Lenten Moments of Mercy: Saturday of the Third Week of Lent

Saturday of the Third Week of Lent   Prayer is at the center of Christian life. It is faith in action.

Scripture For you have no delight in sacrifice;      if I were to give a burnt offering, you would not be pleased. The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit;      a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Psalm 51:16‒17   Reflection It can be easy and comforting reading the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector in Luke’s Gospel. We may like to think that Luke was writing about some time in the past when Jesus critiqued the prayer of the Pharisees and extoled the prayer of a humble sinner. It is more discomforting to realize that Luke was writing about attitudes that he was observing in the Church of his day and that he is speaking to Christians today. In Luke 18:9–14, Jesus tells the story of two people at prayer. The Pharisee approaches God with a self-satisfied smugness, patting himself on the back for all that he has accomplished for God. He is unlike any of the sinners in his neighborhood, he recites his daily prayers, and he gives one-tenth of his income to charity. In the corner, with his head bowed and beating his heart, the tax collector (a public sinner in the time of Jesus) prays for God’s mercy. For Luke, prayer is at the center of Christian life; it is faith in action. The way that we pray says everything of what it means to be a Christian. In Luke’s mind, if our prayer has any sense of asserting ourselves before God, it is a false prayer showing lack of true faith. To be authentic, our prayer is that of the humble tax collector pleading for God’s forgiveness and grateful for his mercy. This is a sign of authentic faith.

Pope Francis “But how can we [pray]? As the tax collector does, it is clear: humbly, before God.  Each one, with humility, allowing themselves to be gazed upon by the Lord and imploring his goodness, that he may visit us.” Homily for the Holy Mass for the Family Day, 27 October 2013   Lenten Action ► Explore the prayer resources available through Loyola Press. ► Go back and reflect on something that particularly touched you this third week of Lent.   Sunday | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday   Prayer Help us, Lord, that our prayer be that of steadfast love and gratitude for your gift of mercy.

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