Wednesday - March 23, 2022
WEDNESDAY OF THE THIRD WEEK OF LENT
Lectionary: 239
DT 4:1, 5-9
Moses spoke to the people and said:
“Now, Israel, hear the statutes and decrees
which I am teaching you to observe,
that you may live, and may enter in and take possession of the land
which the LORD, the God of your fathers, is giving you.
Therefore, I teach you the statutes and decrees
as the LORD, my God, has commanded me,
that you may observe them in the land you are entering to occupy.
Observe them carefully,
for thus will you give evidence
of your wisdom and intelligence to the nations,
who will hear of all these statutes and say,
‘This great nation is truly a wise and intelligent people.’
For what great nation is there
that has gods so close to it as the LORD, our God, is to us
whenever we call upon him?
Or what great nation has statutes and decrees
that are as just as this whole law
which I am setting before you today?
“However, take care and be earnestly on your guard
not to forget the things which your own eyes have seen,
nor let them slip from your memory as long as you live,
but teach them to your children and to your children’s children.”
Responsorial Psalm 147:12-13, 15-16, 19-20
R. (12a) Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
Glorify the LORD, O Jerusalem;
praise your God, O Zion.
For he has strengthened the bars of your gates;
he has blessed your children within you.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
He sends forth his command to the earth;
swiftly runs his word!
He spreads snow like wool;
frost he strews like ashes.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
He has proclaimed his word to Jacob,
his statutes and his ordinances to Israel.
He has not done thus for any other nation;
his ordinances he has not made known to them.
R. Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
Verse Before the Gospel JN 6:63C, 68C
Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life;
you have the words of everlasting life.
Gospel MT 5:17-19
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter
will pass from the law,
until all things have taken place.
Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments
and teaches others to do so
will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven.
But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments
will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.”
**********************************
THE JOURNEY OF HOLINESS
How often have you heard: "It's okay if I do this or that, even though I'm not supposed to. God understands. He loves me anyway." For example: "It's okay if I swear. It's only words. God understands that I've had a really bad day." Or "It's okay if I had an abortion. I don't believe it was a real person yet. And God understands my reasons." Or "It's okay for gay couples to marry, because they love each other, and God is love."
In today's first reading, Moses emphasized how important it is to observe (obey) the decrees of God. He said: "Observe them carefully...." Well, what if someone wants to claim ignorance as an alibi? For example: "I don't see how abortion can be breaking God's commandment of 'Do not kill,' because the fetus is not a real person yet."
God has made his commands known to us. He speaks to us in the scriptures and, in the Catholic tradition of Christianity, through the teachings of the Church Magisterium, which are carefully based on the scriptures to explain how to apply the scriptures to modern situations.
So why does knowing God's will sometimes get muddy and messy? Because we convince ourselves that a sin isn't really a sin. Saying that a fetus isn't a person doesn't make it a blob of meaningless tissue; we don't have that kind of power. Saying that God understands doesn't make him approve of what we do; we don't have that kind of control. Saying that love between partners of the same gender justifies sexual activity doesn't make God change his plans for marriage; we don't have that kind of authority.
The word "obedience" comes from the Latin for "listening". When we disagree with a teaching of the Church, Jesus is directing us to study it. Listen for his Holy Spirit to explain the truth of it. The bottom line of every truth is love. When we listen and finally hear any difficult teaching in the context of love, obedience becomes easy.
Jesus warns us in today's Gospel passage that "whoever breaks the least significant of these commands and teaches others to do so shall be called least in the kingdom of God." Although we've been saved from hell because we know that Jesus has redeemed us through the cross, we are not saved from eternal repercussions if we cling to disobedience through excuses and rationalizations. (See my note below.)
Which sin is worse: swearing or committing abortion? It doesn't matter. Jesus says, "Whoever breaks the least significant of these commands and teaches others to do so...." What are we teaching by our examples? We never sin alone. How terrible to enable others to sin by being lazy about our own journey of holiness!
Here's a morning prayer for submitting ourselves to God's holy will:
Lord, here I am today.
Imperfect. Tempted to sin.
Not loving You as I desire, not loving others as I should.
Take me as I am. You do love me as I am!
You are so good to me! Help me to love myself, too.
Take what is good -- the gifts You have given to me --
and use it for Your kingdom.
Take what is imperfect and transform it into a blessing.
Take what is sinful and teach me to grow in holiness.
Lord, here I am today.
Help me to do Your will.
Today's Prayer
Lord Jesus, I want to give up everything that blocks my path of holiness. Strengthen me to always be willing to follow Your will. Amen.
------------------------------
God Bless You.....
No comments:
Post a Comment