Second Week of Lent

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Monday, 6 March 2023 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we continue to progress through this season of Lent, all of us are continuously reminded to make our lives and actions to be truly good and worthy of God, and we are reminded today to show compassion and mercy on others, just as the Lord Himself has shown to all of us whenever we disobeyed, rebelled and sinned against Him. He has no need to be merciful or kind to us, as He did not owe us anything, and yet, He unconditionally loved us all, and continued to care for us even after all these while. Since the very beginning, when God created us, He has created us all with love, and He has patiently taken care of us, while guiding and providing help for us in our journey that we may come to find our way back to Him.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of the prophet Daniel of the prayer which Daniel made to God on behalf of the people, asking and beseeching Him for His mercy and compassion on His people, who have suffered much humiliation and hardships, asking Him to remember His love and mercy for all of them, while being sorrowful, bashful and regretful over the many sins that they and their ancestors had committed. Daniel highlighted the many sins that the people of God had committed in the past, and how God had always showed them love and mercy even as He admonished, punished and struck at them for their stubbornness and refusal to listen to Him and His prophets. Essentially, God loves all of us, His people, but He does not condone the sins and wickedness that we have committed before Him.

Contextually, by the time of the prophet Daniel, the people of God had indeed faced a lot of trials and tribulations. In the past, their ancestors in Israel and Judah had often rebelled against God, refusing to obey His Law and commandments, rejecting His ways and precepts, worshipping pagan idols and gods, destroying and defiling the sanctity of His Temple and holy places, among many other wicked deeds and actions that they had done. Yet, God still patiently looked out for them and called on them to return to Him, and sent His many servants, messengers and prophets to remind them all and to call on them to return to Him, ever ready to forgive them should they choose to repent from their many sins and wicked deeds.

God listens to the prayers and pleas of His people, and He did forgive them, and even led them all back to their homeland, after a period of penance and exile, lasting about seventy years in Babylon. This was similar to how their ancestors, the Israelites in the days of the Exodus had to endure forty years of journey in the desert because of the stubborn rebellion that they had committed during their journey towards the Promised Land, in refusing to believe in the Lord and His providence. This shows us that God loves us, as He has always done, but He despises our sins and wickedness, all of which had separated us from the fullness of God’s grace and love. Unfortunately, more often than not, we did not realise that we are doing things that are against God’s Law and commandments, and we often succumb to the temptations of our various desires that we ended up falling again and again into sin.

In our Gospel passage today, the Lord Jesus told His disciples that they all had to be merciful just as the Heavenly Father has been merciful to them. They ought to show love just as love has always been generously shown to them, so that they may truly live their lives in the most Christian manner, as those who belong to the Lord and walk in His path. It is by our actions and works that people may come to know the Lord, as each and every one of us are called to be the beacons of God’s light, truth and love in the midst of our communities. But the sad reality is that, many of us Christians are still not yet living our lives in the manner that we are expected to live them, as we placed much more emphasis and focus on our own personal desires and wants, our worldly ambitions and attachments, among all other temptations and things that often become obstacles and trials in our path towards God and His grace.

Many of us are selfish in our way of life and outlook, in the way we carry ourselves and act, and in our many interactions with one another. This selfishness have caused much harm and hurt to others around us, as we seek to satisfy our own personal ambitions and wants, which often caused hurt and sufferings for others, either through direct manipulation and exploitation, or through competition and our actions that lead to discomfort and difficulties for others, among many other things. We also often become jealous of each other and easily angered by another’s actions, holding grudge and hatred upon one another, and as a result, our actions often reflected less of our Christian faith but more of our own personal and worldly ambitions and wishes. We often chose to follow the whim of those ambitions and desires rather than obey the Lord and listening to Him.

That is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, all of us are reminded and called to turn away from all those things and resist the many temptations of the world all around us. In this season of Lent in particular, each and every one of us are reminded that we are all sinners in need of healing, forgiveness and mercy from God. All of us have been afflicted by the plague of sin, which had corrupted and prevented us from coming close to the Lord and His fullness of love and grace. It is sin that has sundered and separated us from the love of God, and yet, God’s love for us is truly so strong that He kept on loving us nonetheless, calling upon us to follow Him and to embrace Him, as He continues to offer His generous mercy and forgiveness each and every moments of our lives. In this season of Lent, we are all reminded that all of us have the capacity and the potential to be holy and good, to be worthy of God, but we must make the commitment to walk in the path of God’s righteousness and truth.

That is why, all of us are called today to be ever more attuned to the Lord in our lives, resisting the many temptations to sin and disobey the Lord. Instead, by our faithful practice of prayer, fasting and almsgiving this Lent, let us deepen our relationship with God, restrain our personal and worldly desires as well as ambitions, and learn to become more generous in loving one another, putting others as equally important as ourselves. Let us all be no longer selfish in our attitudes and way of life, but be filled with God’s love and generosity, kindness and compassion, and do our best to love one another just as God has loved us. May God bless us all and our every good efforts and endeavours, and help us to have a most fruitful and blessed season of Lent. Amen.

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Monday, 6 March 2023 : 2nd Week of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Luke 6 : 36-38

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not be a judge of others and you will not be judged; do not condemn and you will not be condemned; forgive and you will be forgiven; give and it will be given to you, and you will receive in your sack good measure, pressed down, full and running over. For the measure you give will be the measure you receive back.”

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Monday, 6 March 2023 : 2nd Week of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 78 : 8, 9, 11 and 13

Do not remember against us the sins of our fathers. Let Your compassion hurry to us, for we have been brought very low.

Help us, God, our Saviour, for the glory of Your Name; forgive us for the sake of Your Name.

Listen to the groans of the prisoners; by the strength of Your arm, deliver those doomed to die.

Then we, Your people, the flock of Your pasture, will thank You forever. We will recount Your praise from generation to generation.

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Monday, 6 March 2023 : 2nd Week of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Daniel 9 : 4b-10

Lord God, great and to be feared, You keep Your covenant and love for those who love You and observe Your commandments. We have sinned, we have not been just, we have been rebels, and have turned away from Your commandments and laws. We have not listened to Your servants, the prophets, who spoke in Your Name to our kings, leaders, fathers and to all the people of the land.

Lord, justice is Yours, but ours is a face full of shame, as it is to this day – we, the people of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the whole of Israel, near and far away, in all the lands where You have dispersed us because of the infidelity we have committed against You. Ours is the shame, o Lord for we, our kings, princes, fathers, have sinned against You.

We hope for pardon and mercy from the Lord, because we have rebelled against Him. We have not listened to the voice of YHVH, our God, or followed the laws which He has given us through His servants, the prophets.

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Sunday, 5 March 2023 : Second Sunday of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we gather together to celebrate this Second Sunday in the season of Lent, all of us are reminded of this Sunday’s Scripture theme that is on the topic of calling and mission, which God has called each and every one of us to do, in following Him and entrusting ourselves to Him, to obey Him and listen to His words, as He guides us down the right path, one that is not necessarily the easiest and happiest path for us. But as long as we follow Him and remain faithful to Him, we shall find our satisfaction in the Lord, and we shall gain true joy in Him and with Him. Yet, we have to keep ourselves rooted firmly in faith in God, and focus our attention wholly on Him or else, we may find it easy to be distracted by worldly temptations and all the things which may mislead us down the wrong path in life.

In our first reading today, we heard from the Book of Genesis, the story of how God called a man named Abram from the land of Ur in Mesopotamia, in the present day Iraq, to follow Him. Abram obeyed the Lord and listened to Him, chose to depart from his homeland, which he never saw again in his lifetime, and went first to the land and city of Harran just at the boundary between Syria and Mesopotamia, together with his father, before he embarked on his own journey with his wife, Sarai and his household and belongings to the land of Canaan, following God’s instructions and commands, and it was mentioned that Lot his nephew also followed Abram as well. This was how Abram went and follow the Lord’s calling wholeheartedly, even when he could have done otherwise and just enjoyed the riches and the comfort of where he used to live in. He instead entrusted himself to the Lord completely.

Abram listened to the Lord and trusted Him, even when there were so many uncertainties in the path that he embarked on. He had great faith in God and consequently, he was greatly blessed by God, who promised him that he would become the father of many nations, by the Covenant which God Himself established with Abram. Abram dedicated and committed himself to this Covenant, and changed his name to Abraham as a mark of his commitment. Back then, a name change often signified this commitment which one made, in establishing a pact, which in this case is the solemn Covenant that Abraham had made with God. Sarai, his wife also went through the same change, known as Sarah henceforth, as would be his grandson, later on, Jacob, who was known as Israel after he renewed the same Covenant with God.

From the examples made by our forefathers in faith, all of us can see how each and every one of us are called to do the same as well, reminded that God has always been faithful to His Covenant, in how He fulfilled everything that He has ever promised to man, to Adam and Eve, to Abraham and Sarah, and then to Jacob, also known as Israel, and his descendants, with whom God continued to renew and reestablish His Covenant. St. Paul in our second reading today in his Epistle to St. Timothy, his godson and protege has highlighted how the Lord has called us to Him, and how He has always renewed His Covenant and showing His love for us, especially through His Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the whole world, of all mankind. Christ has come into the world, into our midst so that by His coming, God might fulfil everything that He Himself has promised to us.

In our Gospel passage today, we heard the story of the Transfiguration of the Lord, detailing the moment when the Lord Jesus Christ was transfigured before three of His disciples, His inner circle, of St. Peter, St. James and St. John, who went up to Mount Tabor with Him. There, they witnessed how the Lord revealed the glimpse of the truth about His true nature, as the Divine Son of God, the Divine Word Incarnate in the flesh, God Himself, taking up our human nature and existence, coming down into our midst and walking among us, so that through His coming, He may reach out to us and embrace us truly, as His own. He came to us as God Who truly loves each and every one of us, gathering us from among the nations, and calling on us all to follow Him, turning away from our sins.

By His Transfiguration and appearance with Moses and Elijah at Mount Tabor, Christ our Lord also highlighted to us all yet again everything that He has done for our sake. Moses represented the Law of God, the Law and the Ten Commandments, and everything that God has provided to His people Israel, during the time of their Exodus from Egypt and journey to the land promised to them and their ancestors, while Elijah represented the Prophets of God, the many prophets through whom God had sent His reminders and assurances to His people, reminding them of His love and faithfulness, of the coming of His salvation, and the revelation of His love and truth. The appearance of Moses and Elijah together with the Transfigured Christ therefore affirmed us all that the Lord has truly been faithful to the Covenant that He has established with us, and He wants us all to put our complete trust and faith in Him, and follow Him.

Like Abraham in the past, and Sarah, and Jacob, who have all witnessed the Lord present in their midst and journeying with them, St. Peter, St. James and St. John who have all witnessed the Lord Transfigured before their very own eyes, have seen for themselves the love of God manifested in all of His glory. That was why, after the Lord had died, and risen in glory, and then ascended into Heaven, they together with the other Apostles and disciples of the Lord, having witnessed and received, shared and understood this same truth, they all went forth fearlessly and courageously, dedicating themselves completely to the Lord and His cause, following Him in much the same way as how Abraham trusted wholeheartedly in the Lord, and all of us have also received this same truth passed down to us through the Church of God.

Those three disciples obeyed and listened to the Lord, despite having initially wanted to stay on that mountain with the Lord, in that blissful glory, with Moses and Elijah. We must understand that this request as mentioned by St. Peter was likely made because if they were to stay there in that blissful place, then they could enjoy being there and away from the hardships of the struggles and trials that they had to endure in following the path of the Lord. But God reminded all of them to listen to His Son, and to follow Him. The Lord Himself could very well have stayed there, in a great moment of blissful glory, revealing for a moment, His true glorious nature. He did not need to endure sufferings and hardships, persecution, humiliation and pain, and if we recall the Gospel passage from the last Sunday, the First Sunday of Lent, that was exactly the intent of the devil too when he tried to tempt the Lord to give in to the many temptations he presented to Him.

Yet, all those things did not prevail as the Lord showed us all true obedience, and as the Son of Man, He shows us all mankind, how to be truly obedient to God, to listen to Him and follow Him wholeheartedly, as He Himself showed by His coming down from Mount Tabor, ready to go forth to His Passion, His suffering and death in Jerusalem, to be betrayed by one of His own disciples, to be rejected by His own people and the chief priests, condemned to death and blamed for mistakes and sins that were not His own. The Lord our Saviour obeyed His Father’s will so perfectly that He offered Himself for our own behalf, and from that, gained for all of us the promise and assurance of eternal life. He showed all of us the perfect example of perfect and most selfless love, and showed us that trusting in Him and putting our faith in Him is indeed something that we should do, because He Himself has given us His promises, not just in mere words, but He truly showed us all these in person.

That is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we listened to this Sunday’s Scripture passages and reflect upon them, let us all be truly touched by the Lord and be inspired by Him and His own examples, and also the examples of our holy predecessors, who had followed the Lord and answered His call. Let us also follow the Lord in our own way, and listen to Him calling on us to follow Him, and discern carefully our path in life so that, in whatever it is that the Lord had led us towards, we may indeed be able to commit ourselves fully to His path, and strive our best to walk in that path throughout our lives, so that our lives may truly be worthy of Him, and our deeds and actions may truly reflect who we are, that is God’s holy and beloved people, as Christians, called to be the disiples of the Lord and as the beacons of His light and truth in our communities today.

May this season of Lent be a time for us to recommit ourselves to the Lord once again, turning ourselves away from the many temptations of the world all around us, and spend more time with God in prayer and by other means, so that we may come to know fully what God truly wants us to do, and what He has called upon us to do as well. Let us do our best to make use of the time and opportunities that had been given to us to draw ever closer to God and to know Him more. May God bless us all and guide us through this season of Lent so that we may be able to resist the many temptations all around us, and be ever more faithful and better role models and inspirations in faith in all of our actions and deeds, throughout our lives. Amen.

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Sunday, 5 March 2023 : Second Sunday of Lent (Gospel Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Matthew 17 : 1-9

At that time, six days after Jesus predicted His own death, He took with Him Peter and James and his brother John, and led them up a high mountain, where they were alone. Jesus’ appearance was changed before them : His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became bright as light. Just then Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Jesus.

Peter spoke and said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here. If You wish, I will make three tents : one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” Peter was still speaking, when a bright cloud covered them with its shadow, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is My Son, the Beloved, My Chosen One. Listen to Him.”

On hearing the voice, the disciples fell to the ground, full of fear. But Jesus came, touched them and said, “Stand up, do not be afraid.” When they raised their eyes, they no longer saw anyone except Jesus. And as they came down the mountain, Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone what they had just seen, until the Son of Man be raised from the dead.

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Sunday, 5 March 2023 : Second Sunday of Lent (Second Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

2 Timothy 1 : 8b-10

On the contrary, do your share in labouring for the Gospel with the strength of God. He saved us and called us – a calling which proceeds from His holiness. This did not depend on our merits, but on His generosity and His own initiative.

This calling given to us from all time in Christ Jesus has just been manifested with the glorious appearance of Christ Jesus, our Lord, Who destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light in His Gospel.

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Sunday, 5 March 2023 : Second Sunday of Lent (Psalm)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Psalm 32 : 4-5, 18-19, 20 and 22

For upright is the Lord’s word and worthy of trust is His work. The Lord loves justice and righteousness; the earth is full of His kindness.

But the Lord’s eyes are upon those who fear Him, upon those who trust in His loving kindness to deliver them from death and preserve them from famine.

In hope we wait for the Lord, for He is our help and our shield. O Lord, let Your love rest upon us, even as our hope rests in You.

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Sunday, 5 March 2023 : Second Sunday of Lent (First Reading)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Genesis 12 : 1-4a

YHVH said to Abram, “Leave your country, your family and your father’s house, for the land I will show you. I will make you a great nation. I will bless you and make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curse you, I will curse, and in you all peoples of the earth will be blessed.”

So Abram went as YHVH had told him, and Lot went with him.

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Saturday, 6 March 2021 : 2nd Week of Lent (Homily and Scripture Reflections)

Liturgical Colour : Purple/Violet

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are called to seek the Lord and His forgiveness and mercy. We are called to embrace the Lord and His compassionate love, keeping in mind how He cares for each and every one of us, and how blessed we truly are for having Him as our loving Father and Creator. It was because of this love that all of us once again have hope and not be in despair because of our sins.

By right, our sins born of the rebellion and disobedience against God would have led us down the path of eternal damnation and destruction, and we would have suffered the consequences of those sins. However, God Who is ever merciful, patient in love and caring towards us have always tried His best to find us and be reconciled with us once again. God has shown us His compassion, care and mercy, and as a loving Father He wants us all to be reconciled to Him. To this extent, He continued to give us guidance and direction as we progress through life.

In our first reading today we heard from the Book of the prophet Micah, we heard the Lord speaking through Micah reminding all of us His people, that is no one else but God Who is truly loving as a Shepherd, Who guides and guards His beloved flock, while also chastising and disciplining those who have fallen away from the right path. Ultimately, He cares for us and does not want us to fall to the wrong path, for if we do fall, then in the end, we shall be judged by those sins and the evils that we have committed.

We heard also then of the famous story of the prodigal son in our Gospel passage today, in which we heard about how a young man who had been estranged from his father and went to a far-off foreign land, came back to his father and humbled himself before the father, begging him to forgive his sins and his faults, all the mistakes and unworthy things that he had done that made him to be unworthy to be called his father’s child anymore.

Yet, in that story, as we know it, the father did not become angry with the prodigal son. Instead, he called all of his servants and told them all to prepare for a great feast and celebration in honour of the return of his son. When the elder son was jealous at the treatment by the father for the younger, prodigal son, the father patiently explained how the prodigal son had been lost and thought to have perished, and by returning to the father with great regret and sincere desire to be forgiven, it is indeed an occasion worth celebrating.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, remembering our own treatment by the Lord, our most loving God and Father, we surely cannot be not touched by the examples shown by the parable of the prodigal son, the love that the father in the parable showed to his son, even after all the vices and wickedness the latter had committed, in squandering his money and in all of the other unworthy actions and attitudes. Just as the father’s love in the parable was genuine, unconditional and enduring, that is just how the Lord loves each and every one of us.

That is why during this season of Lent all of us are called to turn our gaze and attention towards the Lord anew, and to repent from our sinful ways and from our rebelliousness and disobedience. We have been given many avenues and opportunities to be reconciled with the Lord, through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, through the loving hands of the Church and through the many tireless spiritual workers in our bishops and priests who spend much of their time and effort in guiding us to the right path.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, can we humble ourselves before the Lord and repent from our faults and sins? Let us all be like the prodigal son and seek the Lord for His forgiveness, that He alone can forgive us from our sins and heal us from our brokenness. Let us all find the Lord and dedicate ourselves to Him anew, entrusting ourselves in His care, in His loving providence and compassionate grace. May the Lord be with us all, His beloved ones, and may He welcome us all back to Him with His ever generous mercy and love. Amen.