Reflections
Psalm 51: 3-4, 12-13, 14-15 (Read)
“Create a clean heart in me, O God.”
This Sunday's Psalm is David’s mea culpa
and is written after Nathan calls attention
to David’s adultery with Bathsheba. We are
shown in the Psalm that although David was
chosen by God to be king, even David sins
gravely. But God in His compassion and
goodness can blot out David’s offense,
no matter how grave.
David realizes that only God, in His mercy,
can cleanse David from his sins. David’s
sins,
like our own,
are offensive to God first and
foremost; we are all born of a sinful nature.
David calls on the Lord to blot out his offense,
knowing that the Lord, in His abundant
compassion, will wash away his guilt.
David’s words are a prayer of repentance and recall
for us the power of the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
“A clean heart create for me, O God; renew within me
a steadfast spirit. Give me back the joy of your salvation.”
Where else can we turn when we are separated from God?
Who else has the healing power to cleanse us?
“Do not drive me from your presence, nor take from me
your Holy Spirit.” David reminds us that without the Holy
Spirit we are ruled by the desires of this world. And without
the Holy Spirit we cannot bear the fruits of the
Spirit,
which we are called to do.
The people of Jeremiah’s time were given the assurance
that David sought. They were assured that the Lord would
forgive their evildoing, their own infidelity to God, and that
their sin would be remembered no more. (Jeremiah 31:34)
On David's part we can almost hear his loud cries and see
his tears, as he offers this psalm as prayer and seeks his
own inner renewal. When Christ was in the flesh, this is
how He himself prayed, as we are reminded in Sunday's
second reading. (Hebrews 5:7)
David prays that God will create for him a clean heart,
because God alone can bring about this transformation.
We, too, are called to seek our Savior’s mercy for our sinful
ways, especially during this Lenten season. We, too, are
given an opportunity to be restored in the joy of His Salvation,
to offer up what is dead within us, so that we can again bear
fruit and be good witnesses for the Lord. (John 12: 24)
In that way, we will then teach the wicked, God's
ways,
and our mouths will proclaim His praise.
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our psalmist King David cites the greatness of the Lord's compassion in calling
upon God to wipe out his
offense. Even though David was an adulterer and
a murderer, he knew that he could call upon the Lord to restore him and create
for him a clean heart. Does this give you
confidence that no matter how serious
your sins may be, you can
call upon God to be thoroughly cleansed? Explain.
2. As our psalmist implies, it is not enough to call upon God to create a clean
heart within us. We must also ask for a
steadfast spirit, for the Holy Spirit to be
sustained within
us. Tell how the Holy Spirit is working within you and what you
are inspired to do through the gifts of the Spirit.
Reflections
Psalm 137: 1-2, 3, 4-5, 6 (Read)
“How could we sing a song of the Lord in a foreign land?”
This Sunday's Psalm is a prayer of the Jewish people
in exile in
Babylon. As Sunday's 1st reading tells us,
the Lord became angry with the people of Judah
because of their many infidelities. (2 Chronicles 36:14-16)
And when they mocked the messenger of God,
God allowed them to be carried off to Babylon as slaves.
“By the rivers of Babylon, we sat mourning and weeping.”
But God's chosen people could not forget Jerusalem
and the covenant God had made with them. “If I forget
you Jerusalem, may my right hand wither. May my tongue
stick to my palate if I do not remember you.” And more
important, God did not forget them.
It is the same way with us. We sin against God and He
allows us to be carried off into a kind of self imposed exile,
where we separate ourselves from Him for a time.
“How could we sing a song of the Lord in a foreign land?”
When our hearts are hardened by sin, how can we sing
a song of the Lord? When we are in the darkness because
we prefer the darkness, how can we sing a song of the Lord?
When we are separated from the Lord and indulging in things
of the world, how can we sing a song of the Lord?
It is only when we are in the light, then can we sing a song
of the Lord.
As Sunday’s 2nd reading tells us, “Even when we are dead in our
transgressions, God brings us to life with Christ.” (Ephesians 2:5)
And the Gospel reminds us in a powerful way that although we
are a wicked people who hate the light, God sent His Son not to
condemn us, but to save us and lead us into the light. (John 3: 17-21)
That is how we free ourselves from our own spiritual exile.
It is only when we are in the light, when we become a light unto
the world, then can we sing a song of the Lord!
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. This Sunday's Psalm Response is, "Let my tongue be silenced,
if I ever forget you!" When you are separated from God because
of sin,
have you noticed how it becomes difficult to praise and
worship Him?
In a way your tongue becomes silenced for a time.
Explain how you
can get your voice back and start again singing
a song of the Lord.
2. Our psalmist tells us that it was difficult for the Jewish
people captive
in Babylon to sing the songs of Zion in a foreign land.
Is it sometimes
difficult for you to speak of your faith in the company of non-believers?
If you are being persecuted by a world that does not acknowledge you
as one of its own, how do you overcome your reticence and speak boldly
of your
faith?
Reflections
Psalm 19: 8, 9, 10, 11 (Read)
“The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul."
This Sunday's Psalm celebrates the law of the Lord, first given to the Israelites when Moses received God's commandments on Mt Sinai.
(Exodus 20:1-17)
More than a set of rules that we cannot hope to follow, God’s commandments give us wisdom; they ‘rejoice the heart.' They are 'more desirable than gold, sweeter also than honey.’
Our psalmist David shows us that obeying the law does not prevent us from being happy. The Psalm
speaks to us of the joy that is stirred up in our
hearts when we follow the Lord’s
commands.
“The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the
heart.”
Obeying the law brings much reward. If we are to imitate
the
divine life, everything we need to know is found
in God’s law.
We may think of God's statutes as something intended
to control
us or restrict us, but as our psalmist explains,
the law of the
Lord is in fact something to be desired,
because the law gives us wisdom and provides us
with something
we can trust.
God's statutes endure forever. It is through the verses
of this
Psalm that we know His law is a source of spiritual
refreshment,
a source of joy. His statutes do not bind us;
they set us free.
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our psalmist says that the ordinances of the Lord are 'sweeter than honey.'
How can it be that, instead of being
harsh, the commandments of the Lord
are sweet to the taste?
Explain.
2. Our psalmist says that the commandments of the Lord are a source of joy --
they 'rejoice the heart.' Tell about
how obeying the commandments can be a
source of joy in your life.
Reflections
Psalm 116: 10, 15, 16-17, 18-19 (Read)
“ I believed, even when I said, I am greatly afflicted.”
This Sunday's Psalm recalls words Abraham might have
prayed when he was called on to sacrifice his son
Isaac.
“I will offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving; I will pay my vows to
the Lord.” Who else could have kept the faith at a time like
that?
Yet Abraham’s devotion to the Lord did not waver. (Genesis
22:10-12)
We may not be called upon to offer up so heavy a sacrifice,
but we are commanded to listen to God’s son, and to imitate Him.
Abraham may have used words like those of our psalmist,
“I believed even when I said, ‘I am greatly afflicted.'”
God relented and provided a substitute for Isaac,
“Too costly in the eyes of the Lord is the death of the
faithful.”
But God did not spare His own son, as St Paul reminds us in
Sunday's 2nd reading. (Romans 8:32)
And for whom did God sacrifice His son Jesus? It was for us
that God handed over His beloved Son. Jesus’ death on the
cross has given us life. As people of faith we are chosen by God
for life. We pray that we are not put to the test as Abraham was,
but we might at least, as the Psalm says, “Pay our vows to the
Lord in the presence of all His people.”
The psalmist says, “O Lord, I am your servant; you have loosed
my bonds.” We too are made free by becoming the Lord's
servant.
That is how it is when we follow His commandments and do His will.
It is not something that binds us. Rather, it is something that sets us free.
We take delight in serving the Lord.
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our psalmist speaks of the power of his faith, even in the
darkest of times,
"I believed, even when I said, 'I am greatly afflicted.'" Give
an example of
how your faith has strengthened you in difficult times.
2. The Psalm says, 'O Lord, I am your servant; you have loosed
my bonds.'
Explain how it is that, having been freed from your chains, you
wish to serve
the Lord and become yoked to Him.
Reflections
Psalm 25: 4-5, 6-7, 8-9 (Read)
“Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth
to those who keep your covenant."
This Sunday’s Psalm is a prayer for forgiveness
and guidance, a good way to begin the season
of Lent. Our psalmist David recalls the covenant
the Lord made with Noah (Genesis 9:8-15), and
David writes, “Remember your compassion and love, O Lord, for they are ages old.”
Later in the psalm David affirms, “Good and
upright is the Lord, thus He shows sinners the way.”
Who else could lead us out of the pit of our sins but
God’s Son, the righteous
one who suffered for us,
the unrighteous ones, as St Peter
reminds us in this
Sunday's 2nd reading. (1 Peter 3:18-22) Peter says
Baptism doesn’t remove the dirt from our bodies;
it doesn’t remove our sinful nature. But it does allow us
to receive the Holy Spirit within us, because without
the
Spirit, we are powerless against the Devil.
We are blessed to have a God who does not disregard us.
On the contrary, He is a caring, compassionate God,
willing to humble himself to share in our humanity,
so that we might come to share in His divinity. Who else
would have such regard for sinners, for believers who
disobey him? It is He who encourages us when our
tongues confess – “The Lord guides the humble rightly,
and teaches the humble His way.”
In this Sunday's Gospel, our Lord Jesus tells us what we
are to do as we prepare for the most important season
of the year, “Repent and believe in the Gospel.” (Mark 1:15)
And in response we join with our psalmist and say,
“You are God my Savior.”
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our Psalm speaks of being taught by the Lord
("Teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me;
He teaches the humble His way.") Are you a good student of the
Lord?
Tell about what you have learned or are learning from the Lord.
2. According to our psalmist, the Lord "shows sinners the way."
As we enter the season of Lent, we could all use some guidance
and help as we strive for repentance and to be bolder in our
faith.
Explain what you will do during Lent to become a more obedient
Christian and a better witness for your faith.
Reflections
Psalm 32: 1-2, 5, 11 (Read)
“I confess my faults to the Lord.”
This Sunday's Psalm is one of David’s
penitential psalms. David sings out about
the heaviness of his sin that weighs upon him
so long as he keeps silent. The Psalmist’s sins
were hidden in his heart. Then, when he declares
his sin, and confesses his faults, his burden
is lifted and his guilt is taken away.
David’s sins may not have been so obvious
as the sores on the lepers described in this
Sunday's lst reading. (Leviticus 13:1-2)
But like those same lepers, David is compelled
to cry out, “Unclean, unclean,” and to seek
God’s forgiveness in order to be healed.
Just as David throws himself on the mercy
of the Lord, so does the leper in today's Gospel,
who kneels before Jesus and moves the
Lord to pity. (Mark 1:40-41)
The leper in the Gospel shouts for joy after he
is made clean. The same thing can happen to us
when we receive the Sacrament of Confession
and we are made clean inside. We may not be joyful
for the same reasons as the leper, but as Jesus says,
it is what's inside our hearts that needs to be purified.
And having been cleansed from within,
we really have something to be joyful about.
We are all pitiful in the sight of Christ,
but once on our knees, having confessed and repented
of our sins, there is hope for us whose sins are forgiven.
As it says in the Psalm, “Blessed is he whose fault
is taken away, whose sin is covered.”
We all need a spiritual cleansing from time to time
if we are to obtain a pure heart. They say confession
is good for the soul, and from what the Psalm tells us,
confessing our faults will lead us to be glad
in the Lord and rejoice.
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. This Sunday's Psalm Response is, "I turn to you, Lord, in time of trouble,
and you fill me with the joy of salvation." Tell of a 'time of trouble' in your life
when you turned to the
Lord, confessed your faults, and were filled with
the 'joy of
salvation.'
2. Our psalmist is grateful for God's gift of forgiveness; having confessed his sin
before God, he is a new creation thanks to the grace of God. Give an example
of how your anxiety over your sin ceases when you bow down and confess
your faults to the Lord.
Reflections
Psalm 147: 1-2, 3-4, 5-6 (Read)
“Praise the Lord, who heals the brokenhearted.”
The Psalm says that the Lord “rebuilds Jerusalem”
and “heals the brokenhearted, binds up our wounds.”
There is comfort in these words for all of us. The Psalm
points to the healing power of Jesus, our Lord and Savior,
which is depicted in this week’s Gospel. (Mark 1:29-39)
We too can be rebuilt from the inside out by the promise
of our Lord's salvation. It is surely by the grace of God
that we are made well. It is God's grace that drives the
demons out of us; there is no room in our hearts for both
the Holy Spirit and the demons. And we obtain God's grace
from the sacraments, which empower us to be well physically,
emotionally, and spiritually.
There is even hope for someone beaten down like Job,
whom we hear about in today's 1st reading. (Job 7:1-4, 6-7)
Like Job we may be poor in spirit, but it is at our moment
of greatest weakness that the Lord will call us by name –
“He numbers all the stars, calls each of them by name.”
Having put our trust in the Lord, He will sustain us,
“The Lord sustains the lowly.” Once we realize that the Lord
takes care of the lowly (for we are His sheep), we can not help
but praise God, preach the Gospel, and boast in our faith as
does St Paul. (1 Corinthians 9:16-18, 23)
Our Psalmist says it well – “How good to sing praise to God;
how pleasant to give fitting praise.”
Amen
Discussion Questions for Reflection
1. Our Psalm response this Sunday is, 'Praise the Lord, who heals
the brokenhearted.' Explain how the verses of the Psalm give you hope
that the Lord will 'bind up your
wounds.'
2. Our psalmist says that the Lord 'calls each of the stars by
name.'
Does this verse give you comfort that our Creator also knows
your name
and seeks you out despite the infinite size of the universe?
What does this
verse mean to you?
