After Ash Wednesday
25th February 2023 (Saturday) Readings and Reflection
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Reading of the Day
First Reading: Isaiah 58:9c-14
Thus says the Lord: "If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday. And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to dwell in. "If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the Lord honourable; if you honour it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly; then you shall take delight in the Lord, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken."
Psalm 86:1-2, 3-4, 5-6 (R. 11ab)
R/. Teach me, O Lord, your way, so that I may walk in your truth.
Gospel : Luke 5:27-32
At that time: Jesus went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, "Follow me." And leaving everything, he rose and followed him. And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them. And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?" And Jesus answered them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance."
Daily Gospel Reflection
The Reflection by Fr. Thumma Mariadas Reddy MSFS{alertWarning}
Main Theme: Leave and live!
Indicative: The Lord calls us any time and anywhere to follow him. He does not bother about our qualifications or worthiness. All that matters is the willingness to follow him{alertSuccess}
1. The call of Matthew can be emblematic of any other call. In the first place, it gives us a profound sense of consolation and encouragement with great assurance that the Lord is never conditioned by our weaknesses and failures. He is not influenced or swayed over by human judgments or labels
2. The Lord was least bothered about the sinful condition of Matthe and the social stigmatisation of him as a sinner. What matters for him is not the background check-up but the forward march. He does not expect readymade saints or already fully-fit disciples
3. He knows what he can make of us if only we respond to his call and cooperate with his training and formation. Apart from Jesus’ unconditional mercy in calling Matthew, what is striking is Matthew’s instant and prompt response
4. No sooner Jesus calls him, “Follow me”, than “leaving everything behind, he got up and followed him”. What an act of promptness! What a spirit of total detachment and renunciation! For a man who was always preoccupied with accumulating and hoarding, leaving everything would be terrible
5. Mark! he did leave, not only something but everything. Discipleship becomes meaningful when the giving up is total and not partial or half-measures. He left everything “behind” because the Lord is in front. When the priceless treasure is before him, why cling on to what is behind which is of minor value?
6. The clause that he “got up” denotes not only a physical act of getting up from his place but it symbolises the very life that he takes up. It is getting up from his sinful life, a life of deception, injustice, and self-promotion. In the words of the first reading, it is to turn away from “following his own ways, seeking his own interests and speaking malice”
7. With this decisive turn, Matthew begins to follow the Lord. His life changes totally. It is no more living for himself but for the Lord. It is no more cheating the people but being authentic. It is no more working for money and temporary profits but for the kingdom and the heavenly riches
Imperative: The real call of the Lord is not one time or one-day affair. It is an unceasing process, a daily striving, a consistent transition from the world to the Lord and his kingdom{alertSuccess}