| Readings for March 18, 2012
(Note, at most masses Year B readings will be heard; at 9:00 a.m. mass, Year A readings will be heard.)
Mercy and Relief; Light and Crisis
Traditionally, the fourth Sunday of Lent is called Laetere Sunday, named after the first word in the introit to the Mass in the old Tridentine liturgy, "Laetere, Ierusalem," "Rejoice, Jerusalem, and come together all you that love her; rejoice with joy, you that have been in sorrow: that you may exult, and be filled from the breasts of your consolation." The verses come from Isaiah 66. A seemingly unusual exhortation halfway through the introspective Lenten season. But halfway is precisely the reason to rejoice; on the Thursday before this Sunday, we will have reached Lent's halfway point. Laetere Sunday is a moment of temporary jubilation because the light of Easter begins to be visible to us. Traditionally, you are relieved from your Lenten privations on Laetere Sunday - a brief taste of the sweetness of the Easter season to come.
The Year B readings sound decisive notes of mercy. And mercy is at the core of the life of a Christian - offering mercy to the misfortunate and being open to the reception of mercy when you need it. The first reading, from 1 Chronicles, immerses us in the time of the princes of Judah, who themselves and whose priests and people committed repeatedly abominable acts of infidelity, pollution, and desecration at the temple of the Lord. Even God's messengers are mocked by the people. It is only Cyrus, the king of Persia, who hears the call of the Lord and who promises build a house for the Lord in Jerusalem and whose sincerity makes a blessing for those who would truly serve the Lord.
Paul in his letter to the Ephesians tells us directly that God is rich in mercy and has shown us his kindness in Christ himself. He tells us, "For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them." Just as we are called to be merciful, we need to understand our talents as mercies and kindnesses from God - we should live in them, use them.
The gospel reading from John is one of the best-known passages in scripture because of its evangelical authority: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life." John continues, "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him." It's common, and right, to think of the sacrifice God made of his Son for our sakes. But do we think of mercy as sacrificial? A sacrifice is something offered to God; or, in the case of Christ, the second person of the Trinity offered to us to repair our brokenness. The word sacrifice comes from two Latin roots, sacra, holy and facere, to make. A sacrifice makes something holy. Is not Christ's sacrifice on the cross the great mysterious mercy of our faith?
And this is what is offered to us this week, mid-way through the introspective Lenten season: mercy. So, rejoice Jerusalem! Rejoice with joy! A great mercy is coming.
(Note: anyone curious to read a Living the Word meditation on the Year A readings is free to e-mail Peter at: peter@luxhominem.com.)
Peter O'Leary is a member of the Ascension School Board and a lector. He teaches religion and poetry at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and at the University of Chicago.
|
