COLLECT: “LOOK KINDLY, LORD, WE PRAY, ON THE DEVOTION OF YOUR PEOPLE, THAT THOSE WHO BY SEL-DENIAL ARE RESTRAINED IN BODY MAY BY THE FRUIT OF GOOD WORKS BE RENEWED IN MIND. THROUGH OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, YOUR SON, WHO LIVES AND REIGNS WITH YOU IN THE UNITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, GOD, FOR EVER AND EVER. AMEN”.
Jonah 3:1-10; Ps 50:3-4,12-13,18-19 and Lk 11:29-32.
Scriptures today do not only teach us the importance of humility and repentance, but also how the two (humility and repentance) are closely related. In fact, one is needed for the other to take place, humility is highly needed for repentance to take place. Sin, which no one in this world can avoid, always puts us in our ‘world of Nineveh’, where we are vulnerable. When we sin, we are no longer under the protective care of God our Creator, and we equally experience his blazing wrath.
The call to Repentance is the solution to the above situation and experience, but repentance is also not possible without the virtue or spirit of humility. In fact, humility plays a very important role in repentance. Only humble people will realise and acknowledge that they have sinned and therefore, are ready to be remorseful and eventually humbly ask for forgiveness. Experience tells us how difficult it will be for a proud or an arrogant person to accept and acknowledge his mistakes and wrong deeds and therefore, ask for forgiveness. Rather, he will argue and give reasons, as well as pass the buck for his mistakes and wrong deeds.
In stressing the importance of humility, as a condition for repentance and salvation, Jesus cited two occasions where and when people demonstrated humility and therefore were blessed and saved. One is when Jonah was sent the second time to preach to the people of Nineveh (Jon 3:1-10). When Jonah preached, the Ninevites, from the king down to the beasts, fasted and repented in humility. “When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil ways, he repented of the evil he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out” (Jon 3:10). This is in the first reading. Jesus also cited the visit of the Queen of the south who came in humility from the ends of the earth to hear the Wisdom of Solomon. Jesus, the Son of Man was physically present among his people (an evil and maybe proud generation), as a sign of God and yet they were still looking for other signs to believe and accept his call on them to repentance (Cf. Lk 11:29-32).
Do we have any justification to boastfully say our contemporary generation is not evil? Some Christians hop from one Church to another looking for miracles and signs in their lives before they can believe in God. A lot of our contemporary youth do not want to work but live in idleness and they want wonderful signs and miracles to happen in their lives. Some sit or idle about, while waiting for WhatsApp messages to come to their phones so that they can pass them to other people, or share them with other people for miracles to happen in their lives. So, our generation is worse than Jesus’.
Lent is a special season God has given to us. It is a season we are called to repentance to leave our sinful ‘worlds of Nineveh’ and humbly come back to him and be saved. It must be noted that this call to repentance during the season of Lent is not only on our sinful and wrong deeds against God, but equally, and even more importantly a call on us all to show remorse and repent on our sinful and wrong deeds against our neighbors, especially those we live with, those we work with as well as anyone we might have wronged or offended. We pray for the spirit of humility to fast during this special season of Lent from our sinful deeds that displease God. Stay blessed.
WE MEDITATE TODAY, WEDNESDAY, ON THE GLORIOUS MYSTERIES: ‘THE RESURRECTION, THE ASCENSION, THE DESCENT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, THE ASSUMPTION, AND THE CORONATION’. (WE PRAY FAITH, HOPE, LOVE OF GOD, GRACE OF A HAPPY DEATH AND TRUST IN MARY’S INTERCESSION) “Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you, blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb Jesus: Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us, sinners, now and at the hour of our death, Amen”.
PRAYER: “O GOD, WHO NEVER CEASE TO NOURISH US BY YOUR SACRAMENT, GRANT THAT THE REFRESHMENT YOU GIVE US THROUGH IT MAY BRING US UNENDING LIFE. THROUGH CHRIST OUR LORD. AMEN”.
Rev. Fr. Aloysius Kpiebaya, Catholic Diocese of Wa, UW/R, Ghana. (00233) 0207867239/0545462863. Email: aloybaya20@yahoo.com
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