LECTIONARY READINGS
First reading: Exodus 3:1-8, 13-15
Responsorial psalm: Ps 102(103):1-4, 6-8, 11
Second reading: 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12
Gospel: Luke 13:1-9
Link to readings
The readings this week encourage us to repent. Reflecting on what happened to the people of God in the Old Testament can help us to avoid making the same errors. As St Paul tells us in today’s Epistle, many Israelites fell away from their belief, in spite of God’s goodness.
In the First Reading Moses is drawn towards a burning bush, where God reveals himself as the creator of all things and indicates his name: ‘I am who I am’. St Paul (Second Reading) reminds the Corinthians of how their forebears failed to please God in the desert. This should be a warning to them: they must be on their guard at all times. Being baptised is no guarantee against falling into temptation. The Psalm expresses our gratitude to God for being loving, patient and compassionate.
This same compassion is exemplified in the Gospel. After a call to repentance, the parable of the fig tree illustrates how patient God is, even when, like that tree, his people – us – do not bear fruit over a long period of time.
As Pilgrims of Hope in this Jubilee year, we pray to be granted greater compassion and forgiveness towards those who repent of their trespasses against us. Perhaps we can also look more closely at our own lives. What might we change this Lent to bear more fruit?
FIRST READING
Exodus 3: 1–6; 13–14 (part)
Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, ‘I will turn aside to see this great sight,
why the bush is not burned.’ When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ Then he said, ‘Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.’ And he said, ‘I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. Then Moses said to God, ‘If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, “The God of your fathers has sent me to you”, and they ask me, “What is his name?” what shall I say to them?’ God said to Moses, ‘I Am Who I Am.’
REFLECTION
I take some time to become still with the Lord, aware that he knows and holds everything that is going on in my life. Turning to the text, I may find it helpful to place myself in the wilderness with Moses. What do I feel, smell and hear as I watch him look after his father-in-law’s flock?
I quietly observe Moses’s reaction as he comes upon the burning bush and hears the Lord call his name. Slowly reflecting on Moses and God in conversation, I perhaps recall a moment in my life when I experienced the Lord’s presence in a profound and unexpected way. How readily did I recognise him? What effect did it have on me?
Where or to what might God be calling me today? I ask for the courage and awareness to respond ‘Here I am’ when he speaks my name. I end by thanking the Lord for anything he might have revealed to me during this time of prayer.
GOSPEL
Luke 13: 1–9
There were some present at that very time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered them, ‘Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.’ And he told this parable: ‘A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vine dresser, “Look, for three years now I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?” And he answered him, “Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig round it and put on manure. Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.”’
REFLECTION
I read this Gospel slowly, allowing the words and their meaning to sink in. When I am ready, I might compare the story of the Galileans with a current tragic event or scandal in the news, or around me. I notice how I react. How far do I have a tendency to cast blame or judgment? I imagine what Jesus might say if I talked to him about it.
Turning slowly to the story of the fig tree, what do I sense about the character of Jesus? I consider the issues or relationships in my life that might benefit from the vine dresser’s patience and perseverance. Please Lord, show me how I might enable the situation to change, or grow for the better.
I may also want to ask God to help me discern when it might be time to give up on or let go of something. I recall God’s unconditional love and compassion for me, a sinner, and end my prayer with a ‘Glory be to the Father . . .’
Courtesy of St Beuno’s Outreach in the Diocese of Wrexham, UK