II Sunday of Lent(C):Gen15:5-12,17-18,Phil3:17-4:1,Lk9:28b-36

II Sunday of Lent(C):Gen15:5-12,17-18,Phil3:17-4:1,Lk9:28b-36

Luke's version of the transfiguration of Jesus is more personal than the accounts of Mark and Matthew. Thus, for example, Luke alone tells us that Jesus was at prayer when this occurred. And he alone informs us concerning the subject of Jesus' conversation with Moses and Elijah, that they "spoke of his exodus that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem" (v.31).

Moses and Elijah represent the Old Testament (the Law and the Prophets) which is centered in the exodus of God's people from the bondage of Egypt. Correspondingly, the exodus of Jesus in Jerusalem, which is his death and resurrection, will be a new exodus initiating a new covenant between God and all the people of the world. This new exodus must happen on the anniversary of the exodus from Egypt and will be the fulfillment of that pivotal event.

The liberation of the Hebrew slaves from the bondage of the Pharoah was the effect of a divine initiative revealing God's true nature as one who loves and who wishes that all in bondage should be free. This same revelation is at the center of the definitive exodus, which is the death and resurrection of Jesus. Moreover, just as the Passover meal in Israel kept alive the power of the original exodus, so also does the Eucharist of Christians make present among us the love of God as one who offers true and lasting freedom

Joke: A middle-aged woman has a heart attack and is taken to the hospital. While on the operating table she has a near death experience. During that experience she sees God and asks if this is it. God says no and explains that she has another 30 years to live.

Upon her recovery she decides to just stay in the hospital and have a face lift, liposuction, breast augmentation, tummy tuck, etc. She even has someone come in and change her hair color. She figures since she’s got another 30 years she might as well make the most of it.

She walks out of the hospital after the last operation and is killed by an ambulance speeding by. She arrives in front of God and complains, “I thought you said I had another 30 years.”

God replies, I didn’t recognize you.”

Life messages: (1) In each Holy Mass, the bread and wine we offer on the altar become “transfigured” or transformed into the living body and blood of the crucified, risen and glorified Jesus.  Just as Jesus' transfiguration strengthened the apostles in their time of trial, each holy Mass should be our source of heavenly strength against temptations, and our renewal during Lent. 

(2) Each time we receive one of the sacraments, we are transformed. For example, baptism transforms us into sons and daughters of God and heirs of heaven. Confirmation makes us temples of the Holy Spirit and warriors of God.  By the sacrament of reconciliation, God brings back the sinner to the path of holiness.  

(3) We need 'mountain-top experiences' in our lives by spending extra time in prayer during Lent.  Fasting for one day can help the body to store up spiritual energy.  This spiritual energy can help us have thoughts that are far higher and nobler than our usual mundane thinking.

Introduction: Second Sunday of Lent

Message : Abram’s faith is sealed with a covenant initiated by God, our light and our salvation.  The transfiguration of Jesus prefigures the transformation in glory to which we are called by our sharing in the paschal mystery- the dying and rising of Jesus

The custom of reading today’s gospel near the beginning of Lent may have come from an ancient tradition which held that the transfiguration of Jesus took place forty days before Good Friday.

V Sunday in OT.: (C) Is 6: 1-2a, 3-8; ICor 15: 1-11; Lk 5:1-11

V Sunday in OT.: (C) Is 6: 1-2a, 3-8; ICor 15: 1-11; Lk 5:1-11

The scene is set. Isaiah remembers exactly when it was–the year that King Uzziah died. He remembers what he saw: God on a throne seated in the Temple. He has royal robes on. The train of his garment is so large that it filled the Temple. There were angels there. Seraphim called out, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. The heaven is filled with his Glory.”  They were so loud that the walls shook, the massive metal door of the Temple shook. And the smoke from the incense. The smoke filled the House of God.

And then the questions from God Himself. “Whom shall we send?  Who will go for us?”

“Here I am,” Isaiah says, “Here I am. Send me.”

“Here we are,” we call. “Send us.”  And through the grace of our Baptism brought to completion by our confirmation, we have been sent out by God Himself. Whatever it is that we do, we are to do it in the service of God.

What does this mean?  What does it mean to say that we are called to serve God in every way possible. Well, some of you are married, others are hoping some day to marry. Here’s what serving God means: it means that it is not good enough just to be husbands.  You must be the best husband possible, emptying yourself for your wife, serving God by serving your wife. Put her first. Women should always come first. They are God’s gift to men. They are the sacred vessels of life. Love her, and love God by loving her. For you girls, you women, don’t just be wives. Be the best wife the world has ever seen. Give yourself not just to your husband, but to your God. Serve God by serving your husband.

Some of you are parents, or are hoping some day to become parents. It is not enough to give birth, and to sustain the life of a child.  You have been called to serve God through your children. Be the best parent possible. Give your life for your children. And in this way serve God who created your children with you and your spouse, endowing them the unique reflection of his love.

We are called to serve the King of Kings. We don’t just perform a job. We are called to serve the Lord. If we are priests, we must be the best priests possible, using our particular gifts for Him. If we are auto mechanics, we must be the best mechanic possible serving God by taking caring of people’s cars, keeping them safe. Some of you are doctors, and lawyers, and nurses and school teachers, etc. We don’t just need doctors and nurses and school teachers, and lawyers and accountants, etc, etc. We need the best doctors and nurses and school teachers and so forth. Whatever we do in life, we must do it the best possible way because we are doing it in service to the Lord.

Right now many here are students. You must be the best student you can be, developing your own talents. Your teachers are telling you that you have to work hard to succeed in the world. I am telling you that this is only a part of the story. You must work hard, not just to succeed in the world, but to serve the Lord.

Joke: In a certain church there was a man in the choir who couldn't sing very well. The choir director suggested that he should leave the choir. Others felt he should be given more time to improve. The choir director then decided to go to the pastor and complain. "You've got to get that man out of the choir or else I'm going to resign." So the pastor went to the man and said to him, "Perhaps you should leave the choir." "Why should I leave the choir?" the man asked. "Well," said the pastor, "four or five people have told me you can't sing." "That's nothing," the man replied, "forty or fifty people have told me you can't preach!" Today's readings show us how God can make use of the most unlikely people to fulfill the divine purpose.

We only have one shot at life. We only get one life. We need to make the very best of our lives. We need to serve God in every aspect of our lives.  Some of you might be asking yourselves, as I often ask myself, “Am I good enough?” All three readings this week answer that question.   Isaiah was not good enough at first. Then an angel touched Isaiah’s mouth with the ember/spark from the fire. He was made clean. In the second reading Paul reminds us that he started off by persecuting Christians. He was mean. He would round up men, women and children and bring them to the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem. He watched and approved as an innocent and meek Stephen was stoned to death by a mob. Paul was a spectator at the lynching, but he cheered on the mob and left excited to find the mob’s next victims. But despite all this Jesus transformed Paul into an apostle. “I am who I am,” St. Paul says, “through the Grace of God.”  In the Gospel, Peter wants Jesus to leave him because he is so aware of his own sin. Jesus basically says, “No way. I have work for you, You will be catching men.”

We are called, we are sent, to lead people to meaning, to lead people to God. Whatever it is that we do in life, from something as major as marriage and parenting, to something as minor as finishing a school worksheet, we do it in service to God. Every action of our lives has purpose not just for ourselves but as beacons of hope for those who are seeking the Lord. We are the light that is meant to be set on hilltops so all can see. We are the Light of the World. We pray today for the courage to respond to the Lord’s summons with every action of our lives.

Introduction: V Sunday in Ordinary time

Message: Isaiah, a man of unclean lips, beholds the Lord’s glory in the temple and is sent on mission.  Simon, a sinner, responds to the mission of Jesus by becoming a disciple. Paul, the persecutor, speaks of his call to preach nothing but Christ crucified and risen.

Saints and events in this week: 10-Sunday-World Marriage Day; 11-Monday-Our Lady of Lourdes; 13-Wednesday-ASH Wednesday-Lent begins-Day of fasting and abstinence; 14-Thursday-Saints Cyril, monk, and Methodius, bishops. 15-Friday-St.Johns:5:05pm.Mass+Stations+Soup Supper; Ashland:7:15pm.Stations.

ASH WEDNESDAY [C]: Jl 2: 12-18; II Cor 5: 20--6:2; Mt 6:1-6, 16-18

ASH WEDNESDAY [C]: Jl 2: 12-18; II Cor 5: 20--6:2; Mt 6:1-6, 16-18

Pope Benedict stunned the world by announcing his resignation, effective February 28. I feel mixed emotions - sadness that physical weakness makes him unable to continue in this office. At the same time, I feel a tremendous gratitude to have been a priest under two of the most amazing men to occupy the Chair of Peter - Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI. As we begin Lent I ask you to join with me in prayer for Pope Benedict in the final weeks of his papacy - and for the cardinals as they meet in March to elect a new pope.

Along with sadness and appreciation, the pope's announcement has also brought some humor. One jokester quipped: The pope has set a really high bar for giving up something Lent! Whatever you and I give up, it will not be so dramatic as...giving up the papacy!

In a Lenten message Pope Benedict gave some concrete suggestions. He recalls the three basic Lenten "tasks" - prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Sometimes people think that these practices are outmoded, that Jesus has somehow spiritualized everything. You know, it's the 21st century - we don't have to get on our knees, or reach into our wallets or pass up a tempting dessert. For people who have fallen into a vague "spirituality," I ask them to re-read today's Gospel. Jesus does not say, "If you fast." He says, "When you fast." He does not say, "If you feel like praying." He says, "When you pray." Nor does he say, "Give if you happen to have something extra." No, he says, "When you give alms." This phrase implicate the practice of almsgiving, prayer and fasting are part of a Christian.

Joke: The church was packed with the faithful eager to receive ashes on Ash Wednesday. Pat, Father Kelly's janitor, offered to help. "OK," said Father, "now these are the words you say: 'Remember, man, you are dust, and unto dust you shall return." Pat prepared to start at the opposite end of the communion rail. (This was in the old days, as you can realize.) But Pat came hurrying over to Father: "Father, what are those words again?" Father told him, Pat went back to his station, but in a moment he was back, asking for the words, which Father repeated. When Pat came back the third time Father exploded: "You are a dummy and you'll always be a dummy." Pat didn't come back but when the padre and the janitor came close to each other at the middle the priest was dumbfounded to hear the words Pat was saying: "You are a dummy and you'll always be a dummy"

Practical Implication: spent 15minutes in meditation just looking at the crucified Christ during this lent.

1 Sunday of Lent - Reflections

I Sunday of LENT [C]: Deut 26: 4-10, Rom10:8-13, Lk 4: 1-13

Bible scholars interpret the graphic temptations of Jesus described by Matthew and Luke in theirgospels are pictorial and dramatic representations of the inner struggle against a temptation that Jesus experienced throughout his public life. The devil was trying to prevent Jesus from accomplishing his mission, mainly through a temptation to become the political messiah of Jewish expectations, and to use his divine power to avoid suffering and death.  Jesus' temptation in the desert reveals to us the way in which the Son of God is the Messiah. This is contrary to the way Satan proposed it to Jesus and the way men wish to attribute to Him. This is why Christ vanquished the tempter for us: "For we have not a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sinning." [Heb. 4:15]

Every year we begin Lent with one of the accounts of the temptation of the Lord.  The account this year is taken from the Gospel of Luke. We always start Lent with the Lord being tempted because the forty days the Lord spent fasting remind us of the forty days of Lent. Forty is an important number in the Bible.  It usually refers to a period of preparation. For example, Moses was on Mount Sinai for forty days before he received the Law of God.  The Hebrew people roamed in the desert for forty years before they were ready to enter the Promised Land. Elijah walked forty days and nights until he came to mount Horeb .  In the Acts of the Apostles Jesus teaches his disciples for forty days after the resurrection and then ascends to the Father.  He was preparing them for Pentecost. In all these cases and so many more in the Bible, 40 is both a time of preparation and a period of trial.

Joke: A newly-wed sailor is informed by the navy that he's going to be stationed a long way from home on a remote island in the South Pacific for 2 years. A few weeks after he gets there he really starts to miss his new wife, so he writes her a letter.

"My darling," he writes, "it looks like we're going to be apart for a very long time. Already I'm starting to miss you and we're constantly surrounded by young, attractive native girls. The temptation's terrible. I need some kind of hobby to keep my mind off them."

His wife sends him back a harmonica with a note reading, "Why don't you learn to play this?"

Eventually his tour of duty comes to an end and he rushes back to his wife.

"Darling" he says, "I can't wait to get you into bed so that we can make passionate love!"

But she stops him with a wave of her hand. "First, let's see how well you play that harmonica."

When we consider the 40 days of Lent, we focus on preparing for Easter.  That is one reason for Lent, but only one.  We are also preparing ourselves for the full sharing in Jesus’ Resurrected Life that will take place when we pass from this life to the next.  We are preparing for eternal life.  That is why during Lent we need to consider our personal battles against evil.  As human beings, we will always be confronted with the temptation to do wrong.  As long as we have human bodies we are going to be tempted to seek joy in places where the Lord is not found. If you get to the end of the day and can honestly say, “I had no temptations of any kind today,” you should take your pulse.  You are probably dead. Jesus himself was tempted to accept the pleasures of the world rather than remain united to the Father.

 

Practical Implications: 1) We need to confront and conquer temptations as Jesus did, using the means he employed. 

2) We need to grow in holiness during Lent by prayer, reconciliation and sharing. 

3) We need to be on guard against veiled temptations: Let us remember that even Spirit-filled, sanctified and vibrant Christians are still subject to the Original Temptation of Eve: "You will be like gods, knowing what is good and what is evil".