FEBRUARY 21, 2013 : THURSDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT

Thursday of the First Week in Lent
Lectionary: 227

Queen Esther

Reading 1 Est C:12, 14-16, 23-25

Queen Esther, seized with mortal anguish,
had recourse to the LORD.
She lay prostrate upon the ground, together with her handmaids,
from morning until evening, and said:
“God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, blessed are you.
Help me, who am alone and have no help but you,
for I am taking my life in my hand.
As a child I used to hear from the books of my forefathers
that you, O LORD, always free those who are pleasing to you.
Now help me, who am alone and have no one but you,
O LORD, my God.

“And now, come to help me, an orphan.
Put in my mouth persuasive words in the presence of the lion
and turn his heart to hatred for our enemy,
so that he and those who are in league with him may perish.
Save us from the hand of our enemies;
turn our mourning into gladness
and our sorrows into wholeness.”

Responsorial Psalm Ps 138:1-2ab, 2cde-3, 7c-8

R. (3a) Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.
I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart,
for you have heard the words of my mouth;
in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise;
I will worship at your holy temple
and give thanks to your name.
R. Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.
Because of your kindness and your truth;
for you have made great above all things
your name and your promise.
When I called, you answered me;
you built up strength within me.
R. Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.
Your right hand saves me.
The LORD will complete what he has done for me;
your kindness, O LORD, endures forever;
forsake not the work of your hands.
R. Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me.

Gospel Mt 7:7-12

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Ask and it will be given to you;
seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds;
and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
Which one of you would hand his son a stone
when he asked for a loaf of bread,
or a snake when he asked for a fish?
If you then, who are wicked,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will your heavenly Father give good things
to those who ask him.

“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.
This is the law and the prophets.”

www.usccb.org

Meditation: "How much more will your Father in heaven give!"

Do you expect God to hear your prayers? Esther’s prayer on behalf of her people is a model for us. She prayed for help according to God’s promise to be faithful to his people. God wants us to remember his promises and to count on his help when we pray. Jesus wanted to raise the expectations of his disciples when he taught them how to pray. Jesus’ parable of the father feeding his son illustrates the unthinkable! How could a loving father refuse to give his son what is good; or worse, to give him what is harmful? In conclusion Jesus makes a startling claim: How much more will the heavenly Father give to those who ask! Our heavenly Father graciously gives beyond our expectations. Jesus taught his disciples to pray with confidence because the Heavenly Father in his goodness always answers prayers. That is why we can boldly pray: Give us this day our daily bread.
Those who know and trust in God's love, pray with great boldness. Listen to what John Chrysostom, a 5th century church father, has to say about the power of prayer: “Prayer is an all-efficient panoply [i.e. 'a full suit of armor' or 'splendid array'], a treasure undiminished, a mine never exhausted, a sky unobstructed by clouds, a haven unruffled by storm. It is the root, the fountain, and the mother of a thousand blessings. It exceeds a monarch’s power. ..I speak not of the prayer which is cold and feeble and devoid of zeal. I speak of that which proceeds from a mind outstretched, the child of a contrite spirit, the offspring of a soul converted – this is the prayer which mounts to heaven. ..The power of prayer has subdued the strength of fire, bridled the rage of lions, silenced anarchy, extinguished wars, appeased the elements, expelled demons, burst the chains of death, enlarged the gates of heaven, relieved diseases, averted frauds, rescued cities from destruction, stayed the sun in its course, and arrested the progress of the thunderbolt. In sum prayer has power to destroy whatever is at enmity with the good.”
Prayer flows from the love of God; and the personal love we show to our neighbor is fueled by the love that God has poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). Jesus concludes his discourse on prayer with the reminder that we must treat our neighbor in the same way we wish to be treated by God and by others. We must not just avoid doing harm to our neighbor, we must actively seek his or her welfare. In doing so, we fulfill the law and the prophets, namely what God requires of us – loving God with all that we have and are and loving our neighbor as ourselves. The Holy Spirit is every ready to transform our lives in Jesus’ way of love.  Do you thirst for holiness and for the fire of God’s love?
"Let me love you, my Lord and my God, and see myself as I really am – a pilgrim in this world, a Christian called to respect and love all whose lives I touch, those in authority over me or those under my authority, my friends and my enemies. Help me to conquer anger with gentleness, greed by generosity, apathy by fervor. Help me to forget myself and reach out towards others."  (Prayer attributed to Clement XI of Rome)

www.dailyscripture.net

Thursday of the First Week of Lent

Father Alex Yeung, LC Matthew 7:7-12 "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Which one of you would hand his son a stone when he asks for a loaf of bread, or a snake when he asks for a fish? If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask him. Do to others whatever you would have them do to you. This is the law and the prophets.” Introductory Prayer: Heavenly Father, I take these moments to adore you and to enter into your loving presence. I dare to tell you I believe in you, although you know how weak my faith is. You are the reason for all my hope in life. Lord, I count on you as I strive to love you more totally and to attain the holiness of life to which you have called me. Amen. Petition: Lord, teach me how to pray.   1. The Shortcut to Holiness: As Pope John Paul II reminds us, “The royal and indispensable wayto advance on the path of holiness is prayer:being with the Lord, we become friends of the Lord, his attitude gradually becomes our attitude and his heart our heart” (Address to the Priests of the Diocese of Rome, March 6, 2003). Again we are confronted with that fundamental principle of our sanctification: “He must increase, and I must decrease” (Cf. John 3:30). Christ must become more and more in us. That’s what genuine prayer accomplishes, if that prayer consists of a one-on-one conversation with the Savior that engages heart, mind and will. Could it be the case that I am seeking holiness without having firmly decided to anchor each day, indeed my entire life, in prayer? 2. Trust Like Little Children: Why is it that the prospect of our personal holiness seems so outlandish to us? Why are we so inwardly reluctant to believe that God, the almighty, the all-powerful, who created us from nothing, can also sanctify us? Maybe the part that discourages us is our unwillingness to jump headlong into that part of our sanctification that depends on us. But even here, Christ urges us to pray with confidence: “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:11). Is it too much to believe and trust that God will strengthen our will in the pursuit of holiness? Will his grace fail us if we ask for holiness with complete trust and childlike confidence? 3. What a Combination! Prayer, holiness and apostolic fruitfulness are intrinsically linked. If we, as lay apostles, wish to see fruit in all our apostolic endeavors, we know it will depend in large part on our degree of holiness : our degree of real union with God, the degree to which his divine life flows through us. That divine life, given to us in baptism and increased through our sacramental life, can be enhanced every day in personal prayer where our thirst for God is not quenched, but rather greatly increased. We should pray always, so that prayer will be the secret of our holiness and apostolic fruitfulness. Prayer continues to be the greatest power on earth. It must be at the very center of our quest for holiness. Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, thank you for this time of prayer. Thank you for teaching me interiorly, little by little every day, how to pray more perfectly. F or the sake of those men and women, my brothers and sisters, whose own salvation is somehow mysteriously linked to my life and to my fidelity to you, give me holiness! Amen. Resolution: I will renew my determination to make a daily prayer time, and make sure that this becomes, or continues to be, a part of my daily routine.

www.regnumchristi.com

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21

LENTEN WEEKDAY
MATTHEW 7:7-12
(Esther C:* 12, 14-16, 23-25; Psalm 138)
KEY VERSE: "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you" (v 7).
READING: In Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, he taught his disciples to pray with simplicity (Mt 6:5-13), but he also taught them to persevere in prayer. Those who persisted in asking, seeking, and knocking on the door of the Father's loving heart would be heard and answered. Jesus asked his disciples if they would give something harmful to their children? Of course they would not. If human parents, with all their failings, gave good gifts to their children, how much more would their Heavenly Father give what was best for them? Jesus cautioned his disciples that they must do more than avoid evil. They must do the good things for others that they would want for themselves. From the 18th Century, this maxim: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" has been called the "Golden Rule."
REFLECTING: What kindness can I do for someone today?
PRAYING: Lord Jesus, help me to measure up to the Golden Rule this Lent.

* NOTE: The Book of Esther contains verses in Greek (A-F) that were not in the original Hebrew text. These were excluded from the Jewish (and Protestant) Canon, but are accepted as inspired by the Catholic Church.

Optional Memorial of Peter Damian, bishop and doctor of the Church

Peter Damian escaped poverty and mistreatment by his own brother when his other brother, who was archpriest of Ravenna, took him under his wing. His brother sent him to good schools and Peter became a professor. Soon, he decided to leave teaching and give himself completely to prayer with the Benedictines of the reform of St. Romuald at Fonte Avellana. He founded hermitages, and was occasionally called on by the Vatican to make peace between arguing monastic houses, clergymen, and government officials. Pope Stephen IX made Peter the cardinal-bishop of Ostia. Peter tried to restore discipline among priests and religious who were becoming more worldly, warning them against needless travel, violations of poverty and living too comfortably. He worked hard to wipe out simony* and encouraged his priests to observe celibacy and maintain scheduled prayer and religious observance. Peter was very strict with himself. He wore a hair shirt under his clothes, fasted rigorously and spent many hours in prayer. When he was not praying, he studied the Bible. Peter slept so little that he soon suffered from severe insomnia, and found that he had to take care of himself. A prolific correspondent, Peter wrote dozens of sermons, seven biographies (including one of St. Romuald), and some of the best Latin poetry of the time. He tried to retire to be a monk, but was routinely recalled as papal legate. He was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1828. 

* Simony is the act of paying for sacraments and holy offices or positions in the hierarchy of a church, named after Simon Magus, who appears in the Acts of the Apostles 8:9-24.

www.daily-word-of-life.com

Lord, on the day I called for help, you answered me

‘Ask, and it will be given to you.’
Intimate relationships need to be built on the sure foundation of love and trust. If either of these elements is missing, we will have a crumbling edifice. This is especially true of our relationship with God. If it rests on fear or self-interest or any other motive it will never flourish.

Jesus had a hard time convincing us that God loves us and that his love can be trusted. He frequently used examples of how parent-child relationships work, and then would say, ‘Would you expect less from your heavenly Father?’ How many pious stories of divine retribution, punishment, hell and purgatory would be dashed to pieces if given this rocky test! Let us always treat others as we would have them treat us.

www.churchresources.info

February 21
St. Peter Damian
(1007-1072)

Maybe because he was orphaned and had been treated shabbily by one of his brothers, Peter Damian was very good to the poor. It was the ordinary thing for him to have a poor person or two with him at table and he liked to minister personally to their needs.

Peter escaped poverty and the neglect of his own brother when his other brother, who was archpriest of Ravenna, took him under his wing. His brother sent him to good schools and Peter became a professor.
Already in those days Peter was very strict with himself. He wore a hair shirt under his clothes, fasted rigorously and spent many hours in prayer. Soon, he decided to leave his teaching and give himself completely to prayer with the Benedictines of the reform of St. Romuald (June 19) at Fonte Avellana. They lived two monks to a hermitage. Peter was so eager to pray and slept so little that he soon suffered from severe insomnia. He found he had to use some prudence in taking care of himself. When he was not praying, he studied the Bible.
The abbot commanded that when he died Peter should succeed him. Abbot Peter founded five other hermitages. He encouraged his brothers in a life of prayer and solitude and wanted nothing more for himself. The Holy See periodically called on him, however, to be a peacemaker or troubleshooter, between two abbeys in dispute or a cleric or government official in some disagreement with Rome.
Finally, Pope Stephen IX made Peter the cardinal-bishop of Ostia. He worked hard to wipe out simony (the buying of church offices), and encouraged his priests to observe celibacy and urged even the diocesan clergy to live together and maintain scheduled prayer and religious observance. He wished to restore primitive discipline among religious and priests, warning against needless travel, violations of poverty and too comfortable living. He even wrote to the bishop of Besancon, complaining that the canons there sat down when they were singing the psalms in the Divine Office.
He wrote many letters. Some 170 are extant. We also have 53 of his sermons and seven lives, or biographies, that he wrote. He preferred examples and stories rather than theory in his writings. The liturgical offices he wrote are evidence of his talent as a stylist in Latin.
He asked often to be allowed to retire as cardinal-bishop of Ostia, and finally Alexander II consented. Peter was happy to become once again just a monk, but he was still called to serve as a papal legate. When returning from such an assignment in Ravenna, he was overcome by a fever. With the monks gathered around him saying the Divine Office, he died on February 22, 1072.
In 1828 he was declared a Doctor of the Church.

Comment:

Peter was a reformer and if he were alive today would no doubt encourage the renewal started by Vatican II. He would also applaud the greater emphasis on prayer that is shown by the growing number of priests, religious and laypersons who gather regularly for prayer, as well as the special houses of prayer recently established by many religious communities.

Quote:

“...Let us faithfully transmit to posterity the example of virtue which we have received from our forefathers” (St. Peter Damian).

www.americancatholic.org

Lectio: Matthew 7,7-12

Lectio:

Thursday, February 21, 2013 

Lent Time

 

1) Opening prayer

Lord, our God,

you are a generous Father,

who give us what is good for us

simply because you love us.Gives us grateful hearts, Lord,

that we may learn from you

to give and share without calculation

but simply with love and joy,

as Jesus, your Son, did among us,

who lives with you and with us for ever.

 2) Gospel reading - Matthew 7,7-12

Jesus said to his disciples: 'Ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you. Everyone who asks receives; everyone who searches finds; everyone who knocks will have the door opened.

Is there anyone among you who would hand his son a stone when he asked for bread? Or would hand him a snake when he asked for a fish?

If you, then, evil as you are, know how to give your children what is good, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

'So always treat others as you would like them to treat you; that is the Law and the Prophets.

 3) Reflection

• The Gospel today gives a part of the Sermon on the Mountain, the New Law of God which has been revealed to us by Jesus. The Sermon on the Mountain has the following structure:

a) Mathew 5, 1-16: The entrance door: the Beatitudes (Mt 5, 1-10) and the mission of the disciples: to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world (Mt 5, 12-16).

b) Mathew 5, 17 a 6, 18: The new relationship with God: The new justice (Mt 5, 17-48) which does not expect the reward for practicing alms giving, for praying and fasting (Mt 6, 1-18).

c) Mathew 6, 19-34: The new relationship with the goods of the earth:(Mt 6, 19-21), do not look at the world with a diseased eye (Mt 6, 22-23), do not serve God and money (Mt 6, 24), do not be concerned about food and drink (Mt 6, 23-34).

d) Mathew 7, 1-23: The new relationship with persons: do not look for the splinter in your brother’s eye (Mt 7, 1-5); do not throw your pearls in front of pigs (Mt 7, 6); the Gospel today: do not be afraid to ask things from God (Mt 7, 7-11); and the Golden Rule (Mt 7, 12); choose the hard and narrow roads (Mt 7, 13-14), beware of false prophets (Mt 7, 15-20).

e) Mathew 7, 21-29: Conclusion: do not only speak but practice also (Mt 7, 21-23); the community built on this basis will resist the storm (Mt 7, 24-27). The result of these words is a new conscience before the Scribes and the Doctors (Mt 7, 28-29).

• Mathew 7, 7-8: The three recommendations of Jesus. The three recommendations: to ask, to seek and to knock: “Ask and you shall receive; seek and you shall find; knock and it shall be opened to you!” A person is asked. The response depends both on the person as well as on the insistence with which it is asked. To seek is done oriented by some criteria. The better the criteria, the more certainty one can have of finding what one is looking for. To knock at the door is done with the hope that there will be someone on the other side of the door, at home. Jesus completes the recommendation offering the certainty of the response: “Ask and you shall receive; seek and you shall find; knock and it will be opened; because anyone who asks receives, and anyone who seeks will find and to anyone who knocks the door will be opened”. That means that when we ask God, he listens to our petition. When we seek God, he allows Himself to be found (Is,

Is 5, 5-6). When we knock on the door of God’s house, he opens the door for us.

• Mathew 7, 9-11: The question of Jesus to the people. “Is there anyone among you who would hand his son a stone when he asked for bread? Or would hand him a snake when he asked for a fish?” Here appears the simple and direct way which Jesus has for teaching the people the things of God to the people. Speaking to the parents, He connects himself to the daily experience. Between the lines of the question one can guess the response the people yelled out: “No!” because nobody gives a stone to a son who asks for bread. There is no father and no mother who would give a snake to the son when he asks for a fish. And Jesus draws the conclusion: “If you, then, evil as you are, know how to give your children what is good, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” Jesus calls us evil to stress the certainty of being listened to by God when we ask Him for something. And this, because if we who are not saints, know how to give good things to our children, how much more the Father in heaven. This comparison has as its objective to take away from our heart any doubt concerning the prayer addressed to God with trust. God will listen! Luke adds that God will give the Holy Spirit (Lk 11, 13).

• Mathew 7, 12: The Golden Rule. "So always treat others as you would like them to treat you; that is the Law and the Prophets.” This is the summary of all the Old Testament, of the Law and the Prophets. And this is the summary of everything which God wants to tell us, the summary of all the teaching of Jesus. This Golden Rule is not found only in the teaching of Jesus, but also, in one way or other, in all religions. This responds to the most profound and more universal sentiment of the human being.

4) Personal questions

• Ask, seek, knock on the door: How do you pray and speak with God?

• How do you live the Golden Rule?

5) Concluding prayer

Lord I praise your name for your faithful love and your constancy;

your promises surpass even your fame.

You heard me on the day when I called,

and you gave new strength to my heart. (Ps 138, 2-3)

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