Breaking the Word

Friday after Ash Wednesday – 24^th February 2023 – Isaiah 58,1-9;  Mt 9,14-15

Fasting for Those in Need

In the first reading from Isaiah, the people are complaining to God: “Why do we fast, and you do not see it? We afflict ourselves, and you take no note of it.” God responds by pointing out to them that their fasting leads to quarreling and fighting. The fasting which God desires should lead to freeing the oppressed, feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless, and clothing the naked – i.e., acts of compassion, love and mercy. Therefore, fasting should not be just done with less or no food. It is the emptying of those aspects of our lives which hinder us from the full awareness of the Lord Jesus’ presence with us. It is an awareness of what God wants us to do with our lives, particularly in respect to others and their needs. If our fasting from food, or other pleasures in our lives, leads us to being angry  or fighting with others, it is not the fasting God wants. Fasting should allow us to focus on people who are in real need: the oppressed, the hungry, the homeless, and the naked.

Thursday after Ash Wednesday – 23^rd February 2023 – Deut 30,15-20; Lk 9,22-25

Making Choices

The readings remind us that God is presenting us with choices. In the first reading, as Moses draws close to the Promised Land, he realizes that he will not enter. He lays out, therefore, the two choices which the Israelites have: life with God through obedience to God’s precepts, or death through disobedience. Life comes from being in a relationship with God, whereas death flows from turning one’s back on God. When presented with such a choice it seems hard to believe that people would choose the path of death. The responsorial psalm proclaims that those who walk in the way of the Lord are truly blessed, for they have a source of life and sustaining power from the author of life. They are compared to a tree that is planted near the running water. In the Gospel, Jesus invites his disciples to freely follow Him in order to experience eternal life, even in the midst of suffering and death. The choice is laid out before them and it may be painful at times. True life is life with God forever. Yet it comes as a result of being willing to die to self in order to live for God. This season of Lent allows us to see what aspects of our lives need to die – those that prevent us from completely following Jesus.