate the
observance of the Ten Commandments of the Law. Some said, “All these norms have
the same value, because they all come from God. It is not up to us to introduce
any distinction in the things of God.” Others said, “Some laws are more
important than others, and for this reason, they oblige more!” The doctor wants
to know what Jesus thinks.
• Mark 12:29-31: Jesus’ response. Jesus
responds quoting a passage from the Bible which says that the greatest among
the commandments is “to love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with
all your mind and with all your strength!” (Dt 6:4-5). At the time of Jesus,
pious Jews recited this phrase three times a day: in the morning, at noon and
in the evening. It was so well known among them just as the Our Father is among
us. The Pharisees would even wear Tefillin (phylacteries) which were tiny
scrolls with these words written on them. And Jesus adds, quoting the Bible again,
“The second one is: You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Lev 19:18).
There is no other greater commandment than these two.” A brief but very
profound response! It is the summary of everything that Jesus teaches on God
and His life (Mt 7:12).
• Mark 12:32-33: The response of the
doctor of the Law. The doctor agrees with Jesus and concludes, “Well said, to
love your neighbor as yourself, this is far more important than any burnt
offering or sacrifice.” That is, the commandment to love is more important than
the commandments which concern the worship and sacrifices of the Temple. The
Prophets of the Old Testament already had affirmed this (Hos 6:6; Ps
40:6-8; Ps 51:16-17). Today we would say that the practice of love is more
important than novenas, promises, sermons and processions.
• Mark 12:34: The summary of the
Kingdom. Jesus confirms the doctor’s conclusion and says, “You are not
far from the Kingdom of God!” In fact, the Kingdom of God consists in the union
of two loves: love toward God and love toward neighbor. Because if God is
Father/Mother, we are all brothers and sisters, and we should show this in
practice, living in community. “On these two commandments depend all the law
and the prophets!” (Mt 22:40). We, disciples, should keep this law in our mind,
in our intelligence, in our heart, in our hands and feet, because one cannot
reach God without giving oneself totally to one’s neighbor!
• Jesus had said to the doctor of the
law, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God!”(Mk 12:34). The doctor was
already close, but in order to be able to enter the Kingdom he still had to go
a step forward. In the Old Testament the criterion of love toward
neighbor was: “Love your neighbor as yourself”. In the New Testament Jesus
extends the sense of love: “This is My commandment: love one another as I have
loved you! (Jn 15:12-23). Then the criterion will be “Love your neighbor as
Jesus has loved us.” This is the sure path to being able to live together in a
more just and fraternal way.
4) PERSONAL QUESTIONS
• What is the most important priority
for you in exercising your religion?
• Are we (personally, our close
community, our society) closer to the Kingdom of God nowadays or farther away
from it than the doctor of the Law who was praised by Jesus?
5) CONCLUDING PRAYER
Among the gods there is none to compare
with You,
for You are great and do marvellous deeds;
You, God, and none other. (Ps 86:8,10)
for You are great and do marvellous deeds;
You, God, and none other. (Ps 86:8,10)
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