2020/03/29 — 5th Sunday of Lent — Year A

First Reading — Ezekiel 37:12-14
Second Reading — Romans 8:8-11
Gospel — John 11:1-45

These readings are all about resurrection.

While the passage from Ezekiel used the image of the graves and resurrection as a metaphor for the restoration of Israel with a return from exile, in the context of the other readings, we are led to understand it also as promising actual bodily resurrection to God's people, with the land of Israel symbolizing eternal existence in the presence of God,

The reading from Romans is largely an exhortation to the hearers to live in the spirit, rather than in the flesh. It concludes with the promise that if the Holy Spirit dwells in us, our bodies will be raised like Jesus'.

With these promises of resurrection fresh in our minds, we come to the raising of Lazarus. There is a twofold significance here. At the literal level, it is a miracle. Jesus uses his power — obviously divine — to restore a dead man to life.

Martha and Mary complain in turn that if Jesus had come before Lazarus died, he could have restored Lazarus to health. But Jesus does not always intervene in the normal course of events with a miracle. Every time something bad happens, we can ask why, but there is usually no direct answer. We do know, as this gospel passage reminds us, that God always loves us, even when bad things are happening, even when tragedy surrounds us. Jesus is deeply saddened by the death of Lazarus. God's promise to us is not earthly happiness, but eternal joy in his presence.

In this instance, Jesus responds to the situation by raising Lazarus from death, restoring him to life. This leads many, beyond Martha and Mary, to place their faith in him. The raising of Lazarus tells us, obviously, that Jesus has the power to raise us also, and thus gives us confidence in the promise contained in the first two readings. But our faith also tells us that the promised resurrection goes beyond the restoration of earthly life. It is a promise of a glorified life like that of Jesus after his resurrection.

As I've noted, Lent is the time of preparation for baptism. Especially in Year A, the readings instruct the catechumens about the meaning of their anticipated baptism. Last week, it was the end of spiritual blindness that was the focus. This week, it is being raised from a state of spiritual death to spiritual life. The Holy Spirit gives us the life of grace, a share in God's own eternal life. We are freed from our bondage to sin and walk in the freedom of God's children. As the catechumens look forward to this effect of the sacrament, we reflect on our own spiritual life, begun in baptism and containing a promise for eternity.

2020/03/22 — 4th Sunday of Lent — Year A

First Reading — 2 Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a
Second Reading — Ephesians 5:8-14
Gospel — John 9:1-41

Today's gospel passage calls to mind the line in the hymn "Amazing Grace" which says "I  once … was blind, but now I see." We understand the healing of blindness from birth in the context of Lent: the preparation of catechumens for baptism. They understand themselves as having been born spiritually blind in a pagan culture. Now they are ready to receive spiritual sight in the light of Christ. Some scholars believe that St. Paul is quoting a very early baptismal hymn with the words, "Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light."

The Easter Vigil, during which the catechumens are baptized, begins with the blessing and lighting of the Paschal Candle, which is then carried in procession to a place near the altar, during which the deacon chants three times, "Christ, our light," and the people respond, "Thanks be to God." The candle — which is lit at Masses throughout Eastertide and at baptisms and funerals — represents Christ risen, the light of the world.

After the healing, and the man's controversy with the Pharisees, Jesus reveals himself to the healed man as the messianic Son of Man, and the man believes in him. St Paul draws out the implication for all who have been baptized. We must all "live as children of light" and always avoid the "works of darkness.

While Samuel's anointing of David to be King of Israel does not seem to be directly related to the spiritual enlightenment and baptism of the catechumens, there are a couple of points. One is that our merely human sight and estimation don't necessarily correspond to how God sees and evaluates things. We need to see things in the light God gives us. Also, when Samuel anointed Davis, the Holy Spirit came upon him to enable him to fulfill the office of king. At baptism, we are anointed as a symbol of the Holy Spirit coming upon us to enable us to live the life to which we are called as children of light.

2020/03/15 — 3rd Sunday of Lent — Year A

Third Sunday – March 15

First Reading — Exodus 17:3-7

Second Reading — Romans 5:1-2, 5-8

Gospel — John 4:5-42


An obvious theme of this Sunday's readings is water. In the first reading, Moses miraculously brings water from a rock for the thirsty Israelites. In the gospel, a Samaritan woman comes to draw water, and Jesus, apparently thirsty, asks her for a drink. But then he offers her "living water." She thinks he is speaking about physical water. Even when he clarifies that the water he gives becomes an interior spring that confers eternal life, she is still thinking of physical water. But after further conversation about authentic worship in spirit and truth, she realizes that he is the Messiah. Later, many of the townspeople come to faith in him.

The water Jesus promises is a symbol — as in other places in the scriptures — of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is promising her, and all believers, the Holy Spirit for eternal life. And here we come to the second reading. Paul says that our justification come by faith, which in turn gives us hope because the Holy Spirit pours (water metaphor) the love of God into our hearts. So, as in 1 Corinthians, he speaks of the three "theological virtues," faith, hope, and love The greatest of them comes through the Holy Spirit.

So what seemed at first to be about water turns out to be about the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Another point to note is that from early times Lent was the time of final preparation for the baptism of catechumens at Easter. Over the centuries, as infant baptism became more common, that aspect wasn't so prominent, but over the past 60 years it has been renewed. For catechumens, and by extension for all of us, these readings about water and the Holy Spirit remind us of baptism. Jesus tells Nicodemus in John 3 that one must be born of water and the Holy Spirit — which happens at baptism — to enter the kingdom of God. Jesus promises us the water of the Holy Spirit, springing up to eternal life.

Ash Wednesday

It’s Ash Wednesday. In my parish we offered four chances for people to come to church to get ashes. There were Masses at 7:30 and 9:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. There was also a period from 3:00 t0 3:30 p.m where people could just come in and have the ashes placed on their foreheads.

It has always been a time of preparation for Easter. In early centuries Easter was not just the annual celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. It was also the time when the bishop administered two sacraments: Baptism and Reconciliation. So there were special forms of preparation for those who were about to enter the Church — catechumens — and those who were estranged from the Church by serious public sin — penitents.

Forms of preparation developed over time and in different places, and ordinary members of the Church alsoprepared for the great celebration of Easter. Daytime fasting (with a meal in the evening) for a five or six days a week to a total of forty days became widespread. Over the centuries, the Western church relaxed the rules to the point that now in the United States (I don’t know about other countries) all that is required is that people over 14 not eat meat on Ash Wednesday and the Fridays of Lent and that those between 18 and 60 only eat one full meal and no more than two smaller meals — with no eating between meals — on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.

This “fast” is so attenuated that people who are serious about making Lent something special often want to do more that the required minimum. They might choose to eliminate meat from other meals, to limit the size of their meals, and/or to avoid eating between meals Monday through Saturday. Some people choose to give up something else, such as smoking, candy, alcohol, etc. Some take their cue from today’s gospel (Matthew 6:1-8, 16-18) and make Lent a time of increased prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Many writers say that, above all, Lent should be a time when we seek the grace to overcome sinful habits — not to return to them at Easter like good things we give up — but to leave them behind permanently.

One element of Lent is a focus, especially on Fridays and toward the end of the season, on the fact that the resurrection we celebrate at Easter is Jesus’ triumph over death and the sufferings he had to endure in his Passion. So we are encouraged to meditate on the price he paid for our redemption and to see whatever discomforts we endure as sharing in some small way in his saving action. We unite ourselves with him in our intention.

A piece of advice I have seen in several places is to be flexible and not to become discouraged. If we are doing something for Lent, and one day we slip up, we don’t have to give up immediately. We can start again the next day. On the other hand, if it becomes obvious after a while that what we decided was unrealistic, we can and should make an adjustment, and choose a program we’ll actually be able to follow. On the other hand, we could even decide that we can do more than we had planned at first. So we might as well give it a try.

Have a good Lent

2018/03/11 & 18 — 4th & 5th Sundays of Lent — Year B

Fourth Sunday – March 11

First Reading — 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23

Second Reading — Ephesians 2:4-10

Gospel — John 3:14-21

A unifying thread of these readings is God's merciful care for his people. Chronicles concludes with the release of the Israelites from the Babylonian captivity. In Ephesians Paul speaks not of a political captivity but of the spiritual death of sin. The Israelites did not effect their own liberation. It was the Persian king, raised up by God to liberate them for the consequences of their violations of the covenant. In the same way, it is not our own works that save us from the death of sin; it is God's freely given grace. Jesus died and rose, and God has "raised us up with him."

Jesus' dialogue with Nicodemus, quoted in part in this day's gospel, includes the classic text, "God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. The passage begins with a reference to the story in Numbers 21:4-9: the Israelites were being bitten by venomous serpents, and God told to make a bronze image of a serpent and mount it on a pole. Whoever looked at the bronze serpent was healed. Jesus, mounted — lifted up — on the cross heals those who look on him with faith. The grace of faith brings us to leave the darkness of our sins behind.



Fifth Sunday – March 18

First Reading — Jeremiah 31:31-34

Second Reading — Hebrews 5:7-9

Gospel — John 12:20-23

In the gospel some Greek believers in Judaism go to one of  the apostles with a Greek name and ask to see Jesus. He gets the other apostle with a Greek name, and they relay the request of those believing gentiles. Jesus' response, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified," seems enigmatic. I think it has to do with the fact that his message is reaching beyond his Jewish followers. His resurrection must take place before the gentile world is evangelized. The text does not say whether Jesus actually met with those Greeks. It is entirely possible that he did. What is important for us is that their request heralds Jesus' death and resurrection. As in the fourth Sunday's gospel, Jesus again speaks of being "lifted up" (like the bronze serpent) and drawing everyone, Jews and gentiles to himself.

Jesus is the epitome of self-abnegation for the sake of producing fruit. He willingly accepted crucifixion and death in order to be "the source of salvation for all who obey him," and invites all to this obedience. But we are also called to share his attitude of "hat[ing] our life in this world." We will not necessarily have to die directly as a result of following Jesus, but our lives must not be ones of self-seeking.

We believe that Jesus inaugurates the new covenant of which Jeremiah speaks. It is a covenant in which our sins are forgiven and God's law is written in our hearts — the Holy Spirit guides our consciences.

2018/03/04 — 3rd Sunday of Lent — Year B

First Reading — Exodus 20:1-17
Second Reading — 1 Corinthians 1:22-25
Gospel — John 2:13-25

St. Paul tells us that Jesus is "the power of God and the wisdom of God." His death and resurrection show God's power at work in him. He is the authorized spokesman who has a right to specify proper reverence for God's temple. Wisdom (reason, philosophy) seeks to understand the truth of existence: a worthy pursuit. In this, it has the immense advantage of the truth presented by the revelation of God in Jesus and in scripture, that God loves his people and offers us eternal life where all evil is overcome.

The ten commandments set out minimum standards of living in right relationship with God and with one another as members of his people. The two greatest commandments — love God with all your being; love your neighbor as yourself — provide the basis and context for the ten, as well as for all the developments elsewhere in the Torah, the prophets, and the teachings of Jesus.

Do we regard God's law as a burden or do we see it as the Jews regard Torah, a great gift, as expressed in the responsorial psalm (Ps. 19:8-11)? There we say, "The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. … They are more precious than gold …; sweeter also than syrup or honey from the comb."

The scriptures of this day point us toward Easter and invite us to renew our faith in Jesus as the one sent by God to save us and bring us into holiness and eternal life through his teachings and above all through his death and resurrection which are not only salvific in themselves but also the proof of his Messiahship.

2018/02/18 & 25 — 1st & 2nd Sundays of Lent — Year B

First Sunday – February 18

First Reading — Genesis 9:8-15
Second Reading — 1 Peter 3:18-22
Gospel — Mark 1:12-15

Every year, the gospel for the first Sunday of Lent tells of Jesus' forty days of fasting in the desert and  his temptations. The current year, Year B, features the Gospel of Mark, and Mark's account gives none of the details of the temptations we hear of in Matthew and Luke. This gives a chance for us to hear a bit of the context going forward, namely, the beginning of his public ministry: proclaiming the gospel of the Kingdom of God. The verses preceding this selection tell of Jesus' baptism by John, and that provides a connection to the second reading, which in turn connects with the first.

The three "synoptic gospels" — Matthew, Mark, and Luke — record the same sequence of events: Jesus is baptized, anointed by the Holy Spirit, and proclaimed God's son; Jesus undertakes a 40 day period of fasting and prayer in the desert, during which he undergoes temptation; Jesus begins his public ministry. (John gives us the baptism and inauguration of the ministry, but doesn't mention the desert.) This has significance for our lives. Most obviously, we have entered on a period of forty days of prayer and fasting (and almsgiving). It is a time of preparation for Easter, which is the time for adults to be baptized and begin their ministry as members of the Body of Christ, proclaiming the Kingdom of God. For those already baptized, Easter is a time for renewing our baptismal commitment to proclaim God's Kingdom by our lives, in our circumstances; and Lent is when we prepare to reinvigorate our lives of witness to the gospel, overcoming temptation and opening ourselves to the Holy Spirit through our Lenten practices of a more intense living of lives based on faith.

In the second reading, Peter sets baptism in the context of Jesus' death and resurrection, the saving act which is the culmination of the ministry which began after his baptism. Baptism incorporates the believer into this saving act of Jesus, in effect making him or her a sharer in that act, a recipient of its benefits. The water of the flood destroyed the sinfulness of the world in the time of Noah, just as baptism takes away our sins and puts us in a covenant relationship with God.


Second Sunday – February 25

First Reading — Genesis 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18
Second Reading — Romans 8:31b-34
Gospel — Mark 9:2-10

The gospel for the second Sunday of Lent presents an account of the transfiguration of Jesus — this year from Mark. First though, we hear the harrowing account of Abraham and the uncompleted sacrifice of Isaac. (For the people of ancient Israel, this was at least an implicit rejection of the practice of human sacrifice.) Some of the detail* is omitted from the reading, to concentrate on the essentials. We hear of Abraham's obedience to God, and God's promises in response to Abraham's faithfulness. God spares Abraham's son, but, as Paul points out, he does not spare his own son. That sacrifice acquits us of our sins.
* Isaac carries the wood for the sacrifice, making him a "type," a prefiguring, of Jesus, who carried the wood of his cross to the hill of sacrifice. In response to Isaac's question, "Where is the lamb for the sacrifice?" Abraham promises that God will provide, which he dies.

Paul tells us that Jesus not only died but was raised for us and is at the right hand of the Father. The transfiguration gives the apostles a vision of Jesus in the glory of his resurrection. The presence of Moses and Elijah — representing the Law and the Prophets — shows the continuity of the revelation of the Old and New Testaments. Jesus fulfills that revelation.

The voice from the cloud repeats the proclamation that was made at Jesus' baptism: he is God's son. This resonates with the baptismal facet of Lent. As a result of our baptism, we have the promise of a like glory when we are resurrected. The Jews of Jesus' time knew that there would be a resurrection at the end of time, but they didn't expect anybody to rise before that general resurrection. Jesus' resurrection promises ours.

Our baptism makes us spiritual descendants of Abraham, so that in us, along with the Jews, "all the nations of the earth shall find blessing."

Stingy?

A few days ago a booklet of meditations for Lent quoted the account of the woman who brought a jar of spikenard and poured it all onto Jesus' head. (Mark 14:3) The booklet points out that spikenard was very valuable. "This is a story of extravagant giving." It asks the reader to consider, "Shall I be small-minded or large-minded in my giving this Lent? What would extravagant giving be for me?"

Several years ago, I encountered a panhandler on a street in Boston. During a brief conversation, I reached into my pocket and pulled out some money. I saw it was two dollars and decided not to give both dollars to him. I gave him one dollar and put the other back in my pocket. Afterwards, I asked myself why I hadn't given him the two. In fact, I decided to go back and give him the other dollar, but he was gone. By way of contrast, another time I was going with a friend to a play in Boston, and he stopped to give money to a panhandler and gave him five dollars. The two incidents showed me how far from generosity I was.

Maybe I've improved a bit. I generally try to have a supply of cash, including some five dollar bills as well as singles, to give to needy people on the street or in the subway. There's a man whom I've seen from time to time in the State Street station. He has a large old coffee cup and a cardboard sign that says, "Seeking human kindness." We exchange a few words of greeting, and I give him five dollars if I have it. But I'm still unwilling to give more than five dollars. If I have a ten in my pocket, I think I can't give that bill away. Why not? Why not even give somebody twenty?

Getting back to the question, "What would extravagant giving be for me?" I suppose twenty dollars to a needy person would be extravagant for me. What I thought of when I read that question, however, was something very different. It took me a couple of minutes to clarify my thought. I recently took a distribution from my IRA to pay my yacht club dues and reduce a couple of credit card balances. There is about $2,500 which is available for the credit cards. To take that money and give it to charities might be extravagant. Can I bring myself to do it, or am I still too stingy?

Ash Wednesday, Lent —2018

Joel 2:12:18
2 Corinthians 5:20 – 6:2
Matthew 6:1 – 16-18

The readings for Ash Wednesday are the same every year. Joel calls for fasting and penance accompanied by assemblies in which the priests would pray for mercy. He concludes with an assurance that God is moved by these things to have pity on his people. Paul starts with the same premise as Joel: the people have sinned. They need to be reconciled to God, and this is the time to do it. In today's context, the Church views Lent as Paul's "acceptable" time. In the gospel, Jesus refers to the elements of prayer and fasting called for by Joel, and adds almsgiving. He takes for granted that his followers will do all three, saying, "When you give alms, … When you pray, … When you fast, …." His command is that we not do it for our own glory, but, as St. Paul told the Corinthians in last Sunday's second reading (1 Corinthians 10:31 — 11:1), for the glory of God.

We don't undertake our Lenten practices so we can congratulate ourselves on how much we've done, much less so others will be impressed. We do these things — extra prayer, extra fasting or self-denial, extra almsgiving — because as sinners we need to turn away from evil and do good, to develop habits of doing good, and to join our penance to Jesus' supreme self-denial on the cross for our redemption and that of the world.

2017/03/19 & 26 — 3rd & 4th Sundays of Lent — Year A

In the early centuries of Christianity, Baptisms normally took place at Easter, and Lent was the time for the final preparation of the catechumens who were to be baptized that year. Gradually it came to serve as a season for the rest of the faithful to prepare spiritually for their celebration of Easter. Over time, as infant baptism became the most common way for people to enter the Church,the formal catechumenate as the process of preparation for baptism fell out of use. Following the Second Vatican Council, the catechumenate was restored as the means of preparing adults and older children for baptism, and the Mass readings for the third, fourth, and fifth Sundays of Lent in Year A in the revised liturgy were chosen for their connection to baptism.


On the 3rd Sunday water is a unifying theme in the first reading and the gospel. In the pre-Vatican II liturgy, these readings were assigned to the Friday of the third week of Lent.

The first reading — Exodus 17:3-7 — tells of Moses providing water from a rock in the desert for the thirsty Israelites. This physical water is understood as a type of the water which Jesus promises the Samaritan woman in the gospel — John 4:5-42. The water in the desert sustained physical life. The water Jesus provides sustains eternal life. Water is, in scripture and in at least some Jewish tradition, a symbol of the Holy Spirit. So Jesus is promising the Holy Spirit to those who believe in him. He told Nicodemus that entry into the kingdom of God required being born of water and the Holy Spirit (John 3:5), and at his own baptism the Holy Spirit descended on him in the form of a dove. The offer of the life-giving water to the Samaritan women, and subsequently to her fellow villagers, tells the catechumens and us that this grace of baptism is available to all, not just to the Jews.

The responsorial psalm — verses of Psalm 95 — includes a reference to the incident of the water in the desert.

In the second reading — Romans 5:1-2, 7-8 — we find a reference to the three "theological virtues:" faith, hope, and love. Paul reminds us that faith in Jesus has brought us justification and hope of glory because of God's love for us, made effective in Jesus' saving death. There is also an allusion to the other readings: Paul says that God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.


The 4th Sunday has images of light and vision. On the first reading — 1 Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a — tells of Samuel's anointing of David as king to replace Saul. Although Jesse's son Eliab looks like a king to Samuel, God sees the heart, not just outward appearances and chooses David. The anointing of David brings the Holy Spirit powerfully upon him. We too, receive the Spirit at our baptism.

The responsorial psalm — Psalm 23 — attributed to David gives us the image of God as the good shepherd, with its allusion to David's having been a shepherd.

The second reading — Ephesians 5:8-14 — exhorts us to live in the light. Formerly we were in darkness, but Christ has enlightened us. The final lines, "Awake, O sleeper … and Christ will give you light," are thought to be from an extremely early baptismal hymn. The light of Christ comes to the catechumens and us through baptism.

The gospel — John 9:1-41 – formerly read on Wednesday of the fourth week of Lent, the day of an important examination of catechumens in early times, tells of Jesus' cure of a man born blind. He comes into physical light, just as baptism brings spiritual light. We can think of Jesus' making of clay with the earth and his saliva and putting it on the eyes of the blind man as a sort of "anointing." The pool of Siloam, where the man washed, in a prefiguring of baptism, was the source of water for libations in the temple on the first seven days of the feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles, or Booths). The healing of the blind man was apparently on the eighth day of the feast, when the water was no longer brought from Siloam to the temple. Perhaps this timing has significance for understanding Jesus as "greater than the temple" (Matthew 12:6). Certainly, the fact that Jesus earlier on that day had promised "rivers of living water" that is the Spirit, flowing from within those who believe in him (John 7:38-39) establishes the baptismal meaning of the healing of the blind man, and recalls the promise to the Samaritan woman of living water.

The blind man has been given light, not just physically, but also spiritually, and he professes his faith in Jesus, whereas Jesus' opponents among the Pharisees have blinded themselves to the truth about him.

2017/03/05 — 1st Sunday of Lent — Year A

The gospel of the First Sunday of Lent gives us an account of Jesus' experience of being tempted by Satan. This year — Year A — we hear Matthew's account. In Year B it will be from Mark, and Year C brings Luke's telling. The first and second readings give a theological context in which to understand the events of the gospel.


The first reading — Genesis 2:7-9; 3:1-7 — tells briefly of the creation of man and woman and of the Garden of Eden. Then we hear the familiar story of the temptation and fall of Adam and Eve.


The responsorial psalm — verses from Psalm 51, with verse 3a supplying the refrain — can be taken as an expression of Adam and Eve's mind after the fall, as well as our personal acknowledgment of our sinfulness and plea for forgiveness.


In the second reading — Romans 5:12-19 — St. Paul contrasts Adam and Jesus. Adam's sin brought condemnation and death to himself and all his descendants. Jesus' righteous act brings acquittal — forgiveness of sin — to all. Each one's act affects the whole human race.


The gospel —Matthew 4:1-11 — tells of Jesus' temptations by Satan. Unlike Adam, Jesus overcomes temptation. He thus becomes the new Adam, who reestablishes humanity in its proper relationship with God, definitively overcoming sin and death through his death on the cross in obedience to the Father and his resurrection.

Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden and sinned, disobeying God, falling to temptation. Jesus was in the desert, hungry, and did not sin but obeyed the Father and resisted temptation. This encourages us to follow through on our lenten disciplines as a way of strengthening ourselves to overcome the temptations the devil will present to us to prefer worldly goods to those of heaven.

2016/03/06 — 4th Sunday of Lent (Lætare Sunday) — Year C

My apology for being so late with this. I got tied up with other things. I'll try to be more timely hereafter.

The title of the 4th Sunday of Lent, Lætare Sunday, comes from the beginning of the traditional Latin Introit Chant for the day. "Lætare, Jerusalem …" (Isaiah 66:10-11) "Rejoice, Jerusalem …" These chants consisted of an opening verse, usually from scripture, followed by a psalm verse, followed by the short doxology (Glory be to the Father …), followed by a repeat of the opening verse. In earlier times, there might have been several psalm verses, with the opening verse repeated after each one, in the manner of our contemporary responsorial psalms. At any rate, the first word or phrase of the introit was used as the title of the Mass in which it was used. A few have survived in use today to designate Sundays or Mass texts: Lætare, for this Sunday, Gaudete for the Third Sunday of Advent, and Requiem, for funeral Masses. Additionally, Quasimodo, for the Sunday after Easter, is  known as the name of the Hunchback of Notre Dame, who was born on that day.

It may seem counterintuitive that "Rejoice" should be the theme for a Sunday in the penitential season of Lent. It comes at the midpoint of the season, and is taken as encouragement: "We're halfway to Easter!" Rose colored vestments can be worn on this day and Gaudete Sunday to increase the feeling of encouragement.



The first reading — Joshua 5:9a, 10-12 — tells of the first Passover celebrated by the Israelites in the Promised Land, after their forty years of wandering in the desert. Throughout their wanderings, they had been subsisting on the miraculous food, manna. Now that they have arrived in the Promised Land, normal food is available; the manna is no longer needed, so it ceases. We can see the as  suggesting our life's journey. On our way to heaven, we are sustained spiritually by the Eucharist, but in heaven we will no longer need it.



The responsorial psalm — Ps 34:2-7, with 9a as the response — seems to be chosen for that response, "Taste and see the goodness of the Lord," which picks up on the notion of eating, whether manna or the produce of the land. The verses meditate on that goodness: we praise the Lord because he delivers us from fear and distress in answer to our prayers, as he delivered the Israelites from their bondage in Egypt.



The second reading — 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 — begins by contrasting newness in Christ with old things of the past. For the Israelites, the old things of Egypt and the desert had passed away when they entered the Promised Land. Paul says that the old things of estrangement from God because of sin have passed away because we have been reconciled by God to himself through Christ.



The gospel — Luke 15:1-3, 11-32 — gives us one of three parables Jesus gives in response to those who object to his welcoming of sinners and eating with them: the Prodigal Son. The other two are the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin. In a way the prodigal son's return to his father is like the arrival of the Israelites in the Promised Land. Although the Israelites had arrived in Egypt in good condition, they ultimately became oppressed, and God led them back to the land where Abraham had lived, as the son returned from the foreign land to his own land and his father's house. We treat both the bondage in Egypt and the actions of the son in leaving his father and squandering what he has received from his father as symbols of sin. The son repents and returns and is reconciled with his father, as St. Paul urges the Corinthians and us.

One very important message is, of course, the mercy of the father, who not only lets the son come home but honors him with the finest robe, a ring, and a celebration — restoring him to the family. The father can't do that until the son has come back, but he isn't passive. He's looking, and as soon as he sees the son, he runs to welcome him. This is the message for all who are conscious of being sinners. They have nothing to fear from God, whom the father in the parable represents. God always wants to welcome them back into his good graces.

Beyond this assurance of God's mercy, we should also consider the context. We are told this parable is directed to the Pharisees and scribes who objected to Jesus' welcoming of sinners. They are represented in the parable by the older brother. In this light, the parable is a warning to us not to think that there are people excluded from God's love: that we're okay but they aren't (whoever "they" happen to be in our eyes. We should be as anxious as the father to see people returning to him, and we should realize that in some way or ways we are all prodigal sons who need God's mercy. Lent is a time for conversion, and this parable encourages us all to convert in whatever way(s) we need to.

Ash Wednesday

The beginning of Lent is generally known in English as Ash Wednesday (which is a good translation of its Latin name: feria quarta in cineres). It takes its name from the custom of putting ashes on the heads of the faithful.


Ashes.  Putting ashes on one's head or sitting or lying in them (often accompanied by the wearing of sackcloth) was a customary way of expressing grief recorded in the Old Testament. See, for example, 2 Samuel 13:19; Esther 4:1; Job 42:6; Isaiah 61:3; Jeremiah 6:26; Jonah 3:6.

Lent began as a time for catechumens' immediate preparation for baptism at Easter. Soon it also became a time of penitential preparation for the reconciliation of notorious sinners with the Church, which would also take place at Easter. The bishop would put ashes on the heads of the penitents as  they began this season.

Over the course of centuries the public reconciliation of penitents morphed into the private reconciliation of sinners. Concurrently, the public penance of sinners in preparation for reconciliation at Easter became the preparation of all (who are all sinners) for Easter; and the ashes of the penitents became available for all as a sign of sorrow for sin.

It is worth noting that with this history and significance of the ashes, wearing ashes on Ash Wednesday does not violate Jesus' precept in Matthew 6:16-18. The ashes do not say we are fasting; they say we are repentant sinners.


Scriptures.  The readings for today's Mass approach Lent under different aspects. The first reading — Joel 2:12-18 — has a community aspect to it. The Lord calls for the wayward community to engage in a collective act of penance: fasting and assembling (with no exceptions) to pray for mercy. God is sure to be merciful to the people that turns to him in that way. The psalm refrain, "Be merciful,  O Lord, for we have sinned," continues the community vision, but the actual verses — Ps 51:3-4, 5-6ab, 12-13, 14 & 17 — are the words of an individual penitent. We acknowledge that our personal guilt is an element of the community's.

The second reading — 2 Corinthians 5:20-6:2 — looks not at sin itself but at reconciliation with God. Lent is a day of salvation, a  time of grace, when we can come to participate in Christ's divine righteousness because he has taken on our sin, removing the obstacle between us and God.

Finally, in the gospel — Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 — Jesus warns us against the hypocrisy of doing good things just for the sake of winning admiration from others. (The omitted verses are the ones where he gives the Our Father as the model of prayer.) Note that he doesn't say "If you give alms … pray … fast," but "When you give alms, pray, fast." These three things must be part of every Christian's life, and not just for Lent; but the Church considers them the primary disciplines of Lent. In other words, we are to do them more intensively and more intentionally during Lent. We should give alms more. This can include acts of kindness and supplying the needs of others even beyond things of monetary; we can help by giving of our time and our talents. We should deepen our life of prayer, adding maybe a few minutes of prayer or Bible reading to our daily routine. Fasting is what creates the idea of "giving something up for Lent." It has value in reasserting that we are in charge of our appetites; it says that we don't absolutely need these things; it says God is more important than these things which we enjoy; and what we save by not buying the things we give up can and should become part of our almsgiving — the fast isn't so we can spend on ourselves in some other way.

"A Midsummer Night's Dream" and Other Doings

I started writing this on March 17, but got tied up with other things. Oh wee, maybe now there will be more to talk abot. We'll see as I go along.)

It's Last week was a big week for concert-going, which I'mve reportinged on my music blog. But in addition, I went last Friday on March 14 to a performance of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" by the Bristol Old Vic from England. I've seen bits and pieces of the play before, and maybe the whole thing once about 30 years ago, but this was unusual in several ways. One was the lack of more than the most minimal scenery. Another was the element of puppetry. Hermia and Theseus became Titania and Oberon by holding masks at arm's length, and Oberon also used a large mechanical hand at the end of a pole (quite skillfully). And Bottom's transformation into an ass was accomplished, not by having him wear the animal's head but by putting oversized donkey ears on his feet, exposing his bottom (for the cheeks to be caressed) and having him wheel himself around the stage on some big contraption. I guess you had to be there. Anyway, it all made about as much sense as is possible for that play, and it got funnier as it went along, culminating with a hilarious "Pyramus and Thisbe."

We're having a mini holiday season, with St. Patrick's  and St. Joseph's days last week, and Annunciation this evening. I celebrated each properly by having dinner in a nice restaurant (and got a fair amount of reading done in my restaurant book, What the Dog Saw, by Malcolm Gladwell).

Tomorrow's Boston Symphony is not part of my subscriptions, but the Harvard Musical Associayion is having a "social evening" for the members, which, as always, includes a concert. I'll have my usual pre-concert dinner at Scollay Square Restaurant. On Friday, I have to go to Boston again for a performance of  Checkhov's "The Seagull" — not entirely sure whether I'l, have dinner at home afterwards, or somewhere in Boston before.

Lent is supposed to be a time of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving; and here I am spending money on nice dinners. Someone suggested that what people should do in Lent is match their restaurant tabs with charitable contributions. I just may do it.

Burnt Velveeta and Other Frustrations

Background.  The Catholic Bishops of the United States have established January 22nd (or 23rd, when the 22nd is a Sunday) as a day of penance for the millions of lives lost to abortion in our country since the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade and of prayer for the legal establishment of the right to life of the unborn. I did the prayer part by attending a service at my church. That left the penance. I decided that for the penance I would forgo having the leftover chicken-rice casserole or the spareribs for dinner. Instead I'd have a very simple macaroni and cheese. Then I decided that instead of using the good cheeses in my refrigerator, I'd get some Velveeta (which makes it more of a penance since, as I pointed out to Brody, "El pueblo unido / jamas comerá Velveeta!") I toyed with the idea of livening it up with a bit of Tabasco, but decided anything to make it more tasty would violate the penitential aspect.

Burnt Velveeta.  Come dinnertime, I got out some enriched rotini which would take 10 minutes to cook and also started boiling water to cook some frozen peas. Then I started in on the Velveeta. I greased a saucepan so it wouldn't stick, sliced about 4 ounces of the product and turned on the burner. I figured it would melt fairly quickly, and I could pour it over the pasta when it was liquid. Then it occurred to me that maybe I should add some milk to thin it a bit and glanced inside the cover and found that their recipe called for butter and flour as well as milk, then baking for 20 minutes. Well, no time for that, but I did stir in some milk. The ten minutes for cooking the pasta were up so I drained them, then went back to the Velveeta sauce and found that on one side of the saucepan a brown residue was forming and sticking to the pan. I managed to blend a little of it back in before I put the rotiini into the pan and mixed them together. I put them on the plate, drained the peas, and put them on the plate, too. At the table, it seemed that the sauce was cooling and thickening too fast, so I tried to mix in the peas for added warmth. I was moderately successful. The result was edible, and it certainly did not taste bad; but it was definitely bland and unexciting — good for a penance. I'll have to keep it in mind for Lent.

Draper's Law in Action.  Many years ago my godmother, Marguerite Draper, was reminiscing with her sister and with my mother about types of undergarments that they used to get, but that were no longer available, and she pronounced what I call Draper's Law: "If it's any good, they stop making it." Recently I found a product labeled "Rice Select Texmati Rice Medley." One thing I liked about it was that I can make smaller quantities than a package of Near East rice pilaf. So while I was out buying the Velveeta, I went to get more of that Texmati Mushroom Medley. There was none in the store — not the small size jar that I had had, not the big jar, such as they had for some other Rice Select products. I'll look in a couple of other stores, but I'm afraid that Draper's law has struck again, just as it did recently for New England Coffee Four Seasons Blend.

Seth the Waiter.  (See link for other posts mentioning Seth) Back home from my shopping expedition, I was at my computer and glanced at my i-cal and saw the notation HMA, referring to a Harvard Musical Association concert and social evening. It was just recently scheduled and is the only one in my memory to ever have been scheduled for a Monday. Mondays were one of the two evenings that Seth had indicated that he worked at Scollay Square restaurant after he got his job at the State House, and I had planned to go there on Monday evening for dinner before the HMA event and say hello — since I never have occasion to go to Boston on Monday evenings. But I procrastinated on making the reservation, and finally got so involved with other things that it slipped my mind until that glance at the i-cal. I looked at the clock: 7:00 — too late even for the concert, to say nothing of dinner at Scollay Square. I don't know when I'll have another occasion to be in Boston on a Monday or Saturday evening — Seth's nights at the restaurant — and of course he probably won't work there forever. So it's possible that I've missed my last chance to see him, unless I make a trip into Boston just for that purpose. But it would have been pretty close timing to go to the prayer service and get into Boston in time for dinner preceding the concert.

Oh Well.  I must admit that these are very minor frustrations compared to the things other bloggers have had to endure; and if nothing worse happens this year, 2012 will be the best year of my life. But I hope this has given you a bit of entertainment and a little glimpse of my personality.

Ash Wednesday/Lent

Rather than try to write something useful, I recommend you take a look at Rev. Austin Fleming's blog. He's the pastor of a church not too far from where I live.

He has been blogging up a storm about Ash Wednesday and Lent these past few days, and he made a post in which he listed and linked all his recent posts on the subject. Check it out if you want some ideas, or if you're wondering what all the fuss is about with Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday.

There is a later post which I hope you'll read. He quotes an article about current conditions in Haiti, and intersperses the Catholic Church's rules for Lent. Compared with what people have to live every day, what we're asked to do for Lent seems pretty mild.

Lent 2010 — Giving Things Up

Giving things up.

On Ash Wednesday at Mass the Gospel passage which is read is Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18, the part of the Sermon on the Mount in which Jesus tells his listeners that when they give alms, pray, and fast, they are not to make a big show of it to win acclaim. He says "when" they do these things, not "if" they do them. So, as I noted last year, these three elements of every Christian's life are given special emphasis during Lent.

The element of fasting has been given special emphasis over the years, with elaborate rules in the Catholic Church about how much could be eaten — one full meal per day, with two smaller meals totalling less than a full meal, and no eating between meals — and what could be eaten — meat only at the full meal, and not at all on Ash Wednesday and Fridays.

The idea was that it would be good to go beyond the legal minimum and fast from other things — maybe a food one liked such as candy, or maybe an activity one enjoyed, such as watching television (or a certain show), or maybe something else, like booze or cigarettes or going to movies. In other words, giving things up for Lent is a way of "fasting," which, along with prayer and almsgiving is part of Christian living.

But why Lent?

Lent began as the final period of intensive preparation for those who were becoming Christians. They would be baptized by the bishop at Easter, so they and their sponsors had to be sure they were ready — that they could both talk the talk and walk the walk. In time Easter came to include not only the baptism of the new Christians but also the renewal of their commitment by existing Christians, and they too prepared for it with this period of heightened practice of their calling.

The primary fast, some early writers noted, is fasting from sin, since freedom from sin is at the heart of our calling. But whether it is training ourselves to give up something wrong, voluntary fasting from something legitimate, additional prayer, additional giving to charity, or better still, all of the above — and all these things are possible only through God's grace — what we do in Lent helps us be better Christians and should prepare us once more to celebrate the saving death and resurrection of Jesus at Easter, a saving work into which we were joined by our baptism.

I hope all my Christian readers (and anyone else who wants to give it a try) have a good Lent.

Lent (Edited)

The ancient Christian writers saw three elements as prominent in Lent: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. These are the three things which Jesus mentions in Matthew 6: 1-6, 16-18. He says we should not do them to gain favor, but if we do them quietly, the father will reward us

Of course these should be part of a Christian's life all year, not just in Lent. Here the idea is to do them more intensively during Lent.

The writers say that even more important than fasting from food is fasting from sin. But beyond that, the specifics of the fast one undertakes can vary. Here is where the familiar idea of "giving up" something for Lent comes from. We can fast from food in general, or from particular kinds of food or from eating at certain times (such as between meals). We can also fast from activities we enjoy.

One value of something like that is the practice it gives us in self- discipline. If we can subject our desires to our will, even with regard to innocent activities, then we should find it a little easier to refrain from wrongful things as well. Another value is that whatever money we save can then become part of our almsgiving.

I wish all who observe a good season. May you arrive at Easter with nothing hindering your spirit from a joyous celebration of of the Resurrection.

I was very sleepy last evening as I wrote this and this morning I saw that there was a spot that was nonsensical. I've corrected it to say what I meant.