Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Lectionary: 252
Lectionary: 252
From
Mount Hor the children of Israel set out on the Red Sea road,
to bypass the land of Edom.
But with their patience worn out by the journey,
the people complained against God and Moses,
“Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert,
where there is no food or water?
We are disgusted with this wretched food!”
In punishment the LORD sent among the people saraph serpents,
which bit the people so that many of them died.
Then the people came to Moses and said,
“We have sinned in complaining against the LORD and you.
Pray the LORD to take the serpents away from us.”
So Moses prayed for the people, and the LORD said to Moses,
“Make a saraph and mount it on a pole,
and whoever looks at it after being bitten will live.”
Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole,
and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent
looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.
to bypass the land of Edom.
But with their patience worn out by the journey,
the people complained against God and Moses,
“Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert,
where there is no food or water?
We are disgusted with this wretched food!”
In punishment the LORD sent among the people saraph serpents,
which bit the people so that many of them died.
Then the people came to Moses and said,
“We have sinned in complaining against the LORD and you.
Pray the LORD to take the serpents away from us.”
So Moses prayed for the people, and the LORD said to Moses,
“Make a saraph and mount it on a pole,
and whoever looks at it after being bitten will live.”
Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole,
and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent
looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.
Responsorial Psalm PS
102:2-3, 16-18, 19-21
R.
(2) O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
O LORD, hear my prayer,
and let my cry come to you.
Hide not your face from me
in the day of my distress.
Incline your ear to me;
in the day when I call, answer me speedily.
R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
The nations shall revere your name, O LORD,
and all the kings of the earth your glory,
When the LORD has rebuilt Zion
and appeared in his glory;
When he has regarded the prayer of the destitute,
and not despised their prayer.
R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
Let this be written for the generation to come,
and let his future creatures praise the LORD:
“The LORD looked down from his holy height,
from heaven he beheld the earth,
To hear the groaning of the prisoners,
to release those doomed to die.”
R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
O LORD, hear my prayer,
and let my cry come to you.
Hide not your face from me
in the day of my distress.
Incline your ear to me;
in the day when I call, answer me speedily.
R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
The nations shall revere your name, O LORD,
and all the kings of the earth your glory,
When the LORD has rebuilt Zion
and appeared in his glory;
When he has regarded the prayer of the destitute,
and not despised their prayer.
R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
Let this be written for the generation to come,
and let his future creatures praise the LORD:
“The LORD looked down from his holy height,
from heaven he beheld the earth,
To hear the groaning of the prisoners,
to release those doomed to die.”
R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.
Gospel JN 8:21-30
Jesus
said to the Pharisees:
“I am going away and you will look for me,
but you will die in your sin.
Where I am going you cannot come.”
So the Jews said,
“He is not going to kill himself, is he,
because he said, ‘Where I am going you cannot come’?”
He said to them, “You belong to what is below,
I belong to what is above.
You belong to this world,
but I do not belong to this world.
That is why I told you that you will die in your sins.
For if you do not believe that I AM,
you will die in your sins.”
So they said to him, “Who are you?”
Jesus said to them, “What I told you from the beginning.
I have much to say about you in condemnation.
But the one who sent me is true,
and what I heard from him I tell the world.”
They did not realize that he was speaking to them of the Father.
So Jesus said to them,
“When you lift up the Son of Man,
then you will realize that I AM,
and that I do nothing on my own,
but I say only what the Father taught me.
The one who sent me is with me.
He has not left me alone,
because I always do what is pleasing to him.”
Because he spoke this way, many came to believe in him.
“I am going away and you will look for me,
but you will die in your sin.
Where I am going you cannot come.”
So the Jews said,
“He is not going to kill himself, is he,
because he said, ‘Where I am going you cannot come’?”
He said to them, “You belong to what is below,
I belong to what is above.
You belong to this world,
but I do not belong to this world.
That is why I told you that you will die in your sins.
For if you do not believe that I AM,
you will die in your sins.”
So they said to him, “Who are you?”
Jesus said to them, “What I told you from the beginning.
I have much to say about you in condemnation.
But the one who sent me is true,
and what I heard from him I tell the world.”
They did not realize that he was speaking to them of the Father.
So Jesus said to them,
“When you lift up the Son of Man,
then you will realize that I AM,
and that I do nothing on my own,
but I say only what the Father taught me.
The one who sent me is with me.
He has not left me alone,
because I always do what is pleasing to him.”
Because he spoke this way, many came to believe in him.
Meditation: "When you have lifted up the Son
of man"
Do you
know the healing power of the cross of Jesus Christ? When the people of Israel
were afflicted with serpents in the wilderness because of their sin, God
instructed Moses: "Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and every
one who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live" (Numbers 21:8). The
visible sign of the "fiery bronze serpent" being lifted up in the
sight of the people reminded them of two important facts - sin leads to death and
repentance leads to God's mercy and healing. The lifting up of the bronze
serpent on a wooden pole points to Jesus Christ being lifted up on the wooden
cross at Calvary where he took our sins upon himself to make atonement to the
Father on our behalf. The cross of Christ broke the curse of sin and death and
won pardon, healing, and everlasting life for all who believe in Jesus, the Son
of God and Savior of the world.
Either
for him or against him
While many believed in Jesus and his message, many others, including the religious leaders, opposed him. Some openly mocked him when he warned them about their sin of unbelief. It's impossible to be indifferent to Jesus' word and his judgments. We are either for him or against him. There is no middle ground or neutral parties.
While many believed in Jesus and his message, many others, including the religious leaders, opposed him. Some openly mocked him when he warned them about their sin of unbelief. It's impossible to be indifferent to Jesus' word and his judgments. We are either for him or against him. There is no middle ground or neutral parties.
When
Jesus spoke about "going away" he was refering to his return in glory
to his Father in heaven. Jesus warned his opponents that if they continued to
disobey God's word and reject him, they would shut themselves off from God
and die in their sins. Jesus' words echoed the prophetic
warning given to Ezekiel (see Ezekiel 3:18 and 18:18) when God warned his
people to heed his word before the time is too late. God gives us time to turn
to him and to receive his grace and pardon, but that time is right now.
To sin
literally means to miss the mark or to be off target.
The essence of sin is that it diverts us from God and from our true purpose in
life - to know the source of all truth and beauty which is God himself and to
be united with God in everlasting joy. When Adam and Eve yielded to their first
sin of disobedience, they literally tried to hide themselves from God's
presence (Genesis 3:8-10). That is what sin does; it separates us from the One
who is not only "all-seeing" and "ever present", but who is
also "all loving" and "merciful" and eager to receive us.
When God calls you to turn your gaze and attention towards him, do you try to
hide yourself from his presence with other distractions and excuses that keep
you from seeking him and listening to his voice?
The
proof of God's love for us
Jesus went on to explain to people that if they could not recognize his voice when they heard his word, they would have the opportunity to recognize him when he is "lifted up" on the cross. Jesus pointed to the atoning sacrifice of his life on the cross as the true source of healing and victory over sin and reconciliation with God. The sacrifice of Jesus' life on the cross is the ultimate proof of God's love for us.
Jesus went on to explain to people that if they could not recognize his voice when they heard his word, they would have the opportunity to recognize him when he is "lifted up" on the cross. Jesus pointed to the atoning sacrifice of his life on the cross as the true source of healing and victory over sin and reconciliation with God. The sacrifice of Jesus' life on the cross is the ultimate proof of God's love for us.
God
so loved the world that he gave us his only Son, that whoever believes in him
should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).
To
fail to recognize who Jesus is and where he came from is to remain in darkness
- the darkness of sin, ignorance, and unbelief. But if we look to Jesus and listen
to his word of life and truth, then we will find the way to lasting peace and
joy with God. The Lord Jesus invites each one of us to accept him as the Way,
the Truth, and the Life. Our time here in this present world is very limited
and short, but how we live it today has consequences not only for the present
moment but for our eternal destiny as well. Which direction is your life headed
in right now?
"Lord
Jesus, grant this day, to direct and sanctify, to rule and govern our hearts
and bodies, so that all our thoughts, words and deeds may be according to your
Father's law and thus may we be saved and protected through your mighty
help."
|
A Life Pleasing to God |
|
Tuesday
of the Fifth Week of Lent
|
|
John
8:21-30
Jesus
said to the Pharisees: "I am going away and you will look for me, but
you will die in your sin. Where I am going you cannot come." So the Jews
said, "He is not going to kill himself, is he, because he said, ´Where I
am going you cannot come´?" He said to them, "You belong to what is
below, I belong to what is above. You belong to this world, but I
do not belong to this world. That is why I told you that you will die in your
sins. For if you do not believe that I AM, you will die in your sins."
So they said to him, "Who are you?" Jesus said to them, "What
I told you from the beginning. I have much to say about you in condemnation.
But the one who sent me is true, andwhat I heard from him I tell the world."
They did not realize that he was speaking to them of the Father. So Jesus
said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realize
that I AM, and that I do nothing on my own, but I say only what the Father
taught me. The one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I
always do what is pleasing to him." Because he spoke this way, many
came to believe in him.
Introductory
Prayer: Lord, by
doing your holy will the Church grows and becomes more faithful in your
service. You are life and truth and goodness. You are also peace and mercy.
How grateful I am to have this moment to turn to you. Without you I can do
nothing good. In fact, when I do good, it is you working through me, despite
my failings. Thank you, Lord. Here I am ready to love you more.
Petition: Lord, help me to please you in what I
think, say and do.
1. In
The World but not OF the World: We profess in the Creed that Jesus Christ came down from
heaven “for us and our salvation.” This truth colors everything about the
Savior. He comes into the world without being of the world. His doctrine
appeals to our highest and most noble aspirations. His way, his lifestyle,
clashes with the way and lifestyle of the children of this world and
therefore is never without resistance. In my innermost thoughts, in my words
and deeds, am I striving to belong to “what is above”?
2. Lovingly
Telling the Truth: When
we truly love someone, we tell that someone the truth about the things that
really matter, even when the truth could be perceived as inconvenient,
painful or demanding. God the Son has loved us from all eternity. His love
compels him to tell us the truth about the Father, which is a message of
infinite mercy and love. His love compels him to tell us the truth about our
relationship with that merciful Father: how it should be filled with
gratitude and loving obedience and devoid of anything that could separate us
from him. In order to belong to Jesus and to what is above, I must strive to
open my heart and mind to his truth, especially in those areas of my life
where he is asking for change and conversion.
3. Seeking
to Please the Beloved Love transforms our intentions and desires: When we love someone, we want to
please that person in everything. Jesus loves the Father, and therefore he
does what is pleasing to him, even though the Father’s will leads Jesus to
embrace suffering, rejection, and death. He endures this agony so as to bring
us the gift of resurrection and eternal life. If I love Christ, then I
necessarily wish to do what is pleasing to him. And what pleases Christ? My
faith, hope and love; My obedience and my humility; So also my selfless
service to him in those who are materially, morally or spiritually needful of
my attention and support.
Conversation
with Christ:
I will love all my brothers, Lord. The small ones, lowering myself to their abyss; the clean of heart, becoming as they; the naked, clothing them; the sick, consoling them; the imprisoned, visiting them, my brothers of every tribe, language, and race, spilling my sweetness as a gentle perfume because kindness in love is the strongest of all chains.
Resolution: I will strive to please
Christ today in all my thoughts, words and deeds.
|
TUESDAY, APRIL 8, JOHN 8:21-30
Lenten Weekday
(Numbers 21:4-9; Psalm 102)
KEY VERSE: "When you lift up the Son of Man, you will realize that I AM, and that I do nothing on my own" (v 28).
READING: Jesus uttered a warning against those who persisted in their unbelief, refusing to accept him as God's Anointed One. Only those who believed in him could go with him to the Father; those who opposed him would die in their sins. The unbelievers sarcastically asked Jesus if he intended to kill himself. The irony was that Jesus would freely lay down his life on the cross. He compared his being "lifted up" on the cross to the bronze serpent that Moses elevated in the desert to heal those who had been bitten by poisonous snakes (Nm 21:4-9). The cross is a paradoxical symbol of life and death, sin and grace, suffering and healing. Jesus used the powerful I AM, egō eimi, echoing the divine name, stating that he and the Father were one.
REFLECTING: Gaze upon a crucifix and contemplate its meaning for your life.
PRAYING: Lord Jesus, heal me by the mercy of your cross.
Lenten Weekday
(Numbers 21:4-9; Psalm 102)
KEY VERSE: "When you lift up the Son of Man, you will realize that I AM, and that I do nothing on my own" (v 28).
READING: Jesus uttered a warning against those who persisted in their unbelief, refusing to accept him as God's Anointed One. Only those who believed in him could go with him to the Father; those who opposed him would die in their sins. The unbelievers sarcastically asked Jesus if he intended to kill himself. The irony was that Jesus would freely lay down his life on the cross. He compared his being "lifted up" on the cross to the bronze serpent that Moses elevated in the desert to heal those who had been bitten by poisonous snakes (Nm 21:4-9). The cross is a paradoxical symbol of life and death, sin and grace, suffering and healing. Jesus used the powerful I AM, egō eimi, echoing the divine name, stating that he and the Father were one.
REFLECTING: Gaze upon a crucifix and contemplate its meaning for your life.
PRAYING: Lord Jesus, heal me by the mercy of your cross.
MINUTE
MEDITATIONS
Food For the Soul
Food for the body ought not to be seen as an end in itself but as
a means to nourish the hunger longing to be satisfied in our souls.
O Lord hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you
‘Then you will know that I am he.’In this puzzling reading from John we sense that Jesus is not on the same plane as the Pharisees who were challenging him: ‘You are from this world; I am not of this world.’ He shows the closeness of his relationship with his Father. We read that when Jesus is ‘lifted up’ the Pharisees will know who he really is and his relationship with the Father will be clear. When Jesus explains that ‘he who sent me is with me, and has not left me to myself’, we wonder if he is implying that we too can have such a relationship with God. Today let us reflect on the presence of the Holy Spirit within each of us, as we pray with our brothers and sisters of different faiths: Namaste—‘Greetings: I honour the God within you who is also within me.’
April
8
St. Julie Billiart
(1751-1816)
St. Julie Billiart
(1751-1816)
Born in Cuvilly, France, into a family of well-to-do farmers,
young Marie Rose Julie Billiart showed an early interest in religion and in
helping the sick and poor. Though the first years of her life were relatively
peaceful and uncomplicated, Julie had to take up manual work as a young teen
when her family lost its money. However, she spent her spare time teaching
catechism to young people and to the farm laborers.
A
mysterious illness overtook her when she was about 30. Witnessing an attempt to
wound or even kill her father, Julie was paralyzed and became a complete
invalid. For the next two decades she continued to teach catechism lessons from
her bed, offered spiritual advice and attracted visitors who had heard of her
holiness.
When the
French Revolution broke out in 1789, revolutionary forces became aware of her
allegiance to fugitive priests. With the help of friends she was smuggled out
of Cuvilly in a haycart; she spent several years hiding in Compiegne, being
moved from house to house despite her growing physical pain. She even lost the
power of speech for a time.
But this
period also proved to be a fruitful spiritual time for Julie. It was at this
time she had a vision in which she saw Calvary surrounded by women in religious
habits and heard a voice saying, "Behold these spiritual daughters whom I
give you in an Institute marked by the cross." As time passed and Julie
continued her mobile life, she made the acquaintance of an aristocratic woman,
Françoise Blin de Bourdon, who shared Julie's interest in teaching the faith.
In 1803 the two women began the Institute of Notre Dame, which was dedicated to
the education of the poor as well as young Christian girls and the training of
catechists. The following year the first Sisters of Notre Dame made their vows.
That was the same year that Julie recovered from the illness: She was able to
walk for the first time in 22 years.
Though
Julie had always been attentive to the special needs of the poor and that
always remained her priority, she also became aware that other classes in
society needed Christian instruction. From the founding of the Sisters of Notre
Dame until her death, Julie was on the road, opening a variety of schools in
France and Belgium that served the poor and the wealthy, vocational groups, teachers.
Ultimately, Julie and Françoise moved the motherhouse to Namur, Belgium.
Julie
died there in 1816. She was canonized in 1969.
Comment:
Julie's immobility in no way impeded her activities. In spite of her suffering, she managed to co-found a teaching order that tended to the needs of both the poor and the well-to-do. Each of us has limitations, but the worst malady any of us can suffer is the spiritual paralysis that keeps us from doing God’s work on earth.
Julie's immobility in no way impeded her activities. In spite of her suffering, she managed to co-found a teaching order that tended to the needs of both the poor and the well-to-do. Each of us has limitations, but the worst malady any of us can suffer is the spiritual paralysis that keeps us from doing God’s work on earth.
LECTIO DIVINA: JOHN
8,21-30
Lectio:
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Lent Time
1)
OPENING PRAYER
Our saving, merciful God,
wandering in our deserts
of injustice and lack of love,we cry out with fear
or are stunned into silence,
some into doubt or despair.
Give us enough trusting faith
to look up to him
who took our evil and doubts upon himself,
suffered for them on a cross, and rose from them,
Jesus Christ, our Saviour and our Lord.
wandering in our deserts
of injustice and lack of love,we cry out with fear
or are stunned into silence,
some into doubt or despair.
Give us enough trusting faith
to look up to him
who took our evil and doubts upon himself,
suffered for them on a cross, and rose from them,
Jesus Christ, our Saviour and our Lord.
2)
GOSPEL READING - JOHN 8, 21-30
Jesus said to them: I am going away; you will look for me and
you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come. So the Jews said
to one another, 'Is he going to kill himself, that he says, "Where I am
going, you cannot come?" '
Jesus went on: You are from below; I am from above. You are of
this world; I am not of this world. I have told you already: You will die in
your sins. Yes, if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.
So they said to him, 'Who are you?' Jesus answered: What I have
told you from the outset. About you I have much to say and much to judge; but
the one who sent me is true, and what I declare to the world I have learnt from
him. They did not recognise that he was talking to them about the Father.
So Jesus said: When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you
will know that I am He and that I do nothing of my own accord. What I say is
what the Father has taught me; he who sent me is with me, and has not left me
to myself, for I always do what pleases him. As he was saying this, many came
to believe in him.
3)
REFLECTION
• Last week, the Liturgy led us to meditate on chapter five of
the Gospel of John. This week it confronts us with chapter 8 of the same
Gospel. Like chapter 5, chapter 8 also contains profound reflections on the
mystery of God which surrounds the person of Jesus. Apparently, it is a
question of dialogue between Jesus and the Pharisees (Jn 8, 13). The Pharisees
want to know who Jesus is. They criticize him because he gives testimony of
himself without any proof or witness to legitimize himself before the people
(Jn 8, 13). Jesus responds by saying that he does not speak in his own name, but
always for the Father and in the name of the Father (Jn 8, 14-19).
• In reality, the dialogues are also an expression of how the
faith was transmitted in the catechesis in the communities of the beloved
disciple toward the end of the first century. They show the prayerful reading
of the word of Jesus that the Christians did, considering it Word of God. The
method of question and answer helped to find the response to the problems which
toward the end of the first century, the Jews raised to the Christians. It was
a concrete way to help the community to deepen its faith in Jesus and in his
message.
• John 8, 21-22: Where I am going, you cannot come. Here John
presents a new theme or another aspect which surrounds the person of Jesus.
Jesus speaks about his departure and says that where he is going the Pharisees
cannot follow him. “I am going away; you will look for me and you will die in
your sin“. They will look for Jesus, but will not find him, because they do not
know him and will look for him with mistaken criteria. They live in sin and
will die in sin. To live in sin is to live far away from God. They imagine God
in a certain way, but God is different from what they imagine. This is why they
are not capable to recognize the presence of God in Jesus. The Pharisees do not
understand what Jesus wants to say and they take everything just literally: “Is
he going to kill himself?”
• John 8, 23-24: You are from here below; I am from above. The
Pharisees consider everything according to the criteria of this world. “You are
from this world; I am not from this world!” The framework of reference which
guides Jesus in everything which he says and does is the world above, that is,
God, Father, and the mission which he has received from the Father. The
framework of reference of the Pharisees is the world below, without openness,
closed up in its own criteria. This is why they live in sin. To live in sin is
not to have the gaze of Jesus on their life. The look of Jesus is totally open
toward God up to the point that God himself is in him in all his fullness (cf.
Col 1, 19). We say: “Jesus is God”. John invites us to say: “God is Jesus!”.
This is why Jesus says: “If you do not believe that I AM HE, you will die in
your sins”. I AM is the affirmation with which God presents himself to Moses at
the moment of liberating his people from the oppression of Egypt (Ex 3, 13-14).
This is the maximum expression of the absolute certainty of the fact that God
is in our midst in the person of Jesus. Jesus is the definitive proof of the
fact that God is with us. Emmanuel.
• John 8, 25-26: Who are you? The mystery of God in Jesus does
not fit in the criteria with which the Pharisees look toward Jesus. Once again
they ask: “who are you?” They did not understand because they do not understand
Jesus’ language. Jesus was very careful to speak to them according to all that
he experienced and lived in union with the Father and for the knowledge and
awareness of his mission. Jesus does not promote himself. He only says and
expresses what he hears from the Father. He is the pure revelation because he
is pure and total obedience.
• John 8, 27-30: When you have lifted up the Son of man, then
you will know that I AM HE. The Pharisees did not understand that Jesus, in
everything he says and does, is the expression of the Father. They will
understand it only after the Son of man will be lifted up. “Then you will know
that I AM HE”. The word lifted up has a double sense, to be lifted up on the
Cross and to be lifted up to the right hand of the Father. The Good News of the
death and resurrection reveals who Jesus is, and they will know that Jesus is
the presence of God in our midst. The foundation of this certainty of our faith
is twofold: on the one side, the certainty that the Father is always with Jesus
and he never remains alone and, on the other side, the radical and total
obedience of Jesus to the Father, which becomes total openness and total
transparency of the Father for us.
4)
PERSONAL QUESTIONS
• The one who closes up in his own criteria and thinks that he
already knows everything, will never be capable to understand others. This is
the way the Pharisees were before Jesus. And I, how do I behave before others?
• Jesus is radical obedience to the Father and because of this
he is total revelation of the Father. And which is the image of God which I
show, which comes from me?
5)
CONCLUDING PRAYER
Yahweh, hear my prayer,
let my cry for help reach you.
Do not turn away your face from me
when I am in trouble;
bend down and listen to me, when I call,
be quick to answer me! (Ps 102,1-2)
let my cry for help reach you.
Do not turn away your face from me
when I am in trouble;
bend down and listen to me, when I call,
be quick to answer me! (Ps 102,1-2)
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét