The Nexus

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Lectionary Readings for the 1st Sunday of Lent, Year C

“Not on bread alone shall man live.”

In this first Sunday of Lent, the gospel shows
us that Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, was
led to the wilderness where He had to contest
with the devil.  The devil tempted Him three
times: the first in relation to bread, the
second in relation to power over earthly
kingdoms, and the third in relation to testing
the Father.  When the devil tempted Him these
three times, Jesus was successful in saying
“no” to these temptations.  He was successful
because of His commitment to the Father and
to the mission He was called to fulfill.

Jesus showed us a very good example of how
we should do the right thing and avoid being
tempted to do what is not right.  He teaches
us that we should not live our lives as if
only food and the concerns of our bodies are
what only matters.  Second, He teaches us
that we should stay away from the idols of
power and success and pay homage only to the
Father in heaven.  And third, He also teaches
us that we should not put the Lord God to
the test - which scholars often term as one
that could lead to the sin of presumption.

Jesus is our model par excellance of how we
can fight temptation, avoid evil, and do what
is right.  What were His means?  The gospel
gives us some clues: being led by the Holy
Spirit, and fasting.  We who are very active
in earning a living, and engaging in the concerns
of our professions and families, will be placed
in many situations where we may be in the danger
of succumbing to temptation(s).  Every year, the
Church gives us the opportunities to strengthen
our spirits through the season of Lent - a
season of more prayer, sacrifices and self-denial,
and more deeds of charity and almsgiving.  Let
us in this season of Lent take that opportunity
to be strengthened by the Spirit of Jesus: a
Spirit committed to the Father’s Word and
led by the Holy Spirit to prayer and fasting.
The Spirit of Jesus helps us to be strong to
avoid evil and do what is right.  Let us not
forget that it is not solely by our own
efforts that we can do what is right but
through the help of the Holy Spirit and
the concrete example of Jesus - who was
firmly rooted in obeying the will of the
Father.

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Lectionary Readings for the 7th Sunday of the Year, Year C

“Do to others what you would have them do to you.”

Scholars who have studied comparative religion
tell us that one of the basic and common elements
in mainline world religions is the “golden rule”.
This “golden rule” is best expressed in what the
gospel for this Sunday tells us: “Do to others
what you would have them do to you”.  In simple
terms, this means if we do good, we receive also
what is good.  And if we do bad, we receive the
same as what we had given.

A question arises for many of us: “what if
we do good and we get paid ‘bad’ in return?” If
we listen to the many ways this question is
answered, we may get lost in all of them.  The
world will give its answer.  And so will the
wisdom of our flesh.  And we do not even have
to find out the answer that would come from the
Evil One.  But Jesus teaches us what the answer
should be: “Do to others what you would have
them do to you”.  And this we are called to
receive and accept with great faith.  Blessed
Teresa of Calcutta has something to say also in
this regard.  She said that if people are
unkind, be kind just the same.  If people are
bad, be good just the same.  Eventually, what
is implied in what she said was that good
ultimately will overcome what is evil.

The source of all goodness and mercy is
God our Father.  By our own flesh and will,
the good that we do is limited.  Only in as
much as we receive the Spirit of Jesus,
the Spirit of God, the source of all righteousness
and goodness, do we share in His victory over
evil, sin and death.  And the way we can share
in this victory is in our devotion to the
Blessed Eucharist - the source of all of
God’s gifts.  Through the sacrament of the
Eucharist, we are strengthened in our weakness
to rise above our failings, to be purified
of all mediocrity and sin, and to focus our
lives on Christ - who is the very reason for
our life commitment - a life called to be
founded again and again in a life of service
to Him and our brothers and sisters.

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Lectionary Readings for the 6th Sunday of the Year, Year C

“Blest are you poor; the reign of God is yours.”

Scripture teachers tell us that this Sunday’s
gospel is the equivalent of Luke’s Beatitudes
to the Beatitudes of Matthew.  The difference
between the two is that Luke refers more to
actual poverty rather than the spiritual poverty
referred to by Matthew.  And in Luke’s Beatitudes,
there are “woes” added to each “blest”.

The beatitudes taught by Jesus is a guide for
the Christian in pursuing God’s blessings and
a happy life.  And if we Christians are presently
experiencing suffering and want, these beatitudes
of Luke help bring consolation, comfort and
assurance of God’s benevolent care and guidance.
It also warns those of us Christians who may
be experiencing comfort at present without
concern for those who are suffering or in
distress.

In our life journey, there will be many times
when we will experience both poverty or abundance,
both sorrow and happiness, both hunger and plenitude,
both desolation and consolation.  Jesus teaches and
guides us in what attitudes we are to take whenever
we experience such situations.  He consoles and
comforts us when we are in difficulties and in
much suffering.  But He also warns us when we
are rich or living too much in our comfort zones
without concern for others.  Since Jesus not only
taught us by word but also by deed, we can look
to Him as a perfect example of how He lived these
beatitudes.  It is the person of Jesus who will
help us in the actualization of this teachings
in our family, our life, our work, and our
community.  The more we meditate on His life,
the more we will be guided by His Spirit in
living these beatitudes.

Enkindle in Them the Fire of Your Love archives

Lectionary Readings for the 5th Sunday of the Year, Year C
“With that they brought their boats to land,
left everything, and became his followers.”
Bible scholars say that Simon Peter and his
companions may have already heard of Jesus and
his work since Jesus was already gaining quite
a good bit of reputation in their area.  They
just had no opportunity to encounter or meet
him.  So, one day, as Jesus saw the two
boats of Simon and his companions, He said
to Simon, “Put out into deep water and lower
your nets for a catch.”  Simon said that
they had been at that all night and caught
nothing.  Yet even then Simon obeyed.  When
he did as Jesus did, Simon and his companions
caught such a large amount of fish that they
almost broke the nets.

The immensity of the catch made Simon realize
his unworthiness before Jesus.  Simon probably
was thinking, “how can he gain such great a
gift and a blessing when he is just a fisherman
with so many sins and faults and weaknesses”?
And why would the Lord Jesus grant His blessing
on such a simple man as he?.  But Jesus did
choose Simon for His blessing and even promised
him an even greater gift: the power to catch
men and not just fish.  And because of this
promise and everything besides, Simon and
his companions were so seized by all that,
that they brought their boats to land,
left everything, and became the followers
of Jesus.

The call of the Lord God is a mystery.  In
the case of Simon Peter and his companions,
it was during a time when they needed fish
to catch - a source of their livelihood.
When Jesus saw that they were having a great
difficulty catching fish, He entered their
lives by providing them exactly what they
needed and more besides - since their nets
were almost at breaking point.  For some of
us, we can relate to what Simon and his
companions experienced.  I remember a
companion Eucharistic minister who before
he became a minister lost his job and
employment.  He already had two young
children, and without thinking of the
high education he achieved, he thought of
selling fish within the parish vicinity.
The parish priest at that time saw him
and invited him to join the ministry.
He said yes and up to now is still in
the ministry.  His yes to the Lord through
the person of the parish priest brought
many blessings on his life: he was able
to buy a new car and he has been entrusted
by his father to manage their family farm
which is abounding with much fruit and
produce.

Let us examine ourselves and see how we
can dispose ourselves to be freer to respond
to the call of the Lord.  It is true we
may have to leave something behind: like
the boats that Simon and his companions
left behind to follow Jesus.  But as long
as we discern well our personal situations
and see how more we can respond to the
call of the Lord in a way that is best
for all people we are concerned with in
our lives, then we will be assured of the
promise of Jesus: of greater blessing
and of greater power from the Holy Spirit
to share in his mission of “catching
people” - captivating them with the joy
of the Good News.