The Word On Sunday: I am the Lord

Sunday, March 17, 2019

Second Sunday of Lent - Lectionary: 27

It-Tieni Ħadd tar-Randan

Reading 1 GENESIS 15:5-12, 17-18

The Lord God took Abram outside and said, "Look up at the sky and count the stars, if you can. Just so," he added, "shall your descendants be." Abram put his faith in the LORD, who credited it to him as an act of righteousness. He then said to him, "I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as a possession. ""O Lord GOD," he asked, "how am I to know that I shall possess it?" He answered him, “Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old she-goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon." Abram brought him all these, split them in two, and placed each half opposite the other; but the birds he did not cut up. Birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses, but Abram stayed with them. As the sun was about to set, a trance fell upon Abram, and a deep, terrifying darkness enveloped him. When the sun had set and it was dark, there appeared a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch, which passed between those pieces. It was on that occasion that the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying: "To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the Great River, the Euphrates."

Qari I mill-Ktieb tal-GENESI 15, 5-12.17-18

F’dak iż-żmien: Il-Mulej ħareġ lil Abram ’il barra u qallu: “Ħares sewwa lejn is-smewwiet u għodd il-kwiekeb, jekk għandek ħila tgħoddhom”. U żied jgħidlu: “Hekk għad ikun nislek”. U Abram emmen fil-Mulej, u dan għaddhulu b’ġustizzja. U qallu: “Jiena l-Mulej li ħriġtek minn Ur tal-Kaldin, biex nagħtik din l-art b’wirt”. U qallu Abram: “Sidi Mulej, kif inkun naf li se niritha?”. U wieġbu: “Ħudli għoġla ta’ tliet snin, mogħża ta’ tliet snin, muntun ta’ tliet snin, gamiema u ħamiema”. U ħadlu dawn kollha, u qasamhom min-nofs, u kull nofs qiegħdu biswit l-ieħor; imma l-għasafar ma qasamhomx. U niżlu l-għasafar tal-priża għal fuq l-iġsma mejtin, imma Abram gerrixhom lura. Hi u nieżla x-xemx waqa’ fuq Abram ngħas qawwi, u waqgħu fuqu biża’ u dalma kbira. Meta x-xemx kienet niżlet u kien dalam, kenur idaħħan u lsien nar iżiġġ qasmu minn bejn il-bċejjeċ tal-laħam. Dakinhar il-Mulej għamel patt ma’ Abram u qallu: “Lil nislek nagħti din l-art, mix-xmara tal-Eġittu sax-xmara l-kbira, ix-xmara tal-Ewfrat”. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

Responsorial Psalm PSALM 27:1, 7-8, 8-9, 13-14.

The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life's refuge;
of whom should I be afraid?
R. The Lord is my light and my salvation.

Hear, O LORD, the sound of my call;
have pity on me, and answer me.
Of you my heart speaks; you my glance seeks.
R. The Lord is my light and my salvation.

Your presence, O LORD, I seek.
Hide not your face from me;
do not in anger repel your servant.
You are my helper: cast me not off.
R. The Lord is my light and my salvation.

I believe that I shall see the bounty of the LORD
in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD with courage;
be stout-hearted, and wait for the LORD.
R. The Lord is my light and my salvation.

Salm Responsorjali SALM 26 (27), 1.7-8.9.13-14

R/. (1): Il-Mulej id-dawl u s-salvazzjoni tiegħi

Il-Mulej id-dawl u s-salvazzjoni tiegħi,

minn min għandi nibża’?

Il-Mulej hu l-kenn tiegħi,

quddiem min għandi nitwerwer? R/.

Isma’, Mulej, leħen l-għajta tiegħi,

ħenn għalija u weġibni.

“Ejja” għedt f’qalbi, “fittex ’il wiċċu!”.

Jien wiċċek infittex, Mulej. R/.

La taħbix wiċċek minni,

la twarrabx bl-herra l-qaddej tiegħek.

Inti l-għajnuna tiegħi.

tħallinix u titlaqnix,

Alla tas-salvazzjoni tiegħi. R/.

Nemmen li għad nara t-tjieba tal-Mulej

f’art il-ħajjin.

Ittama fil-Mulej, żomm sħiħ u qawwi qalbek,

ittama fil-Mulej. R/.

Reading 2 PHILIPPIANS 3:17—4:1

Join with others in being imitators of me, brothers and sisters, and observe those who thus conduct themselves according to the model you have in us. For many, as I have often told you and now tell you even in tears, conduct themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction. Their God is their stomach; their glory is in their "shame." Their minds are occupied with earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will change our lowly body to conform with his glorified body by the power that enables him also to bring all things into subjection to himself. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord.

Qari II mill-Ittra lil-FILIPPINI 3, 17 – 4,1

Ħuti, ixbhu lili, u ħarsu lejn dawk li jimxu skont l-eżempju li rajtu fina. Għaliex hawn ħafna – dan għedthulkom bosta drabi, imma issa ntennihulkom bid-dmugħ f’għajnejja – li jġibu ruħhom bħal għedewwa tas-salib ta’ Kristu. It-telfien għad ikun tmiemhom; alla tagħhom hu żaqqhom, jiftaħru b’dak li jmisshom jistħu minnu, u moħħhom biss fil-ħwejjeġ tad-dinja. Imma aħna pajżani tas-sema; minn hemm bil-ħerqa nistennewh jiġi, is-Salvatur tagħna Sidna Ġesù Kristu. Hu għad irid ibiddlilna l-ġisem imsejken tagħna fis-sura tal-ġisem glorjuż tiegħu, bil-qawwa tas-setgħa li għandu li jġib kollox taħtu. Għalhekk, intom, ħuti li intom l-għożża u x-xewqa tiegħi, ferħ u kuruna tiegħi, żommu sħiħ fil-Mulej, maħbubin tiegħi. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

Gospel LUKE 9:28b-36

Jesus took Peter, John, and James and went up the mountain to pray. While he was praying his face changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzling white. And behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem. Peter and his companions had been overcome by sleep, but becoming fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. As they were about to part from him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good that we are here; let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." But he did not know what he was saying. While he was still speaking, a cloud came and cast a shadow over them, and they became frightened when they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my chosen Son; listen to him." After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. They fell silent and did not at that time tell anyone what they had seen.

Evanġelju mill-Evanġelju skont San Luqa 9, 28b-36

F’dak iż-żmien, Ġesù ħa miegħu lil Pietru, lil Ġwanni u lil Ġakbu, u tala’ fuq il-muntanja biex jitlob. U ġara li huwa u jitlob, id-dehra ta’ wiċċu tbiddlet u l-ilbiesi tiegħu saru ta’ bjuda li tgħammex. U kien hemm żewġt irġiel jitħaddtu miegħu, Mosè u Elija, li dehru fil-glorja, jitħaddtu fuq it-tmiem ta’ ħajtu li kellu jseħħ f’Ġerusalemm. Pietru u sħabu kienu mejtin bin-ngħas, imma baqgħu mqajmin sewwa, u raw il-glorja tiegħu u ż-żewġt irġiel li kienu miegħu. Xħin dawn it-tnejn kienu se jinfirdu minnu, Pietru qal lil Ġesù: “Mgħallem, kemm hu sew li aħna hawn! Ħa ntellgħu tliet tined, waħda għalik, waħda għal Mosè, u waħda għal Elija”. Ma kienx jaf x’inhu jgħid. Waqt li kien qiegħed jgħid dan, ġiet sħaba u għattiethom u huma beżgħu kif daħlu fis-sħaba. U minn ġos-sħaba nstama’ leħen jgħid: “Dan hu Ibni l-maħtur, lilu isimgħu!”. Malli nstama’ l-leħen Ġesù sab ruħu waħdu. Huma żammew is-skiet, u għal dawk il-jiem ma qalu xejn lil ħadd minn dak li kienu raw. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

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A reflection for the Second Sunday of Lent

Paradox of Christian faith

WE ARE FACED in this Sunday’s readings with a paradox of our Christian faith – we belong here and we do not belong here. It is in this world and through this world that we are to find our God. Yet, this is not our permanent home; we are pilgrims on a journey to a more permanent dwelling place, a place of total union with our God of Truth and Love. That is the goal of living and we need to keep it constantly before our eyes. It is so easy to get obsessed with things on the way: our career, our financial security, the education of our children, the house we want in some desirable area… These are mere stepping stones to a life beyond. We must not, like Lot’s wife, look back nostalgically at the past and become petrified into stone. Life, as one writer put it, is like watching a movie in a cinema. One cannot cry out: “Stop! I want to stay in this scene!” No, the movie goes on. And life goes on. And it is important to know where it is headed.

Both the First Reading and the Gospel speak of striking interventions by God in people’s lives. Let us take the Gospel first.

A moment of truth

Luke today gives the story of the Transfiguration, a story that can be found also in Mark and Matthew. It is important to be aware of where it comes in the Gospel account. Just before this, Peter, in the name of his fellow-disciples, had made the dramatic acknowledgement that Jesus, their teacher, was the Messiah, the Christ, the Saviour King expected by Israel. It must have been an awesome and heady moment for them all to realise that they, among all their fellow-countrymen, should be privileged to be his chosen companions. One can imagine how they began to have visions of power and glory because of this relationship (not altogether unlike rebels on the run who suddenly find their leader is now president of the country).

But almost immediately afterwards, they are brought very rudely down to earth. Jesus begins to instruct them about what it will mean to be companions of the Messiah. There will be no great palaces, there will be no prestigious offices. On the contrary, things will from that very moment seem to go very wrong. The Messiah, their Jesus, will become a hunted figure, hunted not by foreigners but by the rulers of his own people. He will be arrested, tried, tortured and eventually executed.

This was not the expected scenario for the Messiah’s appearance on the world’s stage and it quite clearly left the disciples in a state of shock and total incomprehension. It just did not make sense and Peter, surely reflecting the feelings of his companions, objected strongly. In return, he got a good scolding, “Get behind me, Satan!”

A privileged experience

It is in this context that the scene in today’s Gospel takes place. Three of Jesus’ most intimate disciples are brought to “the mountain”. We do not know which mountain but, in general, mountains in Scripture are holy places, places where God is especially felt to be present. Although traditionally Mount Tabor is identified as the mountain in question, it really does not matter. Here Peter, James and John have an experience of Jesus totally transformed in his appearance. The light of God shines through him.

Suddenly he is accompanied by Moses and Elijah, two pillars of the Hebrew Testament, representing the Law and the Prophets, the whole Jewish tradition. Luke says they spoke with Jesus of his coming experiences in Jerusalem. What is obviously implied is that Moses and Elijah fully recognised what would happen to Jesus as totally in conformity with the tradition they represented.

The disciples, however, are still not fully understanding what is happening; they were “heavy with sleep” (as they would be later in the Garden) but just managed to keep awake (which they failed to do in the Garden). (Their sleep is paralleled by the experience of Abram in the First Reading.)

As Moses and Elijah seemed to go away, Peter – impetuous as ever – blurted out: “Master, it is wonderful for us to be here! So let us make three tents [shrines], one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” The Gospel comments that Peter did not know what he was saying. Clearly, this scene was not for keeps. It was wonderful for them to be there but there was another world, another reality awaiting their Master – and them also.

Then, even as Peter spoke, a cloud came and covered them with a shadow and “the disciples were afraid”. Naturally! This was no morning mist. They recognised the cloud immediately as the close presence of God himself. And they heard God speak from the cloud: “This is my Son, the Chosen One. Listen to him.” First, there was the support of Moses and Elijah and now Jesus gets the solemn endorsement of the Father himself.
Listen!

“Listen to him.” They are being told to remember the words Jesus just told them about the Messiah, who would be rejected, suffer and die shamefully. If they cannot understand and accept those words, they do not know the real Jesus, they cannot be his disciples. As Jesus will say later, “A grain of wheat remains no more than a single grain unless it is dropped into the ground and dies.” The suffering and death of Jesus are the seeds of new life for all of us.

After the “voice” had spoken, they found themselves with Jesus alone, the same “ordinary” Jesus they always knew. But they kept silent. They had nothing to say but much still to learn and to understand about the Person and the Way of Jesus. What they needed was the gift of faith and total trust in Jesus and in God.

Abram’s experience

There are some parallels in the experience of Abram. Abram (later to be called Abraham) had been asked to leave his homeland and to go and live in a strange place. If he did so, he was promised a great future for his family and descendants. Without any further guarantees, Abram sets out. His readiness to put his trust in God’s word became legendary in the tradition of Israel and is echoed again in the New Testament. “Abram put his faith in the Lord, who counted this as making him justified,” that is, putting him right with God.

But, although ready to do what God asked of him, Abram asked for some confirmation. He was told to make an offering of some animals and to cut the animals in half, putting one half on each side. At sunset, as Abram fell into a deep sleep and as the sun set and darkness came on, a blazing furnace and a firebrand (signs of God’s presence) came between the divided offerings. From this experience Abram knew his trust in God was justified. He never lived to see the day when his descendants were as numerous as the stars but if only he could see now how his God is worshipped “from the rising of the sun to its setting” (Third Eucharistic Prayer) by countless people in every corner of our planet.

Our transfiguration

There is still one thing we need to consider and that is how these Lenten readings are to touch our own lives. The key linking the First Reading and the Gospel is the passage from the Letter to the Philippians in the Second Reading.

The transformation or transfiguration of Jesus that the disciples experienced was not simply something they were to see and experience as happening to him alone. It was also an invitation for them to undergo a transformation and transfiguration of their own.

Paul says in today’s reading, “For us, our homeland is in heaven”, that is, the goal and destination of our life is to be one with God. There is no other goal. “And from heaven [i.e. from God] comes the Saviour we are waiting for, the Lord Jesus Christ, and he will transfigure these wretched bodies of ours into copies of his glorious body. He will do that by the same power with which he can subdue the whole universe”. How is that transformation or transfiguration to take place? By listening to Jesus, listening to all that he invites us to be and to do, however much it may seem to go against the conventions we were brought up on. It means especially listening to those words which caused such difficulty for Peter and his companions and integrating them into my own vision of life. It means having a total trust in walking his Way, a total trust that only his Way brings me into full union with God, the source of all Truth, Love, Happiness and Peace.