Saturday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Lectionary: 256
Reading 1
Ezekiel 37:21-28
Thus says the Lord GOD:
I will take the children of Israel from among the nations
to which they have come,
and gather them from all sides to bring them back to their land.
I will make them one nation upon the land,
in the mountains of Israel,
and there shall be one prince for them all.
Never again shall they be two nations,
and never again shall they be divided into two kingdoms.
No longer shall they defile themselves with their idols,
their abominations, and all their transgressions.
I will deliver them from all their sins of apostasy,
and cleanse them so that they may be my people
and I may be their God.
My servant David shall be prince over them,
and there shall be one shepherd for them all;
they shall live by my statutes and carefully observe my decrees.
They shall live on the land that I gave to my servant Jacob,
the land where their fathers lived;
they shall live on it forever,
they, and their children, and their children’s children,
with my servant David their prince forever.
I will make with them a covenant of peace;
it shall be an everlasting covenant with them,
and I will multiply them, and put my sanctuary among them forever.
My dwelling shall be with them;
I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
Thus the nations shall know that it is I, the LORD,
who make Israel holy,
when my sanctuary shall be set up among them forever.
Responsorial Psalm
Jeremiah 31:10, 11-12abcd, 13
R. (see 10d) The Lord will guard us, as a shepherd guards his flock.
Hear the word of the LORD, O nations,
proclaim it on distant isles, and say:
He who scattered Israel, now gathers them together,
he guards them as a shepherd his flock.
R. The Lord will guard us, as a shepherd guards his flock.
The LORD shall ransom Jacob,
he shall redeem him from the hand of his conqueror.
Shouting, they shall mount the heights of Zion,
they shall come streaming to the LORD’s blessings:
The grain, the wine, and the oil,
the sheep and the oxen.
R. The Lord will guard us, as a shepherd guards his flock.
Then the virgins shall make merry and dance,
and young men and old as well.
I will turn their mourning into joy,
I will console and gladden them after their sorrows.
R. The Lord will guard us, as a shepherd guards his flock.
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
John 11:45-56
Many of the Jews who had come to Mary
and seen what Jesus had done began to believe in him.
But some of them went to the Pharisees
and told them what Jesus had done.
So the chief priests and the Pharisees
convened the Sanhedrin and said,
“What are we going to do?
This man is performing many signs.
If we leave him alone, all will believe in him,
and the Romans will come
and take away both our land and our nation.”
But one of them, Caiaphas,
who was high priest that year, said to them,
“You know nothing,
nor do you consider that it is better for you
that one man should die instead of the people,
so that the whole nation may not perish.”
He did not say this on his own,
but since he was high priest for that year,
he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation,
and not only for the nation,
but also to gather into one the dispersed children of God.
So from that day on they planned to kill him.
So Jesus no longer walked about in public among the Jews,
but he left for the region near the desert,
to a town called Ephraim,
and there he remained with his disciples.
Now the Passover of the Jews was near,
and many went up from the country to Jerusalem
before Passover to purify themselves.
They looked for Jesus and said to one another
as they were in the temple area, “What do you think?
That he will not come to the feast?”
Reflection 1
Catholic Daily Reflections
The Effects of Jesus’ Ministry
So the chief priests and the Pharisees convened the Sanhedrin and said, “What are we going to do? This man is performing many signs. If we leave him alone, all will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our land and our nation.” John 11:47–48
Jesus’ public ministry had two primary effects upon the people. For many, they were coming to believe in Him and were hanging on His every word. They sought Him out and began to understand that He was the promised Messiah. This was the response of faith. But the reaction of the chief priests and the Pharisees was far more worldly. In the passage above, we see a group of religious leaders who are completely consumed with worldly concerns to the point that these concerns drown out all matters of faith.
As the Sanhedrin convened and discussed what they should do, Caiaphas, the high priest that year, spoke up and gave advice that perfectly depicts this worldly vision. He said, “You know nothing, nor do you consider that it is better for you that one man should die instead of the people, so that the whole nation may not perish.” Caiaphas and many other religious leaders at the time appeared to be far more concerned with their worldly status and power than they were with matters of true faith and eternal salvation. If they were men who deeply loved God and sought only His holy will, then they would have rejoiced that Jesus’ ministry was so fruitful in the lives of the people. They would have offered thanks to God, day and night, for the privilege of seeing the prophecies of old about the Messiah come to fruition before their own eyes. They should have had joy and gratitude, and they should have allowed those spiritual blessings to grow within them and give them the courage they needed to go forth and die with our Lord if necessary. But instead, they chose their comfortable lives and worldly status above the truth, and they decided that Jesus needed to die.
One beautiful truth to reflect upon within this context is that God uses all things for His glory and for the salvation of those who believe. With this meeting of the Sanhedrin, these men began to plot the death of Jesus. Eventually they used deceit, manipulation, intimidation and fear to accomplish their goal. But even though from a worldly perspective these misguided religious leaders “won,” from a divine perspective, God used their evil to bring about the greatest good the world had ever known. Through their malice, Jesus’ passion and death gave way to the new life of the Resurrection.
Reflect, today, upon the fact that God is able to use all things for our good. Be it in the midst of corruption, persecution, discord, sin, illness or any other evil in life, when we turn to God in faith and surrender, He is able to transform all things and bring forth an abundance of good fruit through them if we only let Him and trust in faith. Prayerfully surrender over to God, today, any of the above concerns that have affected you, and allow yourself to believe the simple truth that nothing can keep you from the glorious fulfillment of the will of God. All things can help toward the salvation of your soul and end in God’s eternal glory.
Reflection 2
One Bread, One Body
LET GOD BE GOD
“If we let Him go on like this, the whole world will believe in Him.” —John 11:48
Let’s not lag behind the Lord. The Israelites dragged their feet when the Lord told them to claim the Promised Land. Their lack of faith and courage resulted in their spending forty years wandering and dying in the desert instead of living the life of blessing and promise God had intended for them (Nm 14:32-34). Then, instead of waiting for God’s timing to be fulfilled, the Israelites became impatient with God. They disobeyed God, impetuously tried to seize the Promised Land, and were routed (Nm 14:39-45).
Let’s not jump ahead of the Lord. Abraham’s wife Sarah grew impatient of not having a promised child. So she jumped ahead of God’s plan and persuaded Abraham to father a son for her through her slave maidservant, Hagar (Gn 16:1-5ff). This impatience resulted in numerous fights between Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar, in addition to long-lasting discord and strife between the generations of peoples descended from Isaac and Ishmael (Gn 16:6-16; 21:9-21). Nearly fifteen years later (see Gn 17:25), God fulfilled His promise to provide Sarah a descendant in Isaac. Had Sarah been able to wait on the Lord instead of jumping ahead of Him, much suffering and injustice could have been avoided.
Let’s not rely on our understanding (Prv 3:5-6). Let’s be still and know that He is God (Ps 46:10, RSV-CE). Let’s be pliable instruments in God’s hands. As the Jewish leaders said in today’s Gospel, let Jesus go on like this (Jn 11:48), so that His will be done and all will believe in Him.
Prayer: Father, give me the grace to follow You perfectly and without hesitation. I trust completely in You.
Promise: “My dwelling shall be with them.” —Ez 37:27
Praise: St. Turibius, an archbishop, went to Confession daily.
Reflection 3
The Servants of the Word
They Took Counsel How to Put Him to Death
Do you allow fear or opposition to hold you back from doing God's will? Jesus set his face like flint toward Jerusalem, knowing full well what awaited him there (Luke 9:51; Isaiah 50:7). It was Jewish belief that when the high priest asked for God's counsel for the nation, God spoke through him. What dramatic irony that Caiaphas prophesied that Jesus must die for the nation. The prophet Ezekiel announced that God would establish one people, one land, one prince, and one sanctuary forever.
Luke adds to Caiphas's prophecy that Jesus would gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad. Jesus came to lay down his life for the many, but not in a foolish reckless manner so as to throw it away before his work was done. He retired until the time had come when nothing would stop his coming to Jerusalem to fulfill his Father's mission.
St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD) wrote:
"The passion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is the hope of glory and a lesson in patience... He loved us so much that, sinless himself, he suffered for us sinners the punishment we deserved for our sins. How then can he fail to give us the reward we deserve for our righteousness, for he is the source of righteousness? How can he, whose promises are true, fail to reward the saints when he bore the punishment of sinners, though without sin himself? Brethren, let us then fearlessly acknowledge, and even openly proclaim, that Christ was crucified for us; let us confess it, not in fear but in joy, not in shame but in glory."
The way to glory and victory for us is through the cross of Jesus Christ. Are you ready to take up your cross and follow Christ in his way of victory?
Prayers
My glorious Lord, You were loved by many but also hated by some. Those with power and authority could not see beyond their worldly ambitions, so they began to plot against You. Give me the grace, dear Lord, to see every act of evil inflicted upon me as an opportunity for You to bring forth good. You are glorious, dear Lord. May You be glorified in all things. Jesus, I trust in You.
Lord Jesus, may we your disciples be ever ready to lay down our lives in conformity to your will, to willingly suffer and die for you, that we may also share in your victory and glory.
Daily Reflections on Divine Mercy
Reflection 83: Pray Always
Praying “always” may seem like an impossible task. Is it really possible to do so? Does God even expect this of us? It most certainly is and He most certainly does. No, we will not be called to spend all day, every day, at church in prayer. Not even those called to the cloistered monastic life do as such. But praying always is a must. It simply means that we have developed such a habit of closeness to God that our hearts are always with Him. We are always attentive to His presence and are always in communion with His grace. If we form this interior love for God, we will be praying always (See Diary #346).
Think about your day. What occupies your mind and heart most of the time? Do you spend excessive time daydreaming about things that have nothing to do with our Lord and the plan He has for you? Work at establishing a habit of prayer. Pray deeply and wholeheartedly at various moments of the day giving prayer your full attention. And then, throughout the day, try to let those moments of prayer sustain you and remain with you, carrying you on throughout all that you do.
Lord, help me to know how to pray. Instill within me a deep habit of prayer. Help me to regularly take moments, each day, when all I do is focus on You, seeking You out. And help me to bring those moments into everything I do so that my mind and heart may always be in communion with You. My Lord, I love You, help me to love You more. Jesus, I trust in You.
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