Parish of Our Lady & Saint David, Cwmbran

Blessings on him who comes in the name of the Lord!

On Palm Sunday the long reading of the Passion dominates the celebration, and in a sense its meaning is obvious. Do not allow this, however, to detract from the other readings, which give the vital context necessary for understanding the Passion as more than just a long story. It is our story – the tale of how God achieved OUR salvation by the supreme sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

First Reading: Isaiah 50:4-7

Second Reading: Philippians 2:6-11

Gospel Reading: St Matthew’s Passion

An invitation to everyone to participate in the Easter Triduum

Please come along and bring your children to celebrate The Mass of the Lord’s Supper, The Passion, Death and Resurrection of Our Lord in 2014

Holy Thursday:  7.30pm      Our Lady’s

Good Friday:      3.00pm      Both Churches

Holy Saturday:  7.30pm      Our Lady’s

I am the resurrection and the life

The Gospel of the Fifth Sunday is perhaps the deepest meditation on the mystery of Baptism and membership of the Church. It is a prelude to the events of Easter Sunday, when we celebrate the triumph of life over death. To be plunged into the waters of baptism is to be buried with Christ, only to rise with him from the waters. This paradox of life and death is the content of today’s readings. There is no more important part of our faith that the resurrection: that Christ rose from the dead is the very centre and heart of all that we believe – without it, our faith is useless. In the same way our belief in our own resurrection is vital: it is the most deeply needed gift that Christ gives us. This is why the climax of the instructions given to candidates for Baptism was this teaching: that Christ would give them life after death. Look ahead to the 3rd Sunday of Easter, where Saint Peter preaches to the crowds – what he teaches them is that life comes after death, as it did for Lazarus, and for Christ himself.

First Reading: Ezekiel 37:12-14

Second Reading: Romans 8:8-11

Gospel Reading: John 11:1-45

He went off and washed himself, and came away with his sight restored

When we get to Easter, there are two symbols of the resurrection that we use in Church: fire and light (the Easter Candle) and water (the Font). Last week we reflected on water, and this week there are passages all about light – true light, that defeats the blindness of sin. Again, this would have been offered to those preparing for Baptism, but speaks to all of us who have been baptised, inviting us to be renewed in the light of Christ at Easter. Remember that one of the oldest titles of the newly baptised was “neophyte”, which means “newly enlightened” There is a subtle link between the readings on this Sunday: in the first reading, David is anointed, and the Spirit of the Lord seizes on him. This anointing lights him along the right path – ‘no evil would I fear’ as the Psalm says. Then Paul tells us more about this light: it is Christ shining on us, calling us to live as children of light. All this is summed up in the Gospel, the marvellous story of the healing (by being ‘anointed’ with spittle) of the man born blind. Jesus is the light of the world.

First reading:  Samuel 16: 6-7, 10-13

Second Reading:  Ephesians 5: 8-14

Gospel Reading: John 9: 1-41

A spring of water welling up to eternal life

The Gospel of the third Sunday is the remarkable conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman by the well, the theme is water – which gives life, which cleanses, which is so necessary. This reading forms part of the catechesis given before Baptism at Easter: the candidates who would go into the water are invited to reflect on what that means. But more necessary than the water which gives life is the water which gives eternal life – the water of baptism, the water flowing from Jesus’ side on the cross. Even if your Church does not have any candidates preparing for Baptism, we will all renew our baptismal promises at Easter: we should take this opportunity to reflect on what baptism has given us, and what God has done for us in this gift.

First reading: Exodus 17:3-7.

Response: O that today you would listen to his voice: “Harden not your hearts”.

Second Reading: Romans 5:1-2, 5-8.

Gospel Reading: John 4: 5-42

Lent is a Season of preparation for the whole Paschal Triduum – Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday: not just a time to reflect on the Cross. Often our Lenten devotions can focus exclusively on the Cross, and the idea of Baptism can be lost. This is why the Church invites us to join the disciples in looking beyond the cross this Sunday: we see the glory of Easter, the glory of the resurrection and the glory of the baptised. We see all this in the Transfiguration: we are invited to recognise who Jesus is. It is the glorified Jesus, whom we will celebrate at Easter, who calls us to journey through Lent, just as God called Abram to journey far from his home. So the readings lead to us acknowledge that Lent is a very special ‘calling’, to follow the Lord of glory to the renewal of baptismal purity.

First reading: Genesis 12:1-4.

Response: May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all our hope in you.

Second Reading: Timothy 1:8-10

Gospel Reading: Matthew 17 :1-9

In the Cycle of Sunday Readings, the oldest are those of Year A in Lent – these Gospels have accompanied the Church for many centuries. We must realise why: Lent was originally the time of immediate preparation of candidates for Baptism at Easter (something which has been reintroduced to the Church by RCIA): those already baptised used it as a time to prepare for the renewal of Baptismal promises. This is why so much of the Scripture in Lent is about Baptism, New Life and Salvation. What is the new life of Baptism? What are we set free from? What is sin? We begin Lent by hearing about sin and temptation; the Gospel will tell us of Jesus’ own temptations, something he shares with us, though he did not sin. The other Scripture readings prepare us for the Gospel, in which Jesus, the new Adam, triumphs over temptation.

First reading: Genesis 2:7-9. 3:1-7.

Response: Have mercy on us, O Lord, for we have sinned

Second Reading: Romans 5:12-19

Gospel Reading: Matt 4: 1-11

“Do not worry about tomorrow.”

In these weeks, as we follow the Sermon on the Mount in Saint Matthew’s Gospel, it can feel as though we are dealing with some very “obvious” and familiar teachings. Last week we had “Love your neighbour”, and this week the extremely simple message that God loves and cares for us. This is because the Sermon on the Mount is a great summary of the most basic teachings of our faith, and we should take this opportunity to renew within ourselves our awareness of these teachings. After a simple, yet beautiful image in the first reading, Jesus elaborates on the idea of the constant care of God for us with some more beautiful images: he invites us to look at the birds and the flowers, which do not have money, mortgages, computers, cars or so many of the things we have and worry about, and yet manage to be beautiful and happy in what God provides. The message is simple, and is expressed right at the beginning of the Gospel: trust God; be the servant of God, relying on God for everything, not on money or the other things of this world.

First Reading: Isaiah 49:14-15

Res: In God alone is my soul at rest

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 4:1-5

Gospel Reading: Matt 6:24-34

“Love your enemies.”

“Love your neighbour as yourself.” These are words we associate so clearly with the teaching of Jesus and the way of life the Gospel calls us to. But it may be a surprise to some people to hear that these words come first from the Old Testament, in the mouth of Moses himself. Moses was speaking the Lord God’s instruction for the community – the community of the people of Israel in flight from Egypt in their long sojourn in the wilderness. God’s instructions were about how that community had to work – without grudges, resentment or vengeance, but with love and forgiveness and tolerance. When Jesus comes with the message of the Kingdom of heaven, it is the same – instruction for a perfect, God-guided society, which depends on how each of us lives with others. The “wisdom of this world”, which Saint Paul mentions in the Second Reading, will not teach us this: the world will believe in vengeance, and friendship only for your friends. Each of us must ask how we can embrace the apparent folly of Jesus’ teaching: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.

First Reading: Leviticus 19:1-2.17-18

Res: The Lord is compassion and love

Second Reading: 1 Cor 3:16-23

Gospel Reading: Matt.5: 38-48

“You have learnt how it was said to your ancestors; but I say this to you.”

Back in the 60s some groups “adopted” Jesus Christ as an icon of rebellion, overturning authority and tearing up the rule book – possibly because of the frequent confrontations between Our Lord and the Pharisees. Today’s Gospel, however, shows us Jesus not as rule-breaker, but as rule-fulfiller, bringing an even greater depth to the rule that had guided the people of Israel for centuries. Jesus does not throw out the rulebook – or as the first reading says, He does not command us to be godless!  He challenges us in this Gospel to see how far our keeping God’s Law will go: will it just be about the letter of the Law (“I have never killed anyone”), or will it look deeper (“Have I ever been angry? Have I been violent in my thoughts?”). The challenge of the Kingdom of Heaven is to keep the commandments first and foremost from within, so that our outward behaviour conforms to the requirements of God’s Law.

First Reading: Ecclesiasticus 15: 16-20

Res: They are happy who follow God’s Law!

Second Reading: 1Cor2: 6-10

Gospel Reading: Matthew 5: 17-37