Friday of the First Week of Lent
Lectionary: 228
Reading 1
Ezekiel 18:21-28
Thus says the Lord GOD:
If the wicked man turns away from all the sins he committed,
if he keeps all my statutes and does what is right and just,
he shall surely live, he shall not die.
None of the crimes he committed shall be remembered against him;
he shall live because of the virtue he has practiced.
Do I indeed derive any pleasure from the death of the wicked?
says the Lord GOD.
Do I not rather rejoice when he turns from his evil way
that he may live?
And if the virtuous man turns from the path of virtue to do evil,
the same kind of abominable things that the wicked man does,
can he do this and still live?
None of his virtuous deeds shall be remembered,
because he has broken faith and committed sin;
because of this, he shall die.
You say, "The LORD's way is not fair!"
Hear now, house of Israel:
Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair?
When someone virtuous turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies,
it is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die.
But if the wicked, turning from the wickedness he has committed,
does what is right and just,
he shall preserve his life;
since he has turned away from all the sins that he committed,
he shall surely live, he shall not die.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 130:1-2, 3-4, 5-7a, 7bc-8
R. (3) If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?
Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD;
LORD, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive
to my voice in supplication.
R. If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?
If you, O LORD, mark iniquities,
LORD, who can stand?
But with you is forgiveness,
that you may be revered.
R. If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?
I trust in the LORD;
my soul trusts in his word.
My soul waits for the LORD
more than sentinels wait for the dawn.
Let Israel wait for the LORD.
R. If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?
For with the LORD is kindness
and with him is plenteous redemption;
And he will redeem Israel
from all their iniquities.
R. If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?
Verse Before the Gospel
Ezekiel 18:31
Cast away from you all the crimes you have committed, says the LORD,
And make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.
Gospel
Matthew 5:20-26
Jesus said to his disciples:
"I tell you,
unless your righteousness surpasses that
of the scribes and Pharisees,
you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.
"You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,
You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.
But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother
will be liable to judgment,
and whoever says to his brother, Raqa,
will be answerable to the Sanhedrin,
and whoever says, 'You fool,' will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar,
and there recall that your brother
has anything against you,
leave your gift there at the altar,
go first and be reconciled with your brother,
and then come and offer your gift.
Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court.
Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge,
and the judge will hand you over to the guard,
and you will be thrown into prison.
Amen, I say to you,
you will not be released until you have paid the last penny."
Reflection 1
Catholic Daily Reflections
Beyond Forgiveness
“Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.” Matthew 5:26
Was our Lord here giving legal advice regarding a criminal or civil case and how to avoid prosecution? Certainly not. He was presenting us with an image of Himself as the just Judge. And He was exhorting us to show mercy to anyone and everyone who could be seen as our “opponent.”
Forgiveness of another is essential. It can never be withheld. But forgiveness is actually not even enough. The ultimate goal must be reconciliation, which goes much further. In this Gospel above, Jesus exhorts us to “settle” with our opponents, therein implying reconciliation. The RSV version of the Bible says it this way, “Make friends quickly with your accuser…” Working to foster a “friendship” with one who has accused you, especially if it is a false accusation, goes far beyond simply forgiving them.
To reconcile with another and to reestablish a true friendship means that you not only forgive but also do all you can to ensure that you reestablish a relationship of love with that person. It means that you both put your grievance behind you and start anew. Of course, that takes both people to cooperate in love; but, for your part, it means that you work hard to establish this reconciliation.
Think about someone who has hurt you, and, as a result, your relationship with them has been damaged. Have you prayerfully forgiven that person before God? Have you prayed for that person and asked God to forgive them? If so, then you are now ready for the next step of reaching out to them in love to mend your relationship. This takes great humility, especially if the other person was the cause of the hurt and especially if they have not spoken words of sorrow to you, asking for your forgiveness. Don’t wait for them to do so. Look for ways to show that person that you love them and want to heal the hurt. Don’t hold their sin before them or hold on to a grudge. Seek only love and mercy.
Jesus concludes this exhortation with strong words. Essentially, if you fail to do all you can to reconcile and reestablish your relationship, you will be held accountable for it. Though this may seem unfair at first, it is clearly not, because this is the depth of mercy that our Lord offers us every day. We will never be adequately sorry for our sin, but God forgives and reconciles with us anyway. What a grace! But if we fail to offer this same mercy to others, we essentially limit God’s ability to offer this mercy to us, and we will be required to pay back “the last penny” of our own debt to God.
Reflect, today, upon the person who comes to mind with whom you need to fully reconcile and rekindle a relationship of love. Pray for this grace, commit yourself to it and look for opportunities to do so. Do it without reserve and you will never regret your decision.
Reflection 2
One Bread, One Body
MINISTERS OF RECONCILIATION (2 COR 5:18)
“If you bring your gift to the altar and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift at the altar, go first to be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” —Matthew 5:23-24
Does anyone have anything against you, even if you don’t have anything against them? Immediately, go and be reconciled with this person. “Lose no time” (Mt 5:25). Because you are a follower of Christ, you are a minister of reconciliation. You put out your hand first. You apologize first. You visit or call to break the silence of the “cold war.” You may have already done this and been rejected, but in imitation of Jesus, you try to reach out again and again (see Mt 18:21-22).
Jesus prays we would be one as He and the Father are one (Jn 17:21). This means we must constantly be forgiving one another and accepting the grace to be “of one heart and one mind” (Acts 4:32). We may even put up with injustice, and allow ourselves to be cheated (1 Cor 6:6-7). We will deny ourselves so that our actions are not an occasion of sin to others (1 Cor 8:9-13). We will accept one another as Christ accepted us, “for the glory of God” (Rm 15:7).
“May God, the Source of all patience and encouragement, enable you to live in perfect harmony with one another according to the Spirit of Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and voice you may glorify God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rm 15:5-6).
Prayer: Father, may we “make every effort to preserve the unity which has the Spirit as its origin and peace as its binding force” (Eph 4:3).
Promise: “If the wicked man turns away from all the sins he committed, if he keeps all my statutes and does what is right and just, he shall surely live, he shall not die.” —Ez 18:21
Praise: St. Polycarp was a bishop in the early church and was martyred for his faith. He died in 156 AD.
Reflection 3
By Fr. Thomas LANE
(Emmitsburg, Maryland, United States)
“Leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother”
Today, the Lord challenges us to convert as He speaks about what goes on in our hearts. The commandment says “You shall not kill” (Mt 5:21), but Jesus reminds us that there are other ways of killing life in others. We can kill life in others by harboring excessive anger towards them in our hearts or not treating them respectfully and calling them “Fool” (cf. Mt 5:22).
The Lord calls us to be people of integrity: “Leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother” (Mt 5:24), i.e. the faith we profess in our celebration of the Liturgy should flow over into our daily lives and affect how we live. So Jesus asks us to be reconciled with our enemies. A first step along the road to reconciliation is to pray for our enemies as Jesus requested. If we find this difficult it is good to remember and picture in our minds Jesus dying for those whom we dislike. If others have seriously hurt us let us pray for healing of painful memories and the grace to forgive. As you pray, ask the Lord to walk back in time with you to the time and place of the hurt and replace your hurt with His love so that you may be free to forgive.
As Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI wrote, “If we want to present ourselves to him, we must also take a step towards meeting one another. To do this we must learn the great lesson of forgiveness: we must not let the gnawing of resentment work in our soul, but must open our hearts to the magnanimity of listening to others, open our hearts to understanding them, eventually to accepting their apologies, to generously offering our own.”
Prayers
My most merciful Lord, I thank You for forgiving me and for loving me with such perfection and totality. Thank You for reconciling with me despite my imperfect contrition. Give me a heart, dear Lord, that always seeks to love the sinner in my life. Help me to offer mercy to the fullest extent in imitation of Your divine mercy. Jesus, I trust in You.
Lord Jesus, my heart is cold. Make it warm, compassionate, and forgiving towards all, even those who do me harm. May I only think and say what is pleasing to you and be of kind service to all I meet.
Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy
Reflection 54: Praying for Others
It’s easy to presume that everyone we know will go to Heaven. This, of course, should be our hope. But if one is to attain Heaven, there must be a true interior conversion. Each person who enters Heaven is there because of a personal decision to give one’s life to Christ and to turn from sin. How do we assist those around us on this journey? The most important thing we can do is pray for them. At times, praying for another can seem futile and unproductive. We may not see any immediate results and conclude that praying for them is a waste of time. But do not let yourself fall into that trap. Praying for those whom God has put into your life is the greatest act of Mercy you can show them. And your prayer may actually be the key to their eternal salvation (See Diary #150).
Think about those whom God has placed in your life. Be it family, friends, co-workers or simple acquaintances, you have a duty to pray for them. Your daily prayer for those around you is an act of Mercy that can easily be exercised. Call to mind those in your life who may be in most need of prayer today and pause to offer them to God. As you do, God will pour grace upon them and He will also reward your own soul for this act of generosity.
Lord, in this moment I offer to You all those who are in most need of Your Divine Mercy. I pray for my family, friends and for all those whom You have put in my life. I pray for those who have hurt me and for those who have no one to pray for them. Lord, I especially pray for (mention one or more people who come to mind). Fill this child of Yours with an abundance of Mercy and help him/her on the way to holiness. Jesus, I trust in You.
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