Mass Reflection:. Sunday, 28th March 2021

 IS 50:4-7; PS 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24; PHIL 2:6-11; MK 14:1-15:47

Today we celebrate Palm Sunday — the beginning of our Holy Week. Our liturgy starts with the account of Jesus humbly entering into Jerusalem riding a donkey. People put cloaks and palm branches in His pathway crying, “Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” It is with great joy that Christ was being honored as king, still in the same breath, we are filled with sorrow as we reflect on Christ’s passion and death. Thankfully, we know the glorious outcome of this painful journey. Today, as we read about the climax of Christ’s mission here on earth, we are reminded that He is the Perfect Steward, a model for us all on our stewardship journey. 
 
Our First Reading, from the prophet Isaiah, portrays a suffering servant. The suffering servant, in many ways, foreshadows what Jesus endured during His passion — “I gave my back to those who beat me… my face I did not shield from buffets and spitting.” Christ endured such tortures, knowing that He did not deserve them, but still He humbly submitted to them. 
 
We see that throughout Christ’s life, His mission as a steward was to fulfill His Father’s mission. He became man for a reason, and He humbly and obediently submitted to that mission for each one of us. We, too, play a unique role in our Father’s mission by bringing souls to Christ. And it simply begins with the witness of our lives. Let all that we do, including the way we speak and act, reflect our mission in this life. 
 
This message is re-echoed in our Second Reading, from St. Paul to the Philippians. St. Paul says, “Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself… he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” We see again that although our Lord deserved every honor and praise from man while on earth, He chose the path of service and humility, sacrifice and love. He gave us everything in that moment. This truly was an overflowing gift for each one of us. So how can we share our gratitude with the Gracious Giver? We can bring service, humility, sacrifice and love into all areas of our lives — our homes by the way we treat our family members, into our church by the way we welcome and serve our neighbors, and into our workplaces by the way we speak and act. 
 
Our Gospel today shares the account of Jesus’ last days on earth, and how He lives them says a great deal about how we should be living ours as faithful stewards. Jesus does many things in these last days, and they all revolve around prayer and service — two trademark actions of a good and faithful Catholic. He first hosts a Passover meal in which He gives us His Body and Blood in the Eucharist. He then intensely prays to His Father. Lastly, He submits to humiliation, torture and death for our sake, calling out to God the Father in His weakest moments. We might not be called to the same type of prayer and service, but we are all called to commit time in daily prayer with our Lord, and to serve our families, churches and neighbors in the various ways God is calling us to do so. No matter our state in life, we are all called to be faithful stewards through prayer and service. 
As we embark on this Holy Week, let us take some time to reflect on the life of Christ as He is our model Steward, and may we strive to imitate Him daily. 

The Liturgy of the Word: Sunday, 28th March 2021

Gospel	John 12:12-16

Blessings on him who comes in the name of the Lord.

A great crowd who had come to the feast

heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.

So they took branches of palm trees

and went out to meet him, crying,

‘Hosanna!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,

even the king of Israel!’

And Jesus found a young ass and sat upon it; as is written,

‘Fear not, daughter of Sion;

behold, your king is coming,

sitting on an ass’s colt!’

His disciples did not understand this at first;

but when Jesus was glorified,

then they remembered that this had been written of him

and had been done to him.

First reading

Isaiah 50:4-7 ·

I did not cover my face against insult: I know I shall not be shamed

The Lord has given me

a disciple’s tongue.

So that I may know how to reply to the wearied

he provides me with speech.

Each morning he wakes me to hear,

to listen like a disciple.

The Lord has opened my ear.

For my part, I made no resistance,

neither did I turn away.

I offered my back to those who struck me,

my cheeks to those who tore at my beard;

I did not cover my face

against insult and spittle.

The Lord comes to my help,

so that I am untouched by the insults.

So, too, I set my face like flint;

I know I shall not be shamed.

The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 21(22):8-9,17-20,23-24

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

All who see me deride me.

  They curl their lips, they toss their heads.

‘He trusted in the Lord, let him save him;

  let him release him if this is his friend.’

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

Many dogs have surrounded me,

  a band of the wicked beset me.

They tear holes in my hands and my feet

  I can count every one of my bones.

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

They divide my clothing among them.

  They cast lots for my robe.

O Lord, do not leave me alone,

  my strength, make haste to help me!

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

I will tell of your name to my brethren

  and praise you where they are assembled.

‘You who fear the Lord give him praise;

  all sons of Jacob, give him glory.

  Revere him, Israel’s sons.

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

Second reading
Philippians 2:6-11 ·

Christ humbled himself but God raised him high

His state was divine,

yet Christ Jesus did not cling

to his equality with God

but emptied himself

to assume the condition of a slave

and became as men are;

and being as all men are,

he was humbler yet,

even to accepting death,

death on a cross.

But God raised him high

and gave him the name

which is above all other names

so that all beings

in the heavens, on earth and in the underworld,

should bend the knee at the name of Jesus

and that every tongue should acclaim

Jesus Christ as Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

The word of the Lord.

Gospel Acclamation	Phil2:8-9

Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!

Christ was humbler yet,

even to accepting death, death on a cross.

But God raised him high

and gave him the name which is above all names.

Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!

The Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Mark

Key: N. Narrator.  Jesus. O. Other single speaker. C. Crowd, or more than one speaker.

  N. First thing in the morning, the chief priests together with the elders and scribes – in short, the whole Sanhedrin – had their plan ready. They had Jesus bound and took him away and handed him over to Pilate.

  Pilate questioned him:

  O. Are you the king of the Jews?

  N. He answered,

   It is you who say it.

  N. And the chief priests brought many accusations against him. Pilate questioned him again:

  O. Have you no reply at all? See how many accusations they are bringing against you!

  N. But, to Pilate’s amazement, Jesus made no further reply.

  At festival time Pilate used to release a prisoner for them, anyone they asked for. Now a man called Barabbas was then in prison with the rioters who had committed murder during the uprising. When the crowd went up and began to ask Pilate the customary favour, Pilate answered them

  O. Do you want me to release for you the king of the Jews?

  N. For he realised it was out of jealousy that the chief priests had handed Jesus over. The chief priests, however, had incited the crowd to demand that he should release Barabbas for them instead. Then Pilate spoke again:

  O. But in that case, what am I to do with the man you call king of the Jews?

  N. They shouted back,

  C. Crucify him!

  N. Pilate asked them,

  O. Why? What harm has he done?

  N. But they shouted all the louder,

  C. Crucify him!

  N. So Pilate, anxious to placate the crowd, released Barabbas for them and, having ordered Jesus to be scourged, handed him over to be crucified.

  The soldiers led him away to the inner part of the palace, that is, the Praetorium, and called the whole cohort together. They dressed him up in purple, twisted some thorns into a crown and put it on him. And they began saluting him,

  C. Hail, king of the Jews!

  N. They struck his head with a reed and spat on him; and they went down on their knees to do him homage. And when they had finished making fun of him, they took off the purple and dressed him in his own clothes.

  They enlisted a passer-by, Simon of Cyrene, father of Alexander and Rufus, who was coming in from the country, to carry his cross. They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha, which means the place of the skull.

  They offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he refused it. Then they crucified him, and shared out his clothing, casting lots to decide what each should get. It was the third hour when they crucified him. The inscription giving the charge against him read: ‘The King of the Jews.’ And they crucified two robbers with him, one on his right and one on his left.

  The passers-by jeered at him; they shook their heads and said,

  C. Aha! So you would destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three days! Then save yourself: come down from the cross!

  N. The chief priests and the scribes mocked him among themselves in the same way. They said,

  C. He saved others; he cannot save himself. Let the Christ, the king of Israel, come down from the cross now, for us to see it and believe.

  N. Even those who were crucified with him taunted him.

  When the sixth hour came there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice,

   Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?

  N. which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you deserted me?’ When some of those who stood by heard this, they said

  C. Listen, he is calling on Elijah.

  N. Someone ran and soaked a sponge in vinegar and, putting it on a reed, gave it him to drink, saying:

  O. Wait and see if Elijah will come to take him down.

  N. But Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.

  All kneel and pause for a moment.

  And the veil of the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The centurion, who was standing in front of him, had seen how he had died, and he said,

  O. In truth this man was a son of God.

Mass Reflection: Sunday, 21st March 2021

 JER 31:31-34; PS 51:3-4, 12-13, 14-15; HEB 5:7-9; JN 12:20-33

As we are nearing the end of our Lenten journey, our readings today remind us of the goodness that our God has to offer us. 
 
Our First Reading, from the prophet Jeremiah, foretells the coming of the new covenant. Because man failed to remain faithful to God’s covenant requirements, the Lord declares that a new covenant will be made. This covenant is unique because it will be written within the hearts of man, as the Lord says, “I will place my law within them and write it upon their hearts.” This covenant will transform man’s relationship with God and it will be through our Mediator, Jesus Christ. 
 
Once we begin Holy Week, we receive the sign of this new covenant at the Last Supper — the Eucharist. And it is in the Eucharist that we commemorate Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross — the moment when God “forgives our evildoing and remembers our sin no more.” And although this covenant was established many years ago, it is still new for us today. As this Lenten season comes to a close, let us strive to partake in the richness God has offered to us through this covenant by more faithfully living out our call as disciples of Christ through prayer, frequent reception of the sacraments, and service to our families and neighbors. 
 
In our Gospel today, Jesus announces that the “hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” All that He came to do on this earth was soon to be fulfilled. When we reflect on what Jesus says in this passage, He tells us a great deal about how we should be living as disciples of Christ. He states clearly, “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.” 
 
We are called to “die” to ourselves by detaching from our own desires and entrusting our lives to all that God has in store for us. Without this practice of self-denial, we might miss occasions God has given us to produce good fruit. We have been practicing this throughout our Lenten season through fasting. One way to continue this effort after Lent is by taking advantage of the countless opportunities God presents to us to sacrifice our desires for something much greater — whether it be waking up 15 minutes earlier to spend time in prayer with the Lord, fasting from a favorite comfort on a weekly basis, or taking the time to call to check in on a friend or family member instead of turning on the TV, just to name a few. It is important to die to ourselves so that we might continue to make room for God and the good things He wants to produce in us all year long. 
 
Jesus also states, “whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life.” God should have our entire heart, not just a portion of it. When we regularly practice the discipline of detachment by offering small, daily sacrifices to the Lord, we are also better preparing our hearts for the ultimate happiness in eternal life. 
 
As our Lenten journey soon concludes, let us strive to more faithfully live out our covenant with God by actively living as disciples of Christ. And may we consider the ways in which we might continue the practice of self-denial by offering small, daily sacrifices to the Lord.

Bible Study & Sharing

 

NEW NORMAL - Coping With Stress

 

The Liturgy of the Word - Sunday, 21st March 2021

First reading
Jeremiah 31:31-34
I will write my Law in their hearts

See, the days are coming – it is the Lord who speaks – when I will make a new covenant with the House of Israel (and the House of Judah), but not a covenant like the one I made with their ancestors on the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant of mine, so I had to show them who was master. It is the Lord who speaks. No, this is the covenant I will make with the House of Israel when those days arrive – it is the Lord who speaks. 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.

The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 50(51):3-4,12-15

A pure heart create for me, O God.

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.

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.

A pure heart create for me, O God.

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.

Second reading
Hebrews 5:7-9
He learned to obey and he became the source of eternal salvation

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.

The word of the Lord.

Gospel Acclamation
Jn12:26

Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!

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

Glory to you, O Christ, you are the Word of God!

Gospel
John 12:20-33
If a grain of wheat falls on the ground and dies, it yields a rich harvest

Among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. These approached Philip, who came from Bethsaida in Galilee, and put this request to him, ‘Sir, we should like to see Jesus.’ Philip went to tell Andrew, and Andrew and Philip together went to tell Jesus. Jesus replied to them:

‘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.
Anyone who loves his life loses it;
anyone who hates his life in this world
will keep it for the eternal life.
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.
Now my soul is troubled.
What shall I say:
Father, save me from this hour?
But it was for this very reason that I have come to this hour.
Father, glorify your name!’

A voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.’ People standing by, who heard this, said it was a clap of thunder; others said, ‘It was an angel speaking to him.’ Jesus answered, ‘It was not for my sake that this voice came, but for yours.

‘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.’

By these words he indicated the kind of death he would die.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Mass Reflection: Sunday, 14th March 2021

1 SM 16:1B, 6-7, 10-13A; PS 23:1-3A, 3B-4, 5, 6; EPH 5:8-14; JN 9:1-41 Our readings today identify the most unlikely individuals for the most extraordinary tasks. These individuals are examples to us in our everyday lives.    In our First Reading, the Lord appoints Samuel to declare the next king of Israel within the family of Jesse of Bethlehem. To an extent, Samuel had his own vision as to who should be the next king. Yet, the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not judge from his appearance or from his lofty stature... Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance, but the Lord looks into the heart.” Jesse then shares that there is one more son that was out tending the sheep — the youngest, David. When David came to Samuel, the Lord proclaimed, “There — anoint him, for this is the one!”   The Lord’s words to Samuel cut right to the heart of what matters in God’s eyes, “man sees the appearance, but the Lord looks into the heart.” We often embrace the misconception that status and appearance are what carry great importance in life. Yet, God clearly states that it is what is in our hearts that matters most. And He sees each one of our hearts. So how do we cultivate hearts worthy of God? It starts in prayer. Through this time set aside for our Lord, He will work on our hearts so that they will become more like His most Sacred Heart. Let us pray that our hearts might become transformed so that when we meet Christ face to face, He says, “There — anoint him, this is the one!”    Today's Gospel resounds what was proclaimed in our First Reading, “not as man sees does God see.” Jesus heals a man blind from birth, and the disciples asked Jesus, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answers, “Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him.” Then Jesus heals the man.    Jesus often worked through the most vulnerable people in need to show His greatest works when He was on earth. People thought this man was made blind as a punishment from God — yet, God chose him to become a witness to Christ’s light in the world. His weakness led him to depend on the healing power of Christ. We must also recognize our need for healing and give God the authority to work through us. With that, we will become an instrument of God in the world.    The Gospel continues with various people questioning how the blind man had his sight restored. They wondered from where the Man Who had healed him came. He responds so beautifully, “This is what is so amazing, that you do not know where he is from, yet he opened my eyes... If this man were not from God, he would not be able to do anything.”   How can we not believe in the good works of our God after hearing this testimony? We should be attentive to His good works because He pours them out on us each day. We simply must look through a lens of gratitude to see them.   During these final weeks of Lent, let us ponder God’s words, “not as man sees does God see.” May we become vulnerable and dependent on our Lord so that He might work through us and transform us; may we say a profound “yes” to that which He is calling us.

The Liturgy Of The Word: Sunday, 14th March 2021

 

First reading

2 Chronicles 36:14-16,19-23

God's wrath and mercy are revealed in the exile and release of his people

All the heads of the priesthood, and the people too, added infidelity to infidelity, copying all the shameful practices of the nations and defiling the Temple that the Lord had consecrated for himself in Jerusalem. The Lord, the God of their ancestors, tirelessly sent them messenger after messenger, since he wished to spare his people and his house. But they ridiculed the messengers of God, they despised his words, they laughed at his prophets, until at last the wrath of the Lord rose so high against his people that there was no further remedy.

  Their enemies burned down the Temple of God, demolished the walls of Jerusalem, set fire to all its palaces, and destroyed everything of value in it. The survivors were deported by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon; they were to serve him and his sons until the kingdom of Persia came to power. This is how the word of the Lord was fulfilled that he spoke through Jeremiah, ‘Until this land has enjoyed its sabbath rest, until seventy years have gone by, it will keep sabbath throughout the days of its desolation.’

  And in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, to fulfil the word of the Lord that was spoken through Jeremiah, the Lord roused the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia to issue a proclamation and to have it publicly displayed throughout his kingdom: ‘Thus speaks Cyrus king of Persia, “The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth; he has ordered me to build him a Temple in Jerusalem, in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all his people, may his God be with him! Let him go up.”’

The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 136(137):1-6

O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember you not!

By the rivers of Babylon
  there we sat and wept,
  remembering Zion;
on the poplars that grew there
  we hung up our harps.

O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember you not!

For it was there that they asked us,
  our captors, for songs,
  our oppressors, for joy.
‘Sing to us,’ they said,
  ‘one of Zion’s songs.’

O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember you not!

O how could we sing
  the song of the Lord
  on alien soil?
If I forget you, Jerusalem,
  let my right hand wither!

O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember you not!

O let my tongue
  cleave to my mouth
  if I remember you not,
if I prize not Jerusalem
  above all my joys!

O let my tongue cleave to my mouth if I remember you not!

Second reading

Ephesians 2:4-10 ·

You have been saved through grace

God loved us with so much love that he was generous with his mercy: when we were dead through our sins, he brought us to life with Christ – it is through grace that you have been saved – and raised us up with him and gave us a place with him in heaven, in Christ Jesus.

  This was to show for all ages to come, through his goodness towards us in Christ Jesus, how infinitely rich he is in grace. Because it is by grace that you have been saved, through faith; not by anything of your own, but by a gift from God; not by anything that you have done, so that nobody can claim the credit. We are God’s work of art, created in Christ Jesus to live the good life as from the beginning he had meant us to live it.

The word of the Lord.

Gospel Acclamation

Jn3:16

Glory and praise to you, O Christ!

God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son:
everyone who believes in him has eternal life.

Glory and praise to you, O Christ!

Gospel

John 3:14-21

God sent his Son so that through him the world might be saved

Jesus said to Nicodemus:
‘The Son of Man must be lifted up
as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.
Yes, God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost
but may have eternal life.
For God sent his Son into the world
not to condemn the world,
but so that through him the world might be saved.
No one who believes in him will be condemned;
but whoever refuses to believe is condemned already,
because he has refused to believe in the name of God’s only Son.
On these grounds is sentence pronounced:
that though the light has come into the world
men have shown they prefer darkness to the light
because their deeds were evil.
And indeed, everybody who does wrong
hates the light and avoids it,
for fear his actions should be exposed;
but the man who lives by the truth comes out into the light,
so that it may be plainly seen that what he does is done in God.’

The Gospel of the Lord.

New BEC - 14th March 2021

 

The Liturgy of the Word: Sunday, 07th March 2021

 

First reading

Exodus 20:1-17

The Law given at Sinai

God spoke all these words. He said, ‘I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

  ‘You shall have no gods except me.

  ‘You shall not make yourself a carved image or any likeness of anything in heaven or on earth beneath or in the waters under the earth; you shall not bow down to them or serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God and I punish the father’s fault in the sons, the grandsons, and the great-grandsons of those who hate me; but I show kindness to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

  ‘You shall not utter the name of the Lord your God to misuse it, for the Lord will not leave unpunished the man who utters his name to misuse it.

  ‘Remember the sabbath day and keep it holy. For six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath for the Lord your God. You shall do no work that day, neither you nor your son nor your daughter nor your servants, men or women, nor your animals nor the stranger who lives with you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth and the sea and all that these hold, but on the seventh day he rested; that is why the Lord has blessed the sabbath day and made it sacred.

  ‘Honour your father and your mother so that you may have a long life in the land that the Lord your God has given to you.

  ‘You shall not kill.

  ‘You shall not commit adultery.

  ‘You shall not steal.

  ‘You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour.

  ‘You shall not covet your neighbour’s house. You shall not covet your neighbour’s wife, or his servant, man or woman, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is his.’

The word of the Lord.

---

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 18(19):8-11

You, Lord, have the message of eternal life.

The law of the Lord is perfect,

  it revives the soul.

The rule of the Lord is to be trusted,

  it gives wisdom to the simple.

You, Lord, have the message of eternal life.

The precepts of the Lord are right,

  they gladden the heart.

The command of the Lord is clear,

  it gives light to the eyes.

You, Lord, have the message of eternal life.

The fear of the Lord is holy,

  abiding for ever.

The decrees of the Lord are truth

  and all of them just.

You, Lord, have the message of eternal life.

They are more to be desired than gold,

  than the purest of gold

and sweeter are they than honey,

  than honey from the comb.

You, Lord, have the message of eternal life.

---

Second reading

1 Corinthians 1:22-25 ·

The crucified Christ, the power and wisdom of God

While the Jews demand miracles and the Greeks look for wisdom, here are we preaching a crucified Christ; to the Jews an obstacle that they cannot get over, to the pagans madness, but to those who have been called, whether they are Jews or Greeks, a Christ who is the power and the wisdom of God. For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.

The word of the Lord.

---

Gospel Acclamation

Jn11:25, 26

Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!

I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord;

whoever believes in me will never die.

Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!

Or:

Jn3:16

Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!

God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son:

everyone who believes in him has eternal life.

Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!

---

Gospel

John 2:13-25

Destroy this sanctuary and in three days I will raise it up

Just before the Jewish Passover Jesus went up to Jerusalem, and in the Temple he found people selling cattle and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting at their counters there. Making a whip out of some cord, he drove them all out of the Temple, cattle and sheep as well, scattered the money-changers’ coins, knocked their tables over and said to the pigeon-sellers, ‘Take all this out of here and stop turning my Father’s house into a market.’ Then his disciples remembered the words of scripture: Zeal for your house will devour me. The Jews intervened and said, ‘What sign can you show us to justify what you have done?’ Jesus answered, ‘Destroy this sanctuary, and in three days I will raise it up.’ The Jews replied, ‘It has taken forty-six years to build this sanctuary: are you going to raise it up in three days?’ But he was speaking of the sanctuary that was his body, and when Jesus rose from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture and the words he had said.

  During his stay in Jerusalem for the Passover many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he gave, but Jesus knew them all and did not trust himself to them; he never needed evidence about any man; he could tell what a man had in him.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Mass Reflection: Sunday, 07th March 2021

EX 20:1-17; PS 19:8, 9, 10, 11; 1 COR 1:22-25; JN 2:13-25

This week marks the halfway point in our season of Lent. Our readings call us to roll up our sleeves and persevere through the remainder of Lent by committing to a more faithful life with Christ.
 
In our First Reading from the Book of Exodus, God delivers the Ten Commandments. He commands to not worship any gods besides Him, “For I, the Lord, your God, am a jealous God.” He states that those who do not follow His commands will receive punishment — yet, to those who love the Lord and follow His commands, He will show “mercy down to the thousandth generation.”
 
These commandments, when faithfully followed, help us remain close to God. They are vitally important to our faith. They call us to love God with all our heart, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. God presents these commandments to us with the freedom to follow them or reject them. If we reject them, we will have to accept the consequences. If we follow them, we begin to understand that these commands are not burdensome but rather liberating. It is because of God’s deep love for us that He gifted us with them. They will keep us free from sin and death and help us enter into eternal life with Him. And we are called to follow them fully as God says, “For I, the Lord, your God, am a jealous God.” He does not want a half-hearted devotion or a lukewarm disciple. As Christian stewards, we are called to follow these commandments wholeheartedly and to seek His mercy when we fail. 
 
In our Gospel today, Jesus purifies the temple area because it is being misused as a marketplace. He becomes angry at their lack of reverence for God. He spills the coins of the money changers and overturns tables, saying, “Take these out of here, and stop making my Father’s house a marketplace.” Those who were with Him asked for a sign for doing this and He said, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.” No one understood that He was referring to the death and resurrection of His Body. 
 
Jesus witnessed the way people mistreated the temple — the place to worship God and God alone. He drives out the evil and works to purify all that is sinful in that place. This is what Jesus wants to do for us this Lenten season. He wants to remove all impurity and evil in our lives and within our hearts so that we may have a proper dwelling place for the Holy Spirit. So, let us ask ourselves, what areas of our life need cleansing? Let us name those areas and invite Jesus to purify us. He became man to take to carry our burdens and wipe away our sins. He has given us boundless mercy, but we must do our part to seek it and commit to living a more faithful life as a disciple of Christ. 
 
This season of Lent is only halfway done — there is still time to work through our shortcomings and purify our hearts for the glorious Easter morning. Let us not waste another moment. Let us commit to living more faithfully God’s commandments, let us seek God’s mercy and let us invite God to transform our hearts.

 

BEC Reflection - March 2021

 

New BEC - 07 March 2021

Reflection - Third Sunday of Lent