SATURDAY OF THE THIRD WEEK OF LENT, MARCH 26, 2022

MASS READINGS

A Gospel according to Lk 18:9-14

Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else. “Two people went up to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, ‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity — greedy, dishonest, adulterous — or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.’ But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, ‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’ I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

REFLECTION

"O God, be merciful to me a sinner."

Who is Jesus addressing in this parable? It says in the first line of the Gospel, he is addressing “those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else.”

I have been praying and meditating using the “40 Acts of Repentance with Priests” Lenten Meditations by Father Michael. It is on our PAPA Website if you would like to see what they are all about. These daily meditations have taken me on a personal pilgrimage through the desert with Jesus. Each day I learn about how Jesus fasted and prayed through out His 40 days in the desert. This is truly an amazing pilgrimage.

What do these Meditations have to do with this Gospel Reading?

As I read this parable, I question myself and ask, “Which person am I, the Pharisee or the tax collector?” I would like to think that I am like the tax collector since Jesus says, “I tell you, the latter went home justified, and not the former; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The “40 Acts of Repentance with Priests” are helping me to see who I truly am with Jesus by my side. It is not always easy to see this reality. It can be difficult to be honest with oneself, however, these meditations give practical prayers and spiritual exercises that allow Jesus to be a bigger part of who I am.

Let me give an example from the “40 Acts of Repentance with Priests”. In Day 1, the theme is “Remember”. “Remember, you are dust and to dust you will return” (Genesis 3:19). In this Meditation Father Michael writes, “Whenever you feel self-righteous or holier than someone or you think that you are superior to anyone, just look under your feet. There you will find what you truly are: dust. That, you once were before you came into this life and that, you will soon become when somebody buries you six feet under. “To dust you will return.” Remember it.”

Father Michael also writes, “Pride is a horrible lie. Mostly it is a lie to yourself. You lie to yourself that you are the owner and master of your life, but you are not. Remember, “to dust you will return”. Return to dust, you will. But you can do something better. Why don’t you return to God with Jesus?”

Jesus came to expose the lie of sin and these Meditations are a tool to help us to come closer to Jesus.

At the end of each meditation, we also pray for priests to be helped in their struggles, as we all have struggles and we are all sinners.

“O God be merciful to me a sinner”