Readings for Sunday, February 18, 2024
Qari tal-Ewwel Ħadd tar-Randan
Reading 1 GENESIS 9:8-15
God said to Noah and to his sons with him: "See, I am now establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you and with every living creature that was with you: all the birds, and the various tame and wild animals that were with you and came out of the ark. I will establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all bodily creatures be destroyed by the waters of a flood; there shall not be another flood to devastate the earth." God added: "This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come, of the covenant between me and you and every living creature with you: I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth, and the bow appears in the clouds, I will recall the covenant I have made between me and you and all living beings, so that the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all mortal beings."
QARI 1 mill-Ktieb tal-Ġenesi 9:8-15
Alla kellem lil Noè u lil uliedu miegħu u qalilhom: “Arawni, hawn jien se nagħmel il-patt tiegħi magħkom u ma’ nisilkom warajkom; ma’ kull ħliqa ħajja li hemm magħkom, mat-tjur u mal-bhejjem, ma’ kull bhima selvaġġa li hemm magħkom, u mal-bhejjem kollha li ħarġu magħkom mill-arka. Jien nagħmel il-patt tiegħi magħkom, li qatt iżjed ma jinqered, ebda laħam ħaj, bl-ilmijiet tad-dulluvju; u qatt iżjed ma jkun hemm dulluvju biex iħarbat l-art”. U żied jgħid Alla: “Dan ikun is-sinjal tal-patt li jien qiegħed nagħmel bejni u bejnkom, u bejn kull ħliqa ħajja li hemm magħkom, għall-ġenerazzjonijiet kollha għal dejjem. Inqiegħed il-qaws tiegħi fis-sħab, u jkun sinjal tal-patt bejni u bejn l-art. Meta niġma’ s-sħab fuq l-art u tfeġġ il-qawsalla fis-sħab, jien niftakar fil-patt bejni u bejnkom u bejn kull ruħ ħajja f’kull laħam; u ma jkunx hemm iżjed l-ilma tad-dilluvju biex jeqred kull laħam ħaj”. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej.
R. (cf. 10) Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth to those who keep your covenant.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior.
R. Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth to those who keep your covenant.
Remember that your compassion, O LORD,
and your love are from of old.
In your kindness remember me,
because of your goodness, O LORD.
R. Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth to those who keep your covenant.
Good and upright is the LORD,
thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice,
and he teaches the humble his way.
R. Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth to those who keep your covenant.
SALM RESPONSORJALI Salm 24(25):4-5ab,6-7bċ,8-9
R/. (10): Il-mogħdijiet tal-Mulej kollhom tjieba u fedeltà.
Triqatek, Mulej, għarrafni,
il-mogħdijiet tiegħek għallimni.
Mexxini fis-sewwa tiegħek u għallimni,
għax int Alla tas-salvazzjoni tiegħi. R/.
Ftakar fil-ħniena u t-tjieba tiegħek,
għax huma minn dejjem, Mulej.
Inti tajjeb, Mulej;
ftakar fija skont it-tjieba tiegħek. R/.
Tajjeb u sewwa l-Mulej;
għalhekk juri triqtu lill-ħatja.
Imexxi l-imsejkna fis-sewwa,
jgħallem lill-fqajrin it-triq tiegħu. R/.
Reading 2 1 PETER 3:18-22
Beloved: Christ suffered for sins once, the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might lead you to God. Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the Spirit. In it he also went to preach to the spirits in prison, who had once been disobedient while God patiently waited in the days of Noah during the building of the ark, in which a few persons, eight in all, were saved through water. This prefigured baptism, which saves you now. It is not a removal of dirt from the body but an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him.
QARI 2 mill-Ewwel Ittra ta’ San Pietru Appostlu 3:18-22
Għeżież, Kristu wkoll miet darba għal dejjem minħabba d-dnubiet; hu li kien ġust, miet għall-inġusti biex iressaqkom lejn Alla; kien mogħti l-mewt fil-ġisem, imma ħa l-ħajja fl-ispirtu, li bih mar ixandar is-salvazzjoni lill-erwieħ li kienu magħluqa fil-ħabs. Dawn kienu l-erwieħ ta’ dawk li darba ma ridux jisimgħu, meta Alla qagħad jistenna bis-sabar fiż-żmien li Noè kien jibni l-arka. Ftit, jiġifieri tmienja biss, salvaw bis-saħħa tal-ilma. Dan l-ilma huwa tixbiha tal-magħmudija, li issa ssalva lilkom ukoll. Mhux għax tnaddaf il-ħmieġ tal-ġisem, imma għax hi talba lil Alla ħierġa minn kuxjenza safja bis-saħħa tal-qawmien ta’ Ġesù Kristu, li tela’ s-sema u qiegħed fuq il-lemin ta’ Alla u għandu taħtu s-Setgħat u l-Qawwiet tal-anġli. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej.
Gospel MARK 1:12-15
The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him. After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: "This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel."
EVANĠELJU Qari skont San Mark 1:12-15
F’dak iż-żmien, l-Ispirtu ħareġ lil Ġesù fid-deżert. U baqa’ fid-deżert erbgħin jum, jiġġarrab mix-Xitan. Kien jgħix mal-bhejjem selvaġġi, u kienu jaqduh l-anġli. Wara li arrestaw lil Ġwanni, Ġesù mar il-Galilija jxandar l-Evanġelju ta’ Alla u jgħid: “Iż-żmien huwa mitmum, u s-Saltna ta’ Alla waslet; indmu u emmnu fl-Evanġelju”. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej.
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THE PURIFICATION OF OUR MINDS AND HEARTS
Introduction:
The primary purpose of Lent is to prepare us for the celebration of Jesus’ death and Resurrection. The second purpose is to bring us to renew our Baptismal promises of rejecting Satan and accepting Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, allowing him to rule our lives. Both these aims demand purification of minds and hearts. The Church tries to achieve this goal by leading her children to a metanoia or true “repentance,” and by renewal of life through fasting, prayer, almsgiving, self-control, and practice of the corporal and spiritual works of mercy.
During Lent, we talk to God through personal, family, and liturgical prayers; we listen to Him by meditative Bible reading. We serve the Lord by giving alms, and we practice self-control through fasting. Since by Baptism we share the death and Resurrection of Jesus, today’s readings refer to Baptism directly or indirectly.
The Scripture lessons:
The first reading tells us that, although man irrevocably broke the original covenant God had made with Adam and Eve, the merciful God selected Noah and his family to renew that covenant. Noah’s rescue from the flood waters symbolizes our being saved through the water of Baptism which cleanses us of sin and makes us one with Christ.
Today’s Responsorial Psalm (Ps 25) is an exquisite penitential prayer, humbly acknowledging our human insufficiency and radical dependence upon God, His mercy, and His forgiveness. The psalmist lists some of God’s Own characteristics that will shape the life of the forgiven penitent: Truth, Compassion, Love, Kindness, Goodness, Uprightness, Humility, and Justice.
In the second reading, St. Peter shows us how Noah’s episode prefigured Baptism. He reminds us that, as Noah and his family were saved from the waters of the deluge, so we are saved through the waters of Baptism. Baptism is an outward sign of the New Covenant that God has made with His people. It makes us adopted children of God, heirs of Heaven, and temples of the Holy Spirit.
In the Gospel, we are told that Jesus faced and defeated the tempter at the end of his forty days of prayer, penance, and communion with the Father in the desert immediately following his baptism. It also tells us how Jesus started preaching his Messianic mission: “The time is fulfilled. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent. Believe in the Gospel.”
Life messages:
1) Let us conquer our temptations as Jesus did, using the methods Jesus employed: prayer, self-denial, and timely use of the word of God. During this Lent, let us confront our evil tendencies by talking to God, by listening to Him speaking to us though the Holy Bible, and by practicing self-control to subdue our evil tendencies.
2) Let us convert Lent into a time for spiritual growth and Christian maturity by:
a) participating in the Mass each day, or at least a few days in the week;
b) setting aside some part of our day for personal prayer;
c) reading some Scripture, alone or, better still, with others.
d) setting aside some money we might spend on ourselves for meals, entertainment, or clothes and giving it to an organization which takes care of the less fortunate in our society;
e) abstaining from smoking, alcohol, and other evil addictions;
f) receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation in Lent and participating in the “Stations of the Cross” on Fridays;
g) visiting the sick and those in nursing homes, and h) doing some acts of charity, kindness, and mercy every day in the Lent.
3) Let us use Lent to fight daily against the evil within us and around us by practicing self-control, relying on the power of prayer, and seeking the assistance and the daily anointing of the Holy Spirit.
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