Remembering Our History
The First Sunday in Lent
February 27, 2022
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Deuteronomy 26:4-10; Psalm 91; Romans 10:8-13; Luke 4:1-13
As we begin Lent, many of us have the people of Ukraine on our minds as they are beset by a war that did not want. The reading from Deuteronomy is important because it helps to situate us in human history and in God’s story of caring for us. The Hebrew story reminds us that in our history, we have been migrants, imprisoned, oppressed and redeemed. It is important for us to remember our history so we can recognize our need for and dependence upon God’s mercy. It helps remind us that when we are in a place of privilege, that we should not boast of it, because we were once dejected and despondent.
With Ukraine, we remember the perils of war and the utter destruction that comes from the violence within human hearts. War is never the solution to problems with neighbors. War creates displacement of all types and offers no promise for the future. We remember the hardships that war and oppression placed upon our ancestors which caused them to travel to a new land to find peace and prosperity, a peace that cannot be taken for granted.
The Gospel scene from Luke puts Jesus in the desert fleeing the conveniences of the world to experience hardship once again, which renews his trust and commitment to God. Jesus is able to remember the history of his people and to connect with the sufferings they faced as he went through temptations: (1.) to choose poverty in opposition to riches, (2.) to choose contempt in opposition to honor from the world, and (3.) to choose humility in opposition to pride. These virtues will lead to all the other virtues as all of us are called to spiritual poverty and to a greater reliance upon God. As for material poverty and other sacrifices, we do not seek or accept these as goals in themselves. We accept them only if God calls us to embrace them as part of living our faith.
As Jesus seeks spiritual poverty to align himself with God’s values, we too accept it as a way of standing in solidarity and understanding with those who are suffering. As we were once immigrants who suffered persecution, we are exhorted to treat new immigrants with dignity. As we have suffered at the hands of others, we are expected to treat those who are victims of systemic injustice with kindness and fairness, always recognizing their inherent dignity as our neighbor who has full citizenship. As we were subject to mistreatment by the privilege of others, we are to learn how our privileges make us dangerously comfortable, and we are to remember our call to bring God’s justice to the world, which seeks out and cares for those who have been disadvantaged.
This year’s season of Lent sets us off soberly as we reflect upon the power of the human heart to choose darkness and the power of the human heart to choose goodness. As we pray for the people of Ukraine, let’s take some downtime so we can assess how we need to reconnect with the memory of our ancestors’ stories and the hardships they faced. They gave us a new future so we can make better choices. In our downtime, let’s take some alone time with God to align our thoughts, attitudes, and values with God’s so we are strengthened for the journey – a journey of a pilgrim people who rely upon each other and need to see the common dignity that each of us shares. It is a solemn journey that leads to the inescapable Cross. Let’s do this together – with good will and an understanding heart.
Scripture for Daily Mass
Monday: (Leviticus 19) The Lord gives Moses ten commandments that he inscribes on stone tablets.
Tuesday: (Isaiah 55) God’s word will issue forth from his mouth and shall not return until it has fulfilled his will.
Wednesday: (Jonah 3) Jonah set out to Nineveh asking them to proclaim a fast and then repent. The king does repent and the Lord dropped his threat because they turned from evil.
Thursday: (Esther 3) Queen Esther appeals to God for help in converting the king’s heart for hatred of the enemy that threatens them.
Friday: (Ezekiel 18) If the wicked turns from sinfulness and keeps the Lord’s statutes, he will surely live. Likewise, if a virtuous man becomes wicked, he shall die.
Saturday: (Deuteronomy 26) Moses tells the people to observe the Lord’s statutes and decrees with their whole heart and soul. The Lord will stand by you.
Gospel:
Monday: (Matthew 25) Jesus tells his disciples about the last judgment when the goats and sheep will be separated. The measuring stick is the mercy shown to the most vulnerable.
Tuesday: (Matthew 6) The disciples ask Jesus to teach them to pray. He tells them not to pray like the pagans, who seek honor and glory, and then gives them the Lord’s prayer.
Wednesday: (Luke 11) Jesus chastises the crowd that seeks a sign, but none will be given to them. Because of Jonah’s preaching, the king and people repented.
Thursday: (Matthew 7) Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened. The Father is generous, especially to those who love him.
Friday: (Matthew 5) Your righteousness must surpass the levels of the scribes and Pharisees in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Show righteousness by quickly settling disputes.
Saturday: (Matthew 5) Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Heavenly Father. Be perfect as the Father is perfect..
Saints of the Week
March 7: Perpetua and Felicity (d. 203), were two catechumens arrest and killed during a persecution in North Africa. Perpetua was a young noblewoman who was killed alongside her husband, their young son, and their pregnant slave, Felicity. They were baptized while under arrest and would not renounce their faith. Felicity was excused from death because it was unlawful to kill a pregnant woman, but she gave birth prematurely three days before the planned execution. They were flogged, taunted by wild beasts, and then beheaded. They appear in the First Eucharistic Prayer.
March 8: John of God (1495-1550), was a Portuguese soldier of fortune who was brought to Spain as a child. He was a slave master, shepherd, crusader, bodyguard and peddler. As he realized that he frittered away his life, he sought counsel from John of Avila. He then dedicated his life to care for the sick and the poor. He formed the Order of Brothers Hospitallers and is the patron saint of hospitals and the sick.
March 9: Frances of Rome (1384-1440), was born into a wealthy Roman family and was married at age 13. She bore six children and when two died in infancy, she worked to bring the needs of the less fortunate to others. She took food to the poor, visited the sick, cared for the needy in their homes. When other women joined in her mission, they became Benedictine oblates. She founded a monastery for them after her husband's death.
This Week in Jesuit History
- March 6, 1643. Arnauld, the Jansenist, published his famous tract against Frequent Communion. Fifteen French bishops gave it their approval, whereas the Jesuit fathers at once exposed the dangers in it.
- March 7, 1581. The Fifth General Congregation of the Society bound the professors of the Society to adhere to the doctrine of St Thomas Aquinas.
- March 8, 1773. At Centi, in the diocese of Bologna, Cardinal Malvezzi paid a surprise visit to the Jesuit house, demanding to inspect their accounting books.
- March 9, 1764. In France, all Jesuits who refused to abjure the Society were ordered by Parliament to leave the realm within a month. Out of 4,000 members only five priests, two scholastics, and eight brothers took the required oath; the others were driven into exile.
- March 10, 1615. The martyrdom in Glasgow, Scotland, of St John Ogilvie.
- Mar 11, 1848. In Naples, Italy, during the 1848 revolution, 114 Jesuits, after much suffering, were put into carts and driven ignominiously out of the city and the kingdom.
- March 12, 1622. Pope Gregory XV canonized Sts Ignatius, Francis Xavier, Teresa of Avila, and Philip Neri.
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