Lenten Moments of Mercy: Friday of the Second Week of Lent

Friday of the Second Week of Lent   We reflect on the Word of God with humility to discern God’s wisdom.

Scripture “‘The stone that the builders rejected             has become the cornerstone this was the Lord’s doing,             and it is amazing in our eyes’” Matthew 21:42   Reflection In the first of today’s readings, we hear about Israel, his son Joseph, and Joseph’s brothers. Joseph was Israel’s favorite son. That is why Joseph received the tailored cloak that was the envy of his brothers. The brothers took vengeance on Joseph, first by planning to kill him, but finally selling him into slavery. The brothers were blind to everything but their own ambition. The tenants in the Gospel reading were also blinded by ambition. In killing the owner’s representatives, they thought to inherit the land. Instead they inherited the whirlwind. Pope Francis notes that the vineyard represents an inheritance that God planted and tilled with his own hands. It is God’s Word in the Gospels in which he shares his great love. Unfortunately, there are those who use the Word as a means of making a personal profit, who act as if they own it. They only see the Word in terms of their own desires, and by acting in such a way, they are closed to the grace God offers daily. The Word is dead as it has been hijacked by those who were called to serve it. The ways to overcome this temptation to control the Word are the dispositions of humility and prayer. When the Word of God is read with humility, the reader listens to the echo of God’s presence in his or her heart; it is an echo that resonates over the centuries. When the Word is approached in prayer the reader discerns the wisdom that God is teaching. There is no attempt to change the Word to fulfill our desires, but to read it in tune with God’s desires.

Pope Francis “The Lord grant us the grace of humility to look upon Jesus as the Savior who speaks to us: he speaks to me! Each one of us ought to say: he speaks to me! When we read the Gospels: he is speaking to me!” Morning Meditation, 21 March 2014   Lenten Action ► Read a short passage from the Gospels. ► Pray with the Ignatian Workout for Lent online retreat by Tim Muldoon.   Prayer Help us to remember, O Lord, to look upon you with humility and discern your wisdom written in our hearts.

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