Catholic Caucus: Sunday Mass Readings, 03-12-17, Second Sunday of Lent

USCCB.org/RNAB ^ | 03-12-17 | Revised New American Bible

[Salvation]

March 12, 2017

Second Sunday of Lent

Reading 1 Gn 12:1-4a

The LORD said to Abram:
"Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk
and from your father's house to a land that I will show you.

"I will make of you a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
so that you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you
and curse those who curse you.
All the communities of the earth
shall find blessing in you."

Abram went as the LORD directed him.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 33:4-5, 18-19, 20, 22.

R. (22) Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
Upright is the word of the LORD,
and all his works are trustworthy.
He loves justice and right;
of the kindness of the LORD the earth is full.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
See, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear him,
upon those who hope for his kindness,
To deliver them from death
and preserve them in spite of famine.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.
Our soul waits for the LORD,
who is our help and our shield.
May your kindness, O LORD, be upon us
who have put our hope in you.
R. Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.

Reading 2 2 Tm 1:8b-10

Beloved:
Bear your share of hardship for the gospel
with the strength that comes from God.

He saved us and called us to a holy life,
not according to our works
but according to his own design
and the grace bestowed on us in Christ Jesus before time began,
but now made manifest
through the appearance of our savior Christ Jesus,
who destroyed death and brought life and immortality
to light through the gospel.

Verse Before the Gospel Cf. Mt 17:5

From the shining cloud the Father's voice is heard:
This is my beloved Son, hear him.

Gospel Mt 17:1-9

Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother,
and led them up a high mountain by themselves.
And he was transfigured before them;
his face shone like the sun
and his clothes became white as light.
And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them,
conversing with him.
Then Peter said to Jesus in reply,
"Lord, it is good that we are here.
If you wish, I will make three tents here,
one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."
While he was still speaking, behold,
a bright cloud cast a shadow over them,
then from the cloud came a voice that said,
"This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased;
listen to him."
When the disciples heard this, they fell prostrate
and were very much afraid.
But Jesus came and touched them, saying,
"Rise, and do not be afraid."
And when the disciples raised their eyes,
they saw no one else but Jesus alone.

As they were coming down from the mountain,
Jesus charged them,
"Do not tell the vision to anyone
until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead."

[Salvation]

Reflections from Scott Hahn

Listen to Him: Scott Hahn Reflects on the Second Sunday of Lent

March 06, 2017

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Download Audio File

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Readings:

Genesis 12:1-4

Psalm 33:4-5,18-20, 22

2 Timothy 1:8-10

Matthew 17:1-9

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Today's Gospel portrays Jesus as a new and greater Moses.

Moses also took three companions up a mountain and on the seventh day was overshadowed by the shining cloud of God's presence. He too spoke with God and his face and clothing were made radiant in the encounter (see Exodus 24,34).

But in today's Lenten Liturgy, the Church wants us to look back past Moses. Indeed, we are asked to contemplate what today's Epistle calls God's "design...from before time began."

With his promises to Abram in today's First Reading, God formed the people through whom He would reveal himself and bestow His blessings on all humanity.

He later elevated these promises to eternal covenants and changed Abram's name to Abraham, promising that he would be father of a host nations (see Genesis 17:5). In remembrance of His covenant with Abraham he raised up Moses (see Exodus 2:24; 3:8), and later swore an everlasting kingdom to David 's sons (see Jeremiah 33:26).

In Jesus' transfiguration today, He is revealed as the One through whom God fulfills his divine plan from of old.

Not only a new Moses, Jesus is also the "beloved son" promised to Abraham and again to David (see Genesis 22:15-18; Psalm 2:7; Matthew 1:1).

Moses foretold a prophet like him to whom Israel would listen (see Deuteronomy 18:15,18) and Isaiah foretold an anointed servant in whom God would be well-pleased (see Isaiah 42:1). Jesus is this prophet and this servant, as the Voice on the mountain tells us today.

By faith we have been made children of the covenant with Abraham (see Galatians 3:7-9; Acts 3:25). He calls us, too, to a holy life, to follow His Son to the heavenly homeland He has promised. We know, as we sing in today's Psalm, that we who hope in Him will be delivered from death.

So like our father in faith, we go forth as the Lord directs us: "Listen to Him!"

[Salvation]

2nd Sunday of Lent: "Do you hear Him?"

(Giovani Bellini, 1490)

Gn 12: 1-4a

2 Tm 1: 8b - 10

Mt 17: 1-9

Sunday Word: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/031217.cfm

It is true that in order to be a good conversationalist we need to be a listener even more. I think this human art has been lost these days.  We live at a time of information overload, social media, and endless analysis of the daily events political, economic, religious and social.  While the internet is a rich source of information and communication it is also a powerful and at times addictive tool which can affect our personal and cultural lives in some very negative ways.  Opinion as told us, we shout and scream, demand that we be heard, we express our opinion we speak over another as they as speaking. So, we must be on guard and discern wisely what we hear and read about.  What can be a message of light and what can bring us to greater darkness? We ask, “Do I really listen in order to understand?” Can I hear what is being said or have I lost that art?

This second Sunday of our Lenten journey brings us face to face with a moment to listen.  On the mountain we see Jesus and three of his Apostles:  Peter, James and John.  I’ve wondered why these three and not Matthew, Philip or Andrew or any of the other?  Why not just all twelve of them together? 

Well, we can’t presume to know what was in the mind of Jesus but history may reveal some reason.  Peter would become the “rock” of the Church; the flawed but essential sign of the unity Jesus prayed for.  James would become the first leader of the Jerusalem Church and the first of the Apostles to die a martyr’s death.  John would later be given care of Mary, Jesus’ mother, after his death and resurrection.  John would live the longest of all the Apostles and eventually bring the Church to the end of its first century. He was personally known by some of the already successors of his Apostle brethren martyred before his own death.

Be that as it may, these three were obviously significant in the mind of our Lord and to them he sought to reveal a great truth.  He caught their attention and despite Peter’s sincere shout out, they were called to listen and understand.  The future knowledge of the nature of Christ and the unity of the Church would demand it. 

So, in a moment of strange transformation, on the mountain these three encounter a new vision of Jesus never seen before – a shadow of his resurrection. His face “shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light.” And the great prophets, Moses and Elijah, who bring together the Law and the Prophets, are seen speaking with Jesus.  Then to add to the overwhelming vision, a “bright cloud cast a shadow over them” and “a voice that said, ‘This is my beloved Son . . . listen to Him.’”

Now if a human face is suddenly  transfigured to a human form filled with glory, that shines like the sun, two long ago dead significant Jewish figures appearing, a cloud that shines and a voice that booms from it doesn’t cause you to stop and listen, nothing ever will! Certainly, this was not a Hollywood special effect but rather a deep truth uncovered for these future leaders of the Church. 

That is, Jesus is not a normal human being.  That his nature is both human and divine; that his mission is beyond this world and that he has come in the line of the prophets as the sign of God’s new Covenant, originally established through Abram (our first reading from Genesis) and Moses as the final fulfillment of that sacred Law.  For three Jews to witness such an event it would have all come together in a profound way.  God has fulfilled his promise to Israel and to all of humanity.  This is God’s answer to our sinful disobedience which estranged us from God. (Recall last Sunday’s story of Adam and Eve from Genesis 2).  Now, in Christ, his future passion, death and resurrection, a new and eternal Covenant is established between God and humanity. Still, why not build three tents?  Why not hold on to this glory?   

Once Peter has been silenced in order to get his attention all the more, and after the awestruck fear of the three, there stands Jesus alone as they have known him.  With him, there is no other nor will there be. Yet, this awesome display of other world glory was only temporary.  Here Jesus strengthened them for the days ahead – a time of no glory but suffering and passion; the seeming failure of a mission with the best of intentions.  This was an encounter they would need to never forget for beyond the suffering Messiah, there would come greater glory in the resurrection when the full story would be uncovered of Jesus’ identity and mission, which is now that of the Church.  For now, hold on to this but bring it down the mountain for future reference when the mission will carry on beyond Jerusalem to the entire world. 

That mission began with Abram when God asked a very risky and shocking thing of an old man who by now had settled down albeit apparently not rooted or fixed. Still, with no legacy in sons to leave behind progeny, we can only speculate that Abram may have given in to some level of sadness in, “this is as good as it gets.”

God asked Abram to begin again.  To listen to his command and to “Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk . . .” With a divine promise only to go on, Abram went trusting that God “. . . will make of you a great nation.” Abram’s example is forever of one who listened without question and obeyed a command that gave little in detail.  He was able to obey because he listened first only to now see on the mountain who would finally carry this promise to completion.

In the end, the grace of God is given to us all so that we may listen more attentively in order to recognize the voice of God in our own moments of change or transfiguration.  We are not changed as Christ was before his startled three of course but God provides moments for us to listen and understand.  This Lent is always a time for us to stop talking and to listen to God that we may be changed.

In prayer, in charitable service, in the sacraments, in compassion for another, at a time when we include another without judgement and recognize their human dignity, in the sacred Word of God, in the Holy Eucharist, in spiritual reading, in a tough time I’ve endured, in the sickness of another or a word spoken to me or who known where and how and when God will call our attention to himself and demand our ear. All these are moments of encounter with Christ but do I hear him? It may not be a shining face, a voice from clouds above or even at a mountain top moment. How, when or where God will speak to us we will never know if we are not paying attention or wrapped in our own preconceived perception of holiness or self - righteousness. 

Peter, James and John are more like us than we may admit.  They needed to learn and to be formed in the Gospel truth of who Jesus was and who he remains but they eventually made the grade.  They learned to listen to him.

At Mass we hear his Word and we encounter his living presence in the Eucharist - are we changed by him?  Let's pray this Lent teaches us to listen more and talk less that by his grace we may be changed for Easter resurrection.  

O God, who have commanded us

to listen to your beloved Son, 

be pleased, we pray, 

to nourish us inwardly by your word, 

that, with spiritual sight made pure,

we may rejoice to behold your glory.

(From Collect of Mass)

[Salvation]

Regnum Christi

March 12, 2017 – Listen and Learn

12 Mar 2017

Second Sunday of Lent

Father Todd Arsenault, LC

Matthew 17:1-9

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my beloved Son; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone. As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”

Introductory Prayer: I come before you, Lord, a sinner in awe of your great love and mercy. I believe in you, and I put you at the center of my life. I humbly put all that I am before you and, like the apostles, recognize my littleness before your grandeur. With the help of the Blessed Mother’s intercession, I place this meditation in your hands, trusting that you will give me the graces that I need most.

Petition: Lord, teach me how to listen to your voice.

1. Unexpected Graces: Peter, James and John are privileged to go with Jesus atop the mountain where he is transfigured before them. What a splendid sight it was: Jesus conversing with Moses and Elijah before their very eyes. They are beside themselves and are in awe at what unfolds. This is the way Christ is with each of us. When we least expect it, he gives us a wonderful dose of his grace to strengthen us in our walk with him. This privilege, however, isn’t simply for us to look at and admire; it is a call to respond to his invitation of love. Jesus was calling these three apostles to a deeper level of love and trust in him; he is doing so with us, too.

2. Listen to Him: At this sight, the apostles are awestruck and don’t know what to say. Peter feels compelled to say something, although it seems he really didn’t know what he was saying. The question is: Why did he feel as if he had to say something? Often in the spiritual life, we can struggle with the temptation to say too much. In this Gospel passage we hear the portentous words of the Father: “This is my son with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him!” Christ is calling us to listen attentively to his words and not to feel compelled to have to say something. He is looking for a response in action more than in words.

3. Get up. Be Not Afraid: When his Transfiguration is over, Jesus gets the three apostles up. This experience of Christ was beyond them. Yet Christ is educating them as to his true nature, his divine nature. They don’t have to be able to explain it or understand it fully; they need to act in faith. This is what we are called to do: act in faith. There is no time for us to be afraid of what the future will bring. We must get up out of our comfort zones and our attitudes, listen to Christ, and do as he says in faith. There is so much for us to do and so little time in which to do it. We need to make use of every instant to learn from the Lord himself through prayer and the sacraments and to make a real difference in the world by bringing more souls to know, love and live for Christ.

Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, thank you for revealing yourself to me and for showing me how to listen to God and do his will faithfully. I know that I can frustrate you, putting my two cents in and talking when I should be listening to you. I need to continue to learn how to listen more attentively to you. Please help me to be open and docile to you and your loving messages for me.

Resolution: In my prayer time today I will dedicate myself to listening to the Lord.

[Salvation]

40 Ways to Get More Out of Lent

Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Ph.D.

This, of course, is not an exhaustive list of Lenten ideas. But it’s a start! Many of the resources mention here are available on our website at www.crossroadsinitiative.com or can be found by visiting our links page.

1 Take 30 minutes to pray, ask the Holy Spirit’s guidance, look over this list, and make a few practical Lenten resolutions. Be careful. If you try to do too much, you may not succeed in anything! If you need to get up early or stay up late to get the 30 minutes of quiet, do it. Turn off your phone and computer. Don’t put it off and don’t allow interruptions.

2 Get up earlier than anyone else in your house and spend your first 15 minutes of the day thanking God for the gift of life and offering your day to Him.

3 Get to daily Mass.

4 If you can’t do Mass daily, go to Mass on Fridays in addition to Sunday and thank Him for laying his life down for you. Maybe you can go another time or two as well.

5 Spend at least 30 minutes in Eucharistic adoration at least one time during the week.

6 Recover the Catholic tradition of making frequent visits to the Blessed Sacrament throughout the week, even if it is only for 5 minutes.

7 Get to confession at least once during Lent after making a good examination of conscience. If you are not sure why confession is important, get my CD “Who Needs Confession.”

8 In addition to the penance assigned by the priest, fulfill the conditions necessary for a plenary indulgence. You can learn about plenary indulgences from the official Handbook of Indulgences, Catholic Book Publishing Company (costs only about $13).

9 Make a decision to read at least some Scripture every day.

10 Even if you can’t get to daily Mass, get a daily Catholic Missal or go online or get a smart phone app such as Laudate or IMissal to get a list of the readings used each day in Mass, and read these readings daily. During special seasons such as Lent, the Mass readings are thematically coordinated and make for a fantastic Bible study!

11 Pray the Liturgy of the Hours. You can buy a one volume edition or a full four volume edition. Or you can get it day by day for free using one of the smart phone apps such as Laudate or online at www.universalis.com. Or you can subscribe to a monthly publication called the Magnificat that provides a few things from the Liturgy of the Hours together with the Mass readings of the day. The Magnificat is a great way to start learning the Liturgy of the Hours.

12 Get to know the Fathers of the Church and read selections from them along with Scripture. Short selections from the Fathers writing on Lenten themes can be downloaded for free from the Lenten library of our website, www.crossroadsintiative.com

13 Make the Stations of the Cross each Friday either with a group or by yourself. If you have kids, bring them.

14 Pray the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary often during Lent, especially on Friday and Wednesday. The glorious mysteries are especially appropriate on Sundays. Joyful and Luminous mysteries are great on other days.

15 Purchase the Scriptural Rosary booklet, which supplies you with a scripture verse to recite between each Hail Mary (available at www.crossroadsinitiative.com). This makes it easier to meditate on the mysteries. Another resource to deepen your understanding of the Rosary is my CD set “How Mary and the Rosary can Change Your Life.”

16 If you’ve never done a family rosary, begin doing it. If starting with once a week, try Friday or Sunday. If it’s tough to start with a full five decades, try starting with just one. Use the Scriptural Rosary and have a different person read each of the Scriptures between the Hail Mary’s. This gets everyone more involved.

17 Make it a habit to stop at least five times a day, raise your heart and mind to God, and say a short prayer such as “Jesus, I love you,” or “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner,” or “Lord, I offer it up for you.”

18 Pray each day for the intentions and health of the Holy Father.

19 Pray each day for your bishop and all the bishops of the Catholic Church.

20 Pray for your priests and deacons and for all priests and deacons.

21 Pray for the millions of Christians suffering under persecution in various Muslim and Communist countries around the world such as the Sudan, Nigeria, Pakistan, Indonesia, China, Viet Nam, and North Korea.

22 Pray for Christian unity, that there would be one flock and one shepherd.

23 Pray for the evangelization of all those who have not yet heard and accepted the Good News about Jesus.

24 Pray for your enemies. In fact, think of the person who has most hurt you or who most annoys you and spend several minutes each day thanking God for that person and asking God to bless him or her.

25 Pray for an end to abortion on demand in the United States. Pray for pregnant women contemplating abortion.

26 Pray for a just peace in Afghanistan, the Holy Land and elsewhere. Pray for our troops and for others in harm’s way.

27 Pray for an end to capital punishment. Pray for those on death row, and for the families of murder victims.

28 Find a form of fasting that is appropriate for you, given your age, state of health, and state of life. Some fast on bread and water on Wednesdays and Fridays. Some fast from sweets or alcohol throughout Lent. Some fast on one or more days per week from breakfast all the way to dinner, spending lunch hour in prayer or at noon Mass. Some cut out all snacks between meals. The money saved from not buying various things should be given to an apostolate or ministry serving the physically or spiritually poor.

29 Prayer is like breathing – you have to do it continually. But sometimes you need to pause and take a very deep breath. That’s what a retreat is. Plan a retreat this Lent. It could be simply a half day, out in nature, or in a Church. Or it could be a full day. Or an overnight. You can certainly read lots of things during your retreat or listen to lots of talks. But try sticking mostly to Scripture, the liturgy, and quiet as much as you can. During or at the end of the retreat, write down what the Holy Spirit seems to be saying.

30 Find a written biography of a Saint that particularly appeals to you, and read it during Lent.

31 Instead of secular videos for weekend entertainment, try some videos that will enrich your spiritual life. Suggestions: Jesus of Nazareth, by Franco Zeffirelli, The Scarlet and the Black, the Assisi Underground (if you can’t find these for rent at the local public library or video store, they are all available from Ignatius Press)

32 While driving, turn off the secular radio for awhile and use commute time to listen to some teaching on IPod or CD. Some great resources can be purchased through www.crossroadsinitiative.com or from other Catholic apostolates and publishers that you can find on our links page.

33 Find a local homeless shelter, soup kitchen, or crisis pregnancy center, and volunteer some time there throughout Lent. Serve the people there with the understanding that in so doing, you are serving Jesus. Try to see Jesus in each person there.

34 Visit someone at a nursing home or in the hospital or sick at home. Again, love Jesus in and through the suffering person.

35 Is there a widow or divorced person living in your neighborhood? If so, invite that person to your home for dinner, coffee, etc.

36 Get the video of Mel Gibson’s movie The Passion of the Christ during Lent, and watch it if you feel you can handle the violence (there is also a version with many of the most violent scenes cut out). Get a copy of The Guide to the Passion: 100 Questions on the Passion of the Christ to help you get the most out of the movie.

37 Invite someone over to your house to watch The Passion of the Christ, especially someone whose faith is rather nominal, or who does not practice their faith, or who does not profess Christian faith at all. Give them a copy of The Guide to the Passion.

38 Spend some focused time with your spouse, strengthening your marriage. Start praying together, or make praying together a more frequent occurrence.

39 Spend some focused time together with each of your children. Listen. Pray. Maybe even have fun!

40 When Easter comes, don’t drop the new practice you’ve begun during Lent! Make it a permanent feature of a deeper Christian life!

[Salvation]

Scripture Speaks: Up the Mountain to Pray

Gayle Somers

Jesus takes His closest friends up a mountain to pray, an action packed with meaning for Jews. Why?

Gospel (Read Mt 17:1-9)

The meaning of today’s Gospel reading is greatly enriched if we understand the context in which it appears, both within Matthew’s Gospel and the larger story of salvation history. Time spent on this will bear good fruit.

In Matthew 16, after Peter’s confession of Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, the apostles get a nasty shock. Jesus tells them that He is destined for suffering and death. When Peter resists, Jesus sharply rebukes him (“Get behind Me, Satan!” in 16:23) for thinking as men do about suffering, not as God does. To men, this kind of suffering for the powerful Son of God would mean weakness, impotence, and failure. Jesus wants to teach the apostles that His suffering and death will be the path to glory. He has even more disturbing news, too. “If any man would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me” (16:24). A call to discipleship is a call out of self to follow Jesus, to share His sufferings, no matter what the cost. As disturbing as all this might be, Jesus assures the apostles that suffering and death won’t be the end. “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom” (16:28).

Six days after this conversation, “Jesus took with Him Peter, James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves” (17:1). Thus begins the episode in today’s reading, when these three apostles see Jesus as they have never seen Him before—radiating divine light and talking with Moses and Elijah, the only men in the Old Testament ever to talk with God on a mountain. Interestingly, there were prophecies about the “reappearance” of both these men in the Scriptures (see Deut. 18:15; Malachi 4:5). The apostles received a privileged revelation of Jesus’ divinity within His humanity, because both His face (divinity) and His garments (humanity) “shone like the sun.” Here was the fulfillment of Jesus prophecy that “some standing here” would behold the glory of the Son of Man in His kingdom. Here, too, was the proof that whatever suffering lay ahead for Jesus, it did not come out of weakness. It was suffering He freely chose.

This revelation came in the context of a foundational event in Israel’s history—God’s covenant with His people on Mt. Sinai after their exodus from slavery in Egypt. There He gave Moses and the people the Ten Commandments (or “Ten Words,” as they were often called in Israel), and He came down on the mountain and spoke to the people out of a fiery cloud of smoke. His Voice terrified them so much that Moses had to reassure them: “Do not fear, for God has come…that the fear of Him may be before your eyes, that you may not sin” (Ex. 20:20). Why was sinning to be avoided? It was a bondage worse than slavery in Egypt. The “Ten Words” were a path out of sin for the people. The fireworks on Mt. Sinai were a severe mercy to them, as Moses explained so well. Later, Moses took three friends up the mountain with him to commune with God. Moses spent so much time conversing with God in the fiery cloud that his face shone with light when he returned to the camp below.

None of this history was lost on Peter. Why does he suggest building three tents (or “booths”)? Luke’s Gospel tells us that Moses and Elijah were talking to Jesus about His departure (“exodus” in Greek). The people of Israel remembered their exodus out of Egypt, as well as the giving of the Law on Sinai, in the Feast of Tabernacles (or “Booths”): “You shall dwell in booths (tents) for seven days…that your generations may know that I made the people of Israel dwell in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt; I am the LORD your God” (Lev. 23:42-43). No wonder that when Peter heard of Jesus’ exodus, he wanted to build tents and preserve this moment a little longer!

Jesus’ new exodus was not a departure from Jerusalem, however, nor was it to be restricted to the people of Israel. He was to defeat God’s enemy, Satan (not Pharaoh), to lead all men out of bondage to sin (which is the bondage to self) and death, and to take them on a journey to their true home, Heaven. God’s Voice from the cloud declared, “This is My Beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.” Jesus is the New Moses, as well as the new Law. God’s “Ten Words” become His One Word: Jesus. We only hear God the Father speak twice in the whole New Testament, at Jesus’ baptism and here. Both times He speaks only of Jesus. God, the Father, says to us: “Listen to Him” on this journey home. Mary, His Mother, as she did at Cana, says to us: “Do whatever He tells you” on this journey home.

When the apostles heard God speaking from the cloud, they were frightened and fell to the ground, always an appropriate response to God’s Voice. Jesus touched them and said, “Rise, and do not be afraid.” They had been told of the suffering that lay ahead, both for Jesus and themselves. They had seen the glory that lay ahead, too, a glory they were destined to share, just as Moses and Elijah did. They were humbled and brought low, but Jesus called them, with His touch, to begin their journey with Him without fear. Their own transfiguration had begun.

Possible response: Lord, help me this Lent to see that the glory Your suffering gained is meant for me, too—both the suffering and the glory. I often try to get one without the other.

First Reading (Read Gn 12:1-4a)

We might expect the Old Testament reading to be from the Book of Exodus, since the Transfiguration draws so heavily upon that history. Instead, we go all the way back to Genesis, to the first “exodus” of God’s people. When God called Abram, He said, “Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk and from your father’s house to a land I will show you.” This is the first conversion in salvation history. On the strength of God’s promise, Abram had to pack up his family and leave for a place he didn’t know. This kind of leave-taking, or “exodus,” is always at the heart of conversion. To make our journey home to heaven, we must always leave something behind for something better. In this, Abram is our “father in faith.” God’s promise to him was to bless “all the communities of the earth” through him, and that blessing comes through his descendant, Jesus, Who leads all nations back to God.

Possible response: Lord, are you asking me today to “go forth,” letting go of something and holding on only to You? Please help me to trust You as Abram did.

Psalm (Read Ps 33:4-5, 18-19, 20, 22)

The psalm continues a theme of deliverance, of God’s promise to preserve all those who are will to obey His Voice: “See, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear Him, upon those who hope for His kindness, to deliver them from death and preserve them in spite of famine.” As we absorb the lessons from these passages and desire to answer Jesus’ call to rise and leave ourselves, to follow Him without fear, we will want to sing this song as we go: “LORD, let Your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in You.”

Possible response: The psalm is, itself, a response to our other readings. Read it again prayerfully to make it your own.

Second Reading (Read 2 Tim 1:8b-10)

In the epistle, St. Paul is writing to Timothy, who was the bishop of the Church in Ephesus. See how he combines both the truths that Jesus wanted to teach the apostles in Matthew 16-17. He exhorts Timothy to “bear your share of hardship for the Gospel with the strength that comes from God.” There is no avoidance of suffering for followers of Jesus. However, St. Paul assures Timothy that God has a plan to lead us to glory (as revealed in the Transfiguration), a plan that existed “before time began.” Yes, there will be hardship, but, in Christ Jesus, we know there is also victory over death, “life and immortality.”

Possible response: Lord, you have loved me from “before time began.” Why do I worry so much?

[Salvation]

One Bread, One Body

One Bread, One Body

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All Issues > Volume 33, Issue 2

<< Sunday, March 12, 2017 >>

Second Sunday of Lent

Genesis 12:1-4
2 Timothy 1:8-10
View Readings

Psalm 33:4-5, 18-20, 22
Matthew 17:1-9
Similar Reflections

ARE YOU HARDLY WORKING FOR THE GOSPEL?

"Bear your share of the hardship which the gospel entails." �2 Timothy 1:8

As a baptized child of God, you have a share in the blessings of the gospel (1 Cor 9:23; Eph 1:3). Likewise, you also have a share in the hardship the gospel of Christ requires (2 Tm 1:8).

Jesus in His mercy brings His disciples hope in the midst of hardships. In today's Gospel reading, Jesus takes three disciples up a mountain and allows them to experience His transfigured brilliance and glory (Mt 17:1ff). St. Peter understood this earthly dynamic between glory and suffering. He told us that the spiritual high of Jesus' Transfiguration was a light "shining in a dark place" for all of us who bear gospel hardships (2 Pt 1:16-19). Peter also understood them as a normal part of the gospel. He tells us: "Christ suffered in the flesh; therefore, arm yourselves with His same mentality" (1 Pt 4:1).

Our hardships are few compared to those of our ancestors in faith. Abram moved hundreds of miles at age seventy-five (Gn 12:1ff). Mary, the mother of Jesus, suffered many sorrows. Countless disciples have been martyred for the gospel. Most of us have not even endured one of the hardships mentioned in a partial list of St. Paul's sufferings for the gospel (2 Cor 11:23-33). "The present burden of our trial is light enough" (2 Cor 4:17), and the Lord gives us daily strength (2 Tm 1:8) and periodic glimpses of His glory so we can persevere (e.g. Mt 17:2).

"Take courage...says the Lord, and work" for the spread of the gospel (Hg 2:4). "With the strength which comes from God bear your share of the hardship which the gospel entails" (2 Tm 1:8).

Prayer: Father, use my life in service of the gospel (Rm 15:16).

Promise: "God has saved us and has called us to a holy life." �2 Tm 1:9

Praise: Praise the transfigured, crucified and risen, glorified body of Jesus!

[Salvation]