First Week of Lent, Saturday, March 3, 2007

Scripture: Deuteronomy 26:16-19. Psalm 119:1-8. Matthew 5:43-48:

One of my favorite books in the Torah is Deuteronomy. I compare it with St.
John's Gospel in the Christian Scriptures (New Testament) because of its
similarity in covenant love with agape and the mutual trust of Moses and
the People with God while John instists on belief or commitment of trust in
the person of Jesus. Deuteronomy contains a series of discourses that are
quite encouraging to the reader whether Jewish or Christian. The portion
chosen for today comes from the second discourse of Moses and it is
situated in time on the first day of the eleventh month of Israel's
departure from Egypt some forty years ago. This tied in with our Lenten
period of forty days of prayer, fast, and giving. Just as the Israelites
did follow the difficult journey through the desert with Moses as their
leader, so, too, do we Christians follow Jesus on the way of the cross in
his and our sufferings. The Paschal Mysteries always come to mind as we do
follow Jesus and through our devotions of the rosary and the Sorrowful
Mysteries and the Way of the Cross we are united to his sufferings, death,
and resurrection. As a community of believers we should have no difficulty
in adapting the words of Deuteronomy to our Lenten season. The Lord is our
God and we too are God's people. The phrase in Dueteronomy 26:17c "You
will walk in His ways" is a good thought that can be with us throughout
this Lenten day and season. This requires both action on our part, that
is works of compassion, self-giving, and justice as well as our
intellectual assent. I hope to reread the passage several times this day.
It is also a remarkable summary statement of all that is contained within
Deuteronomy 26:1-16:25. These are Moses great discourses about the
covenant made at Mount Horeb (Mount Sinai). Our Gospel reading will lead
us to Mount Calvary where we can renew the covenant of our love with Jesus
our Savior. Amen.