Saturday of the First Week of Lent
Lectionary: 229
Lectionary: 229
Moses spoke to the people, saying:
"This day the LORD, your God,
commands you to observe these statutes and decrees.
Be careful, then,
to observe them with all your heart and with all your soul.
Today you are making this agreement with the LORD:
he is to be your God and you are to walk in his ways
and observe his statutes, commandments and decrees,
and to hearken to his voice.
And today the LORD is making this agreement with you:
you are to be a people peculiarly his own, as he promised you;
and provided you keep all his commandments,
he will then raise you high in praise and renown and glory
above all other nations he has made,
and you will be a people sacred to the LORD, your God,
as he promised."
"This day the LORD, your God,
commands you to observe these statutes and decrees.
Be careful, then,
to observe them with all your heart and with all your soul.
Today you are making this agreement with the LORD:
he is to be your God and you are to walk in his ways
and observe his statutes, commandments and decrees,
and to hearken to his voice.
And today the LORD is making this agreement with you:
you are to be a people peculiarly his own, as he promised you;
and provided you keep all his commandments,
he will then raise you high in praise and renown and glory
above all other nations he has made,
and you will be a people sacred to the LORD, your God,
as he promised."
Responsorial
PsalmPS 119:1-2, 4-5, 7-8
R. (1b) Blessed
are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Blessed are they whose way is blameless,
who walk in the law of the LORD.
Blessed are they who observe his decrees,
who seek him with all their heart.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
You have commanded that your precepts
be diligently kept.
Oh, that I might be firm in the ways
of keeping your statutes!
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
I will give you thanks with an upright heart,
when I have learned your just ordinances.
I will keep your statutes;
do not utterly forsake me.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Blessed are they whose way is blameless,
who walk in the law of the LORD.
Blessed are they who observe his decrees,
who seek him with all their heart.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
You have commanded that your precepts
be diligently kept.
Oh, that I might be firm in the ways
of keeping your statutes!
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
I will give you thanks with an upright heart,
when I have learned your just ordinances.
I will keep your statutes;
do not utterly forsake me.
R. Blessed are they who follow the law of the Lord!
Verse Before
The Gospel2 COR 6:2B
Behold, now is a very acceptable time;
behold, now is the day of salvation.
behold, now is the day of salvation.
GospelMT 5:43-48
Jesus said to his disciples:
"You have heard that it was said,
You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.
But I say to you, love your enemies,
and pray for those who persecute you,
that you may be children of your heavenly Father,
for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good,
and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.
For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have?
Do not the tax collectors do the same?
And if you greet your brothers and sisters only,
what is unusual about that?
Do not the pagans do the same?
So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect."
"You have heard that it was said,
You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.
But I say to you, love your enemies,
and pray for those who persecute you,
that you may be children of your heavenly Father,
for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good,
and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.
For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have?
Do not the tax collectors do the same?
And if you greet your brothers and sisters only,
what is unusual about that?
Do not the pagans do the same?
So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect."
Meditation: Love and pray for your enemies
Do you know the love that conquers every fear, sin,
and selfish desire? God renews his love for us each and every day. His love has
the power to free us from every form of evil - selfishness, greed, anger,
hatred, jealously and envy. In Jesus' teaching on the law he does something
quite remarkable and unheard of. He transforms the old law of justice and mercy
with grace (favor) and loving-kindness.
Grace and loving-kindness
God is good to the unjust as well as the just. His love embraces saint and sinner alike. God seeks our highest good and teaches us to seek the greatest good of others, even those who hate or cause ill-will. Our love for others, including those who are ungrateful or selfish towards us, must be marked by the same kindness and mercy which God has shown to us. It is easier to show kindness and mercy when we can expect to benefit from doing so. How much harder when we can expect nothing in return. Our prayer for those who do us ill both breaks the power of revenge and releases the power of love to do good in the face of evil.
God is good to the unjust as well as the just. His love embraces saint and sinner alike. God seeks our highest good and teaches us to seek the greatest good of others, even those who hate or cause ill-will. Our love for others, including those who are ungrateful or selfish towards us, must be marked by the same kindness and mercy which God has shown to us. It is easier to show kindness and mercy when we can expect to benefit from doing so. How much harder when we can expect nothing in return. Our prayer for those who do us ill both breaks the power of revenge and releases the power of love to do good in the face of evil.
How can we possibly love as God loves and overcome
evil with good? With God all things are possible. He gives power and grace to
those who believe and accept the gift of the Holy Spirit. His love conquers
all, even our hurts, fears, prejudices and griefs. Only the cross of Jesus
Christ can free us from the tyranny of malice, hatred, revenge, and resentment
and gives us the courage to return evil with good. Such love and grace has
power to heal and to save from destruction. Do you know the power of Christ's
redeeming love and mercy?
Perfect - made
whole
Was Jesus exaggerating when he said we must be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48)? Jesus' command seems to parallel two passages from the Old Testament Scriptures. The first is where God instructed Abraham to "be perfect" or "blameless" before God (Genesis 17:1). The original meaning of "perfect" in Hebrew and the Aramaic dialect is "completeness" or "wholeness" - "not lacking in what is essential."
Was Jesus exaggerating when he said we must be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48)? Jesus' command seems to parallel two passages from the Old Testament Scriptures. The first is where God instructed Abraham to "be perfect" or "blameless" before God (Genesis 17:1). The original meaning of "perfect" in Hebrew and the Aramaic dialect is "completeness" or "wholeness" - "not lacking in what is essential."
The second passage that seems to parallel Jesus'
expression, "be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect" is the
command that God gave to Moses and the people of Israel to "be holy, for I
am holy" (Leviticus 11:44,45; 19:2). God made each of us in his image and
likeness (Genesis 1:26,27). That is why he calls us to grow in maturity and wholeness so
we can truly be like him - a people who love as he loves and who choose to do
what is good and to reject what is evil and contrary to his will (Ephesians
4:13-16).
God knows our sinfulness and weaknesses better than we
do - and he assures us of his love, mercy, and help. That is why he freely
gives us his power, strength, and gifts so that we may not lack anything we
need to do his will and to live as his sons and daughters (2 Peter 1:3). Do you
want to grow in your love for God and for your neighbor? Ask the Holy Spirit to
purify and transform you in the image of the Father that you may walk in the
joy and freedom of the Gospel.
"Lord Jesus, your love brings freedom and pardon.
Fill me with your Holy Spirit and set my heart ablaze with your love that nothing
may make me lose my temper, ruffle my peace, take away my joy, nor make me
bitter towards anyone."
A Daily Quote for Lent: The gift to love all people - even enemies,
by Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"Beg God for the gift to love one another. Love
all people, even your enemies, not because they are your brothers and sisters
but that they may become such. Love them in order that you may be at all times
on fire with love, whether toward those who have become your brothers and
sisters or toward your enemies, so that by being beloved they may become your
brothers and sisters." (excerpt
from Sermon on 1 John 10,7)
SATURDAY,
MARCH 11:MATTHEW 5:43-48
Lenten Weekday
(Deuteronomy 26:16-19; Psalm 119)
Lenten Weekday
(Deuteronomy 26:16-19; Psalm 119)
KEY VERSE: "But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you" (v 44).
TO KNOW: Israel believed that their enemies were also the enemies of God (Ps 139:21), but God did not command Israel to hate their enemies (Lev 19:17-18). Neither were they allowed to mistreat a resident alien, that is, someone who dwelled in the land but was not a member of the nation or religion of the Jews (v 34). Israel ought to remember that they too were once aliens in the land of Egypt. But Jesus took the law further. He said that it was no virtue to love only those who loved them; nonbelievers could do as much. His disciples should imitate their loving God who gave gifts of sun and rain to the just and unjust alike. Christians must never seek retaliation for any insult no matter how hostile. They must strive to love even those who persecuted them (Mt 5:11). Jesus showed us the supreme example of enemy love when he asked God to forgive those who were putting him to death (Lk 23:34).
TO LOVE: Do we as individuals or as a nation measure up to Jesus' command to forgive and pray for our enemies?
TO SERVE: Lord Jesus, help me to forgive those who have injured me and to pray for their welfare.
The Feast of Purim begins at
sunset
Purim is one of the most joyous holidays on the Jewish calendar. The feast is celebrated on the 14th day of Adar, which usually comes in March. The word "Purim" means "lots" and refers to the lottery that Haman used to choose the date for the massacre of the Jewish people living in Persia. The story of Purim is told in the Book of Esther who was taken to the house of Ahasuerus, King of Persia, who made her his queen, although he did not know that she was a Jew. Esther's cousin Mordecai persuaded Esther to speak to the king on behalf of the Jewish people. Esther fasted for three days, then went to the king and told him of Haman's plot against her people. The Jewish people were saved, and Haman was hanged on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. The primary commandment related to Purim is to hear the reading of the Book of Esther, known as the Megillah, which means scroll. Although five books of Jewish scripture are referred to as megillot (Esther, Ruth, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, and Lamentations). On Purim, Jews are also commanded to send out gifts of food or drink and to give charity. Purim is not subject to the Sabbath-like restrictions that apply to many other holiday, but some sources indicate that ordinary business should not be conducted out of respect for the holiday.
Saturday 11 March 2017
Sat 11th. St Oengus.
Dt 26:16-19. Mt 5:43-48.
In this special Lenten series – Darkness to light: An intimate journey with Jesus – our guest writer looks to the Gospel stories for answers to the questions that many of us ask when faced with difficult times.
In this special Lenten series – Darkness to light: An intimate journey with Jesus – our guest writer looks to the Gospel stories for answers to the questions that many of us ask when faced with difficult times.
'Love your enemies and pray for those who
persecute you; in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven.'
My main enemy is the voice inside me, a
nagging voice overdubbed with doubt, ego, fear and avoidance. I wonder if,
after I manage to befriend this voice, I might be able to love all my other
enemies. Or is this another of my self-centred preoccupations? Just do it, I
think, as Jesus did. I will go to my enemies in their bastion of power and give
myself to them. They will exploit me, use me, treat me like a number, persecute
me, harm me, torture me, kill me. But can I see their needs? Their suffering?
Can I see we are all children of the same loving creator. They are me. I am
them. Why can't we be brothers and sisters? I feel a glimmer of love for them.
I feel a trace of God's grace again, even though I am still afraid. Lord, stay
by me.
ST. SOPHRONIUS
A courageous leader of the Jerusalem Church
during the Islamic conquests of the seventh century, Patriarch Saint Sophronius
I has his liturgical memorial on March 11.
Though he is acknowledged and celebrated as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church, St. Sophronius is more commonly venerated among Eastern Catholics and within the Eastern Orthodox churches. All of these traditions commemorate him on the same date, the purported date of his death in 638.
Born in Damascus, Syria, around the year 560, Sophronius came from an esteemed family and received a deep philosophical education. His early devotion to God grew into an inclination toward monastic life, and while still young he entered a monastery in Palestine. He became a friend and student of John Moschus, his fellow monk who would become an important spiritual writer in the Eastern Christian tradition.
The Zoroastrian Persians – long-standing military rivals of the Byzantine Empire, hailing from present-day Iran – invaded Palestine in 605. As a result the two monks fled first to Antioch and then Egypt. But their flight became a spiritual quest, taking John and Sophronius to many monasteries throughout the Middle East. Moschus’ memoir of their travels, entitled “The Spiritual Meadow,” survives and is still read in the Church to this day.
The two monks' foremost patron was Saint John the Almsgiver, patriarch of Alexandria, with whom they stayed for a time until the Persians conquered the city in 614. The Zoroastrian invasion of Egypt forced the kindly patriarch back to his homeland of Cyprus, while Sophronius and John Moschus took refuge in Rome along with a group of other monks. Moschus, regarded as a saint by some contemporary Eastern Christians, died in Rome during 619.
Jerusalem, the future site of Sophronius’ patriarchate, was the subject of violent disputes even before the rise of Islam. Captured by the Persians in 614, it was not retaken by the Byzantines until 628. The Christian reconquest of the city was triumphant, after the long wars with the Zoroastrian empire. But the triumph would be short-lived: By that time the Islamic founder Muhammad had begun his conquests, which would continue under his successors the caliphs.
Eastern Christendom also suffered internally during the 620s, with a recurrence of doctrinal controversy over the person of Christ. During the 630s, Sophronius prominently opposed the “monothelite” heresy – whose adherents supposed Jesus had only one will, the divine. This error denied Christ’s human will, making him less than “true God and true man.” Saint Maximus the Confessor, the greatest opponent of monothelitism, was taught and mentored by Sophronius.
Chosen to lead the Church in Jerusalem during 634, Sophronius continued to oppose the monothelite heresy. But he soon faced a more tangible threat from Caliph Umar and his army of followers. The Muslims beseiged Jerusalem for two years during Sophronius’ patriarchate, forcibly depriving the city’s residents of food. The patriarch could only save the lives of his people by negotiating a surrender with the caliph. Thus, Jerusalem fell to Islam for the first time in 637. Heartbroken, St. Sophronius died the following year.
Patriarch St. Sophronius' stand against monothelitism was vindicated near the end of the seventh century, when the heresy of “one will” in Christ received formal condemnation at the Sixth Ecumenical Council in Constantinople. But the Jerusalem Patriarchate remained vacant for many decades after St. Sophronius’ death: a successor was not appointed until 705. Jerusalem, meanwhile, would not pass back into Christian hands until the First Crusade of 1099.
Though he is acknowledged and celebrated as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church, St. Sophronius is more commonly venerated among Eastern Catholics and within the Eastern Orthodox churches. All of these traditions commemorate him on the same date, the purported date of his death in 638.
Born in Damascus, Syria, around the year 560, Sophronius came from an esteemed family and received a deep philosophical education. His early devotion to God grew into an inclination toward monastic life, and while still young he entered a monastery in Palestine. He became a friend and student of John Moschus, his fellow monk who would become an important spiritual writer in the Eastern Christian tradition.
The Zoroastrian Persians – long-standing military rivals of the Byzantine Empire, hailing from present-day Iran – invaded Palestine in 605. As a result the two monks fled first to Antioch and then Egypt. But their flight became a spiritual quest, taking John and Sophronius to many monasteries throughout the Middle East. Moschus’ memoir of their travels, entitled “The Spiritual Meadow,” survives and is still read in the Church to this day.
The two monks' foremost patron was Saint John the Almsgiver, patriarch of Alexandria, with whom they stayed for a time until the Persians conquered the city in 614. The Zoroastrian invasion of Egypt forced the kindly patriarch back to his homeland of Cyprus, while Sophronius and John Moschus took refuge in Rome along with a group of other monks. Moschus, regarded as a saint by some contemporary Eastern Christians, died in Rome during 619.
Jerusalem, the future site of Sophronius’ patriarchate, was the subject of violent disputes even before the rise of Islam. Captured by the Persians in 614, it was not retaken by the Byzantines until 628. The Christian reconquest of the city was triumphant, after the long wars with the Zoroastrian empire. But the triumph would be short-lived: By that time the Islamic founder Muhammad had begun his conquests, which would continue under his successors the caliphs.
Eastern Christendom also suffered internally during the 620s, with a recurrence of doctrinal controversy over the person of Christ. During the 630s, Sophronius prominently opposed the “monothelite” heresy – whose adherents supposed Jesus had only one will, the divine. This error denied Christ’s human will, making him less than “true God and true man.” Saint Maximus the Confessor, the greatest opponent of monothelitism, was taught and mentored by Sophronius.
Chosen to lead the Church in Jerusalem during 634, Sophronius continued to oppose the monothelite heresy. But he soon faced a more tangible threat from Caliph Umar and his army of followers. The Muslims beseiged Jerusalem for two years during Sophronius’ patriarchate, forcibly depriving the city’s residents of food. The patriarch could only save the lives of his people by negotiating a surrender with the caliph. Thus, Jerusalem fell to Islam for the first time in 637. Heartbroken, St. Sophronius died the following year.
Patriarch St. Sophronius' stand against monothelitism was vindicated near the end of the seventh century, when the heresy of “one will” in Christ received formal condemnation at the Sixth Ecumenical Council in Constantinople. But the Jerusalem Patriarchate remained vacant for many decades after St. Sophronius’ death: a successor was not appointed until 705. Jerusalem, meanwhile, would not pass back into Christian hands until the First Crusade of 1099.
LECTIO DIVINA: MATTHEW 5,43-48
Lectio Divina:
Saturday, March 11, 2017
Lent Time
1) OPENING PRAYER
Lord God, from you comes the initiative
of love.
You seek us out and you tell us:
“I am your God; you are my people.”
You love us in Jesus Christ, your Son.
God, may our response of love
go far beyond the demands of any law.
May we seek you and commune with you
in the deepest of our being
and may we express our gratitude to you
by going to our neighbour
with a love that is spontaneous like yours.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
You seek us out and you tell us:
“I am your God; you are my people.”
You love us in Jesus Christ, your Son.
God, may our response of love
go far beyond the demands of any law.
May we seek you and commune with you
in the deepest of our being
and may we express our gratitude to you
by going to our neighbour
with a love that is spontaneous like yours.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
2) GOSPEL READING - MATTHEW
5, 43-48
'You have heard how it was said, You
will love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say this to you, love your
enemies and pray for those who persecute you; so that you may be children of
your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on the bad as well as the
good, and sends down rain to fall on the upright and the wicked alike.
For if you love those who love you, what
reward will you get? Do not even the tax collectors do as much? And if you save
your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional?
Do not even the gentiles do as much? You
must therefore be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.'
3) REFLECTION
• In today’s Gospel we see how Jesus has
interpreted the commandment: “You shall not kill” in such a way that its
observance may lead to the practice of love. Besides saying “You shall not
kill” (Mt 5, 21), Jesus quoted four other commandments of the ancient law: you
shall not commit adultery (Mt 5, 27), You shall not bear false witness (Mt 5,
33), eye for eye, and tooth for tooth (Mt 5, 38) and, in today’s Gospel: “You
shall love your neighbour and will hate your enemy” (Mt 5, 43), five times,
Jesus criticizes and completes the ancient way of observing these commandments
and indicates the new way to attain the objective of the law, which is the
practice of love (Mt 5, 22-26; 5, 28-32; 5, 34-37; 5, 39-42; 5, 44-48).
• Love your enemies. In today’s Gospel
Jesus quotes the ancient law which says: “You will love your neighbour and hate
your enemy”. This text is not found like this in the Old Testament. It is
rather a question of the mentality of the time, according to which there was no
problem in the fact that a person hated his enemy. Jesus was not in agreement
and says: “But I tell you : For if you love those who love you, what reward
will you get? Do not even the tax collectors do as much? And if you save your
greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Do not even
the gentiles do as much? You must, therefore, set no bounds to your love, just
as your heavenly Father sets none to his”. And Jesus gives us the proof. At the
hour of his death he observed that which he preached.
• Father, forgive them, they do not know
what they are doing. A soldier takes the wrist of Jesus and places it on the
arm of the cross, places a nail and begins to hammer it in. Several times. The
blood was flowing down. The body of Jesus contorted with pain. The soldier, a
mercenary, ignorant, far from knowing what he was doing, and of what was
happening around him, continued to hammer as if it were a piece of the wall of
his house and had to put up a picture. At that moment Jesus prays for the
soldier who tortures him and addresses his prayer to the Father: “Father,
forgive them! They know not what they are doing!” He loved the soldier who
killed him. Even wanting it with all their strength, the lack of humanity did
not succeed to kill in Jesus, humanity and love! He will be imprisoned, they
will spit on him, will laugh and make fun of him, they will make of him a false
king crowning him with a crown of thorns, will torture him, will oblige him to
go through the streets like a criminal, hearing the insults of the religious
authority, on Calvary they will leave him completely naked in the sight of all.
But the poison of the lack of humanity did not succeed to attain the source of
love and of humanity which sprang from within Jesus. The water of the love
which sprang from within was stronger than the poison of hatred which was
coming from without. Looking at that soldier, Jesus felt sorrow and prayed for
him and for all: “Father, forgive them! They know not what they are doing!”
Jesus, in solidarity, almost excuses those who were ill treating and torturing
him. He was like a brother who goes with his murder brothers before the Judge
and, he the victim of his own brothers, says to the judge: “They are my
brothers, you know they are ignorant. Forgive them! They will become better!”
He loved the enemy!
• Be perfect as perfect is your Father
who is in Heaven. Jesus does not simply want to frighten, because this would be
useless. He wants to change the system of human living together. The Novelty
which he wants to construct comes from the new experience which he has from
God, the Father, full of tenderness who accepts all! The words of threat
against the rich cannot be an occasion of revenge on the part of the poor.
Jesus orders that we have the contrary attitude: “Love your enemies!” True love
cannot depend on what one receives from others. Love should want the good of
others independently of what they does for me. Because this is the way God’s
love is for us.
4) PERSONAL QUESTIONS
• To love the enemies. Am I capable to
love my enemies?
• Contemplate Jesus, in silence who at
the hour of his death, he loved the enemy who killed him.
5) CONCLUDING PRAYER
How blessed are those whose way is
blameless,
who walk in the Law of Yahweh!
Blessed are those who observe his instructions,
who seek him with all their hearts (Ps 119,1-2)
who walk in the Law of Yahweh!
Blessed are those who observe his instructions,
who seek him with all their hearts (Ps 119,1-2)
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