Monday, March 18, 2024

MONDAY OF THE FIFTH WEEK OF LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

I take pleasure, not in the death of a wicked man
– it is the Lord who speaks –
but in the turning back of a wicked man
who changes his ways to win life. EZ 33:11


DANIEL 13:1-9,15-17,19-30,33-62 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

This story about Susanna, the wicked judges, and Daniel is also a commentary on how the sins of the flesh can enslave, blind, and cause those in its grip to go to unbelievable lengths to punish those who reject their evil advances. In their rage at being thwarted, they become positively demonic in their desire to crush, smite, and destroy those who courageously refuse to succumb to evil. 

Susanna was raised right by God-fearing parents, what a wonderful testament this is of them, sadly this cannot be said of most parents today and this is why our young people have lost their way. Ignorant of God they try unsuccessfully to satisfy the aching void within them with the things of the world and fail miserably.  One can at least find excuses for the young but what Daniel said of the two evil judges can very well be said of many in our own time who use their positions to do evil  ‘Spawn of Canaan, not of Judah, beauty has seduced you, lust has led your heart astray! This is how you have been behaving with the daughters of Israel and they were too frightened to resist; but here is a daughter of Judah who could not stomach your wickedness!Evil men and women can be found in all walks of life but it is even more heartbreaking when these people especially in the Church, use their office to prey upon the vulnerable.

Thankfully, there are a few like Susanna who are prepared to die rather than become victims of the wicked. They are prepared to die rather than sell their soul. If I agree, that means my death; if I resist, I cannot get away from you. But I prefer to fall innocent into your power than to sin in the eyes of the Lord.’ 

They did their worst and Susanna was sentenced to death but she cried out to God and He heard her. Daniel, filled with the Holy Spirit and moved by Him was able to prove that those two evil judges had condemned an innocent woman to death. All too often we try to appease the world, the culture, and those in power especially if they have power over us. But there is another way, it is the way that You showed us and which many noble men and women have taken. Death rather than sin should be our battle cry in a wicked world.

Any time the innocent cry out to You O Lord, You will hear and answer, we just need to trust You for You are never deaf to the cry of the poor and needy.  No matter in what situation we find ourselves may we never cower in fear but trust You to deliver us in Your way, in Your time, and according to Your will.

PSALM 22(23) ©

The Lord is my shepherd;
there is nothing I shall want.
Fresh and green are the pastures
where he gives me repose.
Near restful waters he leads me,
to revive my drooping spirit.

He guides me along the right path;
he is true to his name.
If I should walk in the valley of darkness
no evil would I fear.
You are there with your crook and your staff;
with these you give me comfort.

You have prepared a banquet for me
in the sight of my foes.
My head you have anointed with oil;
my cup is overflowing.

Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me
all the days of my life.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell
forever and ever.

If I should walk in the valley of darkness, no evil would I fear.

JOHN 8:1-11 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

All too often in the course of history, women have been sinned against and sinned against gravely yet they are made scapegoats, humiliated, and punished while the man who aided, abetted, and participated in the sin goes scot-free. The woman taken in adultery from the Gospel of St. John is a clear example of this. 

You came from Mount Olivet to the temple at daybreak and already a crowd had gathered to listen to You preach and teach when:

The scribes and Pharisees brought a woman along who had been caught committing adultery; and making her stand there in full view of everybody, they said to Jesus, ‘Master, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery, and Moses has ordered us in the Law to condemn women like this to death by stoning. What have you to say?’ They asked him this as a test, looking for something to use against him. 

The self-righteous especially if they are in positions of authority are judgmental, condemnatory, fault-finding nitpickers notoriously expert in veiling their own faults, failings, and immorality or whitewashing them. But You are God and these scribes and Pharisees would soon find out that they had more than met their match. How strange it seems that instead of reacting immediately You bend down and start writing on the ground with Your finger. Thinking that perhaps You were refusing to take the bait they persisted with their question. You look up and say to her accusers 
‘If there is one of you who has not sinned, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.’ Bending down again You resumed writing on the ground. 

Then the incredible happens. Having heard You they went away one by one, beginning with the eldest, until You, O Lord, was left alone with her who remained standing there. Looking at her You said, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She replied, ‘No one, sir’ And then she heard You say the blessed words that every penitent hears when they go for Confession:  ‘Neither do I condemn you, go away, and do not sin any more.’

Thank You, Lord, for the wonderful healing remedy to sin that You grant us in the  Sacrament of Confession.

Sunday, March 17, 2024

FIFTH SUNDAY IN LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Whoever serves me must follow me, says the Lord;
and where I am, there also will my servant be. JN 12:26


JEREMIAH 31:31-34 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

We are so blessed that You, O Lord, are the Covenant that God has made with us. It is unlike every other Covenant ever made between God and His people for by it You seal us to God by the power of Your Blood. This Covenant is everlasting because the power of the Holy Spirit abiding in us draws us into the very life of God. 

The Law of Love is inscribed on our hearts - this Law is alive for it is the Eternal Word of God that is made one with us in the Holy Spirit. The power of the Holy Spirit abiding in us makes it possible for us to live, move, and have our being in You and the Father. 

Beloved, we are grafted onto Your Body. Your life gives us life. We are animated by Your Holy Spirit. You are the visible image of the invisible God who has so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in You will not perish but have eternal life. 

Thank You, Lord, for the Sacraments especially the Sacrament of Reconciliation that makes it possible for us to rise to new life in You no matter how far we have strayed and how gravely we have sinned. 

Deep within them I will plant my Law, writing it on their hearts. Then I will be their God and they shall be my people. There will be no further need for neighbour to try to teach neighbour, or brother to say to brother, ‘Learn to know the Lord!’ No, they will all know me, the least no less than the greatest – it is the Lord who speaks – since I will forgive their iniquity and never call their sin to mind.

PSALM 50(51):3-4,12-15 ©

Have mercy on me, God, in your kindness.
In your compassion blot out my offence.
O wash me more and more from my guilt
and cleanse me from my sin.

A pure heart create for me, O God,
put a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your presence,
nor deprive me of your holy spirit.

Give me again the joy of your help;
with a spirit of fervour sustain me,
that I may teach transgressors your ways
and sinners may return to you.

A pure heart create for me, O God.

HEBREWS 5:7-9 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

At the heart of every sin is pride, and You, our crucified Savior, nailed this besetting sin of the world to the Cross. Emptying Yourself completely of everything that was Yours as God and the Son of God, the Eternal Word of the Father in whom and through whom all things came out of nothing to be You showed us how much the Father loves us. But this is not everything, Lord, we are called to love God with all the fervor of our being. We are called to lay down our lives for You and for another for this is how we are loved by God. 

Every day that is given to us as a gift we are called to serve as You served. We are called to be humble and obedient. We are called to hold back the proud look, the haughty words, the sarcasm, the belittling, the putting down, and the casting out of each other by dying to ourselves constantly. To do this, Lord, we are called to keep our gaze on You crucified, only then can we hope, with grace, to empty ourselves of our pride, and our ego, and to be ready to be the last, the least, and the lowest. 

Thank You, Lord, for all You have won for us through Your life, passion, death, and glorious resurrection into Heaven. Thank You for not just showing us the Way to the Father but for being the only Way to Him.

During his life on earth, Christ offered up prayer and entreaty, aloud and in silent tears, to the one who had the power to save him out of death, and he submitted so humbly that his prayer was heard. Although he was Son, he learnt to obey through suffering; but having been made perfect, he became for all who obey him the source of eternal salvation.

JOHN 12:20-33 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Dying spiritually to ourselves is so much harder than actually dying. To die daily to our faults, weaknesses, our besetting sins is a moment-by-moment struggle. We fail often but we keep trying, and this is what is most pleasing to You, Lord. 

When people are seeking You, Lord, as those Greeks who approached Philip, let us bring them into the Church, introduce them to the other members in the family of God, and ultimately to faith in You.

Nothing that happened to You came as a surprise. This is why You came into the world - that dreaded yet long-awaited hour was always before You from the crib until the grave. You knew that the salvation of the entire human race was to be given a new beginning. Creation was groaning, as St. Paul writes, as with the pains of childbirth. You had to fall to the ground and die accepting our death so we could rise from death to share new life in You through Your resurrection. 

‘Now the hour has come
for the Son of Man to be glorified.
I tell you, most solemnly,
unless a wheat grain falls on the ground and dies,
it remains only a single grain;
but if it dies,
it yields a rich harvest.

We live in an age where people chase the illusion of eternal youth. Many are so blind they cannot see that they are caricatures of what they once were. We cannot make an idol of this life that God has given us which is fleeting. We were created for eternity, eternal bliss with God in company with all the angels and saints in heaven. This life is fleeting the wisdom of God reminds us that we are like the flowers in the field here today and gone tomorrow.

Anyone who loves his life loses it; anyone who hates his life in this world
will keep it for the eternal life.

You have given us Your Word and Your Church so we know the Way to the Father's house and to You. We have to become another Christ if we hope to have a share in Your glory.

If a man serves me, he must follow me,
wherever I am, my servant will be there too.
If anyone serves me, my Father will honour him.

We thank You, Lord, for winning the price of our freedom for us all. Keep our gaze fixed on You raised between heaven and hell and know for certain that it is only through it that You will draw the whole world to Yourself and the Father through the Holy Spirit.

‘Now sentence is being passed on this world;
now the prince of this world is to be overthrown.
And when I am lifted up from the earth,
I shall draw all men to myself.’