THE DAILY GOSPEL
February 13, 2013
Wednesday Ash Wednesday Psalter: Week 4 Ps 51:3-4, 5-6ab, 12-13, 14 and 17 Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned. 1st Reading: Jl 2:12-18
Yahweh says, “Yet even now, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, weeping and mourning. Rend your heart, not your garment. Return to Yahweh, your God—gracious and compassionate.”
Yahweh is slow to anger, full of kindness, and he repents of having punished.
Who knows? Probably he will relent once more and spare some part of the harvest from which we may bring sacred offerings to Yahweh, your God.
Blow the trumpet in Zion, proclaim a sacred fast, call a solemn assembly.
Gather the people, sanctify the community, bring together the elders, even the children and infants at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his bed, and the bride her room.
Between the vestibule and the altar, let the priests, Yahweh’s ministers, weep and say: Spare your people, Yahweh. Do not humble them or make them an object of scorn among the nations. Why should it be said among the peoples: Where is their God?
Yahweh has become jealous for his land; he has had pity on his people. 2nd Reading: 2 Cor 5:20-6:2 Gospel: Mt 6:1-6, 16-18
Jesus said to his disciples, “Be careful not to make a show of your righteousness before people. If you do so, you do not gain anything from your Father in heaven. When you give something to the poor, do not have it trumpeted before you, as do those who want to be seen in the synagogues and in the streets in order to be praised by the people. I assure you, they have been already paid in full.
If you give something to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your gift remains really secret. Your Father who sees what is kept secret, will reward you.
“When you pray, do not be like those who want to be seen. They love to stand and pray in the synagogues or on street corners to be seen by everyone. I assure you, they have already been paid in full. When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father who is with you in secret; and your Father who sees what is kept secret will reward you.
“When you fast, do not put on a miserable face as do the hypocrites. They put on a gloomy face, so people can see they are fasting. I tell you this: They have been paid in full already. When you fast, wash your face and make yourself look cheerful, because you are not fasting for appearances or for people, but for your Father who sees beyond appearances. And your Father, who sees what is kept secret will reward you.” Reflection:
Those who are frequent travelers are familiar with the use of GPS (Global Positioning System). When they have to drive to an unfamiliar or distant place, they set their GPS to guide them through the right route to their destination. I, for one, have always depended on my GPS to reach my destinations. During my travels, I frequently make wrong turns and take wrong exits. Every time I make an error, my GPS (whom I have affectionately named “Beena”) patiently “recalculates” and guides me on to the right route from the wrong location I am at.
The season of Lent is like the GPS. We have set out on a long journey through “narrow” and “rough” paths (Matt 7:13-14) toward an exciting destination. But the journey is hard and long, and we often take wrong exits or digress into dangerous alleys. The season of Lent, with its gentle reminders, warnings, and exhortations, gives us the necessary software to recognize our errors, locate the right route, and get back on the path to our right destination. Happy journeying!