Reflection from Friar Nicholas

WEDNESDAY, FIRST WEEK OF LENT    Jonah 3:1-10; Ps 51:3-4,12-13,18-19; Lk 11:29-32 The Sign of Jonah to Ninevites Today’s readings are all about the Prophet Jonah. The story of Jonah is very interesting. It is about the people of Nineveh, whose manner of life evoked the justice of God. Because God is just in all his ways and in his dealings with us, He resolved to warn them of the destruction that their evil lifestyles were drawing upon them. God, therefore, called Jonah to carry his word or message to them, to ask them to change their life before the city is destroyed. The prophet, Jonah, like many of us, considered it a waste of time to go and preach to the Ninevites. He was mistaken in thinking like that because the will of God must be done. None of us can put aside the will of God for us and feel safe and comfortable. The will of God is the cause of everything in existence. The story of Jonah teaches us to employ ourselves daily, and in all things to fulfil the w...

TUESDAY, FIRST WEEK OF LENT    Isa 55:10-11; Ps 34:4-7,16-19; Mt 6:7-15 The Prayer of Our Lord The beginning of our Lenten journey is the recognition of our sins and the fact that we are sinners through and through. For the purpose of attaining this knowledge and thereby establishing a good beginning for the Lenten observance, we have fasted and continued other abnegations or self-mortifications. From this firm basis on which God commences his work of establishing his presence within us, we commence the exercise of prayer. Prayer is given to us as the means to the end we have envisaged for the Lenten journey. As the choice of means must always correspond to the end to which we journey, it is essential that we understand the concept of prayer so that we know how to pray. It is by God’s grace that we were able to know ourselves truly as sinners, and by his light we have recalled our sins, come to know how evil they are. The light of the word of God has also helped us ...

MONDAY, FIRST WEEK OF LENT    Levi 19:1-2,11-18; Ps 19:8-10,15; Mt 25:31-46 Seeing Jesus Christ in the Needy Meditating on the words of God, spoken through Moses to the people of Israel when they came out of Egypt, it is evident that God intended the community of the people of Israel to reflect his own holiness as the people of God. The question remains whether human persons can attain the holiness of God in this mortal life. The Commandments were given as the guiding principles of the relationship between the people and God, as well as the relationship among themselves. The instruction given by God through Moses was for the people to constantly ruminate on the word of God they had received. God affected the people through the revelation of His divine will for them through Moses. The constant meditation on the word would instil the Spirit of God in those who obey the instruction given to them. Thus, the reason they were to live justly and wisely is that God is with them ...

SUNDAY, FIRST WEEK OF LENT    Gen 2:7-9,3:1-7; Ps 51:3-6,12-14,17; Rom 5:12-19; Mt 4:1-11 Man shall not live by Bread Alone The readings for this first week of Lent present the two temptations that determined our lot as human beings. The temptation of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and the temptation of the Son of Man, Jesus Christ, in the wilderness. The first man, Adam, was fully provided for externally, while the last man, Jesus Christ, was well endowed within, for he is the Eternal Word Incarnate. The temptation of Adam and Eve was the commencement of God’s work of making man to be like him, while the temptation of the Son of Man was the completion of making man to be like God. We can also think of it as the test running of the Man made to be like God. In confirmation of this, the author of the letter to the Hebrews affirms that it is to Jesus Christ that God has subjected everything, because he is one whom God truly made Godlike. “Now in putting everything in su...

SATURDAY AFTER ASH WEDNESDAY   Isa 58:9-14; Ps 86:1-6; Lk 5:27-32 The Nature of Christian Fast As we have already observed in the previous reflections within the week, our observance of Lent is a spiritual journey. This means that it is not a journey we make through physical activities alone, although physical activities are part of the journey; rather, it is a journey made through spiritual activities. In the Gospel of yesterday, the disciples of John the Baptist came to Jesus to know why his disciples were not fasting along with them. They were shocked to hear his reply: “Surely the bridegroom’s attendants would never think of mourning as long as the bridegroom is still with them? But the time will come for the bridegroom to be taken away from them, and then they will fast.” Reflecting deeply on our Lord’s reply, we understand that the confusion of the disciples of John is based on their understanding of fasting and its purpose in our religious practice. The major reas...

FRIDAY AFTER ASH WEDNESDAY   Isa 58:1-9; Ps 51:3-6k18-19; Mt 9:14-15 A Fast that is Pleasing to God With the understanding that our spiritual journey during this Lenten season is initiated, directed, and sustained by God, our attention must be on him in order not to miss the way. This consideration is even more serious when we know that the journey is not physical, but spiritual. As Christian people, we know that God, in Jesus Christ, is reconciling us to himself through the grace of repentance we have received in abundance in Christ. We need the light of Christ to understand the beginning of the journey, the means or way we are to proceed, and the end for which we make the journey. The beginning of our Lenten journey is the knowledge of ourselves as we are in the eyes of God. None can have this knowledge unless the light of the word of God shines upon us; so, we need the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ to know how sinful we are before God and our need of God’s mercy and ...