Daily Reflection | Gospel Reading | RVA

5TH WEEK OF LENT
Psalter: Week 1 / (Violet)

Jer 31:10, 11-12abcd, 13
The Lord will guard us,
as a shepherd guards his flock.

1^st Reading: Ez 37:21-28*

 (…) Thus says Yahweh: I am about to withdraw the Israelites from where they were among the nations. I shall gather them from all around and bring them back to their land. I shall make them into one people on the mountains of Israel and one king is to be king of them all. They will no longer form two nations or be two separate kingdoms, nor will they defile themselves again with their idols, their detestable practices and their sins. I shall free them from the guilt of their treachery; I shall cleanse them and they will be for me a people and I shall be God for them. My servant David will reign over them, one shepherd for all. They will live according to my laws and follow and practice my decrees. They will settle in the land I gave to my servant Jacob where their ancestors lived. There they will live forever, their children and their children’s children. David my servant will be their prince forever. (…)

Gospel: Jn 11:45-56

 Many of the Jews who had come with Mary believed in Jesus when they saw what he did; but some went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. So the chief priests and the Pharisees called together the Council.

They said, “What are we to do? For this man keeps on performing many miraculous signs. If we let him go on like this, all the people will believe in him and, as a result of this, the Romans will come and destroy our Holy Place and our nation.”

Then one of them, Caiaphas, who was High Priest that year, spoke up, “You know nothing at all! It is better to have one man die for the people than to let the whole nation be destroyed.”

In saying this Caiaphas did not speak for himself, but being High Priest that year, he foretold like a prophet that Jesus would die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but also would die in order to gather into one the scattered children of God. So, from that day on, they were determined to kill him.

Because of this, Jesus no longer moved about freely among the Jews. He withdrew instead to the country near the wilderness, and stayed with his disciples in a town called Ephraim.

The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and people from everywhere were coming to Jerusalem to purify themselves before the Passover. They looked for Jesus and, as they stood in the temple, they talked with one another, “What do you think? Will he come to the festival?”

Reflections

I SHALL MAKE MY HOME AT THEIR SIDE

This promise of God is the promise of abiding presence in our lives. Actually God does not have to promise this or need to fulfill this promise because God is not only present to us, we are permeated by the divine which is the ground of our being. Actually the promise might be that we become aware of this presence, this all ABIDING PRESENCE. It is we who are not at home in the depths of our being. I think the most effective way of coming to this awareness is by meditation. If we are told that there is a gold mine in our garden, we will not search for it with a spoon or even a spade. We would use a drill to arrive fastest at our goal. This is what meditation does. It helps us to go into the depths of our being to discover the Divine that has always been there, establish a communion and allow this communion to steer the direction of our lives. We are distracted by many things especially in our current situation. There is too much noise, there are too many pictures, a deluge of information, changing experiences that capture our attention. It is important that we regularly seek solitude and in silence and meditation we dive into that center of our being where God is at home.

Daily Reflection 2018

Bible Diary ® is a product of Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.

CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL

With permission from the EPISCOPAL COMMISION ON LITURGY of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines

 

Bible Diary ® 2018
Copyright © 2O17 
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.claretianph.com

5TH WEEK OF LENT
St. Toribio de Mogrovejo, bishop
Psalter: Week 1 / (Violet)

Ps 18:2-3a, 3bc-4, 5-6, 7
In my distress I called upon the Lord,
and he heard my voice.

1st Reading: Jer 20:10-13
I hear many people whispering, “Terror is all around!
Denounce him! Yes, denounce him!” All my friends watch
me to see if I will slip: “Perhaps he can be deceived,” they say;
“then we can get the better of him and have our revenge.”
But Yahweh, a mighty warrior, is with me. My persecutors
will stumble and not prevail; that failure will be their shame
and their disgrace will never be forgotten. Yahweh, God of
Hosts, you test the just and probe the heart and mind.
Let me see your revenge on them,
for to you I have entrusted my cause.
Sing to Yahweh! Praise Yahweh and say:
he has rescued the poor from the clutches of the wicked!

Gospel: Jn 10:31-42

 The Jews then picked up stones to throw at him; so Jesus said, “I have openly done many good works among you, which the Father gave me to do. For which of these do you stone me?”

The Jews answered, “We are not stoning you for doing a good work, but for insulting God; you are only a man, and you make yourself God.”

Then Jesus replied, “Is this not written in your law: I said, you are gods? So those who received this word of God were called gods, and the Scripture is always true. What then should be said of the one anointed, and sent into the world, by the Father? Am I insulting God when I say, ‘I am the Son of God’?

If I am not doing the works of my Father, do not believe me. But if I do them, even if you have no faith in me, believe because of the works I do; and know that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.”

Again they tried to arrest him, but Jesus escaped from their hands. He went away again to the other side of the Jordan, to the place where John had baptized, and there he stayed.

Many people came to Jesus, and said, “John worked no miracles, but he spoke about you, and everything he said was true.” And many in that place became believers.

Reflections

IN MY DISTRESS, I CALLED ON THE LORD AND HE HEARD ME

This is a very consoling verse of the Psalm 18. When we are in distress, we need badly someone we can talk to, who will listen to us, who will help us in our need. Just knowing that someone is listening to us is already a help even if the situation does not change. It is consoling to know that we can always call on the Lord who always hears us. Maybe we may not experience right away the help we are asking for but we are sure that we are heard. Most of the time God uses people as messengers to tell us that we have been heard. All of a sudden we meet a friend, or a relative or maybe even a stranger who would show us the way we must go or will help us to decide what course of action to take or not to take. As Scripture says in other verses, “Seek and you shall find, ask and it shall be given unto you.”

Daily Reflection 2018

Daily Reflection 2018

Bible Diary ® is a product of Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.

CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL

With permission from the EPISCOPAL COMMISION ON LITURGY of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines

 

Bible Diary ® 2018
Copyright © 2O17 
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.claretianph.com

5TH WEEK OF LENT
Psalter: Week 1 / (Violet)

Ps 105:4-5, 6-7, 8-9
The Lord remembers his covenant for ever.

1^st Reading: Gen 17:3-9

Abram fell face down and God said to him, “This is my Covenant with you: you will be the father of a multitude of nations. No longer will you be called Abram, but Abraham, because I will make you the father of a multitude of nations. I will make you more and more famous; I will multiply your descendants; nations shall spring from you, kings shall be among your descendants. And I will establish a covenant, an everlasting Covenant between myself and you and your descendants after you; from now on I will be your God and the God of your descendants after you, for generations to come. I will give to you and your descendants after you the land you are living in, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession and I will be the God of your race.”

God said to Abraham, “For your part, you shall keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you, generation after generation.

Gospel: Jn 8:51-59

 Truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never experience death.” The Jews replied, “Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died and the prophets as well, but you say, ‘Whoever keeps my word will never experience death.’ Who do you claim to be? Do you claim to be greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets who also died?”

Then Jesus said, “If I were to praise myself, it would count for nothing. But he who gives glory to me is the Father, the very one you claim as your God, although you don’t know him. I know him, and if I were to say that I don’t know him, I would be a liar like you. But I know him and I keep his word.

As for Abraham, your ancestor, he looked forward to the day when I would come; and he rejoiced when he saw it.”

The Jews then said to him, “You are not yet fifty-years old and you have seen Abraham?” And Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” They then picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and left the temple.

Reflections

WHO EVER KEEPS MY WORD WILL NEVER EXPERIENCE DEATH

This is an example of the pronouncements of Jesus that people cannot take because they remain at the surface grammar of the statement which of course contradicts their experience. They were so scandalized that they turned violent against him because they considered what he was saying as blasphemy because he attributes the truth of his statement to his Father, who is God. So what could he have meant when he said that whoever keeps his word will not experience death. In other parts of the Gospel he proclaimed that he was the TRUTH, THE WAY, AND THE LIFE. So his words and words of life — the life of the spirit. So when one hears and keeps his words, one becomes spiritually alive. And one who is spiritually alive will transcend death. Death is for that person a transition to greater life, to everlasting life.

Daily Reflection 2018

Daily Reflection 2018

Daily Reflection 2018

Bible Diary ® is a product of Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.

CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL

With permission from the EPISCOPAL COMMISION ON LITURGY of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines

 

Bible Diary ® 2018
Copyright © 2O17 
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.claretianph.com

5TH WEEK OF LENT
Psalter: Week 1 / (Violet)

Dn 3:52, 53, 54, 55, 56
Glory and praise for ever!

1^st Reading: Dn 3:14-20, 91-92, 95*

King Nebuchadnezzar questioned them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden statue I have set up? (…) If you won’t, you know the punishment: you will immediately be thrown into a burning furnace. And then what god can deliver you out of my hands?”

Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego answered, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we need not defend ourselves before you on this matter. If you order us to be thrown into the furnace, the God we serve will rescue us. But even if he won’t, we would like you to know, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden statue you have set up.” (…)

Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who sent his angel to free his servants. Who, trusting in him, disobeyed the king’s order; and preferred to give their bodies to the fire rather than serve and worship any other god but their God.

Gospel: Jn 8:31-42

 Jesus went on to say to the Jews who believed in him “You will be my true disciples, if you keep my word. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are the descendants of Abraham and have never been slaves of anyone. What do you mean by saying: You will be free?”

Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave. But the slave doesn’t stay in the house forever; the son stays forever. So, if the Son makes you free, you will be really free.

I know that you are the descendants of Abraham; yet you want to kill me because my word finds no place in you. For my part, I speak of what I have seen in my Father’s presence, but you do what you have learned from your father.”

They answered him, “Our father is Abraham.” Then Jesus said, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would do as Abraham did. But now you want to kill me, the one who tells you the truth — the truth that I have learned from God. That is not what Abraham did; what you are doing are the works of your father.”

The Jews said to him, “We are not illegitimate children; we have one Father, God.” Jesus replied, “If God were your Father you would love me, for I came forth from God, and I am here. And I didn’t come by my own decision, but it was he himself who sent me.

Reflections

THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE

We have heard of this adage so often, we take for granted that we know its full meaning. But it is good to come back to it once in a while to see what further insights we can gain from it. First, maybe we should dwell on how falsehood shackles us. We have seen how people, when they begin with a lie, they have to manufacture more and more lies to bolster their first lie and before they know it they are entangled in lies and can no longer distinguish what is false from what is true, what is real and what is illusion. I have known people who have kept a secret infidelity from their spouses for years and years and then one day, the truth had to come out and it almost ended their marriage. But after some time they started to live with it and the relief that the spouse who had the secret is truly unbounded. The hurt remains especially for the aggrieved spouse but even for him/her, there grows a feeling that s/he will survive and actually felt relief because s/he admits that even before the revelation, s/he had somehow a sneaking suspicion that there was something being held back from him/her. Now that everything is in the open, s/he has lost that feeling. Truly TRUTH does make us free.

Daily Reflection 2018

Daily Reflection 2018

Daily Reflection 2018

Daily Reflection 2018

Bible Diary ® is a product of Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.

CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.

Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57^th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL

With permission from the EPISCOPAL COMMISION ON LITURGY of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines

 

Bible Diary ® 2018
Copyright © 2O17 
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.claretianph.com