In today's Office of Readings we encounter a reading from a sermon of St. Leo the Great. His is a succinct, yet theologically rich, exposition of the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ. For a reflection on the law, grace, and truth please click on the image. Peace be with you!
Today, on this second Sunday of Lent, the Gospel reading we hear in the Liturgy of the Word at Mass tells the story of the Transfiguration of Jesus. To a Jewish audience this story echoes of Moses in the Book of Exodus, where Moses comes down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the commandments in his hands, and "[Moses] did not know that the skin of his face had become radiant while he conversed with the LORD" (Ex 34:29). Here, in Mark's Gospel, we encounter what Matthew also recorded in his depiction of the Transfiguration event, "Jesus was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light" (cf. Mt 17:2). Jesus, joined by Peter, James, and John, encounters the law and the prophets of the Old Testament when then "Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus" (Mk 9:4).
Today, as we enter the second week of Lent, we are reminded and given a glimpse of the glory to come in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. We are encouraged to call to mind what glory awaits for those who abide in the Lord. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. As we approach Easter we will find this promise fulfilled as he establishes his New Covenant.
Let us continue on our Lenten journey; let us open our hearts to Jesus and encounter him in the Holy Scriptures; let us encounter him face-to-face as we receive him in the Eucharist in the Mass. Blessed are we indeed who are called to the Supper of the Lamb!
For a brief and interesting reflection on today's Gospel reading, please click on the image.
Peace be with you!
In today's Office of Readings we encounter a reading from the Second Vatican Council's pastoral constitution "Gaudium et spes" on the Church in the modern world. An excerpt: "The tensions disturbing the world of today are in fact related to a more fundamental tension rooted in the human heart. In man himself many elements are in conflict with each other. On one side, he has experience of his many limitations as a creature. On the other, he knows that there is no limit to his aspirations, and that he is called to a higher kind of life." For a reflection on man's deeper questionings, please click on the image. Peace be with you!
One of thirteen children of a well-to-do family of Assisi, Italy, he died at the young age of 24. St. Gabriel Possenti is the patron saint of Catholic youth, seminarians, clerics, students, and Catholic Action.
For more about this saint please click on the image.
Peace be with you!
This writing is a work of early Christian apologetics, likely from the 2nd century. It is rich in it's understanding of what it means to be a Christian: in life, in love, and in death. Christians should recognize the themes the author touches on because, passed down through the centuries, it is still as relevant today as when it was written; for we know a Christian is in the world, but not of the world.
For a beautiful reflection on Christian Perfection, please click on the image.
Peace be with you!