lent: the road to redemption, cycle b€¦ · lent • week 1 • • ©2011 catholic scripture...

Lent: The Road to Redemption, Cycle B

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Lent • Table of Contents • www.CSSProgram.net • ©2011 Catholic Scripture Study International

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Lent: Cycle BThe Road to Redemption

Table of ContentsWeek 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Week 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Week 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Week 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Week 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Week 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Lent • Week 1 • www.CSSProgram.net • ©2011 Catholic Scripture Study International

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Lent Cycle B Week 1: Into the DesertIntroductionEvery year on the first Sunday of Lent, the Gospel reading is about Jesus’ going off to the wilderness, or desert, for forty days. This episode takes place immediately after Jesus’ Baptism in the Jordan, and just prior to the launching of his public ministry. We know that Our Lord was tempted by Satan during these forty days but he emerged victorious and ready to proclaim that the Kingdom of God is at hand (Mk. 1:15).The first and second readings for this week focus on the theme of Baptism. The first reading relates the terms of the covenant between God and Noah, who was saved from the waters of the flood. The second reading tells us that the account of Noah’s ark prefigures the Sacrament of Baptism through which we are saved.On Ash Wednesday, we begin our own forty days in the desert. This penitential season of Lent is an intense time of spiritual renewal. The Church especially invites us to pray, fast and give alms as means of expressing our utter dependence on God who through the waters of Baptism shares His very life with us.

"I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and the earth."


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Old Testament Reading: Genesis 9:8-158God said to Noah and to his sons with him: 9”See, I am now establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you 10and with every living creature that was with you: all the birds, and the various tame and wild animals that were with you and came out of the ark. 11I will estab-lish my covenant with you, that never again shall all bodily creatures be destroyed by the waters of a flood; there shall not be another flood to devastate the earth.” 12God added: “This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come, of the covenant between me and you and every living crea-ture with you: 13I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14When I bring clouds over the earth, and the bow appears in the clouds, 15I will recall the covenant I have made between me and you and all living beings, so that the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all mortal beings.”

New Testament Reading: 1 Peter 3:18-22Beloved: 18Christ suffered for sins once, the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might lead you to God. Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the Spirit. 19In it he also went to preach to the spirits in prison, 20who had once been disobedient while God patiently waited in the days of Noah during the building of the ark, in which a few per-sons, eight in all, were saved through water. 21This prefigured baptism, which saves you now. It is not a removal of dirt from the body but an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him.

Gospel Reading: Mark 1:12-1512The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, 13and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him. 14After John had been ar-rested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: 15”This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

Points to PonderGenesis 9:8-15From all eternity God had a plan for saving us from sin and leading us to the fullness of life (Jn. 10:10). As this plan has played out in salvation history, we see that God has entered into a series of covenants with mankind. A covenant is an agreement that establishes a sacred family bond. The form of covenant with which we are most familiar is the covenant of marriage. Through this series of covenants, God desires to enter into a lasting relationship with all men and women.

The first covenant in the Bible is God’s covenant with Adam, who represents all mankind. Yet Adam and his wife Eve were seduced by Satan and were not faithful to their covenant with God. Sin, suf-fering and death entered the world because of their disobedience. After that, Adam’s son Cain com-mitted the first murder and sin continued to escalate. The cycle of sin finally reached the point where God considered wiping out all the living creatures on the earth (Gen. 6:7).


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Noah now enters the stage. Noah was a righteous man who found favor with God (Gen. 6:8-9). We are all very familiar with the story of the flood. Noah, his wife, his sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth and their wives were saved from the devastating flood waters by means of the ark they built at God’s command (Gen 6:14-8:15).

God’s abiding love for sinful humanity is typically expressed as mercy. By means of the flood, God re-created the world by cleansing it of sin— giving creation a fresh start. This second creation bears many similarities to the first creation. For example, both creations emerged through “water” (Gen. 1:1-2) and they involved commands to “be fruitful and multiply” (Gen. 1:28; 9:1).

In both accounts, the number “seven” is prominent (See Gen. 7:2-4, 10; 8:4, 10, 12). Let’s recall that the Sabbath, the day Our Lord rested from His labor, is the “seventh” day (Gen. 2:2-3). When we are first introduced to Noah in the Bible, we learn that his father named him “Noah,” saying “Out of the ground which the LORD has cursed this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the toil of our hands” (Gen. 5:29). This “relief ” or “rest” from work alludes to the “rest” in the first creation, and points us to our own obligation to remember to keep the Lord’s Day holy (See CCC 2191-92).

In the first reading, then, we hear the terms of God’s covenant with Noah and His household after the flood. The Catechism sums it up very well: “God made an everlasting covenant with Noah and with all living beings (Gen. 9:16). It will remain in force as long as the world lasts” (CCC 71).

Even though Noah was a righteous man, he was not without sin. After all, as God Himself acknowl-edges, the entire human race has been corrupted by sin (Gen. 8:21), as we will readily discover in the generations that follow Noah. Yet God remains ever faithful. Through the universal sign of the rainbow, we have God’s promise that His plan is not for our destruction. Rather, the rainbow is a stunning sign of hope: God will be faithful to us, even when we are not faithful to Him.

Yet, there is even more to the story. All the Old Testament covenants build upon one another and find their fulfillment in Christ. God’s covenant with Noah, then, points us toward an even greater covenant. We enter this new and everlasting covenant with God as His sons and daughters in Christ (Gal. 4:4-7; Rom. 8:28-29) through the waters of Baptism, which definitively establish us as mem-bers of the family of God.

1 Peter 3:18-22The second Mass reading picks up where the first reading left off. St. Peter refers to the eight per-sons (i.e., Noah’s family) who were “saved through water” (1 Pet. 3:20) by means of the ark. The flood thus begins a new creation, a fresh start for the human family.

In the next verse (v. 21), St. Peter explicitly connects the flood in Noah’s time with Baptism. The flood is a “type” or foreshadowing of Christian Baptism, and the ark prefigures the Church, which offers refuge for sinners in every generation.

Genesis tells us in a symbolic way what happens when we are baptized. Our old world of sin is washed away, and we are created anew, reborn in the waters of Baptism. Like Noah, we still carry the potential of sin with us after Baptism, but we have received God’s blessing and His promise that He will not give up on us.

At the outset of the reading, St. Peter reminds us of the price Christ paid on the cross for us. Christ is the righteous one, the one who is like us in all things but sin (Heb. 4:15). Prior to receiving new life in Baptism the rest of us are numbered among the “unrighteous”(v. 18) because we have all inherited the sin of Adam.


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In Baptism, we get a fresh start. We become “new creations” (2 Cor. 5:17). This entails a restoration of our relationship with God the Father as His adopted sons and daughters in Christ. This, in a nutshell, is the gift of righteousness. We grow in this relationship with Christ and His Church through charity and obedience to the Gospel. Christ Himself assures us that all who hunger and thirst for righteous-ness (sometimes translated as “justice”) will have their fill (Mt. 5:6). St. Peter clearly emphasizes here that the purpose of Christ’s death was “to bring us to God” (v. 18), in other words, to make us “righ-teous.” Individual Christians in every generation receive the benefits of Christ’s “once for all” sacrifice through the saving waters of Baptism (cf. Acts 2:38).

We then come to verse 19, which says that after Christ was put to death He went to “preach to the spirits in prison.” While this may at first sound strange to us, we recall that in the Apostles’ Creed we confess that Christ “descended into hell” on Holy Saturday. In this context, “hell” does not refer to the state of permanent separation from God, but simply the abode of the dead. The Church believes that after His saving death on the cross, Christ went to free the just who came before Him and open the gates of heaven for them (CCC 633).

Baptism does entail a “cleansing,” but in verse 21, St. Peter clarifies that this cleansing is not physical, as the “removal of dirt from the body.” Rather, as is the case with all the sacraments, the physical ele-ments (in Baptism, the sprinkling with or immersion in water) symbolize a greater, spiritual reality. Through Baptism, Christ effects an even greater cleansing within us: We are cleansed of our sins.

This cleansing entails a commitment on our part, typically one that is made for us by our parents and godparents if we were baptized as infants. This commitment is a pledge (that’s then sense of “appeal” in verse 21) to maintain a clear conscience by living the faith into which we were baptized. God gives us the grace to live as Christ’s faithful disciples with a “clear conscience,” but in His wisdom He has also given us the Sacrament of Reconciliation as a life-giving means of turning back to God should we stray from the road that leads to Him. Lent is a particularly good time for recommitting ourselves to living what we believe, and so the Sacrament of Reconciliation, or “Confession,” is especially recom-mended this season.

In Baptism we die with Christ so that we may live with Him (cf. Rom 6:3-4). In verse 22, we see this truth embodied in Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords (1 Tim. 6:15), who not only died and descended to the dead, but was also raised in glory and sits at the right hand of God (Ps. 110:1). Through the ministry of the Church, the saving “ark,” we are able to participate in Christ’s victory!

Mark 1:12-15Today’s Gospel is St. Mark’s account of Jesus’ temptation in the desert. It’s much shorter than the parallel accounts in Matthew (4:1-11) and Luke (4:1-13), and it doesn’t provide us with the dialogue between Jesus and Satan found in the other two accounts. Still, there is much richness and depth embedded here to help guide us during these opening days of Lent.

After His Baptism by John in the Jordan River (Mk. 1:9-11), the Holy Spirit led Jesus to the desert. He remained there for forty days, where He engaged in spiritual battle with Satan, as angels min-istered to Him (Mk. 1:12-13). Mark also notes that Jesus was “with the wild beasts” (v. 13). This detail may sound strange to us at first, but it is an allusion to the Garden of Eden, where Adam was tempted in the midst of the beasts in paradise. Christ is the new Adam (Rom. 5:14, 19) who does not succumb to Satan’s temptations, but rather remains ever faithful to His Father.

The fact that Our Lord spent forty days in the desert is highly significant. It recalls the forty days of the flood, which brought about a new creation and a new covenant. We also recall that the Israelites,


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led by Moses, wandered in the desert for forty years after their liberation from slavery in Egypt. Further, the prophet Elijah sojourned through the desert for forty days en route to Horeb, the mountain of God (cf. 1 Kings 19:8).

We quickly recognize in these biblical episodes the deep significance not only of Jesus’ forty days in the desert, but also the forty days of Lent: “By the solemn forty days of Lent the Church unites herself each year to the mystery of Jesus in the desert” (CCC 540). This tradition is also reflected in the opening stanzas of the popular Lenten hymn “The Glory of These Forty Days,” attributed to Pope St. Gregory the Great:

The glory of these forty days We celebrate with songs of praise; For Christ, by whom all things were made,Himself has fasted and has prayed.

Alone and fasting Moses saw The loving God who gave the law; And to Elijah, fasting, came The steeds and chariots of flame.

According to St. Mark’s Gospel, the conclusion of Jesus’ temptation in the desert coincided with John the Baptist’s arrest (v. 14). John is the principal character in the opening verses of Mark 1. In fact, in vv. 2-3, John is identified as the messenger who would prepare the way of the Lord, in fulfillment of prophecy (cf. Is. 40:3; Mal. 3:1). John is the last of the Old Testament prophets. His imprisonment and eventual execution end what we might call the “preparatory phase” of Christ’s kingdom-building mission. Now the time is right for Christ to emerge on the stage and inaugurate His public ministry. John’s own words will now be realized: “He must increase; I must decrease” (Jn. 3:30).

Unlike Adam and Israel, Jesus successfully resisted the temptations of Satan during His ordeal in the desert. Now He’s ready to proclaim to the world that “the kingdom of God is at hand” (v. 15). This kingdom will be the means of salvation and family unity for all the nations. It represents a fresh start for sinful humanity, based on a new covenant that will be ratified in the blood of Christ. The Church, as the new Israel, is the seed and beginning of this kingdom, which must take root within our own hearts (cf. Lk. 17:21). The “keys” to this kingdom have been entrusted to Peter and his successors (cf. Mt. 16:13-19), so that this “good news” may be proclaimed to the entire world (Mk. 16:15).

The key in all of this is found in the next word in verse 15: “repent”! Repentance is the central theme of Lent, as it entails a decisive turning away from sin and a turning toward God. Repen-tance is manifested in our sorrow for sins as well as through fasting and other penitential practices that help us with God’s grace to overcome our sinful habits and attachments so that we may turn 100% to Our Lord. As we heard on Ash Wednesday, now is the acceptable time to return to the Lord (cf. 2 Cor. 6:2).

Tying It All TogetherAll of us, in ways great and small, have been unfaithful to God. Because of our sins and failings, we have fallen short of becoming the men and women God created us to be (cf. Rom. 3:23). Just as God saved Noah’s family through the flood, so He saves us through the waters of Baptism. In this season of Lent, we renew our own baptismal commitment, while catechumens conclude their preparation for Baptism. Following Jesus’ example of prayer and fasting, we strive to prepare the way of the Lord (Mk. 1:3), in joyful anticipation of Easter.


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Catechism Connections ■ To learn more about God’s covenant with Noah, see CCC 56-58. ■ To learn more about the prefigurations of Baptism in the Old Testament, see CCC

1217-22. ■ To learn more about Jesus’ temptations in the desert, see CCC 538-40. ■ To learn more about the Kingdom of God, see CCC 541-53. ■ To learn more about the forms of penance in the Christian life, see CCC 1434-39.

Lenten MomentFast and Abstinence

Fasting involves refraining for a time from the satisfaction of human needs, especially the needs for food and drink, as an expression of interior penance. This spiritual practice is a proven means of decreasing our selfishness while increasing our dependence upon God’s fatherly provision.

The only days on which Catholic adults (until the age of 60) are required to fast are Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. The Church defines this as one meal a day, and two smaller meals, which, if added together, would not exceed the main meal in quantity. Snacks and meat are also prohibited on those days.

However, penance is an integral part of the Christian life, and fasting is a traditional, bibli-cally based penitential practice strongly encouraged by the Church (see Catechism, no. 1434). Further, all Catholics fast for at least one hour before receiving Our Lord, the “Bread of Life,” in Holy Communion.

Catholics in the United States are required to abstain from eating meat not only on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, but also on all other Fridays during Lent. This explains all the Lenten «Soup and Stations Nights,» fish fries, and cheese enchilada sales!

May these and other Lenten observances of our own choosing bring home to us the Gospel truth that we do not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God (Mt. 4:4).

Rome to HomeThrough the traditional practices of fasting, almsgiving and prayer, which are an expression of our commitment to conversion, Lent teaches us how to live the love of Christ in an ever more radical way. Fasting, which can have various motivations, takes on a profoundly religious significance for the Christian: by rendering our table poorer, we learn to overcome selfishness in order to live in the logic of gift and love; by bearing some form of deprivation--and not just what is in excess--we learn to look away from our “ego”, to discover Someone close to us and to recognize God in the face of so many brothers and sisters. For Christians, fasting, far from being depressing, opens us ever more to God and to the needs of others, thus allowing love of God to become also love of our neighbor (cf. Mk. 12: 31).


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In our journey, we are often faced with the temptation of accumulating and love of money that undermines God’s primacy in our lives. The greed of possession leads to violence, exploitation and death; for this, the Church, especially during the Lenten period, reminds us to practice almsgiv-ing --which is the capacity to share. The idolatry of goods, on the other hand, not only causes us to drift away from others, but divests man, making him unhappy, deceiving him, deluding him with-out fulfilling its promises, since it puts materialistic goods in the place of God, the only source of life. . . . The practice of almsgiving is a reminder of God’s primacy and turns our attention towards others, so that we may rediscover how good our Father is, and receive his mercy.

During the entire Lenten period, the Church offers us God’s Word with particular abundance. By meditating and internalizing the Word in order to live it every day, we learn a precious and irre-placeable form of prayer; by attentively listening to God, who continues to speak to our hearts, we nourish the itinerary of faith initiated on the day of our Baptism. Prayer also allows us to gain a new concept of time: without the perspective of eternity and transcendence, in fact, time simply directs our steps towards a horizon without a future. Instead, when we pray, we find time for God, to understand that his “words will not pass away” (cf. Mk.13: 31), to enter into that intimate com-munion with Him “that no one shall take from you” (Jn. 16: 22), opening us to the hope that does not disappoint, eternal life.

In synthesis, the Lenten journey, in which we are invited to contemplate the Mystery of the Cross, is meant to reproduce within us “the pattern of his death” (Phil. 3:10), so as to effect a deep conver-sion in our lives; that we may be transformed by the action of the Holy Spirit, like St. Paul on the road to Damascus; that we may firmly orient our existence according to the will of God; that we may be freed of our egoism, overcoming the instinct to dominate others and opening us to the love of Christ. The Lenten period is a favorable time to recognize our weakness and to accept, through a sincere inventory of our life, the renewing Grace of the Sacrament of Penance, and walk resolutely towards Christ.

—Pope Benedict XVI

2011 Message for Lent

Study Questions1. Who did God establish a covenant with after the great flood? What did God promise and what

was the “sign” of this covenant? (See Gen. 9:8-18)


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2. Through Noah and his family, God “re-created” the world. What are some of the parallels that we see between Adam and Noah in the following verses: Gen. 1:2 with Gen. 7:11 Gen. 2:2-3 with Gen. 7:2-4, 10; 8:4, 10, 12 Gen. 1:28 with Gen. 9:1-2

3. Why did Christ suffer and die? (See 1 Pet. 3:18)

4. Who did Christ preach to after His death and before His Resurrection? Which article of the Apostles’ Creed does this verse relate? (See 1 Pet. 3:19 & Points to Ponder)


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5. How does Noah’s ark foreshadow the Sacrament of Baptism? What are some other prefigura-tions of Baptism in the Old Testament? (See 1 Pet. 3:20-22, Gen. 1:2, Ex.14:21-22, Josh. 3:9-17 and CCC 1218-1222)

6. What does St. Mark tell us about Jesus’ temptation in the desert? Why is the detail that He was there for forty days important? (See Mk. 1:12-13)

7. What did Jesus do immediately after His temptation in the desert? (See Mk. 1:14-15)


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8. What event seems to trigger Jesus’ public ministry? Why is that event significant? (See Mk. 1:14)

Voices of the Saints My Lord and my God, take from me everything that distances me from you My Lord and my God, give me everything that brings me closer to you. My Lord and my God, detach me from myself to give my all to you.

—St. Nicholas of Flue

Questions for Reflection1. In this week’s Gospel, Jesus tells us to “repent and believe in the Gospel.” What does the verb “re-

pent” mean to you? Is there an area of your life for which you still must repent?

2. As Jesus goes into the desert for 40 days, so too do we begin the spiritual journey of Lent. What is your “game plan” for this season? What sacrifices or acts of charity and service can I undertake this Lent to grow in holiness.


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Lent Cycle B Week 2: Foretaste of the KingdomIntroductionEvery year on the second Sunday of Lent, the Gospel is the Transfiguration of Our Lord on Mount Tabor. This year, we hear the account from the Gospel according to St. Mark. This unusual episode from the life of Christ gives us a foretaste of Christ’s glory as well as our own, as He promised that He “will change our lowly body to be like his glorious body” (Phil. 3:21).

In the first reading, Abraham’s will-ingness to sacrifice his own son be-came the defining moment of his relationship with God. His fidelity resulted not only in blessings for himself and his immediate family but also the promise that through his descendants all the nations of the earth would find blessing (Gen. 22:18).

This promise of a universal (or “catholic”) blessing was fulfilled in Christ, the righteous Son of God who intercedes for us at the right hand of our heavenly Father (Rom. 8:34). Yet Our Savior first had to suffer and die, and now during Lent we take up our cross and fol-low in His path.

So this weekend we have before us the Transfiguration, where with Peter, James and John we receive a glimpse of the glory that lies on the other side of Calvary, as well as the Father’s reassurance: “This is my beloved Son; listen to him” (Mk. 9:7). The Transfiguration prepares us for the cross and strengthens our faith in the Resurrection.

"This is my beloved Son. Listen to him."


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Old Testament Reading: Genesis 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-181God put Abraham to the test. He called to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am!” he replied. 2Then God said: “Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. There you shall offer him up as a holocaust on a height that I will point out to you.” 9aWhen they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. 10Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son. 11But the LORD’s messenger called to him from heaven, “Abraham, Abraham!” “Here I am!” he answered. 12”Do not lay your hand on the boy,” said the messenger. “Do not do the least thing to him. I know now how devoted you are to God, since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.” 13As Abraham looked about, he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. So he went and took the ram and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son. 15Again the LORD’s messenger called to Abraham from heaven 16and said: “I swear by my-self, declares the LORD, that because you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son, 17I will bless you abundantly and make your descendants as countless as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore; your descendants shall take possession of the gates of their enemies, 18and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing - all this because you obeyed my command.”

New Testament Reading: Romans 8:31b-34Brothers and sisters: 31b If God is for us, who can be against us? 32He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he not also give us everything else along with him? 33Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who acquits us, 34who will condemn? Christ Jesus it is who died - or, rather, was raised - who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us.

Gospel Reading: Mk 9:2-102Jesus took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, 3and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them. 4Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus. 5Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, “Rabbi, it is good that we are here! Let us make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 6He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified. 7Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them; from the cloud came a voice, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.” 8Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone but Jesus alone with them. 9As they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone, except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead. 10So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what rising from the dead meant.


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Points to PonderGenesis 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18

God blessed Abraham and Sarah in their advanced age by giving them at long last a son, whom they named Isaac, through whom God would give Abraham descendants as numerous as the stars (see Gen. 15:5). Abraham had previously fathered Ishmael by Hagar, Sarah’s maidservant but they had been sent away and disinherited. Isaac would be Abraham’s heir.

In our first reading, God put Abraham “to the test” (Gen. 22:1). He requested the unthinkable: He asked Abraham to offer Isaac as a burnt offering on a mountain in the land of Moriah (Gen. 22:2).

To his eternal credit, Abraham put his trust in God and in the morning set out to do exactly as the Lord had commanded. For his part, Isaac, who was by then at least a teenager, carried the wood for the sac-rifice (Gen. 22:6).

At one point, Isaac pointed out the obvious: they have the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the sacrifice? (Gen. 22:7). Abraham responded by saying that God Himself would provide the lamb for the sacrifice (Gen. 22:8).

Abraham and Isaac eventually reached the place where the Lord had directed them (Gen. 22:9). We later learn that the site is not some remote location but the eventual site of the city of Jerusalem (2 Chron. 3:1), the home of the Temple (Ps. 76:1-3) as well the place where Christ Himself would die as the Lamb that was slain.

By the time Abraham was tying him up on the altar, Isaac must have known what was happening. As Abraham was an old man and Isaac was a strong, young man, we can only conclude that Isaac was co-operating with Abraham. Once the sacrificial was duly prepared, Abraham took out his knife and was about to slay his son when an angel called his name (Gen. 22:9-10). The angel instructed Abraham not to lay a hand on his son. Then Abraham spotted a ram in the thicket and he sacrificed that instead of his son (Gen. 22:13).

It is interesting to note that the peoples among whom Abraham and his immediate descendants lived practiced human sacrifice. The Israelites through the centuries would remember that their God did not require human sacrifice, as the Lord prevented Abraham from carrying out the sacrifice of his son.

Even more, the Church has traditionally understood the sacrifice of Isaac as a foreshadowing, or “type,” of Christ’s sacrifice. In both cases, the father (Abraham and God the Father) offers their beloved son. In both cases, the sons (Isaac and Jesus) obediently submit to their father’s will. In both instances, the son carried the wood to the place of the sacrifice. In the end, God Himself provides the lamb for the sacrifice (Gen. 22:8).

The passage concludes with an angel delivering God’s message to Abraham. Because he did not with-hold from God his beloved son, God reiterates His promise to give Abraham numerous descendants. Even more, because of Abraham’s obedience, through him all the nations of the earth will be blessed (Gen. 22:18). Notice that this blessing is not limited to Abraham’s family (the Israelites) but extends to all the nations. Therefore, this blessing would be “catholic,” from the Greek katholikos, which means universal. This promise will be fulfilled in Christ, who in the opening verse of the New Testament is identified as the “son of Abraham” (Mt. 1:1) who gave His life as a ransom for many (Mk. 10:45).


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Romans 8:31b-34Our passage from chapter eight of Romans begins with the clear affirmation that God desires our good and that if He is with us what can possibly harm us? Who can be against us? (Rom. 8:31). This verse should fill us with great confidence and optimism despite our own human frailty and sinfulness.

Since God desires our eternal good, we can trust Him, even in moments of darkness and trial, as Abraham did in trusting God with his beloved son.

St. Paul’s rationale is found in the next verse: God did not spare His own Son, as He spared Isaac. Rather, He gave His only Son that we might not perish, but rather share eternal life with Him (see Jn. 3:16).

We are justified through our Baptism into Christ’s death (Rom. 6:3), so that we may also share in new life as brothers and sisters of God’s beloved Son (Rom. 8:28-30). Who, then, is capable of bringing a charge against us, when Our Savior is the ultimate “public defender”, who even now is interceding on our behalf in heaven at God the Father’s right hand.

St. Paul’s message in Romans 8:31-34 is an encouragement to hang in there during these days of Lent. Penance in the short term can be difficult but our sacrifices are offered not to appease an angry God but rather to grow in our love for the One who first loved us (see 1 Jn. 4:19) and who calls us to eternal happiness with Him.

Therefore, we can say with St. Paul, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Rom. 8:18).

Mark 9:2-10In our Gospel, Jesus took Peter, James and John up a high mountain apart from the others (Mk. 9:2). This same “inner circle” of followers would also accompany Jesus into the Garden of Gethsemane as the events of His Passion began to unfold.

The high mountain is generally believed to be Mount Tabor in lower Galilee. This is the New Testa-ment counterpart to Mount Sinai, where God revealed His glory to Moses and Elijah, whose presence testifies that Jesus is truly the Messiah, the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets.

The scene bears several similarities to Exodus 24, where Moses goes up Mount Sinai and encounters God amidst the clouds. Yet now, Jesus presented Himself as the new Moses with a new Law—not written on stone tablets but the Word made flesh. As Moses himself had said: “The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brethren--him you shall heed” (Deut. 18:15). God Himself later in the scene identifies Jesus as His beloved Son, whom the people must “heed” or listen to (Mk. 9:7).

While Moses’ face was transfigured when he beheld God’s glory, we read in this week’s Gospel that Jesus’ entire appearance became “dazzling” or “intensely” white (Mk. 9:3). Jesus radiated the glory of God even to a more intense degree than Moses.

Elijah, meanwhile, represented the Old Testament prophets who spoke of the one who was to come. The prophet Malachi urged the people to “remember the law of my servant Moses” (Mal. 4:4) and ad-vised them that God “will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes.” (Mal. 4:5). Jesus Himself noted that Elijah had returned in the person of John the Baptist, the new Elijah (see Mt. 11:13-15).


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Paragraph 2583 of the Catechism notes that “only on the mountain of the Transfiguration will Moses and Elijah behold the unveiled face of him whom they sought; ‘the light of the knowledge of the glory of God [shines] in the face of Christ,’ crucified and risen” (2 Cor. 4:6). Their presence indicates that the “day of the Lord” has arrived. What does it entail?

Part of the answer can be found in the episode immediately prior to the Transfiguration, as Jesus began to teach His followers that He “must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again” (Mk. 8:31). When Peter challenged Jesus’ alarming teaching, He rebuked Him, saying “Get behind me, Satan!” (Mk. 8:33).

St. Luke’s account of the Transfiguration (Lk. 9:28-36) contains another important clue that’s not in-cluded in Mark’s account. Namely, Jesus spoke with Moses and Elijah about “his departure [Greek, “exodus”] that he was to accomplish at Jerusalem.” The first exodus liberated Israel from captivity in Egypt; Jesus here is talking about a new exodus, involving our liberation from sin. This image of a “new exodus” that will turn hearts back to God is prophesied in Isaiah 52 and will be brought about by God’s “suffering servant”:

“The next chapter of Isaiah is the famous ‘song of the suffering servant,’ which describes the coming Messiah (Is. 53). The image of exodus—of bonds, captivity and redemption—gives way to a star-tling picture of the one through whom redemption is to come. The New Exodus will not come with a victorious military battle as many had expected; the New Exodus is to come through the suffering of the Lord’s servant, who is ‘wounded for our transgressions,’ ‘bruised for our iniquities,’ made ‘an offering for sin,’ and who pours “out his soul to death” (Is. 53). The New Exodus, which Jesus will accomplish in Jerusalem, will come only at the price of His own blood” (Tim Gray, The Luminous Mysteries [Emmaus Road, 2004], 95).

The time has come for Jesus to complete His mission in Jerusalem. He is now preparing His dis-ciples for His Passion, and here He gives Peter, James and John a special glimpse of the resurrection and glory that paradoxically will come about through the suffering and death of God’s servant.

Upon seeing the transfigured Jesus in conversation with Moses and Elijah, Peter rightly exclaims, “it is good that we are here!” (Mk. 9:5). It is a moment of sublime contemplation that the apostles will remember in times of adversity (Pet. 1:16-18). Peter then suggests erecting three booths, one each for Jesus, Moses and Elijah. These were small shelters where the Israelites stayed during the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles, or Booths, which has led some commentators to conclude that this event took place on or near the Jewish Feast of Booths.

This detail is significant because the Feast of Booths commemorated the Exodus from Egypt and in a particular way the giving of the Law on Mt. Sinai. Here, Jesus is revealed as the new Moses (see Deut. 18:15, 18; Acts 3:22; 7:37), giving a new and greater Law (the law of the Gospel). He is set-ting out to liberate mankind from slavery to sin through a new exodus that will soon take place in Jerusalem, near the site of Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac.

The voice from above instructs Peter, James and John—and all of us—to listen to Jesus, to obey Him, to “heed” Him (Deut. 18:15). The Father’s words confirm that Jesus is the prophet foretold by Moses, who will lead His people to the glory of the heavenly Jerusalem. Even now it gives us glimpses, especially during the Eucharist, of this reality. God Himself so loved the world that He sent His beloved Son to die for us sinners (see Jn. 3:16-17; Rom. 5:7).


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Tying It All TogetherAt every Mass, we are given a foretaste of heaven. For a fleeting moment, we are caught up in the glo-ry of the heavenly banquet. Yet at the conclusion of Mass we are sent back down the mountain, back to our everyday lives, even though we yearn to be with God. During Lent, we develop this hunger and thirst for God. He is the source of our Christian life and union with Him is the goal and summit of our existence. We continue our Lenten journey—with Abraham, Peter, James and John—confident that the God who is “for us” (Rom. 8:31) will bring to completion the good work He has begun in us.

Catechism Connections ■ To learn more about the prayer and faith of Abraham, see CCC 2570-72. ■ To learn more about the hope of Abraham, see CCC 1819. ■ To learn more about the necessity of Christ’s Passion, see CCC 607. ■ To learn more about the cloud as a symbol of the Holy Spirit, see CCC 697. ■ To learn more about the Transfiguration as a foretaste of the Kingdom, see CCC

554-56, 568.


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Lenten MomentWhy Does Lent Last Forty Days?

The number 40 appears at several key points in salvation history, including: ■ The great flood in lasted 40 days (Gen. 7) ■ Israel wandered 40 years in the desert (Ex. 16:35; Num. 32:13) ■ Moses fasted on the mountain of God for 40 days and nights (Ex. 24:18) ■ Elijah fasted at Mount Horeb for 40 days (1 Kings 19:8) ■ Nineveh was given 40 days to repent (Jon. 3:4) ■ Jesus fasted for 40 days in the desert where He was tempted by the devil before

He began His public ministry (Lk. 4:1-2) The Forty Hours Devotion honors the 40 hours that Jesus’ body rested in the tomb

The number 40 can signify trial, testing, waiting or preparation. What one sees in these passages is that the number 40 generally symbolizes something old passing away and some-thing new beginning. In each of these events there was an entering into new life.

The word “Lent” comes from an Anglo-Saxon word (lencten) that means “spring.” Whether we have the children of Israel entering into the Promised Land after 40 years or Jesus be-ginning His public ministry after 40 days, we can see the fulfillment of divine purpose and promise. When one thinks about it, Lent would make little sense apart from the promise of Easter.

Rome to Home Moving on from the infancy and the hidden life in Nazareth to the public life of Jesus, our contem-plation brings us to those mysteries that may be called in a special way “mysteries of light”. Cer-tainly the whole mystery of Christ is a mystery of light. He is the “light of the world” (John 8:12). Yet this truth emerges in a special way during the years of his public life, when he proclaims the Gospel of the Kingdom. In proposing to the Christian community five significant moments--“luminous” mysteries—during this phase of Christ’s life, I think that the following can be fittingly singled out: (1) his Baptism in the Jordan, (2) his self-manifestation at the wedding of Cana, (3) his proclama-tion of the Kingdom of God, with his call to conversion, (4) his Transfiguration, and finally, (5) his institution of the Eucharist, as the sacramental expression of the Paschal Mystery.

Each of these mysteries is a revelation of the Kingdom now present in the very person of Jesus. . . . The mystery of light par excellence is the Transfiguration, traditionally believed to have taken place on Mount Tabor. The glory of the Godhead shines forth from the face of Christ as the Father com-mands the astonished Apostles to “listen to him” (cf. Luke 9:35 and parallels) and to prepare to experience with him the agony of the Passion, so as to come with him to the joy of the Resurrection and a life transfigured by the Holy Spirit.

—Blessed John Paul II, 2002

Rosarium Virginis Mariae


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Study Questions1. How did God put Abraham to the test in Genesis 22:1-2? As Abraham began to carry out the

Lord’s instructions, his son Isaac asked him a question. What was it and what was Abraham’s answer? (See Gen. 22:7-8)

2. What did God promise to Abraham for not withholding his beloved son Isaac? (See Gen. 22:15-18)

3. What is the connection between Genesis 22:12 and Romans 8:32? Why is Romans 8:32 a source of confidence and consolation for Christians? According to Romans 8:34, what is Christ Jesus doing for us right now?


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4. What teaching did Jesus give to His disciples immediately before the Transfiguration? How did Peter initially respond to this teaching and what did Jesus think of this response? (See Mark 8:31-33)

5. After rebuking Peter, where did Jesus take Peter, James and John? What happened to Jesus there? (See Mk. 9:2-3)

6. What Old Testament figures appeared at the Transfiguration? What was the significance of their appearance? What does the voice from the cloud say? (See Mk. 9:4 & Points to Ponder)


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7. In Deuteronomy 18:15, Moses says that the Lord will raise up another prophet like himself. How does the Father’s message in Mark 9:7 relate to this passage in Deuteronomy? (See Deut. 18:15 & Mk. 9:7)

8. How are all persons of the Holy Trinity present at the Transfiguration? What is the significance of this event for Christians today? (See CCC 555 & 556)

Voices of the Saints Dearly beloved, these things were not said only for the profit of the three apostles on the mountain, but for the profit of the whole Church. Let all men’s faith be strengthened by the preaching of the most holy Gospel, and let no one be ashamed of Christ’s cross, through which the world was redeemed. And let no one fear to suffer for righteousness’ sake, or doubt the fulfillment of the promises, for this reason: that through toil, we pass to rest and, through death, to life. Christ assumed all the weakness of our humanity. If we abide in trust and love of Him, we conquer as He conquered and receive what He promised. Whether in the perfor-mance of His commands or in the endurance of adversities, the Father’s voice should always be sounding in our ears, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him,” Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.

—Pope St. Leo the Great

Sermon 51


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Questions for Reflection1. Pope John Paul II referred to the Transfiguration as “a foretaste of the contemplation yet to

come.” Do I prepare for heaven through the practice of daily prayer? Is prayer something I long for or is it simply an item to check off on my “to-do” list? Can I resolve this week to incorporate prayer, especially Eucharistic adoration into my daily routine?

2. The Transfiguration reminds us during our journey of Lent that we have “dual citizenship.” We are citizens not only of this passing world, but also of heaven. Is there anything hindering me right now from living as a citizen of heaven? How can I more fully live this week as someone who was made for more than what this world has to offer?


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Notes


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Lent Cycle BWeek 3: Time to Clean HouseIntroductionOur readings this week begin with the account of the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses on Mt. Sinai (Ex. 20:1-17). The Commandments are an expression of the law written on the human heart, and they represent our fundamental duties toward God and neighbor.

Christ Himself upheld the importance of obeying God’s Law. When Christ was asked what one must do to attain eternal life, He affirmed that one must keep the Commandments (Mt.19:16-19). Yet He went further, calling us to detach ourselves from all that we have and follow Him (Mt.19:20-21). This requirement to follow Jesus—one who ultimately was crucified as a criminal—is folly to the world, but the key to unleashing the power of God within us, as we discover in this week’s second reading (1Cor.1:23-24).

The Gospel for the Third Sunday of Lent recalls Jesus’ confrontation with the moneychangers in the Temple. This episode is found in all four Gospels (cf. Mt. 21:12-13; Mk. 11:15-17; Lk. 19:45-46; Jn. 2:13-22). On this Sunday, we will consider the account near the beginning of St. John’s Gospel as Jesus embarks upon His public ministry. This scene is often referred to as “the cleansing of the

Temple,” signaling the end of the animal sacrifices of the Old Covenant and the inauguration of a new stage of salvation his-tory: “The hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father” (Jn. 4:21; see CCC 586).

Church Fathers such as Origen have interpreted this Gospel passage spiritually, with all the animals and moneychangers representing attachments and sins that are turning our souls—our own interior sanctuary or temple where we encounter God—into dens of iniquity (Mt. 21:13). We need Christ to come to us, especially during this sea-son, to “clean house,” to renew us, so that we are no longer just going through the motions, but rather become filled with zeal for the things of God (Jn. 2:17).

"Zeal for your house will consume me"


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Old Testament Reading: Exodus 20:1-171In those days, God delivered all these commandments: 2”I, the LORD, am your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that place of slavery. 3You shall not have other gods besides me. 4You shall not carve idols for yourselves in the shape of anything in the sky above or on the earth below or in the waters beneath the earth; 5you shall not bow down before them or worship them. For I, the LORD, your God, am a jealous God, inflicting punishment for their fathers’ wickedness on the children of those who hate me, down to the third and fourth genera-tion; 6but bestowing mercy down to the thousandth generation on the children of those who love me and keep my commandments. 7”You shall not take the name of the LORD, your God, in vain. For the LORD will not leave unpunished the one who takes his name in vain. 8”Remember to keep holy the sabbath day. 9Six days you may labor and do all your work, 10but the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD, your God. No work may be done then either by you, or your son or daughter, or your male or female slave, or your beast, or by the alien who lives with you. 11In six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the LORD has blessed the sabbath day and made it holy. 12”Honor your father and your mother, that you may have a long life in the land which the LORD, your God, is giving you. 13You shall not kill. 14You shall not commit adultery. 15You shall not steal. 16You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 17You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male or female slave, nor his ox or ass, nor anything else that belongs to him.”

New Testament Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:22-2522Brothers and sisters: Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24but to those who are called, Jews and Greeks alike, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.

Gospel Reading: John 2:13-2513Since the Passover of the Jews was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14He found in the temple area those who sold oxen, sheep, and doves, as well as the money changers seat-ed there. 15He made a whip out of cords and drove them all out of the temple area, with the sheep and oxen, and spilled the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables, 16and to those who sold doves he said, “Take these out of here, and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.” 17His disciples recalled the words of Scripture, Zeal for your house will consume me. 18At this the Jews answered and said to him, “What sign can you show us for doing this?” 19Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews said, 20”This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and you will raise it up in three days?” 21But he was speaking about the temple of his body. 22Therefore, when he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they came to believe the Scripture and the word Jesus had spoken. 23While he was in Jerusalem for the feast of Passover, many began to believe in his name when they saw the signs he was doing. 24But Jesus would not trust himself to them because he knew them all, 25and did not need anyone to testify about human nature. He himself understood it well.


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Points to Ponder

Exodus 20:1-17After their escape from slavery in Egypt, Israel came to Mt. Sinai, the “mountain of God.” This is where God originally had appeared to Moses in the burning bush (Ex. 3:1; Mt. Sinai is also known as Mt. Horeb). Moses went up the mountain and God gave him a message for all the people. This message is the first reading for this week’s liturgy, and is known as the Ten Commandments, or Decalogue.The condensed catechetical formula for the Ten Commandments is as follows:

1. I am the LORD your God: you shall not have strange Gods before me.

2. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.

3. Remember to keep holy the LORD’S day.

4. Honor your father and your mother.

5. You shall not kill.

6. You shall not commit adultery.

7. You shall not steal.

8. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

9. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife.

10. You shall not covet your neighbor’s goods.

When the people saw the thunder, lightning and smoke, they became frightened. They backed away and said to Moses: “You speak to us, and we will hear; but let not God speak to us, lest we die” (Ex. 20:19). So Moses represented the people before God, who gave him a more detailed version of the laws by which Israel would live as His chosen people. God and Israel entered a covenant: “From the cov-enant of Sinai onwards, this people is “his own” and it is to be a “holy (or “consecrated”: the same word is used for both in Hebrew) nation” (CCC 2810).For this reason, the Ten Commandments must be understood in light of God’s covenant with Israel, through which He revealed Himself and made known His will for them. In keeping the Command-ments, the people demonstrated their commitment to God.Even though Jesus came to give us a new law and a new covenant, He stressed that His followers must keep the Commandments. He did not come to abolish the Ten Commandments, but to fulfill them ( Mt. 5:17-20).Our Lord invites us to discover the Ten Commandments anew during this Lenten season. He lived them perfectly and revealed their full meaning. Even more, He now gives us His Holy Spirit so that we can keep the Commandments, despite our fallen nature. He also has left us the Sacrament of Reconciliation, so that He can pour out His abundant mercy upon us whenever we fail to live the Commandments.


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Another word for the Ten Commandments is the Decalogue, which means “ten words” (Ex. 34:28). These “words” summarize the law given by God to Moses as the basis for living in a manner that is pleasing to God.

These “words” are perennially valid and in fact are rooted in our very nature (see CCC 2070-71). For that reason, Christians must keep the Commandments. They express our fundamental duties owed in justice toward God and neighbor (Mt. 22:36-40). Upon this foundation, the virtues of faith, hope, and especially charity are able to flourish within us.

1 Corinthians 1:22-25In our second reading, St. Paul clearly distinguishes divine wisdom from the human wisdom of the Greek philosophers in Corinth. The city of Corinth was a thriving, prosperous city during St. Paul’s time. Greece was known for its orators and philosophers who were very clever in human terms. At the same time, Corinth was a center of pagan worship and immorality. In some ways, it might remind us of our own Western culture today.

To this culture, Christ crucified was sheer folly. The dictionary defines “folly” as a lack of good sense or normal prudence. The Greeks may have thought of Christ crucified as folly in that sense.

However, folly also can mean an excessively costly or unprofitable undertaking. The Greeks certainly thought the preaching of Christ crucified was folly in that sense. The cross did not make sense and many did not want to pay the “cost” of discipleship, even though the message expressed by St. Paul may have otherwise appealed to their interest in new ideas.

The Jews, meanwhile, were looking for “signs,” or miracles to authenticate Christ’s claims to be the Messiah even though when He did work miracles they largely failed to believe in Him. For them, crucifixion was not only a sign of defeat but a divine curse (Deut. 21:22-23). Yet, Christ took on the curse and thereby ransomed us (Gal. 3:13). Through His apparent “powerlessness” and defeat on the cross, Christ became the source of our salvation (CCC 272).

The truth is the cross shows God’s power, despite the apparent weakness and it shows forth God’s wis-dom, despite the apparent folly. Christ is divine wisdom personified and we partake in this wisdom through the grace of the sacraments. St. Paul will later tell his readers that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (1Cor.6:19)—through Baptism our God dwells within us!

Pope Benedict XVI has challenged all to bear witness publicly to their Christian faith, to engage a surrounding culture that may consider the Gospel sheer folly. May we be confident in the “power of God” and “wisdom of God” (1Cor.1:24) as we go deeper in our own faith in Jesus Christ and bear witness to Him in a skeptical world.

John 2:13-25Unlike the other Gospels writers, St. John places the episode of the cleansing of the Temple toward the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. We read that the Jewish feast of Passover was at hand and that Jesus, an observant Jew, (CCC 583), goes “up to Jerusalem” to celebrate the feast (Jn. 2:13). Yet, coming on the heels of the Wedding at Cana, Jesus is about to inaugurate a new covenant that will radically supersede the Temple ritual of the old covenant.

During the Passover, because of the extra pilgrims, the outer Temple was full of moneychangers and traders who were selling animals and exchanging currency so as to facilitate various sacrifices and the payment of the annual Temple tax. He was angered that this space had become a place of commerce

http://www.mycatholicfaithdelivered.com/singlecontentrender.aspx?url=http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/exodus/exodus34.htm


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and even robbery (Mt. 21:12-13; Mk. 11:17; Lk. 19:46). Jesus drove the merchants out of there out of a jealous love for His Father (CCC 584). The overturning of the tables and the driving out of the animals prophetically signified the end of animal sacrifice in the Temple.

In later recalling this event, the disciples remembered Psalm 69:9: “Zeal for your father’s house will consume me” (Jn. 2:17), and applied those words to Jesus, who called God “Father” and forcefully came to His defense. This Psalm describes the lamentation of the psalmist who is pained by the blasphemies of those around him. Jesus is outraged that the Temple has become more of a com-mercial center than a house of prayer.

When asked for a sign in verse 18, Jesus responded by challenging those who questioned Him to destroy “this temple” and in three days He would raise it up again (Jn. 2:19). His listeners un-derstood Him as referring to the Temple in Jerusalem, which took 46 years to build, while Jesus meant—as His disciples eventually understood—the temple of His body, which would eventually replace the Temple. Jesus did rise in glory on the third day, while the Temple in Jerusalem was de-stroyed in 70 A.D. (CCC 586).

The Temple in Jerusalem was the location selected by God to manifest His presence to the chosen people. It was where He made His dwelling. Yet, this was but a foreshadowing of God’s ultimate presence among us, which occurred when the Word became flesh (cf. Jn.1:14; Heb.1:1-2). Jesus who in “the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily” (Col. 2:9), is the true and definitive “temple” of God.

Even now that Our risen Lord has ascended into heaven, Jesus Christ—God incarnate—is present with us in an exceptional way in the most Blessed Sacrament. When we receive the Eucharist, Our Lord comes to dwell within us, making us temples, or living tabernacles, of the divine (cf. Cor.6:19).

The final verses of this passage raise a couple interesting issues. For one thing, St. John affirms that Our Lord knew what was in the human heart, which reflects a knowledge that exceeds human capabilities. The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (no. 90) summarizes the mystery of Jesus’ human and divine knowledge this way:

“With his human intellect Jesus learned many things by way of experience; but also as man the Son of God had an intimate and immediate knowledge of God his Father. He likewise understood people’s secret thoughts and he knew fully the eternal plans which he had come to reveal” (see also CCC 472-74).

On the one hand, some people came to believe in Jesus when He exhibited knowledge of what was on their hearts, such as in the case of Nathaniel (Jn. 1:49) and the Samaritan woman (Jn. 4:29). On the other hand, there were those who recognized Him perhaps as a miracle worker, but not as the Lord of their lives. Jesus recognizes this deficient faith on the part of some of His followers. Yet, Our Lord meets us where we are, as we see in the next episode of St. John’s Gospel (3:1-15), where Christ does not turn His back on Nicodemus, who sincerely desires to understand Christ’s message better.

The challenge to us is our own response to Our Lord. Are we simply looking to Him for “signs” or earthly blessings according to our own desires? Or are we willing to step out in faith, as St. Peter did a few chapters later in St. John’s Gospel, when He said on behalf of Jesus’ faithful disciples: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life; and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God” (6:68-69; see also Jn. 4:42).


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Tying It All TogetherOne does not “dabble” in Christianity. God desires that we be “all in” when it comes to our commit-ment as followers of Jesus Christ. In the first reading, we are reminded that this commitment entails living in conformity with God’s holy Law. In the second reading, we are reminded that this com-mitment is truly counter-cultural, that many will not understand, at least at first, our willingness to devote our lives to Christ crucified.

And then in the Gospel we encounter a Savior who was decidedly dissatisfied with the status quo, whose zeal for His Father’s house—and for our salvation—consumed Him. He brought swift and dra-matic changes to Temple worship, as He overturned tables and spilled the coins of the moneychang-ers.

This Lent, Christ wants to work some subtle and perhaps some not-so-subtle changes in our own lives. What is our response? Do we cower in fear or wallow in complacency? Or do we use this time to turn back to Jesus, despite our sins and frailty and believe the Word that He speaks to us today (John 2:22).

Catechism Connections ■ To learn more about how the Church understands the Ten Commandments, see

CCC 2052-82. ■ To learn more about the mystery of God’s apparent powerlessness, see CCC 272-

74. ■ To learn more about Jesus and the Temple, see CCC 583-86. ■ To learn more about Christ’s human knowledge, see CCC 473-74. ■ To learn more about the covenant between God and Israel on Mt. Sinai, see CCC

2810.


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Lenten MomentAre Sundays of Lent days of penance?

Sundays of Lent have a penitential character but one markedly different from that of the weekdays of Lent. Because Sunday is primarily a day of celebration of the resurrection (CCC 2174, 2177), it is not counted among the “forty days” of Lent that are traditionally marked by fasting.

“The Sunday Eucharist is the foundation and confirmation of all Christian practice” (CCC 2181) and retains its essential character as a day marked by “worship owed to God, the joy proper to the Lord’s Day, the performance of the works of mercy and the appropriate relaxation of mind and body” (CCC 2185).

Nevertheless, the entire season of Lent, including the Sundays of Lent, is a time of pen-ance. The penitential character of Sundays of Lent is reflected in the wearing of violet vestments and the prayers and readings of the Sunday Masses. It is also reflected in the prohibitions of the singing of the Gloria and the Alleluia, the adorning of the altar with flowers,and the playing of the organ and other instruments (except for the purpose of merely sustaining singing).

The discipline of the Church and the piety of Christians throughout the centuries dem-onstrate that penance is expressed differently on Sundays of Lent from weekdays of Lent. In the early Middle Ages in the West, the weekdays of Lent were days of fast (one meal) and abstinence (at that time, from dairy products as well as from meat), while Sundays of Lent were days of abstinence only. The Holy See later permitted meat and dairy products to be eaten on Sundays of Lent. Today, of course, only Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are days of fast and abstinence (from meat), while all the Fridays of Lent are days of ab-stinence.

Penance extends beyond fasting. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:

“The seasons and days of penance in the course of the liturgical year (Lent, and each Fri-day in memory of the death of the Lord) are intense moments of the Church’s penitential practice. These times are particularly appropriate for spiritual exercises, penitential litur-gies, pilgrimages as signs of penance, voluntary self-denial such as fasting and almsgiving, and fraternal sharing (charitable and missionary works)” (CCC 1438).

Sundays of Lent, then, have a penitential character, which may include spiritual practices such as prayer, almsgiving, pilgrimages, and retreats, without in any way losing the sense of their being set apart as the “Lord’s Day.”

Rome to Home The Evangelists tell us that in Jesus’ trial false witnesses were produced who asserted that Jesus had said: “I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days” (Mt. 26:61). In front of Christ hanging on the Cross some people, taunting him, referred to these same words: “You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself!” (Mt. 27:40).

The correct version of these words as Jesus spoke them has been passed on to us by John in his ac-count of the purification of the temple. In response to the request for a sign by which Jesus could justify himself for such an action, the Lord replied: “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will


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raise it up” (Jn. 2: 18ff.). John adds that, thinking back to this event of the Resurrection, the disciples realized that Jesus had been referring to the Temple of his Body (cf. 2:21ff.). It is not Jesus who de-stroys the temple; it is left to destruction by the attitude of those who transformed it from being a place for the encounter of all peoples with God into a “den of robbers,” a haven for their dealings. But as always, beginning with Adam’s fall, human failure becomes the opportunity for us to be even more committed to love of God. The time of the temple built of stone, the time of animal sacrifices, is now passed: The fact that the Lord now expels the merchants does not only prevent an abuse but points to God’s new way of acting. The new Temple is formed: Jesus Christ himself, in whom God’s love de-scends upon human beings. He, by his life, is the new and living Temple. He who passed through the Cross and was raised is the living space of spirit and life in which the correct form of worship is made.

Thus, the purification of the temple, as the culmination of Jesus’ solemn entry into Jerusalem, is at the same time the sign of the impending ruin of the edifice and the promise of the new Temple; a promise of the kingdom of reconciliation and love which, in communion with Christ, is established beyond any boundary.

— Pope Benedict XVI

Palm Sunday 2008

Study Questions1. In Exodus 20:5 what adjective does God use to describe Himself? How does His mercy compare

to His justice? (See Ex. 20:5-6)

2. Why did God command His people to remember to keep holy the Sabbath day? What is the re-ward for honoring one’s father and mother? (See Ex. 20:11-12)


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3. What do the following passages teach us about true wisdom:

a. Deuteronomy 4:4-6

b. Sirach 24:1-3

c. Sirach 24:9

d. Wisdom 7:22

e. Proverbs 9:10

4. The Greeks in St. Paul’s time valued “wisdom.” How does St. Paul in the second reading dis-tinguish this wisdom from the wisdom of God embodied by Jesus Christ? (See 1Cor.1:18-25).

5. We learn in1Cor.1:23 that Christ crucified is a “stumbling block to the Jews” Why? How does St. Paul address this objection in Galatians 3:13-14? (See Deut. 21:22-23)


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6. In John 2:13-17, we see Jesus respond in anger to the moneychangers in the Temple. Why? (See CCC 584)

7. When the Jews asked Jesus to justify His behavior in the Temple what was His response and was His response readily understood by His listeners? What did Jesus mean when He said, “destroy this temple” and when did His disciples remember this prophecy? (See Jn.2:18-22)

8. Why didn’t Jesus trust Himself to those who believed in Him upon seeing the signs He per-formed? (Jn.2:23-25). How do these final verses of John 2 show Jesus’ divinity? (See CCC 473)


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Voices of the Saints “The Lord prescribed love towards God and taught justice towards neighbor, so that man would be neither unjust, nor unworthy of God. Thus, through the Decalogue, God prepared man to become his friend and to live in harmony with his neighbor. . . . The words of the Decalogue remain likewise for us Christians. Far from being abolished, they have received amplification and development from the fact of the coming of the Lord in the flesh.”

—St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Against the Heresies

Questions for Reflection1. What place do the Commandments have in my life? Do I strive to live in a manner that is pleas-

ing to God? What can I do this Lenten season to recommit myself to the Lord?

2. If Christ were to enter the “temple” of my life, what would He find? Is my life full of attachment to things that take me away from God? What can I do, with God’s grace, to get my own house in order this week?


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NOTES:


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"Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up"

Lent Cycle B

Week 4: The Depth of God’s LoveIntroductionThe Fourth Sunday of Lent is known as Laetare Sunday. “Laetare” means “rejoice.” Even though Lent is generally a season of fasting and penance, the Church reminds us now at the midpoint of our Lenten journey that Our Lord has not come to condemn us because of our sins, but rather to save us from them. We often need such reminders. That’s why St. Paul tells us, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice” (Phil. 4:4). Why? Rejoice because “the Lord is near” (Phil. 4:5).

Our readings hardly begin with such a message of encouragement and joy. Rather, the selection from 2 Chronicles 36 provides a horrifying image of Israel’s infidelity, for which Scripture says “there was no remedy” (2 Chron. 36:16). The city and Temple are destroyed, and the people who survive the onslaught are taken captive to Babylon.

Yet, God never stops caring for His people. While He allows Israel to experience for a time the con-sequences of their sins, His saving plan is not thwarted. For God is “rich in mercy,” and out of His

“great love” (Eph. 2:4) for sinful hu-manity He sends His son in the full-ness of time to save us (Gal. 4:4-7). The second reading, from St. Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, reminds us that we have done nothing to deserve this kindness, and we have no basis for boasting, as though we were able to make things right with God on our own. We who believe in Christ are saved through faith in Him, which is God’s free gift to us (Eph. 2:8-9).

In the Gospel we see the movement of leaving behind the darkness of sin and coming to the light of Christ, who is the source of eternal life. John 3:16 is one of the most popular Bible verses, and for good reason. In this verse, we come to grips with the depth of God’s love for us, who sent His Son to save us. This is the “Good News,” the light at the end of the tun-nel that even now beckons us to turn back to God with all our hearts this Lenten season.


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Old Testament Reading: 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-2314In those days, all the princes of Judah, the priests, and the people added infidelity to in-fidelity, practicing all the abominations of the nations and polluting the LORD’s temple which he had consecrated in Jerusalem. 15Early and often did the LORD, the God of their fathers, send his messengers to them, for he had compassion on his people and his dwelling place. 16But they mocked the messengers of God, despised his warnings, and scoffed at his prophets, until the anger of the LORD against his people was so inflamed that there was no remedy. 19Their enemies burnt the house of God, tore down the walls of Jerusalem, set all its palaces afire, and destroyed all its precious objects. 20Those who escaped the sword were carried captive to Babylon, where they became servants of the king of the Chaldeans and his sons until the kingdom of the Persians came to power. 21All this was to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah: “Until the land has retrieved its lost sabbaths, during all the time it lies waste it shall have rest while seventy years are fulfilled.” 22In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah, the LORD inspired King Cyrus of Persia to issue this proclamation throughout his kingdom, both by word of mouth and in writing: 23”Thus says Cyrus, king of Persia: All the king-doms of the earth the LORD, the God of heaven, has given to me, and he has also charged me to build him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever, therefore, among you belongs to any part of his people, let him go up, and may his God be with him!”

New Testament Reading: Ephesians 2:4-104Brothers and sisters: God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love he had for us, 5even when we were dead in our transgressions, brought us to life with Christ -by grace you have been saved-, 6raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, 7that in the ages to come He might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; 9it is not from works, so no one may boast. 10For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them.

Gospel Reading: John 3:14-2114Jesus said to Nicodemus: “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” 16For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. 18Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil. 20For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed. 21But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.


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Points to Ponder

2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23In the first reading, we hear of the destruction of Jerusalem. Invading forces burned down the Temple and tore down the walls of the city. Many were killed amidst the devastation and those who survived were taken captive to Babylon.

What brought all this about? The passage tells us that the people were unfaithful, that they had abandoned the law God had given them. They were meant to be a “holy nation” (Ex.19:6). There were called to be a light to the nations and instrument of salvation for the world. Instead, the cho-sen people added infidelity to infidelity (2 Chron. 36:14) and engaged in the abominable pagan practices of the neighboring peoples.

Not only that, but God in His compassion tried to call them back to fidelity the “easy way,” by send-ing prophets to them. Yet, these messengers from God were “mocked,” despised” and “scoffed at” by the people (2 Chron. 36:16). At that point, there was “no remedy” and the anger of the Lord was inflamed.

Here we should note that God’s “anger” is not an emotional response. It’s not that God threw a fit or became vindictive in His treatment of Judah. Rather, God’s anger is purifying. Israel was like a house that had fallen into such disrepair of its own volition that it needed to be gutted before it could be rebuilt. He therefore allowed Israel to experience the effects of their national sin that as we see in our Responsorial Psalm (137), brought home the gravity of their infidelity. They longed to return to Jerusalem.

In the end, the first reading is a message of hope. Just as God used foreign powers as instruments of His cleansing justice, He also used King Cyrus of Persia as the instrument of His mercy, to shepherd the people and bring about the rebuilding of the Temple (Is. 44:28-45:1, 4).

Behind the great story of salvation—the creation and fall, God’s covenants with the chosen people despite their infidelity and refusal to heed the prophets, the desolation of captivity and the rebuild-ing of Jerusalem—we see God’s desire to make things right in the world. Even as we suffer the ef-fects of sin—our own personal sins and the sins of others, as well as the brokenness of our fallen human condition, we know that God’s plan is not that we should perish. Rather, God’s purpose is that we may have abundant life (Jn.10:10). This story of God reaching out to us in love reaches its climax in the coming of Jesus Christ who liberates us from our captivity to sin and death.

Ephesians 2:4-10In the opening line of our second reading, we hear that the Lord is “rich in mercy” (Eph. 2:4). We can understand mercy as being nothing other than the love of God when it is directed toward sinful man, consisting of loving kindness, compassion and forebearance.

Blessed John Paul II gave his 1980 encyclical letter on mercy the title, “Rich in Mercy” (Dives in Misericordia). In this profound teaching, the Holy Father gave an overview of the biblical under-standing of mercy:

“[I]n their preaching the prophets link mercy, which they often refer to because of the people’s sins, with the incisive image of love on God’s part. The Lord loves Israel with the love of a special choos-ing, much like the love of a spouse and for this reason He pardons its sins and even its infidelities


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and betrayals. When He finds repentance and true conversion, He brings His people back to grace. In the preaching of the prophets, mercy signifies a special power of love, which prevails over the sin and infidelity of the chosen people” (no. 4).

The New Testament also proclaims the mercy of God. The parable of the prodigal son (Lk.15:11-32) in a particularly poignant way teaches us that our heavenly Father is always willing to take us back when we foolishly stray away from Him. This revelation of mercy culminates in the mystery of Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection, in which we discover that God’s merciful love is stronger than death itself (Song 8:6).

St. Paul stresses in today’s reading that we were “dead” because of our sins (Eph. 2:5). Clearly we were beyond our ability to help ourselves, so we cannot boast or take credit for the new life that we have received in Christ. Rather, we are saved by virtue of God’s grace through faith (Eph. 2:8), which is nothing other than God’s free and undeserved gift to us.

Christ now reigns in heaven. Through our Baptism, we become part of His body, the Church. In Baptism we not only die with Christ but are also lifted up with Him, so that we truly become a “new creation” in Him (Rom. 6:3-4; 2 Cor. 5:17). This point is highlighted by the recurring use of the prep-osition “with” in Ephesians 2:5-6. As Christians we participate in a real way in Christ’s life as sons and daughters of God Rom. 8:14-17; Gal. 4:4-7; 2 Pet. 1:4; 1 Jn. 3:1). As in the parable of the prodigal son, we find ourselves welcomed into our Father’s house as children who were lost—who were dead—but now fully restored to life (Lk. 15:32).

Ephesians 2:8 makes clear that faith itself is God’s gift to us. This point was explained at Vatican II (1962-65), in the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum), in turn quoting a fourth-century council:

“To make [an] act of faith, the grace of God and the interior help of the Holy Spirit must precede and assist, moving the heart and turning it to God, opening the eyes of the mind and giving joy and ease to everyone in assenting to the truth and believing it” (no. 5).

While we are saved by grace through faith, St. Paul tells us we are saved for good works (Eph. 2:10). We are God’s workmanship. We are fearfully and wonderfully made (Ps. 139:14). We were part of God’s plan from all eternity, and that plan entails our freely associating ourselves with Christ’s saving activity. However, because of our fallen nature, we need divine grace to perform meritorious works (see generally CCC 2006-11). Here we see the marvelous interplay of the divine (grace) and human (works/merit) in God’s saving plan.

John 3:14-21Moses lifted up the bronze serpent in the wilderness as a sign. Here we see the depths of God’s love playing itself out. Though through our disobedience the human family had lost its friendship with God, He did not abandon us to the domain of death but continually extended His mercy and the hope of salvation—a hope realized when out of love He sent His only-begotten Son to be our Savior. When through faith and Baptism we enter into the mystery of God’s love, we are able to say with St. Paul, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:20).

We note that in verse 15 and again in verse 16 we hear that Christ has come to give us eternal life. This is a new kind of life. It is not the natural life, which gradually fades away but supernatural divine life without end. The glossary to the Catechism defines it as “living forever with God in the happiness of heaven, entered after death by the souls of those who die in the grace and friendship of God” (CCC


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988, 1020). Yet while we will not attain the fullness of eternal life while we walk the earth, we par-ticipate in this new, abundant life even now as members of the pilgrim Church.

We also notice that those who do not believe in Jesus are condemned (Jn. 3:18). This does not mean that those who are not Catholic, or not even Christian, cannot be saved (CCC 846-48). But it does affirm that unbelief can be a form of rebellion against God that could keep us from the light of Christ and all the good things God wants to give us. After all, God is offering us the pearl of great price. By rejecting such treasure, we can indeed condemn ourselves for all eternity (CCC 679).

In contrast, the Gospel calls us to believe in Jesus and to live in the light (Jn. 3:21), bearing witness in our lives to the Savior of the world.

Tying It All TogetherGod did not leave His chosen people in exile in Babylon. Nor does He want to leave any of us dead in our sins and in exile from our heavenly inheritance. We see throughout salvation history God’s overarching desire and purpose is to share His love with us. Despite the familiar refrain of human infidelity and ingratitude, God has continually called us back to Himself until, in the fullness of time (Gal. 4:4), He sent His Son to prove definitively the depth of His merciful love for each one of us.

We are God’s handiwork. He created us and saved us to live as His family in the light of His truth. We often live in shadows, not fully in the light and not fully in darkness.

As we now come to the midpoint of this season of repentance, the Church calls us once again to behold the One who was pierced for our transgressions (Is. 53:5; Jn. 19:37). May we redouble our efforts to live fully in the light of Christ, manifesting the good works for which God fashioned us from all eternity.

And with the Church, may our hearts be filled with rejoicing as we recall the unfathomable depths of God’s love for each one of us.

Catechism Connections ■ To learn more about God as love, see CCC 218-21. ■ To learn more about Jesus as God’s only begotten Son, see CCC 441-45, 454. ■ To learn more about what it means to be risen with Christ, see CCC 1002-04. ■ To learn more about grace and merit, see CCC 1996-2011. ■ To learn more about the Sabbath Day as a sign of God’s covenant with mankind,

see CCC 2168-72.


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Lenten MomentLaetare SundayLaetare Sunday is the popular name for the Fourth Sunday in Lent. Its name comes from the first word of the introit (“entrance antiphon”) for the Mass, taken from Isaiah 66:10-11: “La-etare Jerusalem,” which means “Rejoice, O Jerusalem.”

Because the midpoint of Lent is the Thursday of the third week of Lent, Laetare Sunday has traditionally been viewed as a day of celebration, on which the austerity of Lent is slightly relaxed, because today we’re given a glimpse of the joy of Easter. The passage from Isaiah continues, “Exult, exult with her, all you who were mourning over her.” It is a day of joy and exultation.

On Laetare Sunday, therefore, the purple vestments and altar cloths of Lent are set aside, and rose-colored vestments are used instead. Flowers, which are normally forbidden during Lent, may be placed on the altar. Traditionally, the organ was never played during Lent, except on Laetare Sunday.

The custom of rose vestments is tied to the so-called “station churches” in Rome. The station for Laetare Sunday is the Basilica of the Holy Cross of Jerusalem, where the relics of Cross and Passion brought from the Holy Land by St. Helena, mother of the Emperor Constantine, were deposited. On this day, the popes customarily blessed roses made of gold, which were sent to Catholic royalty. The biblical reference is Christ as the “flower” sprung forth from the root of Jesse (Is. 11:1). Thus, the day was also called Dominica de Rosa, or “Rose Sunday.” From there the idea of rose-colored vestments developed. This Roman custom eventually spread to the whole world.

Laetare Sunday has a counterpart in Advent: Gaudete Sunday, the Third Sunday of Advent, when purple vestments are exchanged for rose ones. The point of both days is to provide us encouragement as we progress toward the end of each respective penitential season. For those who get the two days confused, remember that “Lent” and “Laetare” both begin with “L.”

Rome to Home “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life” (Jn. 3:16). These words fill us with joy and hope, as we await the fulfillment of God’s promises! . . .

Today’s first reading . . . is a message of hope addressed to the Chosen People in the land of their Exile, a summons to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the Lord’s Temple. Its vivid description of the destruc-tion and ruin caused by war echoes the personal experience of so many people in this country amid the terrible ravages of the civil war.

The words which Jesus speaks in today’s Gospel are quite striking: He tells us that God’s sentence has already been pronounced upon this world (cf. Jn. 3:19ff). The light has already come into the world.


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Yet men preferred the darkness to the light, because their deeds were evil. How much darkness there is in so many parts of our world! . . .

Yet the word of God is a word of unbounded hope. “God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son . . . so that through him, the world might be saved” (Jn. 3:16-17). God does not give up on us! He continues to lift our eyes to a future of hope, and he promises us the strength to accomplish it.

—Pope Benedict XVI

Excerpt homily 2009

Study Questions1. According to 2 Chronicles 36:15, how did the Lord respond to the infidelity of the Israelites and

what was the response of the people? (2 Chronicles 36:16)

2. Who were the instruments of God’s judgment upon Israel? What happened to Israel? (See 2 Chronicles 36:17-21)

3. According to Ephesians 2:4-5 and Romans 5:8, how does God show His love for us?


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4. This week’s second reading talks about grace, which is God’s gift to us. What do the following verses teach us about grace:

a. Ephesians 2:8

b. Romans 6:23

c. 2 Peter 1:4

d. Romans 4:16

e. 2 Corinthians 5:17-18

5. Ephesians 2:8-10, holds the answer to the following questions:

a. Why should we not boast?

b. Who is God’s workmanship?

c. For what were we created?

6. Why did God send His Son into the world? (See John 3:16-17)


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7. Why do evildoers hate the light and why do those who do good come to the light? (See John 3:19-21)

Voices of the Saints After earth’s exile, I hope to go and enjoy You in the fatherland, but I do not want to lay up merits for heaven. I want to work for Your love alone. . . . In the evening of this life, I shall appear before You with empty hands, for I do not ask You, Lord, to count my works. All our justice is blemished in Your eyes. I wish, then, to be clothed in Your own justice and to receive from Your love the eternal possession of yourself.

—St. Therese of Lisieux

Questions for Reflection1. How do I see God’s plan playing itself out in my own life? Do I try to see moments of prosperity

and success, as well as moments of suffering and setbacks, from God’s perspective?


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2. How often do I reflect on God’s love for me? How does this knowledge of God’s love affect how I live? What resolution can I make for this coming week to reflect the merciful love of God to others?


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Lent Cycle BWeek 5: The Coming of Jesus’ HourIntroductionWith the Fifth Sunday of Lent, we are on the brink of Holy Week. In the first reading we hear that “the days are coming” (Jer. 31:31), which conveys a sense of anticipation. Then we hear in the Gospel that Jesus’ hour has finally come, an hour that has been eagerly awaited throughout St. John’s Gospel; an hour that points us to the purpose of Jesus’ mission: the redemption of the world through His death and Resurrection (Jn. 2:4; 4:21, 23; 5:25; 7:30; 8:20).

God promised through the prophets that He would establish a new covenant with His people. Jesus’ hour points to the establishment of this new and everlasting covenant. This covenant would involve the forgiveness of sins (Jer. 31:34) and the drawing of all people to Himself (Jn. 12:32). This new covenant entails a new law that will not be written on scrolls or on stone tablets, but on the hearts of the faithful (Jer. 31:33), establishing them as children of God.

Christ is both the high priest and the victim of the sacrifice that will reconcile the world with God. As our high priest, He offers Himself to the Father on the cross for our sins (see CCC 616-17). Rather than seek a reprieve from “him who was able to save him from death” (Heb. 5:7), Christ was obedient to His Father’s will to the point of death on the Cross (Lk. 22:42-44; Phil. 2:8; Heb. 5:8-9).

"And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself."


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When Christ says that He will be lifted up, He is not merely describing His imminent crucifixion (Jn. 12:32-33; see also last week’s Gospel, Jn. 3:14-15), but also His glorious Resurrection and Ascension, through which the Father greatly exalts Him and gives Him the name above every other name (Is. 52:13; Phil. 2:9-11).

The Gospel calls us to follow Jesus (cf. Jn. 12:26) and even to hate those aspects of our lives that draw us away from Him (cf. Jn. 12:25). Jesus’ hour is prolonged and made present to us in the Eucharist, where we can unite our sacrifices with His (Lk. 9:23; Rom. 12:1; Col. 1:24), so that our lives, fully given over to God, may bear the fruits of holiness (Jn. 12:24).

Old Testament Reading: Jeremiah 31:31-3431The days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Is-rael and the house of Judah. 32It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers the day I took them by the hand to lead them forth from the land of Egypt; for they broke my cov-enant, and I had to show myself their master, says the LORD. 33But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD.I will place my law with-in them and write it upon their hearts; I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34No longer will they have need to teach their friends and relatives how to know the LORD. All, from least to greatest, shall know me, says the LORD, for I will forgive their evildoing and remem-ber their sin no more.

New Testament Reading: Hebrews 5:7-97In the days when Christ Jesus was in the flesh, he offered prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard be-cause of his reverence. 8Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered; 9and when he was made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him.

Gospel Reading: John 12:20-3320Some Greeks who had come to worship at the Passover Feast 21came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.” 22Philip went and told An-drew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. 23Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. 25Who-ever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life. 26Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there also will my servant be. The Father will honor whoever serves me. 27”I am troubled now. Yet what should I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour?’ But it was for this purpose that I came to this hour. 28Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it and will glorify it again.” 29The crowd there heard it and said it was thunder; but others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30Jesus answered and said, “This voice did not come for my sake but for yours. 31Now is the time of judgment on this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. 32And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself.” 33He said this indicating the kind of death he would die.


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Points to PonderJeremiah 31:31-34In the first reading, Jeremiah foretells a new covenant between God and His people (Jer. 31:31). This covenant would return the tribes of Israel from exile (Jer. 31:1, 3-4, 7-8).

God has been gradually forming His people through a progressive series of covenants, as with Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David. Now Jeremiah foretells a new covenant unlike the others.

God’s law, in the form of the Ten Commandments, was written on stone tablets, instructing the people how to live in right relationship with God. After all, a covenant is an exchange of persons. God promises to be with His people, while the people committed themselves to live a certain way.

These commandments did not come with the grace to keep them. In fact, they were like instruc-tions for playing a new sport or musical instrument. They were imposed from the outside and the people had to adjust to them, often by trial and error. The rules were seen as an imposition or bur-den to a stiff-necked people that was not always willing to be taught or led. As Jeremiah notes, they simply were not faithful to their covenant with God (Jer. 31:32).

Jeremiah, however, says that the new covenant will not be a law imposed from the outside, as on stone tablets, but a law on the “inside,” written on the human heart (Jer. 31:33). This new interior law will become part of who they are. They will no longer need “lessons” or tedious practice, as with a sport or instrument, but rather God’s law will become second nature to them.

With the coming of Christ, the law has taken on flesh. The new covenant in His Blood injects His very life in us. The new law of grace that is the basis of Christian living does not come about through external observance, but through the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, blotting out our sins (Jer. 31:34; CCC 1999). And this new covenant is not merely for the Israelites who were exiled from their homeland, but for all people, who are exiled from God because of their sin.

We initially receive this new law through Baptism, but God is continually shaping us, forming us. When we eat Christ’s Body and drink His Blood in Holy Communion, we welcome Our Lord into our bodies and into our hearts, increasing and renewing the grace received at Baptism (CCC 1392). We not only have God’s law, but the Lawgiver Himself, dwelling within us, fulfilling Jeremiah’s prophecy. Christ’s presence within us transforms us, so that our own wills may be more closely aligned with God’s loving plan for us.

Hebrews 5:7-9Chapter five of the Letter to the Hebrews begins with the qualifications of a high priest: (1) he is chosen from among men and made their representative before God (v. 1); (2) he can offer sacrifice on behalf of the community because he shares in human weakness (vv. 2-3); and (3) he does not take this honor on his own initiative, but only when called by God (v. 4). In the remainder of the chapter, the author demonstrates how Jesus fulfills these qualifications.

Our reading starts at verse 7, with the words, “In the days of his flesh.” Christ identified with sinful humanity, becoming like us in all things but sin (cf. Heb. 4:15). Because Christ identified with us, He was uniquely qualified to be the one mediator between God and man (1 Tim. 2:5), who could stretch out His arms between heaven and earth.

Verse 7 continues: “. . . Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears.” The Greek verb translated here as “offered up” is frequently used in the Letter to the Hebrews in the con-text of priestly sacrifices. After all, a priest is one who “offers” sacrifice to God (Heb. 5:1; 8:3). This


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verse has been traditionally linked to the prayer of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mt. 26:36-46; Mk. 14:32-42; Lk. 22:39-46), especially with that episode’s reference to Jesus’ asking His Father—“who was able to save him” (Heb. 5:7) to let this cup pass from Him (cf. Mt. 26:39). It can also refer to the cross, where His priestly sacrifice reached its climax amidst intense suffering and prayer.

Two qualities of Jesus as high priest jump out in this reading. First, Jesus’ priesthood is an act of free-dom, and thereby an act of love. Indeed, there is no greater love than to give one’s life for one’s friends (Jn. 15:13), and there can be no love without authentic freedom. Christ freely laid down His life for us on the cross (Jn. 10:18). As the Catechism summarizes: “In suffering and death his humanity became the free and perfect instrument of his divine love which desires the salvation of men” (CCC 609).

The other quality is obedience. Christ exercised His freedom by obediently embracing His Father’s will, which entailed His suffering for sinful humanity. Verse 8 says that though He was the Son of God, Christ “learned obedience” through His suffering. This verse does not mean that Jesus was igno-rant of suffering in His divinity, but rather means that He gained experiential knowledge through His heroic acceptance of His Father’s will. His “godly fear” or “reverence” led Him to prefer the Father’s will above all else, so that he remained “obedient unto death” (Phil. 2:8; CCC 612). Therefore, He became the source of salvation for all who in turn obey Him (Heb. 5:9).

Since Christ has united Himself with us, we are able to participate in the work of salvation through our own daily crosses and sacrifices, which acquire a salvific value when we freely unite them to Christ. We all have a share in the priesthood of Christ through our Baptism (1 Pet. 2:9), so that we too may offer our prayers, works, joys, and sufferings for the good of all as part of Christ’s Mystical Body.

John 12:20-33Our Gospel takes place shortly after the event now commonly known as “Palm Sunday” (Jn. 12:12 et seq.), on the threshold of what would become “Holy Week.” A great crowd was there to celebrate the feast of Passover.

Among those in the crowd were some Greeks—perhaps Gentile converts to Judaism or God-fearing foreigners—who wish to see Jesus (Jn. 12:20-21). They turn to the Apostle Philip, who apparently could speak Greek, since he was from Bethsaida (Jn. 12:21), where there was a significant number of Greek-speaking Jews. Philip took them to Jesus. It has ever since been the mission of the Church to bring seekers to Jesus.

Also in this incident we see the beginning of the fulfillment of Jesus’ words from the end of the Gos-pel that He will draw all people to Himself (Jn. 12:32) in a universal covenant that will include Jew and Gentile alike (Gal. 3:26-28). In fact, the coming of the foreigners to see Jesus coincides with the coming of Jesus’ hour to be glorified (Jn. 12:23).

Jesus’ glorification, His establishment in power, is tied to His suffering and death. He goes on to say that unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains a grain of wheat. But if it dies, it will bear much fruit (Jn. 12:24). Jesus empties Himself on the cross, and in laying down His life He has become the source of eternal life for all.

Similarly, those who wish to come after Christ must be willing to lay down their life for Christ and for their neighbor. John 12:25 teaches that as we die to ourselves we don’t experience loss but gain. If we cling to ourselves and our selfish inclinations we are the seed that bears no fruit. But if we truly live for others, living as the seed that willing to die, God infuses us with His life and His grace. We know that if we follow Christ in this way, the Father will honor us and welcome us as His children (Jn. 12:26).


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In John 12:26-27, Jesus gives voice to His human anguish at the prospect of what awaits Him in the coming days. In fact, this is just the sort of prayers, supplications, and loud cries we heard about in the second reading (cf. Heb. 5:7). There is the sense that even now Jesus could ask His Father to save Him from death. Yet, Jesus embraces His mission of coming into the world as Savior. That is the very purpose of His life (Jn. 12:27). He knows that He must be the seed that falls to the ground and dies so as to bring forth a bountiful harvest.

Significantly, as at His Baptism (Mt. 3:13-17) and the Transfiguration (Mt. 17:1-5), God the Father speaks audibly to Jesus in the presence of others, thus confirming Jesus’ divinity (Jn. 12:28-29). He does so not for Jesus’ sake but for the sake of others, that they may believe in the One whom He had sent (Jn. 12:30).

In verse 31, Jesus twice refers to “this world.” Here he is speaking of the fallen world under the domination of Satan, the prince of this world (Jn. 14:30). While Satan’s reign began with Adam and Eve’s rebellion in the Garden of Eden, so now Satan’s reign is destroyed by the new and last Adam, the Son of Mary, the new Eve (see CCC 2853).

The Gospel ends with the statement of Jesus to the effect that when He is lifted up, He will draw all people to Himself (Jn. 12:32). We learn in the next verse that Jesus is speaking primarily of His crucifixion when He refers to being “lifted up” (Jn. 12:33). Yet this also suggests His Resurrection and Ascension into heaven where He reigns as our king and eternal high priest (see CCC 662). In Isaiah, we hear that the Lord’s suffering servant, who “makes himself an offering for sin” (Is. 53:10), “shall be exalted and lifted up, and shall be very high” (Is. 52:13).

Our Lord makes clear that His being “lifted up” is for everyone, as He desires to gather everyone into the family of God. The good news of Christ is for all the nations (Mt. 28:18-20), and it’s the ful-fillment of the promise made to Abraham that his offspring would one day be the source of blessing for all the nations of the earth (Gen. 22:18).

Tying It All TogetherWe are the beneficiaries of the new covenant about which Jeremiah prophesied in our first reading. Yet do I live as though God’s law is written on my heart? Is it evident to my own friends, relatives, and colleagues that I “know the Lord” (Jer. 31:34). These final days of Lent beckon us to renew our baptismal covenant in the depths of our heart. We do this by praying to God with reverence and trust (Heb. 5:7), and by totally giving over our lives to Him in a spirit of obedience and fidelity, es-pecially by joining our sacrifices with Him in the Eucharist.

In this, Jesus gives us the model. In the Gospel He likened our discipleship to a grain of wheat that must die in order to give new life. He calls us not to cling to ourselves, but rather to die to self for the glory of God and for the good of our brothers and sisters. We are to put our own lives on the line so that others, like the Greeks in this Sunday’s Gospel (Jn. 12:20-21), may find Jesus.

Jesus says that when He is lifted up on the cross He will draw all people to Himself. This is a seem-ingly strange statement because we typically run from the cross, which after all is a sign of our rejection of God. Yet we are drawn to Christ crucified because it represents the love of Jesus, who extends His arms on the cross so as to embrace us and to shower His mercy upon us (Jer. 31:34). May we discover anew this generosity and sacrificial love within our hearts, leading us to follow as Jesus leads (Jn. 12:26).


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Catechism Connections ■ To learn more about the role of the prophets in preparing Israel for the new cov-

enant, see CCC 64, 762. ■ To learn more about how Christ’s obedience atones for our disobedience, see

CCC 410-12. ■ To learn more about Jesus and the Law, see CCC 577-82. ■ To learn more about Christ’s offering of Himself to His Father for our sins, see

CCC 606-18. ■ To learn more about the prayer of the hour of Jesus, see CCC 2746-51.

Lenten MomentWhy Is There No Alleluia During Lent?

We should notice several changes in the Mass during Lent. The most distinctive liturgical change during the season of Lent is the removal of “Alleluia” from any and every celebra-tion. Both Advent and Lent share the same liturgical color, and both drop the Gloria from the seasonal Masses, but only Lent forbids the use of “Alleluia.” We notice this change most especially before the Gospel, when we sing “Glory and Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ” or some other alternative to “Alleluia.” Yet this ban also applies to liturgical music as well as the Liturgy of the Hours.

Alleluia, or “Hallelu-yah” is of Hebrew origin, meaning “Praise Yahweh.” It occurs in Scrip-ture, particularly in the Psalms, and is associated with the praise and jubilation of the choirs of angels around God’s throne in Heaven. In the Mass, we enter into the praise and joy of angelic worship as we receive a foretaste of heavenly glory.

Because of the penitential character of the season of Lent, singing or saying the word “alleluia” has historically been suspended during Lent’s forty days. During this season we reflect on our need for repentance to the extent we have fallen short in living out our baptismal faith.

The omission of alleluia during Lent goes back at least to the fifth century in the West. The hymn “Alleluia, Song of Gladness” contains a translation of an 11th century Latin text that compares an alleluia-less Lent to the exile of the Israelites in Babylon. The text then antici-pates the joy of Easter when glad alleluias will return in all their heavenly splendor.

At the Easter Vigil, the priest or deacon will chant a triple Alleluia before he reads the Gospel, and everyone present will respond with a triple Alleluia. The Lord is risen; the Kingdom has come; our joy is complete. In concert with the angels and saints, we once again greet the risen Lord with shouts of “Alleluia!”


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Rome to Home The Church was born of the paschal mystery. For this very reason the Eucharist, which is in an outstanding way the sacrament of the paschal mystery, stands at the center of the Church’s life. This is already clear from the earliest images of the Church found in the Acts of the Apostles: “They de-voted themselves to the Apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers” (2:42). The “breaking of the bread” refers to the Eucharist.

Two thousand years later, we continue to relive that primordial image of the Church. At every celebration of the Eucharist, we are spiritually brought back to the paschal Triduum: to the events of the evening of Holy Thursday, to the Last Supper and to what followed it. The institution of the Eucharist sacramentally anticipated the events which were about to take place, beginning with the agony in Gethsemane. Once again we see Jesus as he leaves the Upper Room, descends with his disciples to the Kidron valley and goes to the Garden of Olives. Even today that Garden shelters some very ancient olive trees. Perhaps they witnessed what happened beneath their shade that evening, when Christ in prayer was filled with anguish “and his sweat became like drops of blood falling down upon the ground” (cf. Lk. 22:44). The blood which shortly before he had given to the Church as the drink of salvation in the sacrament of the Eucharist, began to be shed; its outpouring would then be completed on Golgotha to become the means of our redemption: “Christ . . . as high priest of the good things to come . . . , entered once for all into the Holy Place, taking not the blood of goats and calves but his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption” (Heb. 9:11-12).

—Pope John Paul II

Ecclesia de Eucharistia

Study Questions1. According to Jeremiah 31:31-34, what will be different about the new covenant?

2. In the Revised Standard Version-Catholic Edition, we hear God described as the husband of Israel in Jeremiah 31:32. How does God respond to Israel’s infidelity? How does St. Paul de-scribe the relationship between Christ the Church in the new covenant? (See Jeremiah 31:34; Ephesians 5:21-32 & CCC 64)


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3. Jeremiah speaks of a new covenant written on the human heart. According to Ezekiel 11:19-20, how does God prepare people for this new covenant?

4. “In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death” (Hebrews 5:7). How do the following passages shed light on this verse:

a. Luke 22:39-46

b. Mark 15:34

c. Luke 23:46

5. What do the following passages teach us about the obedience of Jesus:

a. Luke 2:51-52

b. Matthew 26:39

c. Hebrews 5:8

d. Philippians 2:8


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6. According to Jesus, how do we attain eternal life and in what sense are we to become like the grain of wheat? (See John 12:24-25)

7. What will the Father do for whoever serves Jesus? (John 12:26). How am I called to serve Jesus?

8. What does Jesus say will happen when He is lifted up from the earth? What does the lifting up of Jesus on the Cross signify? (See John 12:32-33 & CCC 662)


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Voices of the Saints There is also the knowledge gained by experience, according to which Christ learned obedi-ence. Hence, the Apostle says, He learned obedience through what he suffered, i.e., experi-enced. And the Apostle speaks thus, because one who learns something comes voluntarily to learn it. But Christ accepted our weakness voluntarily; consequently, he says that “he learned obedience,” i.e., how difficult it is to obey, because He obeyed in the most difficult matters, even to the death of the cross (Phil. 2:8).

This shows how difficult the good of obedience is, because those who have not experienced obedience and have not learned it in difficult matters, believe that obedience is very easy. But in order to know what obedience is, one must learn to obey in difficult matters, and one who has not learned to subject himself by obeying does not know how to rule others well. There-fore, although Christ knew by simple recognition what obedience is, He nevertheless learned obedience from the things He suffered, i.e., from difficult things, by suffering and dying: “By the obedience of one many shall be made just” (Rom. 5:19).

Then when he says, and being made perfect he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, he mentions the fruit of His Passion, namely, in Christ and in His members. In Christ the fruit was glorification; hence, he says, and being made perfect, for from the instant of His conception He was perfectly consummated as to the happiness of His soul, inasmuch as it was drawn to God; but he still had a nature that could suffer, although after His Passion He could not suffer. Therefore, because in this respect He was altogether perfect, He could perfect others. For it is the nature of a perfect thing to be able to engender its like. Therefore, he says that He was perfect. For since He arrived at that consummation by the merit of obedience: “The obedient man shall speak of victory” (Prov. 21:28), He became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, not temporal salvation but eternal: ‘Israel is saved by the Lord with an eternal salvation (Is. 45:17).

—St. Thomas Aquinas

Commentary on the Letter to the Hebrews, 5-2

Questions for Reflection1. Is there some area of my own life that must “die” so that I can become a more effective Christian?

What can I do this week to unite myself more fully to Christ?

2. In the Gospel, there are people who want to see Jesus and so they approach the Apostles. Today, there are people who want to see Jesus and so they approach the Church. They approach us. How available are we to the people in our lives that want to see Jesus? How can we show Jesus to others this week?


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Lent Cycle BWeek 6: Palm Sunday of the Lord’s PassionIntroductionWe have finally arrived at Holy Week, during which we enter anew into the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus. Fittingly, our observance of the events of Holy Week begins with Jesus’ tri-umphal entry into Jerusalem (Mk. 11:1-11; CCC 560). We call this Sunday “Palm Sunday” as we pick up our palm branches in memory of the men and women who first welcomed Jesus into the holy city as their Messiah (Mk. 11:8-10).

"He humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross"


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Yet “Palm Sunday” quickly gives way to “Passion Sunday,” as the readings graphically show us Jesus as the “Suffering Servant,” by whose stripes we are healed (Is. 53:5). Like the crowd in the Gospel, our enthusiasm for Jesus often gives way to our own sinfulness, such that we too are complicit in the crimes committed against Jesus (CCC 598) and continually in need of mercy.

The first reading from Isaiah (Is. 50:4-7) provides the context for proclaiming the Passion of the Christ, preparing us for the detailed account of His sacrificial death contained in the Gospel. Christ is the teacher par excellence who day after day does not turn back from doing His Father’s will (Is. 50:5). When His hour arrives, He does not resist the brutal treatment of His executioners (Is. 50:6). Yet all the while He is confident of His ultimate vindication (Is. 50:7; Ps. 22:23-32).

In the second reading, a famous passage from St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians (Phil. 2:5-11), we are reminded of the extent of God’s willingness to identify with sinful humanity. God the Son took the “form of a slave” (Phil. 2:7) and became obedient to His Father’s plan of salvation even to the point of death on a Cross (Phil 2:8). Yet the Father greatly exalted Him, and in His victory over sin and death, Christ is unmistakably revealed as the Lord of all (Phil. 2:9-11).

Each year on Passion Sunday we hear the Passion narrative taken from one of the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, or Luke), while on Good Friday every year we hear the distinctive account from the Gospel of John. This year the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ according to St. Mark is proclaimed to us (Mk. 14:1-15:47). While the Passion narrative contains crucially important teaching for us, it is also just that—a narrative, a chronicle of events that beckons us to pay close attention to the story line as it unfolds, as well as to the significant historical details that St. Mark chose to include in His account. As we attend to this narrative, may our response echo the words of the centurion at the foot of the Cross: “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (Mk. 15:39)

Old Testament Reading: Isaiah 50:4-74The Lord GOD has given me a well-trained tongue, that I might know how to speak to the weary a word that will rouse them. Morning after morning he opens my ear that I may hear; 5and I have not rebelled, have not turned back. 6I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who plucked my beard; my face I did not shield from buffets and spitting. 7The Lord GOD is my help, therefore I am not disgraced; I have set my face like flint, knowing that I shall not be put to shame.

New Testament Reading: Phil 2:6-11Christ Jesus, 6though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. 7Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness and found human in appearance, 8he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, 10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Gospel Reading: Mk 14:1-15:47Due to the length of the Passion Reading, we ask that you refer to your Bible for the Gospel Reading.


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Points to PonderIsaiah 50:4-7Our first reading is taken from the third of the four “servant songs” from the Book of Isaiah (Is. 42:1-9; 49:1-6; 50:4-10; 52:13-53:12), while the first reading on Good Friday is taken from the fourth servant song. In these songs, God calls His servant to lead the nations but is horribly mistreated. The servant sacrifices himself for the good of the community and in the end God vindicates him.

In the Christian tradition, this profound prophecy of the suffering servant is fulfilled by Jesus Christ, who takes our punishment upon Himself so as to impart to us new life in the Holy Spirit (see CCC 713).

This particular servant song is written in the first person. In Isaiah 50:4, we hear that he is both a teacher as well as a student. From the finding in the Temple (Lk. 2:41:52), this description aptly describes Our Lord Jesus Christ. He was obedient to His Father and often turned to Him in prayer (Lk. 5:16). At the same time, He was a spellbinding teacher who taught with unparalleled authority (Mt. 7:29) as well as with great compassion and sensitivity for the weary. Indeed, “a bruised reed he will not break” (Is. 42:3; Mt. 12:20).

In verse 5, the servant affirms his fidelity to his mission and in verse 7 he says he has set his face like flint, which surely foretells Our Lord’s relentless journey to Jerusalem, where He was to undergo His Passion (Mt. 16:21). The harsh treatment the servant receives is embodied in the cruel torture Our Lord underwent, culminating in His violent death on the cross.

And yet, this is a song of great hope. The suffering servant is firm in his reliance on God, who can be counted on for His help, and who would not let His servant be disgraced. Our Lord’s Resurrec-tion on Easter Sunday and His exaltation at the right hand of the Father shows that the hope of the suffering servant—and our own hope—is not misplaced (Rom. 5:5).

Philippians 2:6-11The selection from St. Paul’s Letter to the Philippians is believed to be an ancient Christian hymn that was already in existence when St. Paul composed this letter in approximately 60 A.D. The text marvelously summarizes the kerygma, or core of the Gospel: The Son of God humbled Himself to become man in His Incarnation (Phil. 2:6-7); as the Suffering Servant He obediently accepted humiliation and even death (Phil. 2:8); He rose from the dead and is exalted as Lord (Phil. 2:9-11).

This passage is one of the oldest New Testament texts that affirms the divinity of Christ Jesus. When St. Paul wrote that Christ was in the “form of God” (Phil. 2:6), He was declaring that He was God. In verse 8, He also affirmed that Christ was in “human form,” or truly human, which entailed His becoming a “servant” (Phil. 2:7). In this passage, then, we discover the biblical basis for the Church’s perennial teaching concerning the hypostatic union—namely, that Christ is but one divine person with two natures, human and divine (CCC 480-81).

In verses 6-7, St. Paul deepens our understanding of the mystery of the Incarnation. The eternal Son of God did not deem equality with God something to be grasped, to be clung to. That is not to say that Christ and His Father are not equal in their divine nature. Rather, it means that while Christ always has had the rights and privileges of God, He was willing in some sense to lay these aside to become one of us. He was grasping His divinity for His own glory but pouring it out for our salva-tion. He shed His glory, not His divinity. As verse 7 says, he emptied Himself and became a servant, teaching us that true greatness consists in giving ourselves to others (Mk. 10:45; Jn. 15:13). And as


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St. Paul also wrote, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich” (2 Cor. 8:9).

So as the final stage of God’s “rescue mission” to save sinful humanity, He entered into our suffering and misery. Rather than remain at arm’s length, He stepped right into our dysfunction, rolled up His sleeves, and got His hands dirty—even to the point of enduring a most degrading form of death. St. Paul here emphasizes not only Christ’s humility, but also His obedience (Phil. 2:8). Christ was ever faithful to His Father’s rescue mission, thus fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy that God’s servant would bear our iniquities so as to restore us to right relation with Our heavenly Father (Is. 53:10-11; CCC 623).

Because of Christ’s humility and obedience, His Father raised Him from the dead and “highly exalted him” (Phil. 2:9). As Our Lord Himself foretold, “Every one who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Lk. 14:11). Further, we who have died with Christ in Bap-tism have firm hope that we will be exalted with Him (Rom. 6:3-4; Col. 2:12). This entails our own embrace of the cross each day, in whatever form it may take, such as sickness, suffering, or setbacks of any kind (Lk. 9:23).

St. Paul also stresses the “name” of Jesus, a name which is above every other name (Phil. 2:9). For the Jews, the name above every other name is none other than the name of God, Yahweh. Yahweh is rendered as “Kyrios” in Greek, and is generally translated as “Lord” in the Old Testament. Kyrios is the same word that St. Paul uses when he says that “Jesus Christ is Lord” (Phil. 2:11). Therefore, St. Paul is saying that in raising Jesus from the dead and exalting Him in heaven, the Father is showing forth the sovereignty of He who is the “Lord of glory” (1 Cor. 2:8; see CCC 446-51).

The expression “every knee should bow” (Phil. 2:10) is a direct allusion to Isaiah 45:23, and reflects that the Lordship of Christ is to extend over all creation (Eph. 1:15-23). This point is solidified by the reference to the three levels of the universe according to ancient thought: “in heaven,” “on earth,” and “under the earth” (Ex. 20:4). And so we add our voice to that of all creation when we proclaim the good news that “Jesus Christ is Lord” (Rom. 10:9; 1 Cor. 12:3; Phil. 2:11).

Mark 14:1-15:47As we participate as the “crowd” in the reading of the long Gospel of Our Lord’s Passion, we realize that His public ministry—indeed, all of salvation history—has now reached its climax. Jesus’ “hour” has finally arrived (Jn. 12:27); the fullness of time has come (Gal. 4:4-7); now are the prophecies to be fulfilled (Mt. 26:56).By the time the Gospel reaches its conclusion, Our Lord has accomplished the work of our salvation (Jn. 19:30), as the new and everlasting covenant foretold by Jeremiah (Jer. 31:31-34) is written in His Blood (Heb. 9:11-12). As we will hear in St. John’s account of the Passion on Good Friday, blood and water poured forth from the pierced side of Christ on the Cross (Jn. 19:34), thus giving birth to the Church (CCC 766).

As we walk the Way of the Cross with Jesus, we recognize Him as the Suffering Servant of Isaiah’s prophecies, the long-awaited Messiah whose humility, obedience, and fidelity to His Father’s will are the resounding themes of today’s readings and responsorial psalm. The Gospel records many strik-ing details that help us to connect the dots, as Jesus the Suffering Servant did not offer a defense (Mk. 15:5), but allowed Himself to be beaten, spat upon, and mocked (Mk. 15:16-20; Is. 50:6), even as His enemies taunted Him and dared Him to prove His divinity by saving Himself from suffering (Mk. 15:27-32).


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We do well to let the narrative of Christ’s Passion speak for itself. However, there are some signifi-cant details in Mark that are worth noting. For example, at the outset of the reading we hear about the anointing at Bethany (Mk. 14:3-9). The woman, believed to be Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus (Jn. 11:1-2), broke open an alabaster jar of expensive, perfumed oil and poured it on Jesus’ head. Since bodies were anointed with such oil when they were prepared for burial, this act fore-shadowed Jesus’ imminent death.

Even more, this event prefigures what Jesus is about to do—namely, break Himself open for us. Mary gets it and holds nothing back in showing her love for Jesus, even as others question her pru-dence (Mk. 14:4-5). Her “extravagant” love of Jesus is commended by Jesus and she is a model for Christians in every age (Mk. 14:6-9). This is in immediate, stark contrast to the betrayal by Judas in the following verses (Mk. 14:10-11).

In his account of Jesus’ arrest (Mk. 14:43-52), St. Mark includes the curious detail of the young man who was following Jesus after His arrest. The crowd attempted to seize him. He dropped his linen garment and ran away (vv. 51-52).

One interesting consideration is that some commentators and scholars through the centuries have suggested that the young man was St. Mark himself! Even more, some have suggested that the young man’s white linen garment represents our baptismal identity as children of God who have “put on Christ” (Gal. 3:27; see CCC 1243). When we encounter opposition to the faith, what do we do? Do we surrender our baptismal identity and run away or do we embrace our challenges as faithful disciples of Christ? (Lk. 9:23; Gal. 6:14; Col. 1:24).

At the death of Jesus, we hear that the curtain of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom (Mk. 15:38). This event signifies the end of Old Covenant worship, as the worship of the new and everlasting covenant is offered to, with, and through Jesus Christ, our sacrificial victim and priest. The curtain also symbolized God’s inaccessibility to sinful humanity (Heb. 9:8). Now we have ac-cess to the Father through Jesus, a reality made effective in our own lives through our participation in New Covenant worship—the Eucharist—inaugurated on the eve of Christ’s priestly gift of self on the Cross (Mk. 14:22-25).

Christ remained faithful to His “rescue mission” to the end, and therefore He did not turn back from or rebel against His Father’s will (Is. 50:5). He gave Himself freely to the hands of His enemies, making His own the words of the prophet Isaiah: “The Lord God is my help . . . I shall not be put to shame” (Is. 50:7).

Through the ministry of the Church, Christ’s vindication equals our redemption. Destined to sin and death as children of Adam’s disobedience, we have now been set free for holiness and life by Christ’s perfect obedience to the Father’s will (Rom. 5:12-14,17-19; Eph. 2:2; 5:6).

That is why God greatly exalted Him. That is why we have salvation in the name of Jesus, the name above all other names, because He is the Lord! (Phil. 2:9-11). Following His example of humble obedience in the trials and crosses of our lives, we know we will never be forsaken. For we know, as the centurion confessed 2,000 years ago, that “truly this man was the Son of God!” (Mk. 15:39).


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Tying It All TogetherOur Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday’s Mass is taken from Psalm 22. Jesus is quoting this Psalm when from the cross He cries out in Aramaic, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Ps. 22:2; Mk. 15:34). He has completely emptied Himself (Phil. 2:7). The Suffering Servant has not shield-ed Himself (Is. 50:6) from the consequences of our sins, including suffering and death. He therefore is able in His compassion to “suffer with” us and for us (Heb. 4:15).

Our Lord’s compassion for us ultimately is expressed as mercy. His triumph over sin, suffering, and even death becomes our triumph, because He has come “in human likeness; and found human in ap-pearance” (Phil. 2:7). As the Church has always taught, the Son of God humbled Himself as man, so that sinful man may be exalted and participate in the very life of God (2 Pet. 1:4; CCC 460).

As we listen to St. Mark’s account of the Passion, we see with vivid clarity and striking detail the ex-tent to which God is not merely a passive spectator of the human condition, but rather has come to save us. Our God and King has come to blot out our sins through His sacrificial death on the Cross (Is. 43:25; Ps. 51:9; Phil. 2:8). We wave palm branches and shout “Hosanna” (Mk. 11:9) as with the eyes of faith we acclaim His arrival into our world and into our own lives.

It was necessary that the Christ should suffer and die before entering His glory (Lk. 24:26). Now as we prepare for the celebration of Easter, may we die to our old selves and open ourselves to the new, resurrected life that our Lord and Savior has won for us.

Catechism Connections ■ To learn more about the name of Jesus, see CCC 430-35, 2812. ■ To learn more about Jesus as “Lord,” see CCC 446-51. ■ To learn more about Christ’s self-emptying for our salvation, see CCC 472, 1224. ■ To learn more about Christ as true God and true man, see CCC 464-69. ■ To learn more about Christ’s redemptive death in God’s plan of salvation, see

CCC 599-605. ■ To learn more about Christ’s sacrifice as an offering for our sins, see CCC 606-23. ■ To learn more about Christ as the model of service in the Church, see CCC 876. ■ To learn more about the institution of the Eucharist as a memorial of Christ’s

sacrifice, see CCC 1333-44.


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Lenten MomentHoly Week FestivitiesPalm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord begins what is known as Holy Week, which culminates the following Sunday with the celebration of Easter. In between these two Sundays, however, the Church invites us to enter more deeply in the mystery of Christ’s suffering and death through various devotions and liturgical practices.One major event during Holy Week is the Chrism Mass, where the bishop blesses the oils that will be used throughout the coming year. While it’s traditionally celebrated on Thursday, there is some flexibility when it comes to the date, and most dioceses hold the Chrism Mass in the cathedral on the Monday or Tuesday of Holy Week. The chrism and the oil of catechumens blessed at the Chrism Mass are used in the celebration of the sacraments of initiation at the Easter Vigil.Wednesday is known as Spy Wednesday because on this day Judas made a bargain with the high priest to betray Jesus for 30 silver pieces (Mt. 26:14-16; Mk. 14:10-11; Lk. 22:1-6).On Thursday evening, known as Holy Thursday, the Church celebrates the anniversary of the Last Supper, when Christ instituted the Eucharist, the Sacrifice of the Mass, and the sacrament of the priesthood. It’s also known as Maundy Thursday, because at the Last Supper Christ insti-tuted the new commandment (Latin, mandatum) to love one another (cf. Jn. 13:34). The call to serve others in imitation of Christ is brought out in the foot-washing ritual during Mass.The Mass of the Lord’s Supper concludes with the removal of the Body of Christ from the tab-ernacle in the main body of the church. The Eucharist is carried in procession to another place where it is kept overnight, to be distributed during the commemoration of the Lord’s Passion on Good Friday. After the procession, the altar is stripped bare, and all bells in the church are silent until the Gloria at the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday.There is no Mass on Good Friday. The distinctive liturgy on Good Friday has three parts: the Liturgy of the Word, the Veneration of the Cross and Holy Communion. The liturgy starts with the priests and deacons going to the altar in silence and prostrating themselves for a few mo-ments in silent prayer, then an introductory prayer is prayed. The Liturgy of the Word includes a reading of Christ’s Passion according to St. John, as well as a prolonged Prayer of the Faithful during which we pray for the salvation of the whole world.No sacraments are celebrated on Good Friday, and the church is barren, as we anticipate the cel-ebration of Christ’s Resurrection at the Easter Vigil. This time of anticipation is a time of prayer and penance. The faithful are required to fast and abstain from meat on Holy Thursday, and they are also encouraged, but not required, to continue this fast on Holy Saturday.During the week there are other special opportunities for prayer. One such observance is the Tenebrae (Latin for darkness) services, which entails the public singing of part of the Liturgy of the Hours. While the format varies, it essentially involves the gradual extinguishing of candles while a series of readings and psalms are chanted or recited.While Stations of the Cross is a popular devotion throughout the entirety of Lent, most parishes host a large, public celebration of the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday. Similarly, the Holy Father typically leads a massive Stations of the Cross procession in Rome on the evening of Good Friday.

This is just a thumbnail sketch of some of the principal liturgies and devotions during Holy Week. The faithful are encouraged to check with their parish and diocese for more information

http://catholicism.about.com/od/Holy-Week/p/Holy-Saturday.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psalms

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chant


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on events in their own locality.

Rome to Home “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. . . . Hosanna in the highest!” (Mk. 11:9-10).

These acclamations of the crowd gathered in Jerusalem for the feast of Passover accompany the entry of Christ and the Apostles into the holy city. Jesus enters Jerusalem mounted on a colt, according to the words of the prophet: “Tell the Daughter of Zion, Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on an ass, and on a colt, the foal of an ass” (Mt. 21:5).

The animal chosen indicates that it was not a triumphal entry, but that of a king meek and humble of heart. However the multitudes gathered in Jerusalem, almost unaware of this expression of humility or perhaps recognizing in it a messianic sign, greet Christ with words full with joy: “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” (Mt. 21:9). And when Jesus enters Jerusalem, the whole city is in agitation. People are asking themselves, “‘Who is this?’ And the crowds [say], ‘This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth of Galilee’” (Mt. 21:10-11).

This was not the first time that the people recognized Christ as the king they expected. It had already happened after the miraculous multiplication of the loaves, when the crowd wanted to carry him in triumph. Jesus knew however that his kingdom was not of this world; for this reason he had fled from their enthusiasm. He now sets out for Jerusalem to face the trial that awaits him. He is aware that he is going there for the last time, for a “holy” week, at the end of which the passion, cross and death await him. He faces all this with complete willingness, knowing that in this way the Father’s eternal plan will be fulfilled in him.

Since that day, the Church throughout the world has repeated the words of the crowd in Jerusalem: “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” She repeats it every day while celebrating the Eu-charist, shortly before the consecration. She repeats it with particular emphasis today, Palm Sunday.

—Blessed John Paul II

Excerpt Palm Sunday Homily 1997

Study Questions1. According to Isaiah’s prophecy, what was to be many people’s response to the Servant of the Lord?

How does Jesus fulfill the prophecy found in Isaiah 50:4-7? (See Is 50: 4-7 & CCC 601, 713)


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2. According to St. Paul, how did Christ empty Himself for us? Does St. Paul teach that Jesus was both true God and true man? (See Phil. 2:6-8)

3. What was the extent of Jesus’ humility and obedience? In what sense is the name of Jesus greater than any other name? (See Phil. 2:8-11)

4. What was the objection to the anointing of Jesus and what did Jesus think of the gesture of this woman? (See Mk. 14:4-9)


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5. What is the significance of the phrase “blood of the covenant” when Jesus institutes the Eucha-rist? (See Mk. 14:22-25; CCC 610)

6. Who accompanied Jesus to the Garden of Gethsemane? What did His companions do in the Gar-den and how does Jesus manifest His obedience to the Father in the Garden? (See Mk. 14:33-41)

7. Shortly before His death, Jesus from the cross quotes Psalm 22: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mk. 15:34). Why is this actually a message of hope? (See Mk. 15:34, Ps. 22 & Points to Ponder)


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8. What is the response of the centurion to the crucifixion of Jesus and why is this response sig-nificant to Christians today? (See Mk. 15:39, CCC 444)

Voices of the Saints “Nor did demons crucify Him; it is you who have crucified Him and crucify Him still, when you delight in your vices and sins.”

~St. Francis of Assisi

Questions for Reflection1. Do I believe that Jesus is truly the Son of God? What difference does this belief make in the way

I live?

2. What has the Lord been teaching me during this Lenten Bible study? What resolution can I make to grow closer to our Risen Lord this coming Easter season?


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Notes

lent: the road to redemption, cycle b€¦ · lent • week 1 • • ©2011 catholic scripture...

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