Second Sunday of Lent

The Second Sunday of Lent

First Reading: Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18 “Abram put his faith in the Lord, who credited it to him as an act of righteousness.”

Psalm: 27  “The Lord is my light and my salvation.”

Second Reading: Philippians 3:17-4:1  “Our citizenship is in Heaven.”

Gospel: Luke 9:28b-36  “This is My beloved Son; listen to Him.”

Today we hear about Abram’s covenant with God. Abram was taken outside – in daytime – and asked if he could count the stars. Naturally, this was an impossible task. He could not even see the stars, much less attempt to count them. God’s promise of land “as a possession” was similarly unseen. Abram asks, “How am I to know that I shall possess it?” God makes a solemn covenant with Abram in the ancient fashion: sacrificing animals. The message was that “should I break this covenant, what happened to these animals shall happen to me.” This was a serious commitment!  God then fervently intones: “To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the Great River, the Euphrates.” Abram and his wife, Sarai, were barren and they were getting on in years. His descendants, like the stars and the land, were invisible to Abram; he simply could not see how, in the ordinary course of events, he would have descendants. Nevertheless, he trusted God and followed him. This was “credited to him as an act of righteousness.” Let us strive to love, trust, and follow God, even though we do not know where He is leading us.

Today’s Psalm exclaims God’s loving kindness to His people. He is our light, our salvation, our refuge; He hears us when we call to Him and answers us. Because He loves us so, we seek His Presence and trust that we “shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living.” We wait with courage for the Lord, for we know that He loves us and works for our good. Even when what He asks of us seems impossible, like Abram, we place our trust in Him.

The Second Reading comes from Paul’s letter to the Philippians. St. Paul exhorts the new Christians to imitate him in faith, decrying those who “conduct themselves as enemies of the Cross of Christ. Their end is destruction; their god is their stomach; their glory is their shame.” These are harsh words, but ones which need to be said. Paul had to point the Philippians – and us – to heavenly realities, to our Lord Jesus Christ. We must be conformed to Christ and not to earthly things. Paul ends his beautiful exhortation: “Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, in this way, stand firm in the Lord.” Paul loves and longs for us as well, as part of the Communion of Saints in Heaven. He’s cheering us on, wanting to see us in eternal beatitude with God. He wants us to battle well as the Church Militant that we are so that we can join him in the Church Triumphant in Heaven. Live today so as to merit that Crown of Life upon your death.

St. Luke narrates the transfiguration of Jesus. He takes Peter, James, and John up the mountain to pray. They fall asleep. Have you ever fallen asleep while praying? I know that I have! I trust that my guardian angel finishes my prayer for me. Peter, James, and John wake up and see Jesus’ luminous glory and Moses and Elijah speaking with Him about His exodus. Peter’s response to this astonishing reality was “It is good that we are here.” Yes, indeed, Peter, it is good! This glimpse of Jesus’ glory will prepare you to withstand the terribly trying times of His Passion and Death. Scripture records that Peter “did not know what he was saying” when he suggested that three tents be set up to memorialize the Transfiguration. He said this during the Feast of Booths, when the Jews built temporary shelters in which they stayed for seven days. This marks the Exodus, when the Israelites wandered in the desert and lived in tents for forty years. So the “tents” Peter was suggesting was one of these booths for the Feast of Booths. He did not understand that Moses and Elijah were content in the bosom of Abraham and would not remain on Earth for Peter or anyone else. Jesus had a mission and would not remain on the mountain; He had the Valley of Death into which He would descend. Then a voice came from the cloud, “This is My beloved Son; listen to Him.” The three Apostles fell silent with awe, and probably because it is easiest to listen to someone when you are not speaking. Let us do our best to listen to God and to follow what he says. Let go of our preconceived notions of what is right and good and listen to the Lord.