March 16 Monday: Lk
4: 24-30: [23 And he said to them, “Doubtless you will quote
to me this proverb, `Physician, heal yourself; what we have heard you did at
Capernaum, do here also in your own country.'”] 24 And he said,
“Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his own country. 25 But in
truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when
the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when there came a great
famine over all the land; 26 and Elijah was sent to none of them but only to
Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. 27 ……30…USCCB video reflections: https://youtu.be/E2BXljVVFls?list=PLpTzvCOJa7DAoMqHc4moKtTJSI6gsth32
The context: Today’s
Gospel presents Jesus reacting with prophetic courage to the skepticism and
criticism with which the people of Nazareth, his hometown, responded to
his “Inaugural Address” in their synagogue that Sabbath.
Jesus’ reaction to his people’s skepticism:
Jesus reacted to the negative attitude of the Nazarenes with the
comment, “No prophet is accepted in his native place.” Next, he
referred to the Biblical stories of how God had blessed two Gentiles,
while rejecting the many Jews in similar situations, precisely because those
Gentiles were more open to the prophets than the Jewish people were.
First, Jesus told them of the Gentile widow of Zarephath, in Lebanon (1
Kings 17:7-24). The Prophet Elijah stayed with her and her son during
the three-and-a-half-year drought, fed them miraculously and revived her
son from death. Then Jesus described how Naaman, the pagan military
general of Syria, was healed of leprosy by Elisha the prophet (2 Kings 5:1-19).
Jesus’ words implied that, like the people of his hometown, the
Israelites of those former days had been unable to receive miracles because of
their disbelief. Jesus’ reference to the unbelief of the Jews and to the
stronger Faith of the Gentiles infuriated his listeners at Nazareth. They
rushed to seize Jesus and throw him over the edge of the cliff on
which their town was built. But Jesus escaped because “His hour had
not yet come.”
Life messages: 1)
We need to face rejection with prophetic courage and optimism when we
experience the pain of rejection, betrayal, abandonment, violated trust,
neglect or abuse from our friends, families, or childhood companions.
2) Let us not, as the people in Jesus’ hometown did, reject
God in our lives. Are we unwilling to be helped by God, or by
others? Does our pride prevent us from recognizing God’s direction,
help, and support in our lives, coming to us through His words in the Bible,
through the teachings of the Church and through the advice and example of
others?
3) We must have
the prophetic courage of our convictions. The passage challenges us
to have the courage of our Christian convictions in our day-to-day lives in our
communities, when we face hatred and rejection because of our Christian faith.
(Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/20
March 17 Tuesday (St.
Patrick, Bishop= homily on next page):Video: https://youtu.be/6QhyWUizr24 Matthew 18:21-35: 21 Then
Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against
me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “I do not
say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.23 “Therefore the kingdom of
heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his
servants. 24 When he began the reckoning, one was brought to him who owed him
ten thousand talents; 25 and as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be
sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.
26 So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, `Lord, have patience with
me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him the lord of that
servant released him and forgave him the debt. 28 …35USCCB video reflections: https://youtu.be/o_S3hOQQQGY?list=PLpTzvCOJa7DAoMqHc4moKtTJSI6gsth32
The lessons taught by
the parable: (1) We must forgive so that we may be forgiven. Jesus explains
this truth after teaching the prayer, “Our Father.” He warns us, “For if you
forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father also will forgive you; but
if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive
your trespasses” (Mt 6:14-15). As James states it later, “For
judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy” (Jas
2:13). Clearly, Divine and human forgiveness work together.
(2) We represent the greater debtor in the parable; that is,
we owe God the ten thousand talents of the parable. We commit sins every day
and, hence, we need God’s forgiveness every day. The sum total of all the
offenses which our brothers and sisters commit against us is equivalent to the
small debt of the second debtor in the parable, namely 100 denarii. Yet,
shockingly and sadly, we are merciless towards our fellow human beings. The
moral of Jesus’ story is that, as members of a community, we must treat one
another as God has treated each of us. Here is a Divine call to throw away the
calculator when it comes to forgiveness. We must choose the more
honorable path and forgive one another “from the heart.” We have been forgiven
a debt beyond all human paying – the sin of man which God forgave through the
willing, sacrificial death of His own Son. Since that is so, we must forgive
others as God has forgiven us. Otherwise, we cannot hope to receive any mercy
ourselves.
Life messages: 1)
We need to forgive: Having experienced forgiveness at the hands of God and
God’s people, we are then called to make it possible for others to experience
the same forgiveness. Let us forgive the person who has wronged us before
hatred eats away at our ability to forgive. 2) Forgiveness will not be easy,
but God is there to help us. We can call on God’s help by offering that
individual to God, not by sitting in judgment, but simply by saying, “Help
so-and-so and mend our relationship.” We may never forget the hurt we have
experienced, but we can choose to forgive. 3) We need to remind ourselves that with
God’s grace we have already forgiven the one that hurt us. As life goes on we
may remember the incident or occasion that was hurtful. Then let us offer the
offender to God’s mercy and pray for God’s blessings on him or her. (Fr.
Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/20
March 17: (St.
Patrick’s Day)
St. Patrick was born to Roman parents in Banwen in Wales.
So, he called himself both a Roman and a Briton. He was the son of a deacon
named Calpornius and his mother was named Conchessa. Patrick was taken captive
by the Irish marauders at about the age of 16. While in captivity for six
years, he learned Irish (Gaelic), which would be essential for his later
mission in Ireland. Since his master was a high priest of the Druids, Patrick
had access to information about this religion from him, which might have proved
very useful to him in his later mission, converting the Irish to Christianity.
While Patrick was working as a shepherd in Ireland, he underwent a conversion
experience and became a man of deep prayer. He managed to return to his native
England and then went to France for training as a missionary. A few years after
his ordination, Fr. Patrick was consecrated bishop at the age of 43, and the
ecclesiastical authorities sent him to Ireland, probably in 432.
Before Patrick came to Ireland, there was a strong belief
there in all kinds of gods, including the sun. Patrick tapped into these pagan
beliefs and taught the people the true faith about the true God. He understood
the Irish clan system. Hence, he knew that if the chieftains of the various
clans became Christian, the rest of the clans would also. Patrick used every
means possible to spread the word of God. The shamrock was the sacred plant of
the Druids, and a legend says Patrick used it to teach the people about the
Trinity. He worked night and day to bring the faith all over Ireland. He was a
charismatic person who preached with authority and acted with miracles. We have
two of Patrick’s writings, his Confessions in which we see his humility and
his Letter to Coroticus in which we see the courage
of his Christian convictions.
Contrary to popular belief, it was not St. Patrick who
brought the Christian faith for the first time to Ireland. It was there already
before him in the south and east of Ireland, probably due to traders and
contacts with the continent. But it was St. Patrick who revitalized the faith
of the local minority of Christians and converted the whole country to the
Christian faith. First, he went to the west and north, where the faith had
never been preached. He managed to obtain the protection of local kings and made
numerous converts. He ordained many priests, divided the country into dioceses,
held Church councils and founded several monasteries. All this groundwork done
by St. Patrick later enabled the Church in Ireland to send out missionaries
whose efforts were greatly responsible for Christianizing Europe. Patrick died
on March 17th, 493(?) and was buried in Ulster in County Down.
As we celebrate the feast of this great missionary saint, let us ask ourselves
whether we are grateful to God for the gift of faith which has been passed down
to us. Do we, like Patrick, use every means to pass on this faith and spread
it? St. Patrick’s life of solid spirituality and dependence on God should serve
as a model for us to get our priorities correct. (Fr. Tony) LP
March 18 Wednesday (St
Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop, Doctor of the Church):
Video: https://youtu.be/m3z7SHOFQH4?list=PL5_ax08Z6UX8elQA9g9Mj_WiH-Kpnyfvb Mt
5:17-19: 17 “Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the
prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For
truly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot,
will pass from the law until all is accomplished. 19 Whoever then relaxes one
of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in
the kingdom of heaven; but he who does them and teaches them
shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. USCCB video reflections:
The context: Today’s
Gospel passage, taken from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, presents Jesus as giving
the highest compliments to the Mosaic Law. Ironically, he himself would be
condemned and crucified as a Law-breaker. Jesus says that the Old Testament, as
the word of God, has Divine authority and deserves total respect. Its moral
precepts are to be respected because they are, for the most part, specific,
Divine-positive promulgations of the natural law. But Christians are not
obliged to observe the legal and liturgical precepts of Old Testament because
they were laid down by God for a specific stage in Salvation History. In
Jesus’ time, the Law was understood differently by different groups of the Jews
to be 1) The Ten Commandments 2) The Pentateuch 3) The Law and the Prophets or
4) The oral (Scribal) and the written Law.
Jesus’ teaching: Jesus,
and later Paul, considered the oral Law as a heavy burden on the people and
criticized it, while honoring the Mosaic Law and the teachings of the prophets.
At the time of Jesus, the Jews believed that the Torah (Law given to Moses),
was the eternal, unchangeable, Self-Revelation of God. In today’s Gospel, Jesus
says that he did not come to destroy the Torah but to bring it to perfection by
bringing out its inner meaning because he is the ultimate Self-Revelation of
God, the Lawgiver. That is why the Council of Trent declared that Jesus was
given to us, “not only as a Redeemer, in whom we are to trust, but also as a
Lawgiver whom we are to obey” (“De Iustificatione,” can. 21).
Jesus honored the two basic principles on which the Ten Commandments were
based, namely the principle of reverence and the principle of
respect. In the first four commandments, we are asked to reverence God,
reverence His holy Name, reverence His holy day and reverence our father and
mother In the first four commandments, we are asked to reverence God, reverence
His holy Name, reverence His holy day and reverence our father and mother. The
next set of commandments instructs us to respect life, the marriage bond, one’s
personal integrity and others’ good name, the legal system, another’s property
and spouse and one’s own spouse. Jesus declares that he has come to fulfill all
Divine laws based on these principles. By “fulfilling the law,” Jesus means
fulfilling the purpose for which the Law was given: that is,
justice (or “righteousness,” as the Scriptures call it – a word that includes a
just relationship with God).
Life messages: 1)
In obeying God’s laws and Church laws, let us remember these basic principles
of respect and reverence. 2) Our obedience to the laws needs to be prompted by
love of God and gratitude to God for His blessings. (Fr. Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/20
March 19 Thursday (St.
Joseph, Spouse of Blessed Virgin Mary): Sm 7:4-5, 12-14, 16; Rom 4:13-14,
18-22; Mt 1: 16, 18-21, 24; Lk 2:41-51): Video: https://youtu.be/E8FAcs6lh_A ST.
JOSEPH IN THE HOLY BIBLE: We have the description of St. Joseph only in the
Gospels of Mathew and Luke. They present him as Joseph, the just man and
Joseph, the dreamer
(A) Joseph, the just
man: (Matthew. 1:19). In the Biblical sense, a just man is one who
faithfully does his duties to God, to lawful authorities and to his fellow
human beings.
(1)-Joseph did his
duties to God faithfully by obeying His laws revealed through Moses,
through his king and through his foster son Jesus.
- He obeyed the Mosaic laws: i)
by circumcising and naming Jesus on the 8th day, ii) by
presenting Mary with her child in the Temple for the purification
ceremony, iii) by making Jesus “son of the Law,” bringing him to the
Temple of Jerusalem for the feast of Passover at the age of twelve.
- He obeyed his King’s law by
taking his pregnant wife Mary to Bethlehem for the census ordered by the
Emperor.
- He obeyed Jesus by respecting
his desires and opinion. (Lk.2: 49)
(2)-Joseph did his
duties to others faithfully:
- to his wife by giving her
loving protection in spite of his previous suspicion about her miraculous
pregnancy. He could have divorced her. .” Pope St. John Paul II: St.
Joseph protects Mary “discreetly, humbly and silently, but with an
unfailing presence and utter fidelity, even when he finds it hard to
understand.”
- to Jesus by training him in
his trade, in the Law of Moses and in good conduct (Lk. 2:52).
c) to his
neighbors by being an ideal carpenter and good neighbor.
(B)- Joseph, the
dreamer (like Joseph in the O.T.)
Dreaming in the Old Testament was one-way God
used to communicate His will to men. Joseph received instructions from God
through three dreams: i) “Do
not be afraid to take Mary to be your wife” (Mt.1:20); ii) “Get up, take the Child and
his mother and escape to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you to leave” (Mt.
2:13); iii) “Get up,
take the Child and his mother, and go back to the land of Israel” (Mt.5:20).
Life Messages: 1) We need to lead saintly lives by
becoming faithful in little things, as St. Joseph was. “Bloom where you are
planted” was the favorite advice of St. Francis de Sales. Let us love our
profession and do good to others. 2) We need to consult God daily in prayer to
know His will and to do it. 3) We need to be just, as St. Joseph was, by
“giving everyone his or her due.” 4) We need to raise our families in the
spirit of the Holy Family and to be responsible, God-fearing, ideal parents
like Joseph and Mary. 5) Let us
become protectors like St. Joseph, by keeping watch over our emotions, over our
hearts, because they are the seat of good and evil intentions: intentions that
builds up and tear down! We must not be afraid of goodness or even
tenderness!” (Pope St. John Paul II). (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/19 USCCB
video reflections:
https://youtu.be/ma_1W-ddMv8?list=PLpTzvCOJa7DAoMqHc4moKtTJSI6gsth32 (Fr.
Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/20
March 20 Friday: Mk
12:28-34: Another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked
him, “Which commandment is the first of all?” 29 Jesus answered,
“The first is, `Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30 and you
shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and
with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this, `You
shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater
than these.” 32 And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher; you have
truly said that he is one, and there is no other but he; 33 34 … USCCB video reflections: https://youtu.be/cLp9SWzABPo?list=PLpTzvCOJa7DAoMqHc4moKtTJSI6gsth32
The context: A
scribe who believed in both the written Law and the oral tradition was pleased
to see how Jesus had defeated the Sadducee who had tried to humiliate him with
the hypothetical case of a woman who had married and been widowed by seven
husbands in succession. Out of admiration, the scribe challenged Jesus to
summarize the most important of the Mosaic Laws in one sentence. In the
Judaism of Jesus’ day there was a double tendency: to expand the Mosaic Law
into hundreds of rules and regulations and to condense the 613 precepts of the
Torah into a single sentence or few sentences.
Jesus’ novel contribution:
Jesus gave a straightforward answer, quoting directly from the Law itself and
startling all with his profound simplicity and mastery of the Law of God and
its purpose. He combined the first sentence of the Jewish Shema prayer
from Deuteronomy 6:5: … Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength” with
its complementary law from Leviticus 19:18: “You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.” Thus, Jesus proclaims that true religion is to love God
both directly and as living in our neighbor. Jesus underlines the
principle that we are to love our neighbor as we love ourselves because both of
us bear God’s image. For, to honor God’s image is to honor both Him Who made it
and Him Whom it resembles. Besides, our neighbors, too, are the children of God
our Father, redeemed by the Blood of Jesus. Love for our neighbor is a
matter, not of feelings, but of deeds by which we share with others the
unmerited love that God lavishes on us. This is the agape love
for neighbor that God commands in His Law. Jesus then uses the parable of the
Good Samaritan, as reported in Luke’s Gospel, to show them what God means by
“neighbor.”
Life Messages: 1)
We need to love God whole-heartedly: Loving God with all our heart, soul, mind
and strength, means that we should place God’s will ahead of our own, seek the
Lord’s will in all things and make it paramount in our lives. It also
means that we must find time to adore Him, to present our needs before Him and
to ask Him pardon and forgiveness for our sins. 2) God’s will is that we should
love everyone, seeing Him in our neighbor. This means we have to help,
support, encourage, forgive, and pray for everyone without regard to color,
race, gender, age wealth, social status, intelligence, education or charm. (Fr.
Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/20
March 21 Saturday: Lk
18: 9-14: 9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in
themselves that they were righteous and despised others: 10 “Two men went up
into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The
Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, `God, I thank thee that I am not
like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax
collector. 12 I fast twice a week, I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the
tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but
beat his breast, saying, `God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this
man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for every one who
exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be
exalted.” USCCB video reflections:
The context: The main theme of today’s Gospel is that true
humility must be the hallmark of our prayers. However, the central focus
of today’s parable is not prayer, but rather pride, humility and the
role of grace in our salvation. The parable was mainly intended to
convict the Pharisees who proudly claimed they obeyed all the rules and
regulations of the Jewish law, while they actually ignored the Mosaic precepts
of mercy and compassion. Through this parable of Jesus, Luke was
reminding his Gentile listeners that God values the prayer of any humble
and contrite heart.
In the parable, Jesus tells us about two men who went to
pray, a Pharisee and a tax-collector. The Pharisee stood in the very
front of the Temple, distancing himself from his inferiors, and explained to
God his meticulous observance of the Mosaic Law, at the same time despising the
publican. But the tax-collector, standing far off, would not even lift up
his eyes to Heaven but beat his breast, saying, “God, be merciful to me a
sinner!” Jesus declared that only the humble tax-collector went
home justified.
Life
messages: 1) We need to evict the Pharisee and revive the publican in
each one of us. There is a big dose of the Pharisee’s pride in us
and a small dose of the tax-collector’s humility. Hence, we have to make
a pilgrimage from pride to humility, realizing the truth that if we are not
sensitive to other people, we are not sensitive to God.
2) Let us have the correct approach in our prayer
life. For most of us, prayer means asking God for something when we are
in need. We conveniently forget the more important aspects of
prayer: adoration, praise, contrition and thanksgiving. If we have
forgotten God through our years of prosperity, how can we expect him to
take notice of us when something goes wrong? Yet, even there His
mercy welcomes us. Our day’s work and our day’s recreation, if offered
for the honor and glory of God, are prayers pleasing in His sight. (Fr.
Tony) (http://frtonyshomilies.com/) L/20
