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Thursday, 5th Week of Lent

4/6/2017

Today's Gospel
John 8:51- 59
Jesus said to the Jews:
"Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever keeps my word will never see death."
So the Jews said to Him,
"Now we are sure that you are possessed.
Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say,
'Whoever keeps my word will never taste death.'
Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died?
Or the prophets, who died?
Who do you make yourself out to be?"
Jesus answered, "If I glorify myself, my glory is worth nothing;
but it is my Father who glorifies me,
of whom you say, 'He is our God.'
You do not know Him, but I know Him.
And if I should say that I do not know Him,
I would be like you a liar.
But I do know Him and I keep His word.
Abraham your father rejoiced to see my day;
He saw it and was glad."
So the Jews said to Him,
"You are not yet fifty years old and you have seen Abraham?"
Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
before Abraham came to be, I AM."
So they picked up stones to throw at Him;
but Jesus hid and went out of the temple area.

Reflection
Jesus is the great “I am.” Throughout the Gospel, He constantly demonstrates to the Jews that He in fact is God. He brings about healing, He forgives sins, and He equates himself with the Father by demanding belief in Him. Not asking them to believe in a way to God or a teaching about God but to believe in Him who is God. We cannot fully understand this. How is Jesus both fully human and fully divine? There are countless documents explaining the Incarnation but we will never fully be satisfied with the answers. However, if our hearts remain open, we will always have opportunities to learn something new about the great mysteries of God.

This is the beauty of the Catholic faith. Too often we put God in our self-designed boxes. We pretend as if we have everything all figured out. The Jews could not accept Jesus because He did not come in the way that they expected or deemed suitable for God to come. They were so angry at what He was saying that they picked up stones to throw at Him. They could not accept the mystery.

As we approach Easter, let us open ourselves more fully to the mystery of God and enjoy the fact that God will continue to surprise us in so many different ways. May we once again be amazed at the beauty of God and the mystery of Jesus, the Word made flesh. Take these last days of Lent to really examine how God has been working in your life. Today, take a few minutes to remember a moment of consolation, a moment where you really felt the presence of God in your life, and sit with that moment embracing the closeness of our God even in the midst of great mystery.

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Wednesday, 5th Week of Lent

4/5/2017

Today's Gospel
John 8:31- 42
Jesus said to those Jews who believed in Him,
"If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples,
and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
They answered him, "We are descendants of Abraham
and have never been enslaved to anyone.
How can you say, 'You will become free'?"
Jesus answered them, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.
A slave does not remain in a household forever,
but a son always remains.
So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free.
I know that you are descendants of Abraham.
But you are trying to kill me,
because my word has no room among you.
I tell you what I have seen in the Father's presence;
then do what you have heard from the Father."

They answered and said to Him, "Our father is Abraham."
Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children,
you would be doing the works of Abraham.
But now you are trying to kill me,
a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God;
Abraham did not do this.
You are doing the works of your father!"
So they said to him, "We were not born of fornication.
We have one Father, God."
Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me,
for I came from God and am here;
I did not come on my own, but He sent me."

Reflection
The truth will set you free. This Gospel reveals Jesus is the truth. Therefore Jesus will set us free. There is nothing else on this earth that will fulfill us the way Christ does. He loves us unconditionally and knows our hearts better than we know ourselves. He desires to be close to you and to have an intimate relationship with you.

Staying in communication with Jesus and growing in relationship with Him is an essential part of our spiritual life. Lent is the perfect time to go even deeper. We communicate with God through prayer. Prayer is a safe place in which we can immerse ourselves in the love of God. Sometimes you may feel that prayer is a monologue, where only you speak and God never answers. But when cultivated, prayer becomes a dialogue between you and our Father in Heaven, where you speak and God replies or God speaks and you act. The key is not just to pray when we need something or only when it’s convenient for us, but to pray through every circumstance. Praying during moments of desolation as well as moments of consolation and great joy bring about personal growth and freedom.

Today, spend some time in silence with Jesus present to us in the Blessed Sacrament. Although exteriorly you may be silent, speak to Him interiorly and thank Him for His presence in your life.

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Tuesday, 5th Week of Lent

4/4/2017

Today's Gospel
John 8:21-30
Jesus said to the Pharisees:

"I am going away and you will look for me,
but you will die in your sin.
Where I am going you cannot come."
So the Jews said,
"He is not going to kill himself, is He,
because He said, 'Where I am going you cannot come'?"
He said to them, "You belong to what is below,
I belong to what is above.
You belong to this world,
but I do not belong to this world.
That is why I told you that you will die in your sins.
For if you do not believe that I AM,
you will die in your sins."
So they said to Him, "Who are you?"

Jesus said to them, "What I told you from the beginning. I have much to say about you in condemnation. But the one who sent me is true,
and what I heard from Him I tell the world."
They did not realize that He was speaking to them of the Father.
So Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I AM, and that I do nothing on my own, but I say only what the Father taught me. The one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I always do what is pleasing to Him."
Because He spoke this way, many came to believe in Him..

Reflection

In today’s Gospel, Jesus affirms His divinity and astonishes the Pharisees in the process. For those with eyes to see and ears to hear, it’s extremely obvious what Jesus is saying, yet the Pharisees, who knew every detail of the law, couldn’t grasp Jesus’s words. Jesus is the Word of the Father; He and the Father are one. Jesus makes it clear that unless you believe He is the Christ, you cannot go where He’s going: Heaven. Does this mean Jesus is just being stingy with invites to the Eternal Banquet? No, of course not! Jesus implored the Pharisees time and again to repent and be saved but they continued to persist in their hardness of heart.

But what does it mean to believe in Jesus? He makes it clear that if we believe in Him, we will obey His commands and the Holy Trinity will dwell within us. It’s God’s life within that allows us to obey His law, thus becoming like the Father. Believing in Jesus is not purely about an intellectual knowing, rather it means we accept all that He has told us. Accepting His word into our heart lights the divine spark within. This divine spark is fueled by the word of God, utterly consuming and transforming us in love. This transformation cannot take place without humility, something the Pharisees severely lacked.

It is only through true humility that we can empty and dispose ourselves to truly receive the gift of God, which is His very life. Our hope is in Jesus who has revealed to us the way to the Father. He goes to prepare a place for us and no longer do we have to dwell in darkness like the Pharisees because Christ is our light and salvation! Today, in prayer, ask for the grace of humility that we might be ready to not only hear when Jesus speaks to us, but also understand His words, and ponder these words within our hearts.

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Monday, 5th Week of Lent

4/3/2017

Today's Gospel
John 8: 1-11

Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
But early in the morning He arrived again in the temple area,
and all the people started coming to Him,
and He sat down and taught them.
Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman
who had been caught in adultery
and made her stand in the middle.
They said to Him,
"Teacher, this woman was caught
in the very act of committing adultery.
Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women.
So what do you say?"
They said this to test Him,
so that they could have some charge to bring against Him.

Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with His finger.
But when they continued asking Him,
He straightened up and said to them,
"Let the one among you who is without sin
be the first to throw a stone at her."
Again He bent down and wrote on the ground.
And in response, they went away one by one,
beginning with the elders.
So He was left alone with the woman before Him.
Then Jesus straightened up and said to her,
"Woman, where are they?
Has no one condemned you?"
She replied, "No one, sir."
Then Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you.
Go, and from now on do not sin any more."

Reflection
No one but God has the power or authority to condemn us, but the fear of being condemned by those around us can impact us greatly. We base our decisions on what we think will make us accepted. And sometimes we will even sacrifice our morals if they are unpopular. The woman in today’s Gospel was mocked in regards to her sin, and but so often we find ourselves being judged for fighting to do what is right.

It is impossible to please everyone. When we are aiming to please the world, we are not aiming to please God. When we seek Him, the rest will fall into place. This means that sometimes we will not be accepted, but that is a risk of presenting the Truth. More than anyone, Christ understands what it feels like to be mocked and tortured for the sake of righteousness. We have no control over how others react. Our responsibility lies in choosing to live as God has intended for us. His judgment is the only one that matters.

Just as He freed the woman who committed adultery, Christ chooses to free us from condemnation as well. In accepting this gift of freedom, we must also not condemn our neighbors. We remember in today’s Gospel that “they went away one by one.” What if the first person had not left? Would the rest have stayed as well? What would you have done? Today, chose to not judge or condemn, but chose to do good. Don’t wait for the initiation of someone else. Be an example of courage and faith.

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Sunday, 5th Week of Lent

4/2/2017

Today's Gospel
John 11:3-7,17,20-27,33b-45

The sisters of Lazarus sent word to Jesus, saying,
"Master, the one you love is ill."
When Jesus heard this he said,
"This illness is not to end in death,
but is for the glory of God,
that the Son of God may be glorified through it."
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
So when He heard that he was ill,
He remained for two days in the place where he was.
Then after this He said to His disciples,
"Let us go back to Judea."

When Jesus arrived, He found that Lazarus
had already been in the tomb for four days.
When Martha heard that Jesus was coming,
she went to meet Him;
but Mary sat at home.
Martha said to Jesus,
"Lord, if you had been here,
my brother would not have died.
But even now I know that whatever you ask of God,
God will give you."
Jesus said to her,
"Your brother will rise."
Martha said,
"I know he will rise,
in the resurrection on the last day."
Jesus told her,
"I am the resurrection and the life;
whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.
Do you believe this?"
She said to Him, "Yes, Lord.
I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world."

He became perturbed and deeply troubled, and said,
"Where have you laid him?"
They said to him, "Sir, come and see."
And Jesus wept.
So the Jews said, "See how He loved Him."
But some of them said,
"Could not the one who opened the eyes of the blind man
have done something so that this man would not have died?"

So Jesus, perturbed again, came to the tomb.
It was a cave, and a stone lay across it.
Jesus said, "Take away the stone."
Martha, the dead man's sister, said to him,
"Lord, by now there will be a stench;
he has been dead for four days."
Jesus said to her,
"Did I not tell you that if you believe
you will see the glory of God?"
So they took away the stone.
And Jesus raised his eyes and said,
"Father, I thank you for hearing me.
I know that you always hear me;
but because of the crowd here I have said this,
that they may believe that you sent me."
And when He had said this,
He cried out in a loud voice,
"Lazarus, come out!"
The dead man came out,
tied hand and foot with burial bands,
and his face was wrapped in a cloth.
So Jesus said to them,
"Untie him and let him go."

Now many of the Jews who had come to Mary
and seen what he had done began to believe in Him.

Reflection
Br. Steve Eguino is studying for the Priesthood with the Salesians of Don Bosco. He is one half of the rapping duo,
The Bosco Boys and is featured in the Array of Hope Concert.

All content is created by "Array of Hope". If you would like to directly receive all of the content created by this ministry you can sign up at www.arrayofhope.net

Saturday, 4th Week of Lent

4/1/2017

Today’s Gospel Acclamation
Luke 8:15

Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart
and yield a harvest through perseverance.

When Lent began we were all excited to start our Lenten practices, then life got in the way. But, there is no reason to get down on yourself. Today’s Gospel Acclamation gives us encouragement to persevere because a harvest will be reaped from our efforts.

Don’t be fooled today. The devil loves to fool us and lead us away from God by bringing us into desolation. One way he does this is by leading us to think only of ourselves: our mess-ups and failures, which leads us to beat ourselves up. But while we are upset with ourselves, we lose opportunities to serve others and to turn to God for help. A quiet, humble acceptance of our fault and a request for God to give us His strength will send the devil fleeing from us and bring back our peace of mind.

Maybe we did not completely go off course this Lent but we are cutting back from all that we planned on doing during this season. This causes us to lose clarity about what we are doing and we just give up doing anything out of confusion. Or maybe we mess up so much, we just give up out of sheer frustration. But our failures remind us that we need a Savior. It’s okay to mess up. This will prepare you even more for the hope Easter brings. Easter gives us hope that despite our shortcomings and failures, we too will rise to eternal life with Christ. Today, do something nice for someone else, whether that be opening a door for someone, helping someone cross the street, or simply extending a smile or helping hand. It is in service to others that we grow in love and “bear fruit through perseverance.”

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Friday, 4th Week of Lent

3/31/2017

Today’s Gospel
John 7:1-2,10, 25-30

Jesus moved about within Galilee;
He did not wish to travel in Judea,
because the Jews were trying to kill Him.
But the Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near.

But when His brothers had gone up to the feast,
He Himself also went up, not openly but as it were in secret.

Some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said,
"Is He not the one they are trying to kill?
And look, He is speaking openly and they say nothing to Him.
Could the authorities have realized that he is the Christ?
But we know where He is from.
When the Christ comes, no one will know where He is from."
So Jesus cried out in the temple area as He was teaching and said,
"You know me and also know where I am from.
Yet I did not come on my own,
but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true.
I know Him, because I am from Him, and He sent me."
So they tried to arrest Him,
but no one laid a hand upon Him,
because His hour had not yet come.

Reflection
In today’s Gospel, we see Jesus and the apostles in Judea for the Feast of the Tabernacles. Jesus initially remained in secret because He knew the Pharisees wanted to kill Him. But then He put aside His intention of secrecy and began preaching to the large crowd of Jews gathered from all over the land of Israel.

Why does Jesus do this? Because God’s ways are higher than our own. Jesus may have wanted to remain a secret and avoid drawing attention to Himself, but God wanted Him to take advantage of the opportunity to spread His message to the crowd. Jesus acted out of obedience and with confidence because He knew it was all part of God’s greater plan and that His hour had not yet come. He set aside any human fear He might have had and acted as His Father wanted.

Think of your own life, do you restrain from acting charitably, courageously, or living your faith boldly because of fear? Maybe instead you tried to force your own will or was so focused on yourself that you got distracted from God’s plan. Due to our human nature it is natural for us to want to control things or to act in a way that is comfortable for us. Jesus did not do what was comfortable and safe, but Hw surrendered to God’s will. Today, pray to be more like Jesus in surrendering your fear, trusting God, and following how He is leading you.

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Thursday, 4th Week of Lent

3/30/2017

Today's Reading
John 5:31-47

Jesus said to the Jews:
"If I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is not true.
But there is another who testifies on my behalf,
and I know that the testimony he gives on my behalf is true.
You sent emissaries to John, and he testified to the truth.
I do not accept human testimony,
but I say this so that you may be saved.
He was a burning and shining lamp,
and for a while you were content to rejoice in his light.
But I have testimony greater than John's.
The works that the Father gave me to accomplish,
these works that I perform testify on my behalf
that the Father has sent me.
Moreover, the Father who sent me has testified on my behalf.
But you have never heard his voice nor seen his form,
and you do not have his word remaining in you,
because you do not believe in the one whom he has sent.
You search the Scriptures,
because you think you have eternal life through them;
even they testify on my behalf.
But you do not want to come to me to have life.

"I do not accept human praise;
moreover, I know that you do not have the love of God in you.

I came in the name of my Father,
but you do not accept me;
yet if another comes in his own name,
you will accept him.
How can you believe, when you accept praise from one another
and do not seek the praise that comes from the only God?
Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father:
the one who will accuse you is Moses,
in whom you have placed your hope.
For if you had believed Moses,
you would have believed me,
because he wrote about me.
But if you do not believe his writings,
how will you believe my words?"

Reflection
Jesus is confident in His mission and lays everything out there for the Jews to either accept or discard. “I came in the name of my Father, but you do not accept me." Jesus explains over and over again that He is the one about whom the prophets wrote, the one for whom John the Baptist was preparing the way, all of scripture has prepared the Israelites for this moment but in their pride, they refuse to accept it. We find ourselves in this same boat at times.

Too often we fall back on our knowledge of scripture, our degrees, our good works, and how much we know about the faith. This is not what Christ wants from us. Jesus wants a relationship. He wants us to believe in Him. He is the truth. He is the way. He is the life. Everything points to Him. We focus too much on the things we do, the books we read and the charitable causes to which we are dedicated. While these are great things to have in our life, it is not the most important. How is our personal relationship with the resurrected and living Christ? How often are we just sitting and speaking with Him? This is what Lent is all about.

Let us take some time to bring into focus our priorities; why are we doing the things we are doing in our life? Let us read the scripture understanding that it is speaking of the person of Christ. Let us do our good works recognizing we are serving the person of Christ. Let us give, love and serve knowing that it is Christ who loved and served first. Today, spend 10 minutes in silence, at the end of those 10 minutes, speak to Jesus from your heart asking Him to once again become the center of your life and the motivation for all that you do.

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Wednesday, 4th Week of Lent

3/29/2017

Today's Reading
Isaiah 49:8-15

Thus says the LORD:
In a time of favor I answer you,
on the day of salvation I help you;
and I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people,
To restore the land
and allot the desolate heritages,
Saying to the prisoners: Come out!
To those in darkness: Show yourselves!
Along the ways they shall find pasture,
on every bare height shall their pastures be.
They shall not hunger or thirst,
nor shall the scorching wind or the sun strike them;
For he who pities them leads them
and guides them beside springs of water.
I will cut a road through all my mountains,
and make my highways level.
See, some shall come from afar,
others from the north and the west,
and some from the land of Syene.

Sing out, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth,
break forth into song, you mountains.
For the LORD comforts His people
and shows mercy to His afflicted.

But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me;
my Lord has forgotten me."
Can a mother forget her infant,
be without tenderness for the child of her womb?
Even should she forget,
I will never forget you.

Reflection
Today’s first reading reminds us that although we may forget about God, God never forgets us. The prophet Isaiah is writing to the Jews in Exile reminding them that God has not forgotten them. He will restore them to their land and they shall want for nothing. He did not forsake them and He does not forsake you.

How often do we pray to God and grow impatient and frustrated when our prayers are not answered right when we want them to be? This can make us feel as though the Lord has forgotten about us. We pray and seek, but God does not respond. He never fails to answer prayers. Remember, “No” is an answer too. We so easily forget that God is all knowing all powerful and we must place all our trust in Him and His perfect timing.

Despite life’s circumstance or our own failures and weaknesses, we have a God who is all loving and merciful who desires to be united with us. There will be many ups and downs in life, many unknowns and much suffering, but there is great peace in knowing that we are not alone. God is with us through it all. We hold steadfast to His promises that, “the LORD comforts His people and shows mercy to His afflicted.” His love for us is infinite and He will not forsake us. He will never forget us and He holds us in the palm of His hands. Today, spend 15 extra minutes in prayer thanking God for His presence and love in your life.

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Tuesday, 4th Week of Lent

3/28/2017

Today's Reading
John 5:1-16
There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate
a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes.
In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled.
One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there
and knew that he had been ill for a long time, He said to him,
"Do you want to be well?"
The sick man answered Him,
"Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool
when the water is stirred up;
while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me."
Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your mat, and walk."
Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.

Now that day was a sabbath.
So the Jews said to the man who was cured,
"It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat."
He answered them, "The man who made me well told me,
'Take up your mat and walk.'"
They asked him,
"Who is the man who told you, 'Take it up and walk'?"
The man who was healed did not know who it was,
for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there.
After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him,
"Look, you are well; do not sin any more,
so that nothing worse may happen to you."
The man went and told the Jews
that Jesus was the one who had made him well.
Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus
because He did this on a sabbath.

Reflection

In today’s Gospel, Jesus heals a man who had been ill for thirty-eight years. What a miracle! In this scene we can see how the healing waters of Bethesda foreshadow the healing powers found in the sacraments. There is true grace and healing that comes from the sacraments. May we use this time of Lent to receive them as much as possible so we may be strengthened in our own faith and healed of the wounds within us. Just like those in the reading who sought physical healing, we too are in need of healing in our own lives, whether that be physical, spiritual or emotional. In order to be healed, we must bring our wounds to the feet of Jesus.

The miraculous healings performed by Jesus are signs of the complete healing that takes place. God’s healing is always that of the whole person. The key element in this passage is when Jesus asks the man: “Do you want to be well?” We must open our hearts and dispose ourselves to the healing that Jesus wants to give or we cannot begin to receive it. This man had waited for a very long time but because of his patience and faith, he was ready to accept what Jesus wanted to freely give him.

When Jesus sees the man in the temple, He reminds him that he must go forth having been healed and sin no more. When we experience the healing power of God’s mercy, we must also make a firm promise not to fall back into our old ways and for this we rely on the healing transformation that has taken place, which is the strength of Christ. Our hope is in Christ who has come to heal us of all that prevents us from accepting His love. Today, in prayer, ask the Blessed Mother for the grace to have your heart opened so that you may be ready to receive the healing power of Jesus’s love into your soul.

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