Celebración de la palabra

Wednesday April 10, 2019

Fifth Week of Lent


Introduction

Persons who trust in God fight enslavement to sin. In the face of abuse of authority, persecution or coercion of any kind, even of tradition or of the law, they retain their inner freedom. When they hear and keep God’s Word, they make a decision for freedom. The liberating word of Christ sets us free and makes us sons and daughters. God’s children are born to be free. The three young men at the king’s court were willing to lay down their lives for their faith. Like the faith of Abraham, our faith in Jesus should be deep and unconditional.

Opening Prayer

Lord our God,
you call us to be free people.
Help us to give you always
a response of freedom.
Set free by Christ’s
liberating word and death,
may we never again
shackle ourselves with self-made chains,
of selfish sin and false attachments.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.

Reading: Dn 3:14-20, 91-92, 95

King Nebuchadnezzar said:
"Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
that you will not serve my god,
or worship the golden statue that I set up?
Be ready now to fall down and worship the statue I had made,
whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet,
flute, lyre, harp, psaltery, bagpipe,
and all the other musical instruments;
otherwise, you shall be instantly cast into the white-hot furnace;
and who is the God who can deliver you out of my hands?"
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar,
"There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you
in this matter.
If our God, whom we serve,
can save us from the white-hot furnace
and from your hands, O king, may he save us!
But even if he will not, know, O king,
that we will not serve your god
or worship the golden statue that you set up."

King Nebuchadnezzar's face became livid with utter rage
against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual
and had some of the strongest men in his army
bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
and cast them into the white-hot furnace.

Nebuchadnezzar rose in haste and asked his nobles,
"Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?"
"Assuredly, O king," they answered.
"But," he replied, "I see four men unfettered and unhurt,
walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God."
Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed,
"Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,
who sent his angel to deliver the servants who trusted in him;
they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies
rather than serve or worship any god
except their own God."

Responsorial Psalm: Dn3:52, 53, 54, 55, 56

R. (52b) Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever;
And blessed is your holy and glorious name,
praiseworthy and exalted above all for all ages."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you on the throne of your kingdom,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you who look into the depths
from your throne upon the cherubim;
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven,
praiseworthy and glorious forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!

Verse before the Gospel: Lk 8:15

Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart
and yield a harvest through perseverance.

Gospel: Jn 8:31-42

Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him,
"If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples,
and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
They answered him, "We are descendants of Abraham
and have never been enslaved to anyone.
How can you say, 'You will become free'?"
Jesus answered them, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin.
A slave does not remain in a household forever,
but a son always remains.
So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free.
I know that you are descendants of Abraham.
But you are trying to kill me,
because my word has no room among you.
I tell you what I have seen in the Father's presence;
then do what you have heard from the Father."

They answered and said to him, "Our father is Abraham."
Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children,
you would be doing the works of Abraham.
But now you are trying to kill me,
a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God;
Abraham did not do this.
You are doing the works of your father!"
So they said to him, "We were not born of fornication.
We have one Father, God."
Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me,
for I came from God and am here;
I did not come on my own, but he sent me."

Intercessions

– For those who are persecuted for their faith, that they may stand firm, even in torture, we pray:
– For all who claim to be descendants of Abraham, Jews, Christians, Moslems, that each in one’s own way may have deep trust in God, we pray:
– For people who have to make hard decisions in life, that they may follow their conscience in doing what is truthful, right and good, we pray:

Prayer over the Gifts

Lord God,
your Son Jesus could not be deprived
of his inner freedom
even when he died on a cross.
Give us the courage of your Son,
that our loyalty to the truth,
to you and to your values,
may always be strong enough
to make us break out of our self-made prisons,
our fears, complexes and excuses.
Accept this our sacrifice
and let it make us free with the freedom
brought us by Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Prayer after Communion

Lord God,
we are your sons and daughters
reborn in Christ to be free.
Help us to set our brothers and sisters free
from any sinful slavery
that oppresses or exploits them.
Give us the courage to speak out
and to do all we can
to bring justice and human dignity to all
in the strength of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Blessing

May God give us the grace to keep believing in the truth of the gospel, that this truth may make us always free and joyful people. May almighty God bless you all, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Commentary

Candor and honesty. These virtues are striking in today’s readings. The three young men in the blazing furnace refuse to compromise the truth of their convictions by surrendering to idolatry. They are vindicated and liberated because of their adherence to principle.
Jesus insists in the Gospel that sin reduces us to slavery. His Jewish opponents recognize no form of slavery; as the descendants of Abraham, they are the heirs of freedom. But in opposing Jesus, who speaks the truth of the Father, they are sinners, and sinners are enslaved to the “father of lies” (John 8:44). His opponents bend the truth at every opportunity, and in so doing they are slaves of evil and far from the freedom of God’s children.
In today’s world, enslavement to sin takes various forms. One example is child pornography, which has reached alarming proportions. Young children are drawn to immorality through cunning and depravity. It is an enterprise that produces millions of dollars each year. Its evil is multifaceted, but it is rooted in deception and depravity.
Today we also hear much about “spin.” It is a reporting technique that alters the truth to make the report more palatable. It is now a commonplace in the reporting of news. This, too, is a distortion of the truth. It may not be done to dishonor the person of Christ, but anytime that we doctor the truth, we move farther away from the candor of the Gospels.
Sometimes the truth hurts. But we cannot betray it. Let us pray for the grace to respond honestly to every inquiry, to relay the facts of any given situation, and not garnish the truth for per-sonal or other motives.
Let us keep the word with a generous heart and yield a harvest through perseverance.

Points to Ponder

Deception for immoral ends
Garnishing the truth.