Friday after Ash Wednesday
Lectionary: 221
Lectionary: 221
Thus says the Lord GOD:
Cry out full-throated and unsparingly,
lift up your voice like a trumpet blast;
Tell my people their wickedness,
and the house of Jacob their sins.
They seek me day after day,
and desire to know my ways,
Like a nation that has done what is just
and not abandoned the law of their God;
They ask me to declare what is due them,
pleased to gain access to God.
“Why do we fast, and you do not see it?
afflict ourselves, and you take no note of it?”
Cry out full-throated and unsparingly,
lift up your voice like a trumpet blast;
Tell my people their wickedness,
and the house of Jacob their sins.
They seek me day after day,
and desire to know my ways,
Like a nation that has done what is just
and not abandoned the law of their God;
They ask me to declare what is due them,
pleased to gain access to God.
“Why do we fast, and you do not see it?
afflict ourselves, and you take no note of it?”
Lo, on your fast day you carry out
your own pursuits,
and drive all your laborers.
Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting,
striking with wicked claw.
Would that today you might fast
so as to make your voice heard on high!
Is this the manner of fasting I wish,
of keeping a day of penance:
That a man bow his head like a reed
and lie in sackcloth and ashes?
Do you call this a fast,
a day acceptable to the LORD?
This, rather, is the fasting that I wish:
releasing those bound unjustly,
untying the thongs of the yoke;
Setting free the oppressed,
breaking every yoke;
Sharing your bread with the hungry,
sheltering the oppressed and the homeless;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am!
and drive all your laborers.
Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting,
striking with wicked claw.
Would that today you might fast
so as to make your voice heard on high!
Is this the manner of fasting I wish,
of keeping a day of penance:
That a man bow his head like a reed
and lie in sackcloth and ashes?
Do you call this a fast,
a day acceptable to the LORD?
This, rather, is the fasting that I wish:
releasing those bound unjustly,
untying the thongs of the yoke;
Setting free the oppressed,
breaking every yoke;
Sharing your bread with the hungry,
sheltering the oppressed and the homeless;
Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
Your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am!
Responsorial
Psalm51:3-4, 5-6AB, 18-19
R. (19b) A heart contrite and
humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
R. A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
For I acknowledge my offense,
and my sin is before me always:
“Against you only have I sinned,
and done what is evil in your sight.”
R. A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
For you are not pleased with sacrifices;
should I offer a burnt offering, you would not accept it.
My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit;
a heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
R. A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
R. A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
For I acknowledge my offense,
and my sin is before me always:
“Against you only have I sinned,
and done what is evil in your sight.”
R. A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
For you are not pleased with sacrifices;
should I offer a burnt offering, you would not accept it.
My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit;
a heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
R. A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
Verse Before
The GospelAM 5:14
Seek good and not evil so that you
may live,
and the Lord will be with you.
and the Lord will be with you.
GospelMT 9:14-15
The disciples of John approached
Jesus and said,
“Why do we and the Pharisees fast much,
but your disciples do not fast?”
Jesus answered them, “Can the wedding guests mourn
as long as the bridegroom is with them?
The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them,
and then they will fast.”
“Why do we and the Pharisees fast much,
but your disciples do not fast?”
Jesus answered them, “Can the wedding guests mourn
as long as the bridegroom is with them?
The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them,
and then they will fast.”
Meditation:
Fasting
for the kingdom of God
Are
you hungry for God? Hungering for God and fasting for his kingdom
go hand in hand. When asked why he and his disciples did not fast Jesus used
the vivid picture of a wedding celebration. In Jesus' time the newly wed
celebrated their honeymoon at home for a whole week with all the guests! This
was a time of great feasting and celebrating. Jesus points to himself as
the bridegroom and his disciples as the bridegroom's friends.
He alludes to the fact that God takes delight in his people as a groom delights
in his bride (Isaiah 62:5).
Humble
yourself before the Lord your God
To be in God's presence is pure delight and happiness. But Jesus also reminds his followers that there is a time for fasting and for humbling oneself in preparation for the coming of God's kingdom and for the return of the Messianic King. The Lord's disciples must also bear the cross of affliction and purification. For the disciple there is both a time for rejoicing in the Lord's presence and celebrating his goodness and a time for seeking the Lord with humility, fasting, and mourning for sin. If we hunger for the Lord, he will not disappoint us. His grace draws us to his throne of mercy and favor. Do you seek the Lord with confident trust and allow his Holy Spirit to transform your life with his power and grace?
To be in God's presence is pure delight and happiness. But Jesus also reminds his followers that there is a time for fasting and for humbling oneself in preparation for the coming of God's kingdom and for the return of the Messianic King. The Lord's disciples must also bear the cross of affliction and purification. For the disciple there is both a time for rejoicing in the Lord's presence and celebrating his goodness and a time for seeking the Lord with humility, fasting, and mourning for sin. If we hunger for the Lord, he will not disappoint us. His grace draws us to his throne of mercy and favor. Do you seek the Lord with confident trust and allow his Holy Spirit to transform your life with his power and grace?
Fast
and hunger for more of God and his righteousness
What kind of fasting is pleasing to God? Fasting can be done for a variety of reasons - to gain freedom from some bad habit, addiction, or vice, to share in the suffering of those who go without, or to grow in our hunger for God and for the things of heaven. Basil the Great wrote: "Take heed that you do not make fasting to consists only in abstinence from meats. True fasting is to refrain from vice. Shred to pieces all your unjust contracts. Pardon your neighbors. Forgive them their trespasses." Do you hunger to know God more, to grow in his holiness, and to live the abundant life of grace he offers you?
What kind of fasting is pleasing to God? Fasting can be done for a variety of reasons - to gain freedom from some bad habit, addiction, or vice, to share in the suffering of those who go without, or to grow in our hunger for God and for the things of heaven. Basil the Great wrote: "Take heed that you do not make fasting to consists only in abstinence from meats. True fasting is to refrain from vice. Shred to pieces all your unjust contracts. Pardon your neighbors. Forgive them their trespasses." Do you hunger to know God more, to grow in his holiness, and to live the abundant life of grace he offers you?
"Come
Lord, work upon us, set us on fire and clasp us close, be fragrant to us, draw
us to your loveliness, let us love, let us run to you." (Prayer of
St. Augustine)
A
Daily Quote for Lent: True
fasting, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 AD
"All
the endeavors for fasting are concerned not about the rejection of various
foods as unclean, but about the subjugation of inordinate desire and the
maintenance of neighborly love. Charity especially is guarded - food is
subservient to charity, speech to charity, customs to charity, and facial
expressions to charity. Everything works together for charity alone."
(excerpt from Letter 243, 11)
FRIDAY AFTER ASH WEDNESDAY
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28, MATTHEW 9:14-15
Day of Abstinence
(Isaiah 58:1-9a; Psalm 51)
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28, MATTHEW 9:14-15
Day of Abstinence
(Isaiah 58:1-9a; Psalm 51)
KEY VERSE: "Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast" (Mt 9:15).
TO KNOW: The followers of John the Baptist were curious to know why the disciples of Jesus did not fast as they and the Pharisees did. Jesus compared himself to a bridegroom at a marriage feast. This sign anticipated the Messianic banquet in which he would be united with his bride, the Church (Rev 19:7). Fasting and mourning were inappropriate at a wedding banquet as this was a time for rejoicing. When the "bridegroom was taken away" (Jesus death, resurrection and ascension), then the people would fast. Jesus said that the old ways were incompatible with the new.
TO LOVE: How can I help others open their minds and hearts to Jesus?
TO SERVE: Lord Jesus, help me to hunger and thirst for you.
LENTEN
REGULATIONS
The Season of Lent is a Catholic liturgical season consisting of forty days beginning on Ash Wednesday and concluding at sundown on Holy Thursday. The official liturgical color for the season of Lent is violet. Throughout history, Jews and Christians have found prayer, fasting, and alms-giving to be an important part of repentance and renewal. Rather than giving up something, many Catholics address personal habits that need to be changed, or perform some outreach to others in need. Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are obligatory days of universal fast and abstinence. Fasting allows a person to eat one full meal a day and is mandatory for all who have completed their 18th year and have not yet reached their 60th year. Two smaller meals may be taken, which are not to equal one full meal. Abstinence (from meat) is required of all who have reached their 14th year. Drinking of ordinary liquids does not break the fast.
Friday 28 February 2020
Day of Penance
Isaiah 58:1-9. Psalm 50(51): 3-6, 18-19. Matthew 9:14-15.
A broken, humbled heart, O God, you will not spurn – Psalm 50(51): 3-6, 18-19.
‘The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from then, and then they will fast.’
Isaiah 58:1-9. Psalm 50(51): 3-6, 18-19. Matthew 9:14-15.
A broken, humbled heart, O God, you will not spurn – Psalm 50(51): 3-6, 18-19.
‘The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from then, and then they will fast.’
Fasting, for the Pharisees and followers of John, was part of
keeping the Law. It showed you were on the right track because you followed the
rules. Jesus was pointing to a higher law: a way of living out of love and
compassion, of revealing the mercy of God.
Jesus knew it was far more important for his followers that they
soak up the experience of his presence among them, absorb the way his love and
compassion transformed people, hear the truth of his words, see the way he welcomed
outcasts and stood up for them, and notice his ministry of table fellowship
with the unlikely.
Lord Jesus, as I reflect on your life and message, I notice your
way of being with people. Fan into flame my desire to imitate your pattern of
loving service. Whether I am fasting or feasting, grant me the consolation of
your company.
Blessed Daniel Brottier
Saint of the Day for February 28
(September 7, 1876 – February 28, 1936)
 |
| Photograph from World War I of Blessed Daniel Brottier, army chaplain | Unknown |
Blessed Daniel Brottier’s Story
Daniel spent most of his life in the trenches—one way or
another.
Born in France in 1876, Daniel was ordained in 1899 and began a
teaching career. That didn’t satisfy him long. He wanted to use his zeal for
the gospel far beyond the classroom. He joined the missionary Congregation of
the Holy Spirit, which sent him to Senegal, West Africa. After eight years
there, his health was suffering. He was forced to return to France, where he
helped raise funds for the construction of a new cathedral in Senegal.
At the outbreak of World War I, Daniel became a volunteer
chaplain and spent four years at the front. He did not shrink from his duties.
Indeed, he risked his life time and again in ministering to the suffering and
dying. It was miraculous that he did not suffer a single wound during his 52
months in the heart of battle.
After the war he was invited to help establish a project for
orphaned and abandoned children in a Paris suburb. He spent the final 13 years
of his life there. He died in 1936 and was beatified by Pope John Paul II in
Paris only 48 years later.
Reflection
Blessed Daniel might be called “Teflon Dan” since nothing seemed
to harm him while in the midst of war. God intended to use him in some pretty
wonderful ways for the good of the Church and he willingly served. He is a good
example for all of us.
Lectio Divina: Matthew 9:14-15
Lectio Divina
Friday, February 28, 2020
Season of Lent
1) OPENING PRAYER
Lord of the Covenant,
we have not to fear Your judgment
if like You we become rich in mercy
and full of compassion for our neighbor.
May we not only know that You ask us
but practice with sincere hearts
to share our food with the hungry
and to loosen the bonds of injustice,
that through us Your light may shine
and Your healing spread far and wide.
Be with us in Your goodness.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
we have not to fear Your judgment
if like You we become rich in mercy
and full of compassion for our neighbor.
May we not only know that You ask us
but practice with sincere hearts
to share our food with the hungry
and to loosen the bonds of injustice,
that through us Your light may shine
and Your healing spread far and wide.
Be with us in Your goodness.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
2) GOSPEL READING - MATTHEW 9:14-15
The disciples of John approached Jesus and said, "Why do we
and the Pharisees fast much, but your disciples do not fast?" Jesus
answered them, "Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is
with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and
then they will fast."
3) REFLECTION
Today's Gospel is a brief version of the Gospel which we already
meditated on in January, when the same theme of fasting was proposed to us (Mk
2:18-22), but there is a small difference. Today, the Liturgy omits the whole
discourse of the new piece of cloth on an old cloak and the new wine in an old
skin (Mt 9:16-17) and concentrates its attention on fasting.
Jesus does not insist on the practice of fasting. Fasting is a
very ancient practice and done in almost all religions. Jesus Himself practiced
it during the forty days (Mt 4:2). But He did not insist His disciples do the
same. He leaves them free. For this reason, the disciples of John the Baptist
and of the Pharisees, who were obliged to fast, want to know why Jesus does not
insist on fasting.
While the bridegroom is with them, they do not need to fast.
Jesus responds with a comparison. When the bridegroom is with the friends of
the spouse, that is, during the wedding feast, it is not necessary for them to
fast. Jesus considers Himself the spouse. The disciples are the friends of the
spouse. The time which Jesus is with the disciples is the wedding feast. The
day will come in which the spouse will no longer be there. Then, they can fast
if they so desire. In this phrase Jesus refers to His death. He knows and He
becomes aware that if He continues along this path of freedom the religious
authority will want to kill Him.
Fasting and abstinence from meat are universal practices. The
Muslims have fasting during Ramadan, during which they don’t eat until the
rising of the sun. For diverse reasons, people impose upon themselves some form
of fasting. Fasting is an important means to control oneself and this exists in
almost all religions. It is also appreciated by those who are health conscious.
The Bible has many references to fasting. It was a way of making
penance and of attaining conversion. Through the practice of fasting, Christians
imitated Jesus who fasted during forty days. Fasting helps to attain the
freedom of mind, self-control, and perhaps a critical vision of reality. It is
an instrument to free our mind and not allow one to be transported by any
breeze. It is a means to take better care of health. Fasting can be a form of
identification with the poor who are obliged to fast the whole year and eat
meat very rarely. There are also those who fast in order to protest.
Even if fasting and abstinence are no longer observed today, the
basic objective of this practice continues to remain unchanged and is a force
which should animate our life: to participate in the Passion, Death and
Resurrection of Jesus. Surrender one’s own life in order to be able to possess
it in God. Become aware or conscious of the fact that the commitment to the
Gospel is a one way journey, without returning, which demands losing one’s life
in order to be able to possess and find all things in full liberty.
4) PERSONAL QUESTIONS
What form of fasting do you practice? And if you do not practice
any, what is the form which you could practice?
How can fasting help me to better prepare for the celebration of Easter?
How can fasting help me to better prepare for the celebration of Easter?
5) CONCLUDING PRAYER
Have mercy on me, O God, in Your faithful love,
in Your great tenderness wipe away my offenses;
wash me clean from my guilt,
purify me from my sin. (Ps 51:1-2)
in Your great tenderness wipe away my offenses;
wash me clean from my guilt,
purify me from my sin. (Ps 51:1-2)
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