St Maximilian - Wednesday, 12 March 2008

Book of Daniel 3,14-20.91-92.95.

King Nebuchadnezzar questioned them: "Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you will not serve my god, or worship the golden statue that I set up? Be ready now to fall down and worship the statue I had made, whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet, flute, lyre, harp, psaltery, bagpipe, and all the other musical instruments; otherwise, you shall be instantly cast into the white-hot furnace; and who is the God that can deliver you out of my hands?" Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar, "There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If our God, whom we serve, can save us from the white-hot furnace and from your hands, O king, may he save us! But even if he will not, know, O king, that we will not serve your god or worship the golden statue which you set up."
Nebuchadnezzar's face became livid with utter rage against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual and had some of the strongest men in his army bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and cast them into the white-hot furnace. King Nebuchadnezzar rose in haste and asked his nobles, "Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?" "Assuredly, O king," they answered. "But," he replied, "I see four men unfettered and unhurt, walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God." Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who sent his angel to deliver the servants that trusted in him; they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.


Dn 3,52.53.54.55.56.

"Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers, praiseworthy and exalted above all forever; And blessed is your holy and glorious name, praiseworthy and exalted above all for all ages.
Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory, praiseworthy and glorious above all forever.
Blessed are you on the throne of your kingdom, praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.
Blessed are you who look into the depths from your throne upon the cherubim, praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.
Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven, praiseworthy and glorious forever.


Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 8,31-42.

Jesus then said to those Jews who believed in him, "If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples,
and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." They answered him, "We are descendants of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How can you say, 'You will become free'?"Jesus answered them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. A slave does not remain in a household forever, but a son always remains.

So if a son frees you, then you will truly be free. I know that you are descendants of Abraham. But you are trying to kill me, because my word has no room among you. I tell you what I have seen in the Father's presence; then do what you have heard from the Father."They answered and said to him, "Our father is Abraham." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would be doing the works of Abraham.
But now you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God; Abraham did not do this. You are doing the works of your father!" (So) they said to him, "We are not illegitimate. We have one Father, God." Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and am here; I did not come on my own, but he sent me.

HE GREATEST ACT OF FAITH

"Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, Who sent His angel to deliver the servants that trusted in Him." –Daniel 3:95

In eleven days, the Lord will call us to renew our baptismal promises. In every Catholic church in the world, at every Mass on Easter Sunday, the Lord will challenge us to answer "I do" to six questions. If God has His way, this will be the greatest act of faith we have ever made in our lives. Even if we have totally committed our lives to the Lord previously, He is not calling us to rerun the past. After all the love the Lord has poured out on us since last Easter, we should have a deeper, stronger faith than ever before.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego made the greatest act of faith in their lives when they refused to worship the golden statue and were thrown into the fiery furnace (Dn 3:12). This Easter Sunday we also can make the greatest act of faith in our lives. Jesus is preparing us for this great event by speaking His word to us, for faith comes through hearing and hearing by the word of God (Rm 10:17). The Holy Spirit is working to produce the gift and fruit of faith in us (1 Cor 12:9; Gal 5:22) by convicting us of our sins (Jn 16:8). Our heavenly Father is loving us into a deeper faith by faithfully providing for our basic needs. If we let God work, He will produce a masterpiece of faith this Easter.

St Oengus - Tuesday, 11 March 2008

Book of Numbers 21,4-9.

From Mount Hor they set out on the Red Sea road, to by-pass 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 from us." So Moses prayed for the people,
and the LORD said to Moses, "Make a saraph and mount it on a pole, and if anyone who has been bitten looks at it, he will recover."
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 recovered.


Psalms 102(101),2-3.16-18.19-21.

LORD, hear my prayer; let my cry come to you.
Do not hide your face from me now that I am in distress. Turn your ear to me; when I call, answer me quickly.
The nations shall revere your name, LORD, all the kings of the earth, your glory,
Once the LORD has rebuilt Zion and appeared in glory,
Heeding the plea of the lowly, not scorning their prayer.
Let this be written for the next generation, for a people not yet born, that they may praise the LORD:
"The LORD looked down from the holy heights, viewed the earth from heaven,
To attend to the groaning of the prisoners, to release those doomed to die."


Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 8,21-30.

He said to them again, "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.

THE FATHER'S MOUTHPIECE

"I say only what the Father has taught Me." –John 8:28

Jesus only said what the Father taught Him (Jn 8:28). Jesus spent a lot of time being taught by His Father. He arose early to listen to His Father (Mk 1:35), stayed up very late to be with Him (Lk 6:12), and spent forty days in the desert to hear His Father's plans for His public ministry (Mt 4:1ff). Jesus only told us what He heard from His Father (Jn 8:26). In fact, Jesus mentioned that the Father "has commanded Me what to say and how to speak" (Jn 12:49).

As disciples of Jesus Christ, we imitate Him in all that He does. Because Jesus spent much time listening to the Father, so do we. The Father will teach us what to say (Jn 8:28). Rooted in Jesus, we will hear every word God speaks (Jn 8:47). The Father assures us, as He assured Moses: "It is I Who will assist you in speaking and will teach you what you are to say" (Ex 4:12). The Father promises: "I place My words in your mouth" (Jer 1:9).

God often speaks in a quiet voice (1 Kgs 19:12ff). We live in a world where too many voices drown out the voice of God. Turn off or throw out the TV. Turn off the radio. Get up early, stay up late, and do whatever it takes to listen attentively to the Father. Live "on every utterance that comes from the mouth of God" (Mt 4:4). Listen to the Father. Speak His words.

St. Macarius - Monday, 10 March 2008

Book of Daniel 13,1-9.15-17.19-30.33-62.

In Babylon there lived a man named Joakim,
who married a very beautiful and God-fearing woman, Susanna, the daughter of Hilkiah;
her pious parents had trained their daughter according to the law of Moses.
Joakim was very rich; he had a garden near his house, and the Jews had recourse to him often because he was the most respected of them all.
That year, two elders of the people were appointed judges, of whom the Lord said, "Wickedness has come out of Babylon: from the elders who were to govern the people as judges."
These men, to whom all brought their cases, frequented the house of Joakim.
When the people left at noon, Susanna used to enter her husband's garden for a walk.
When the old men saw her enter every day for her walk, they began to lust for her.
They suppressed their consciences; they would not allow their eyes to look to heaven, and did not keep in mind just judgments.
One day, while they were waiting for the right moment, she entered the garden as usual, with two maids only. She decided to bathe, for the weather was warm.
Nobody else was there except the two elders, who had hidden themselves and were watching her.
"Bring me oil and soap," she said to the maids, "and shut the garden doors while I bathe."
As soon as the maids had left, the two old men got up and hurried to her.
"Look," they said, "the garden doors are shut, and no one can see us; give in to our desire, and lie with us.
If you refuse, we will testify against you that you dismissed your maids because a young man was here with you."
"I am completely trapped," Susanna groaned. "If I yield, it will be my death; if I refuse, I cannot escape your power.
Yet it is better for me to fall into your power without guilt than to sin before the Lord."
Then Susanna shrieked, and the old men also shouted at her,
as one of them ran to open the garden doors.
When the people in the house heard the cries from the garden, they rushed in by the side gate to see what had happened to her.
At the accusations by the old men, the servants felt very much ashamed, for never had any such thing been said about Susanna.
When the people came to her husband Joakim the next day, the two wicked elders also came, fully determined to put Susanna to death. Before all the people they ordered:
"Send for Susanna, the daughter of Hilkiah, the wife of Joakim." When she was sent for,
she came with her parents, children and all her relatives.
All her relatives and the onlookers were weeping.
In the midst of the people the two elders rose up and laid their hands on her head.
Through her tears she looked up to heaven, for she trusted in the Lord wholeheartedly.
The elders made this accusation: "As we were walking in the garden alone, this woman entered with two girls and shut the doors of the garden, dismissing the girls.
A young man, who was hidden there, came and lay with her.
When we, in a corner of the garden, saw this crime, we ran toward them.
We saw them lying together, but the man we could not hold, because he was stronger than we; he opened the doors and ran off.
Then we seized this one and asked who the young man was,
but she refused to tell us. We testify to this." The assembly believed them, since they were elders and judges of the people, and they condemned her to death.
But Susanna cried aloud: "O eternal God, you know what is hidden and are aware of all things before they come to be:
you know that they have testified falsely against me. Here I am about to die, though I have done none of the things with which these wicked men have charged me."
The Lord heard her prayer.
As she was being led to execution, God stirred up the holy spirit of a young boy named Daniel,
and he cried aloud: "I will have no part in the death of this woman."
All the people turned and asked him, "What is this you are saying?"
He stood in their midst and continued, "Are you such fools, O Israelites! To condemn a woman of Israel without examination and without clear evidence?
Return to court, for they have testified falsely against her."
Then all the people returned in haste. To Daniel the elders said, "Come, sit with us and inform us, since God has given you the prestige of old age."
But he replied, "Separate these two far from one another that I may examine them."
After they were separated one from the other, he called one of them and said: "How you have grown evil with age! Now have your past sins come to term:
passing unjust sentences, condemning the innocent, and freeing the guilty, although the Lord says, "The innocent and the just you shall not put to death.'
Now, then, if you were a witness, tell me under what tree you saw them together."
"Under a mastic tree," he answered. "Your fine lie has cost you your head," said Daniel; "for the angel of God shall receive the sentence from him and split you in two."
Putting him to one side, he ordered the other one to be brought. "Offspring of Canaan, not of Judah," Daniel said to him, "beauty has seduced you, lust has subverted your conscience.
This is how you acted with the daughters of Israel, and in their fear they yielded to you; but a daughter of Judah did not tolerate your wickedness.
Now, then, tell me under what tree you surprised them together."
"Under an oak," he said. "Your fine lie has cost you also your head," said Daniel; "for the angel of God waits with a sword to cut you in two so as to make an end of you both."
The whole assembly cried aloud, blessing God who saves those that hope in him.
They rose up against the two elders, for by their own words Daniel had convicted them of perjury. According to the law of Moses, they inflicted on them the penalty they had plotted to impose on their neighbor:
they put them to death. Thus was innocent blood spared that day.


Psalms 23(22),1-3.3-4.5.6.

A psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack.
In green pastures you let me graze; to safe waters you lead me;
you restore my strength. You guide me along the right path for the sake of your name.
you restore my strength. You guide me along the right path for the sake of your name.
Even when I walk through a dark valley, I fear no harm for you are at my side; your rod and staff give me courage.
You set a table before me as my enemies watch; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Only goodness and love will pursue me all the days of my life; I will dwell in the house of the LORD for years to come.


Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 8,1-11.

while Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area, and all the people started coming to him, and he sat down and taught them.
Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and made her stand in the middle.
They said to him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery.
Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?"
They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.
But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them, "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her."
Again he bent down and wrote on the ground.
And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone with the woman before him.
Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"
She replied, "No one, sir." Then Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go, (and) from now on do not sin any more."

BATH AND BODY

"She decided to bathe." –Daniel 13:15

Today's first reading is more than a story of good triumphing over evil. It's an Old Testament preview of Baptism. When Susanna enters her bath (Dn 13:17-18), she is surrounded by the powers of evil, as represented by the two corrupt elders. Susanna is immersed in a dilemma of whether to save her life by yielding to evil or to cling to holiness and purity at the cost of her life (Dn 13:22). Susanna rises from her bath determined to trust in God, saying to the evil judges, "It is better for me to fall into your power without guilt than to sin before the Lord" (Dn 13:23).

Susanna rose from the waters of her bath free, pure, and victorious over the kingdom of darkness. As we are baptized, we emerge from the waters redeemed and uncondemned (see Rm 8:1). Most of us were baptized as infants. We can't remember emerging from the waters free and victorious. In her wisdom, the Church therefore calls us to regularly renew our Baptisms. This makes our Baptism new and alive for us. Just as important, it challenges us to live our Baptism in a new, holy, and faith-filled lifestyle.

In a few weeks, you will renew your Baptism at Easter Vigil and/or Easter Sunday Mass. As Susanna did, make the decision to entrust your life completely to the Lord. Prepare now to renew your Baptism. Reject sin and Satan. Hunger and thirst for holiness (Mt 5:6). Refuse to compromise with the kingdom of darkness in any way, even if you must endure persecution for holiness' sake (see Mt 5:10). Choose to be pure as Jesus is pure (1 Jn 3:3).

St. Frances of Rome - Sunday, 09 March 2008

Book of Ezekiel 37,12-14.

Therefore, prophesy and say to them: Thus says the Lord GOD: O my people, I will open your graves and have you rise from them, and bring you back to the land of Israel.
Then you shall know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and have you rise from them, O my people!
I will put my spirit in you that you may live, and I will settle you upon your land; thus you shall know that I am the LORD. I have promised, and I will do it, says the LORD.


Psalms 130(129),1-2.3-4.5-6.7-8.

A song of ascents. Out of the depths I call to you, LORD;
Lord, hear my cry! May your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.
If you, LORD, mark our sins, Lord, who can stand?
But with you is forgiveness and so you are revered.
I wait with longing for the LORD, my soul waits for his word.
My soul looks for the Lord more than sentinels for daybreak. More than sentinels for daybreak,
let Israel look for the LORD, For with the LORD is kindness, with him is full redemption,
And God will redeem Israel from all their sins.


Letter to the Romans 8,8-11.

and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
But you are not in the flesh; on the contrary, you are in the spirit, if only the Spirit of God dwells in you. Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is alive because of righteousness.
If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you.


Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 11,1-45.

Now a man was ill, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.
Mary was the one who had anointed the Lord with perfumed oil and dried his feet with her hair; it was her brother Lazarus who was ill.
So the sisters sent word to him, saying, "Master, the one you love is ill."
When Jesus heard this he said, "This illness is not to end in death, but is for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it."
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
So when he heard that he was ill, he remained for two days in the place where he was.
Then after this he said to his disciples, "Let us go back to Judea."
The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were just trying to stone you, and you want to go back there?"
Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours in a day? If one walks during the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world.
But if one walks at night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him."
He said this, and then told them, "Our friend Lazarus is asleep, but I am going to awaken him."
So the disciples said to him, "Master, if he is asleep, he will be saved."
But Jesus was talking about his death, while they thought that he meant ordinary sleep.
So then Jesus said to them clearly, "Lazarus has died.
And I am glad for you that I was not there, that you may believe. Let us go to him."
So Thomas, called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go to die with him."
When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.
Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, only about two miles away.
And many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother.
When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him; but Mary sat at home.
Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.
(But) even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you."
Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise."
Martha said to him, "I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day."
Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
She said to him, "Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world."
When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary secretly, saying, "The teacher is here and is asking for you."
As soon as she heard this, she rose quickly and went to him.
For Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still where Martha had met him.
So when the Jews who were with her in the house comforting her saw Mary get up quickly and go out, they followed her, presuming that she was going to the tomb to weep there.
When Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died."
When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who had come with her weeping, he became perturbed and deeply troubled,
and said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Sir, come and see."
And Jesus wept.
So the Jews said, "See how he loved him."
But some of them said, "Could not the one who opened the eyes of the blind man have done something so that this man would not have died?"
So Jesus, perturbed again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay across it.
Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the dead man's sister, said to him, "Lord, by now there will be a stench; he has been dead for four days."
Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God?"
So they took away the stone. And Jesus raised his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you for hearing me.
I know that you always hear me; but because of the crowd here I have said this, that they may believe that you sent me."
And when he had said this, he cried out in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!"
The dead man came out, tied hand and foot with burial bands, and his face was wrapped in a cloth. So Jesus said to them, "Untie him and let him go."
Now many of the Jews who had come to Mary and seen what he had done began to believe in him.

RESURRECTIONS

"I am the Resurrection and the Life: whoever believes in Me, though he should die, will come to life; and whoever is alive and believes in Me will never die." –John 11:25-26

How strong is your faith that the Holy Spirit will raise your body from the dead on the last day? (Rm 8:11) Do you believe your spirit will be raised at your death to meet the Lord and go to heaven? Do you believe Jesus still raises people from the dead, as He raised Lazarus from the dead? (Jn 11:44; Mt 10:8) Do you believe Jesus' resurrection can transform your life now?

Jesus' resurrection is a promise of the resurrection of the bodies and spirits of all His disciples. Jesus continues to raise Lazaruses as proofs of His resurrection and previews of ours. Jesus' past resurrection and our future resurrection should overshadow our present circumstances. Risen life begins when we believe in the risen Lord, not when we die. All the resurrections go together. The resurrection is past, present, and future. The resurrection is physical and spiritual. The resurrection is historical, personal, and eschatological.

We are a resurrection people, or more precisely a resurrections-people. In these next two weeks, prepare to celebrate the resurrection with a faith and joy that is unexplainable except for those who have met the risen Christ.

Saint Gregory of Nazianzen (330-390), Bishop, Doctor of the Church
Sermon on Holy Baptism

“Lazarus, come out!”

“Lazarus, come out!” Laid to rest in the tomb, you heard the resounding call. Is there any voice greater than that of the Word? Then you came out, you who were dead not merely for four days but for a very long time indeed. You were raised with Christ…; your burial bands fell to the ground. Do not fall back again now into death; do not rejoin those who dwell in the tombs; do not allow yourself to be stifled by the burial bands of your sins. For would you be able to come back to life once again? Would you be able to bring out from the death of here below the resurrection of all men at the end of time?…

So let the Lord’s call resound in your ears! Do not close them today to the teaching and admonitions of the Lord. If you used to be blind, without light in your tomb, open your eyes lest you sink into the sleep of death. In the light of the Lord, behold light; in the Spirit of God, fix your eyes on the Son. If you take to yourself the Word in its entirety then you focus onto your soul all the power of Christ who heals and restores to life… Don’t be afraid to put some work into preserving your baptismal purity and set the ways that lead to the Lord within your heart. Take care to preserve the act of acquittal, which you received through pure grace…

Let us be light, as the disciples learned from he who is the great Light: “You are the light of the world” (Mt 5,14). Let us be lamps in this world by holding up on high the Word of life, by being a life force for others. Let us set out in search of God, in search of the one who is the first and purest of lights.

St. John of God - Saturday, 08 March 2008

Book of Jeremiah 11,18-20.

I knew it because the LORD informed me; at that time you, O LORD, showed me their doings.
Yet I, like a trusting lamb led to slaughter, had not realized that they were hatching plots against me: "Let us destroy the tree in its vigor; let us cut him off from the land of the living, so that his name will be spoken no more."
But, you, O Lord of hosts, O just Judge, searcher of mind and heart, Let me witness the vengeance you take on them, for to you I have entrusted my cause!


Psalms 7,2-3.9-10.11-12.

LORD my God, in you I take refuge; rescue me; save me from all who pursue me,
Lest they maul me like lions, tear me to pieces with none to save.
O LORD, judge of the nations. Grant me justice, LORD, for I am blameless, free of any guilt.
Bring the malice of the wicked to an end; uphold the innocent, O God of justice, who tries hearts and minds.
A shield before me is God who saves the honest heart.
God is a just judge, who rebukes in anger every day.


Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 7,40-53.

Some in the crowd who heard these words said, "This is truly the Prophet."
Others said, "This is the Messiah." But others said, "The Messiah will not come from Galilee, will he?
Does not scripture say that the Messiah will be of David's family and come from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?"
So a division occurred in the crowd because of him.
Some of them even wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.
So the guards went to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, "Why did you not bring him?"
The guards answered, "Never before has anyone spoken like this one."
So the Pharisees answered them, "Have you also been deceived?
Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him?
But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed."
Nicodemus, one of their members who had come to him earlier, said to them,
Does our law condemn a person before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?
They answered and said to him, "You are not from Galilee also, are you? Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee."
Then each went to his own house,

THE CONTINUING CONSPIRACY AGAINST JESUS

"Do not tell us you too have been taken in!" –John 7:47

Jeremiah knew the plot against him because the Lord informed him. In another way, however, he had not realized that people were hatching plots against him (Jer 11:18, 19).

We, like Jeremiah, think something is "fishy." Evil does not seem isolated but rather coordinated, timed, and even conspiratorial. For example, there seems to be a certain system in government and sometimes even in church by which vested interests are protected. Some people, ideas, and truths are blackballed by the media.

On the other hand, we, like Jeremiah, wonder if there's actually a plot, much less a conspiracy, being woven. Isn't the talk of a conspiracy an overreaction? Doesn't this sound paranoid? After all, aren't tolerance and equal opportunity talked about frequently?

Is there a plot, or even a conspiracy, or are we losing our minds? Pope John Paul II speaks of "an objective 'conspiracy against life,' " (The Gospel of Life, 17) which "involves not only individuals in their personal, family or group relationships, but goes far beyond, to the point of damaging and distorting, at the international level, relations between peoples and states" (The Gospel of Life, 12). The same loose but objectively real conspiracy by which Jesus was crucified continues today. Live totally for Jesus or be co-opted into the conspiracy against Him, His kingdom, and His followers.

Vatican Council II
Dogmatic Constitution on the Church "Lumen Gentium", 9 (copyright Libreria Editrice Vaticana)

Through his cross Christ gathers together all those who are divided and dispersed

Christ instituted this new covenant, the new testament, that is to say, in His Blood (1Cor 11,25), calling together a people made up of Jew and gentile, making them one, not according to the flesh but in the Spirit. This was to be the new People of God… "a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a purchased people . . . who in times past were not a people, but are now the people of God” (1Pt 2,9-10)…

That messianic people, although it does not actually include all men, and at times may look like a small flock, is nonetheless a lasting and sure seed of unity, hope and salvation for the whole human race. Established by Christ as a communion of life, charity and truth, it is also used by Him as an instrument for the redemption of all, and is sent forth into the whole world as the light of the world and the salt of the earth(Mt 5,13)… God gathered together as one all those who in faith look upon Jesus as the author of salvation and the source of unity and peace, and established them as the Church that for each and all it may be the visible sacrament of this saving unity.

While it transcends all limits of time and confines of race, the Church is destined to extend to all regions of the earth and so enters into the history of mankind. Moving forward through trial and tribulation, the Church is strengthened by the power of God's grace, which was promised to her by the Lord, so that in the weakness of the flesh she may not waver from perfect fidelity, but remain a bride worthy of her Lord, and moved by the Holy Spirit may never cease to renew herself, until through the Cross she arrives at the light which knows no setting.

Ss Perpetua and Felicity - Friday, 07 March 2008

Book of Wisdom 2,1.12-22.

they who said among themselves, thinking not aright: "Brief and troublous is our lifetime; neither is there any remedy for man's dying, nor is anyone known to have come back from the nether world.
Let us beset the just one, because he is obnoxious to us; he sets himself against our doings, Reproaches us for transgressions of the law and charges us with violations of our training.
He professes to have knowledge of God and styles himself a child of the LORD.
To us he is the censure of our thoughts; merely to see him is a hardship for us,
Because his life is not like other men's, and different are his ways.
He judges us debased; he holds aloof from our paths as from things impure. He calls blest the destiny of the just and boasts that God is his Father.
Let us see whether his words be true; let us find out what will happen to him.
For if the just one be the son of God, he will defend him and deliver him from the hand of his foes.
With revilement and torture let us put him to the test that we may have proof of his gentleness and try his patience.
Let us condemn him to a shameful death; for according to his own words, God will take care of him."
These were their thoughts, but they erred; for their wickedness blinded them,
And they knew not the hidden counsels of God; neither did they count on a recompense of holiness nor discern the innocent souls' reward.


Psalms 34(33),17-18.19-20.21.23.

The LORD'S face is against evildoers to wipe out their memory from the earth.
When the just cry out, the LORD hears and rescues them from all distress.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted, saves those whose spirit is crushed.
Many are the troubles of the just, but the LORD delivers from them all.
God watches over all their bones; not a one shall be broken.
The LORD redeems loyal servants; no one is condemned whose refuge is God.


Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 7,1-2.10.25-30.

After this, Jesus moved about within Galilee; but he did not wish to travel in Judea, because the Jews were trying to kill him.
But the Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near.
But when his brothers had gone up to the feast, he himself also went up, not openly but (as it were) in secret.
So some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said, "Is he not the one they are trying to kill?
And look, he is speaking openly and they say nothing to him. Could the authorities have realized that he is the Messiah?
But we know where he is from. When the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from."
So Jesus cried out in the temple area as he was teaching and said, "You know me and also know where I am from. Yet I did not come on my own, but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true.
I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me."
So they tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him, because his hour had not yet come.

THE PAIN OF JUSTICE

"Let us beset the just one." –Wisdom 2:12

A just person seems obnoxious to the unjust (Wis 2:12). Merely seeing a just person is a hardship for the unjust (Wis 2:14). Therefore, the unjust feel compelled to revile the just, torture them, and even condemn them to death (Wis 2:19-20).

Those who want to live godly lives will be persecuted (2 Tm 3:12). Suffering persecution is the natural result of living just and godly lives. Because we all naturally want to be accepted and even popular, and because we naturally want to avoid pain and suffering, we have reason to not want to be just, godly, and holy. Although in our heart of hearts we want to be like the just and holy Jesus, at the same time we don't want the persecution and rejection resulting from life in Christ. Thus, we have a war of contradictions raging inside us.

We can end this war by capitulating to our fallen nature and our enemies. We can let our faith grow lukewarm and join the popular, unpersecuted, persecuting ranks of the unjust. Alternately, we can choose love rather than self. By love, we can remain just and take the painful flak that accompanies love.

Will you fold under pressure or be set free? Will you persecute or be persecuted? Do you nail just people to crosses or take up your own cross? Are you another enemy of the cross (Phil 3:18) or another Christ?

Origen (c.185-253), priest and theologian
Commentary on St John’s Gospel, 19,12; PG 14, 548

"They tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him, because his hour had not yet come"

To seek for Jesus is very often a good thing since it means the same thing as seeking the Word, the truth and wisdom. But you are about to tell me that the words “seeking Jesus” are sometimes spoken concerning those who mean harm. For example: “They tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come” (Jn 7,30). “I know that you are descendants of Abraham. But you are trying to kill me because my word has no room in you” (Jn 8,37). “Now you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from my Father” (Jn 8,40).

These words… do not contradict that other saying: “The one who seek, finds” (Mt 7,8). The fact remains that distinctions exist between those who seek Jesus: not all are looking for him sincerely for the sake of their own salvation and to gain his help. Some people are looking for him for any number of reasons far removed from the good. That is why only those who have sought him in complete uprightness have found peace: those of whom one can truthfully say that they have sought the Word who is with God (Jn 1,1) so that he can draw them to his Father…

He threatens to go away if he is not received: “I am going away and you will look for me” (Jn 8,21)… He knows from whom he is withdrawing and with whom he remains without yet being found, so that if he is sought he will be found at the favourable time.

St. Colette - Thursday, 06 March 2008

Book of Exodus 32,7-14.

With that, the LORD said to Moses, "Go down at once to your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt, for they have become depraved.
They have soon turned aside from the way I pointed out to them, making for themselves a molten calf and worshiping it, sacrificing to it and crying out, 'This is your God, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt!'
I see how stiff-necked this people is," continued the LORD to Moses.
"Let me alone, then, that my wrath may blaze up against them to consume them. Then I will make of you a great nation."
But Moses implored the LORD, his God, saying, "Why, O LORD, should your wrath blaze up against your own people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with such great power and with so strong a hand?
Why should the Egyptians say, 'With evil intent he brought them out, that he might kill them in the mountains and exterminate them from the face of the earth'? Let your blazing wrath die down; relent in punishing your people.
Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, and how you swore to them by your own self, saying, 'I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky; and all this land that I promised, I will give your descendants as their perpetual heritage.'"
So the LORD relented in the punishment he had threatened to inflict on his people.


Psalms 106(105),19-20.21-22.23.

At Horeb they fashioned a calf, worshiped a metal statue.
They exchanged their glorious God for the image of a grass-eating bull.
They forgot the God who saved them, who did great deeds in Egypt,
Amazing deeds in the land of Ham, fearsome deeds at the Red Sea.
He would have decreed their destruction, had not Moses, the chosen leader, Withstood him in the breach to turn back his destroying anger.


Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 5,31-47.

If I testify on my own behalf, my testimony cannot be verified.
But there is another who testifies on my behalf, and I know that the testimony he gives on my behalf is true.
You sent emissaries to John, and he testified to the truth.
I do not accept testimony from a human being, but I say this so that you may be saved.
He was a burning and shining lamp, and for a while you were content to rejoice in his light.
But I have testimony greater than John's. The works that the Father gave me to accomplish, these works that I perform testify on my behalf that the Father has sent me.
Moreover, the Father who sent me has testified on my behalf. But you have never heard his voice nor seen his form,
and you do not have his word remaining in you, because you do not believe in the one whom he has sent.
You search the scriptures, because you think you have eternal life through them; even they testify on my behalf.
But you do not want to come to me to have life.
I do not accept human praise;
moreover, I know that you do not have the love of God in you.
I came in the name of my Father, but you do not accept me; yet if another comes in his own name, you will accept him.
How can you believe, when you accept praise from one another and do not seek the praise that comes from the only God?
Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father: the one who will accuse you is Moses, in whom you have placed your hope.
For if you had believed Moses, you would have believed me, because he wrote about me.
But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?"

TEMPTATIONS OF THE LENTEN DESERT

"They have soon turned aside from the way I pointed out to them, making for themselves a molten calf and worshiping it." –Exodus 32:8

During Lent we imitate Jesus as He was led by the Spirit into the desert (Lk 4:1). The desert is not only a physical place but a spiritual condition. We give alms to the degree that we don't have money to buy what we usually buy. We pray so often we deprive ourselves of our customary diversions. We fast so much we don't have the stimulation we usually have. We enter an emotional, psychological, and spiritual desert. We're hungry for pleasure, entertainment, and food.

We're also hungry for God. The devil will tempt us to give priority to our carnal desires. He will try to manipulate and bribe us with food, power, and pleasure (see Lk 4:3, 6-7). If we give in to these temptations, we will have given something priority over God. In effect, we will have made a golden calf in the desert and worshiped an idol (see Ex 32:8).

However, if we resist the temptation to leave the desert by our own power and find our own promised land, we will see our heavenly Father provide for us, His children. We will move into a new dimension of trust in our Father. In the Lenten desert, we will either be manipulated by sin or transformed by Abba.

Jacob of Sarug (c.449-521), monk and Bishop in Syria
Homily on Moses’ veil

"It was of me he spoke about in the scriptures!"

“Moses face had become radiant while he conversed with the Lord. Aaron and the other Israelites saw (it)… and were afraid to come near him… When Moses had finished speaking with them, he would again put the veil over his face” (cf. Ex 34,29f.). The radiance lighting up Moses’ face was Christ shining within him; but he was hidden from the eyes of the Hebrews who did not see him… The Old Testament as a whole is shown to us veiled like Moses, the symbol of all prophecy. Underneath this veil, displayed by the lips of the prophets, Christ appears, a judge in majesty, seated on his throne of glory…

If Moses was veiled, what other prophet could have uncovered his face? All veiled their speech in imitation of him. They simultaneously heralded and veiled: they put forth their message and, at the same time, covered it over with a veil… Because Jesus shone out in their books, a veil hid him from their eyes: a veil that makes known to all the world how the words of Holy Scripture contain a hidden meaning…

Our Lord lifted this veil when he expounded the mysteries to the whole of creation. By his coming, the Son of God uncovered Moses’ face, the incomprehensible words that up to then had been veiled. The new covenant has come to interpret the old; now, at last, the world is able to grasp those words that nothing covers over any longer. The Lord, our Sun, has arisen over the world and illumined every living being; mysteries and enigmas are at last made clear. The veil that used to cover those books has been removed and the world beholds the Son of God with uncovered face.

St Kieran - Wednesday, 05 March 2008

Book of Isaiah 49,8-15.

Thus says the LORD: In a time of favor I answer you, on the day of salvation I help you, To restore the land and allot the desolate heritages,
Saying to the prisoners: Come out! To those in darkness: Show yourselves! Along the ways they shall find pasture, on every bare height shall their pastures be.
They shall not hunger or thirst, nor shall the scorching wind or the sun strike them; For he who pities them leads them and guides them beside springs of water.
I will cut a road through all my mountains, and make my highways level.
See, some shall come from afar, others from the north and the west, and some from the land of Syene.
Sing out, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth, break forth into song, you mountains. For the LORD comforts his people and shows mercy to his afflicted.
But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me."
Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you.


Psalms 145(144),8-9.13-14.17-18.

The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in love.
The LORD is good to all, compassionate to every creature.
Your reign is a reign for all ages, your dominion for all generations. The LORD is trustworthy in every word, and faithful in every work.
The LORD supports all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down.
You, LORD, are just in all your ways, faithful in all your works.
You, LORD, are near to all who call upon you, to all who call upon you in truth.


Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 5,17-30.

But Jesus answered them, "My Father is at work until now, so I am at work."
For this reason the Jews tried all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God.
Jesus answered and said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, a son cannot do anything on his own, but only what he sees his father doing; for what he does, his son will do also.
For the Father loves his Son and shows him everything that he himself does, and he will show him greater works than these, so that you may be amazed.
For just as the Father raises the dead and gives life, so also does the Son give life to whomever he wishes.
Nor does the Father judge anyone, but he has given all judgment to his Son,
so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.
Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes in the one who sent me has eternal life and will not come to condemnation, but has passed from death to life.
Amen, amen, I say to you, the hour is coming and is now here when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.
For just as the Father has life in himself, so also he gave to his Son the possession of life in himself.
And he gave him power to exercise judgment, because he is the Son of Man.
Do not be amazed at this, because the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice
and will come out, those who have done good deeds to the resurrection of life, but those who have done wicked deeds to the resurrection of condemnation.
I cannot do anything on my own; I judge as I hear, and my judgment is just, because I do not seek my own will but the will of the one who sent me.

SHOW AND TELL

"The Father loves the Son and everything the Father does He shows Him." –John 5:20

A home-schooling father once quoted the above Scripture verse in a talk to a group of fathers. He said that, as a father, he has tried to imitate God the Father by loving his sons and daughters and showing them everything he does, as much as possible.

God delivered King Hezekiah from terminal illness and granted him fifteen extra years of life (Is 38:5). Hezekiah seemed to understand God's purpose for his extra years, saying: "Fathers declare to their sons, O God, Your faithfulness" (Is 38:19). Three years later, he fathered a son named Manasseh (2 Kgs 21:1). Hezekiah had twelve years left to live, but he put his energies into his projects. He proudly showed his political allies everything (see 2 Kgs 20:13, 15). Sadly, he didn't show much or "declare God's faithfulness" to his young son. Hezekiah died, and Manasseh took over the kingdom at age twelve (2 Kgs 21:1). This boy was king for fifty-five years, and was one of the most evil kings Israel ever had (2 Kgs 21:11, 16). By contrast, St. Joseph quietly spent His life loving his Foster-Son Jesus and showing Him everything he did. Jesus grew up to be the greatest "King of the Jews" (Jn 19:19), the King of kings (Rv 19:16).

"Fathers, do not anger your children" (Eph 6:4). It's tempting for a father to take the easy way out and yell at his children. Instead, fathers are called to invest their lives patiently bringing their children "up with the training and instruction befitting the Lord" (Eph 6:4). Fathers are not to nag children, since they might lose heart (Col 3:21). A child wants his father to show him the ropes. He can lose heart when his busy father hands him a "how-to" video.

Odes of Solomon (a Hebrew Christian text from the beginning of the 2nd century)
No. 42 (trans. J.H. Charlesworth)

"The dead will hear the voice of the Son of God"

[Christ speaks:]
I became useless to those who knew me not,
Because I shall hide myself from those who possessed me not.
And I will be with those
Who love me.
All my persecutors have died,
and they who trusted in me sought me, because I am living.
Then I arose and am with them, and will speak by their mouths.
For they have rejected those who persecute them; and I threw over them the yoke of my love.
Like the arm of the bridegroom over the bride, so is my yoke over those who know me.
And as the bridal feast is spread out by the bridal pair's home, so is my love by those who believe in me.

I was not rejected although I was considered to be so, and I did not perish although they thought it of me.
Sheol saw me and was shattered,
and Death ejected me and many with me.
I have been vinegar and bitterness to it,
and I went down with it as far as its depth.
Then the feet and the head it released,
because it was not able to endure my face.

And I made a congregation of living among his dead (1 Pt 3,19; 4,6);
and I spoke with them by living lips,
in order that my word may not fail.
And those who had died ran toward me;
and they cried out and said, "Son of God, have pity on us.
"And deal with us according to your kindness, and bring us out from the chains of darkness.
"And open for us the door
by which we may go forth to you,
for we perceive that our death does not approach you.
"May we also be saved with you, because you are our Savior. "

Then I heard their voice,
and placed their faith in my heart.
And I placed my name upon their head, because they are free and they are mine.
Alleluia!

St. Casimir - Tuesday, 04 March 2008

Book of Ezekiel 47,1-9.12.

Then he brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I saw water flowing out from beneath the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the facade of the temple was toward the east; the water flowed down from the southern side of the temple, south of the altar.
He led me outside by the north gate, and around to the outer gate facing the east, where I saw water trickling from the southern side.
Then when he had walked off to the east with a measuring cord in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and had me wade through the water, which was ankle-deep.
He measured off another thousand and once more had me wade through the water, which was now knee-deep. Again he measured off a thousand and had me wade; the water was up to my waist.
Once more he measured off a thousand, but there was now a river through which I could not wade; for the water had risen so high it had become a river that could not be crossed except by swimming.
He asked me, "Have you seen this, son of man?" Then he brought me to the bank of the river, where he had me sit.
Along the bank of the river I saw very many trees on both sides.
He said to me, "This water flows into the eastern district down upon the Arabah, and empties into the sea, the salt waters, which it makes fresh.
Wherever the river flows, every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live, and there shall be abundant fish, for wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh.
Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of every kind shall grow; their leaves shall not fade, nor their fruit fail. Every month they shall bear fresh fruit, for they shall be watered by the flow from the sanctuary. Their fruit shall serve for food, and their leaves for medicine."


Psalms 46(45),2-3.5-6.8-9.

God is our refuge and our strength, an ever-present help in distress.
Thus we do not fear, though earth be shaken and mountains quake to the depths of the sea,
Streams of the river gladden the city of God, the holy dwelling of the Most High.
God is in its midst; it shall not be shaken; God will help it at break of day.
The LORD of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob. Selah
Come and see the works of the LORD, who has done fearsome deeds on earth;


Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 5,1-3.5-16.

After this, there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep (Gate) a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes.
In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled.
One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him, "Do you want to be well?"
The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me."
Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your mat, and walk."
Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked. Now that day was a sabbath.
So the Jews said to the man who was cured, "It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat."
He answered them, "The man who made me well told me, 'Take up your mat and walk.'"
They asked him, "Who is the man who told you, 'Take it up and walk'?"
The man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there.
After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him, "Look, you are well; do not sin any more, so that nothing worse may happen to you."
The man went and told the Jews that Jesus was the one who had made him well.
Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus because he did this on a sabbath.

GO OUT INTO THE DEEP

"Do you want to be healed?" –John 5:6

Jesus didn't ask the sick man: "Do you want to be sick?" The sick man, and most people, would answer with a resounding "No." Jesus asked him, and asks us, "Do you want to be healed?" (Jn 5:6) The sick man didn't answer "Yes." Perhaps he wanted to be rid of his sickness, but didn't want to change the lifestyle of limitations and sin (Jn 5:14) that he'd built around his sickness. He had a soul sickness as well as a physical sickness.

It's not in Jesus' nature to do a half-healing. He won't limit Himself to only heal what's causing you the most pain. In addition to healing your knee, He'll also insist on healing your relationship with your father. You go into Jesus' emergency room to be healed of high blood pressure, and He first talks about healing you of unforgiveness toward someone who hurt you "thirty-eight years" ago (Jn 5:5). You want to stick your toe into healing water (Jn 5:2ff), and Jesus wants to sweep you away in His healing river of life (Ez 47:5, 12), to baptize, to immerse you.

Jesus stands at your door (see Rv 3:20) and asks you: "Do you want to be healed? Do you want overflowing, abundant life? (Jn 10:10) Whatever is lifeless in you, I will make fresh and new (Ez 47:9). In My healing, I will heal you and free you of spending your life hidden beneath the shroud of sickness, depression, anxiety, and fear of death (Heb 2:15). I will heal you for evangelization, and give you the power to witness to Me and pierce hearts by speaking My prophetic word. I will make you a light for the world (Mt 5:14). Answer, My child! Do you want to be healed?"

Saint Ephrem (c.306-373), Deacon in Syria, Doctor of the Church
5th Hymn for Epiphany

In the baptismal pool we find healing

Go down, my brothers, and put on the Holy Spirit in the waters of baptism;
be united with those spiritual beings who serve our God.

Blessed be He who instituted baptism for the forgiveness of Adam’s sons!

This water is the secret fire that marks his flock with a sign:
with the three, spiritual names that confound the Evil one (cf. Rev 3,12)…

John bore witness concerning our Saviour: “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Mt 3,11).
Here, my brethren, in the true baptism, is that fire and that Spirit.

For baptism is more powerful than Jordan, that little stream;
its waves of water and oil wash away all human sin.

Elisha, by initiating it seven times, purified Naaman of his leprosy (2Kgs 5,10);
whereas baptism purifies us of sins hidden in our souls.

Moses baptized the people in the sea (1Cor 10,2)
yet could not cleanse their hearts from within,
Stained, as they were, by sin.

And now here is a priest, like Moses, who cleanses the soul from its stains
and with oil he marks with a sign lambs newborn for the Kingdom…

With the water that flowed from the rock, the people’s thirst was quelled (Ex 17,1f.);
See how, through Christ and his spring, is quenched the thirst of nations …

See how, from Christ’s side, there flows a life-giving stream (Jn 19,34);
peoples who thirst have drunk from it and there forgot their affliction.

Pour your dew on my weakness, Lord;
By your blood, forgive my sins.