PROGRAMMES FOR ALL CATECHUMENS AND ON-GOING

FORMATION FOR ALL THE FULLY INITIATED CHRISTIANS

FOR THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER, 2021.
1. FOR THE PRE-CATECHUMENATE CLASS
 Lessons 14 and 15 of the Handbook
 Recruitment of New candidates
2. For the Catechumenate 1, 2, 3; 1st Holy Communion and
Confirmation, use the following year A table.
3. Fr deepening of faith for those fully initiated, use My Life in Christ
vol. 3 and the CCC/ CCCC.
YEAR B

SUNDAY/THEME SCRIPTURE CATHECHSIM OF FAITH RESPONSE:

READING THE CATHOLIC CHURCH PRAYER, HYMN ACTIVITY

3RD SUNDAY OF LENT: THE EX 20:1-20 CCC 694,1210,1030,1212, THE KIND OF PEOPLE
PURIFICATION OF THE JESUS WANTS IN THE
TEMPLE AND OF 1 COR.1:22-25 1276,1223,1229, TEMPLE
RELIGION.
JN. 2:13-25 1246,1250.

4TH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR: 2 CHRON. 36:14-17, CCC 218,219,221, WHO IS A LOVING
LAETARE SUNDAY: FATHER OR MOTHER?
REJOICE ALWAYS. 19-23EPH.2:4-10 444,456,232,75.

JER. 31:31-34 CCC 1285,1289,1290, PRACTISE GOING TO

CONFESSION.
5TH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR: HEB. 5:7-9 1320,1302,1316,
WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE ACT OF CONTRITION.
JESUS JN. 12:20-33 1319.

PALM SUNDAY OF THE LK. 19:28-40

PASSSION OF THE LORD:
THE PASSION OF OUR ISA. 50:4-7 CCC 557,569,574,577,583, CHB 272,275,280,281
LORD JESUS CHRIST
MK. 14:1-15,4 587,595,619,

620,621,617,622,624,
 01 MAR. FRI
FIRST READING:Gen.37:3-4,12-13a,17b-28
GOSPEL: Matt.21:33-43,45-46
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Gen.37:3-4,12-
13a,17b-28.
THEME:
We hear the story of Joseph, hated by his brothers and sold as a
slave into Egypt for twenty pieces of silver.
Anyone familiar with Christian life knows that following the Lord
involves suffering. The fruit of Christian suffering is seen in the sons
and daughters of God whose lives take on qualities pleasing to the
Father in heaven.
Much of the suffering we experience today is the result of our flouting
God's will, suffering we bring on ourselves through disobedience. That
brand of suffering brings about no strengthening of character, but only
misery and long-lasting bitterness. For instance, God wants us to pray
and read scripture daily, to instruct our children and to love and care for
our neighbour. When we ignore His desires in these areas, the
consequences begin to mount: rebellious children, infidelity in marriage,
turmoil in our relationships the list could be endless and the suffering,
very real, but it is not the kind of blessed suffering that bears any fruit.
God's plan includes suffering that contributes to the building of the
kingdom of God. Take as an example Joseph, whose life was a kind of
foreshadowing of Christ's. He suffered at the hands of his brothers, from
the slave traders, and from his Egyptian master's wife. The result of all
his suffering could be seen as part of God's plan only later in his life,
when he was able to save God's chosen people from the ravages of a
famine (See Gen 45:5-8).
When we try to give our lives completely to God, we will see that a Cost
is involved. We might have to curtail our leisure-time activities to make
way for prayer and scripture. We may have to ask others to forgive us,
something, which often (in the short run) has a dent to it. Raising
families in conformity with God's commands will sometimes cause pain
too. The allure of the flesh and the world does not die easily or without
sacrifice.
Christian life per se does involve suffering, but God will use it to good
advantage if we are obedient to Him. He can strengthen us to Further
His work in this world, just as He did in the life of Joseph.
Let us Pray:
Lord, help us to trust in Your eternal plan for our own salvation, give us
the grace to look beyond our present suffering and to exult in the life to
which You have called us. Help us to forgive and to see Your hand at
work in all things. We ask this through Christ our Lord Amen.

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Matt.21:33-43,45-46.

THEME:
“this is the heir, come let us kill him”
The parable did not seem far-fetched to Jesus’ listeners. Neither should
it to us. It is an allegory of salvation history. God the Father, Creator of
all, is the rightful owner of His creation. He placed His people (the
tenants) in the vineyard to prepare a fruitful harvest. When the time of
salvation was approaching, He sent His prophets, “slaves” of His love,
to collect His harvest.
When the tenants shamefully and violently abused God’s emissaries, He
did not give up on them. Instead, He sent them other prophets. When the
people treated God’s new messengers in the same way, He still had
compassion on them. He sent them His own beloved Son, whom they
put to death.
What did these people deserve? Jesus’ listeners were quick to answer
that those wretches should be done away with, and Jesus himself said the
kingdom would be taken away from them (Mt. 21:41, 43). But He did
not leave it at that. Rather than being intent on punishing those who
refused the salvation of His Son, God broadened the salvific effects of
His Son’s death to include the whole world: “The kingdom of God. {will
be} given to a people-that produces the fruits of the kingdom” (Mt
21:43).
The encouraging message in this parable is that God’s promise of life is
for all people, and His people are all who believe and accept the
salvation work of His Son, Jesus. Lent is an excellent time to rid
ourselves of the defects that can accumulate in our thinking about God’s
promise of life. Sometimes, we are like the tenants in the parable, who
thought they could possess the kingdom by killing the son, even while
the father was still living. How foolish! Equally senseless is the belief
that if we work hard enough, we will earn our salvation. God’s promise
(the life He wants for all His people) is a free gift -a grace He holds out
to those who are open to accept it. Lent is a good time to open our hearts
to accept the new life Jesus has won for us.
Let Us Pray:
Father, we want to receive Your prophets and Son who usher Your life
and grace. Help us to rid our lives of any defects that might hamper a
full acceptance of Your gift of grace. May we be open to receive Your
Son all the days of our lives. Grant this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
The Church Teaches:
"The Church is a cultivated field, the tillage of God. On that land the
ancient olive tree grows whose holy roots were the prophets and in
which the reconciliation of Jews and Gentiles has been brought about
and will be brought about again. That land, like a choice vineyard, has
been planted by the heavenly cultivator. Yet the true vine is Christ who
gives life and fruitfulness to the branches, that is, to us, who through the
Church remain in Christ, without whom we can do nothing. CCC. 755
HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. Why do we suffer so much today?
2. What type of suffering does God’s plan include for us? Give and
explain examples from the Scripture.
3. Why and how does the Christian life involve suffering?
 02 MAR. SAT
FIRST READING: Mic.7:14-15, 18-20
GOSPEL: Lk.15:1-3,11-32
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Mic.7:14-15, 18-20.
THEME:
We see a vision of God who forgives sins, removes guilt, and de-
lights in clemency and compassion.
In Judaism, teshuvah is literally a turning away from one's sinful ways.
On the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), the holiest day in the Jewish
year, the high priest confessed for himself, his tribe, and the house of
Israel. During his confession, the high priest pronounced the name of
God (the tetragrammation: "YHWH" or "Yahweh") three times, some-
thing which no other Jew could utter. Each time the people heard the
name of God, they knelt and prostrated themselves. The high priest also
entered the temple's Holy of Holies, where no one else ever entered and
he entered only during this service (Lev 16).
The Book of Jonah is read in the afternoon during the Yom Kippur
service. It tells of God's mercy to all people who repent (here, the
Ninevites). At the end of the Day of Atonement, the final prayer marks
Ten Days of Penitence with rededication, praise of God, and a long blast
of the shofar (ram's horn) symbolizing the forgiveness that God surely
has granted his people. The people return to their homes to break their
fast. In that way, Judaism recognizes that the confession of Sin before
God is primarily a corporate act. Each of the people of God is
responsible for the sin of every other person. They stand as a body
before the Lord.
 The prophet Micah reflected on the corporate nature of sin and of
forgiveness in calling on God to be merciful. His references are based on
the concept that God's people as a body extend back in time. Thus Micah
recalled God's mercy in leading His people out of Egypt and settling
them in Bashan and Gilead (Mic 7:14). Micah's prayer for forgiveness
reflected the mercy God had shown to the patriarchs, Jacob and
Abraham, to whom God swore fidelity on behalf of the people He was
going to build through them. Our confidence in God's promise to forgive
rests on His mercy to the whole people He has chosen: past, present and
future.
The Father extended mercy to all people by sending Jesus Christ to
redeem the world's sins, fulfilling His promise to Abraham and Jacob to
build a holy people through them. God is always seeking to unite His
people through repentance, reconciliation and forgiveness, and to unite
us to Him. We should have confidence in His mercy because He is a
forgiving Father of prodigal people.
Let us Pray:
Lord, you are compassion and love; you are slow to anger and rich in
mercy. Grant us, your wayward children who turns to you with repentant
heart, the forgiveness we so deeply desire and sincerely ask for. We ask
this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Lk.15:1-3,11-32.

THEME:
This your brother was dead, and is alive
One of the most encouraging things about the gift of repentance which
Jesus has given us is the quality of the forgiveness He promised. God
our Father is more offended by our sins than we know; yet, as illustrated
by the father in the parable of the prodigal son, the forgiveness He longs
to give us is more generous than we can comprehend. If we are truly
contrite and sincere in our desire to turn away from our transgressions,
we need have no apprehension about repentance, no matter how dreadful
or unmentionable our sins may be. God’s forgiveness is like that of the
father in the parable: immediate, joyful, generous and complete.
The Father not only forgives us His errant children but lavishes gifts
upon us. He puts a robe on our shoulders, a ring on our fingers, and
shoes on our feet. In biblical terminology, these items were symbols of
prestige, rank and authority. Spiritually, they mean even more than that.
St Ambrose (c 339-397) reflecting on the return to life of the wayward
son -wrote about what we all receive: “So quickly does he gain
forgiveness that, as he is coming, and is still a great way off, his father
meets him, gives him a kiss, which is the sign of sacred peace; orders the
robe to be brought forth, which is the marriage garment, which if anyone
have not, he is shut out from the marriage feast; places the ring on his
hand, which is the pledge of faith and the seal of the Holy Spirit; orders
the shoes to be brought out, for he who is about to celebrate the Lord’s
Passover, about to feast on the Lamb, ought to have his feet protected
against all attacks of spiritual wild beasts and the bite of the serpent; bids
the calf to be slain, for ‘Christ our Passover has been sacrificed’”
( Concerning Repentance, Book .2, 3, 18).
How can God’s forgiveness be so complete? Here’s how! Jesus took
upon Himself all the punishment, which we deserve for our sins. He
shed His blood as a ransom for our sins. Now, whenever we ask
forgiveness, our sins are washed away by that same blood. When God
the Father looks at us, He sees our repentance as the fruit of His precious
Son’s death. He is pleased to have His adopted children renounce their
rebellious ways and return to Him.
Let Us Pray:
Father, how wonderful your love for us is! Thank you for your abundant
provision. Thank you for calling us home and drawing us into your
embrace. We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
The Church Teaches:
The process of conversion and repentance was described by Jesus in the
parable of the prodigal son, the center of which is the merciful father:
The fascination of illusory freedom, the abandonment of the father's
house; the extreme misery in which the son finds himself after
squandering his fortune; his deep humiliation at finding himself obliged
to feed swine, and still worse, at wanting to feed on the husks the pigs
ate; his reflection on all he has lost; his repentance and decision to
declare himself guilty before his father; the journey back; the father's
generous welcome; the father's joy - all these are characteristic of the
process of conversion. The beautiful robe, the ring, and the festive
banquet are symbols of that new life - pure worthy, and joyful - of
anyone who returns to God and to the bosom of his family, which is the
Church. Only the heart of Christ Who knows the depths of his Father's
love could reveal to us the abyss of his mercy in so simple and beautiful
a way. CCC 1439
For Further Study: CCC. 1700, 545

HELP TO REFLECTION:
 1. What happens on the day of atonement in Judaism?
2. What image of God does Micah (7:14-15,18-20) reflect?
3. In what way does the Prophet reflect the nature of sin?

03 MAR. SUN

THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT

THEME: THE PURIFICATION OF THE TEMPLE AND OF
RELIGION.
First reading: Exod. 20:1-7 or Exod. 20:1-3. 7-8. 12-17
Second reading: 1 Cor. 1:22-25
Gospel: Jn. 2:13-25
And making a whip of cords, he drove them all, with the sheepand oxen,
out of the temple; and he poured out the coins of the money changers
and over-turned their tables. And he told those who sold the pigeons,
"Take these things away: you shall not make my Father's house a house
of trade". (Jn. 2:15-16).
A NEW FORM OF OPPRESSION AND IDOLATRY
John has just presented the start of Jesus ‘mission. Here, we have the
first confrontation with the authorities of the Jewish people. This takes
place in Jerusalem and, more specifically, in the temple (the synoptics
put this event toward the end of Jesus' ministry). Passover is the
celebration of liberation. What the Lord finds in the temple is a new
form of oppression of the people, which prevents the worship due the
jealous God" (Ex 20:5). The people are entering into a relationship with
God by the way of money. As a result, they are finding an oppressing
God, not the Father who loves and liberates them from slavery. The
house of the father who loves and liberates his people has become 'a
market place" (v.16) which is exploiting and degrading.
The high priests who are behind the trading taking place in the temple
are getting richer. The people selling animals and the money changers
who receive Roman money (which cannot be offered because it is
pagan) and give the coins for the temple are merely intermediaries.
Jesus' protest and rejection affect powerful interests: the interests of
those who have replaced God (without denying God openly) by greed,
which Paul calls idolatry". Paradoxically, this subtle, incipient
substitution is often justified by religious arguments. Not one of us is
immune from this. Today's gospel invites us to examine our consciences
both at the personal and ecclesial level.
Again, like all the Lenten readings, today's summons us to a re-
examination and re-evaluation of our own ideas about Christ, about the
Church, about Christianity; and today there is special emphasis on one
of the elements of Christianity- the commandments of God. For the Jews
the two most sacred institutions were the Law and the Temple. Both
were God's own idea. Jesus upheld them. Law is good, it is necessary;
without it every human institution is the prey of anarchy and destruction.
So, too, the Temple was good. It was the very focal point of Hebrew life
and religion. It was the dwelling place of God's glory. The people saw it
as the very antechamber of heaven.
Our Reflection shall centre around the purification of the temple and the
New Temple and the challenge to us today.
PURIFICATION OF THE TEMPLE
The driving of the trader from the temple is narrated in all four gospels
and this shows the importance the writers attached to this dramatic and
violent act of Jesus.
It is the Easter of the Jews and Jerusalem is full of pilgrims from all over
Palestine who have come to offer sacrifices and to fulfill their religious
duty. The city's inhabitants normally number about fifty thousand, but at
Easter that number is three to four times larger and all the families in the
city provide shelter in their houses for some of the guests.
Many pilgrims come from very far and have worked for years to be able
to undertake this "holy journey, at least once in their life. For this
occasion they do not count the costs. During those days pilgrims eat
meat in abundance, drink good wine, buy presents to take home and,
above all, go to the temple to pray, to be advised by the priests and to
offer a sacrifice to the Lord.
The traders know well that Easter is a very good time to do business; in
a few weeks they can earn more than during all the year. Prices are kept
high, but shops are full of buyers all the same from early morning to late
evening. This is the normal way of traders who use such occasions to
make huge profits. Some visitors may even have taken advantage of the
crowding and confusion to do evil things (Jn 8:1-11).
It is in the temple that the most serious part of the pilgrimage takes
place. Three weeks before Easter day the square in front of the temple
becomes a market place. There are money changers who charge
handsomely for their services, sheep traders and also cattle dealers; some
tanners are ready to buy the hides of the slaughtered animals. All this
trade is controlled by a very powerful Jerusalem family; the family of
the high priests Annas and Caiphas.
Every religious and honest person is bound to feel annoyed at the sight:
God's house of prayer has been transformed into a market place.
Today's gospel shows Jesus arriving at the temple at the time of the feast
(13-14). No evangelist described what Jesus felt at the sight, but we can
easily understand his feelings from what he does. He does not utter :
single word but he ties together some pieces of rope, makes a whip and
then begins to chase everybody out, knocking over tables, chairs,
money, boxes, bird cages... (15-16). His reaction is unexpected: we
would have never imagined that he could be capable of being so violent.
He was usually calm, quite, meek, smiling, peaceful, but in this
circumstance he shows quite another picture.
What does this unusual behaviour of Jesus mean? He explains it himself
in two phrases.
“Take all this out of here and stop using my father's house as a market”
(16). With these words he wanted to remind his listeners of Zechariah's
prophecy: in the time of Yahweh Sabaoth" (Zech 14:2 1). By purifying
the temple of "traders", Jesus declares that the kingdom of the Messiah
has begun and he clearly and forcibly condemns every mixture an
confusion between religion and economic interests.
THE NEW TEMPLE: DESTROY THIS TEMPLE AND INTHREE
DAYS." (JN 2:19)
The second lesson we learn from what Jesus did is even more important
and we gather it from the second thing that he says: Destroy this temple
and in three days I will raise it up" (19).
He is now no longer speaking of a new temple and the beginning of a
new cult. In fact the evangelist remarks immediately: "He was speaking
of the temple that was his body" (21).
This statement is important. The Jews were convinced that God lived in
the temple of Jerusalem, and that is why they always went there to offer
him sacrifices. They believed that God enjoys the scent of incense a and
likes the blood of victims. Jesus now says that this type of belief is over.
God will soon build a new temple where one acceptable sacrifice will be
offered.
The new temple is not our churches or chapels made of stone or mud-
bricks. God does not need this type of dwelling as he never needed the
beautifully built temple of Jerusalem.
The new temple was something quite different: it would be built, as we
read in the gospel of today, "in three days" (20), to be completed Easter
day. By raising his Son from the dead, the Father has laid the foundation
and cornerstone of this new holy place. On this stone he has laid other
living stones: the disciples of Christ. Together they make up the body of
Christ, the true and new temple where God now lives. Jesus will also
exclaim: "Anyone who loves me will keep my word and my
Father will love him and we shall come to him and make a home in him'
(Jn 14-23). Here then is the house of God. where he lives: Christ and the
community of believers.
THE POOR AND THE DOVES
Jesus' harshness with those selling doves (v. 16) calls our attention. But
the reason for this is clear: doves were used by the poorest people for the
purification sacrifices. As a result, in a special way those selling them
represented the exploitation of the poor through worship. This explains
why Jesus is very annoying. The attitude of a true believer towards the
poor has to be very annoyed. The attitude of a true believer toward the
poor has to be the very opposite. In his encyclical Centesimus Annus
(no. 58), John Paul II underscores this by asking us to sell what is
luxurious which we attempt to justify as necessary for ourselves or
God's worship in order to change it into food, drink, clothing, and
housing for the poor (see Mt 25:3 1 -45).
The Lord died for that. We are committed to this type of detachment by
our proclaiming "Christ crucified" (1 Cor 1:23), even though it causes
scandal. We can conceal our greed behind reasons and even religious
motives, but the Lord who knows what is in the human heart (Jn 2:25)
will not allow us to misuse his name (Ex 20:7).
CHALLENGE TO US TODAY
Jesus replaces the old covenant and its institution with a person, himself.
God in Christ reveals himself, not in Law and the Temple, but in the
scandal of a crucified Messiah. The covenant God comes to his people in
human weakness, vulnerability, and shame. But what meaning does all
this have for us? Today's readings tell us that seeking security in the
observance of law, making the heart of religion to consist primarily in
obedience to law without love as the essential motivation (even the
scared Ten Commandments of God himself) is to be guilty of the same
false misunderstanding of religion that Jesus condemned in the
Pharisees.
To be sure, a right understanding of the commandments can be a great
help towards our conversion-which we remember is the chief purpose of
Lent. The commandments have been called moral imperatives, which
means that their purpose is not just to make us avoid evil but to direct
our life towards a higher and more positive goal. They constitute a code
of behaviour for all humankind. But we also need to remind ourselves
that just observing laws will not bring about conversion. Just tells us
what is really needed: "I give you a new commandment: Love one
another. Such as my love has been for you, so must your love be for
each other (John 13:14).
The fragrance of incense and acceptable sacrifices are continually rising
from the holy place. And what are these? Not the blood of lambs, but the
works of charity of man.
We must be convinced that our songs, processions and incense add
nothing to God's glory and honour. The only sacrifices acceptable to him
are the works of charity, the generous service to our neighbour,
especially the poorest, the sick, the weakest, the hungry, the naked.
Every time we bend down in front of a brother to serve him, the
fragrance of our offering rises up to heaven. With Christ and in Christ,
we are the temple of God.
The last two verses of the gospel (23-25) tell us some strange news:
Jesus, during the days of the feast worked miracles and many people
believed in him, but he did not trust them, because he knew them all.
Why? Because these people put their belief and trust in his power, in his
miracles rather than in the message of Jesus. The faith that needs to see
miracles, is a weak faith. There are Christians living today that Jesus
wouldn't trust: those who base their faith on the favours or miracles that
they hope to obtain through their prayers. True faith in Christ is
different: it consists in accepting to be turned, with him, into living
stones of the new temple and in giving up one's life for our brothers and
sisters.
LET US PRAY:
Almighty God, we your children are happy and grateful for your
bounteous blessing, love and mercy. Our thirst for you has been satisfied
by the water of baptism. Give us the grace to live faithful Christians all
the days of our lives. Through Christ Our Lord. Amen.

The Church teaches:

1. What is the Symbolism of Water in the Sacrament of Baptism?
(CCC 694).
Water is symbolic of the Holy Spirit. On this subject, the Catholic
Church teaches us, "The symbolism of water signifies the Holy Spirit's
action in Baptism, since after the invocation of the Holy Spirit it
becomes the efficacious sacramental sign of new birth: just as the
gestation of our first birth took place in water, so the water of Baptism
truly signifies that our birth into the divine life is given to us in the Holy
Spirit. As "by one Spirit we were all baptized," so we are also" made to
drink of one Spirit." (1 Cor. 12:13) Thus the Spirit is also personally the
living water welling up from Christ crucified (Jn. 19:34; 1 Jn.5:8) as its
source and welling up in us to eternal life." (]n. 4:10- 14, 7:38; Ex. 17:1-
6; Is. 55:1; Zech. 14:8; 1 Cor. 10:4; Rev. 21:6; 22:17) (CCC. 694)
Which are the Seven Sacraments of the Church?
The seven sacraments are:

 Baptism
 Confirmation
 Holy Eucharist
  Penance
 Anointing of the sick
 Holy Orders
 Matrimony

2. How are the sacraments of the Church divided? (1210-1211)

Sacraments are divided into : the sacraments of Christian initiation
(Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Eucharist); the sacraments of healing
(Penance and Anointing of the Sick); the sacraments at the service of
communion and mission (Holy Orders and Matrimony). The Sacraments
touch all the important moments of Christian life . All the sacraments are
ordered to the Holy Eucharist “as their end” (Saint Thomas Aquinas).

3. Which are the sacraments of Christian initiation? (CCC 1212)

The sacraments of Christian initiation are Baptism, Confirmation and the
Eucharist. They lay the foundations of every Christian life. "The sharing
in the divine nature given to men through the grace of Christ bears a
certain likeness to the origin, development and nourishing of natural life.
The faithful are born anew by Baptism, strengthened by the sacrament
of Confirmation, and receive in the Eucharist the food of eternal life. By
means of these sacraments of Christian initiation, they thus receive in
increasing measure the treasures of the divine life and advance toward
the perfection of charity.

4. What is catechumenal (RCIA)? CCC 1230

From the time of the apostles, becoming a Christian has been
accomplished by a journey and initiation in several stags. This journey
can be covered rapidly or slowly, but certain essential elements will
always have to present: Proclamation of the world. acceptance of the
Gospel entailing conversion, profession of faith Baptism itself, the
outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and admission to Eucharistic communion.
This initiation has varied greatly through the centuries according to
circumstances. In the first centuries of the Church, Christian's initiation
saw considerable development. A long period of Catechumenal included
a series of preparatory rites, which were liturgical landmarks along the
part of catechumenal preparation and culminated in the celebration of
the sacraments of Christian initiation.

5. How is Christian initiation brought about? (1212, 1275)

Christian initiation is accomplished by means of the sacraments which
establish the foundations of Christian life.The faithful born anew by
Baptism are strengthened by Confirmation and are then nourished by the
Eucharist.
6. What names are given to the first sacrament of initiation?
(1213-12 16, 1276-1277)
This sacrament is primarily called Baptism because of the central rite
with which it is celebrated. To baptize means to "immerse" in water. The
one who is baptized is immersed into death of Christ and rises with him
as a "new creature" (2Corinthians 5:17). This sacrament is also called
the "bath of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5); and
it is called "enlightenment" because the baptized becomes "a son of
light" (Ephesians 5:8).
 7. How is baptism prefigured in the old covenant? (1217-1222)
In the old Covenant Baptism was pre-figured in various ways: water,
seen as source of life and of death; in the Ark of Noah, which saved by
means of water; in the passing through the Red Sea, which liberated
Israel from Egyptian slavery; in the crossing of Jordan River, that
brought Israel into the promised land which is the image of eternal life.
8. Who brought to fulfilment those prefiguration? (1223-1224).
All the Old Covenant prefiguration finds their fulfilment in Jesus Christ.
At the beginning of his public life Jesus had himself baptized by John
the Baptist in the Jordan. On the Cross, blood and water, signs of
Baptism and the Eucharist,his Resurrection he gave to his apostles this
mission: "Go forth and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in
the name of the Father and of the flowed from his pierced side. After
hisSon and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19).
9. Starting when and to whom has the Church administered
baptism? (1226-1228).
From the day of Pentecost, the Church administered has Baptism to
anyone who believes in Jesus Christ.
10. In what does the essential rite of baptism consist (1229-1245,
1278)
The essential rite of this sacrament consists in immersing the
candidate in water or pouring water over his or her head while
invoking the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit
11. Who can receive baptism? (1246-1252)
Every person not yet baptized is able to receive Baptism.
12. Why does the Church baptize infants? (1250)
 The Church baptizes infants because they are born with original sin.
They need to be freed from the power of the Evil One and brought
into that realm of freedom which belongs to the children of God.

HELP TO REFLECTION
Find sufficient time to study and understand all the Church teaches
(1-12)

04 MAR. MON
FIRST READING: 2Kgs.5:1-15a
GOSPEL: Lk.4:24-30
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: 2Kgs.5:1-15a
THEME:
Na'aman, a Syrian leper, is cured by washing himself seven times in
the Jordan River.
Na’aman had great difficulty believing that his healing would come
through an act as simple as taking a bath! It seemed too small, too
insignificant. Yet, when he finally did as the prophet Elisha asked, he
was dramatically and miraculously healed. A simple act of faith
produced remarkable results!
How often do we look for some dramatic action that we must take or
some elaborate process that we must go through in order to receive
extraordinary blessings from God? The truth is that the Father already
loves us and wants to help us. He wants to touch us with new life. He
wants to heal and deliver us. We don't need to go on long and tedious
pilgrimages to receive His love. We don't need to persuade Him to act
powerfully in our lives. We only need to have simple faith and trust in
Him Like Na'aman, we may need to do no more than an ordinary task to
experience God's extraordinary action. It may be something as small as
being faithful to a prayer time each day. Or it may be a simple act of
kindness to a co-worker, friend or family member. Any number of
ordinary things that we do day after day, week after week, like the daily
hour of adoration, opens the door for God to do the extraordinary things
He longs to do in our lives and in the lives of those we love.
God isn't looking for the spectacular. All He wants from us is faith and
love. He simply wants us to trust Him for all that we need. He is good
and He is faithful. As we come to Him each day in the simple "ordinary"
things of our lives, we give Him the opportunity to move mountains.
Why not come to Him today in great simplicity and humility? Trust Him
in the small things, and He will act in the big things. Ultimately,
Christianity is all about His love and His grace. Receive that love and
grace today.
Let us Pray:
Father, we love You. You are our God and we trust in You. Help us to
be faithful to the simple things You ask of us each day. Grant us what
we ask of You with faith and trust. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Lk.4:24-30
THEME:
Like Elijah and Elisha Jesus is not sent only to the Jews
The rejection Jesus experienced in Nazareth, His hometown, must have
hurt Him deeply. These were friends and neighbors He had known and
loved as a child or befriended as a youth. He probably served them in
Joseph’s carpentry shop, ate with them at village celebrations and
worshipped with them in the synagogue. Yet they were ready to do Him
physical harm.
What made the men and women of Nazareth reject Jesus? They must
have found themselves struggling to let go of their narrow views of who
Jesus was. They were challenged that day to be open to God working
among them in a new and unexpected way. Faced with such a challenge,
they found it easier to reject Jesus than to risk the loss of their familiar
views of God and the way He works in the world. Later, the top officials
in Jerusalem---people who were His own---rejected Him. This man from
Galilee did not fit the mould of the Messiah they expected, and so they
condemned Him. They substituted their own judgment for God’s,
resisting the new thing that the Lord was doing in their very midst.
In a sense, we may be as “familiar” with Jesus as the people of Nazareth.
Many of us have heard gospel stories since we were children. But how
deeply do we know Jesus? Do we believe that He can work miracles in
our own lives? Do we believe that he can give us the power to overcome
sin and the power to forgive those who have hurt us? Do we believe that
Christ lives in us and calls us to be Christ to others? God wants to do so
much in our lives; He only asks us to take risks with Him in faith and let
Him reveal His power.
Despite the anger and violence of His towns people, Jesus walked
straight through the crowd unharmed. Jesus cannot be overcome. He
loves us too much to let our sin triumph over us. Let us invite Him more
deeply into our hearts so that we can experience the blessings of a living
relationship with Him the knowledge of His presence and His power
flowing in us and, through us, to others.

Let Us Pray:
Jesus, we want to be open to You at the very core of our being. Expand
our expectations and show me Your power and glory at work in the
world, and in our lives, everyday this Lent. You who live and reign
forever and ever. Amen.
The Church Teaches:

HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. Why are we challenged in the story of Na’aman to have just a
simple faith and trust in God?
2. Why is God not looking for the expertacular in our lives?
3. Why did the rejection of Jesus at Nazareth by his own people
cause him so much pain?
4. What made them reject Jesus?
5. Why did the top officials in Jerusalem also reject Jesus?
6. Do you think that Jesus can ever be overcome after the
experience at Nazareth? Why?
 05 MAR. TUE

First Reading: Daniel 3:2,11-20

Gospel : matt. 18:21-25
Reflection on the first reading
THEME:
We share Azariah 's poignant prayer for forgiveness, following upon
the admission of guilt for having forsaken the Lord God.

Azariah's prayer and the stories that make up the first six chapters of
the Book of Daniel are set in sixth century B.C. Babylon. Jerusalem had
been overrun and her people sent into exile. Now in a foreign culture,
many Jews were in danger of losing their faith. Their conquerors
pressured them to worship foreign gods and to reject Yahweh. Yet, as
these stories show, God uses difficult situations like these to reach out to
a broken people and show them His heart.
According to the biblical account, Azariah and his friends resisted the
pressures of foreign rulers, even under threat of death. As they turned to
Yahweh, they received divine wisdom and protection: "The angel of the
Lord came down into the furnace to be with Azariah and his
companions" (Dan 3:26). And the results of their faithfulness went far
beyond this miraculous act of deliverance: The pagan rulers also
came to recognize Yahweh as the one true God. Throughout Old
Testament history, whenever the Jewish people were brought low, they
turned to God for salvation. It was in times of desperate need that they
could see the glory and goodness of God more clearly and receive His
grace more freely. Isn't the same true for us as well? How easy it is to go
about our everyday lives, faithfully performing our duties, even going to
church, but not really being in touch with Jesus!
Let us seek God out in good times and in bad. Sometimes worldly
ways creep in, weakening our faith and distorting what it means to be in
contact with Jesus. It's not just in times of trial that we have the
opportunity to correct our vision and come into a deeper relationship
with God. Every day, life is filled with similar opportunities. Let's not
wait for some tragedy to strike. Let's turn to Jesus every single day. He
waits for us with open arms, always ready to fill us with the good things
of His kingdom.

LET US PRAY:
Jesus, send Your Holy Spirit to enlighten my heart so that I can
know you more fully everyday. By Your Spirit, strengthen me to cry
out in prayer: "Blessed are you upon the throne of your kingdom!"
(Dan 3:33)

REFLECTION THE GOSPEL: Matthew 18:21-35

THEME:
With the parable of the unforgiving servant, the lesson Jesus drives
home to our minds is that we must forgive one another over and over
again.

We all probably have at least one relationship in which the memory of

an un-forgiven hurt continues to linger and prevents us from fully loving
some person. Many Christians harbour resentment and anger because of
some difference of opinion, some real or imagined slight, some unkind
word. Jesus stated clearly that God will forgive us to the extent that we
are willing to forgive others (Mt 18:35; 6: 12-15).
The scriptures instruct us to forgive one another as Christ has forgiven
us (Mt 18:33; CoI3:J3). God's forgiveness and our forgiveness of others
are inseparably linked. As we come to know God's love for us, His
forgiveness is often one of the first graces we experience. Christ came
into the world to forgive us and free us from sin so that we may enjoy
eternal life (Jn 3: 16-18). God has forgiven us - not just for our own sake
but so that we can extend His love and mercy to others. As we forgive
others and are reconciled with them, we are doing the work of Christ,
and the love of God is revealed to the world (Jn 17:20- 23).
What is the obstacle that hinders us from forgiving the way Jesus
does? It is the sin, which resides deeply in us. It is not until we know
God's forgiveness that we are able to forgive and love others, for "the
one to whom little is forgiven, loves little" (Lk 7:47). When God's love
takes root in our minds and hearts, we will be transformed. Instead of
being controlled by our selfish natures, we will be able to show mercy
and compassion. As we repent of our sins and experience the tender
forgiveness of Christ, we will be empowered to forgive as Jesus did- He
forgave even those who nailed Him to the cross (Lk 23:34).
Let us think of one relationship in our lives where we know we need
to forgive. Picture that person in your mind. Ask Jesus to help you love
that person just as deeply and fully as He himself does. Then forgive that
person and hold nothing else against him or her. Do this for other
relationships where forgiveness and healing are necessary.

LET US PRAY:
Father, raise our thoughts to the heavenly realm so that we are not
controlled by resentment and anger. Give us the grace to repent of our
sins and to forgive others just as you have graciously forgiven us! For
you live and reign forever and ever. Amen.

The Church Teaches:

We need to Mercy can penetrate our hearts only if we ourselves learn
how to forgive even our enemies. Now, even if it seems impossible for
us to satisfy this requirement, the heart that offers itself to the Holy
Spirit can, like Christ love even to love’s extreme; it can turn into
compassion and transform hurt into intercession. Forgiveness
participants in the divine mercy and is a high point of Christian
Prayer.CCC. 2843

For further studies: 1423-1426

HELP TO REFLECTION:

1. What particular danger did the Jews face during their exile in
Babylon?
2. How the Azariah and his friends resist and what lesson do we learn
from them?
3. What makes you believe that God will only forgive us to the extent
 we are willing to forgive others?(Mt.18:35)
4. How do we prove that God’s forgiveness and our forgiveness of
others are inseparably linked?
5. What is the obstacle that hinders us from forgiving the way Jesus
did?
6. Can you remember one relationship in your life, where you need to
forgive? What do you do about it? (Cf. CCC 2843)
 06 MAR. WED
FIRST READING: Deut.4:1, 5-9
GOSPEL: Matt.5:17-19
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Deut.4:1, 5-9
THEME:
Moses pleads with his people to observe the Law that the Lord God
has given them and to remember all the good deeds God has done
for them.
God wanted the Israelites to know that He was their God and that they
were His people. Through many signs and miracles, He brought the
Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, established His covenant with them,
and promised that they would prosper and be a holy nation if they would
obey His voice.
After forty years in the wilderness, the people were about to enter the
Promised Land. God was being faithful to His people by giving the
Israelites possession of the land, exactly as He had promised. Now
before entering that land, Moses instructed the people with God's
statutes and ordinances so that through their obedience to God, they
would be blessed and prosper in the land. By obeying God's direction,
the Israelites would show themselves to be a wise and understanding
people in the sight of the surrounding nations. Moreover, they would be
known as a people whose God was near them (Deut 4:6-7).
God's statutes and laws first given to the Israelites reflect a heavenly
wisdom and order that protect His people. This same wisdom and order
is meant for our protection and spiritual growth as well. Too often,
however, we look to God' s laws and feel that they are too hard for us or
that God expects too much of us. In this, we fail to look to God who is
near us through His Son Jesus (See Eph 2:13) for the grace to be faithful
to the laws so that we can receive His life.
As we try to be faithful to God's laws, we must remember to turn to
Jesus who is in us through the indwelling Spirit. He will give us the
strength and ability to be faithful to the laws and commands of God so
that we can receive God's love. As we experience God's life and love,
we will reflect the presence and love of God to our children, friends,
neighbors and co-workers and become beacons of hope to them.
Let us Pray:
Heavenly Father, we know and believe that You alone give true life.
Accept our gratitude for all the blessings You have given us. Help us
seek life from You rather than from material things. we long to respond
to the grace You pour out, by being obedient to your commands,
following Your ways, and realizing the fullness of Your life for us.
Grant this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Matt.5:17-19

THEME:
He who does them and teaches them shall be called great.
With so much talk of God’s mercy and love, we can tend to forget that
He is also a God of justice whose laws we must obey. God doesn’t want
us to follow His commands out of a fear of punishment, or out of a
desire to make Him happy with us. The call to obedience goes much
deeper. It has to do with our dignity as the crown of His creation. God
demands our obedience because He has a plan to fulfil and He has called
us to be co-workers with Him in bringing that plan to fruition.
At creation, God told our first parents to “fill the earth and subdue it”
and to “have dominion” over creation (Gen 1:28). As heirs of this
commission, we are called to make this world and our hearts -into a fit
dwelling place for the glory of God. We are called to manifest His
character to the world and bring His love into every aspect of earthly
life. The commandments of God are not just chores to which we must
diligently apply ourselves. They are part of our heritage as a royal
people (1 Pet 2:9).
In a conversation with her spiritual director, a young woman described
the emotional turmoil of growing up in a home where arguments and
punishments abounded. Years later, she still resented her parents for the
atmosphere they created. Her spiritual director encouraged the woman to
ask her parents for their forgiveness. Surprised at the advice, she
nevertheless, decided to speak with them. She asked her parents’ pardon
for resenting them and blaming them for the way her life had turned out.
Both her mother and her father were moved to tears by her humility and,
in turn, sought her forgiveness for the harshness they had meted out to
her. The change was almost instant on both sides, and remarkably so!
The three of them felt as though a huge stone had been lifted from their
hearts, a love they had never known filling its place.
This kind of transformation is what can happen when we choose to obey
Jesus’ command to love unconditionally. Do you believe that your
obedience to God can bring His kingdom onto earth?
Let Us Pray:
Jesus, You promised joy and peace to those who follow your commands.
Thank You for calling us to work with you in building Your kingdom!
You live and reign forever and ever. Amen.
The Church Teaches:
At the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus issued a solemn
warning in which he presented God's law, given on Sinai during the first
covenant, in light of the grace of the New Covenant: Do not think that I
have come to abolish the law or the prophets: I have come not to abolish
but to fulfill. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not
one letter, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law, until all is
accomplished. Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these
commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in
the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be
called great in the kingdom of heaven. CCC.577
For Further Study: 592

HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. Why had Moses to plead with his people to observe the law the
Lord had given them?
2. What do the same laws and statutes mean for us Christians today in
our relationship with God and his son Jesus Christ?
3. Why does God wants us to follow hid commands?
4. To what did God commission our first parents at creation and us as
their heirs?
5. What kind of transformation can happen when we choose to obey
Jesus’ command to love unconditionally? Narrate the story of the
 young woman in the passage to clarify the point we are making
here.
6. Listen carefully what the church teaches us on Jesus’ and the law
given to Moses. (CCC577).

07 MAR.THUR
FIRST READING: Jer.7:23-28
GOSPEL: Lk.11:14-23
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Jer.7:23-28
THEME:
Jeremiah relates the sad story of the disobedience of God's chosen
people to His Law.
Obedience is a simple concept, yet our attitude towards it can make a
big difference in our life with God each day. It is possible to obey as a
slave, with all the fear and bitterness that attend this kind of servitude, or
it is possible to give God the obedience of a loving child, one who is
secure in his father's love and consequently wants to obey.
In John's Gospel, Jesus makes clear the reason for obedience to God
(See John 15:9-10). He first states unequivocally that He loves us, even
as He is loved by the Father. He then invites us to remain in His love.
Only then does He command us to obey Him, as the means for
continually experiencing His love.
It is hard to imagine a more attractive or more significant reason to obey
God than the one Jesus gives: to remain in His love. When we know
God's love, our hearts will be moved to obey Him and remain in contact
with Him throughout the day. This is very different and remain in from
the legalistic obedience of a slave who desires only to stay within the
rules, to avoid punishment, or to ingratiate himself with his master. We
can tell in our hearts what type of obedience we are offering to God, and
whether or not love is the motivation behind it.
Each day, God provides us with ways in which we can know His love,
hear His voice and obey Him. In the liturgy and our daily prayer, we can
draw near to God, experience forgiveness of our Sins and sense God's
loving presence. Through a faithful daily examination of conscience, the
Holy Spirit can make clear to us where we have and have not obeyed
God in the course of the day. The scriptures are given to us as a light to
our path", showing us God's commands and teaching us to obey them.
Most importantly, God has put His Holy Spirit inside us to lead us
through our day in obedience to Him.
Let us Pray:
Father, you have shown Your love by sending Your Son Jesus to die for
me. Touch our hearts with that love today. Make us attentive to Your
voice, that we may know Your commands and obey You as loving
children. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen
REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Lk.11:14-23
THEME:
He who is not with me is against me.
In this age of the third millennium, it’s often considered backward to
attribute evil to demonic forces. Today however, with so many cultish
groups in our schools and society, as well as by faith and revelation, we
know that Satan is a real and terrible foe. His goal is to attack Jesus by
attacking the people of God. He knows that if he can disrupt our peace,
unity and confidence in God, he will have severely weakened the
Church.
Jesus came to bring us into the kingdom of God by delivering us from
Satan; The gospels present Jesus’ public life as one extended struggle
against Satan and the sin he inspires. Throughout His ministry, Jesus
delivered the possessed and cured the sick, all the while proclaiming,
“the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Lk 11:20).
Jesus’ resurrection from the dead marked the defeat of Satan. Satan’s
two biggest weapons -sin and death have been robbed of their power.
But is Satan gone? Not yet. We will not see full deliverance until Jesus
comes again to gather His children for all eternity. In the meantime,
Satan still seeks to destroy the kingdom of God, and he uses our own
sins and fallen nature as an open door. For example, we know we should
pray and grow closer to God. So we read scripture, go to church and try
to live according to God’s word. But we all have experienced Satan’s
attempts to distract us with other thoughts: chores, worries, earthly
pleasures -anything that keeps us from God.
Jesus of course understands our struggle, for He too was tempted by
Satan. Perhaps it is for this reason more than any other that we should
not hesitate to run to Him when we are tempted. When we find
something blocking our way to God, you can be sure that somehow,
Satan is at work. But don’t fear! Jesus has defeated him! Turn to Jesus
for help. Satan is not an outmoded concept -he’s for real. But Jesus is
our victorious deliverer. Let us go to Him at every opportunity and in
every need.
Let Us Pray:
Holy Spirit, you came to expose the guilt of the world. Reveal where we
have allowed the evil one to establish a foothold in our lives. Deliver us
from all evil. Bring us safely into the kingdom of God. We ask this
through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
The Church Teaches:
The finger."It is by the finger of God that [Jesus] cast out demons." 1f
God's law was written on tablets of stone "by the finger of God," then
the “letter from Christ" entrusted to the care of the apostles, is written
"with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets
of human hearts." The hymn Veni Creator Spiritus invokes the Holy
Spirit as the "finger of the Father's right hand."CCC. 700.
For Further Study: 385

HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. What reason did Jesus give to us (cf. Jn 15:9-10), for obedience
to God?
2. What way does God provide for us each day in which we can be
obedient to him?
 3. Do you believe in the existence of demonic forces in the world
today? Give the reasons for the position.
4. Jesus came to deliver us from Satan. How did he succeed in
doing this?
5. But is Satan still there? How and why?
6. What are we to do when Satan tempts us?

08 MAR. FRI

First Reading: Hosea 14:2-10

Gospel: Mk. 12:28b-34
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING:
Theme: Hosea pleads with the people to return to the Lord who will
heal their wounds and recreate them as new beings.
The prophet Hosea spoke movingly of God's love for His people, having
been called by God to marry a woman who was unfaithful (See Hosea
3:l). Hosea experienced first in his own life what he came to understand
of the meaning of the constancy and tenderness of God s love in the face
of the infidelity of the Israelites.
Hosea ended his prophecy on a note of hope, certain of the love God has
for His people. The people were called to return to the Lord with words"
(Hosea 14:2), the Hebrew connotation of which is “things or 'realities",
and the implication is of a real and sincere repentance. God does not
burden us with demands for sacrifice, but seeks only a contrite heart that
He may takes away our guilt and receive 1s into His presence. To the
people in exile, separated from the temple and their customary forms of
worship, this must have brought comfort, for Hosea told them that it was
the attitude of their hearts that was re- ally important.
When we are confronted by our repeated infidelity to the Lord, we tend
to lose hope. Our hearts cry out: "Will I ever change and truly follow
God?" Through the words of Hosea, we receive contact with Him
throughout the day. This is very different from the legalistic obedience
of a slave who desires only to stay within the rules, to avoid punishment,
or to ingratiate himself with his master. We can tell in our heart of hearts
what type of obedience we are offering to God, and whether or not love
is the motivation behind it.
Let Us Pray:
Father, both Hosea and Jesus have demonstrated in ample measure the
effect and significance of fidelity to Your commands. Make us
increasingly attentive to the voice of our conscience challenging us to be
ever Yours and Yours alone in everything we do! We make our prayer
through Christ Our Lord. Amen

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Mark 12:28-34

THEME: When asked which is the greatest commandment, Jesus
simply repeats what every Jew knows: total love of God and
neighbour matching love of oneself.
Jewish law had gradually expanded beyond the ten commandments to
include more than six hundred precepts relating to all aspects of life.
With so many rules to keep in mind, it is not surprising that the question
of which commandment was the greatest was frequently asked of Jewish
teachers. One student asked the great Rabbi Hillel (30 BC-10A.D) to
capsulize the law for him. Hillel replied: What you hate for yourself, do
not do to your neighbour. This is the whole law; the rest is
commentary".
We face the same question, which perplexed Hillel's student: "Given
what God has shown us through scripture, tradition and experience, how
are we to live in a way which is pleasing to Him?"
Jesus' response to the question was more positive than Hillel's - he
focused on love and linked love of God and of neighbour together. Jesus
loved with every part and from every pore of his being. In his own life,
he showed us the intimate link between love for God and its
manifestation in love for neighbour. Jesus knew the Father's love; He
received comfort, direction and strength from Him. Then He spent
Himself in leading others to God and ultimately gave His own life out of
love precisely so that others could live.
Love is at the heart of our relationship with God and with one an- other.
As we experience God's love and deepen our knowledge of Him, our
love for Him will grow. The fruit of our knowledge and our experience
of God's love increases as we allow it to penetrate every facet of our
lives. Indeed, it is in the measure that we know God's love that we will
be able to love our neighbour.
Consider today the ways in which you have been touched by God's love.
Take stock of all that He has done in and for you. Recall what God has
taught you, the ways in which He has fed you. Remember the healing He
has brought about in your life, how He has brought you comfort. Given
all of this, ask God how He wants you to love Him and to show your
love for your neighbour in practical ways.
Let Us Pray:
Come, Spirit of God, and help us recall how the Heavenly Father has
touched our lives and loved us. Remembering His great love, help us to
love Him in return and to love our neighbour as ourselves just the way
Jesus taught. Grant this through Christ Our Lord. Amen

The Church Teaches:

Many of Jesus' deeds and words constituted a "sign of contradiction,"
but more so for the religious authorities in Jerusalem, whom the Gospel
according to John often calls simply “the Jews, "than for the ordinary
People of God, To be sure. Christ's relations the Pharisees were not
exclusively polemical. Some Pharisees warn him of the danger he was
courting; Jesus praises some of them, like the scribe of Mark 12:34, and
dines several times at their homes, Jesus endorses some of the teachings
imparted by this religious elite of God's people: the resurrection of the
dead, ‘certain forms of piety (almsgiving, fasting and prayer), the
custom of addressing God as Father, and the centrality of the
commandment to love God and neighbour.
 10 MAR. SAT
FIRST READING: Hos.6:1-6
GOSPEL: Lk.18:9-14
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Hos.6:1-6
THEME:
God pleads with His people to return to Him: "it is love I desire, not
sacrifice, and knowledge of God rather than holocausts".
God desires from us love, not sacrifice. This simple truth is not easy for
us to understand unless we turn to God with contrite hearts and
recognize with deep gratitude all He has done for us. Instead of loving
God. we often try to make ourselves pleasing to Him by fulfilling our
obligations. In other words, we do things for the Lord but they do not
flow from love.
God does not want actions without love, or service that is not founded
on a daily experience or knowledge of Him. Pleasing works and genuine
prayer flow from pure love and thorough knowledge they are a natural
outgrowth of our love for God and our intimate relationship with Him.
This is what Hosea was speaking about: people went through the
motions of service to God but their hearts and minds were far from Him.
Hosea calls on us to know the Lord, to call to Him in our hour of need.
His response to our call will be as sure as the dawning of the day. He
will bring abundance to our weary souls as surely as "the spring rains
that water the earth" (Hos 6:3). Lip service to God bears no fruit we will
remain like a dry land that feels the shadow of a passing cloud but
receives no life-giving rain. The Lord does not want empty piety; He
wants us to share His love and its bounty to the full.
We can come to know and love God in this way by seeking His presence
daily. This can happen as we recommit ourselves once again to the
spiritual resolutions we made at the beginning of Lent resolved to pursue
the way of radical conversion through intensive We prayer, penance,
reconciliation and works of charity.
Let us Pray:
Holy Spirit, we turn once more to You, help us to rend our heart so that
Jesus may accomplish in our lives the work of our redemption. We ask
this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

THE CHURCH TEACHES:

Outward sacrifice, to be genuine, must be the expression of spiritual
sacrifice: "The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit."The
prophets of the Old Covenant often denounced sacrifices that were not
from the heart or not coupled with love of neighbour. Jesus recalls the
words of the prophet Hosea: "I desire mercy, and not sacrifice." The
only perfect sacrifice is the one that Christ offered on the cross as a total
offering to the Father's love and for our salvation." By uniting ourselves
with his sacrifice we can make our lives a sacrifice to God.CCC 2100

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Lk.18:9-1

THEME:
The task collector went down to his house justified rather than the
Pharisee.
Most of us would quickly size up the Pharisee as haughty and
unlikeable, but this is not why Jesus said that He departed the temple
unjustified. Perhaps the Pharisee was as good as he said he was and
performed his religious duties faultlessly. And the tax collector may
indeed have been quite a sinner, committing offences, which probably
never even tempted the Pharisee. If these two men were indeed -by all
the usual standards respectively “good” and “bad”, why was the “bad”
man justified and not the “good”?
It was because they had totally different ideas of who God is and who
they were before Him. The Pharisees, deceived by pride, could not
realize that even a lifetime of good deeds is not enough to set a person
right with God. He didn’t understand that He could trust God’s
forgiveness and mercy to be more abundant than any human failing.
Thus he was trying to strike a bargain with God -good deeds in exchange
for God’s approval. This reduced what should have been a warm and
loving relationship with God to one that was distant and business-like.
The tax collector, on the other hand, better understood both God and
himself. He knew he was a sinner, but he also knew that God would not
reject him. He trusted God’s mercy and no doubt felt His love in the
forgiveness he received. His prayer was not a transaction but an
interaction.
Mother Teresa of Kolkata has written about this quality of trust that
characterizes right relationship with God:
One thing Jesus asks of me: That I lean on Him and only in Him [put
complete trust; that 1 surrender myself to Him unreservedly. Even
when all goes wrong and I feel as if I am a ship without a compass, I
must give myself completely to Him. 1 must not attempt to control
Gods action; 1 must not count the stages in the journey He would have
me make. I must not desire a clear perception of my advance upon the
road, must not know precisely where I am upon the way of holiness. I
ask Him to make a saint of me, yet I must leave to Him the choice of
the saintliness itself and still more the means which lead to it (Total
Surrender, pp. 39-40).
Like the tax collector and, of course, like Blessed Teresa, let us learn to
lean on God and surrender ourselves to Him unreservedly.
Let Us Pray:
Lord Jesus, thank you for the gift of your righteousness! Thank You for
Your forgiving love. Be merciful to us sinners, you who live and reign
forever and ever. Amen.

The Church Teaches:

“Prayer is the raising of one's mind and heart to God or the requesting of
good things from God. But when we pray, do we speak from the height
of our pride and will, or "out of the depths" of a humble and contrite
heart? He who humbles himself will be exalted; humility is the
foundation of prayer. Only when we humbly acknowledge that '"'we do
not know how to pray as we ought," are we ready to receive freely the
gift of prayer. "'Man is a beggar before God. CCC 2559
For Further Study: 2631, 2613

HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. How can we understand that God desire from us love and not
sacrifice?
2. What does the prophet Hosea challenge us to do in this regard?
 3. In this story of the Pharisee and the publican, why was it the sinner
who went home justified?
4. What did mother Theresa of Kolkata write about the quality of
trust that characterizes the right relationship with God?

10 MAR. SUN

FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENT.

LAETARE SUNDAY: REJOICE
THEME: GOD'S LOVE FOR US - FOR GOD SO LOVED THE
WORLD THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, THAT
WHO EVER BELIEVES IN HIM MAY HAVE ETERNAL LIFE."
(JOHN 3:16).
FIRST READING: CHRON. 36:14-16. 19-23
SECOND READING: EHP. 2:4-10
GOSPEL: JN. 3:14-21
REFLECTION:
Today is Lactare Sunday, as the Entrance Antiphon indicates: "Rejoice,
Jerusalem! Be glad for her, you who love her; rejoice with her, you who
mourned for her, and you will find contentment at her consoling breast."
Jerusalem, our Mother; Jerusalem, our Church; Jerusalem, the home of
God's people. Rejoice, because your children are on their way home,
home to a true and better understanding of the part that God's love and
forgiveness play in their lives.
We must admit it. There is probably no stronger human need than to be
loved. Infants and children crave for it from their parents. Teens and
young adults seek out the perfect spouse. Husbands and wives express
love in countless ways. Those who feel unloved often try to compensate
with such things as material goods or excesses of all sorts.
Well, here is something each of us must remember God loves us, God
loves me, God loves you. Does any of us fully appreciate it? Can we
even begin to imagine so great a love?
GOD'S LOVE FORUS
God has a long history of loving us. In fact, God's love is eternal and
unconditional. From the moment God created man and woman, He had
their best interests in mind. Even when they sinned, He had their best
interest in mind. Even when they sinned, he immediately promised a
woman who would bear a Saviour. Even when Abraham and Sarah were
aged, God promised them innumerable descendants. When the Chosen
People were enslaved in Egypt, God sent Moses to lead them to the
Promised Land. Even when they added infidelity to infidelity, God sent
messengers to them for He had compassion for His people, as our first
reading today reminds us. Even when they were sent into exile in
Babylon, they were eventually liberated and returned home.
And in a world still darkened by sin, God continues to love us, and
fulfills His eternal plan for our salvation. As we heard in today's Gospel,
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone
who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. God
sent His only begotten Son, Jesus, to take on our humanity, to teach us
about God's love, and suffer and die for our sins. And in that dying, he
destroyed our death; and in rising, He restored our life. What greater act
of love could there be? Our second reading today reminds us that God is
rich in mercy because of the great love He has for us. He brought us to
life in Christ Jesus. By grace we have been saved. By grace we share in
his divine life. God loves us so much that he gave us the only begotten
Son.... (Jn. 3:16)
THE NATURE OF GOD'S LOVE
God is love. It is His nature to love. He loves people because He is that
kind of God, His love embraces the whole of the human race; it is not
confined to any national group or spiritual elite. It is unconditional; it is
not hampered or dampened by our situation or condition. He does not
love only the people who love Him. He loves everyone, even the
unloving, the unbelieving, the obstinate, the sinful, the greedy and the
vengeful.
God's love is more than a mother's love. In prophet Isaiah, He said, “Can
a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for the child
of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I
have inscribed you on the palms of my hands: your walls are continually
before me (49:15-16)." In prophet Jeremiah the Lord affirmed, I 1love
you with an everlasting love (31:3)."AII God's actions flow from this:
He loves us profoundly and unconditionally.
THE PROOF OF GOD'S LOVE
God's love is unfathomable, its proofs could be seen to some measure 1n
the sending of His Only Begotten Son into the world, and giving Him up
to die on the cross. No sacrifice was too great to bring God's love
unmeasured intensity home to men and women: the best that God had to
give, he gave- his only Son, his well beloved.
The love of God is not vague or sentimental; it was a love that was made
visible: it was a love that cost: it is seen in the incarnation, passion and
death of Jesus. It cost God greatly to give His Son up to the world and
up to the cross. He sent His Son up to the world and up to the cross. He
sent His Son, into the world that was fallen, wicked and rebellious.
THE PURPOSE OF GOD'S LOVE
The purpose of God's love is to save people from eternal damnation, and
thus grant them eternal life. Sin brought death into the world, but Jesus'
sacrifice on the cross has brought us salvation. When Moses lifted the
brazen serpent in the wilderness (Num. 21:4-9), all who looked at it
were saved from the poison of the snakebite. Similarly, all who
believingly look to Christ on the cross are saved from death brought by
the deadly poison of sin.
God sent His Only Begotten Son, not so much to judge and condemn the
world, but to save it. Jesus said, "The Son of Man came to seek and save
what was lost (Lk 9:10)". When we stand beneath the cross of Christ, we
need to confess.
THE LIFTING UP OF THE SON OF MAN (JN.3:14-21).
Even outside its literary context-at the end of the conversation between
Jesus and Nicodemus-the passage from John's Gospel read on this
Sunday is of great spiritual and theological importance. Besides, several
of its elements concur with and complete what the other two readings
say (John 3:14-2 1).
"And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of
Man be lifted up. so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal
life". In John's Gospel, the lifting up of the Son of Man refers to Jesus on
the cross." The cross is thus seen as the supreme manifestation-the
epiphany-of the glory of Christ because it marks the hour of the Lord's
victory over evil, because at that moment the obedience of the Son, who
receives the Spirit from his Father, shines forth (19:30).
The recalling of the bronze serpent raised up by Moses is meaningful.
The Lord had sent venomous serpents to the Hebrews as punishment for
sin. Those who had been bitten by them would not die if they looked
upon the serpent on the pole (Num. 21:6-9). Thereafter, to have life, we
must raise our eyes to the crucified one (John 19:37) in order to obtain
eternal life through him.
This “looking upon" is part of John's vocabulary of faith. And when he
speaks of eternal life, it is an already present reality that he designates:
Whoever hears my word and believes in the one who sent me has eternal
life and will not come to condemnation but has passed from death to life
(Jn. 5:24). Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. (Jn 3:36).
GOD'S LOVE AND JUDGMENT
God is love" (1 John 4:16). He showed his love for us by sending his
only Son into the world so that we might live through him (see 1
John4:9). "God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the
world, but that the world might be saved through him." We could not
say more strongly or clearly that the intent of God, when sending his
Son, is exclusively salvation; that, as a consequence, judgment and
eventual condemnation do not proceed from his initiative or action.
These two propositions-affirmative, then negative-reinforce each other
to express the same truth. But then how can we still speak of judgment?
The mention of the bronze serpent helps us find the beginning of an
answer.
It was raised in order that those who looked upon it would recover. As a
consequence, those who did not do this condemned themselves, in spite
of the intervention of God and Moses. his servant. Likewise, Christ was
given to the world by the Father and raised up on a cross. However, we
have here only the beginning of an answer, an analogy.
Christ is the true Light that came into the world in order to enlighten
everyone and, by making them children of God, to confer salvation on
those who receive him. But it is up to each person to receive him, to
come into his light rather than remain in the darkness (1:1-14). No one
can escape this personal choice. The coming of the Son of God into the
world. The decisive battle between light and darkness obliges each one
to take sides right now.
In fact, John's Gospel has the form of a suit against Jesus, one in which
we must choose our side: it is impossible to remain neutral. Either we
recognize in Jesus light, truth, and life, and we welcome salvation, or
refuse Christ by preferring darkness, evil deeds, death: in this case we
find ourselves-voluntarily-judged.
THE CATECHUMENATE: THE ELECT.
Today, worldwide, those parishes with Elect are celebrating the Second
Scrutiny, according to the guidelines from the Rite of Christian Initiation
of Adults,; the purpose of a scrutiny is to uncover, then heal all that is
weak, defective, or sinful... and to bring out, then strengthen, all that is
good (RCIA 141). This is a good exercise for all of us-to examine our
behaviours and ask ourselves which behaviours more closely follow the
darkness of the world and which more closely radiate the light of Christ.
LET US PRAY:
Father look with love upon your people, the love which Our Lord Jesus
Christ showed us when he delivered himself to evil men and suffered the
agony of the cross. Grant this through Christ Our Lord.
THE CHURCHTEACHES:
In the course of its history, Israel was able to discover that God had only
one reason to reveal himself to them, a single motive for choosing them
from among all peoples as his special possession: his sheer gratuitous
love. And thanks to the prophets Israel understood that it was again out
of love that God never stopped saving them and pardoning their
unfaithfulness and sins. (CCC. 218, 219-221)
For Further Study: CCC. 444-445,454

11 MAR. MON

First Reading: Isaiah: 65:17-21

Gospel: Jn.4:43-54
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Isaiah: 65:17-21
THEME:
Isaiah tells of his vision of the "new heavens and the new earth" that
God will create at the end of time when there will be no more
weeping, no crying, no sadness.
Jerusalem is a city that has known many transformations. Originally, a
Jebusite settlement inhabited by Canaanites (Josh 10:1-4), Jerusalem
became the capital of Israel when the warrior king David conquered it (2
Sam S5:5-7). Because David created a united kingdom of all the (twelve
tribes of Israel, extending from Egypt to the Euphrates, Jerusalem
became known as the City of David. God's covenant with David was
eternal (2 Sam 7:13-16), thus, Jerusalem became the place of messianic
expectation. When David's son Solomon built the first temple there,
Jerusalem became the focus of the worship of Yahweh.
The Babylonians conquered Jerusalem and destroyed the temple in 586
B.C. When the Medes conquered Babylon, the Israelites returned to
Jerusalem and built a second temple, completing it in 515 B.C.
Jerusalem was now ready to resume its place as the centre of worship
and the site of messianic expectation. But who was to be the Son of
David, the Messiah, who would lead His people to reconciliation with
their God? There were no more Davidic kings after the Babylonian
conquest.
At the very point of wonder and dismay, the prophet (sometimes called
Trito-Isaiah since Isaiah 56-66 is the third of the prophets in the tradition
of Isaiah) revealed God's promise to restore Jerusalem - not just to what
it had been before, but to a place of joy, long life and prosperity. This
new Jerusalem was to be part of God's creation of 'new heavens and a
new earth" (Is 65:17). God, in essence, promised a new Genesis for
which all of creation had been longing (Rom 8:19-22).
God began to fulfill His promise by sending His Son to give us new life
through the new covenant of His blood and through the infilling of the
Holy Spirit. The Church is the sign of the new Jerusalem that God
promised. The head of the Church is Jesus Christ who, by his life, death
and resurrection, inaugurated the kingdom of God on earth. Through
faith and baptism, we receive even now a measure of the life of the new
Jerusalem as we wait in hope for Jesus' return when this prophecy will
be fully realized.
Lent is an appropriate time for us to reflect on how needy we are for
God's promise of new life, and how faithful God is in fulfilling that
promise in His Son.
Let Us Pray:

Lord, thank You for reminding us of how You have blessed us with new
life in Christ, joy in the Spirit, and the bountiful promises of the Father!
Through Christ Our Lord. Amen

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: JN.4:43-54

THEME: JESUS HEALS A SICK CHILD FROM A DISTANCE
When Jesus returned to Galilee, He was welcomed warmly by the
residents who had seen what He had done in Jerusalem (Jn 4:45). A
Galilean official came to Him in desperation, seeking Jesus' intervention
on behalf of a son who was gravely ill. This man turned to Jesus as a last
resort. We do not know how deep his faith in Jesus was or how much he
knew about Him. We do know, however, that he acted on what he knew
and sought out the Saviour, begging Him to come and heal his dying
child.
What assurances did Jesus give him? Nothing but His word: "Go, your
son will live" (Jn 4:50). And yet, this man believed. The official did not
press his case for Jesus to come and lay hands on his child; he did not
ask for a sign that the words of Jesus were from God. The narration
simply states: "The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and
went his way" (Jn 4:50).
We know that this first daring moment of belief did not leave the
Galilean official disappointed, for, the narration further informs that
even before he had reached his home, the message reached him that his
son had been healed. How his faith must have surged as he realized that
his son's recovery began at the very moment when Jesus had spoken the
word! Because of this one man's leap of faith, "he himself believed, and
all his household" (Jn 4:53).
Faith is indeed a gift of God, a moment of grace given to those seeking
the truth. Our response to grace can begin a living relationship with our
Creator, or lead to despair, skepticism and isolation. If we receive grace
with hearts that want to see God's kingdom ("I believe; help my
unbelief!" - Mk9: 24), knowledge of the truth will grow in us.
However, if we persist in demanding irrefutable evidence upon which
we base our "faith" before we will believe, we will be disappointed.
Let Us Pray
Holy Spirit, create in us an expectancy that You will work in our lives.
Deepen our shallow faith. Help us to trust You. Fill us with confidence
of Your presence in our life. We take our stand upon the mustard seed of
faith which is ours through God's grace. through Christ our Lord Amen.
The Church Teaches:
Before so great a sacrament, the faithful can only echo humbly and with
ardent faith the words of the Centurion: "Domine, non sum dingus ut
inters sub tectum meum, sedtantumdicverbo et sanabitur anima
mea"("Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but
only say the word and my soul will be healed. ") And in the Divine
Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom the faithful also prays in the same spirit.
(CCC. 1386)
For Further Study: CCC 598
HELPTO REFLECTION.

 A Galilean official came to Jesus and asked that his Son be healed.
 What assurance did Jesus give him and why was his request
granted him?
 What else happened to the official because of his faith?
 What are we to do to obtain the gift of faith from God?

12 MAR. TUES
FIRST READING: Ezek.47:1-9, 12
GOSPEL: Jn.5:1-16
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Ezek.47:1-9, 12
THEME:
Ezekiel describes his vision of water flowing from the Temple
growing into a stream that flows into a salt sea, which becomes
fresh. Fruit trees of every kind grow along the banks of the river.
Ezekiel saw a vision of living water flowing from the temple in
Jerusalem to the Arabah and then into the Dead Sea. The Arabah (Ezek
47:8) is a geological rift, which encompasses the Sea of Galilee at its
northern end, the Jordan River in the middle, and the Dead Sea in the
south. In Ezekiel's vision, the living water flowed with such abundance
across the desert into the Dead Sea that it freshened that whole body of
stagnant water and brought life to it. All along the banks of the Dead Sea
- from En-gedi to En-englaim (Ezek 47:10) . the people were able to fish
and find fresh water to produce and sustain life (Ezek 47:10).
Ezekiel was prophesying about the restoration of Jerusalem that would
take place when the Israelites returned from their Babylonian exile. But
this vision was also a foreshadowing of the coming of Christ. The
temple in Jerusalem was the place where God dwelled and where
Worship was centered. Jesus is the new temple in the new Jerusalem.
His death on the Cross brought us back from exile from God's presence
and captivity to sin. The water that flowed from His side on the Cross Is
the living water of the Holy Spirit, which nourishes us and gives us new
life (See Jn 19:34).
Jesus told the woman at the well that anyone who drinks the water He
provides will never thirst again (Jn 4:13-14). We all have a thirst inside
us to find meaning and purpose for our lives. If we seek to , or quench
this thirst through material possessions, esteem from others at sensual
fulfilment, we will never be truly satisfied. We were created for Jesus
and only He can refresh us; only He can give us the water that produces
life.
Ask the Holy Spirit to give you a desire for this living water. One of the
Spirit's main roles is to teach us about the things of God and enkindle in
us a desire to love and serve God. In Ezekiel's vision. The living water
from the temple gave life to the trees along the banks of the Dead Sea so
that they bore much fruit. This Lent, Jesus offers us His living water so
that our lives will be productive and bear fruit to God.
Let us Pray:
Jesus, You are the living water that brings us to eternal Life. May we
drink always and find everlasting life through Your precious blood

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn.5:1-16

THEME:
At once the man was healed.
News media coverage of the plight of people whose lives have been
ravaged by drought and famine leaves little doubt in our minds that
water is essential for the preservation of life. Water has been used
frequently in both the Old and the New Testaments as a symbol of
refreshment and rejuvenation, of healing and new life.
The saving water of baptism is the theme of today’s liturgy. The
entrance antiphon invites us: “Come to the waters, all who thirst; though
you have no money, come and drink with joy” (Is 51 :1). This is
followed by an account of Ezekiel’s vision of water flowing from below
the threshold of the temple -a stream growing until it spreads like a
mighty river over the whole land, bringing healing and an abundant
fruitfulness (Ezek 4 7:1-9). The gospel recounts how Jesus restored
vitality to a sick man beside the waters of the pool of Bethsaida (Jn 5 :8-
9).
For catechumens of the early Church preparing for baptism at the Easter
Vigil Mass, such words would have increased their faith and filled them
with eager anticipation. We, who have already received the grace of
baptism, should surely rejoice at the remembrance of the glorious
heritage we can now claim.
Washed clean of sin, we are now members of the community of faith.
We are children of God and heirs of His kingdom. Touched by God in
body, mind and spirit, we are enabled to understand more fully divine
things and the meaning of the new life given us. Baptism is just the
beginning, an important step taken towards a personal profession of faith
in Jesus Christ. This profession requires our active cooperation if God’s
marvellous work of salvation is to be one day completed in us. Jesus’
question to the crippled man, “Do you want to be made well?” (Jn 5:6),
touches on the depth of the man’s faith in Jesus’ divinity and His power
to give new life. What about our faith in Jesus as the fountain of living
water? Do we believe that the waters of baptism wash us clean of sin
and begin a work of God in us?

Let us profess our faith in Jesus and in His promise of the water of
eternal life. Like the sick man, we might get up and walk in the fullness
of the new life that is ours.
Let Us Pray:
Jesus, bring us and everyone into Your river of life, especially those
thirsting for love, hungry for truth, and paralyzed by unbelief. By the
power of Your Spirit, may we all become fruitful witness in life and
word. You live and reign forever and ever. Amen
The Church Teaches:
The grace of Christ is the gratuitous gift that God makes to us of his own
life, infused by the Holy Spirit into our soul to heal it of sin and to
sanctify it. It is the sanctifying or deifying grace received in Baptism. It
is in us the source of the work of sanctification: Therefore, if anyone is
in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new
has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to
himself. CCC. 2557
For Further Study: 2557

HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. What lesson do we learn from the water flowing from the temple to
the sea (cf. Ezekiel 47;1-9,12)?
2. How does the vision of Ezekiel foreshadow the coming of Christ?
3. What should we ask the Holy Spirit to do for us and why in this
context?
4. How is the saving water of Baptism the team of today’s liturgy?
5. What does it mean to the catechumens and to us Christians?
 13 MAR.WED
FIRST READING: Is.49:8-15
GOSPEL: Jn.5:17-30
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Is.49:8-15
THEME:
God assures His people that He loves them more than a mother can
possibly love her child; He comforts and has mercy always.
This message from the book of Isaiah came towards the end of Jewish
captivity in Babylon. The people had been in bondage for nearly seventy
years according to some reckonings and had begun to think that God had
forgotten them. From their exile, God was calling them forth with a
message of comfort and hope.
Many a time, we are tempted to shake our heads in disbelief at the lack
of faith of these people in the God who cared for them so tenderly and
powerfully. It is easy for us to see (in retrospect) how faithful God was
to them. But what about ourselves? Do we sometimes feel that the Lord
doesn't care about us, that He has forgotten us? Perhaps it has been a
long time since we felt his presence and love, fallen as we prob. ably are
into a state of isolation from Him. The promises contained in Isaiah are
meant for us too.
God has made a promise, which should bring us great comfort Can a
woman forget her sucking child, that she should have no com- passion
on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget
you?" (Is 19:50). God will not forget His people; He looks on us with
the same love and attention, which a mother gives to the child her breast,
to the one who has come from her womb. We have a solemn promise:
the people God made He will not forget-"I formed you, you are my
servant: O Israel, you will not be forgotten by me" (Is 44:21).
The prophet declared: "Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult O earth; break
forth, O mountains, into singing! For the Lord has comforted his people,
and will have compassion on his afflicted" (Is 49:13). In this time of
Lent, we should be rejoicing as we make special effort to draw close to
the Lord who never forsakes His people. God is always reaching out to
us no matter how we respond.
Let us Pray:
Father, we are fully conscious of your promise. Yet, at times you seem
so far from us. Come into our heart through Your Holy Spirit and make
your presence known to us. Let us experience your love and grow in the
assurance that you are near. we want to cooperate with You just so that
Your promise becomes a reality in our life. We ask this through Christ
our Lord. Amen

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn.5:17-30

THEME:
As the father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the son
gives life to whim he will
Imagine the setting: Jesus has just finished telling his opponents that He
had full right to heal on the Sabbath since He was God’s Son. Such
seeming blasphemy inflamed their desire to kill Him. After this latest
confrontation, you would think Jesus would try to be a bit more
cautious. But instead of playing it safe, He went on to say that as the Son
of God, He has authority for judgment and the power to give life!
As a just judge who can see into every human heart, Jesus certainly can
make accurate assessments of our state. And, as the eternal Son of God,
He certainly does have the power to give life to everyone who hears His
word and believes in Him.
But how do we receive Jesus’ word? We may be able to recount Bible
stories, but is that all Jesus is looking for? Not at all! He wants His
words to penetrate our hearts and convince us of His love and of our
need to turn from sin. This is the kind of “hearing” that prepares us for
the “believing” that Jesus also talked about: turning to Him and asking
for forgiveness and restoration. It’s this humble submission to Christ in
faith, believing that He can bring us back to life that transforms us.
Of course, we have the promise of eternal life with God when Jesus
comes back. But we can also taste this eternal life right now, on a day-
to-day basis. Some days we may feel closer to Jesus, and other days we
may feel bound in guilt. Some days we may be able to hold fast to the
gospel with no problems, and other days we may struggle with
temptation after temptation. But as we prayerfully recall what Jesus has
done for us and make good use of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we
will grow stronger. Whenever we begin to doubt or waver, we can turn
to the Lord and ask Him to reinforce our faith. Every step we take will
root us in Christ more firmly and bring us even more fully from death to
life.
Let Us Pray:
Jesus, you have rescued us from death and we praise You! We are so
grateful for your loving mercy, and we can’t wait to finally see you face
to face. You live and reign forever and ever. Amen.
THE CHURCH TEACHES:
God's love for Israel is compared to a father's love for his son. His love
for his people is stronger than a mother for her children. God loves his
people more than a bridegroom his beloved: his love will be victorious
over even the worst infidelities and will extend to his most precious gift:
God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.CCC219
HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. Why did God assume his people that he love them more than a
another loves her child?
2. Do we ourselves sometimes feel that God does not love us?
3. How does the promise of God to the Israelites apply to us?
4. Study what the church teaches us on this CCC 219?
5. Why were the Jewish leaders so opposed to Jesus when he cured
the sick on the sabbath day?
6. How do we receive Jesus’ word that He is the Son of God?
7. How are we to taste now eternal life with God?

14 MAR.THUR
FIRST READING: Exo.32:7-14
GOSPEL: Jn.5:32-47
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Exo.32:7-14
THEME:
Moses pleads with God who wants to punish the people for falling
into idolatry, and the Lord relents.
There once was a prominent sportsman who had a desk plaque that read:
"I am third". An interviewer noticed the plaque and asked, "What
exactly does that mean?" "Very simple", he answered: "God is The is
first, others are second, and I am third". Though this athlete had
confidence and a healthy self-esteem, he realized that the greatest calling
of life is to serve others. In today's reading, we see that Moses had these
priori- ties too. Look at how he responded when God threatened to give
up on the rebellious people he had brought out of Egypt and instead,
raise up a great nation" from Moses and his descendants (Ex 32:10).
Rather than look forward to such a bright future, Moses declined the
honour and interceded for the people instead.
Yes, as humble as Moses was, he could also be bold. He demonstrated a
kind of bold humility that always considered the spiritual needs and
interests of others ahead of his own. Moses was meek -more humble
than anyone else on earth (Num 12:3)- but his was a meekness combined
with strength: inner strength to assume leadership without fanfare; outer
strength to correct and challenge others even as he encouraged them. It
was in this balance between gentleness and firmness that Moses most
foreshadowed Christ's perfect blend of compassion and justice.
Like Moses - and like Jesus - we too should say, "I am third we do this
by honestly admitting our weaknesses and humbly acknowledging our
talents as gifts from God- gifts bestowed on us as earthen vessels" (2
Cor 4:7). In using these gifts, we are called to balance the "dove" with
the eagle" within. We are called to speak out for justice with conviction,
and without compromising our principles for popularity. We are called
to care for the helpless - especially those who are closest to us - and
show the world how valuable it is to be on the side of the poor, the sick,
the needy and the oppressed.
As we set aside the fleeting rewards of worldly acclaim, we will
discover a far greater honour: being members of the body of Christ, who
need and serve each other through the unity of Christian brotherhood.
Let us Pray:
Father, you have lovingly called us into Your service. we commit
ourselves to Your care and guidance. May Your name be glorified
forever. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE CHURCH TEACHES:
From this intimacy with the faithful God, slow to anger and abounding
in steadfast love, Moses drew strength and determination for his inter-
cession. He does not pray for himself but for the people whom God
made his own. Moses already intercedes for them during the battle with
the Amalekites and prays to obtain healing for Miriam. But it is chiefly
after their apostasy that Moses "stands in the breach" before God in
order to save the people. The arguments of his prayer - for intercession
is also a mysterious battle - will inspire the boldness of the great
intercessors among the Jewish people and in the Church: God is love; he
is therefore righteous and faithful; he cannot contradict himself; he must
remember his marvelous deeds, since his glory is at stake, and he cannot
forsake this people that bears his name.CCC2577

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn.5:32-47

THEME:
It is Moses who accuses you, on whom you set your hope
So many testimonies about Jesus! Yet so many people simply fail to
believe in Him! Jesus’ own works spoke for Him. John the Baptist
singled Him out as the Lamb of God. The Hebrew Scriptures prepared
the people of Israel for His coming. In so many ways, the Father Himself
gave testimony after testimony that Jesus really was His Son. Despite all
these indications, most failed to see Jesus for who He truly was.
Before we stand in judgement on the unbelief of these people, perhaps
we should examine ourselves. In addition to all the testimonies that the
people of Jesus’ day had, we also have the New Testament, two
thousand years of Christian history, and the witness of a Church that is
alive and vibrant in and by the grace of the Holy Spirit. With the clear
vision of hindsight, we can see how His entire life from His incarnation
to His death, resurrection and ascension -fulfilled all the promises of
scripture. Yet how often do we not fail to recognize Jesus’ presence in
our own hearts or in those around us? How many times do we not think
and act as though Jesus were absent or unconcerned with our lives?
The problem of not recognizing Jesus isn’t something we can solve on
our own. He is too great for us to grasp with our human understanding.
His very disciples, who lived with Him day and night, couldn’t
understand Him at first. According to John, it wasn’t until Jesus rose
from the dead and gave His disciples the Holy Spirit that they really
grasped who He was. Only then did they begin to recognize Him and
acknowledge Him as “my Lord and my God” (Jn. 20:28). The Spirit
alone enables the person to truly know Jesus.
But this is good news, for God has given us His Spirit! The Spirit, the
one who was poured out to reveal Christ to our hearts, lives within us.
He never tires of speaking to us -even in our everyday situations about
the perfection, love and mercy of Jesus. Today, let’s be attentive to the
Spirit. Let’s watch for ways He will reveal Jesus to us.
Let Us Pray:
Holy Spirit, as we go through the ordinary situations of our days, open
our hearts and minds. Help us recognize the presence of Jesus around us
and put our faith in him. Use this day, O Spirit, to deepen our knowledge
and love of our Saviour. Grant us this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Church Teaches:
The signs worked by Jesus attest that the Father has sent him. They
invite belief in him. To those who turn to him in faith, he grants what
they ask. So miracles strengthen faith in the One who does his Father's
works; they bear witness that he is the Son of God. But his miracles can
also be occasions for "offence": they are not intended to satisfy people's
curiosity or desire for magic Despite his evident miracles some people
reject Jesus; he is even accused of acting by the power of demons. CCC.
702

For Further Studies: 702.

HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. From today’s reading how would you describe the character of
Moses?
2. How can we imitate Moses and Jesus in this context?
3. With so many testimonies of Jesus why have most people failed to
believe in him?
 4. What of ourselves with so many testimonies from both the New
Testament and Christian hi story available to us? how often have
we not failed to recognize the presence of Jesus in our own hearts
or in those around us?
5. How can we solve the problem of not recognizing Jesus?
6. Study carefully and understand the Church’s teaching on
forgiveness in CCC 1439

15 MAR. FRI
FIRST READING: Wis.2:1a, 12-22
GOSPEL: Jn. 7:1-2, 10, 25-30
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Wis.2:1a, 12-22
THEME:
The author of Wisdom gives minute details of a plot to kill a just
man simply “because he is obnoxious to us”.
What caused Jesus to trigger seething anger in some people? Why did
his contemporaries want to kill him (Jn 7:1). Perhaps the answers found
in the Book of Wisdom, which was written at least fifty of before Jesus
was even born! According to Wisdom, *"the very sight”. Of the
righteous man is a "burden to the wicked (Wis 2:15). In the t what it was
He lived and the things He taught, Jesus revealed sin for what it give and
so He was considered "inconvenient" by those who refused to give up
the things they knew were opposed to God's laws.
The irony in all this is that Jesus did not travel around playing the role of
a good ""cop" snooping out all unlawful conduct. He wasn't trying to be
a hero, and He certainly wasn't motivated by a pride filled desire for
recognition. Then, as now, His only motivation was love. When He
corrected His people as when He does us His goal was always to lead us
out of the bondage of sin so that we could know the freedom of being
children of God. Like a committed parent, Jesus doesn't just see our
failures and sins; He sees our full potential and wants to help us become
everything He created us to be.
Like the Jews who plotted Jesus' downfall, today too, there are many
who reject Jesus and His claim over their lives. Even we who believe
can point to times when we Have resented Jesus or resisted his presence.
Thankfully, Jesus never gives up on us. He continues to pursue us and
touch our consciences, patiently urging us to embrace His laws and His
love. Whenever you find yourself wishing Jesus would just go away, or
trying to rationalize your way around one of God's commands, stop and
ask yourself a few questions. "Have I lost sight of God's plan for me?
"Do I really want to minimize the potential that Jesus has given me the
possibility of being filled to overflowing with the love and power of
Christ?" Recall your heritage! Recall the goodness of God! Then,
confident that Jesus is still with you, go on to fight the good fight of
faith.
Let us Pray:
Lord Jesus, you alone are the holy and righteous one! Help us to become
more like You. May Your love ever be our strength! You who live and
reign forever and ever. Amen.

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn. 7:1-2, 10, 25-30

THEME:
Aware of the plot to kill Him, Jesus nevertheless goes to Jerusalem
in secret. In the temple, He again proclaims His divine origin.
The Jewish Feast of Booths (or Tabernacles) was an annual feast of
thanksgiving for the fall harvest. At this feast, the people recalled the
pillar of fire which led their ancestors through the desert (Ex 40:36- 28)
and the time when Moses brought water out of a rock (Num 20:11). It is
not inappropriate, then, that during this feast, Jesus would promise
streams of living water (Jn 7:37-38) and would proclaim that He himself
is the light of the world (Jn 8:12).
Some of the Jews who heard Jesus preaching in the temple were
perplexed over this man, reputed by some to be the Messiah We know
where this man is from; but when the Messiah comes, no one will know
where He is from" (Jn 7:27). They knew He came from Nazareth, so
could He really be the Messiah? Yet, did they really know His origin? It
is one thing to say that He is a Galilean (Jn 7:52), but it is another thing
altogether to understand that He came from God the Father, full of grace
and truth (Jn 1:14) .
This confusion about Jesus' divine and human origins points to one of
the primary distinctions vital for all of us - the difference between flesh
and spirit, "In the flesh", that is, relying solely on our human reason and
senses, we can know quite a lot about Jesus: his ancestry, His
movements, and maybe even why His friends liked Him and His
enemies hated Him.
But it is only "in the spirit" - by the Spirit of God- that we can learn
truths about Jesus that can change our lives. This type of knowledge
Spiritual knowledge that transforms- comes to us as we Sit humbly with
the scriptures and ask the Spirit to speak the truth to our hearts. It is in
these times of prayer and meditation that we learn about Jesus' true
origins, and that we begin to desire to be with Him where He is.
Jesus promised His disciples that the Spirit would remind them of
everything He taught while He was with them (Jn 14:26). Let us seek
this same Spirit in ask that Jesus words be written on our hearts (Jer
31:33).
Let us Pray:
Holy Spirit, come into our hearts today and transform us. Raise us above
the ways of the flesh so that we can see Jesus and embrace Him in love
and humility. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. What caused the plot to kill Jesus? What reason does wisdom give
us here?
 2. What do you say about those who today reject Jesus?
3. What event does the feast of the tabernacle represent?
4. Why were some of the Jews perplexed over Jesus and his
preaching in the temple?
5. How can we explain the confusion about the divine and human
origins of Jesus? What help did Jesus promise to give to his
disciples?
6. Learn carefully what the church teaches on Jesus and the law given
to Moses. (CCC577)

16 MAR. SAT
First Reading: Jeremiah 11:18-20
Gospel 7:40-53
THEME:
Jeremiah’s readiness to suffer related in this reading fits Jesus
perfectly. He too will be a trusting lamb led to slaughter.
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING

Jeremiah is embroiled in a plot against his life, which he is

powerless to prevent. For a life of preaching God's word, he is now held
to account by a group of self-seeking and arrogant people. Jeremiah's
single prayer is for divine vindication. He can only submit to the
meshing of gigantic forces arranged against him and hope that the God
who gave him life and a mission will rescue him. He prays in a prayer
found so frequently in the Old Testament for the opportunity to see
God's vengeance upon those who have so wickedly plotted against him.
He wants to see them paid back in spades.
Jesus can make His own what had been foretold about Him by the
prophets both in their words and in their lives. Like Jeremiah, He can
say: "I knew their plot because the Lord informed me ... Yet, I, like a
trusting lamb led to slaughter, had not realized that they were hatching
plots against me: "Let us destroy the tree in its vigour; let us cut him off
from the land of the living, so that his name will be spoken no more"."
Knowing in advance what is plotted for Him, makes Him cry out the
more: "Lord, my God, I take shelter in you ... Save me from my pursuers
and rescue me ... Do me justice, O Lord, because I am just, and because
of the innocence that is mine. Let the malice of the wicked come to an
end".
What about us? The opening prayer of the day can give a hint:
"Lord, guide us in your gentle mercy, for left to our selves we cannot do
your will". We do not generally do a very good job of doing God's will -
not because He and His will have not been present to us - but
mostly because we have not been present to Him.
Today's readings and prayers again make us face up to our
relationship with this Jesus in His Passion. It seems that we cannot
escape seeing ourselves as members of the crowd confronting Jesus in
today's
Gospel. Whose side would we have been on? Undoubtedly, not on the
side of the hate-filled Pharisees who have already condemned Him. But
what about all those indifferent ones who didn't care one way or
another about Jesus and about what was happening to Him? I know that
the opposite of love is not hatred but indifference.
If indifference has been our problem, there is still time to take a stand.

LET US PRAY:
Father in heaven, I thank You for giving me Jesus as my personal
Saviour who suffered for me! May I believe firmly in him and merit the
eternal reward. Make our heart obedient to Your will O Lord!

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: JOHN 7:40-53

The crowd is sharply divided over Jesus: Simon thinks He is the

Messiah, others that He is an imposter. .
Jesus spoke with authority (Mk 1 :22). He gave the people hope. He
rekindled the faith of those who were sincerely seeking God. To those
whose faith was bankrupt - the scribes and the Pharisees who were
bound by their attitude and could not hear God - Jesus made no sense.
His teaching called for commitment to God but those committed to
human structures were deaf to what Jesus had to say.
The temple police had been dispatched to arrest Jesus as a criminal,
but they could not bring themselves to carry out that troubling
assignment. Jesus taught. He made sense to them; He melted their
hearts. Here was one who spoke of loving God and neighbour, whose
message was not bound up in legalistic demands. How could they arrest
this preacher whose words pierced their souls with God's truth?
Today, we are faced with a decision: to be like the temple police, or to
be like those who sent them out. We can hear the words of our Saviour
and start to live them out, or we can be like the scribes and
Pharisees, so sure of our own thoughts that we cannot respond to God.
The choice is ours.
God has not left us alone in understanding Jesus. The Holy Spirit
wants to teach us the meaning of the words and actions of Jesus. If we
call upon the Spirit of Truth, He will give us the grace, the clarity and
the ability to understand and respond.
Each of us has the opportunity to participate in the full life of God,
just as much as those people who gathered on the hillsides of Palestine,
in the synagogues, or in the temple to listen to the Lord. Jesus spoke to
the people in those places; He still speaks to us. When we call upon the
Holy Spirit as we read scripture or hear it proclaimed in. the liturgy, we
can experience the same revelation as did our spiritual ancestors. With
Peter, we can say: "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God", and
Jesus will reply: "Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my
Father who is in heaven" (Mt 16: 16-17).

LET US PRAY:
Father, thank You for sending Jesus so that I could see, hear and love
Him. May His words be like a magnet to my heart, drawing me closer to
heaven. Help me put down my guard and listen to Him in love.Through
Christ Our Lord. Amen
 17 MAR. SUN

FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT

THEME: WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE JESUS. “SIR WE WOULD
LIKE TO SEE JESUS". (JN. 12: 20).
First reading: Jer. 31:31-34
Second reading:
Gospel: Jn:12:20-33
REFLECTION
Lent has always been a period of reflection, prayer, penance and fasting,
& reconciliation in the Church. It is a time when we are especially called
to reflect on God's love and mercy to us and the entire humanity, we
reflect on our lives and our role in the world as Christians and Catholics.
It is a time to grow closer to the Lord Jesus. Our primary discipline and
practice helping us to do these things are prayer, fasting, reconciliation
and almsgiving.
The Gospel reading today is a part of the events of Jesus' ministry before
his arrest, judgment and death. John tells us how Jesus is anointed in
Bethany by Mary (Jn. 12: 1-11), then follows the entry into Jerusalem as
a humble Messiah but acclaimed by the people (Jn. 12: 12-19). There
has been a growing tension in the story. Jesus knows that the end of his
life is near. The "hour" for which he has come is that of his death. At the
same time it is the hour of his exaltation and glorification by the Father.
Like him, believers are also invited to die to themselves to enter more
fully into the life of the Father.
THE FOCUS OF A CHRISTIAN MUST BE ON CHRIST
As we draw closer to the end of this year's Lenten journey, we can join
with the Greeks, spoken of in today's Gospel, and ask, Sir, we would
like to see Jesus. We want to see him more clearly in our own lives and
in those around us. Many of us have been working throughout this
penitential season to deepen our understanding of who Jesus is and how
our lives should be different as a result of seeing Him. Perhaps we have
made every effort to obey His teachings and stay away from sin, but,
alas we have fallen yet again.
As we come to know Jesus better, however, we also come to recognize
that it is not too late to go to Him again and start anew. We heard from
the letter to the Hebrews today that Jesus became the source of eternal
salvation for all who obey him, So, we are to strive to obey Jesus,
following His example and living according to His teachings. In our
daily lives especially during Lent we are to open oursclves more fully to
his love, guidance and mercy. The request of the Greek believers seems
to have moved Jesus to speak again about his 'coming death and
resurrection, and the sacrifices that will be required of the followers. He
challenged them saying, whoever loves his life will lose it, and whoever
hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life. We are asked-
no, we are commanded by Jesus to hate our lives, Certainly, this is not
meant in a self-destructive sense. but in the sense of putting things in
perspective, accepting the mission of Jesus, and letting our own lives
show the world how to live as Jesus taught! Jesus clearly desires
everyone to do this. He continues to invite all people to reject sin and be
faithful to the Gospel, but it is up to each one of us. This Lenten season
is meant to help us do exactly that: follow Jesus more fully and commit
our hearts and spirit more deeply to walking that path of life. We have
Jesus leading the way, inviting us to be one with Him.
So while we are still in this penitential season of Lent, let us continue to
seek forgiveness of our sins and focus on our journey to eternal life. We
know that Jesus is with us, now and always, leading us and helping us.
Let us do all that we can to live in that knowledge. May God bless us all
during these last two weeks of preparation for our Easter celebration, as
we seek to do God's will and live in His love, which is ours forever!
THE HOUR HAS COME" (JN. 12:23)
In John's Gospel, Jesus often speaks about the hour". This expression is
repeated many times in the part of John's Gospel often called the Book
of Signs" (Jn. 2-12). The rest of the Gospel (Jn. 13-20:; 21) shows how
Jesus lives this "hour". The first time the hour is mentioned was at Cana:
Jesus told his mother that his hour had not yet come (Jn. 2: 4). By this
first miracle at Cana, Jesus manifested his glory and the disciples
believed in Him (Jn. 2: 11). This tells us that the hour will be the time of
the manifestation of Jesus' glory. Later on John tells us that the people of
Jerusalem could not arrest him and kill him because his hour had not yet
come (Jn. 7: 30; 8: 20). We learn that the hour of Jesus is also going to
be for him a time of suffering and death. When John announces that the
hour bas finally come (Jn. 12:23), he combines the two elements: both
the glory that Jesus will receive from the Father and the suffering that
will precede it (Jn. 12: 23. 27-28). The hour is the time of passing from
this world to the Father (Jn. 13: 1) in order to regain the glory that he
had before as a Son of God (Jn. 17: 1.5). It is a time of suffering,
exaltation, glory and finally victory over the forces of evil.
The Greeks who have come to Jerusalem for the feast want to see Jesus,
thus fulfilling what the Pharisees had said about him: the whole world
has gone after him'" (Jn. 12: 19). The first mention of the "hour' at Cana,
revealed that it would be a moment of coming to faith in Jesus. It
happened for Jewish marriage. Now, it is the time for non-Jewish people
to come to him. Faith in Jesus thus is not limited to one nation but is
available to all. He has come to bring salvation to all (Jn. 1: 9-13;
4:42;6:.40.45.5 1 ).
UNLESS A GRAIN OF WHEAT FALLS INTO THE GROUND
AND DIES." (Jn. 12: 24).
Jesus uses the image of a grain of wheat that remains alone if it does not
fall to the ground and die. Sowing seeds require being transformed in the
ground before they bear fruit. Decay, death is a painful but necessary
process which seed has to undergo before coming to life again and
bearing fruit. Jesus' life is in danger because he has revealed God as a
loving Father who is specially concerned for the weak. He puts the
human person before the law (Jn. 5: 17). But he is ready to lay down his
life for his sheep (Jn. 10: 11-17). He is the one from whom we receive
life (Jn. 15: 1-17).
What Jesus is telling us is that if we want to see him as he actually is,
dying to self is the only way to do it. And that's what we will be doing in
the next two weeks. In these weeks we are not mere bystanders or
spectators at a long-past event. On the contrary, we are to enter into
Christ's Passion and death now in and through our lives and our
sufferings. The seed is Christ - the whole Christ, himself and us, his
members. The whole Christ has to go into the ground and die, but if this
seed dies, and only if it dies, it will yield a rich harvest. "if you serve me,
follow me, " says Jesus, "where I am there will my servant be." He is
speaking about us, to us. Christ's Passion and death are ours, and our
Passion and suffering and dying are his. We are never alone, for he is
with us and we with him.
The word of Jesus about the seed dying are applicable not only to
following the liturgy in the next two weeks but also, and more
particularly, to the penitential experience that we will want to enter into
soon, namely, our Easter confession, In all the sacraments we die in
order to live the risen life of Jesus with him and with one another, but
this is especially the case with the sacrament of reconciliation. Lent,
particularly these last two weeks, is a good time for us to refresh our
minds and hearts on this sacrament. especially in the context of the
conversion of the experience we are engaged in. For this, it is important
that we reflect on the so-called firm purpose of amendment that remains
so essential an element in this sacrament. It is the element that we have
the most trouble carrying out. We resolve to die rather than sin again.
Our Lenten journey, in a similar way, will only be fruitful if we stand by
our faith and agree to pay the price for it. More often than not, the price
will include dying to personal preferences and selfishness, standing up
for the truth, for a total gift of self for others and for the values of the
Gospel. We are never alone, Christ has promised to be with us till the
end of time (cf. Matt. 28: 20). Scrutiny is celebrated today for the
catechumens.
LETUS PRAY:
Lord Jesus, by your Spirit, enable us to overcome our fear of dying. Like
a grain of wheat, enable us to die to ourselves, so that we can bear much
fruit for you as we work to build your kingdom on earth. As you
glorified your Father by you obedience to his will, may our willingness
to obey him also bring him glory and honor:" You who live and reign
forever and ever. Amen.
THE CHURCH TEACHES:
In the Old Testament the prophet announced that the Spirit of the Lord would rest on the awaited
Messiah and on the entire messianic people. The whole life and mission of Jesus were carried out in
total communion with the Holy Spirit. The apostles received the Holy
Spirit at Pentecost and proclaimed the great works of God" (Acts 2:11).
They gave the gift of the same Spirit to the newly baptized by the laying
on of hands. Down through the centuries the Church has continued to
live by the Spirit and to impart him to children. (CCC. 1285-1288, 1325)
For Further Study: CCC. 1289-1301; 1320-1321)
HELP TO REFLECTION:
STUDY CCC 1285-1319 on the Sacrament of Confirmation

18 MAR. MON
First Reading: Daniel 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62
GOSPEL JN. 8:1-11
THEME:
We hear the sstory of Susanna falsely accused of adultery and
rescued by the boy named Daniel.
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: DAN. 13:1-9,15-
17,19-30,33-62.
This intriguing story of the rescue of a beautiful and innocent woman
by the young hero Daniel is contained in a "deutero-canonical" section
of the Bible. These are books or passages, which were included in the
biblical canon as used by the early Church and subsequently by
Catholics, but which were omitted from editions of the Hebrew Bible
and from the Protestant editions of scripture. Susanna means lily, and
Daniel means "God has judged". These symbolic names help to
underscore the story's scheme of the victory of virtue over villainy.
These biblical passages reflect secret moments in the lives of all of us:
moments when we are suspected of evil and helpless to properly explain
ourselves; or other moments when we were guilty and never allowed to
forget it by our accusers; or still other moments when we are convinced
before God about the goodness of some person and yet remain incapable
of expressing ourselves adequately before a sceptical crowd.
The key to survival lies in the one line about Susanna: "Through her
tears, she looked up to heaven, for she trusted in the Lord whole-
heartedly". By contrast, the Bible states that the two wicked men, her
accusers, "suppressed their consciences; they would not allow their eyes
to look to heaven". When we fix our gaze on heaven, we allow ourselves
to be wholly absorbed in God and from this intense union we
acquire an extraordinary peace and unconquerable strength. This peace
is Christ's "farewell gift", given not as the world bestows peace, but
infused far more profoundly into our lives.
This peace begets an exceptional kind of patience. Jesus' words come
to mind, especially as they used to ring out in the ancient Latin liturgy,
in patientia vestra possidebitis animas vestraas, translated liter-
ally "in your patience you will possess your soul (Lk 21: 10). In such a
spirit, Susanna turned immediately to the Lord and prayed: "O Eternal
God, you know what is hidden and are aware of all things ... " She did
not lash out angrily against her accusers, nor did she turn at once in
panic to her own defence. She looked to the Lord, and in this patience
lay the strength and integrity she possessed. Rather than fall into the trap
of arguing when her accusers were crafty, she forced everyone to come
up to her innocence and honesty before God.
We are directed first to remember God's presence and His sweeping
knowledge of everything and then to abide in prayer. In this way, our
own defence does not turn into a shouting match in which nobody
wins and in which we ourselves lose our own innocence in what turns'
out to be an excessive form of revenge and counterattack.

LLET US PRAY:
O Lord God, though we walk in a dark valley, we fear no evil, for You
are at my side with Your rod and Your staff that gives us courage. We
ask these through Christ our Lord. Amen

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: JOHN 8:1-11

Jesus forgives the sin of a woman taken in adultery and rescues
her from certain death at the hands of her accusers.

One can imagine the satisfied chuckling of Jesus' opponents as they

drag the woman caught in adultery through the streets of the town and
thrust her before him for judgement. Now, they think, they can entrap
Him in His own words. The judgement He would give must inevitably
involve either a rejection of the Law of Moses, or of the authority of
Rome. And either judgement would bear grave consequences for Him.
The Pharisees took no account of Jesus' reputation for showing
preference for sinners by eating with them and with the despised tax
collectors (Lk 15: 1-3). Jesus, on the other hand, knew the hypocritical
zeal that prompted their actions and their questioning (Mt 23:15). Far
from falling into their trap, Jesus used the occasion to demonstrate His
desire for every sinner to experience merciful forgiveness; to be lifted up
from the misery and hopelessness and sin occasions to the joy and peace
that come from the Father's forgiveness.
We are those sinners for whom God sent His Son that we might not
perish but have eternal life (Jn 3: 16). We are the lost sheep whom the
Good Shepherd leads beside still waters to restore our souls (Ps 23:2- 3).
Perhaps - in our blindness - we do not see ourselves in this woman taken
in adultery. But we must believe that every sin is an act of spiritual
adultery; it is unfaithfulness to the God who loves us with an undivided
love. Furthermore, every sin not only affects Our relationship with God,
but it also affects others, in that we are all members of the body of
Christ. Our responsibility in sinning is indeed far-reaching.
In this time of Lenten observance, we are particularly reminded of
God's immeasurable love in sending His Son to shoulder the burden of
Our sin. Our response to God's desire for Our salvation should be
repentance for sins committed.
Ask the Holy Spirit to help you prepare for Jesus' glorious
resurrection by making a thorough examination of conscience. Make a
sincere sacramental confession (if you are a Catholic), asking for grace
to turn away from sin. Be confident that God wants to lavish His love
and forgiveness on us, just as He did on the adulterous woman.

LET US PRAY:
Jesus, have mercy on us, a sinner! we love You Lord, and we want to
belong to You. Come and set us free from all that could harm us. you
who live and reign forever and ever. Amen.

19 MAR. TUES
FIRST READING: Numb.21:4-9
GOSPEL: Jn.8:21-30
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Numb.21:4-9
THEME:
Punished by the bites of serpents for grumbling against Moses, the
Israelites are saved by gazing upon a serpent raised on a pole.
Jesus was lifted up from the earth on the cross; His death was both a
physical lifting up and a lifting up to heaven. Through our baptism, we
were united to Jesus in His death on the cross; through faith, we are
raised up with Him to dwell in the presence of the Father in glory.
The story about the bronze serpent on the pole in the reading under
reflection is a type or a prefigurement of the death of Jesus on the cross.
Just as the bronze serpent was raised up for all to see, so Jesus was lifted
up on the cross before all the world; just as those who looked at the
serpent were healed and lived, so will those who behold the crucified
Jesus and believe in Him live eternally (Jn 3:14-15).
 The Old Testament story is a paradigm of what was to come in Jesus;
the raising up of the bronze snake on a pole to save the people provides a
glimpse of what was to come when Jesus died on the cross In this way,
God shows us that His great plan of salvation was in his mind long
before Jesus became man. The incident of the bronze se pent
foreshadows for us God's plan, which was fulfilled in Christ's death on
the cross.
"When you have 1lifted up the Son of Man, then you will realize that I
am He (the one sent by God)" (Jn 8:27). It is only through the cross that
we can know Jesus as He truly is, as the Son of God who came to
redeem all people out of love. If our vision of Jesus doesn't include him
being lifted up on the cross, then we are missing out on the fullness of
who Jesus really is. Again, it is through the cross that Jesus draws all
people to Himself (Jn 12:32). As we look to the crucified Jesus, we will
receive life from Him the life of God which flows from His death and
resurrection to all who believe.
Let us Pray:
Father, we thank You for Your great plan of salvation which was
fulfilled on the cross. Help us to make the death and resurrection of
Your Son Jesus the centre of our lives each day.

THE CHURCH TEACHES:

Nevertheless, already in the Old Testament, God ordained or permitted
the making of images that pointed symbolically toward salvation by the
incarnate Word: so, it was with the bronze serpent, the ark of the
covenant and the cherubim.CCC 2130
HELP TO REFLECTION:
 1. What is the symbolism behind the Bronze Serpent on the Pole?
2. What explanation does it give us about Jesus raised on the cross?
(Cf.Jn.8:27;Jn.12:32)

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn.8:21-30

THEME:
When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will know that I
am he.
After He had fed the four thousand, Jesus went to the region of Caesarea
Philippi. It was there that He asked His disciples: “Who do you say that I
am?” Peter replied: “You are the Christ” (Mk 8:29). Up to that time,
Jesus had been keeping His divine identity concealed from the people,
but now, as the time of His death drew near, He began to identify
Himself more clearly with the Father. Jesus did this by applying to
himself the divine title, “I Am”, by which God identified Himself to
Moses at the burning bush. (Ex 3:13-14).
By applying the title “I Am” to Himself, Jesus was disclosing His divine
nature and His relationship to Yahweh. He was stating, in effect, that He
was God, sharing the nature of the Father. Jesus referred to Himself thus
twice (Jn 8:24, 28) in today’s reading as “I Am”, (which is easier to see
in the Greek text). In both cases, He associates Himself with the
forgiveness of sins. When He had done this previously (See Mk 2:1-7;
Lk 5317-21), it had infuriated the Pharisees because they knew that only
God could forgive sins. Thus, Jesus’ appropriation of the divine title to
Himself would have been blasphemy if He were not who He claimed to
be, that is God the Son, eternally begotten of the Father.
Jesus warned that unless we believe in Him, we will die in our sins (Jn
8:24) and that when the Son of Man was lifted up, people would realize
that he is God (Jn 8:28; see also Jn 3:14-15). Jesus was saying that
through the forgiveness of our sins, we would be convinced that He is
the eternal Son of God and that we would experience the Father’s love
for us. Confessing our sins and returning to Jesus, therefore, entails a
two-fold blessing. From that conviction, we experience the peace, love
and freedom which only God can give.
Jesus wants to pour out His forgiveness and blessings on everyone who
repents. Resolve today that you will make a good sacramental
confession this holy season. In the meantime, don’t wait; turn to Jesus
and repent of your sins. Ask Him to forgive you for the times you have
offended or neglected Him and know that you will receive more than
just forgiveness. Your faith will be strengthened and you will be able to
proclaim with conviction that Jesus is Lord, the Son of God.
Let Us Pray:
O Lord, hide not your face from us in the day of our distress. Incline
your ear to us; in the day when we call, answer us speedily. We pray
through Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Church Teaches:

The truth of Jesus' divinity is confirmed by his Resurrection. He had
said: "When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will know that
I am he." The Resurrection of the crucified one shows that he was truly"
I AM", the Son of God and God himself. So St. Paul could declare to
the Jews: "What God promised to the fathers, this he has fulfilled to us
their children by raising Jesus; as also it is written in the second psalm,
'You are my Son, today I have begotten you.'" Christ's Resurrection is
closely linked to the Incarnation of God's Son, and is its fulfillment in
accordance with God's eternal plan. CCC. 653
For Further Studies: 603
HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. How did Jesus disclose his identity to his disciples and why?
2. Why did Jesus apply to himself the title “I AM”?
3. Why did Jesus warn that we will die in our sins unless we believe
in him? Why should we make a good sacramental confession now?
4. Study what the church teachesus about Jesus’ divinity and his
resurrection in CCC 653,603,&211.

20 MAR. WED
FIRST READING: Dan.3:14-20, 24-25, 28
GOSPEL: Jn.8:31-42
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Dan.3:14-20, 24-25, 28
THEME:
Three Hebrew youths who refuse to worship an idol are condemned
to death but rescued by God. Their steadfastness wins the grace of
faith for the king.
The power of God working in the lives of His people remains the same
throughout the ages. That power is demonstrated here in the story of the
three young men and the fire furnace. It is one of the collection of
teaching-stories found in the book of Daniel which were meant to
encourage and inspire the Jews in times of persecution and strife.
ln Protestant Bibles, the story consists of only thirty verses; Catholic
Bibles however, contain an additional sixty-eight verses of the some of
the Three Young Men, following verse 23. The song, while not intrinsic
to the plot, is beautiful in itself. Known as the Benedicte from the Latin
for "Bless Ye {the Lord}", it has since ancient times been used in the
liturgy as a seasonal prayer of praise.
Daniel and his three friends, Shadrack, Meshach and Abednego, are
described as living in a country, which is hostile to the worship of the
one true God. The young men's faithfulness to God, in the face of
hostility and threats, evoked the hatred of those in authority. When they
were brought to trial, the trio had their fate sealed with their own words:
Be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship
the golden image which you have set up (Dan 3:18). Their faith in God
was absolute; whether He chose to rescue them or not, His holiness and
greatness demanded their love. Ultimately, their loyalty was rewarded
by God's protection from the flames.
Believers of every age face the same choices as these three young
Israelites faced: Will we remain true to God 's word in the face of the
persuasion and threats, even by the majority? lf we are open to God and
want to realize His promises more than we want the things proffered by
the world, we will see the hand of God at work in our lives too. We wil1
know healings and blessings; our faith will increase, our understanding
of the Lord's love will deepen, too.
Let us Pray:
Lord, increase our desire to see You work in our lives. Teach us to
Value the eternal above the temporal, and deepen our love for You So
that we may see Your power manifest in today's world. Grant us this
through Christ our Lord. Amen.

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn.8:31-42

THEME:
If the son of man make you free, you will be free indeed.
While Jesus was in Jerusalem for the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles, He
taught the people in the temple. Some of the Jews believed in Him and
took His words to heart, but others did not; they responded to this new
teaching with complaints and disbelief. Jesus taught the people that the
truth He proclaimed would set them free, but even so, their animosity
towards Him grew.
Jesus promised the Jews freedom from sin and its consequences if they
would but believe in Him. Sin is essentially bondage, and “everyone
who commits sin is a slave to sin” (Jn 8:34) and will continue to sin until
freed by Jesus. Another consequence of sin is death (separation from
God). Just as Jesus raised Lazarus from physical death, faith in the truth
(which is Jesus) will set us free from eternal death. Jesus does not set us
free just so that we can have a better life. Rather, He sets us free so that
we can live with Him forever (Jn 8:35-3 6).
Despite this promise of freedom, many of the Jews continued to reject
Jesus. Rather than being open to His teaching, they interpreted what He
said as a threat to their traditional beliefs, thus preventing themselves
from receiving new and deeper revelation from God. They chose to
remain stagnant. They claimed to be sons of Abraham but they did not
do what Abraham did, which was to listen to God and believe (Gen 15:
6).
It is easy for us to rest on what we already know and be closed to the
fuller revelation God wants to give us concerning His Son. The Father
longs to reveal to us the mysteries of the Son so that we would know and
love Him more and more. When the Spirit teaches us new things, let us
not be unbelieving or complaining as were the Jews who opposed Jesus
tooth and nail. Rather, let us welcome the truth and experience the
freedom it brings.

Let Us Pray:
Jesus, You are the truth that sets believers free. Teach us and help us to
be open to the fullness of the gospel message. We want to experience the
freedom that You came to give us and thereby come to know You more
fully. May we dwell in Your house with You and the Father forever!
You live and reign forever and ever. Amen.

The Church Teaches:

Jesus scandalized the Pharisees by eating with tax collectors and sinners
as familiarly as with themselves. Against those among them "who trusted
in themselves that they were righteous and despised others", Jesus
affirmed:" I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to
repentance." He went further by proclaiming before the Pharisees that,
since sin is universal, those who pretend not to need salvation are blind to
themselves. CCC. 588
For Further Studies: 2466
HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. The three young men in the five furnace (Dan.3:14-20,24-25,28)
teaches us a lot about how to live out the Christian faith. What
have you learnt from the story?
2. What choices do we Christians face today and what does God want
us to do?
3. Jesus taught the people that the truth he proclaimed would set them
free. What type of freedom is he talking about? What are the
consequences of sin?
4. What was the reaction of Jewish people to Jesus’ promise of
freedom?
5. How are we challenged here?
 21 MAR. THUR
FIRST READING: Gen.17:3-9
GOSPEL: Jn.8:51-59
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Gen.17:3-9
THEME:
“God changes Abram's name to Abraham, establishes a Covenant
with him and promises to make him the father of a host of nations"
How wonderful and faithful is our God! The promises God made to
Abraham so many centuries ago in the covenant are still ours today
through Christ Jesus. This covenant was more than just a promise that
Abraham would have a son and that nations would be formed from hic
descendants. God promised that He would form a people to be His own,
a people who would love and honour Him. He would be their God and
they would be His people.
How have we experienced the fruit of this covenant? The very fact that
we seek to pray and read God's word is evidence of God's love. He is the
one who draws us to Himself. He gave His own Son to die on the cross
so that we, the children of the promise, could be reunited with Him.
Until the time when Christ comes again, God continues to gather
together His people in the Church to nourish and draw us to Himself. Let
your faith be built by recalling the works of God in your life.
Besides applying to the body of Christ as a whole, we can also see this
passage applying to ourselves as individuals. As such, Christian parents
can be strengthened by today's reading. God promised that believing
parents and the children of generations that follow (Gen 17:7) would
inherit the promise first made to Abraham. Even before the birth of a
child, God has already claimed that child as His own. We can have
confidence in this promise because we know God's faithfulness, mercy
and power.
In faith, parents can accept God's promise and stand firm in faith when
the world threatens to snatch their children away. We can resolutely
instruct our sons and daughters in the ways of God and help to bring
them to Him personally and individually. Secure in God's love, we can
train our children as "children of the promise.
Let us Pray:
Lord God, you show us your love by showing Your Son Jesus to us. By
Your grace, help us to grow in faith. Teach us to trust in your promise
that You will draw all children, those of the present and the future
generations to Yourself. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn.8:51-59

THEME:
Before Abraham came to be, I AM", Jesus declares, and His
enemies become furious to the point of being ready to stone Him for
blasphemy.
Who is this Jesus of Nazareth who claims that those who keep His word
will never see death? (Jn 8:51). The tension between Jesus and the Jews
heightened as they tried to come to grips with His identity and with His
authority to make such a claim. He gave perspective to both issues by
saying: Very truly, I tell you, before Abraham was, I am" (Jn8:58). What
is the meaning of this enigmatic phrase and what did Jesus hope to
reveal by using it?
The phrase, "I am", is the culmination of several "I am" statements
which appear in both Testaments concerning Jesus and His divinity. In
John's Gospel, several I am" phrases appear and form part of a mosaic
establishing Jesus' identity and authority: "I am... the living bread;.. the
light of the world;.. the resurrection and the life;... the way, the truth and
the life;... the true vine;,... one with the Father".
The Jews with whom Jesus contended in the gospels did not take
scripture lightly. Indeed, they scrupulously attempted to keep every jot
and little of the law so as to be pleasing to God in their wait for the
Messiah. Why then did they not recognize who He was? Simply because
they saw With human eyes and reasoned with human intellect, both of
which precluded their ability to believe. They were not open to
understanding Jesus' connection to the Father when He claimed the
divine name (Ex 3:14) for Himself by declaring "I am.." - in fact, they
were scandalized by it (Jn 10:30-33).
Each of us must personally consider Jesus' revelation of who He Is. A
deeper understanding of the truth of Jesus will come as we pray about
how He revealed Himself. A good place to start would be to consider the
I am" statements listed above, asking the Holy Spirit to help us
understand more fully what these statements reveal about Jesus. Do take
some extra time today to meditate on some of them. And your prayer
Will surely reveal more of the rich mosaic we behold!
Let us Pray:
Holy Spirit, help us to understand more deeply Jesus' revelation of
Himself when He calls Himself "I am". Many in the world, perhaps even
in some in my own family, do not believe in Him. we pray that our faith,
our words and our lives will witness to His glory and draw many to His
fold. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

THE CHURCH TEACHES:

Only the divine identity of Jesus' person can justify so absolute aclaim as
"He who is not with me is against me"; and his saying that there was in
him "something greater than Jonah, greater than Solomon," some- thing
"greater than the Temple"; his reminder that David had called the
Messiah his Lord, 37 and his affirmations, "Before Abraham was, I
AM"; and even "I and the Father are one."CCC 590
HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. God made a covenant with Abraham. ( Gen.17:3-9). How have we
today experienced the benefit of the Covenant?
2. What consolations do we derive from it?
3. “Before Abraham came to be, I am” what is the meaning of this
phrase? And what did Jesus hope to reveal by using it?
4. Why did the Jews with whom Jesus contended in the gospel not
take scripture lightly? And why did they not recognize who Jesus
was?
5. Why and how must each of us personally consider Jesus’
revelation of who he is seriously?
 22 MAR. FRI
FIRST READING: Jer.20:10-13
GOSPEL: Jn.10:31-42
REFLECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Jer.20:10-13
“Surrounded by false friends who seek to entrap him, Jeremiah
confided himself to the Lord, "you who test the just, who probe
mind and heart".
Today's Entrance Antiphon rises up from the heart of an anguished
humanity, and that includes each one of us. Most of all, it comes from
the heart of humanity's head, Jesus the Lord: "Have mercy on me, Lord,
for I am in distress; rescue me from the hands of my enemies. Lord,
keep me from shame, for I have called on you" (Ps 69:17-19).
Both the readings of the day depict a hero beset by enemies who are
filled with hatred and murderous intent. The Responsorial Psalm gives
words to the distress within both Jesus and Jeremiah: "The breakers of
death surged round about me, the destroying floods overwhelmed me...
In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried out to my God; from his
temple he heard my voice, and my cry to Him my cry to Him reached
his ears" (Ps 18:4-6). We know, however, that one week from today, i.e.,
on Good Friday, Christ's enemies will prevail: they will kill Him. But
their "'victory" will only be temporary. He will rise again and sing to the
Lord, praise the Lord, for He has rescued the life of the poor from the
power of the wicked" (Jer 20:13).
But we can leave history and enter into the present. God wants us to
consider these texts in terms of our own lives now. The historical texts
tell us what happened to Jeremiah and Jesus then. Now they pro- vide
the background for what is presently going on in our midst: in the
Church, in our world, in our own lives. Who can estimate the vast
amount of suffering in the world today - the agony of innocent children,
the ravages of natural catastrophes, the anxiety of parents at the loss to
waywardness of their beloved children?
We ourselves are attacked and besieged today even as Jesus and
Jeremiah were in their own day and time. We are both victims and our
own worst enemies. By our deliberate sins we diminish ourselves as
persons, and we continue to add to the tide of evil in the world, which
would certainly destroy us were it not for Christ's original victory on that
first Easter. Our sins of commission and omission - our hatreds, our
refusal to forgive, our coldness towards others, our unconcern for the
needs of others: all are crimes against the living Christ.
Let us Pray:
Lord, grant us Your forgiveness and set us free from our enslavement to
sin. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE CHURCH TEACHES:
in their "one to one" encounters with God, the prophets draw light and
strength for their mission. Their prayer is not flight from this unfaithful
world, but rather attentiveness to the Word of God. At times their prayer
is an argument or a complaint, but it is always an intercession that awaits
and prepares for the intervention of the Saviour God, the Lord of history.
CCC 2584

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn.10:31-42

THEME:
They tried to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.
How could Jesus’ own people oppose Him vehemently? Shouldn’t it
have been easy for them to accept Him? But He was very hard treated,
especially by the Jews, who took pride in their position as God’s
“chosen” people. We have only to think of the apostle Paul who, prior to
his conversion, simply could not accept that the gospel preached by
Peter and the apostles themselves Jews -was the true fulfilment of all of
Israel’s hopes.
It may baffle us that so many of Jesus’ fellow Jews rejected Him. And
yet, we would do well to also remember that opposition to Jesus resides
within every human heart, including our own. The Jews had seen so
many of Jesus’ miracles and heard His sermons and parables, but when
they were confronted with their own sin and the need for repentance, it
became hard to accept Him. No matter how many miracles we may
witness, they will never be enough to convince us. Something has to
change within our hearts.
This message strikes a chord in all of us. God wants all of us to
recognize our opposition to Him so that through repentance we would
turn to Him and know freedom. God wants us to examine our
consciences and see the opposition we carry in our hearts. We can ask
the Holy Spirit to probe us and help us see the hardness within us. It may
manifest itself in anger or bitterness. Perhaps impatience or a short
temper could give us away. Or it may be something more subtle, such as
thinking we are better than others or taking pride in our religious
observances. Whatever our specific sins, they all point to one central
reality: opposition to Jesus and His gospel.
This is why the Church offers the Sacrament of Reconciliation. God
wants to show us our sins, not to condemn us, but to give us new life and
freedom. The freedom we can experience when we confess our sins
enables us to walk more closely with the Lord. Let us not miss out on
any opportunity for a close walk with the Lord.
Let Us Pray:
Holy Spirit, probe our hearts today. Help us pin point the ways that we
seek to justify ourselves and fail to acknowledge our sins, we confess
that we are sinners and we accept Jesus as our only salvation. Empower
us to walk with Him and experience His freeing love. Grant this through
Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Church Teaches:
The signs worked by Jesus attest that the Father has sent him. They
invite belief in him. To those who turn to him in faith, he grants what
they ask. So miracle strengthen faith in the One who does his Father's
works; they bear witness that he is the Son of God. But his miracles can
also be occasions for" offence"; they are not intended to satisfy people's
curiosity or desire for magic Despite his evident miracles some people
reject Jesus; he is even accused of acting by the power of demons.
CCC. 548.
For Further Studies: 574, 589

HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. What does Jer.20:10-13,Ps.69:17-19, tell us about the Prophet
Jeremiah and Jesus?
2. How did Jesus and Jeremiah react to the incidents at their time ( cf
Ps 18:4-6,Jer20:13)
3. How do we apply the passage to ourselves with the vast suffering
in the world today?
 4. How could Jesus’ own people oppose him vehemently and did not
find it easy to accept him?
5. Why and how is it true that many of us today reject Jesus fast as
his fellow Jews did?
6. The message is that something needs to change in our hearts. How
can this take place?
7. What help does the church offer to us? What does she teach us in
this regards?

23 MAR. SAT
FIRST READING: Ezekiel 37:21-28
GOSPEL: Jn 11:45-57
RELECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Ezekiel 37:21-28
THEME:
Ezekiel foretells God's restoration of His people to their land and
His promise to dwell with them and be their God.
One day, Ezekiel was instructed by the word of the Lord to join two
sticks together to form one staff. Since "Judah" was written on one stick
and "Joseph" on the other, this action symbolized the northern and
southern kingdoms united as they had been during the days of Kings
David and Solomon (Ezek 37:15-20). This symbolic action had three
implications: the people would be ritually clean, the people would again
have one king, and the covenant would be reaffirmed as everlasting
(Ezek 37:23-26, 28).
The Holy Spirit enables us to see these promises fulfilled in Jesus. We
are cleansed from all sin by the blood of Jesus (Heb 9:14; 1 John 1:7);
He is our eternal king (Jn 1:49; 18:3 7); the covenant made through the
blood of Christ is everlasting (Heb 13:20).
God has been forming a holy people who are one. We are called to be
part of this body, of which Christ is the head. God's eternal plan is
moving towards its completion - the time when Christ will come to
judge the living and the dead. We should remember that we are not just
isolated individuals or self-sufficient Churches; rather, we are all part of
the body of Christ being purified and made holy. We can participate in
God's plan by praying and working for the unity that God wants for His
people, beginning in our homes, families and parishes.
We can also participate in God's plan to bring all things into unity in
Christ by praying for those parts of the world suffering the devastation
of war, famine, epidemic, oppression or natural disaster, that they might
experience unity, abundance and peace. Let us fix our eyes on the
heavenly things and try to look at the world through the eyes of God
who wants us to know that we have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus,
that His Son Jesus is our king, and that the covenant God has made with
us through the blood of His Son is everlasting.
LET US PRAY:
Almighty and eternal God, You hold together those whom You have
united. Look with love and mercy on all those who follow Your Son
Jesus. Consecrated as we are to You by our baptism in the Spirit in
common with all believers, we ask You to make us one with all
believers in the fullness of faith leading to oneness in the fellow- ship of
love. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen
REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn 11:48-57
THEME:
IT IS EXPEDIENT THAT ONE MAN SHOULD DIE FOR ALL
THE PEOPLE
Is it not ironic how Jesus’ gift of life was the catalyst that led to His own
death? News of the raising of Lazarus from death prompted the Jewish
Council’s decision to have Jesus killed (Jn. 11:45-53). And so, the stage
was set for the sordid drama that would unfold in Jerusalem.
Yet, even as men plotted His arrest, Jesus knew that these developments
were part of a plan that God had been preparing for centuries. The final
pieces were being put in place. The time had come for God’s plan to be
fulfilled. In a short while, Jesus would “gather into one the dispersed
children of God” through His death on the cross (Jn 11:52). Even
Caiaphas, the Jewish high priest, prophesied unwittingly, yet accurately
when he declared, “It is better for you to have one man die for the
people than to have the whole nation destroyed” (Jn 11:50).
How meticulously God had planned for this moment! At the very
beginning of human events, when our first parents fell into sin, He gave
the first hints of His plan by speaking of an offspring to Eve who would
crush the head of the serpent (Gen 3:12-15). As time progressed, God
spoke through various prophets of an “anointed one” (Is 61 :1-2), a
mysterious suffering servant (Is 42:1‘9) who would be “wounded for our
transgressions... bruised for our iniquities... like a lamb that is led to the
slaughter” (Is 53:5, 7). Now the time of fulfilment had come, and Jesus’
persecutors were the very ones to set in motion, the events that we will
relive in this coming Holy Week.
When you look at a crucifix, what do you see? The climax of a plan God
promised to fulfill ages ago? The work of a loving father who has gone
to great lengths to bring you back to himself? Or, just a good man who
met an untimely end? Through the cross, the entire world has been
redeemed. Every man and woman is invited to experience intimate union
with God. Let’s fix our eyes on the cross each day this week and ask the
Holy Spirit to expand our vision.
Let Us Pray:
Father, how grateful we are for your gift of salvation! Thank You that
You did not abandon us to our sins, but sent Your Son to redeem us by
his cross and resurrection. Grant this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
The Church Teaches:
The religious authorities in Jerusalem were not unanimous about what
stance to take towards Jesus. The Pharisees threatened to
excommunicate his followers. To those who feared that "everyone will
believe in him, and the Romans will come and destroy both our holy
place and our nation", the high priest Caiaphas replied by prophesying:
"It is expedient for you that one man should die for the people, and that
the whole nation should not perish."The Sanhedrin, having declared
Jesus deserving of death as a blasphemer but having lost the right to put
any one to death, hands him over to the Romans, accusing him of
political revolt, a charge that puts him in the same category as Barabbas
who had been accused of sedition. The chief priests also threatened
Pilate politically so that he would condemn Jesus to death. Jews are not
collectively responsible for Jesus' death. CCC. 596
For Further Studies: CCC. 2793
HELP TO REFLECTION:

1. What promises of God to his people of Israel (Eziek:21-28) were

fulfilled in Jesus?
 2. How is God’s eternal plan for unity among his people is moving
towards its completion and what must we do to see it happen?
3. How did Jesus' gift of life to Lazarus lead to his own death?
4. How did Jesus and Caiaphas know that these developments were
part of God's plan for our salvation?
5. How meticulously did God plan for this moment?
6. When you look at a crucifix, what do you see? What does it
challenge us to do this week?
7. Study carefully what the Church teaches in CCC 596, 2793.

24 MAR. SUN

PALM SUNDAY OF THE PASSION OF THE LORD

THEME: THE PASSION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.
"THERE IS NO GREATER LOVE THAN THIS, TO
GIVE ONE'S LIFE FOR HIS FRIENDS" (JN.15:13)
FIRST READING: Is 50:4-7
SECOND READING: Phil.2:8b-9
GOSPEL: Mtt.2b:14-27,66
RELECTION ON READING:
FOCUS: THE GREATEST DRAMA OF DIVINE LOVE: THE
PASCHAL MYSTERY OF CHRIST. THE PASSION, DEATH
AND RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST SHOW
US CHRIST WHO GAVE UP HIS LIFE FOR LOVE OFALL
PEOPLES.
Today, Our Holy Mother the Church invites us to join and participate
actively in the great drama that unfolds the divine love for us in the
paschal mystery of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Today's readings and prayers compress all of Holy week into a single
celebration. We share in it all. We have to be convinced that we are not
stage acting. We are celebrating and participating in a present reality: the
passion, death and resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Our king and
Our Lord.
The celebration begins with the blessing of palms or branches of trees:
Lord, increase the faith of your people.... Today we honour Christ our
triumphant king by carrying these branches. May we honour you every
day by living always in you. The gospel is read, and it is not difficult to
envision the triumphant parade into the city, with Jesus riding on a
donkey, the huge crowd spreading their cloaks on the ground, and the
children waving their branches and reeds crying: "Hosanna'"! Blessed is
he who comes in the name of the Lord!
Parades and processions have always been part of worship in Jewish and
Christian tradition. They are the most normal way for the people to
acclaim the victories and triumphs of their heroes and heroines. The
people greet the hero with shouts and songs accompanied by musical
instruments, and in so doing they seem to be able to take victorious
pleasure and satisfaction in the hero's triumphant achievement. They
share in it, almost as though they themselves had done what he had
done. The accomplishment of the hero is in a strange way made present
to the crowd.
 In between this triumphant celebration, there is a tragedy and defeat,
ending in the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. But there is the Sunday's
glorious resurrection thus it all ends in a greater triumph than could have
been imagined.
Year after year, Christ again leads us into the Holy City, up to the mount
of Calvary, to die with him and rise again with him. Today, Jesus lives,
he lives now more than ever and we follow and live with him.
ISAIAH 50:4-7
Jesus also speaks to us in today's mass, and his communication is very
special. Using the expression of the suffering servant of second Isaiah,
he says to us: "The lord has given me a well-trained tongue, that I might
know how to speak to the weary a word that will rouse them......I gave
my back to those who beat me....my face I did not shield from buffets
and spitting" (Reading 1). During this mass and all during Holy week
Jesus will speak to our human condition, our life, with all that it contains
of mystery, sorrow, anguish, anxiety, worry, work (or lack of it)
(Phil.2:6-11)
But in speaking and showing himself to us in all his agony, he wants
more than a momentary stirring of our emotions of pity and sorrow. He
wants understanding and above all sharing. And he uses St. Paul to tell
us how to achieve this understanding and sharing: "Your attitude must
be that of Christ. Though he was God, he did not deem equality with
God a thing to be grasped at. Rather, "He emptied himself, and took the
form of a slave..
He was willing to give up everything, even life itself, in total trust in the
Father. It is that mind, that mentality, that we must seek to penetrate and
to make our own. Doing that-seeking to understand and to accept as our
own Christ's own thinking- is the one thing that will give meaning and
purpose to our lives and help us to become "co-redeemers with Christ
our head. This implies emptying ourselves of our own will, our desire to
control our lives. It is faith, trust, total obedience to the will of the father.
We all know that being sincere in this desire is not easy. But God will
give it if we want it badly enough.
Lk. 22:14-23:56
During the last supper in Luke's account which we heard today Peter
said he would be willing to go to prison with Jesus, even to die with him
(Luke 22:33). Yet a few hours later that same evening he denied Jesus
(Luke 22:56-62). How quickly he changed. How quickly he turned when
the pressure was on him. He could make fine promises during the last
supper but when the crunch came he decided to save his skin,. We make
fine promises to Jesus here and the crunch for us comes when
temptations comes our way. How do we react? Do we cave in to the
pressure like Peter or do we stand by Jesus like the women and John and
go right to the cross? Peter heard the cock crowing after he denied Jesus
(Luke 22:60) but our world is so addicted to sin that maybe we don't
even hear our conscience crowing anymore when we sin. How can we
not hear the account of Jesus' passion and not be moved by it? The
passion of Christ moves us. It moves us because Jesus suffered.
The passion of Jesus moves us because it is we who have inflicted this
Suffering on Jesus. It was not just the chief priests and 1t was not just
the cruel Roman Soldiers who brought this suffering on Jesus; it was our
Sins that inflicted this suffering on Jesus. There is no past, present or
future for Jesus, he is outside of time. Remember the jubilee motto,
Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever (Heb.13:8) and when
we sin we crucify Jesus. We nail him again. So then the account of the
passion of Jesus moves us to flee from sin, to leave sin behind. That is
why we receive the sacrament of reconciliation during Holy week. The
passion of Jesus shows us up for what we are-sinners who have crucified
Jesus-and in the sacrament of reconciliation we turn to Jesus again and
ask for his mercy. And through the passion of Jesus we receive
forgiveness, "through his wounds we are healed." (Is.53:5)
When we are hurt by things in our own life and hurt by what we see
happening in the world around us and need answers and healing and
reassurance let us turn to meditating on the passion of Jesus and find the
answer there, "through his wounds we are healed." (Isa.53:5) In fact. In
Luke's account of the passion which we heard today there were two
Occurrences of healing that are recorded only by Luke: Jesus healed the
ear of the high priest's servant which was wounded during the fray in
Gethsemane (Luke 22:51) and secondly the enmity between Herod and
pilate was healed (Luke 23:12). During the week ahead meditate on the
Passion of Jesus; let it become a source of healing for you also. Do not
waste this week. Spend this week With Jesus meditating on his passion.
Come to the mass of the Lord's Supper on Holy Thursday, the
celebration of the Lord's passion on Good Friday and Easter vigil on
Holy Saturday night. The crowd which welcomed Jesus with Palms
turned against him just as quickly and abandoned Jesus. Peter too turned
from Jesus to save himself. Do we hear our conscience crowing any
more when we sin? See what we have done to Jesus. Flee from sin, and
be healed, "through his wounds we are healed
LET US PRAY
Father, you have given the human race Jesus Christ Our Savior as a
model of humility. He fulfilled your will by becoming man and giving
his life on the cross. Help us to bear witness to you by following his
example of suffering and make us worthy to share in his resurrection,
through Christ our Lord Amen. (Prayer of the Mass)
THE CHURCH TEACHES:
At the established time, Jesus chose to go up to Jerusalem to suffer his
passion and death, and to rise from the dead. As the Messiah King who
showed forth the coming of the kingdom, he entered into his city
mounted on a donkey. Eucharistic Liturgy: "Blessed is he who comes in
the name of the Lord! Hosanna (save us)" (Matthew 21:9). The liturgy
of the Church opens Holy Week by celebrating this entry into Jerusalem.
(CCC.557-560, 569-570)
The Paschal mystery of Jesus, which comprises his passion, death,
resurrection and glorification, stands at the center of the Christian faith
because God's saving plan was accomplished once for all by the
redemptive death of his Son Jesus Christ. (CCC.571-573)
For Further Study: CCC 595-598
HELP TO REFLECTION:

1. Explain clearly what the Church is inviting us to do today?

2. How is the celebration ordered? What are the details and the
meaning of each stage of the celebration?
3. Why does the passion of Jesus move us? What are we
challenged to do?
4. The Church gives us a brief summary of the passion of Jesus
(CCC 557- 573)
 25 MAR. MON
FIRST READING: Is.42:1-7
GOSPEL: Jn 12:1-11
RELECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Is.42:1-7
THEME:
We hear at first of the Servant Songs from Isaiah - a prophecy of the
Servant's suffering, which will result in salvation for all.
Four "servant songs", sometimes called songs of the suffering servant
are found in the book of Isaiah (42: 1-9; 49:1-7; 50:1-11; 52:13 53:12).
Some see the servant of Yahweh in these songs as the nation, Israel;
others identify the servant as the prophet Isaiah or some other individual.
The belief of the New Testament Church is that Jesus is the one who
perfectly fulfils the role of the servant of the Lord.
At Jesus' baptism, John the Baptist saw "the Spirit of God descending
like a dove and alighting on him a reflection of the servant song, T have
put my Spirit upon him" (Mt 3:16; Is 42:1). The Father called Jesus "my
Chosen, also evoking the servant song (Lk 9:35; Is 42:1). Jesus, as the
one who most perfectly fulfils the prophecy regarding the servant, is the
one who " will bring forth justice to the nations" (Is 42:1). The mission
of the servant of Yahweh is to establish the justice of God on the earth.
The Father has a loving plan for His creation, and His justice is the
expression of that plan to us. Jesus brought justice to the world so that
the relationship between us and the Father would be healed, so that the
divisions between individuals, within peoples, and among nations would
be overcome. The servant of the Lord came to change the way we live in
order that we would live no longer according to human ways but
according to the justice of the Father. This plan is for our unity with God
and with one another.
In Jesus' life, death and resurrection, the kingdom of God came to this
world and justice was inaugurated on the earth. When Jesus comes
again, God's plan will be fulfilled: justice will reign and God's people
will live in righteousness (Is 42:6). Even now, we live in hope because
Jesus, the servant of the Lord, will not rest; He will "not grow faint or be
crushed until He has established justice on the earth (Is 42:4).
All around us, we see war and division; even so, we have hope because
in Jesus and through the Holy Spirit, the plan of God will be fulfilled.
May it be our prayer that we will participate in this plan and be
instruments of justice on the earth.
All powerful God, by the suffering and death of Your Son, strengthen
and protect us in our weakness, Grant us this through Christ our Lord.

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn 12:1-11

THEME:
DETAILS OF JESUS’ LAST VISIT TO THE HOME OF
MARTHA, MARY AND LAZARUS
The anointing of Jesus at Bethany serves to point out the decision each
one of us must make concerning God’s offer of salvation. Mary, who
had been with Jesus when He raised her brother Lazarus from the dead,
was present at a supper being given in Jesus’ honour. Sometime during
the course of the meal, she anointed Jesus with a costly perfume (Jn.
12:3).
Why did Mary “waste” this perfume on Jesus rather than keep it for
herself, or better yet, sell it and give the money to the poor? She must
have come to understand deep within her heart the truth of Jesus: that He
is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creatures; that all
was created through Him and for Him (See Col. 1:15-16). Out of this
knowledge grew her desire to give everything back to God, the giver of
all good things. Nothing, as far as Mary was concerned, was worth more
than Jesus.
Judas saw the anointing as a waste. He was unable to recognize the truth
of Jesus and the meaning of this act of love, and so he remained in
darkness. We often think like Judas, presuming that the little effort we
expend on the Lord is enough; any more we perceive it as a waste. The
root of this attitude is that we really don’t believe that Jesus is “before
all things, and in Him all things hold together”. We don’t understand the
depth of the truth that He has reconciled us “in His body of flesh by His
death” in order to present us “holy and blameless and irreproachable” to
the Father (Col 1:17, 22).
The Holy Spirit wants to convince us during the Holy Week of our total
need for Jesus. This conviction will come as we apply ourselves to
prayer and ask the Spirit to give us a glimpse of the glory of Jesus.
Consider if you want to “waste” your life on Him. Know that as your
belief in Christ deepens and your love for Him grows, you will desire
with all your heart to give yourself to Him.

Let Us Pray:
Holy Spirit, we beg you to open our eyes and our hearts to the truth of
who Jesus is. Give us the desire to place our lives on Him and to live in
Him forever. Grant us this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
The Church Teaches:
Beginning with the Old Testament, all kinds of juridical measures (the
jubilee year of forgiveness of debts, prohibition of loans at interest and
the keeping of collateral, the obligation to tithe, the daily payment of the
day-laborer, the right to gleanvines and fields) answer the exhortation of
Deuteronomy: "For the poor will never cease out of the land; therefore,
I command you, 'You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the
needy and to the poor in the land.'" Jesus makes these words his own:
"The poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.
"In so doing he does not soften the vehemence of former oracles against"
buying the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals...,"but
invites us to recognize his own presence in the poor who are his
brethren: When her mother reproached her for caring for the poor and
the sick at home, St. Rose of Lima said to her: "When we serve the poor
and the sick, we serve Jesus. We must not fail to help our neighbors,
because in them we serve Jesus. CCC. 2449
For Further Study: 1816

HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. What is the meaning of the servant song in Isaiah
2. How is the image of the servant song of Isaiah perfectly fulfilled in
Jesus Christ in the new testament?
3. What benefit do we derive from Jesus fulfilling the role of the
servant of song Isaiah
4. What does the anointing of Jesus at Bethany point out to each of
us?
5. Why did Mary pour out this costly perfume on Jesus?
 6. Why did Judas see the anointing as waste? How do we sometimes
behave like Judas and what is the root of such attitude?
7. How can we change such attitude especially during this Holy
Week?
8. The Church teaches us the type of attitude we should develop
towards the poor in our midst (CCC 2449).

26 MAR. TUE
FIRST READING: Is. 49:1-6
GOSPEL: Jn.13:21-33,36-38
RELECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Is. 49:1-6
THEME:
The liturgy presents another of the Servant Songs from Isaiah:
"You are my servant, he said to me, Israel, through whom I show
my glory"
Christians have long associated Jesus and His passion with the oracles
and songs of Isaiah's "Servant of the Lord". Besides today's passage, the
other oracles can be found in (Is 42:1-4; 50:4-11 & 52:13; 53:12). In
addition to their Servant imagery, these oracles are distinguished from
other passages in Isaiah by a singular style: quiet, compact, with a note
of melancholy.
There has always been speculation about the identity of the "Servant"
whom the author of the songs had in mind. Some scholars regard the
Servant as an individual who suffered in the accomplishment of God's
work; others see him as suffering Israel itself; still others see him as
both. As we read through the oracles however, it is striking to see how
perfectly Jesus' life and ministry fulfill their details. That is no doubt
why many Christians follow the lead of New Testament writers (Mt
8:17, Lk 2:32; Jn 12:38, 1 Pet 2:22-23) and see the Servant of the Lord
songs as a prefigurement of the life and ministry of Jesus.
Jesus was named by God at the moment of His conception (See Is 49:1
& Lk 1:31). God so trained him that Jesus spoke with authority, though
no one knew where He had gotten His knowledge (See Is 49:2; Mt
7:29). God was glorified in Jesus (See Is 49:3 & Jn 13:31). Under-
standing of what they reveal about Jesus and His ministry. Let God show
you more fully through them the work of Christ to bring us closer to
God.
Jesus must have felt that He "laboured in vain" (Is 49:4) when He went
to the cross His teachings rejected, His life about to be snuffed out,
deserted by His followers, wounded by Peter's denial and Judas'
betrayal. He had completed three years of ministry and seemed to have
accomplished nothing. At Gethsemane, He had resolved that God was to
be His reward (Is 49:4), and God honoured Jesus by raising Him from
the dead (Is 49:5). Jesus became the name by which all people are to be
saved (Acts 4:12), and Paul advanced that name among the Jews and
Gentiles (Is 49:6).
During Holy Week, it would be good to read all four of the Servant of
the Lord oracles and pray for a deeper and clearer vision.
LET US PRAY:
Holy Spirit, show us all that the Father has done in Jesus Christ. As we
read and pray over the Servant songs this week, bring us to a deeper
understanding of the work of the Son. Thus may we be freed of all
prejudice, pride, anger and doubt that prevent us from responding
adequately to His word. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen

THE CHURCH TAECHES:

The Messiah's characteristics are revealed above all in the "Servant
Songs. “These songs proclaim the meaning of Jesus' Passion, and show
how he will pour out the Holy Spirit to give life to the many: not as an
outsider, but by embracing our "form as slave." Taking our death upon
himself, he can communicate to us his own Spirit of life. CCC 713

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Jn.13:21-33,36-38

THEME:
JESUS ANNOUNCES HIS BETRAYAL BY JUDAS AND THE
DENIAL OF PETER.
We might wonder how Judas, who lived and walked with Jesus for three
years, witnessed His miracles and knew His love, could have betrayed
him. Judas’ downfall was that he reasoned according to the flesh, rather
than allowing Himself to be enlightened and taught by Jesus. The
“flesh” describes human nature apart from the saving work of Christ. All
of us, even baptized Christians, live by the flesh when we choose to live
without the aid of God’s grace and wisdom. By clinging to his own ideas
about who Jesus was, Judas’ heart was hardened and Satan was given
the opportunity he had been seeking.
Judas heard and saw Jesus day after day, and yet the truth of Jesus
somehow seems to have failed to capture his heart and change him. This
shows us that people can appear to be close to Jesus because they pray
regularly and receive the Eucharist yet can be untouched by Him and
even hardened towards Him if they are not open to the grace God freely
gives.
St Paul told the Romans: “The mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to
God; it does not submit to God’s law -indeed, it cannot, and those who
are in the flesh cannot please God” (Rom 8: 7-8). The key to keeping
Judas’ fate from becoming our own is to set our minds firmly on Jesus at
the start of each day, and frequently during the day. By reaffirming the
truth of the gospel -that we have died to sin with Jesus and have been
raised to new life in Him -we can prevent Satan’s temptations from
hardening our hearts and making us indifferent to Jesus or even leading
us to betray Him.
Judas in the end turned from Jesus because he too often failed to allow
the truth of Jesus to change him. Let us pray that we will allow the Spirit
of God to touch our hearts daily.

Let Us Pray:
Jesus, we beseech you to send your Holy Spirit to dwell within us and to
lead us in our walk with You. Help us to reject the dictates of the flesh
because we know that these can harden our hearts towards you. We look
forward to celebrating your resurrection on Easter Sunday, because we
are aware that by your rising, you have freed us from sin and death and
given us victory over the flesh. You who live and reign forever and ever.
Amen.
The Church Teaches:
The desire to embrace his Father's plan of redeeming love inspired
Jesus' whole life, for his redemptive passion was the very reason for his
Incarnation. and so he asked, "and what shall I say?' Father, save me
from this hour'? No, for this purpose I have come to this hour." and
again," Shall I not drink the cup which the Father has given me?" From
the cross, just before "It is finished", he said, "I thirst." CCC. 607
For Further Studies: 609, 71
HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. How do we understand the oracle of Isaiah?
2. How do the new testament help us to understand the oracle of
Isaiah?
3. How did Jesus ministry help us understand the oracle of Isaiah?
4. Why did Judas betray Jesus; what was the cause of his downfall?
5. What lesson do we learn from the example of Judas who heard and
saw Jesus day after day yet failed to change his life and capture his
heart?
6. What did St. Paul tell the Romans and us too about how to keep
the fate of Judas from becoming our own?
7. What should be our prayer so that we don't turn from Jesus to
Judas?
 27 MAR WED
FIRST READING: Is.50:4-9a
GOSPEL: Mtt.26:14-25
RELECTION ON THE FIRST READING: Is.50:4-9a
THEME:
Isaiah foretells grim details of the torment of the Suffering Servant.
He will be beaten, his beard plucked out, and he will be spit upon.
In the third of the songs of the suffering servant, the servant is seen as a
sage, a faithful disciple of the Lord God, who has been taught by God
and charged to teach others and bring comfort to the weary (ls 50:4).
Like the prophets before him, the servant is ignored and abused by the
very people he has been called to serve (Is 50:6). In the end, however, he
is assured that his mission will be successful because God will help him
(Is 50:7-9).
Jewish interpretation of the servant songs has traditionally been that the
servant is the people Israel personified as an individual. Israel is the
people through whom God has chosen to reveal Himself to the world
(Deut 10:18) and through whom the Messiah will come, bringing
salvation to all people. The revelation of the servant is that salvation
comes through suffering.
The servant can readily be seen as a prefigurement of Christ whose
suffering has atoned for the sins of all humanity. The identity of the
servant as Israel is paralleled in the New Testament by equating Jesus
and the Church. Jesus is the servant who brings Israel to fulfilment as
God's people; concurrently, Jesus is one with the Church which is His
body.
Jesus is a reflection of the Father because He has submitted Him- self
totally to the Father and always sought to do His will. As a result, His
ears were attuned to hear whenever the Father spoke. Morning after
morning, the Father opened Jesus ears to receive His teaching which
Jesus then imparted to the people (Is 50:4-5). The Father
Words sustained and comforted the people, Just as the teachings of God
transmitted to the people by the servant brought them comfort.
In many ways, we are like the Israelites described in this song. they hear
the teachings of God proclaimed by His servant, yet reject the word and
treat the servant with contempt. Self-centred and strong-willed, we reject
any interference in what we want to do. When the Word the servant
speaks conflicts with our plans and desires, we tend to reject or ignore it.
As a result, our experience of the peace and comfort that God's words
are intended to bring us falls far short of God's desire.
LET US PRAY:
Heavenly Father, may our ears be open to receive the word spoken by
Your Servant. May our desire be to conform our life to Your plan, so
that Your word will sustain and comfort us. Grant us this through Christ
Our Lord

REFLECTION ON THE GOSPEL: Mtt.26:14-25

THEME:JUDAS’ PLAN TO BETRAY JESUS.
Jesus had known for a long time that He would have to suffer and die.
That was the reason for His trip to Jerusalem. “Jesus began to show His
disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the
elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day
be raised” (Mt 16:21). He later repeated this prophetic message (See Mt
1 7:22; 20:18). These and other predictions of his death in the gospels
reveal that Jesus was not simply caught up in a tide of events. He was in
control. He was freely laying down His life in obedience to the Father.
No one was taking it from Him against His will.
Yet, it was Judas’ action that set in motion the chain of events that
followed. Why did Judas decide to betray Jesus? It all boils down to the
fact that Judas did not see Jesus with spiritual eyes but with eyes that
perceived him only in human terms. Judas could not understand that
there was an eternal purpose to the life and death of Jesus, that Jesus was
no mere man. We too need to face this issue during the next few days.
Each of us needs to ask ourselves: “Who do I believe Jesus is? Do I
really need Him in my life?” Honest answers are required.
In an audience on Wednesday of Holy Week 1986, Pope John Paul II
said: “I exhort you to live these days with fervour, so that they will leave
a profound imprint upon your soul, orienting your lives”. There is still
much to learn about the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. An
excellent way to do so is to participate in the Easter Triduum with
prayerful hearts. Pope John Paul II declared: “Make it your duty to
participate in the rites of Holy Week, leaving aside other interests and
affairs, convinced that the liturgy truly purifies man’s sentiments,
e1evates his aspirations, causes him to feel the beauty of the Christian
Faith and ignites in him a deep yearning for heaven. A Christian is one
who has understood that humanity has been saved by Christ and thus
cannot live without Easter”.
As we actively take part in the liturgy, commemorating these greatest of
events in history, we will come to a deeper understanding of who Jesus
is and how indispensable He is to our lives. We will know why He had
to suffer and die, and we will be grateful.
Let Us Pray:
Father, in your plan of salvation, Your Son Jesus accepted the cross and
freed humankind from the power of all evil. May we in time come to
share the glory of His resurrection! Through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
The Church Teaches:
Jesus gave the supreme expression of his free offering of himself at the
meal shared with the twelve Apostles "on the night he was betrayed". On
the eve of his Passion, while still free, Jesus transformed this Last
Supper with the apostles into the memorial of his voluntary offering to
the Father for the salvation of men: "This is my body which is given for
you." "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many
for the forgiveness of sins." CCC. 610.
For Further Studies: 1339.
HELP TO REFLECTION:
1. How does the third of songs of the suffering servant (IS 50:4)
describe the servant?
2. How did Jews interpret the songs.
3. In what ways as the suffering servant a prefigurement of Jesus
Christ?
4. How are we today like the Israelite describe in this song?
5. What proof is there to show that Jesus had known for a long time
that he would suffer and die; and that he was freely laying down
His life in obedience to the father?
6. Why then did Judas decide to betray Jesus? How are we to face
this issue in the next week?
7. What did St. John Paul II exhort us to do during this Holy week
and what do we gain by doing so?
 28 MAR THUR
THEME:(HOLY THURSDAY) THE INSTITUTION OF THE
EUCHARIST. "AS OFTEN AS YOU EAT THIS BREAD AND
DRINK THE CHALICE, YOU PROCLAIM THE LORD'S
DEATH." (1 COR. 11:26)
FIRST READING: IS. 61:1-3abcd. 6a. 8b-9
SECOND READING: REV. 1:5-8
GOSPEL: LK. 4:16-21
RELECTION ON READING:
FOCUS: THE PASCHAL MYSTERY IS GRADUALLY
UNFOLDING ITSELF. OUR RICH HOLY THURSDAY
COMMEMORATIONS CAN HELP US PREPARE TO
CELEBRATE EASTER MORE FULLY.
Today is one of the most ritual-filled days of the church year. We
receive the blessed oils; we strip the altar and take the Body of Christ
out of the main tabernacle The priest washes people's feet, and although
it is more than a ritual: we celebrate the Mass. It is a day to
commemorate so much, as we enter into the solemn three days of Holy
Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday, known in the Church as the
Triduum. These days lead us to what Pope Saint Leo the First called the
greatest feast, Easter.
Foremost among all these, Holy Thursday remembrances, we celebrate
the institution of the Eucharist, the first time bread and wine were
changed to Christ's Body and Blood. By doing this in the context of the
Passover meal, Jesus showed us that he was the new Paschal Lamb. His
Body and Blood were about to be sacrificed for the salvation of all. He
provided for us to continue to celebrate this new Passover through the
Eucharist (cf. CCC 1340).
Today' s first reading re-calls the first Passover, and the call of God to
use the blood of lambs to mark the doorposts of his Chosen People.
These lambs were to be without blemish, and would be sacrificed to save
the Israelites from the angel of death. Centuries later, people would sec
this Passover event was a foreshadowing of the eternal salvation Goa
would provide his people through the Blood of Jesus, the Paschal Lamb.
(Ex. 12:1-8,11-14)
Our second reading gives us Paul's depiction of the Last Supper. The
Words and actions Jesus used to institute the Eucharist are heard here
and are repeated in every Mass, as the priest consecrates the bread and
wine, these words and actions, through their own power and the power
of the Holy Spirit, change the bread and wine to Christ's Body and
Blood (cf. CCC1375) Jesus instructed and empowered his Apostles, and
those they Would designate, to do this in remembrance of me. That is
exactly what priests have been doing since that time. (1 Cor. 11:23-26).
Finally, our Gospel calls to mind how Jesus washed the feet of his
Apostles. In this act, Jesus reminds us that he is the one who can wash
away our sins. Washing the feet also served to point out that we are to be
ready to reach out in service to others. Jesus taught, graphically and
pointedly by his own words and actions, that those who want to follow
him must be the servants of others. (Jn. 13: 1-5)
As we celebrate and commemorate all of these things, let us strive to
draw closer to God, and to grow in holiness. These things take time, but
we should make a point, over the next few days, of re-reading the
Scriptures, praying about them and searching our own hearts for ways to
make them come more fully alive in what we do each day. This is a
tremendous way to prepare to celebrate Christ's Resurrection on Easter
Sunday, as well as to discern what his Resurrection means in our lives.
LET US PRAY:
Father, for your glory and our salvation, you appointed Jesus Christ
eternal High Priest. May the people that He gained for you by his blood
come to share in the power of his cross and resurrection by celebrating
the memorial in the Eucharist, for he lives and reigns with you and the
Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.
THE CHURCH TEACHES:
If from the beginning Christians have celebrated the Eucharist and in a
form whose substance has not changed despite the diversity of time and
liturgies, it is because we know ourselves to be bound by the command
the Lord gave on the eve of his Passion: "Do this in remembrance of
me” CCC. 1356
For further studies: CCC 1608
CCC1382-1384,1391-1396,1333-1344,1345-1355,1408,1324,
1327,1407.1348,141 1-1412.

HELP TO REFLECTION:

 Which are the rituals the Church celebrates during this rich Holy
Thursday and the Triduum: Thursday, Good Friday and Holy
Saturday
 What is special about the celebration on Holy Thursday? What
does Jesus teach us about Himself (CCC 1340)?
  What do we learn from the 1st, 2nd and Gospel readings of the
evening service?
 What should we strive to do as we celebrate and commemorate all
the events of Holy Thursday?

29 MAR FRI

THEME: CELEBRATION OF THE LORD'S PASSION: GOOD

FRIDAY
FIRST READING: Is 52:13-53,12
GOSPEL: Jn 18:1-9,42
RELECTION ON THE READING:
FOCUS: JESUS DIED FOR THE FORGIVENESS OF OUR SINS
AND TO WIN OUR SALVATION. GREATER LOVE THAN THIS
NO ONE HAS…" (Jn. 15:13)
Sometime we do not recognize what is right in front of us. Perhaps it is
because its appearance has been altered by the passing of time or by
what surrounds it. Perhaps we do not recognize it because our
perspective has changed; we see it from a different angle, in a different
light or because we are distracted by something else. Today's Scriptures
call us to recognize Jesus in his many aspects.
In today's passage from Isaiah we encounter the Suffering Servant, an
image that has been explored in the first reading of each day of Holy
Week and continues into our Triduum celebration. Again, we read about
the afflicted man who endured humiliation, torture and suffering. We
can easily see that the prophecy from Isaiah applies to Jesus when it
speaks of a man of suffering, accustomed to infirmity, one of those from
whom people hide their faces, spurned, and we held him in no esteem.
This Silent, submissive Servant was afflicted because he bore our
infirmities, endured our sufferings, was crushed for our sins, and by his
stripes we were healed. When we encounter the poor or oppressed, do
we recognize the Christ who suffered for us? (Is. 52: 13-53: 12)
The Letter to the Hebrews focuses on a different aspect of Christ. Here
He is the Great High Priest who can sympathize with our weakness, was
obedient to the Father, and became the source of eternal salvation.
Because this High Priest can empathize with us, we should confidently
approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace. When
we are at our weakest, do we recognize the sacrificial love of Christ who
raised us up? (Heb. 4: 14-16, 5:7-9).
John's Passion narrative returns us to the focus on Jesus as a humble and
obedient Servant who, though abandoned by some and slandered by
others, offered his life for the sins of all. Two persons especially stand
out in this account Peter and Pilate. Peter, the same disciple who, when
he had been asked who do you say that I am? Confidently responded that
Jesus "as the Messiah (cf. Mt. 16:16), now three times denies that he
knows Jesus. Because of his own fear and discomfort. he refuses to
recognize Jesus as his friend and Saviour. (Jn. 18:1-19: 42).
Pilate is confused concerning Jesus, as he questions Jesus in the
praetorian. then addresses the Jews. He asks Jesus if he is the King of
the tends, but Jesus insist that his Kingdom is not of this world. Pilate
submits him to a scourging and mocks him with a robe and crown, yet
still tries to release him to the Jews. Three times Pilate states that he
finds no guilty in him. Finally, Pilate hands Jesus over to the chief
priests to have him crucified and posts a sign that mocks him as Jesus
the Nazarene, King of the Jews.
In our daily living. how often do we not recognize Christ nor heed his
gospel message? How often is our judgment clouded by fear, swayed by
popular sentiment, or obscured by our own egos? How often have we
failed to hear his truth? Today, let us remember that, out of love for us
and in humble obedience to the will of his Father, Jesus freely chose to
suffer and die for the forgiveness of sins and to win our salvation. And
then, with grateful hearts, we are to go forward to lead lives of service to
others.

LET US PRAY
Remember your mercies, O Lord, and with your eternal protection
sanctity your servants, for whom Christ your son, by shedding of his
Blood, established the Pascal Mystery. Who lives and reigns forever and
ever? Amen.
THE CHURCH TEACHES: (SEE YEAR B). CCC 605
At the end of the parable of the lost sheep Jesus recalled that God’s love
excludes no one: “So it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven
that one of these little ones should perish.” This last term is not
restrictive, but contracts the whole of humanity with the unique person
of the redeemer who hands himself over to save us. The Church,
following the apostles, teaches that Christ dies for all men without
exception: “There is not, never has been, and never will be a single
human being for whom Christ did not suffer.
For Further Study: CCC 608, 754, 857, 8598
CCC. 571-573,574-576,595-598,599-605,619,606-609,620,618,624-630
HELP TO REFLECTION:

 Today's scripture readings help us to recognize Jesus in his many

aspects
 I)What does the passage from Isaiah 52:13-5 tell us?
ii) What do we learn from the letter to the Hebrews 4:14-16;5:7-9
iii) What of the passion according to St. John 18:1-19:42?
 How do we describe Pilate and his activities?
 What should we find out about our daily Christian living in
relation to Jesus? What are we to remember about what Jesus did
for us?

30 MAR SAT
THEME: (HOLY SATURDAY) HE IS NOT HERE, BUT HE HAS
BEEN RAISED."(LK. 234:6)
FIRST READING:ROM 6:3-11
GOSPEL: MK. 16:1-7
RELECTION ON THE READING:
FOCUS: THIS IS THE DAY THE LORD HAS MADE LET US
REJOICE
REFLECTION:
On Holy Saturday the Church waits at the Lord's tomb in prayer and
fasting, meditating on his Passion, and Death and on his descent into
Hell, and awaiting his Resurrection.
Nine readings are assigned to the Easter Vigil: seven from the Old
Testament, and two from the New. If circumstances demand in
individual cases, the number of prescribed readings may be reduced.
Three selections from the Old Testament, however, should be read
before the epistle and Gospel, although when necessary, two may be
read. In any case, the reading from exodus about the escape through the
Red Sea (Reading 3) should never be omitted.
The setting for today's Gospel is the burial place of Jesus. To that tomb,
Mary Magdalene and her companions have made their way in the early
morning light to minister to the body of Jesus, which had been placed
there just three days before. The women do not fully understand what
they are seeing: the large stone covering the tomb's entrance has been
rolled away and the tomb is empty. Jesus is gone. Two strangers deliver
a most Unusual message: He is not here, but he has been raised.
Suddenly the Sorrow and mourning that brought the women to the tomb
turns to wonder and rejoicing. They begin to remember some of the
words that Jesus had spoken to them about dying and rising on the third
day. They quickly went back into the city to share their discovery with
the other disciples.
With disbelief at this amazing news, Peter runs to the tomb. He wants to
see for himself the place where they had laid Jesus. He looks at the rock
rolled out of the way. He looks in the tomb and sees nothing but the
burial cloths that had been wrapped around the body of the Lord.
Understanding is slow to come, but Peter begins to realize that a great
thing has occurred here. The heavy burden in his heart surely begins to
subside.
One must wonder it Peter's thoughts might also have returned to the last
time he had been close to Jesus, in the Garden of Gethsemane, the
garden of the Lord's agony. In that garden, Peter, James and John had
failed to watch even one hour with the Lord. They slept. Their Lord and
Teacher had served them at supper and had washed their feet. When
Jesus asked them to pray for guidance and strength in that time of
testing, they failed miserably; they fell soundly asleep. Perhaps, Peter's
memory of his weakness in the earlier time was eased by the promise
and hope that must have filled his heart now. The darkness of agony and
suffering was made bright in the glory, splendor and light of Christ's
Resurrection.
Just as Jesus carried our sins into that garden of agony and bore them on
that terrible Cross all the way to Calvary hill, he shares resurrection and
new life with us tonight. Jesus did not suffer for his sins for he was
sinless- but for ours. God did not raise Jesus from the dead for his own
sake, but for ours. We were the ones in need of forgiveness and
redemption. We were the ones in need of the hope that Jesus brought
into the world. Through tonight's Gospel, we have been brought
vicariously to the empty
tomb and invited to open our hearts all the more fully to the glory of the
Resurrection.
Tonight, with the Apostles and those who have followed Jesus
throughout history, we can celebrate that, through his Resurrection,
Jesus has destroyed the darkness of death. He opened the way to eternal
life. We need not fear. If we persevere, a glorious future awaits us in
heaven. Light has overcome the darkness. Rejoice and be glad!
LET US PRAY:
Now that the days of the Lord's Passion have drawn to a close, may w
who celebrate the gladness of the Paschal Feast come with Christ's help
and exulting in spirit, to those feasts that are celebrated in eternal joy.
We pray through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
THE CHURCH TEACHES:
The Resurrection of Jesus is the crowning truth of our faith in Christ and
represents along with its Cross an essential part of the Paschal Mystery
(CCC. 631, 638)
Along with the essential sign of the empty tomb, the Resurrection of
Jesus is witnessed to by the women who first encountered Christ and
proclaimed him to the Apostles. Jesus then "appeared to Cephas (Peter)
and then to the Twelve. Following that he appeared to more than five
hundred of the brethren at one time" (I Corinthians 15:5-6) and to others
as well. The Apostles could not have invented the story of the
resurrection since it seemed impossible to them. As a matter of fact,
Jesus Himself upbraided them for their unbelief. (CCC 639-644, 656-
657)
HELP TO REFLECTION:

 What does the Church do on Holy Saturday Easter vigil?

 How are the readings chosen? What is the setting for today's
Gospel? Tell the story of the women and of Peter
 What do you think Peter's thought might have been at this period
in time?
 How do we share tonight in Christ's passion and resurrection?
What can we celebrate with the Apostles and others the passion
and resurrection of Jesus Christ?
 Let us carefully study the teaching of the Church on the
resurrection of Jesus in CCC 631,638, 639-644, 656-657.
 31 MAR.SUN

EASTER SUNDAY

THEME: THE RESURRECTION OF THE LORD

“FOR AS YET THEY DID NOT KNOW THAT HE MUST
RISE FROM THE DEAD”. (JN. 20: 9)
“CHRIST INDEED HAS RISEN AS HE SAID
ALLELLUIA.” (LK. 24:34)

FOCUS: JESUS CHRIST WHO SUFFERED, DIED AND WAS

BURIED HAS RISEN FROM THE DEAD. CHRIST HAS
CONQUERED SIN AND DEATH.

INTRODUCTION:
1. A very happy Easter to you all my dear people of God. Easter is a
time of joy. According to the Psalmist: This is the day the Lord has
made let us rejoice and be glad in it (Ps. 118:24). This joy is to be found
and experienced really and fully in the heart of every Christian. Christ is
alive. He is not someone who has gone: someone who existed for a time
and passed on, leaving us a wonderful and a great memory. No. Christ is
alive. Jesus is Emmanuel – God with us. His resurrection shows that
Jesus does not abandon his own.
2. Today is the feast of feasts! St. Paul writing to the Corinthians 1
Cor. 15:14 say that if Christ has not been raised then our preaching is
empty, and our faith too is empty. This is the day all creation longed for
from the fall of Adam and Eve. God and humankind are once again
made whole. Christ, by his Passion, death and Resurrection, bridged the
chasm between God and humankind caused by sin. Our striving all
through Lent to make sacrifices and to fast should now give way to
celebrating the overwhelming abundance of God’s grace and mercy.
Today many of us will gather for a special meal with family or friends.
This is a way we can experience a foretaste of the eternal banquet that
awaits us in heaven. And, as Catholics, we celebrate not only for one
day, but for fifty!

3. As we celebrate, it is interesting to realize that none of the

disciples actually saw Jesus rise from the dead. Much like us, it was their
encountering the Risen Christ that gave the Apostles the courage to
proclaim to the world that Christ is Risen! It is our encountering Christ
now, in our lives that can help us share the Good News with others.

4. Refer to Note no.3 of the Introduction of the first Sunday of

Advent.

THE WORD OF GOD:

Acts. 10:34-43.
The apostles are personal witnesses that Jesus rose from the dead, for
they “ate and drank with him.” They are commissioned to preach Jesus,
to whom the prophets testify and through whom there is forgiveness of
sin.

Col. 3:1-4.
“Your life is hidden now with Christ in God.” 1Cor. 5:6-8. (Alternate
Second Reading) The Risen Christ is the unleavened bread of sincerity
and truth by which we rise from the dead.

John. 20:1-9.
(Morning Mass) Mary Magdalene, Peter and John all arrive at the tomb,
one with wonder, the others at first with perplexity, all eventually with
faith that Jesus is risen.

REFLECTION
1. Some questions to ask ourselves, might include, what is our
experience of the Risen Christ? How has He touched our hearts? In what
ways and in what situations do we encounter Him? And what has this
en-counter meant in how we love and serve God and others? Do we
follow the example that we heard about in today’s first reading, of Peter
going out and telling about the Resurrection? Being so bold about our
experience of Jesus may not be easy. Even two thousand years ago,
many thought Peter was mad. Yet, his teaching and example remain, and
were vital to the Church’s growth. Our words and actions may not have
such wide-ranging repercussions, but they are important, nonetheless.
Our willingness to use our talents in service to God and others helps the
Church carry on the mission entrusted to it by Jesus, along with helping
to build up God’s Kingdom. (Acts. 10:34, 37-43).

2. For some people, this day may mean nothing significant. But we,
who celebrate today as a special recognition of the Resurrection of our
Saviour, know that it signifies our hope of eternal life with God. For us,
it provides a perfect opportunity to be renewed in the Lord as we open
our hearts more fully to him. This will enable us, in turn, to share the
power and the promise of the Resurrection with others, and thus to share
more fully in the Easter joy.

CHALLENGE TO NEWNESS OF LIFE

3. By his resurrection Christ triumphed over death; he has overcome
sorrow and anguish, sin, death and the power of darkness. Do not be
terrified. You are looking for Jesus Christ who was crucified. He has
risen; he is not here (Mk. 16:6). Christ’s resurrection offers us one bright
hope that all is not lost; we shall one day overcome our problems in
personal and societal life. It challenges us to a more radical conversion
and newness of life. We are challenged to newness of life. (1Cor. 5:6-8)

4. When we talk of personal resurrection our minds recall the

moments of past sins of guilt, remorse, regret, unfulfilled dreams,
despair and hatred; the heart of every man and woman is at some time
heavy with such an experience. Easter – the victory of Christ over sin –
fills the Christian heart with hope, joy and mysterious gladness. In the
healing grace of Jesus and the gentle touching love of the Spirit, the
Father makes everyone of us whole. We are once more reconciled to
God our Father.

THE RISEN CHRIST LIVES IN US IN PARTICULAR MOMENTS

OF OUR LIFE.
5. Our faith teaches us that when we overcome our sins, Christ is
alive in us – Christ rises again in us. His life becomes our own life, just
as he promised his Apostles at the last supper: If anyone loves me, he
will keep my word, and my Father will love him and we will come to
him and make our home with him (Jn. 14:23). When a Christian strives
to live as Christ lived, making his teaching and example his leading
principles of life Christ rises again in her.

A NATION IN NEED OF A SAVIOUR

6. Ours is a nation that needs a Saviour. We need a saviour to assist
the government in guaranteeing the well being of the people. We need a
Saviour to help eradicate totally the evil of Moral bankruptcy in high
and low place. The saviour will help us overcome poverty and disease,
divisions, ethnicity, lack of job opportunities, the poison of materialism
and the spirit of consumerism. Most homes are weak and negligent of
the character formation of their children. Our secondary schools and
institutions of higher learning do not inspire much hope for a better
future. Our youth lack the necessary moral and religious education.
Secularization of education is a curse on our nation. We are already
reaping the fruits of it.
CHRIST IS OUR SURE HOPE AND SAVIOUR
7. All of us Nigerians need first to admit that all is not well.
Governments at all level should resist the temptation to tell lies to the
people. One cannot deceive all the people all the time. No true
democracy can develop and survive under such infertile conditions.
There is need to have recourse to the Risen Christ who alone by his
victory, over sin and death has restored life to all humanity. The Risen
Christ, his life and teaching as lived out in the lives of each Christian
man and woman is the answer. Christ is alive in every Christian. Easter
finds full meaning and is effective panacea when each Christian rises
with Christ from death to life every day.

We cleanse out the old leaven to become new dough (1 Cor. 5:8). The
salutary influence of good Christians in our society will bring back
sanity to all and the desired moral and spiritual renewal will take place.
Therefore at Easter, every Christian should rededicate himself/herself to
Christ so that He may change our society through the good Christian
living of every Christian man and woman.

LET US PRAY:
May abundant blessing, O Lord, we pray, descend upon your people,
who have honoured the death of your Son in the hope of their
resurrection: may pardon and comfort be given, Holy Faith increases,
and everlasting redemption be made secure.Through Christ Our Lord.
Amen.
THE CHURCH TEACHES:
We repeat the teachings given for Holy Saturday: Easter Vigil.

1. What is the “hell” into which Jesus descended” (632-637)

This “hell” was different from the hell of the damned. It was the state of
all those, righteous and evil, who died before Christ. With his soul
united to his divine Person Jesus went down to the just in hell who were
awaiting their Redeemer so they could enter at last into the vision of
God. When he had conquered by his death both death and the devil.
“Who has the power of death” (Hebrews 2:14), he freed the just who
looked forward to the Redeemer and opened for them the gates of
heaven.

2. What place does the Resurrection of Christ occupy in our faith?

(631, 638)
The Resurrection of Jesus is the crowning truth of our faith in Christ and
represents along with his cross an essential part of the Paschal Mystery.

3. What are the signs that bear witness to the Resurrection of Jesus?
(639-644, 656-657)
Along with the essential sign of the empty tomb, the Resurrection of
Jesus is witnessed to by the women who first encountered Christ and
proclaimed him to the apostles. Jesus then “appeared to Cephas (Peter)
and then to the Twelve. Following that he appeared to more than five
hundred of the brethren at one time” (1 Corinthians 15:5- 6) and to
others as well. The apostles could not have invented the story of the
resurrection since it seemed impossible to them. A matter of fact, Jesus
himself upbraided them for their unbelief.

4. What is the condition of the risen body of Jesus? (645 – 646)

The Resurrection of Christ was not a return to earthly life. His risen
body is that which was crucified and bears the marks of his passion.
However it also participates in the divine life, with the characteristics of
a glorified body. Because of this the risen Jesus was utterly free to
appear to his disciples how and where he wished and under various
aspects.

5. How is the Resurrection the work of the Most Holy Trinity? (648 –
650)
The Resurrection of Christ is a transcendent work of God. The three
Persons act together according to what is proper to them: the Father
manifests his power; the Son “takes again” the life which he freely
offered (John 10:17), reuniting his soul and his body which the Spirit
brings to life and glorifies.

6. What is the saving meaning of the Resurrection? (651-655, 658)

The Resurrection is the climax of the Incarnation. It confirms the
divinity of Christ and all the things which he did and taught. It fulfils all
the divine promises made for us. Furthermore the risen Christ, the
conqueror of sin and death, is the principle of our justification and our
Resurrection. It procures for us now the grace of filial adoption which is
a real share in the life of the only begotten Son. At the end of time he
will raise up our bodies.
May abundant blessing, O Lord, we pray, descend upon your people,
who have honoured the Death of your Son in the hope of their
resurrection: may pardon and comfort be given, holy faith increase, and
everlasting redemption be made secure. Through Christ Our Lord.
Amen.

HELP TO REFLECTION

 Why is Easter a time of joy and a feast of feasts?

 What answer do you have for the following questions
i) What is your experience of the risen Christ?
ii) How has he touched your heart?
iii) In what way and situation do you encounter him?
iv) How has the encounter helped you to love God and
neighbour?
v) Do you witness to Christ like Peter to others?
 Does this day make any meaning to you? What challenges does the
resurrection of our Lord pose for you?
 What does the Easter feast offer to our nation and how is the risen
Christ our only hope in Nigeria?
 Study and learn what the Church teaches us about the witnesses to
the resurrection of Christ (CCC 631,638,644).