Monday of the Fifth Week
Reflection
In today’s reading, we see a very complicated situation for Susanna.  She chooses to seek out help from God and trust that He will provide an answer for her serious dilemma, even though that help was not readily obvious or clear, but as the situation unfolded, Susanna was vindicated for her faith. 

In our current culture of immediacy and lack of delayed gratification, it can be very difficult to pause and ask for help.  In our current culture of individualism, it can be difficult to remember that we are never alone. But God is always with us, ever present, always available!  Calling upon our faith to help, to heal, and to intervene can be difficult.  If we take Susanna’s lesson and change the trajectory of our problems and call upon God to intervene, with prayer and patience, God will present Himself.  Additionally, here at Saint Michael's College, we use the term community a lot.  It is not a term we take lightly.  It is the hope for all students that they remember they are never alone, they can always ask for help, there is always someone available and you never need to walk alone, never. 

Prayer
Good and gracious God, give me the courage to ask for help and lean on You in times of need.  Give me the courage to ask for help and to seek out those around me who care about my wellbeing.  Open my eyes, open my heart, and open my mind so I can more clearly see Your presence in my life and the presence of those that love me.  Remind me that I am never alone, always present in Your grace.

Jeff Vincent, ’93, M’15, Assistant Dean of Students

Scripture
First Reading: Daniel 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62 or 13:41c-62
Psalm 23:1-6
Gospel: John 8:1-11

Daily Scripture readings can be found online at the USCCB website

 

Fifth Sunday of Lent

Reflection

As Holy Week draws closer, today we are asked to consider how we view others. Do we view them with scorn or love? At times, it is tempting to point the finger at others and call out their shortcomings and sins. I am reminded of Dana Carvey’s character “The Church Lady” from Saturday Night Live. I admit to falling into this trap at times, seeing others in a “holier-than-thou” mindset. God calls us to a new worldview through today’s readings.

In the first reading, we are told not to focus on the past but the future. It reads, “Remember not the things of the past…see, I am doing something new!” Every person is not defined by the past, but on the here and now. The second reading describes how all of us have a common goal that unites us. The letter reads, “I continue my pursuit toward the goal, the prize of God’s upward calling, in Christ Jesus.” All of us, we hope, are striving towards holiness.

The Gospel passage tells the story of the adulterous woman. The Pharisees bring an adulteress before Jesus and with the intention of stoning her. Jesus, however, rebukes them. He says, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” The Pharisees walk away dejected. Jesus then lets the woman go, telling her to sin no longer. Likewise, we are asked to view others not with condemnation but with genuine love. We are all on the same journey. Together.

Prayer
Loving God, give us the strength to see others as You see them, with love and compassion. Help us support each other in the journey of life. Amen.

Chris Ricciardi, ’16

 

Scripture
First Reading: Isaiah 43:16-21
Psalm 126:1-6
Second Reading: Philippians 3:8-14
Gospel: John 8:1-11

 

Daily Scripture readings can be found online at the USCCB website

 

 

Saturday of the Fourth Week

Reflection

Consider the Old Testament understanding of justice from Jeremiah: “Let me witness the vengeance You take on them, for to You I have entrusted my cause!”  Reading a bit further, we see that the justice for his laments that Jeremiah wants to see consists of young men dying by the sword and their children dying of starvation.  Do you find yourself horrified by this idea of justice?  If so, that reaction is one of the great gifts of Christ to us.

Consider how Christ matured our understanding of justice, and hence of the true nature of God.   He did this through the way He fulfilled the Old Testament in bringing  justice to the world.  Look to His ministries:  In Mark 1:15, Christ’s “thesis statement” for His message is “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel.”

Christ’s first care is to reach out to the unjust themselves, entreating them to repent and follow the word of God, thus becoming just.  Instead of gratifying the thirst for vengeance by punishing wrong-doers, Jesus immediately seeks to heal the sinners, the wrong-doers themselves.  In a culture where misfortune was equated with punishment for sin, it is deeply significant that the first acts of Jesus’ ministry presented in Mark’s Gospel are a long list of healings.  Thus, Christ brings justice by healing the unjust.  Furthermore, Jesus brings healing for the wronged by advocating and exemplifying forgiveness.  Vengeance doesn’t heal.  Forgiveness heals.

Thus, the justice of Christ, of the God of the New Testament in fulfillment of the Old, is reconciliation, redemption, and reformation on the part of the wrong-doer, and forgiveness, healing, and wholeness on the part of the wronged.  Justice has been revealed by Christ to be not a balancing of scales, but the seeking of wholeness in God.  If we are one body in this one Lord, how can we wrong ourselves?

Prayer

Lord Jesus, deepen our understanding of Your all-encompassing love, and let us each be an instrument of true and healing justice in Your world.

Jo Ellis-Monaghan, Professor of Mathematics

 

Scripture

First Reading: Jeremiah 11:18-20

Psalm 7:2-3, 9b-12

Gospel: John 7:40-53

 

Daily Scripture readings can be found online at the USCCB website

 

Friday of the Fourth Week
Reflection
As a gardener, you take care of your plants in order for them to grow strong and healthy.  You tend to do what it takes in order to give them the care they need to thrive in their environment.  The same is true with God’s Word. 

God’s Word is like a gardener’s love.  When we take the time each day to hear His Word, our faith is strengthened.  If we don’t take the time to let God’s word enrich our lives, our faith will wither.  Like the seeds in the parable, there are instances every day that try to take us away from God’s love.  There may be people that lead us astray, that stand in our way, or that try to shape our lives in the wrong direction.  When we spend the time each day listening to God’s Word, we are then able to find the healthy soil in order to strengthen our faith.  Once we have a spent time enriching our own faith by hearing and accepting God’s Word, we can bear God’s fruit and become gardeners for others.

What might be some ways we can spend time letting God’s Word enrich our lives this Lenten season?

Prayer
God, nourish my soil so I may continue to grow strong in my faith.  Help me to find ways to let Your words enrich my life so that I may share Your Word with others to enrich theirs. 

Maura Grogan, ’14, Member of the Worshipping Community

Scripture
First Reading: Wisdom 2:1a, 12-22
Psalm 34:17-21, 23
Gospel: John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30

Daily Scripture readings can be found online at the USCCB website

 

Thursday of the Fourth Week
Reflection
Today’s readings remind me that we are all lost at some point in our lives and in need of guidance. They also serve as a reminder to put my trust in the Lord. In the first reading, from Exodus, God is reminding Moses that His people have turned away and that Moses needs to bring them back into the light. God is portrayed here as an angry God, filled with anger because His people have forgotten Him. At the end of the passage, we are reminded that above all else, God is merciful. It takes some convincing on Moses’ part, but in the end, the people are spared. In a similar way, the Gospel reading from John reminds us that Jesus was sent to earth by God the Father for a purpose. Jesus is asking us to put our trust in Him in the same way that the people from the first reading put their trust in Moses, “For if you had believed Moses, you would have believed Me, because he wrote about me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”

As the Lenten journey draws to a close, we are reminded that salvation is near; we just need to believe.  A verse a few chapters before today’s Gospel is a perfect reminder of this: “God so loved the world that he gave His only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might have eternal life” (John 3:16).  As I reflect on these readings, I am reminded to put my faith and trust in the Lord and also think about the people in my life who encourage me and remind me to look to God for guidance and trust in Him.

Prayer
Lord, help me to continue to place my trust in You in all that I do.

Matt Seklecki, ’11, Assistant Director of Admission

 

Scripture
First Reading: Exodus 32:7-14
Psalm 106:19-23
Gospel: John 5:31-47

 

Daily Scripture readings can be found online at the USCCB website

 

 

Friday of the Fifth Week

Reflection
Today’s responsorial psalm, “The Lord remembers his covenant forever,” echoes the message to us from the Genesis passage assigned for today. In Genesis 17, Abram (meaning “high father), gets a name change to Abraham (meaning father of a multitude), which signifies a change of destiny for Abraham. God then makes a promise, “an everlasting pact,” to be Abraham’s God and the God of his descendants for generations to come. God extends this same covenant of faithfulness to all of us.  A promise of faithfulness in any loving relationship needs to be fully reciprocal, so during this Lenten season, let’s evaluate our own relationship to God.

How do we seek God and put ourselves in the presence of God? Is it through worship, prayer, the Eucharist, service to others through good works, regular expressions of gratitude, or showing kindness to others? Have we reciprocally made an everlasting pact with God?

Even if all of those efforts are made, can we really make a commitment to the unseen? We can through faith and with the help of today’s Gospel reading from John. In Jesus’ response to the literalist Pharisees, “Amen, amen I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM,” He reveals Himself as the Christ. I AM is the divine name that God revealed to Moses at the burning bush. No book in all of Scripture points out more plainly than John’s Gospel that Jesus is the Son of God. As someone who calls himself “Christian” or “Christ-like”, most of my knowledge of God is through the life, teachings, death and resurrection of Jesus. May our relationships with God grow stronger during this season of Lent.

Prayer
Gracious and loving God, help us to always remember Your everlasting covenant and to remain in Your presence in all that we do. We ask this through Your Son, Jesus the Christ. Amen.

Michael Samara, Academic Mentor/Campus Minister

 

Scripture
First Reading: Genesis 17:3-9
Psalm 105:4-9
Gospel: John 8:51-59

 Daily Scripture readings can be found online at the USCCB website

 

Wednesday of the Fourth Week
Reflection
The readings today from Isaiah and John focus on being open to receive the Lord’s mercy and to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord’s limitless mercy and love are shown in the verse “For the Lord comforts His people and shows mercy to His afflicted...I will never forget you” which was the Lord’s response to His lost people.  Also, trusting in the Lord’s plan is given in the verse, “I cannot do anything on My own; I judge as I hear, and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of the one who sent me.” These verses are striking yet intriguing because in this Lenten season, many times we forget that the Lord is always there with us and is waiting for us to follow in His footsteps. The Lord, the Christ, is always there for us in our sorrows and our joy whether we realize it or not. The Lord’s love extends to every person of every race, color, ethnicity, etc. His mercy even reaches the worst sinners, and He forgives them anyway. The Lord always remembers His beloved sons and daughters. Even when we choose to do wrong and move away from Him, His hands are stretched out ready to receive us back into His love. Therefore, we must remember that when we fall, we must get back up. As Nelson Mandela once said, “Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.” Be open to receive the Lord’s mercy.  Even when we feel utterly alone and lost, we need to trust in the Lord because the Lord will guide us and give us strength in our weaknesses.

Prayer
Loving Lord Jesus Christ, allow Your mercy and love to flow through us to give us strength in order to get back up from our falls and to trust in Your will for us.  Amen.

Nicole Skaluba, ’18

Scripture
First Reading: Isaiah 49:8-15
Psalm 145:8-9, 13c-14, 17-18
Gospel: John 5:17-30

Daily Scripture readings can be found online at the USCCB website