LIVING BY FAITH

II SUNDAY OF LENT: Gn 15:5-12,17-18

This Sunday's first reading is about Abraham, whom Paul calls "the father of all of us" (Ro 4:16) in faith.

Abraham has a big place in the history of religions, because with him we find the beginning of a new religious experience: his life was lived in a relationship with God based on faith.

We may ask what role faith played in his life, and in which way he is the prototype of all those who believe.

Abraham's experience of faith

If we look at Abraham (you can read Gn 12 - 23), we find some important points about faith:

• Abraham was called by God, and he answered that call. Faith implies always a call from God, and an answer on our side.
• God established a personal relationship with Abraham, which was a relationship of friendship, based on trust and love.
• God's call was accompanied of a promise - a promise that would come to fulfillment sometime in the future. Faith always directs our eyes towards the future, giving us a vision that makes it possible to move forward towards the unknown with trust, confidence and hope. Our hearts and our minds are not in the past, filled with sorrow and tears for the lost happiness; instead, we move towards the future, strengthened by hope and guided by faith.
• The relationship between God and Abraham was sealed with a covenant, meaning that he became binding on both sides, both God and Abraham. A covenant implies a commitment; and God swore by himself that the children of Abraham - the ones who live by faith - will be his people. Abraham committed himself to remain faithful to the covenant.
• From Abraham, we learn that faith is a journey: the journey of faith and the journey of life at the same time. In Abraham, we can see how he grew in faith throughout that journey. Abraham's faith was not perfect from the beginning; in fact, it took many years for him to realize that God has his own ways and his own time, and only at the end, he was able to surrender himself totally to God, putting his life and his future in the hands of God.
• If we look closely at Abraham, we discover that faith is not ignorance or blindness; instead faith goes together with the search of the mind that tries to understand. That's why Abraham inquired from God about the fulfilment of the promise. How is it going to happen? Humanly speaking, he could not see a way out. The attitude of search is part of a journey of faith. That search is guided by God himself and prepares us for a deeper understanding and a stronger commitment to surrender ourselves to Him who is love.
• In the life of Abraham and in the life of all those who followed in his footsteps, we can discover that God reveals himself in history, in the events that touch our lives and through the  journey that each one of us travels.

Faith became the foundation of Abraham's life, giving direction and meaning to his life. He believed in God's promise. We are still guided by that Promise - the promise of a land where our hearts will find peace, because we will live in harmony with God and with all his creation.

"For us, our homeland is in heaven, and from heaven comes the saviour we are waiting for, the Lord Jesus Christ, and he will transfigure these wretched bodies of ours into copies of his glorious body." (Phil 3:20).

JESUS’ CHOICES

I SUNDAY OF LENT: Lk 4:1-13

After his baptism, Jesus went into the desert for a time of reflection and search about himself and his mission. He had to think about his programme, and he was faced with different strategies to carry it out. The gospels of Luke and Matthew present that through the form of temptations. Jesus was tempted, meaning that there were different choices appealing to him, some of which were wrong choices.

THE TEMPTATION OF SELFISHNESS

After forty days, Jesus was hungry (Lk 4:2). 

But why should he suffer? 

He is the Son of God. He has power. 

Does he need to suffer? 

It is very easy and simple.

And the first proposition was presented to him:

Use your power and your position, 

and everything will be solved.
This is the TEMPTATION OF SELFISHNESS, of thinking only about oneself, caring for one’s needs, without paying attention to others and without thinking about possible consequences. 

This is the temptation of using one’s position, power and influence for his own profit.

In the desert, when they ran out of food, the People of Israel could not trust God’s love. They accused God of setting a trap for them and of starving them to death (Ex 16:17). Jesus suffers the same temptation of doubting God’s love and his promises, but he entrusted himself totally to GOD.

THE TEMPTATION OF USING GOD AND RELIGION FOR OUR OWN GLORY

Taken to the pinnacle of the Temple, he was advised to throw himself down and to force God to come to his rescue. This is the TEMPTATION TO USE GOD HIMSELF, HIS WORD AND RELIGION to get recognition and glory or to become a leader and to gain power.

It was as well the TEMPTATION TO MAKE MIRACLES AND WONDERS in order to gain glory, wealth and power. Jesus was tempted to make miracles, so that people would believe in his power. In a way, we can say that it was the TEMPTATION TO USE MAGIC AND WITCHCRAFT to lead and rule the people.

THE TEMPTATION OF WEALTH AND POWER

And he was offered political power and wealth as the way out for the problems of this world. However, he would have to accept a heavy condition in order to be given the kingdom of this world: to recognise and worship Satan. Jesus’ answer was a total refusal, proclaiming the very old but always new truth that only God is God, and only God can be worshiped.

Political and economic power can become the overriding value, to which we submit everything else. Power and wealth can become the god that we worship, the god that we serve. Jesus rejected political power, and when people wanted to make him a king, he went into hiding.

There are so many false values that appear to bring a better world, in which people may enjoy freedom, justice and peace. What an illusion. Once followed, they transform us into slaves, making enemies of our neighbours, our friends and our families.

May God gives the wisdom and the courage to choose the true liberating values that will guide our lives.

LENT, A SPECIAL TIME OF GRACE

ASH WEDNESDAY: Mt 6:1-6,16-18

This is the day of salvation

In Catholic tradition, Lent is always a special time of grace. That's why at the beginning of Lent, we listen to Paul's proclamation: "Now is the favourable time; this is the day of salvation" (2 Co 6:2).

We should not allow this day to pass by, without our hearts being touched by it. As Jesus spent 40 days in the desert, so we are to spend 40 days closer to Jesus, listening to his word, being trained by him, walking on his footsteps and trying to be like him.

Celebrating the year of the faith, let us seize the opportunity this Lent offers us to become closer to Jesus and to make him the centre of our lives. Faith is first of all this relationship with Jesus.

Be faithful to God’s will

Speaking to us, in today's gospel, Jesus tells us not to be carried away by a craving for fame. We should not behave strangely, just for the sake of being noticed and talked about. Our foremost concern must be to remain faithful to God's will, without making a fuss about it.

And then Jesus gives us counsel on how to make this lent season very special by concentrating our minds and hearts on three special exercises, which must be done with the right attitude:

• PRAYER - as a time for a personal encounter and dialogue with God. No disturbances, no noises, no publicity. Alone, in the secret of my room, in God's presence. Nobody else needs to know.
• ALMSGIVING - sharing what I have with those in need, without attracting anybody else's attention, be it my neighbour or the media.
• FASTING - not only for health reasons, but with a spiritual attitude of sacrifice and of penance, as an exercise to prepare the mind and the body to embrace what is important and to recognise God's primacy.

In all these three areas, Jesus gives a stern warning: "Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them" (Mt 6:1)

THE RENUNCIATION OF THE POPE

THE POPE RENOUNCES HIS MINISTRY OF BISHOP OF ROME AND SHEPHERD OF THE WHOLE CHURCH:

“in order to govern the barque of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months, has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me.”

Below, you find the declaration of Pope Benedict XVI: 

Dear Brothers,

I have convoked you to this Consistory, not only for the three canonizations, but also to communicate to you a decision of great importance for the life of the Church. After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, I have come to the certainty that my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the Petrine ministry.  I am well aware that this ministry, due to its essential spiritual nature, must be carried out not only with words and deeds, but no less with prayer and suffering. However, in today’s world, subject to so many rapid changes and shaken by questions of deep relevance for the life of faith, in order to govern the barque of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months, has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me. For this reason, and well aware of the seriousness of this act, with full freedom I declare that I renounce the ministry of Bishop of Rome, Successor of Saint Peter, entrusted to me by the Cardinals on 19 April 2005, in such a way, that as from 28 February 2013, at 20:00 hours, the See of Rome, the See of Saint Peter, will be vacant and a Conclave to elect the new Supreme Pontiff will have to be convoked by those whose competence it is.

Dear Brothers, I thank you most sincerely for all the love and work with which you have supported me in my ministry and I ask pardon for all my defects.  And now, let us entrust the Holy Church to the care of Our Supreme Pastor, Our Lord Jesus Christ, and implore his holy Mother Mary, so that she may assist the Cardinal Fathers with her maternal solicitude, in electing a new Supreme Pontiff. With regard to myself, I wish to also devotedly serve the Holy Church of God in the future through a life dedicated to prayer.

From the Vatican, 10 February 2013

BENEDICTUS PP XVI

PETER'S FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS

V SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME: Lk 5:1-11

God takes the initiative

In the Bible, we can find time and again God taking the initiative in his relationship with man. In the gospels, we find the same attitude from Jesus. He is the one who gives the first step, addressing us and making an encounter with him possible. In this sunday's gospel, we can find that with Simon Peter. Jesus went into his boat and asked for a favor, a favor that Simon could easily do.

Once he finished speaking to the crowd, Jesus gave Simon a command: Go into deep water and let down your nets to catch some fish. This command sounds more like an invitation, maybe a plea or even a promise of reward. Jesus had noticed the baskets empty and the nets dry. And Simon, tired and disappointed, complained saying: We worked all night in vain, having caught nothing. He would prefer to go home for a good rest, and then come back, waiting for better luck.

In obedience to his word

Jesus' words were not a promise, and Simon might have ignored them. However, he was the kind of person who never gives up, even when he finds himself in deep trouble. Even if one fails, he should try again. And so Simon concluded: "if you say so, I will let down the nets”; or, "At your word, I will let down the nets."

This obedience to Jesus' word - or this willingness to be guided by Jesus' word - was rewarded beyond any expectation. They caught so much fish that the nets were breaking. The Lord gives always far more that we deserve or expect. However, he never does that without our contribution and participation. Peter had to overcome his discouragement, tiredness and disappointment and had to do the physical work of paddling the boat into deep waters and of casting the nets. Then, he had to ask his friends for help. The same happens with salvation. It is a gift that we do not deserve, as Simon realised with his catch of fish. It is a gift which comes from God's mercy and love. However, we will not find salvation without our willingness to participate and our readiness to work for it. 

Simon becomes aware of his sinfulness

The super-abundance of the catch opened Simon's eyes, enabling him to understand the sign (the miracle). Realising that he was in God's presence, Simon became aware of his sinfulness. He knelt before Jesus, in an attitude of adoration, and, addressing Jesus as LORD, said: "Go away, for I am a sinful man".

In God's presence, we cannot fail to see our shortcomings, failures and sins. Isaiah had a similar attitude, when he said: "I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have looked at the King, the Lord of Hosts." (Is 6:5). To be cleansed, forgiven and accepted, we must have that same attitude of Simon, Isaiah and so many others.

Once we do that, we will hear like Simon, the reassuring word: "Do not be afraid". The encounter with Jesus brings peace and fulfilment. And it is at the same time a call: "From now on you will be catching people". Simon will become Peter and he will be entrusted with a mission.

WHO IS A PROPHET?

IV SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME:Jr  1:4-5,17-19

May be we should ask: Who is a prophet? And what is a prophet?

Many people accept that prophets are special people who play an important role in the community. A generation without prophets is a generation content with itself, who lost the urge to look for better and higher. Prophets do not speak for themselves; they are the voice of someone else calling us to be true to ourselves and to God.

Are they seers of the future?

In the Bible, the time of the prophets was one of the greatest times in the history of salvation. Many people think of prophets as seers of the future, who announce in riddles what will come to be. However, the role of a prophet is not to announce the future, but to speak about the present. Called by God and guided by his Spirit, the prophet reads the present in order to discover in it God's presence and God's action. The prophet is a voice speaking God's words for today, guiding people to discover God's will and to obey it.

Called by God

This Sunday, we read about Jeremiah's vocation. God tells him: "I consecrated you, I appointed you as a prophet" (Jr 1:5). A true prophet is called by God, who consecrates him, entrusting him with a mission: "Now I have put my words in your mouth." (Jr 1:9)

If we look at the great prophets of Israel, they were called to denounce the evil behaviour of the people; they were reedy to provoke and to challenge, calling them to repent and to turn back to God. They were ready to denounce the social injustices and the prevalent exploitation of the poor by the rich and the powerful. They were able to analyze the political situation correctly, and most of the times they went against the status quo, calling for boldness to change.

Moved by a deep experience of God

All the prophets were moved by a deep experience of God, with their hearts full of jealousy for God's glory. Their words move always on two directions: looking at the present and the near past, they castigate the people's unwillingness to listen to God; looking at the future, they present God's promise of salvation, a promise coming out of a heart full of love and compassion. At the same time, they announce the terrible consequences of a continuous refusal to change and to obey God's commands.

The prophets were rejected

The prophets had not an easy life. They were rejected and even punished for their courage to tell the truth. Jeremiah was rejected. Christ was rejected in his own village and in his own country. Rejection is always painful, and may lead the prophet to question himself it is worthwhile going on with their mission. However, being faithful to God's call, they go on, because they cannot stop speaking God's word.

We are in need of prophets who speak out fearlessly, proclaiming God's word, witnessing God's love and announcing his promise of salvation.