They seek me day after day, and desire to know my ways

 

Readings for today's reflection can be found at Friday after Ash Wednesday | USCCB

As we continue on our journey during these 40 days of Lent, we hear in our first reading from the Prophet Isaiah about how to live out our days in service to God and to our neighbor.

Isaiah talks about those people whose fast end in quarreling and fighting and how wrong it is in the eyes of God. A fast is supposed to be a way for us to grow deeper and closer to God in service to him and to others. Isaiah goes on to say that fasting and prayer is meant to be an offering to God, making our sacrifice pleasing to Him. Instead, many people, even with their fasting, were becoming more self-centered and neglecting their duties towards God.

Isaiah clarifies this by reminding us that our fasting and penance is meant to lead us to being concerned about those people around us that are neglected: the homeless, the hungry, those in prison and the needy. It is our help of those less fortunate than ourselves that we in turn help the Lord. This is truly pleasing to God when we sacrifice ourselves in helping others. It is through these corporal works of mercy that we please God.

There are many ways we can do these corporal works of mercy. It can be either volunteering in a soup kitchen or breadline, or simply by donating to places that serve those people in need. So, whether we serve the needy in person, or we make a financial donation to a charity that is there to help them, we are fulfilling God’s desire for us to help those most in need in our society.

Further, in this season of penance, it can be easy to give up certain things that we love, like chocolate or dessert. But let’s also remember that we are all made in the image of God, and we need to be able to see God in those people that are in our lives. When we do see Jesus in others, we are mindful of what he says in today’s Gospel: while he is in our midst we have no reason to fast if not to tenderly care for and love one another.

Let us remember that our fasting, penance, and almsgiving can be sources of healing for others. Then we will be living out this Lent in a way pleasing to Jesus.

Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Ash Wednesday | USCCB

Today we start our forty-day journey of Lent. It’s a time when we take a look at ourselves and our relationship with God and with our neighbors. We are called during these 40 days to remember that we are to love the Lord God with our whole mind, heart, and soul and to love our neighbors as ourselves.

In our first reading from the prophet Joel, we hear the Lord tell us “…return to me with your whole heart…” We are to not only turn to God with praise and worship on our lips, but we are also to have that sincere love of God within our hearts as well. God can see through our souls to our hearts to see whether we’re being sincere in our praise of Him.  Joel goes on to tell us that the Lord is “gracious and merciful, rich in kindness, and relenting in punishment.” This season of Lent is reminding us of this love that God has for us. But we need to realize that we are sinful, and we need to turn to him with sincerity and a heart full of repentance.

In the gospel our Lord is further reminding us that we are not to do these acts of penance and works of charity so that others can see how good and holy we are. Jesus tells us, “Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them…” It’s not about what other people may think about who we are in the eyes of God when we do these things. We are not to do these acts of charity with the idea of getting praise from other people, but rather to develop a deeper and more loving relationship with God.

Throughout these 40 days of Lent, let us not worry about giving up something, like a favorite food or chocolate or ice cream, but rather doing something extra for the Lord that we normally don’t get a chance to do. For instance, waking up a little earlier in the morning to spend quiet time with God, reading scripture and just being opened to what God is trying to say to you through scripture. Another way of commemorating Lent is by, in addition to Sunday mass, making an effort to attend a weekday mass. This way, in addition to the graces we receive from attending Mass on Sunday, we get additional grace from receiving our Lord in Holy Communion during the week. Further, we need to make time, between now and Easter, to go to confession. Confession is a great way to develop that closer relationship with God during Lent. It is during confession that we receive the gift of forgiveness of our sins.

St. Teresa of Calcutta once said, “Give your heart to God, deliberately, knowingly, willingly. It belongs to him.” Let’s give our hearts to God during this Lent and let Him know that we love Him and want Him as the center of who we are. Then, as Jesus says in todays Gospel, “And your father who sees what is hidden will repay you.”

VII Sunday in Ordinary Time

Today we have a recurring guest blogger:  Fr. Arthur F. Rojas, administrator of PRESENTATION OF THE B.V.M CHURCH, PORT EWEN AND SACRED HEART CHURCH, ESOPUS. For more information on this parish, check out their website at Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary & Sacred Heart Churches - Port Ewen - Esopus, NY (presentationsacredheart.org) 

Submission to the blog of Dcn. Thomas Tortorella for the VII Sunday in Ordinary Time by Rev. Fr. Arthur F. Rojas © All Rights Reserved © February 16, 2023 

Scripture readings for todays reflection can be found at Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time | USCCB

In light of recent and credible press reports of suspicion and surveillance by the field office at Richmond, Virginia of the Federal Bureau of Investigation of “radical, traditionalist Catholics,” one should pray for the agents and officials of the Bureau in light of the Gospel reading today in the Ordinary Form, that is Mark 5:38-48. If these reports be true, then a breach is alarmingly present between the oath taken by certain American law enforcement agents and public officials to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic” (cf. U.S. Code, Title 5, sec. 3331) and the God-given rights of the free exercise of religion, freedom of speech, and freedom of assembly protected by the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights of the same Constitution. Beyond the indication of what is thought of Catholics by the authors and those powers-that-be that commissioned the memorandum leaked into the public discourse, we Catholic Americans and especially we parishioners of Presentation-Sacred Heart Parish must not allow a vile caricature of Catholics to divide us or to have us look at certain brothers and sisters in the True Faith as “those” Catholics. Whether we worship in the Ordinary or the Extraordinary Forms, “take no revenge and cherish no grudge against any of your people.” Leviticus 19:18 (from today’s first reading in the Ordinary Form). Our parish is blessed to count on the harmony and solidarity of God-fearing parishioners who attend Mass and seek the sacraments in the Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms. Over the last nineteen months or so, truly we have blended to become one parish with two churches. Parishioners from both forms of the Mass collaborate in our councils, organizations, and our distinctive pro-life apostolate. It is evident that the continuation of our parish financially and logistically depends on the support of the faithful from both forms of Holy Mass. In light of Sacred Scripture, the enduring Apostolic Tradition, and the historic Magisterium, our parishioners and clerics strive towards a true understanding of infallibility in the moral and doctrinal teachings of the Church in contrast to the lazy, blind trust placed in the misjudgments of the “Southern Poverty Law Center,” a Woke outfit presenting itself as a civil rights group, by the leaked F.B.I. memo and by so many virtue signalers in corporate America and the public square. I am reminded of the words of Martin Niemöller, the German Lutheran minister (1892-1984): “First, they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out – because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out – because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out – because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me – and there was no one left to speak for me.” From a poetic translation of Rev. Niemöller’s speech at the Confessing Church in Frankfurt, Germany on Jan. 6, 1946, per “First they came…”, Wikipedia, https://en.m.wikipedia.org, accessed Feb. 16, 2023. I write you, dear reader, to arrest any indifference to the recent news simply because you pray at Mass in the Ordinary Form instead of the Extraordinary Form. In light of the disregard shown to the needs and rights of Catholics across the board over the last few years by powerful people and organizations in the public and private sectors, our solidarity as Catholics both locally and across the land is indispensable. Although we may not incur sin in order to reprove our fellow citizen (cf. Leviticus 19:17), “let no one deceive himself.” (1 Cor 3:18, from our second reading in the Ordinary Form). In addition to the Biblical mandates to pray for those who wish us ill and to pray for our public officials (cf. 1 Tim 2:1-4), let us raise our voices in advocacy and protest of our God-given rights as well as our hands in intercessory prayer.

Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.

 

Scripture for today's reflection can be found at Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB

In our gospel for today, the Lord Jesus Christ is reminding us that, as His followers, we not only need to place Him in the center of who we are in our lives, but also to expect that our lives will not be easy in doing so. Following Jesus Christ, especially in our day and age, is very much counter cultural. We live in a society that has developed into a very self-centered world, where many people only worry about self-gratification and personal comfort, to the exclusion of those around them. They have no desire to know the love of Jesus for them.

Jesus is calling us to  have him as the center of who we are and to be willing to suffer for being His follower. We should never be ashamed of the fact that we are believers and followers of Jesus Christ. Our Lord, in the gospel, clearly tells us, “Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this faithless and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels." (Mark 8:38) Jesus Christ is calling us to not to be concerned about what other people may think or feel about our faith in Him. We are to love and embrace Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior and to love those that are in our lives.

On the church calendar for today, we commemorate the Seven Founders of the Servite Order. In 1240, seven noblemen of Florence mutually decided to withdraw from the city to a solitary place for prayer and direct service of God. Their initial difficulty was providing for their dependents, since two were still married and two were widowers.

In 1244, under the direction of Saint Peter of Verona, O.P., this small group adopted a religious habit similar to the Dominican habit, choosing to live under the Rule of St. Augustine and adopting the name of the Servants of Mary. The new Order took a form more like that of the mendicant friars than that of the older monastic Orders. Their aim was to lead a life of penance and prayer and eventually attracted others to their order to live out a Christ-centered life.

The Seven Founders of the Servite order took to heart the words of Jesus to pick up their crosses and follow him. They placed their trust in Divine Providence, knowing that God and the Lord Jesus will take care for them. We may not be called to leave our homes to go to a monastery, but we are called to live out our days in penance and prayer, and in service to those in our day-to-day life. It will not always easy to do this, but this is how we are to carry our cross, and to show others that we know and love Jesus Christ as our Savior.

Let brotherly love continue

 

Scripture readings for this reflection can be found at Friday of the Fourth Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB

In our first reading from Hebrews, we hear of how we are to live out our lives as followers of Jesus Christ. Central to being a follower of Jesus Christ is that of love and respect for other people in our lives.

Today’s reading starts off with a call to hospitality. We are to treat other people that come into our lives with kindness and generosity. Hebrews says that we might “unknowingly entertain angels.” Whether it’s a visitor to our homes, or just a kindness towards those we meet during our day-to-day activity, we are to treat all people as we would treat our Lord if we were to meet him during our daily travels.

The letter of Hebrews goes on to talk about being mindful of those in prison. We don’t necessarily have to go visit those in prison, but we can pray for those who are in there, whether justly or unjustly, that they be treated with human dignity and respect. We are not to judge them for what they may have been charged with, but we pray for their conversion. We pray that they may come to know the love of Christ in their lives and the gift of forgiveness that can come only from Jesus Christ.  Further we are to pray for those who may have been unjustly convicted, that they may receive justice. Praying for those in prison is an act of mercy realizing that those in prison are also children of God. In Matthew 25:36, we hear our Lord say, I was “in prison and you visited me.” So, we are to treat those in prison as we would Christ.

Hebrews goes on to talk about the mutual love between a man and woman in marriage. Each person in this relationship is to love and respect the other, and to remember the vows they made to each other: to love, honor and obey, in sickness and in health. These are vows made to each other in the presence of God. To love your husband or wife is to show that reflection of love that God has for each of you in that relationship.

Finally, Hebrews goes on to talk about keeping your life free of love of money. Elsewhere in scripture it says that the “love of money is the root of all evil.” Money is only a tool for us to live our daily lives. It is not to become more important than our love of God.

Let us live out our lives by loving God with our whole mind, heart and soul, and by loving all those that God has place in our live.