20250305 FAVOURABLE TIME FOR SALVATION
05 March 2025, Ash Wednesday
First reading | Joel 2:12-18 |
Let your hearts be broken, not your garments torn
‘Now, now – it is the Lord who speaks –
come back to me with all your heart,
fasting, weeping, mourning.’
Let your hearts be broken, not your garments torn,
turn to the Lord your God again,
for he is all tenderness and compassion,
slow to anger, rich in graciousness,
and ready to relent.
Who knows if he will not turn again, will not relent,
will not leave a blessing as he passes,
oblation and libation
for the Lord your God?
Sound the trumpet in Zion!
Order a fast,
proclaim a solemn assembly,
call the people together,
summon the community,
assemble the elders,
gather the children,
even the infants at the breast.
Let the bridegroom leave his bedroom
and the bride her alcove.
Between vestibule and altar let the priests,
the ministers of the Lord, lament.
Let them say,
‘Spare your people, Lord!
Do not make your heritage a thing of shame,
a byword for the nations.
Why should it be said among the nations,
“Where is their God?”’
Then the Lord, jealous on behalf of his land,
took pity on his people.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 50(51):3-6,12-14,17 |
Have mercy on us, O Lord, for we have sinned.
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.
Have mercy on us, O Lord, for we have sinned.
My offences truly I know them;
my sin is always before me
Against you, you alone, have I sinned;
what is evil in your sight I have done.
Have mercy on us, O Lord, for we have sinned.
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.
Have mercy on us, O Lord, for we have sinned.
Give me again the joy of your help;
with a spirit of fervour sustain me,
O Lord, open my lips
and my mouth shall declare your praise.
Have mercy on us, O Lord, for we have sinned.
Second reading |
2 Corinthians 5:20-6:2 |
Be reconciled to God
We are ambassadors for Christ; it is as though God were appealing through us, and the appeal that we make in Christ’s name is: be reconciled to God. For our sake God made the sinless one into sin, so that in him we might become the goodness of God. As his fellow workers, we beg you once again not to neglect the grace of God that you have received. For he says: At the favourable time, I have listened to you; on the day of salvation I came to your help. Well, now is the favourable time; this is the day of salvation.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps50:12,14 |
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
A pure heart create for me, O God,
and give me again the joy of your help.
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Or: | cf.Ps94:8 |
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Harden not your hearts today,
but listen to the voice of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ, king of eternal glory!
Gospel |
Matthew 6:1-6,16-18 |
Your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Be careful not to parade your good deeds before men to attract their notice; by doing this you will lose all reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give alms, do not have it trumpeted before you; this is what the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets to win men’s admiration. I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you give alms, your left hand must not know what your right is doing; your almsgiving must be secret, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.
‘And when you pray, do not imitate the hypocrites: they love to say their prayers standing up in the synagogues and at the street corners for people to see them; I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you pray, go to your private room and, when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in that secret place, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.
‘When you fast do not put on a gloomy look as the hypocrites do: they pull long faces to let men know they are fasting. I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that no one will know you are fasting except your Father who sees all that is done in secret; and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.’
FAVOURABLE TIME FOR SALVATION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Joel 2:12-18; Ps 51:3-6,12-14,17; 2 Cor 5:20 – 6:2; Mt 6:1-6, 16-18]
Do you feel tired? Do you feel that you are being carried along by the demands made on you? Do you feel that you are no longer in charge of your life? Do you feel empty even when you seem to have made achievements? If you are feeling that way, overwhelmed by responsibilities, the Lord invites us, “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Mt 11:28-30) Indeed, we need to quieten ourselves and make time for prayer and reflection. This means reducing our activities and look towards God and turn inwards to know the state of our soul.
Indeed, we are once again entering the season of Lent, beginning with Ash Wednesday. This yearly liturgical cycle gives the People of God the opportunity to pause and take time to assess our relationship with God, with our brothers and sisters, and most of all, the state of our soul, our life and our work. This is, as St Paul says, a grace-filled moment. The Lord says, “At the favourable time, I have listened to you; on the day of salvation I came to your help. Well, now is the favourable time; this is the day of salvation.” Indeed, we must welcome the season of Lent with gladness and gratitude that the Church provides us forty days to repurpose our life. Otherwise, there is a danger that we will lose control of ourselves and drift through life according to the trends of the world, pushed along by the crowd.
During these forty days of Lent, not counting Sundays, which is the Day of the Lord, the liturgy prepares us for Easter. The first three weeks of Lent are focused on the theme of repentance. During these three weeks, we are called to examine our sins, our relationship with God and with our fellowmen. We are called to enter into ourselves and see the sins in our life which is causing us to feel restless and empty. The first three weeks of Lent also elaborates on the Lenten program that the Lord gives us in the gospel, which is that of prayer, almsgiving and fasting. In the last three weeks of Lent, the focus is on the identity and passion of our Lord. Instead of focusing on our sins and losing hope and feeling miserable, the Church invites us to focus on Christ, His passion, death and resurrection. On our own we cannot overcome our sins and the temptations of the world. Rather, we are called to place our faith in Christ who alone can save us and give us the strength to share in His passion and suffering so that we can share in His resurrection. So the invitation to focus on ourselves is to lead us to surrender our lives to Jesus. It is ultimately faith in His resurrection that gives us the hope to persevere.
So, to help us to enter into a meditative and repentant mood, the Church invites us first to turn to the Lord with all our hearts. “‘Now, now – it is the Lord who speaks – come back to me with all your heart, fasting, weeping, mourning.’ Let your hearts be broken not your garments torn, turn to the Lord your God again, for he is all tenderness and compassion, slow to anger, rich in graciousness, and ready to relent.” The first step towards repentance is to come back to God and examine our relationship with Him. How much have we allowed God to be present in our lives, in our work, in our relationships, when we enjoy the things of this world? The reason for our emptiness in life is because our hearts do not rest in Him. We are made for God and without God, there is a vacuum in our life. Consequently, we must begin by examining the depth of our relationship with God. Is He near to us or far? Is He our personal friend whom we can trust and rely on?
This vacuum can only be filled with the presence of God, His love and His joy. Because prayer is to focus on God and to be fully in His presence, the Lord invites us to pray from our heart. He said, “And when you pray, do not imitate the hypocrites: they love to say their prayers standing up in the synagogues and at the street corners for people to see them. I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you pray go to your private room and, when you have shut the door, pray to your Father who is in that secret place.” When Jesus said that “your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you”, the reward that He is referring to is the joy of union with Him and basking in His presence. But when we pray with ulterior motives, to gain acceptance or even to create a good impression of ourselves, that prayer cannot offer us more than that. We will find ourselves still empty and restless.
Secondly, we need to examine our heart, where we stand before Him and before our fellowmen. We need to become more conscious of what we have been doing; the motives that drive us to do things; the way we regard money, power and publicity; how we deal with people, our colleagues, business partners and our loved ones, especially our spouse, parents and children. In the gospel, Jesus invites us to reflect on our care for others and the service we do. He said, “Be careful not to parade your good deeds before men to attract their notice; by doing this you will lose all reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give alms, do not have it trumpeted before you; this is what hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets to win men’s admiration.”
Rather, we are called to serve others and to give to others, so as to share in God’s joy in giving. This is what Jesus meant when He said, “But when you give alms, your left hand must not know what your right is doing; your almsgiving must be secret, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.” It is the joy of giving and helping someone that make us feel that we have done something good in life. In this way, we share in the joy of God which is His nature. We must also extend this reflection not just to material or tangible giving but also in our work. Are we conscious that the work we do is not just to make a living but to share in the work of God? What we are doing is for His greater glory and for the greater good of humanity. Unless we have a larger perspective of what we do, then our minds become very petty and inward-looking.
To ensure that the Season of Lent does not pass us by, we need a framework to help us to translate nice thoughts and words into action. The Lord exhorts us to fast in the right manner as a form of discipline. He cautions us about living a disciplined life to gain admiration instead of seeing it as a means for the good of our spiritual life. There are some people who might be very disciplined but they are self-righteous and proud of their disciplined way of life. They despised others who are ill-disciplined. The Lord said, “When you fast, do not put on a gloomy look as the hypocrites do: they pull long faces to let men know they are fasting. I tell you solemnly, they have had their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that no one will know you are fasting except your Father who sees all that is done in secret; and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.”
Nevertheless, discipline is an essential part of a mature spiritual life. Fasting is just one of the exercises that helps us to strengthen our self-discipline. If we cannot abstain from food and the pleasures of this world, then what hope is there for us to be disciplined in withstanding the temptations of the Evil One, the World and the Flesh. We will easily succumb to worldly temptations. Falling into the temptations of the Evil One will cause us to stay away from God, from prayer and reading the Word of God. So fasting is just one of the means to exercise discipline and feel the sufferings of others who are in want.
Consequently, we need to make our own Lenten program. We have to decide how we want to spend this time in Lent to redirect ourselves. We need to make time for silent and meditative prayer and worship of God. Without a Lenten program, most likely, the season of Lent will pass us by without our gaining much from it. Before we know, it will be Easter. Then as St Paul said, “As his fellow workers, we beg you once again not to neglect the grace of God that you have received.” So what are your Lenten resolutions? How do you think you can best benefit from this season of Lent?
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment