Word Today, Feb. 8, 2005 ( Tuesday of the 5th Week in Ordinary Time )

Readings: Gn 1:20—2:4a/ Mk 7:1-13

In the gospel today Jesus condemned once again the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. At the end of his harangue, Jesus summarizes what is wrong with their way of acting: "You nullify the word of God through the tradition you have handed on."

In this verse, Jesus condemns the human traditions introduced by the Pharisees, in violation of the word of God. Some people use this to denounce the Catholic Church's valuing of traditions. This point needs clarification. What the Church values as a source of revelation is "Sacred Tradition", that is to say, the word of God (teachings of Christ and the apostles) as passed on to us not in written form. Sacred Tradition is not opposed to Sacred Scripture, they are complementary. In fact we would not know what is the authentic Sacred Scripture if it were not for the Sacred Tradition kept by the Church. We should note, however, that not everything "traditional" forms part of the Church's Tradition. Discernment of what is and what is not deposit of faith is the competence of the successors of the Apostles.

 

Word Today, Feb. 9, 2005 ( Ash Wednesday )

Readings: Jl 2:12-18/ 2 Cor 5:20—6:2/ Mt 6:1-6, 16-18

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the liturgical season of Lent. Lent is the 40 day period of preparation for the most important celebration of the Church, the day of the Lord’s glorious resurrection. To receive well the benefits of Easter, we must dispose ourselves through conversion. We must remove all the obstacles that hinder us from getting closer to God. The most important of these obstacles are our personal sins. That is why one of the formulas for the imposition of ashes today repeats the Lord’s preaching, “Turn away from sin and believe the gospel.” In order to help us realize this, another formula reminds us of our existential condition, so that we do not get attached to the things of this world. “Remember man that from dust you came and to dust you shall return.”

It is a good day to go to Mass, but Ash Wednesday is not a holyday of obligation. It is not obligatory either to attend the imposition of ashes, but it is a very good custom. And if we have it imposed, it is not necessary to try to keep the ashes on the whole day. What is obligatory today, and what we should practice in a spirit of penance, is the law of fasting and abstinence. Ordinarily, this means that those above 14 should refrain from eating flesh meat. Those between the ages of 18 and 60 should fast, eating only one full meal during the day. Needless to say, we should not see this as a mere external imposition, but we should practice it in a spirit of penance and sacrifice, for the love of God.

 

Word Today, Feb. 10, 2005 (Thursday after Ash Wednesday)

Readings: Dt 30:15-20/ Lk 9:22-25

The gospel of today contains an important rule of Christian life given by the Master himself: “If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.” Lent is a good time to go deeper into the meaning of penance and sacrifice in the Christian life. Some years ago, when the iron curtain was still standing, someone observed that in the West, we have Christ but no cross. In the East (referring to the communist countries where there was no freedom of religion), we have the cross (suffering and persecution), but no Christ.

The Gospel today tells us that there is no real Christ without the Cross. This is why, perhaps, many people in developed countries are unhappy and far from God. Christianity is a religion of joy, but it is not a namby-pamby easy-going doctrine. The Christian commitment demands sacrifice. How can we truly love God above all things and our neighbor as ourselves if we are basking in comforts and are unwilling to sacrifice ourselves for the good of others?

 

Word Today, Feb. 11, 2005 (Friday after Ash Wednesday)

Readings: Is 58:1-9a/ Mt 9:14-15

The gospel today narrates how the followers of John the Baptist asked Jesus, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” (Mt 9:14). Fasting was a form of penance well known in the Scriptures. Jesus Christ did not abolish fasting, but clarified its context “The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.” (v. 15)

Christ himself fasted. And we see the early Christians engaging in penance and fasting (see 2 Cor 6:5, 11:27). The Church remains faithful to this tradition, specifying in each era certain penitential days in which the faithful are asked to fast, to perform works of penance and engage in other acts of piety and charity. The source of mortification that the Lord asks of us is our own daily life. We have so many opportunities during the day -- waking up on time, being punctual for our appointments, being orderly with our things and our activities, bearing with difficult persons, etc. How well do we take these opportunities to practice penance?

 

Word Today, Feb. 12, 2005 (Saturday after Ash Wednesday)

Readings: Is 58:9b-14/ Lk 5:27-32

When the people were scandalized that Jesus was eating with tax collectors (considered as public sinners in that milieu) and sinners, Jesus answered, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (Lk 5:31-32). It is very moving to see how Christ describes himself as a physician, as a healer. He was obviously a healer in the physical sense, through the many miracles he wrought. But here, he talks of another kind of healing, a healing of the spirit, especially from the sickness of sin and all its consequences.

In order to avail of the services of a physician, we have to present ourselves to the physician and expound on our ailments. Jesus Christ acts as a physician in the sacrament of confession. Let us not be ashamed to reveal our ailments. We are asked to do so, not in order to be reprimanded, but in order to be healed. True, it may be shameful and embarrassing. But if we truly want to be healed, don’t we tell even our embarrassing maladies to the doctor?

 

Word Today, Feb. 13, 2005 ( FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT )

Readings: Gn 2:7-9; 3:1-7/Rom 5:12-19 or 5:12, 17-19/Mt 4:1-11

It is very consoling to see Jesus himself tempted. He prepared his public life with a fast of 40 days, similar to what we are doing during this Lenten season. At the end of it, he was tempted by the devil to satisfy his hunger in an illicit way, to go after riches and honors, and to make useless displays of vanity. If Jesus himself was tempted and Jesus is perfect God and man, then it stands to reason that to be tempted is not necessarily bad. Temptation is not a sin.

We should not rashly and deliberately expose ourselves to temptation. But when temptation comes without our looking for it, we should not lose our composure. We must reject the temptation, either by getting out of the occasion that is provoking it, or by decisively asserting the opposite of that temptation. For example, if we are tempted to be vain, then we can remember our failures and other considerations that will move us to be humble. If we are tempted to impurities, we should remove such thoughts by focusing on more important considerations -- for example, that we are temples of the Holy Spirit and should therefore keep our hearts pure and clean.

 

Word Today, Feb. 14, 2005 (Monday of the 1st Week of Lent)

Readings: Lv 19:1-2, 11-18/ Mt 25:31-46

The gospel today is about the last judgment. On that day, Jesus will pass final sentence on everyone. What will be the basis of the judgment? The gospel speaks of works of charity (to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, to visit those in prison, etc.) that are done to our fellowmen, in whom we should see Christ.

St. John of the Cross said that at the twilight of our life (when we approach our death), the only thing that will really matter is love. Have we loved God, or have we loved ourselves? The Church has, over the years, identified the so-called corporal and spiritual works of mercy as genuine works of love. If we truly love Christ, we will end up attending to the bodily and spiritual needs of our neighbors. There is no place for egotists in the kingdom of heaven.

 

Word Today, Feb. 15, 2005 (Tuesday of the 1st Week of Lent)

Readings: Is 55:10-11/ Mt 6:7-15

The gospel today contains the Lord’s prayer. It is the best of all the vocal prayers because it was taught to us by Christ himself. We can concentrate today on the first line: “Our Father in heaven...” (Mt. 6:9) Christ is inviting us to address God as father. St. Paul said that all fatherhood is from God. Whatever good things we associate with our own fathers, such as care, protection, compassion and forgiveness, we can attribute to God, and this to a superlative degree.

If we truly related to God as our father, would we not behave differently? If God is our father, we have no cause for despair. If God, who is the almighty creator, is our father, we should be able to say, with St. Paul, “For those who love God, everything works together for the good.” Above all, if we see God as our loving father, we should be moved to gratitude for his care, and thereby love him in return. One of the greatest manifestations of God the Father’s love for us is the gift of the Eucharist.

 

Word Today, Feb. 16, 2005 (Wednesday of the 1st Week of Lent)

Readings: Jon 3:1-10/ Lk 11:29-32

Both readings of today’s liturgical celebration talk about the prophet Jonah. He is a figure of Jesus Christ because, just as Jonah was inside the belly of the big fish for three days, so was Jesus in the bowels of the earth after his death. Jonah is an interesting character because he acted like many of us. When God gave him a mission that he thought was very difficult, he tried to run away from God.

Sometimes God asks us for something. Perhaps it is a little sacrifice to help someone. Or it might be a decision to serve the Church with more dedication. We are aware of it every time we talk to God in the intimacy of our prayer. Yet we feel inside us the hesitation to take the decisive step. We start calculating and figuring out what’s in it for me. Then we can end up running away just as Jonah did. Let’s remember then that we cannot really avoid the gaze of God. We may be able to do so for a while, but God has sometimes been called “the hound of heaven.” Jonah realized his mistake and ended up doing God’s will -- and his mission, difficult as it seemed, turned out to be a smashing success.

 

Word Today, Feb. 17, 2005 (Thursday of the 1st Week of Lent)

Readings: Est C:12, 14-16, 23-25/ Mt 7:7-12

We may not realize it, but we spend a great deal of our time and effort in asking, giving and thanking. We ask people to help us, to teach us something, to provide us with some material needs, etc. At other times, we are the ones who help, teach or provide for the needs of others. When we receive help, we are grateful. When we give help, we expect to be thanked. And all these form the foundations of human relationships, which end in friendship. “A friend in need is a friend indeed.” That is why it is not surprising that in the gospel today, Christ encourages us to ask, to petition God for our needs. This is not to instrumentalize God, provided we do not limit our dealings with God to petitions.

How does a child relate to his father or mother? Does he not ask his parents for all kinds of help? If a child were to approach his parents with an air of self-sufficiency, the parents would not feel good about it. When a good child asks things from his parents, the parents know very well that the child trusts and loves them. The test would be when the parents ask the child to do something he may not be inclined to, and yet he obeys. Likewise, let us not hesitate to ask God for our needs. But let us always end that petition with the wholehearted acceptance of God’s will.

 

Word Today, Feb. 18, 2005 (Friday of the 1st Week of Lent)

Readings: Ez 18:21-28/ Mt 5:20-26

The gospel today contains spiritual demands that many of us would find extremely difficult to fulfill. Christ said, “You have learnt how it was said to our ancestors, You must not kill; ...But I say this to you, anyone who is angry with his brother will answer for it before the court.” The term “brother” here, as we can see from other passages of the gospel and from other teaching of Christ, refers to all men. So important is it not to bear any hatred against our fellowmen that Christ even sets reconciliation with them as a prerequisite for making a genuine act of worship of God. Yet overcoming anger can be very difficult to put into practice.

Such difficulty can perhaps explain the hesitation that many Catholics in our country have, even now, in accepting the position of the Church on death penalty. The logic of the Church’s position is clear: life is such a fundamental value that we can have no moral basis for killing if we can defend ourselves in some other way. If we can stop a killer from his deed by wounding him, why should we inflict a mortal blow? Yet the emotions of anger, disgust and fear can get the better of us. Let us ask God to help us wholeheartedly to forgive people who may have harmed us.

 

Word Today, Feb. 19, 2005 (Saturday of the 1st Week of Lent)

Readings: Dt 26:16-19/ Mt 5:43-48

The gospel today contains the very demanding injunction of Christ to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” At the end of the chapter, Christ says, “You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

We all know by experience that it is easy enough to say, “Forgive your enemies,” especially if we are advising someone else. But if we were faced with the very real and concrete situation of having to love someone who has done us a very deep wrong, we realize that this is not an easy demand. That is why, perhaps, it should be connected to the invitation of Christ to strive for perfection. Only if we strive for the highest spiritual goal, that of being like God in perfection and good qualities, can we be in a position to love our enemies. If we were to remain on the level of merely earthly considerations, such as to say that it is bad for our health or that our immune system will weaken if we are angry, then we will be unable to fulfill this Christian demand.

On this year of the Eucharist, we can think of Christ’s readiness to forgive, even to the point of giving us his body as a pledge of his mercy.

 

Word Today, Feb. 20, 2005 (SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT)

Readings: Gn 12:1-4a/2 Tm 1:8b-10/Mt 17:1-9

The gospel of today’s Mass is about the transfiguration -- that singular event when Christ made the three apostles Peter, James and John, privy to his future glory in heaven. St. Bede, referring to this event says that “the Lord allowed them to enjoy for a short time the contemplation of the happiness that will last forever, so that they can bear adversity with greater fortitude.”

The transfiguration took place at Mt. Tabor. The passion and death of Christ will take place at Mt. Calvary. Our life will consist of Tabors and Calvaries. We will have ups and downs. When things seem to be going well, let us not get self-complacent but rather store up a reserve of optimism for future trials. And when we are faced with trials, let us remember that these are temporary and that we have already tasted the gifts of God and will taste more of it if we take our trials well.

 

Word Today, Feb. 21, 2005 (Monday of the 2nd Week of Lent)

Readings: Dn 9:4b-10/ Lk 6:36-38

Jesus said, “Give, and there will be gifts for you: a full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap.” This is an invitation to be generous in giving ourselves to God and in the service of others.

Someone once made the observation that we can never outdo God in generosity. When we are generous in our charity, we shall receive much more in return. This does not mean that we should give precisely in order to have a reward. But God is so good that when we give of ourselves unstintingly, we will certainly receive a much greater reward in heaven. We often will also receive a greater reward even on earth.

 

Word Today, Feb. 22, 2005 (The Chair of Saint Peter, apostle)

Readings: 1 Pt 5:1-4/Mt 16:13-19

“You are Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church.” Today we celebrate the feast of the “chair” of St. Peter. We are probably familiar with the so-called “professorial chair.” The Latin term for this kind of chair is “cathedra”. It is where the word “cathedral” comes from. The cathedral is the church where the bishop has his “chair”. Chair here therefore connotes a symbol of authority because of the position held by the one sitting on it.

Today then we should remember the authority of St. Peter. It is an authority that came from Christ. This authority is passed on to the successor of St. Peter, who is the Pope. Together with authority is the special assistance of Christ. “The gates of hell can never hold out against it.” We must have complete confidence in the Pope and submit to his authority in everything that has to do with the saving and liberating mission of the Church.

 

Word Today, Feb. 23, 2005 (Wednesday of the 2nd Week of Lent)

Readings: Jer 18:18-20/Mt 20:17-28

Today’s gospel reading shows us the ambition of the brothers James and John, who wanted to take the first positions in the future kingdom of heaven, which they probably conceived as an earthly prerogative. But what is more moving here is the reaction of Jesus Christ. He does not get impatient but he makes use of this very human tendency, to channel the zeal of these brothers to something better.

“To share the cup” is a gesture of intimacy and friendship. This is something we should all cultivate with the Lord. But in the case of Christ, it also means to be willing to suffer out of love and to do the will of God. Thus, Christ referred to his passion, during the prayer in the garden, as “the cup” that he would have preferred to forego, but was willing to take if it was the Father’s will. In the end, the two brothers did share the cup, the cup of friendship and the cup of suffering. James was the first apostle to undergo martyrdom, decapitated by Herod. And John would be the last apostle, suffering persecution and exile for many years.

 

Word Today, Feb. 24, 2005 (Thursday of the 2nd Week of Lent)

Readings: Jer 17:5-10/ Lk 16:19-31

The gospel today presents the parable of Lazarus and the rich man. Lazarus’s patience and long-suffering were rewarded with being in the “bosom of Abraham” while the rich man who did not care for others and spent a completely selfish life was punished in hell. There he suffered unbearable pain, and without any remedy. Hell is forever.

In his book, Crossing the Threshold of Hope, the Pope talked about the reality of hell. It is an essential part of our faith. He says that “there is something in man’s moral conscience itself that rebels against any loss of this conviction...Isn’t final punishment in some way necessary in order to re-establish moral equilibrium in the complex history of humanity? Is not hell in a certain sense the ultimate safeguard of man’s moral conscience?” It is not a question of frightening us into behaving. We have to be moved by the love of God. But it is also good to remember the reality of hell. When the temptations are strong, it is good to know the foolishness of choosing eternal damnation for a moment of satisfaction.

 

Word Today, Feb. 25, 2005 (Friday of the 2nd Week of Lent)

Readings: Gn 37:3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28a/ Mt 21:33-43, 45-46

“The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this is the Lord’s doing and we marvel at it.” This mysterious phrase applied in the first place to Jesus Christ, whom the leaders of the Jews rejected, but who was in fact the promised Savior. But we can allegorically apply this to other paradoxes in life.

We tend to reject sufferings and setbacks. Yet very often, such setbacks can turn out to be blessings in disguise. Actually, if we are trying to do God’s will, apparently negative things that occur to us must have a deeper meaning. Since God is a loving father, he will never abandon us. God is able to draw good from evil. What we have rejected can be the cornerstone of greater unity with God.

 

Word Today, Feb. 26, 2005 (Saturday of the 2nd Week of Lent)

Readings: Mi 7:14-15, 18-20/ Lk 15:1-3, 11-32

The awareness of our personal sinfulness should not lead us to despair or discouragement. Quite the contrary, it should lead us to get even closer to God because, as we see in the parable of the prodigal son in today’s gospel, this humble acknowledgement brings us very close to God. The situation of the prodigal son is the situation of the sinner -- our situation.

The prodigal son found himself in the worst possible circumstance that a man of his background could be in. Remember that the Jews consider pork as “unclean.” Yet here he was, having to take care of a herd of pigs. He was even envious of what the pigs were eating. When we commit sin, we somehow find ourselves losing our human dignity. From being a son of God, we go even lower than our nature and become like an animal. But we never really lose our dignity. We are constantly asked to recover it. For that to be possible, we must first acknowledge our sinfulness then be ready to ask for our Father’s forgiveness in Penance.

 

Word Today, Feb. 27, 2005 (THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT)

Readings: Ex 17:3-7/ Rom 5:1-2, 5-8/ Jn 4:5-42 or 4:5-15, 19b-26, 39a, 40-42

The gospel today contains the intriguing dialogue that Jesus held with the Samaritan woman by the well. It is a good example of how an ordinary conversation can lead persons to God. Here, there is a gradual movement from such a prosaic reality as quenching the thirst from the well-water, to the higher reality of another kind of thirst, that finally leads to the change of heart in the woman and the recognition of Jesus as the savior. Since we are celebrating the Year of the Eucharist, we may also see a veiled reference to the Most Blessed Sacrament, where our Savior lies hidden in the form of food and drink. We too can feel a “thirst” for God that will be satisfied by the Body and Blood of Jesus.

Perhaps Jesus is also conversing with us as he did with this Samaritan woman. He may be addressing us through our most ordinary actions. God has something to tell us in every event of our daily life. Like the woman, Jesus might be placing in our heart a thirst for higher realities. Also like the woman, he may be confronting us with our failings and asking us for a conversion. Finally, like the woman, we should pass on our discovery of Christ to all our friends and relatives.

 

Word Today, Feb. 28, 2005 (Monday of the 3rd Week of Lent)

Readings: 2 Kgs 5:1-15b/ Lk 4:24-30

“No prophet is ever accepted in his own country.” While this phrase applies in the first place to Christ, we can also see something similar happening in our daily life. Often, when a person who has been far away from God is touched by the grace of conversion, his/her former friends can hardly believe their eyes and ears. Some may be genuinely appreciative of the change, but others may also oppose the changes in that person. They may not be happy for losing a companion-in-sin.

Just like Jesus Christ, that person must remain firm in his resolve. This gospel shows us that we can expect opposition in doing good. After all, we should not condition our doing good or our conversion on the acceptance of men. Otherwise, it would not be a true conversion.