St. Polycarp, Student of John, Teacher of Irenaeus, Bishop of Smyrna, Apologist, and Martyr

St. Polycarp of Smyrna is a man of steadfast faith. He was a student of St. John the Apostle. Polycarp heard first-hand accounts of the life and Paschal Mystery of Jesus from John, who lived and traveled with him, as he was a student of John. As John fought hard against gnostic heresies, such as Cerinthianism. Obviously, as John’s student, Polycarp became an astute and staunch apologist, fighting against heretics, especially Marcionism. On this matter, Polycarp’s student, St. Irenaeus wrote:

But Polycarp also was not only instructed by apostles, and conversed with many who had seen Christ, but was also, by apostles in Asia, appointed bishop of the Church in Smyrna, whom I also saw in my early youth, for he tarried [on earth] a very long time, and, when a very old man, gloriously and most nobly suffering martyrdom, departed this life, having always taught the things which he had learned from the apostles, and which the Church has handed down, and which alone are true. To these things all the Asiatic Churches testify, as do also those men who have succeeded Polycarp down to the present time — a man who was of much greater weight, and a more steadfast witness of truth, than Valentinus, and Marcion, and the rest of the heretics. He it was who, coming to Rome in the time of Anicetus caused many to turn away from the aforesaid heretics to the Church of God, proclaiming that he had received this one and sole truth from the apostles — that, namely, which is handed down by the Church. There are also those who heard from him that John, the disciple of the Lord, going to bathe at Ephesus, and perceiving Cerinthus within, rushed out of the bath-house without bathing, exclaiming, Let us fly, lest even the bath-house fall down, because Cerinthus, the enemy of the truth, is within. And Polycarp himself replied to Marcion, who met him on one occasion, and said, Do you know me? I do know you, the first-born of Satan. Such was the horror which the apostles and their disciples had against holding even verbal communication with any corrupters of the truth; as Paul also says, A man that is an heretic, after the first and second admonition, reject; knowing that he that is such is subverted, and sins, being condemned of himself. Titus 3:10 There is also a very powerful Epistle of Polycarp written to the Philippians, from which those who choose to do so, and are anxious about their salvation, can learn the character of his faith, and the preaching of the truth. Then, again, the Church in Ephesus, founded by Paul, and having John remaining among them permanently until the times of Trajan, is a true witness of the tradition of the apostles.    Against Heresies, III-3-4

According to St. Jerome, John ordained Polycarp as the first bishop of the church in Smyrna. And it was when the Roman Empire was aggressively persecuting Christians and destroying churches throughout the Empire. The nascent church of Smyrna, where Polycarp served as bishop, was no exception, in facing the persecution. In the First Reading (Revelation 2:8-11), we see how Jesus encouraged the church of Smyrna, not to let devil has his way but endure the test of suffering in keeping the faith.

As John recorded in his Gospel, from which the First Reading (John 15:18-21) is drawn, those who follow Jesus are rather expected to face persecution. Reiterating what he had said about dealing with challenges, Jesus said:

Remember the word I spoke to you, “No slave is greater than his master.” If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. And they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know the one who sent me (John 15:20-21; cf. John 13:16; Matthew 10:22; 24:9; cf. John 8:19).

Through the above words, Jesus makes it clear that those who had persecuted and killed him could do the same thing to us, because we are “guilty by association with Jesus” in their eyes.

So what can we learn from St. Polycarp?

The Roman authorities were hunting down Polycarp, bishop of the church of Smyrna, as they were coming to crack down this church. Though he could have escaped, he chose to be captured and face whatever the Roman persecutors would demand on behalf of their emperor. Polycarp was firmly resolved to respond in the mighty name of Jesus, the Christ.

As his execution drew imminent, a local proconsul demanded Polycarp swear to revile Christ so that he would let him go. To this Polycarp said:

For eighty and six years I have been his servant, and he has done me no wrong. And how can I now blaspheme my king who saved me?

Then the proconsul threatened Polycarp with a gruesome consequence of refusing to denounce Christ. He first suggested that Polycarp would be eaten by wild beasts. To his, Polycarp replied:

Call for them, for we will not be moved from good to evil.

So proconsul proceeded to threat Polycarp to be consumed by fire.

But Polycarp remained resolved to keep his faith in Christ, even though it means to be burned alive in fire. So he said:

You threaten me with fire which burns for an hour at most; you must not know about the fire of the coming judgment and of eternal punishment, reserved for the ungodly. Why are you wasting time? Kill me in whatever way you see fit.

Just before fire was lit to burn him alive, St. Polycarp prayed in these words:

O Lord God Almighty, the Father of Your beloved and blessed Son Jesus Christ, by whom we have received the knowledge of You, the God of angels and powers, and of every creature, and of the whole race of the righteous who live before you, I give thanks that You have counted me, worthy of this day and this hour, that I should have a part in the number of Thy martyrs, in the cup of thy Christ, to the resurrection of eternal life, both of soul and body, through the incorruption imparted by the Holy Ghost. Among whom may I be accepted this day before You as a fat and acceptable sacrifice, just as You, the ever-truthful God, hast fore-ordained, by reveling it beforehand to me, and now fulfilling. Because of this I also praise You for all things, I bless You, I glorify Thee, along with the everlasting and heavenly Jesus Christ, Your beloved Son, with whom, to You, and the Holy Ghost, be glory both now and to all coming ages. Amen.

Imagine yourself, as a faithful member of the church of Smyrna, seeing your beloved bishop, St. Polycarp, facing his persecution into death, with such an unshakable resolve to keep his faith in Christ. Would you be ready to become the next martyr or succumb to fear? You would see how mature and strong your faith is.

As the memorial feast of St. Polycarp, bishop and martyr, comes during Lent, perhaps, you can see how your Lenten commitment of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, are leading you to become more like St. Polycarp.

Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, the First Vicar of Christ, and the Supreme Shepherd with the Keys to the Kingdom

On February 22, the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter, acknowledging and honoring the Christ-given authority of Peter, symbolized with the keys to the Kingdom of God, and his pastoral leadership from the day of Pentecost on.

It was, indeed, Peter, who stood up and netted about 3,000 people into the nascent Church to grow, on the day of Pentecost through his speech (Acts 2:14-41). It was not really Peter himself but rather the Holy Spirit in him, who spoke through him (i.e. Matthew 10:20; John 14:26; cf. Luke 21:15). Though all the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit on Pentecost (Acts 4:2), only Peter spoke Paschal Mystery of Jesus Christ, as he and other disciples had witnessed, and called his audience in Jerusalem to repent, be baptized, and to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit for salvation (Acts 2:14-40). As a result of his sermon, about 3, 000 people who heard him, joined the newborn Church (Acts 2:41).

From the day one of the Church, Peter was the one to take initiative among the Apostles, who were the original presbyters of the Church. It means that Peter was the lead presbyter among the presbyters. So, how did Peter become the chief presbyter of the Church? We find an answer in the Gospel Reading of Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter (Matthew 16:13-19).

The Gospel Reading reminds that the Father in heaven had eyed on Peter because He revealed His Son’s Christological or Messianic identity only to Peter in response Jesus’ question, “Who do say that I am?”(Matthew 16:15-17). Because of this, Jesus, the Son, gave Peter the authority to serve as vicar of Christ, symbolized with the keys to the Kingdom (Matthew 16:19), upon giving him a new name, Peter (Petros), and proclaiming to build his Church on “this rock (petra)” (Matthew 16:18).

Though Jesus gave Peter his keys to the Kingdom, Peter was not ready to exercise the authority symbolized with the keys yet. He did not fully understand Paschal Mystery of Christ yet. That is why he tried to prevent Jesus from going to Jerusalem and rebuked by him when Jesus foretold his suffering, death, and resurrection in Jerusalem, for the first time (Matthew 16:21-23). And he even denied Jesus three times out of fear when Jesus was taken to the Sanhedrin for interrogation (e.g. Matthew 26:69-75), though he said to Jesus, “Even though I should have to die with you, I will not deny you”(Matthew 26:35).

After his resurrection, Jesus commissioned Peter to take up his pastoral capacity all the way to his martyrdom, as shepherd for his sheep (John 21:15-19). This shows that Peter did not lose the authority given to Jesus, symbolized with the keys to the Kingdom (Matthew 16:19), even though he denied him three times (e.g. Matthew 26:69-75).

Then, upon receiving the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, Peter was installed as the very first vicar of Christ, namely, Pope. So, he took the initiative and exercised the Christ-given authority for the steady growth of the nascent Church (Acts 2:14-41; 3:1-10; 4:1-22; 5:1-15; 9:36-41; 10:24-11:18). On the authority that Peter exercised as the lead presbyter of the Church and as Vicar of Christ, St. John Paul II said to General Audience, on Wednesday 16 December 1992:

We can conclude by recognizing that truly at the Church's beginning Peter acted as one who possessed the primary authority within the college of the apostles, and for this reason spoke in the name of the Twelve as a witness to the resurrection.

Therefore, he worked miracles which resembled Christ's and performed them in his name. He assumed responsibility for the moral behavior of the members of the first community and for its future development. He was the focus of concern for the new People of God and of the prayer they made to heaven to obtain his protection and deliverance.

Peter is the Chris-appointed Pastor of his Church (John 21:15-17), holding the keys to the Kingdom given by Christ, symbolizing Christ’s binding authority (Matthew 16:19).  After his resurrection and before his ascension, Jesus, the Good Shepherd (John 10:11, 14), whom Peter called “chief shepherd” (1 Peter 5:4), commanded Peter to follow him as a shepherd of his sheep until his martyrdom (John 21:19). And the other Apostles, presbyteries of the nascent Church, served basically as the associate pastors. The structure is that Peter was archbishop and the other Apostles were auxiliary bishops, if Peter’s jurisdiction is put into an archdiocese.

In the First Reading (1 Peter 5:1-4), the supreme pastor, Peter, wrote to his fellow pastors how they should serve their sheep, as their inspiring role models. This is a pastoral letter written by the very first Pope to his brother bishops of the nascent Church.

The Chair of St. Peter, the Apostle symbolizes Peter’s supreme pastoral role and his supreme authority over his fellow presbyteries and Christ’s sheep.

The Sign of Jonah: Will You Repent and Believe? - Wednesday of the First Week of Lent

As we began our Lenten journey on Ash Wednesday, in receiving blessed ashes on our foreheads, we heard these words, “Memento, homo, quia pulvis es, et in pulverem reverteris. - Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return (Genesis 3:19). If not, we heard these words, Paenitemini, et credite Evangelio. - Repent and believe in the Gospel (Mark 1:15).

Being a full week from Ash Wednesday, the Readings of Wednesday of the First Week of Lent (Jonah 3:1-10; Luke 11:29-32) take us back to these words of Jesus:

Paenitemini, et credite Evangelio. - Repent and believe in the Gospel (Mark 1:15).

We have reflected our need to repent and believe in the Gospel, when receiving ashes on the first day of Lent and in the Gospel Reading of the First Sunday of Lent (Cycle B) (Mark 1:12-15).

The scripture readings of Wednesday of the First Week of Lent (Jonah 3:1-10; Luke11:29-32) draw a contrast between those who actually repent and those who do not in response to a call for repent and believe.

In the First Reading (Jonah 3:1-10), we see how the Ninevites, from the top to the bottom, from king to beasts, repented their sins and mourned a loss of their innocence, and believed in God, as a result of prophet Jonah announced God’s judgement on Nineveh for their sins. On the other hand, in the Gospel Reading (Luke 11:29-32), Jesus lamented the unrepentance of the people of his generation, though he had been calling to repent and believe in his Gospel, and refused to give them a sign to make them believe, except for a sign of Jonah.

Jesus referred his death and resurrection as the sign of Jonah and described himself as something greater than Jonah.  He was, indeed, the sign of Jonah to his generation.

Furthermore, Jesus, as the sign of Jonah, spoke of the Judgement on his generation, as Jonah warned God’s judgement on the Nineveh. And he said that his unrepentant generation would be rebuked by the queen of the south, who came to hear God-given wisdom of Solomon (1 Kings 10:1-9), and also by Jonah, who went to Nineveh and prompted the Ninevites’ conversion (Jonah 3:1-10).

Indeed, the sign of Jonah at its best is the risen Jesus. How many of those who do repent and believe would come to repent and believe, upon Jesus' death and resurrection?

It has been a week since Ash Wednesday. You have heard a call to repent and believe in the Gospel. Whine one are you like, the Ninevites who repented and believed, the queen of the south, who sought wisdom from Solomon, of the generation that Jesus lamented for their unwillingness to repent and convert?

Prayer, Unconstructed Grace, and Constructed Grace - Tuesday of the First Week of Lent

A main theme for the Scripture Readings of Tuesday of the First Week of Lent (Isaiah 55:10-11; Matthew 6:7-15) is a prayer. In fact, the Gospel Reading (Matthew 6:7-15) is the narrative that is skipped in the Gospel Reading of Ash Wednesday (Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18).

In the Ash Wednesday Gospel Reading (Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18), Jesus teaches us to give alms rather anonymously (vv. 1-4), pray rather in private (vv.5-6), and fast but make ourselves look as if not fasting (vv. 16-18), because these three Lenten commitments are not to draw attention to ourselves. In the Gospel Reading of Tuesday of the First Week of Lent (Matthew 6:7-15), Jesus first warns not to pray like pagans, whose prayers are nothing but a nonsense verbose babbling. Their prayers get wordier and wordier because they think that the more they speak the better their deities would hear. On the other hand, Jesus reminds us that our Father already knows our needs before we ask Him (Matthew 6:8).

Some Protestants consider that praying the Rosary is a babbly prayer that Jesus is speaking against, because of the repetition of “Hail Mary”s. But what Jesus calls a pagan’s prayer is, for example, a wordy and laud prayer cited by the prophet of Baal (1 Kings 18:24-39). And the repetitiveness of “Hail Mary” is more like the repetition of “for his mercy endures forever” in the all 26 verses in Psalm 136. Would these Rosary criticizers also consider Psalm 136 to be problematic?

Enough said.

In Matthew 6:5-8, Jesus gives a twofold warning for a prayer. Not to pray like a hypocrite who prays to garner attention to himself or herself. Not to pray like a pagan, whose prayer is a meaningless wordy babble as if god were deaf. Then, Jesus introduces what is known as the Lord’s Prayer, saying, “This is how you are to pray”(Matthew 6:9a). And the below is the prayer that Jesus teaches.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.  Give us today our daily bread; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and do not subject us to the final test, but deliver us from the evil one (Matthew 6:9-13).

In this pithy prayer, taught by Jesus, we first express our reverence to the Almighty Father in heaven, acknowledging Him as the Creator. We also show our awareness of the coming of His Kingdom and our understanding that His will is to be done on earth as it is in heaven. Then, we move on to making a petition to the generous Father for our daily sustenance, symbolized with daily bread. And we acknowledge that each day is also a gift from God. Like manna from heaven (Exodus 16:4-28), the sustenance comes to us one day at a time. It is not like stocking up grocery for the entire. We humbly ask God our daily sustenance one day at a time. In regard to not worrying about tomorrow but being content with bread for a day, Jesus also says:

If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith? So do not worry and say, “What are we to eat?” or “What are we to drink?” or “What are we to wear?” All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself (Matthew 6:30-34).

In this prayer, we also ask the Father for forgiveness, while pledging to forgive those who have offended us.  In order to be forgiven by God, we cannot be as selfish as the unforgiving servant, whose debt was forgiven by his master but refused to forgive his fellow servant’s debt to him (Matthew 18:21-35). And Jesus says:

If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Fathe”r forgive your transgressions (Matthew 6:14-15).

Let us not skip, “as we forgive our debtors”(Matthew 6:12a). We promise God that we forgive our offenders so that we will be forgiven by Him for our offenses against Him.

Additionally, we ask the Father to spare us from trials and evil. On the night before his death, Jesus said to Peter, James, and John, in Gethsemane:

Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak (Matthew 26:31).

This means that we cannot just ask the Father not to subject us to test and deliver us from evil but we also need to be able to endure trials and fight evil by the power of the Holy Spirit.

So, how does the Gospel Reading (Matthew 6:7-15), featuring the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13) is related to the First Reading (Isaiah 55:10-11) are related?

The First Reading (Isaiah 55:10-11) is drawn from the Deutero Isaiah (Isaiah 40-55), which is mainly a consolation to Israelites in the Babylonian exile. In this reading, Isaiah poetically juxtaposes God’s grace for our sustenance to His grace, including His Word.

God’s providential grace comes to make us fertile ground so that the grace will grow into abundant fruition for a great harvest, as rain and snow make the earth fertile and fruitful. What is important to note here is that God’s grace cannot be wasted as it shall not be returned to God in vain. It means that we do not simply receive it but put our work on it so that it is returned to Him as rich harvest offering. This is basically turning unconstructed grace, which is sent from God, into constructed grace by our works, according to His will, so that the Kingdom of God shall be established on earth as it is in heaven.

Through the Lord’s Prayer, we ask for God’s grace as our daily bread so that we can sustain ourselves one day at a time. In our humility, we acknowledge that it is enough for us (i.e. 2 Corinthians 12:9). But, we are not simply asking God to send us daily bread but it is we who makes bread, by growing, harvesting, and milling wheat, as God’s grace keeps the earth fertile enough for wheat to grow. This way, we can offer bread to God. And this is how we turn unconstructed grace into constructed grace, making sure that what comes out of God is not return to him ineffectually.

Let us remember, when we pray, especially the Lord’s Prayer, we are not simply asking God of His favor but we are also making our pledge to work on His provision, turning it into abundant constructed grace. Taking our part also includes forgiveness, as we are not simply asking God to forgive us but we promise to forgive those who are in debt to us without a string.

Prayer, indeed, is not simply to receive from God but also to return what we receive with our work, as a token of our gratitude. And this exchange is a process to build the Kingdom.

God provides. We receive graciously. We work hard on what we receive. And we offer God what we worked on His provision. Prayer is for this process.

Almsgiving as a Way of Loving Neighbors and God – Monday of the First Week of Lent

The Readings of Monday of the First Week of Lent (Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18 and Matthew 25:31-46) puts a spotlight on almsgiving, one of the three Lenten commitments. Alms we give is not limited to money. It can be food or an act of care. What is important for almsgiving is that it is driven by compassionate love for those who are in need (1 Corinthians 13:3). In other words, almsgiving is an act of selfless love, agape. Therefore, it is kind and not self-seeking (1 Corinthians 13:4-5). And Jesus sternly warns against our tendency to be recognized for giving alms (Matthew 6:1-4), as reminded on Ash Wednesday.

The Frist Reading (Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18) puts almsgiving, an act of love, (vv. 11-18), as a way to attain holiness because God is holy (v.2). In fact, the text of Leviticus 19:2-18 bears some elements of the Decalogue (Exodus 20:2-17). It means that almsgiving shall be conducted not only out of love to our neighbors in need but also in connection to our love and reverence to God. The bottom line is, as our way of loving neighbors, we give alms for their needs, as if they were ourselves (Leviticus 19:18). And almsgiving can be practiced in connection to save neighbor’s life in danger (Leviticus 18:5), as pikuach nefesh ( פיקוח נפש ). According to Jesus, this is one way to demonstrate our steadfast and wholehearted love for God (Matthew 22:34-40//Mark 12:28-34//Luke 10:25-28; Leviticus 19:18; Deuteronomy 6:5).

In the Gospel Reading (Matthew 25:31-46), Jesus reminds us that our practice of almsgiving out of love for neighbors in need can be our practice of loving God wholeheartedly and steadfastly. In other words, neighbors whom we show our love as if they were ourselves (Leviticus 19:18) can be God the Son, the Christ, in disguise. Therefore, we demonstrate our love for God (Deuteronomy 6:5) by the way we love our neighbors in need. Furthermore, Jesus sternly makes it clear that we are subject to his judgement at the end of time according to how we have practiced almsgiving for our neighbors in need.

A hungry neighbor may be Christ. A neighbor without cloths may be Christ. A neighbor in prison can be Christ. A neighbor in danger of dying can be Christ. But do we see Christ in such neighbors in need? Whether we recognize Christ in them, how willing are we to give alms for their needs?

Jesus warns us that our efforts for almsgiving can be not only useless but hypocritical if we cannot see Christ in and among our neighbors in need (i.e. Matthew 7:3-5).

Through this Lenten season, we need to make sure that we have 20/20 vision for the right practice of almsgiving, recognizing Christ in our neighbors in need. This way, showing our love for neighbors in need through our almsgiving is also our way of loving God steadfastly and wholeheartedly.

Perhaps, we can learn what almsgiving is about, as our way of loving God through loving our neighbor from St. Elizabeth of Hungary or St. Teresa of Calcutta. 

Maybe our almsgivings may not be as grand as these of these Saints of charity. Nevertheless, we can practice it in light of this poem of Emily Dickenson, "If I Can Stop One Heart from Breaking":

If I can stop one heart from breaking,

I shall not live in vain;

If I can ease one life the aching,

Or cool one pain,

Or help one fainting robin

Unto his nest again,

I shall not live in vain.

My favorite Lenten hymn, composed by Fr. Ricky Manalo, CSP, “In These Days of Lenten Journey”, sings the spirit of almsgiving in light of the Scripture Readings of Monday of the First Week of Lent (Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18; Matthew 25:31-46).

Refrain: In these days of Lenten journey

we have seen and we have heard

the call to sow justice in the lives of those we serve.

1. We reach out to those who are homeless,

to those who live without warmth.

In the coolness of evening we’ll shelter their dreams;

we will clothe them in mercy and peace.

2. We open our eyes to the hungry,

and see the faces of Christ.

As we nourish all people who hunger for food,

may their faith in our God be renewed.

3. We open our ears to the weary

and hear the cry of the poor.

To the voices that echo the song of despair,

we will show our compassion and care.

4. We call on the Spirit of Justice

and pray for the righteousness’ sake.

We will sing for the freedom of all the oppressed;

we will loosen the bonds of distress.

Ash Wednesday: Entering into the "Lenten Desert" with Ashes on Foreheads, Led and Strengthened by the Holy Spirit

On Ash Wednesday, as we begin with our Lenten journey, we clearly hear God calling us to return to Him with all our hearts, with fasting and weeping and mourning (Joel 2:12). “With all our hearts” means that we totally surrender our hearts to God’s care so that our old hearts of sin are torn and reconstructed anew by gracious God of compassion (Joel 2:13). It is not garments that we tear but our sinful heart in expressing our genuine remorse. So we now mourn a loss of our innocence and enter Lenten Season with our repentance and hope for innocence to be restored in our purified renewed hearts. For us to go through this renewal through penance and conversion, God is now calling us all to gather, to return to God (Joel 2:15-18). And this is how we begin our Lenten with our sincere repentance and desire for renewal through conversion.

The context of the First Reading text (Joel 2:12-18) is that Joel, carrying God’s message, called Judah to repent in response to the great locust plague and severe draught to avert greater calamities out of God’s wrath (Joel 1:1-2:11).  This is a parallel to Jonah calling the Ninevites to repent in order to prevent the total destruction out of God’s wrath in 40 days (Jonah 3:1-10). In a way, we, as sinners, are like the Israelites who drifted away from God and His way in Judah and the Ninevites, being called to return to God and repent. And as the Ninevites had the 40-day “grace period” to repent and avert devastating consequences of their sin, we also have the 40 days of Lent to repent.  So this is how we begin our Lenten Season on Ash Wednesday.

As we come together and return to God, ripping our sinful hearts in expressing our remorse and contrition, He will shower us with His mercy to make us clean and anew.  Verbally, we also confess our sin and need for His mercy, as reflected in the Responsorial Psalm (51:3-4, 5-6ab, 12-13, 14, 17). This is how we return to God and to His mercy, as we seek the Sacrament of Reconciliation, confessing our sin and our need for God’s mercy.

For Lent, we return to God for reconciliation. This is why Paul, as Christ’s ambassador, calls us to be reconciled to God in order to become righteous in Christ now (2 Corinthians 5:20-6:2). We cannot delay or postpone our return to God because now is the time of God’s grace and the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2).

In the Gospel Reading (Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18), which is a part of his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches on three core principles of our Lenten commitment: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. In this reading, Jesus reminds us that our prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, are not to be made a display to others. We pray rather in private, give alms in secret, and fast as if not fasting.  It is because Jesus wants to make sure that our prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, are not done out of self-righteousness. We commit ourselves to prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, with humility. Making these Lenten commitments a show to draw public attention to ourselves is not an option.

As we begin Lent on Ash Wednesday, we have blessed ashes smeared on our foreheads.  Ministers who distribute ashes to us say, “Repent and believe in the Gospel"(Mark 1:15) or "Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return"(Genesis 3:19). Thus, the ashes on our foreheads remind us of our need for penance and mortality.

Ash is symbolic to penance (e.g. Job 42:6; Jonah 3:5-6). In juxtaposing to dust (עָפָ֖ר/apar) to ashes ( אֵפֶרh/epher), we are humbly reminded that we are nothing but dirt or ashes, when life (Spirit) is taken away from us (i.e. Genesis 2:7; cf. John 6:63; Romans 8:6; James 2:26a). In fact, we are turn into ashes when our lifeless (spiritless) bodies are cremated, and they can be return to the earth and become dusts of the earth, from which we came from. In fact, the word, “אֵפֶרh/epher” can also mean dust, in addition to ashes. Therefore, עָפָ֖ר/apar and אֵפֶרh/epher are not in parallel but also synonymous. 

We must repent and believe in the Gospel because we have turned the paradise (Eden) into a hostile desert, because our ancestors, Adam and Eve, sinned against God by falling to Satan’s cunning temptation (Genesis 3:1-24). Though God banished from Eden (Genesis 1:23), the offspring of Adam and Eve are not necessarily abandoned by God. God’s care for the offspring of Adam and Eve was reflected in His covenant with Noah, as reflected in the First Reading of the First Sunday of Lent, Cycle B (Genesis 9:8-15).

For Lent, with our sincere contrition, we enter the desert and spend 40 days there, praying, fasting, and giving alms, in order to return to God. And these 40 days of Lent are juxtaposed to the 40 days and night that Jesus spent among wild beasts and angels in the desert to be tempted, as reflected in the Gospel Reading of the First Sunday of Lent, Cycle B (Mark 1:12-15). It means that we are to be tested for our earnestness in our “Lenten desert”, in dealing with carnal urges and impulsiveness, as well as, Satan’s attacks, including temptations.

Though it is arid, desert can be a serene place. But as the presence of wild beasts there represents, it can be a place of hostility. And it is where Satan comes to attack us.

Are you set to deal with these challenges in your “Lenten desert”?

Remember, when Jesus spent 40 days and night in the desert to be tempted, he was also with angels. As they are purely spiritual beings, they represent the Holy Spirit in the desert, to counter wild beasts, which represent our carnal aspect and ego, which make us susceptible to Satan’s attacks. Knowing this, we make sure that we begin our Lenten journey in the desert, strengthened by the Holy Spirit, letting the Holy Spirit minister to us. To maximize the benefits of the Holy Spirit, to fight carnal urges and egocentric forces, which lead to sin, we must enter the “Lenten desert” with humble and contrite hearts.

Meaning of These 40 Days of Lent – First Sunday of Lent, Cycle B

We do not spend 40 days of Lent idly and superficially. Otherwise, we would be just as hypocritical as the Israelites, whose meaningless sacrifices that God rejected, for their hearts were just as wicked as Sodom and Gomorrah (Isaiah 1:10-17).  As we begin our Lenten journey on Ash Wednesday, in its Gospel Reading (Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18), Jesus teaches us how we spend these days with contrition and humility through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. It is indeed, to fight temptations of our egos, which make our prayer, fasting, and almsgiving means to draw attention to ourselves.  This teaching of Jesus for our Lenten journey reminds us that we cannot let our egos because they can corrupt our Lenten experience into hypocritical superficial one.

Along with any other factors associated to sin, it is our egos that need to be cleansed to ensure our Lenten journey is meaningful and transformative. To reflect this point, the First Reading (Genesis 9:8-15) recalls the Deluge, through which God cleansed the human wickedness with the flood water (Genesis 6:1-8:22). In the Second Reading (1Peter 3:18-22), Peter explains the Deluge as a prefiguration to salvific baptism, by which our we put our old sinful carnal aspects to death and rise with a cleansed life, renewed by the Holy Spirit, because of Christ’s death and resurrection.

The Gospel Reading (Mark 1:12-15) is a brief description of Jesus spending 40 days and nights among wild beasts in the Judean desert, after his baptism in the Jordan River, led by the Holy Spirit, fending off the temptations by the Satan, and ministered by the angels, before beginning his public ministry (cf. Matthew 4:1-17//Luke 4:1-15). This is to juxtapose our 40-day-long Lenten experience, centered on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, to the 40 days and nights that Jesus spent in the Judean desert. Furthermore, because the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert can be compared to the 40 years that the Israelites spent in the desert during to reach the promised land in Canaan (Exodus 16:35).

Desert is not suitable for human habitation, though it is where some wild beasts live. It is rather a hostile environment for humans. But it was where God led the Israelites into. He did not deliver them into the land of milk and honey directly from Egypt. Rather, the way God delivered the Israelites from Egypt to the promised land was to go through desert for 40 years. And it was to test their faith by affliction (Deuteronomy 8:2). In this sense, desert is a place of affliction to have our faith tested.

After his baptism, the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the Judean desert, to be tempted (Mark 1:12). In other words, the Holy Spirit brought Jesus not only to subject him to fasting for 40 days and nights but also to be tempted by Satan. This is to test the humanity of the incarnated Christ, upon his baptism, in preparation for his public ministry, which started in Galilee and culminated in his death and resurrection in Jerusalem. And Jesus managed through his 40 days, dealing with wild beasts, fighting hunger, thirst, and temptations by Satan, so that our baptism can be salvific (i.e. 1 Peter 3:18-22).

Now we know that these 40 days of our Lenten journey reflect the 40 years that the Israelites were tested in the desert during Exodus and Jesus successfully fighting interferences by wild beasts, hunger, thirst, and temptations afflicted by Satan.

Imagine yourself, spending 40 days and nights, fasting in the desert among wild beasts. Toward the end of this experience, Satan attacks you with his temptations to spoil your 40-day fasting. How would you find yourself fighting this? How can you make sure that your prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, are not compromised by disturbances of what wild beasts represent and by temptations, especially as your hunger increases as Lent advances.

During the deluge, it rained for 40 days (Genesis 7:17) to cleanse the human wickedness of the earth. As described in the First Reading (Genesis 9:8-15), after the deluge, God established the salvific covenant with Noah and for his descendants. Likewise, what will follow our 40 days of “Lenten desert”, uncompromisingly committed to prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, is a renewed life with the new covenant established by Jesus.

Now, picture yourself at the end of your Lenten journey to enter the Paschal Triduum at the sunset of the Maundy Thursday. Then, do you see yourself totally renewed by the Holy Spirit, finding yourself dying with Christ and finding the risen Christ in you (i.e. Galatians 2:20; Philippians 1:21)?