THE CALL TO REPENTANCE: ONE MORE CHANCE
First Reading: Exodus 3: 1 to 8 and 13 to 15
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 10: 1 to 6 and 10 to 12
Gospel Reading: Luke 13: 1-9
*First Reading is from the book of Exodus. The call of Moses is described in detail. The Lord God calls Moses when he was taking care of sheep on Mount Horeb. The Lord God tells Moses that the cry of His chosen people who are suffering under the task masters of Egypt has reached Him. He instructs Moses to bring them out of their misery to a land flowing with milk and honey. In response, Moses tells the people of Israel that the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob has sent him to liberate them from the slavery of Egypt. Thus the Lord God sees the miserable state of His people in Egypt. He takes pity on them and decides to liberate them. It shows the Lord God's concern and care for those oppressed and persecuted.
*Second reading is from the first letter of St. Paul to Corinthians. Paul warns the Christian community at Corinth that those who are unfaithful to God and grumble against Him will perish: Like those Israelites who grumbled against God in the wilderness. He further says that all that happened in the past is written down so that we may take heed of God's message. Though all the people of Israel were led out of Egypt, yet because some of them revolted against God, most of them perished on their journey to the promised land. It is a lesson and a warning for all of us.
"Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish." Today's Gospel reading is from St. Luke. In the Gospel we hear the warning of Jesus: 'Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish'. To repent means to be converted and conversion is the starting point of every spiritual journey and is a pre-requisite for being part of the kingdom of God. It implies that we recognize the presence of sin in our lives and in the world we live. Jesus emphasizes the need for repentance in the life of everyone of His followers. In the first part of the Gospel, Jesus recalls to mind two recent incidents of that time: 1. Pilate killing the Galileans. 2. Eighteen people who got killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them. Jesus warns His disciples and us that those people were killed not because they were worse sinners than others but that these are specific warnings for us to take heed of so that we may not face such disasters and calamities in our lives. In the second part of the Gospel, Jesus explains this warning through the parable of the unproductive fig tree. This fig tree does not produce any fruits for a long period of time. The master decides to cut it down. But the gardener pleads with the master to allow him to water and manure it for another year. The master agrees to this request. The tree is given a final chance to produce or to perish. The message of the parable is very explicit. Unless we take heed of God's warnings and make use of our God-given opportunities to turn away from our sinful and unproductive life, we too may face unpleasant and irrevocable consequences. Lent is the appropriate and opportune time to take heed of God's warnings and to repent and to turn away from our evil ways and sinful life. In this context Martin Luther King Jr. says: "We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people." A.P. Esquivel, a Nobel Peace Prize winner says: "The sin of omission is one of the worst things in the world." May the Lord Jesus, who warns us to repent and produce fruits of true repentance and turn to the ways of God, bless you and lead you in the path of life eternal. Amen.
(Kindly note: Sunday Reflections with Fr. Joy Joseph is available on YouTube. Please view, like, share and subscribe to the video version on YouTube. "YouTube/Sunday Reflections with Fr. Joy Joseph, March 23, 2025". Thanks.)
No comments:
Post a Comment