First
Reading – Genesis 12:1-4 ©
Responsorial
Psalm – Psalm 32(33):4-5, 18-20, 22 ©
Second
Reading – 2 Timothy 1:8-10 ©
Gospel
Acclamation – Matthew 17:5
The Gospel According to
Matthew – 17:1 - 9 ©
(NJB)
Second Sunday of Lent
(Year A)
Listen!
It
is possible for the entire world to be blessed through the actions of a single
person.
God,
the creator of the universe, God does not intervene in human affairs. God does
not show preference to one nation above another, one tribe over another or one
person over their sister and brother.
God
does not build nations, or intervene in their progress to make them great.
God
does not distribute blessings and curses capriciously.
God
has made every person, and the entire universe free.
Be
mindful of this!
It is fitting to praise God. It is wise to trust in divine
mercy; though do not expect God to rescue you from danger, and do not believe
that God’s loves any one of God’s children more than any other.
You have heard this said:
God knows all things, God understands all things,
but God’s knowledge is not an abstract knowledge of the particular details of
individual events. God understands us, our person, our choices, our lives; God’s
understands us even as we understand ourselves, only with a clarity that we
could never possess.
Trust in God’s plan for you, and for creation, but
do not wait for salvation. God made you well at the beginning, go and share the
good news.
We are already saved, our salvation is a gift of
grace, and no-one is excluded.
We have been given the power to know the truth and
love goodness, we are asked to be kind and show mercy.
Let Jesus show you the way.
Know this!
Before the beginning of time, God’s saving purpose
was at work in creation. All that we experience here was conceived in the
saving will of God.
Let your mind dwell on this.
God has called us to be holy, at all times the voice
of God can be heard speaking in the heart, calling to us, inviting us into a
life of compassion and wellbeing.
God, the creator of the universe; God does this out
of love. It was God’s plan from the beginning of time, that there would not be
one of us, not one child of God, not one being in the whole of creation who is
outside of God’s plan.
Jesus revealed this through the love he bore, he
showed us the way.
Follow it!
The resurrection does not show us that God has
abolished death as much as it reveals that the death of the body is merely a
transition, which we all pass through on our journey toward the light.
Consider
the Gospel for today:
As
Christians we are bound to read it in the context of its truthfulness.
Let
the Spirit of Truth guide us, even if it means rejecting the Gospel as it is
written.
There
may have been an event, when Jesus together with James and John went up the
mountain by themselves.
It
may have been that in this time Jesus taught his companions the essential
message that his ministry was in keeping with that of Moses, the liberator, the
law giver; and Elijah, the truthteller.
Something
like that may have happened but the supernatural events described in the
reading for today did not.
God,
the creator of the universe, God does not engage in supernatural activities.
God is the author of nature and of its laws. God does not violate these laws
for any reason.
It
may also be that Jesus wanted to connect his ministry to the mythology of
Enoch, he may have taught this to the disciples, to preparing them for his
passing and his eventual return.
Jesus
did warn the disciples that his ministry would lead to his death, but like
Enoch, the Son of Man, death would not stop him.
Jesus
may have wanted them to believe this, just as he may have wanted them to
believe that the ministry of John the Baptist was being carried on through him.
Be
mindful!
Read
the Gospel in such a way that you strip from it the fantastical elements, the
magic and miracles if they are not treated as metaphors, elucidate nothing.
Insisting they are real is contrary to the way.
First Reading – Genesis 12:1-4
©
All the Tribes of the Earth
Shall Bless Themselves by You
The Lord said to Abram, ‘Leave your country, your
family and your father’s house, for the land I will show you. I will make you a
great nation; I will bless you and make your name so famous that it will be
used as a blessing.
‘I will bless those who bless you: I will curse
those who slight you.
All the tribes of the earth shall bless themselves
by you.’
So Abram went as the Lord told him.
Responsorial Psalm – Psalm
32(33):4-5, 18-20, 22 ©
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all
our hope in you.
The word of the Lord is faithful
and all his
works to be trusted.
The Lord loves justice and right
and fills
the earth with his love.
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all
our hope in you.
The Lord looks on those who revere him,
on those who hope in his love,
to rescue their souls from death,
to keep them
alive in famine.
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all
our hope in you.
Our soul is waiting for the Lord.
The Lord is
our help and our shield.
May your love be upon us, O Lord,
as we place
all our hope in you.
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all
our hope in you.
God Calls and Enlightens Us
With me, bear the hardships for the sake of the Good
News, relying on the power of God who has saved us and called us to be holy –
not because of anything we ourselves have done but for his own purpose and by
his own grace. This grace had already been granted to us, in Christ Jesus,
before the beginning of time, but it has only been revealed by the Appearing of
our saviour Christ Jesus. He abolished death, and he has proclaimed life and
immortality through the Good News.
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
From the bright cloud the Father’s voice was heard:
‘This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to him.’
Glory and praise to you, O Christ!
The Gospel According to
Matthew – 17:1 - 9 ©
His Face Shone Like the Sun
Jesus
took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high
mountain where they could be alone. There in their presence he was
transfigured: his face shone like the sun and his clothes became as white as
the light. Suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared to them; they were talking with
him. Then Peter spoke to Jesus. ‘Lord,’ he said ‘it is wonderful for us to be
here; if you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses and
one for Elijah.’ He was still speaking when suddenly a bright cloud covered
them with shadow, and from the cloud there came a voice which said, ‘This is my
Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favour. Listen to him.’ When they heard this the
disciples fell on their faces overcome with fear. But Jesus came up and touched
them. ‘Stand up,’ he said ‘do not be afraid.’ And when they raised their eyes
they saw no one but only Jesus.
As
they came down from the mountain Jesus gave them this order, ‘Tell no one about
the vision until the Son of Man has risen from the dead.’
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