HOMILIES

Dear Audience,
For better understanding of the spiritual message behind this homily I kindly remind you to first read and contemplate the biblical texts before reading or listening to my preaching - a human reflection on the Word of God!

Second Sunday of Lent (Year C)

Feb 21, 2016

2240

Listen Read

First Reading

A reading from the Book of Genesis (15:5-12, 17-18)

The Lord God took Abram outside and said: "Look up at the sky and count the stars, if you can. Just so," he added, "shall your descendants be," Abram put his faith in the Lord, who credited it to him as an act of righteousness. He then said to him, "I am the Lord, who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as a possession." "O Lord God," he asked, "how am I to know that I shall possess it?" He answered him, "Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old she-goat, a three-year old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon." Abram brought him all these, split them in two, and placed each half opposite the other; but the birds he did not cut up. Birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses, but Abram stayed with them. As the sun was about to set, a trance fell upon Abram, and a deep, terrifying darkness enveloped him.

When the sun had set and it was dark, there appeared a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch, which passed between those pieces. It was on that occasion that the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying: "To your descendants I give this land from the Wadi of Egypt to the Great River, the Euphrates."

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalms of David (27:1, 7-8, 8-9, 13-14)

(R) The Lord is my light and my salvation.

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear? The Lord is my life's refuge; of whom should I be afraid? (R)

Hear, O Lord, the sound of my call; have pity on me, and answer me. Of you my heart speaks; you may glance seeks. (R)

Your presence, O Lord, I seek. Hide not your face from me; do not in anger repel your servant. You are my helper: cast me not off. (R)

I believe that I shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord with courage; be stouthearted, and wait for the Lord. (R)

Second Reading

A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians (10:8-13)

Join with others in being imitators of me, brothers and sisters, and observe those who thus conduct themselves according to the model you have in us. For many, as I have often told you and now tell you even in tears, conduct themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction. Their God is their stomach; their glory is in their "shame." Their minds are occupied with earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will change that enables him also to bring all things into subjection to himself.

Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord.

(P) The word of the Lord.
(R) Thanks be to God.

Gospel

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (9:28b-36)

Jesus took Peter, John and James, and went up onto a mountain to pray. While he was praying, his face changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzlingly white. And behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem. Peter and his companions had been overcome by sleep, but becoming fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. As they were about to part from him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." But he did not know what he was saying.

While he was still speaking, a cloud came and cast a shadow over them, and they became frightened when they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my chosen Son; listen to him." After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. They fell silent and did not at that time tell anyone what they had seen.

(P) The Gospel of the Lord.
(R) Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Homily

The Bible is divided into two sections known as the Old Testament and the New Testament. The New Testament consists of twenty seven books which include the four Gospels, the Epistles, the Acts of the Apostles and Revelation. The Gospels tell us the story of Jesus' life, death and resurrection which is central to our faith and salvation. The first three Gospels - Matthew, Mark and Luke - are called the "synoptic gospels" because they essentially narrate many of the same stories and parables but slightly in different form and words, whereas John is quite independent and distinct. The Transfiguration of Jesus on a mountain is one of such events recounted in all the synoptic gospels (Matthew 17:1-9, Mark 9:2-10 and Luke 9:28-36). Peter, one of the disciples who witnessed the event also talks about it in his second letter to the early Christians (1:16-21). Another disciple, John, also briefly alludes to the event in his gospel (1:14).

The whole event is quite a difficult one for many of us to understand because what happened on the mountain on that day was something very special and personal to Jesus and a spiritual awakening for His disciples.

What is the story about? Jesus went up to a mountain to pray as he so often did. Why did Jesus prefer to go up to a mountain to pray? Have you ever had a spiritual mountaintop experience? A mountain is an area of land that is very high above the land around, hence naturally those who are on a mountain top leave behind noise, crowds, situations and the daily cares of life. From the high point we can get a bird's eye view of our world. We are able to see further and wider. We can see the world differently than we do when we are at the foot of the mountain. Yes. A little time spent on a mountain top in silence and solitude can change our whole perspective on life. It can affect every aspect of our life. It can influence all our choices. We can recognize our connection and oneness with the cosmos and its creator. We can feel the presence of God. When we are on top of a mountain we no longer see things from our own perspective but from God's. When we come back down to earth, the world may not have changed but how we see the world and others will change. Our Lord Jesus had his share of mountain top moments as well.

Throughout the Bible we see that mountains hold a special place. For example, Abraham took his son Isaac to offer him as a sacrifice on Mount Moriah. Later, on this same mount, King Solomon built a temple for God. God spoke to Moses and gave him the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai. God spoke to Prophet Elijah in the gentle whisper of a breeze on Mount Horeb, which some say is also known as Mount Sinai. Mountains also played an important part in Jesus' life. Following his baptism Jesus was tempted on a mountain. He preached atop mountains near the Sea of Galilee. He frequently visited the Mount Olives to pray. So this time Jesus invited Peter, James and John to go with him, and they went up to a mountain away from the crowds, and there Jesus began to pray.

Luke does not tell us what exactly Jesus prayed about, but we can guess from the rest of the story, that it must have been about the decision he knew he had to make very soon, the decision to go to Jerusalem and face his suffering and death. Jesus had told His disciples only a few days earlier that He would be rejected by the elders and chief priests, and teachers of the law, and be killed, and on the third day be raised to life.

So Jesus was surely praying about these things and about what it meant for Him and His followers. While praying His face began to shine, and all around Him a bright light radiated, and in the midst of that light, two men - Moses and Elijah, appeared and they spoke to Him. Luke tells us that they spoke to Jesus about all that was to happen to Him in Jerusalem, and that the disciples, who, as usual, were nodding off, were merely awake to see Jesus in this glorious moment. Sometime after the disciples were fully awake, Moses and Elijah departed from the scene.

After Moses and Elijah had left, the disciples tried to prolong the special moment they had witnessed by suggesting to Jesus that they should build three shelters, one for Jesus, one for Elijah and one for Moses. They perhaps felt Jesus, who was often tired because of His travels and work, was in need of rest, encouragement and support. No sooner than Moses and Elijah had departed, the light of glory began to fade, a cloud swept over them, bringing back with it the ordinary world that we all know so well - the world of doubt and fear. At that moment they heard a voice from the cloud saying to them, "This is my son whom I have chosen - listen to Him".

For Jesus, it was an intense spiritual experience. It was a time in which He was confirmed in His mission and, was encouraged to continue in the confidence that God was with Him and that Moses, Elijah and all the prophets were beside Him in all His joys and sorrows. It was a moment that God gave to Him to strengthen Him in His own suffering and death.

For the disciples who witnessed the glorious moment it was a spiritual awakening. They were to listen to Jesus even if suffering is part of the plan to complete God's mission. Certainly the disciples' experience on the mountain strengthened their faith in Jesus Christ and gave them the courage to follow Jesus all the way to the shameful suffering and death in Jerusalem, and then experience the glory of His resurrection.

This great event is meant to encourage us in our life of discipleship just as it did the disciples:

First, it teaches us that suffering is an essential, inseparable part of our faith. Like Jesus and His disciples we must suffer first in order to find glory later.

Second, we may never understand pain and suffering if we remain only in the world in which we live, which is noisy and full of sin and strife. But if we go to the mountaintop which is the "temple" or "church" today, we will be led by the Spirit of God to grasp the higher purpose God has in mind for our suffering. Particularly, for us Catholics the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist is the highest point from which we can see more deeply and clearly into the roots of our own suffering and the realities of the world. When we are on the vantage point - the celebration of the Holy Eucharist - it is crucial that we stay awake and be watchful from beginning to end. Let us remember when we celebrate Holy Mass it is not just us or others in the worship we can see but also we can see and speak to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Third, we all make decisions, big and small, every day. We are led to make choices between right and wrong, good and evil, pleasing and not pleasing, life and death. These choices will determine our commitment to God. And we know it is so hard for us to commit ourselves to God's plan. Hence, it is important that just like Jesus, we pray first and share our burden of choice with our God. At those moments it is also essential that we refer to what the teachers of the Divine Law, the prophets, our Lord Jesus Christ and His apostles say about those things so that our decision will be also a pleasing one to our God.

Fourth, when we make a decision to follow God's way and His law, let us not look back because God's plan is always the best, even it brings with it pain and suffering. God's plans are always designed to bring us good. God will never lead us to do anything that is contrary to His Word. It may be painful for the moment, but in the end it will turn out for God's glory and for our own good.

(P) Amen.

God Bless You!

Content Options

to download the audio file Sign In » or Register ».
generate Google Translate Layout ».
share this homily via:

Top of Page

More Homilies this Month

Use the Prev or Next buttons to read or listen to the other homilies of the month.

« Prev First Sunday of Lent (Year C) Next » Third Sunday of Lent (Year C)