The First Week of Lent

LESSON. (iii Kings xix. 3 — 8.) In those days. Elias came into Bersabee of Juda, and left his servant there, and he went forward, one day's journey into the desert. And when he was there, and sat under a juniper tree, he requested for his soul that he might die, and said: It is enough for me Lord, take away my soul: for I am no better than my fathers. And he cast himself down, and slept in the shadow of the juniper tree: and behold an angel of the Lord touched him, and said to him: Arise , and eat. He looked, and behold there was at his head a hearthcake, and a vessel of water: and he ate and drank, and he fell asleep again. And the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said to him: Arise, eat: for thou hast yet a great way to go. And he arose, and ate, and drank, and walked in the strength of that food forty days, and forty nights, unto the mount of God.



EXPLANATION. The Prophet Elias had caused the death of the idolatrous priests of Baal at the brook Cison, in the Land of Juda, after he had proved to them by a great miracle that he worshiped the one true God. The death of the idolatrous priests being announced to the impious Queen Jezabel, she then threatened Elias with death. Elias fled to the desert, but God did not abandon His servant, and sent him food, strengthened by which he walked forty days and forty nights to Mount Horeb, where God appeared to him, and gave him important messages. The holy Fathers regard the juniper tree, under which Elias rested, as prefiguring the cross of Christ, under the shadow of which there is rest for all who suffer; the food by which he was sustained, was a type of holy Communion by which we are strengthened on the road to heaven, and the forty days and forty nights which he passed without food are a figure of Christ's fast of forty days.


GOSPEL. (Matt. xii. 38 — 50.) At that time, Some of the Scribes and Pharisees answered him saying: Master, we would see a sign from thee. Who answering said to them: An evil and adulterous generation seeketh for a sign: and a sign shall not be given it, but the sign of Jonas the prophet. For as Jonas was in the whale's belly three days and three nights; so shall the. Son of man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights. The men of Ninive shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they did penance at the preaching of Jonas. And behold a greater than Jonas here. The queen of the south shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold a greater than Solomon here. When an unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out. And coming he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then he goeth, and taketh with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is made worse than the first. So shall it be also to this wicked generation. As he was yet speaking to the multitudes, behold his mother and his brethren stood without, seeking to speak to him. And one said unto him: Behold thy mother and thy brethren stand without, seeking thee. But he answering him that told him, said: Who is my mother, and who are my brethren? and stretching forth his hand towards his disciples, he said: Behold my mother and my brethren. For whosoever shall do the will of my Father, that is in heaven: he is my brother, and sister, and mother.


EXPLANATION. All the signs and miracles which Christ the Lord wrought, were confirmed only by His resurrection. Had Christ not risen, all His miracles would have been without avail. For this reason He drew the attention of the Pharisees to His resurrection, which was already prefigured by the Prophet Jonas who was three days inside the whale, and on the third day came forth from it unharmed. The inhabitants of Ninive repented, through the preaching of the Prophet Jonas without asking for a miracle. What will become of us if we do not repent, we who know of so many miracles of our Lord and His apostles, and have received so many graces from Him! But our repentance must be real, for terrible is his condition who carelessly relapses. Not one, but seven devils will possess him. By a firm, animated faith, we are in a spiritual manner made a brother or sister of Christ, and if by our example and our words we cause the love of Christ to be born in the heart of our neighbor, so that he fulfils he will of the Heavenly Father, we are also spiritually made the mother of Christ. Ah, what dignity is his who believes in Jesus, and loves Him above all!

FRIDAY IN THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT. [Emberday]

LESSON. (Ezech. xviii. 20—28.) Thus saith the Lord: The soul that sinneth, the same shall die: the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, and the father shall not bear the iniquity of the son: the justice of the just shall be upon him,and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. But if the wicked do penance for all his sins, which he hath committed, and keep all my commandments, and do judgment, and justice: living he shall live, and shall not die. I will not remember all his iniquities, that he hath done: in his justice which he hath wrought, he shall live. Is it my will that a sinner should die, saith the Lord God, and not that he should be converted from his ways, and live? But if the just man turn himself away from his justice, and do iniquity according to all the abominations, which the wicked man useth to work, shall he live? all his justices, which he hath done, shall not be remembered: in the prevarication, by which he hath prevaricated, and in his sin, which he hath committed, in them he shall die. And you have said: The way of the Lord is not right. Hear ye therefore, O house of Israel: Is it my way that is not right, and are not rather your ways perverse? For when the just turneth himself away from his justice, and committeth iniquity, he shall die therein: in the injustice that he hath wrought he shall die. And when the wicked turneth himself away from his wickedness, which he hath wrought, and doeth judgment and justice: he shall save his soul alive. Because he considereth and turneth away himself from all his iniquities, which he hath wrought, he shall surely live, and not die, saith the Lord Almighty.


EXPLANATION. How consoling are the words of the Lord for every one, even for the greatest sinner, if he only sincerely returns to God, and abandons the ways of sin! How dreadful, on the contrary, are they for him who postpones his conversion from day to day, and will finally die in his sins! Despair not, then, O sinner, only follow instantly the call to repentance; "God pardons, yes, forgets all thy sins!"


GOSPEL. (John v. i — 1 5.) At that time, There was a festival of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is at Jerusalem a pond, called Probatica, which in Hebrew is named Bethsaida, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of sick, of blind, of lame, of withered, waiting for the moving of the water. And an angel of the Lord descended at certain times into the pond: and the water was moved. And he that went down first into the pond after the motion of the water, was made whole of whatsoever infirmity he lay under. And there was a certain man there, that had been eight and thirty years under his infirmity. Him when Jesus had seen lying, and knew that he had been now a long time, he saith to him: Wilt thou be made whole? The infirm man answered him: Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pond : for whilst I am coming, another goeth down before me. Jesus saith to him: Arise, take up thy bed, and walk: and immediately the man was made whole: and he took up his bed, and walked. And it was the Sabbath that day. The Jews therefore said to him that was healed. It is the Sabbath, it is not lawful for thee to take up thy bed. He answered them: He that made me whole, he said to me: Take up thy bed, and walk. They asked him therefore: Who is that man who said to thee: Take up thy bed, and walk? But he who was healed, knew not who it was. For Jesus went aside from the multitude standing in the place. Afterwards Jesus findeth him in the temple, and saith to him: Behold thou art made whole: sin no more, lest some worse thing happen to thee. The man went his way, and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him whole.


EXPLANATION. At a certain, but unknown time, an angel came down and moved the water in the pool, by which that patient, and he only, who first descended into it, was healed of his infirmity. The pool is a figure of the holy Sacrament of Penance. When God moves your heart by His grace to sorrow for your sins, then hasten at once to the tribunal of penance, where not one, but all who come, find healing at all times. But take to heart the exhortation of Jesus: "Sin no more, lest some worse thing happen to thee."