A Homily – Holy Week, Holy Saturday (Year A) A Holy Day of Obligation

A Homily – Holy Week, Holy Saturday (Year A) A Holy Day of Obligation

 

First Reading – Genesis 1:1-2:2 ©

Psalm 103(104):1-2, 5-6, 10, 12-14, 24,35 ©

Second Reading – Genesis 22:1-18 ©

Psalm 15(16):5, 8-11 ©

Third Reading - Exodus 14:15 – 15:1 ©

Canticle - Exodus 15 ©

Fourth Reading – Isaiah 54:5-14 ©

Psalm 29(30):2, 4-6, 11-13 ©

Fifth Reading - Isaiah 55:1-11 ©

Canticle - Isaiah 12 ©

Sixth Reading – Baruch 3:9-15, 32-4:4 ©

Psalm 18(19):8-11 ©

Seventh Reading – Ezekiel 36:16-17, 18-28 ©

Psalm 41(42):2-3, 5, 42:3-4 ©

Epistle – Romans 6:3-11 ©

Psalm 117(118):1-2, 16-17, 22-23 ©

The Gospel According to Matthew 28:1 – 10 ©

 

(NJB)

 

Listen!

 Here is what to take away from the story of creation; set everything else aside:

 God created the Earth and everything in it and saw that it was good, from the beginning to the end God saw that it was good.

 God created human beings in God’s own image, as rational creatures God created us, male and female we were made, beings in relationship, and God saw that it was good.

 God saw the whole of it, and all of us, and God saw that we were good.

 Remember!

 God, the creator of the universe, the eternal God is the first source and center of all things.

 The infinite God engenders all potentialities, while interfering with none of them none of them, even while present to all of them, reconciling each and every moment to the divine intent.

 The universe that God created, God created free; there is no divine coercion, and yet the entirety of what is, moves inexorably toward God’s eternal purpose. This is the faith we are called to hold.

 Know this!

 The stories of God and Abraham are myths, they are metaphors and allegorical tales, they are sometimes just fables. Abdi-Ashirta (14^th century BCE), is not the same as the mythological Abraham presented in the book of Genesis. Abraham and God did not interact in the way scripture has recorded it.

 God never ordered the sacrifice of Isaac, but the culture Abraham came from did. His culture demanded that he make a sacrifice of his firstborn son, and he refused. Abraham rejected the demand, showing the people that God would accept something different in return: a lamb in the place of a human child.

 It is not that God wanted the sacrifice of the lamb, God did not. Blood cannot serve for the expiation of guilt, only mercy can achieve that. God desired a reform in the tradition of Abraham’s people, God desired movement away from the horrors of human sacrifice. Abraham knew this because Abraham knew that God desired justice, and mercy for the children who had previously been put to the knife.

 Abraham gave God what God desired.

 This same impetus is reflected in the last acts Jesus carried out in this world. He gave his life, not as a sacrifice, but he gave it nonetheless so that others would be spared the same. This is not a blood sacrifice for the expiation of guilt, it is a supreme act of mercy and compassion and that is what makes the death of Jesus on the cross sacred and holy.

 God did not want Jesus’ blood, or required it in anyway, but God loved what Jesus did in those final hours; God loved his fearlessness, his concern for his followers and the common people, the mercy he showed his persecutors from the moment of his arrest to his last breath.

 Understand.

 Jesus’ death was not a cosmic event; it was a political murder, it was an ordinary killing in every respect. There is nothing more to it than that.

 Be mindful.

 Saint Paul and the Gospel writers did a disservice to the Church when they interpreted his death in the context of the cult of animal sacrifice, deviating from the way when they translated the symbols and the motif, into a substitutionary sacrifice for the expiation of sin.

 Jesus was not a goat or lamb, and God has never desired the blood of animals for anything…Jesus’ death was never that. 

 Strengthen yourself with the example Jesus made of his final hours, trust in God; faith and confidence are their own reward.

 Know that God is good, know that all goodness flows from the divine, that everything flows from divine, exists within it...and redounds to the good in the end.

 Look for the good of God in all creation, in everything that unfolds, in your friends and family, in the stranger…find the good in you.

 Be mindful.

 There are no alien gods, there are only misconceptions of the one God, including our misconceptions, be especially mindful of them. All images of God are the stuff of idols, whether they are made of metal, of stone, of wood, or of words, whether they are painted on canvass, or merely drawn and colored in the mind.

 Listen!

 It is shameful to portray God as a murderer.

 It is shameful to praise the death and destruction of human beings, even those with whom you are fighting.

 It is shameful to tell lies, through myth, fable and song, it is shameful to tell lies about the divine nature, and God’s plan for the human family.

 Know this:

 God is the parent of us all. God does not lead armies, God does not favor one person, one family, one tribe or one nation above another. God does not intervene in human affairs, except to say this: love one another, be merciful to each other…forgive.

God is not a king. The creator of the universe is not a warrior or a general. God is not the Lord of Hosts. God is the divine parent, parent to us all, including those who have done you wrong.

 Therefore be mindful.

 The blessings of the lord are often depicted with images of great wealth and ostentatious power.

 This is not in keeping with the way.

 What is true in the prophet’s words are these sentiments:

 God will never leave us, and the peace of God will not be shaken,

 We may not always be able to discern the presence of God, but God is with us nonetheless. Even when we are disconsolate, unhappy and feel like we are lost; God is there, experiencing our tribulations with us, and God will deliver us from them in the end.

 God, will not intervene in your affairs. God will not lift you up, God will not strike you down. God will not be angry with you, but God does love you and God’s love is boundless.

 Listen to the prophet!

 Understand that the grace of God is free, and all the good things God has in store for us are things God promises to deliver to everyone.

 The covenant God made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the covenant God made with Moses, Joshua and David, is the same covenant God made with the prophets and with Jesus, and is meant communicate God’s blessing on all people, wherever they are, no matter how near or how far. God promises to deliver everyone to a state of blessedness, the stranger and the sinner alike.

 Preach it! This is the gospel, by the grace of God, this is the way which Jesus showed us, it is where the fruits of garden are, where salvation flows from the wellspring of God, a spring that becomes a stream, and then a river flowing from this life into the world yet to come.

 Be mindful.

 For some people life is nasty, brutish and short. Some are born into suffering and die in it; without ever experiencing a moment of relief.

 For most life a mixture of sorrow and joy; of pain grief and delight, of pleasure and pain. There is no divine plan behind the apportionment of these things. God made us free, and the entire universe in a state of free agency.

 There is no magic key, there is nothing we can do to bring the favor of the world to us, except that we be mindful, cautious with ourselves, and loving to one another; blessings will flow from there, if we prepare for famine and prepare against the onset of war, if we treat each other fairly and grow strong in our relationships to one another in the world.

 But we cannot prepare for the lightning bolt, it strikes without thought of who might be standing in its path.

 When the scriptures tell us that the plight of the children of Israel, their expulsion from their homeland, their exile and their suffering were brought about by God to punish them for their sin, you should know that this is false.

 We suffer what we suffer because of the choices we make, because of our shortsightedness, we suffer from the choices other people make, because of their cruelty, and sometimes we suffer for no reason at all. God does not intervene in the lives of human beings, in our politics, in our wars, or in our conflicts. We are subject to suffering because we are alive, and though no one asked to be, we are here nonetheless.

 When the scriptures suggest that God will rescue only some people, restoring only some to their proper place, you are reading the words of hustler trying to set the bait on the hook, is the same old canard.

 When we pray for deliverance we are praying for spiritual freedom and the grace to transcend the world, we are not praying for a successful conclusion to a present dilemma. God’s rescue of the people of Israel is a metaphor. It is meant to inform us that no matter how sinful and deviant we are God still loves us, and though we may not feel as if we deserve it, God will save us all. God will save us in spite of ourselves, our weaknesses and the trouble we have caused.

 Take comfort and joy in the presence of God, the creator of the universe is always with you.

 When you are persecuted it is not God who has forgotten you, rather it is your persecutors who have forgotten God, that you, like they themselves are children of God; they have forgotten that God loves you as much as God loves them.

 Do not fail to remember this when the wheel turns and you are in a position of power over others. Remember to see the face of God shining in their faces, the image of God in their eyes.

 Be mindful.

 Jesus was not raised to new life for an extraordinary reason, but for the same ordinary reason that God intends to raise us all to life, God does so out of the superabundance of God’s love.

 Eternal life is not the reward a Christian should seek, as if it were payment for having lived a just life, or having exhibited of grace and mercy at one time or another, or for having undergone a few sacred rites, or having contributed financially to the church.

 Eternal life is the promise God made to us all, but true-life, like true love, is only ours when we live and love well.

 Know this!

 We defeat death when we stop fearing it. We come to our authentic life when we free ourselves from the fear of death allowing us to live for what is good and beautiful and true, this is the way that Jesus followed, instructing us to do the same.

 It is true that the God is kind, loving, and merciful. It is true that God comes to God’s children in this way, even when God is exercising judgment and administering justice God is kind, loving and merciful.

 God has no enemies. God does not dwell behind the wall of a city. There are no gates barring access to God. Rather, The divine dwells in all places, at all times, in the hearts of all people.

God does not favor one child above another. God is a bringing of life, not death. God loves peace, not war.

 Consider the Gospel for today, the narrative of the empty tomb, and know this, know that the mythological tropes in this story are not in the least bit instructive.

 The tales of an earthquake, the conversation with the “Angel” of the lord, whose face was like lightning and whose robes were white as snow, these images do not elucidate the way.

 They do not teach us anything.

 What is important is this:

 It was not the twelve men we know of as Jesus’ disciples who first heard the Gospel, and first proclaimed it, it was two women: Mary of Magdala and the other Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus.

 These facts could not be unwritten, and they tell us that the earliest leaders of the Church were these brave women.

 It is important to life them up, to celebrate their faith in a world that sought to dismiss them.

 That is the Eater miracle; all the rest is vanity and nonsense.

 

 First Reading – Genesis 1:1-2:2 ©

God Saw All that He Had Made, and Indeed it was Very Good

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was a formless void, there was darkness over the deep, and God’s spirit hovered over the water.

God said, ‘Let there be light’, and there was light. God saw that light was good, and God divided light from darkness. God called light ‘day’, and darkness he called ‘night.’ Evening came and morning came: the first day.

God said, ‘Let there be a vault in the waters to divide the waters in two.’ And so it was. God made the vault, and it divided the waters above the vault from the waters under the vault. God called the vault ‘heaven.’ Evening came and morning came: the second day.

God said, ‘Let the waters under heaven come together into a single mass, and let dry land appear.’ And so it was. God called the dry land ‘earth’ and the mass of waters ‘seas’, and God saw that it was good.

God said, ‘Let the earth produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants, and fruit trees bearing fruit with their seed inside, on the earth.’ And so it was. The earth produced vegetation: plants bearing seed in their several kinds, and trees bearing fruit with their seed inside in their several kinds. God saw that it was good. Evening came and morning came: the third day.

God said, ‘Let there be lights in the vault of heaven to divide day from night, and let them indicate festivals, days and years. Let them be lights in the vault of heaven to shine on the earth.’ And so it was. God made the two great lights: the greater light to govern the day, the smaller light to govern the night, and the stars. God set them in the vault of heaven to shine on the earth, to govern the day and the night and to divide light from darkness. God saw that it was good. Evening came and morning came: the fourth day.

God said, ‘Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth within the vault of heaven.’ And so it was. God created great sea-serpents and every kind of living creature with which the waters teem, and every kind of winged creature. God saw that it was good. God blessed them, saying, ‘Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the waters of the seas; and let the birds multiply upon the earth.’ Evening came and morning came: the fifth day.

God said, ‘Let the earth produce every kind of living creature: cattle, reptiles, and every kind of wild beast.’ And so it was. God made every kind of wild beast, every kind of cattle, and every kind of land reptile. God saw that it was good.

God said, ‘Let us make man in our own image, in the likeness of ourselves, and let them be masters of the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven, the cattle, all the wild beasts and all the reptiles that crawl upon the earth.’

God created man in the image of himself,

in the image of God he created him,

male and female he created them.

God blessed them, saying to them, ‘Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and conquer it. Be masters of the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven and all living animals on the earth.’ God said, ‘See, I give you all the seed-bearing plants that are upon the whole earth, and all the trees with seed-bearing fruit; this shall be your food. To all wild beasts, all birds of heaven and all living reptiles on the earth I give all the foliage of plants for food.’ And so it was. God saw all he had made, and indeed it was very good. Evening came and morning came: the sixth day.

Thus heaven and earth were completed with all their array. On the seventh day God completed the work he had been doing. He rested on the seventh day after all the work he had been doing.

 

Psalm 103(104):1-2, 5-6, 10, 12-14, 24,35 ©

Send forth your spirit, O Lord, and renew the face of the earth.

Bless the Lord, my soul!

  Lord God, how great you are,

clothed in majesty and glory,

  wrapped in light as in a robe!

Send forth your spirit, O Lord, and renew the face of the earth.

You founded the earth on its base,

  to stand firm from age to age.

You wrapped it with the ocean like a cloak:

  the waters stood higher than the mountains.

Send forth your spirit, O Lord, and renew the face of the earth.

You make springs gush forth in the valleys;

  they flow in between the hills.

On their banks dwell the birds of heaven;

  from the branches they sing their song.

Send forth your spirit, O Lord, and renew the face of the earth.

From your dwelling you water the hills;

  earth drinks its fill of your gift.

You make the grass grow for the cattle

  and the plants to serve man’s needs.

Send forth your spirit, O Lord, and renew the face of the earth.

How many are your works, O Lord!

  In wisdom you have made them all.

  The earth is full of your riches.

Bless the Lord, my soul!

Send forth your spirit, O Lord, and renew the face of the earth.

 

Second Reading – Genesis 22:1-18 ©

The Sacrifice of Abraham, Our Father in Faith

God put Abraham to the test. ‘Abraham, Abraham’ he called. ‘Here I am’ he replied. ‘Take your son,’ God said ‘your only child Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. There you shall offer him as a burnt offering, on a mountain I will point out to you.’

Rising early next morning Abraham saddled his ass and took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. He chopped wood for the burnt offering and started on his journey to the place God had pointed out to him. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. Then Abraham said to his servants, ‘Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go over there; we will worship and come back to you.’

Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering, loaded it on Isaac, and carried in his own hands the fire and the knife. Then the two of them set out together. Isaac spoke to his father Abraham, ‘Father’ he said. ‘Yes, my son’ he replied. ‘Look,’ he said ‘here are the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?’ Abraham answered, ‘My son, God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering.’ Then the two of them went on together.

When they arrived at the place God had pointed out to him, Abraham built an altar there, and arranged the wood. Then he bound his son Isaac and put him on the altar on top of the wood. Abraham stretched out his hand and seized the knife to kill his son.

But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven. ‘Abraham, Abraham’ he said. ‘I am here’ he replied. ‘Do not raise your hand against the boy’ the angel said. ‘Do not harm him, for now I know you fear God. You have not refused me your son, your only son.’ Then looking up, Abraham saw a ram caught by its horns in a bush. Abraham took the ram and offered it as a burnt-offering in place of his son.

Abraham called this place ‘The Lord Provides’, and hence the saying today: On the mountain the Lord provides.

The angel of the Lord called Abraham a second time from heaven. ‘I swear by my own self – it is the Lord who speaks – because you have done this, because you have not refused me your son, your only son, I will shower blessings on you, I will make your descendants as many as the stars of heaven and the grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants shall gain possession of the gates of their enemies. All the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by your descendants, as a reward for your obedience.’

 

Psalm 15(16):5, 8-11 ©

Preserve me, God, I take refuge in you.

O Lord, it is you who are my portion and cup;

  it is you yourself who are my prize.

I keep the Lord ever in my sight:

  since he is at my right hand, I shall stand firm.

Preserve me, God, I take refuge in you.

And so my heart rejoices, my soul is glad;

  even my body shall rest in safety.

For you will not leave my soul among the dead,

  nor let your beloved know decay.

Preserve me, God, I take refuge in you.

You will show me the path of life,

  the fullness of joy in your presence,

  at your right hand happiness for ever.

Preserve me, God, I take refuge in you.

 

Third Reading - Exodus 14:15 – 15:1 ©

The Sons of Israel Went on Dry Ground Right into the Sea

The Lord said to Moses, ‘Why do you cry to me so? Tell the sons of Israel to march on. For yourself, raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and part it for the sons of Israel to walk through the sea on dry ground. I for my part will make the heart of the Egyptians so stubborn that they will follow them. So shall I win myself glory at the expense of Pharaoh, of all his army, his chariots, his horsemen. And when I have won glory for myself, at the expense of Pharaoh and his chariots and his army, the Egyptians will learn that I am the Lord.’

Then the angel of God, who marched at the front of the army of Israel, changed station and moved to their rear. The pillar of cloud changed station from the front to the rear of them, and remained there. It came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. The cloud was dark, and the night passed without the armies drawing any closer the whole night long.

Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. The Lord drove back the sea with a strong easterly wind all night, and he made dry land of the sea. The waters parted and the sons of Israel went on dry ground right into the sea, walls of water to right and to left of them. The Egyptians gave chase: after them they went, right into the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen.

In the morning watch, the Lord looked down on the army of the Egyptians from the pillar of fire and of cloud, and threw the army into confusion. He so clogged their chariot wheels that they could scarcely make headway. ‘Let us flee from the Israelites,’ the Egyptians cried. ‘The Lord is fighting for them against the Egyptians!’

‘Stretch out your hand over the sea,’ the Lord said to Moses, ‘that the waters may flow back on the Egyptians and their chariots and their horsemen.’

Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and, as day broke, the sea returned to its bed. The fleeing Egyptians marched right into it, and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the very middle of the sea. The returning waters overwhelmed the chariots and the horsemen of Pharaoh’s whole army, which had followed the Israelites into the sea; not a single one of them was left. But the sons of Israel had marched through the sea on dry ground, walls of water to right and to left of them.

That day, the Lord rescued Israel from the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. Israel witnessed the great act that the Lord had performed against the Egyptians, and the people venerated the Lord; they put their faith in the Lord and in Moses, his servant.

It was then that Moses and the sons of Israel sang this song in honour of the Lord:

 

Canticle - Exodus 15 ©

Hymn of Victory After Crossing the Red Sea

I will sing to the Lord, glorious his triumph!

I will sing to the Lord, glorious his triumph!

  Horse and rider he has thrown into the sea!

The Lord is my strength, my song, my salvation.

  This is my God and I extol him,

  my father’s God and I give him praise.

I will sing to the Lord, glorious his triumph!

The Lord is a warrior! ‘The Lord’ is his name.

  The chariots of Pharaoh he hurled into the sea,

the flower of his army is drowned in the sea.

  The deeps hide them; they sank like a stone.

I will sing to the Lord, glorious his triumph!

Your right hand, Lord, glorious in its power,

  your right hand, Lord, has shattered the enemy.

  In the greatness of your glory you crushed the foe.

I will sing to the Lord, glorious his triumph!

You will lead your people and plant them on your mountain,

  the place, O Lord, where you have made your home,

the sanctuary, Lord, which your hands have made.

  The Lord will reign for ever and ever.

I will sing to the Lord, glorious his triumph!

 

Fourth Reading – Isaiah 54:5-14 ©

With Everlasting Love the Lord Your Redeemer Has Taken Pity on You

Thus says the Lord:

Now your creator will be your husband, his name, the Lord of Hosts; your redeemer will be the Holy One of Israel, he is called the God of the whole earth.

Yes, like a forsaken wife, distressed in spirit, the Lord calls you back.

Does a man cast off the wife of his youth? says your God.

I did forsake you for a brief moment, but with great love will I take you back. In excess of anger, for a moment I hid my face from you. But with everlasting love I have taken pity on you, says the Lord, your redeemer.

I am now as I was in the days of Noah when I swore that Noah’s waters should never flood the world again. So now I swear concerning my anger with you and the threats I made against you.

For the mountains may depart, the hills be shaken, but my love for you will never leave you and my covenant of peace with you will never be shaken, says the Lord who takes pity on you.

Unhappy creature, storm-tossed, disconsolate, see, I will set your stones on carbuncles and your foundations on sapphires. I will make rubies your battlements, your gates crystal, and your entire wall precious stones. Your sons will all be taught by the Lord. The prosperity of your sons will be great. You will be founded on integrity; remote from oppression, you will have nothing to fear; remote from terror, it will not approach you.

 

Psalm 29(30):2, 4-6, 11-13 ©

I will praise you, Lord, you have rescued me.

I will praise you, Lord, you have rescued me

  and have not let my enemies rejoice over me.

O Lord, you have raised my soul from the dead,

  restored me to life from those who sink into the grave.

I will praise you, Lord, you have rescued me.

Sing psalms to the Lord, you who love him,

  give thanks to his holy name.

His anger lasts a moment; his favour all through life.

  At night there are tears, but joy comes with dawn.

I will praise you, Lord, you have rescued me.

The Lord listened and had pity.

  The Lord came to my help.

For me you have changed my mourning into dancing:

  O Lord my God, I will thank you for ever.

I will praise you, Lord, you have rescued me.

 

Fifth Reading - Isaiah 55:1-11 ©

Come to Me and Your Soul Will Live, and I Will Make an Everlasting Covenant with You

Thus says the Lord:

Oh, come to the water all you who are thirsty; though you have no money, come! Buy corn without money, and eat, and, at no cost, wine and milk. Why spend money on what is not bread, your wages on what fails to satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and you will have good things to eat

and rich food to enjoy. Pay attention, come to me; listen, and your soul will live.

With you I will make an everlasting covenant out of the favours promised to David. See, I have made of you a witness to the peoples, a leader and a master of the nations. See, you will summon a nation you never knew, those unknown will come hurrying to you, for the sake of the Lord your God, of the Holy One of Israel who will glorify you.

Seek the Lord while he is still to be found, call to him while he is still near. Let the wicked man abandon his way, the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn back to the Lord who will take pity on him, to our God who is rich in forgiving; for my thoughts are not your thoughts, my ways not your ways – it is the Lord who speaks. Yes, the heavens are as high above earth as my ways are above your ways, my thoughts above your thoughts.

Yes, as the rain and the snow come down from the heavens and do not return without watering the earth, making it yield and giving growth to provide seed for the sower and bread for the eating, so the word that goes from my mouth does not return to me empty, without carrying out my will and succeeding in what it was sent to do.

 

Canticle - Isaiah 12 ©

The Rejoicing of a Redeemed People

With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

Truly, God is my salvation,

  I trust, I shall not fear.

For the Lord is my strength, my song,

  he became my saviour.

With joy you will draw water

  from the wells of salvation.

With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

Give thanks to the Lord, give praise to his name!

  Make his mighty deeds known to the peoples!

  Declare the greatness of his name.

With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

Sing a psalm to the Lord

  for he has done glorious deeds;

  make them known to all the earth!

People of Zion, sing and shout for joy,

  for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.

 

Sixth Reading – Baruch 3:9-15, 32-4:4 ©

In the Radiance of the Lord, Make Your Way to Light

Listen, Israel, to commands that bring life; hear, and learn what knowledge means. Why, Israel, why are you in the country of your enemies, growing older and older in an alien land, sharing defilement with the dead, reckoned with those who go to Sheol? Because you have forsaken the fountain of wisdom. Had you walked in the way of God, you would have lived in peace for ever. Learn where knowledge is, where strength, where understanding, and so learn where length of days is, where life, where the light of the eyes and where peace. But who has found out where she lives, who has entered her treasure house?

But the One who knows all knows her, he has grasped her with his own intellect, he has set the earth firm for ever and filled it with four-footed beasts. He sends the light – and it goes, he recalls it – and trembling it obeys; the stars shine joyfully at their set times: when he calls them, they answer, ‘Here we are’; they gladly shine for their creator. It is he who is our God, no other can compare with him. He has grasped the whole way of knowledge, and confided it to his servant Jacob, to Israel his well-beloved; so causing her to appear on earth and move among men.

This is the book of the commandments of God, the Law that stands for ever; those who keep her live, those who desert her die. Turn back, Jacob, seize her, in her radiance make your way to light: do not yield your glory to another, your privilege to a people not your own.

Israel, blessed are we: what pleases God has been revealed to us.

 

Psalm 18(19):8-11 ©

You have the message of eternal life, O Lord.

The law of the Lord is perfect,

  it revives the soul.

The rule of the Lord is to be trusted,

  it gives wisdom to the simple.

You have the message of eternal life, O Lord.

The precepts of the Lord are right,

  they gladden the heart.

The command of the Lord is clear,

  it gives light to the eyes.

You have the message of eternal life, O Lord.

The fear of the Lord is holy,

  abiding for ever.

The decrees of the Lord are truth

  and all of them just.

You have the message of eternal life, O Lord.

They are more to be desired than gold,

  than the purest of gold

and sweeter are they than honey,

  than honey from the comb.

You have the message of eternal life, O Lord.

 

Seventh Reading – Ezekiel 36:16-17, 18-28 ©

I Shall Pour Clean Water Over You and I Shall Give You a New Heart

The word of the Lord was addressed to me as follows: ‘Son of man, the members of the House of Israel used to live in their own land, but they defiled it by their conduct and actions. I then discharged my fury at them because of the blood they shed in their land and the idols with which they defiled it. I scattered them among the nations and dispersed them in foreign countries. I sentenced them as their conduct and actions deserved. And now they have profaned my holy name among the nations where they have gone, so that people say of them, “These are the people of the Lord; they have been exiled from his land.”

‘But I have been concerned about my holy name, which the House of Israel has profaned among the nations where they have gone.

‘And so, say to the House of Israel, “The Lord says this: I am not doing this for your sake, House of Israel, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone. I mean to display the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned among them. And the nations will learn that I am the Lord – it is the Lord who speaks – when I display my holiness for your sake before their eyes. Then I am going to take you from among the nations and gather you together from all the foreign countries, and bring you home to your own land.

‘“I shall pour clean water over you and you will be cleansed; I shall cleanse you of all your defilement and all your idols. I shall give you a new heart, and put a new spirit in you; I shall remove the heart of stone from your bodies and give you a heart of flesh instead. I shall put my spirit in you, and make you keep my laws and sincerely respect my observances. You will live in the land which I gave your ancestors. You shall be my people and I will be your God.”’

 

Psalm 41(42):2-3, 5, 42:3-4 ©

Like the deer that yearns for running streams, so my soul is yearning for you, my God.

My soul is thirsting for God,

  the God of my life;

when can I enter and see

  the face of God?

Like the deer that yearns for running streams, so my soul is yearning for you, my God.

These things will I remember

  as I pour out my soul:

how I would lead the rejoicing crowd

  into the house of God,

amid cries of gladness and thanksgiving,

  the throng wild with joy.

Like the deer that yearns for running streams, so my soul is yearning for you, my God.

O send forth your light and your truth;

  let these be my guide.

Let them bring me to your holy mountain,

  to the place where you dwell.

Like the deer that yearns for running streams, so my soul is yearning for you, my God.

And I will come to the altar of God,

  the God of my joy.

My redeemer, I will thank you on the harp,

  O God, my God.

Like the deer that yearns for running streams, so my soul is yearning for you, my God.

 

Epistle – Romans 6:3-11 ©

Christ, Having Been Raised from the Dead, Will Never Die Again

When we were baptised in Christ Jesus we were baptised in his death; in other words, when we were baptised we went into the tomb with him and joined him in death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father’s glory, we too might live a new life.

If in union with Christ we have imitated his death, we shall also imitate him in his resurrection. We must realise that our former selves have been crucified with him to destroy this sinful body and to free us from the slavery of sin. When a Christian dies, of course, he has finished with sin.

But we believe that having died with Christ we shall return to life with him: Christ, as we know, having been raised from the dead will never die again. Death has no power over him any more. When he died, he died, once for all, to sin, so his life now is life with God; and in that way, you too must consider yourselves to be dead to sin but alive for God in Christ Jesus.

 

Psalm 117(118):1-2, 16-17, 22-23 ©

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

Give thanks to the Lord for he is good,

  for his love has no end.

Let the sons of Israel say:

  ‘His love has no end.’

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

The Lord’s right hand has triumphed;

  his right hand raised me up.

I shall not die, I shall live

  and recount his deeds.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

The stone which the builders rejected

  has become the corner stone.

This is the work of the Lord,

  a marvel in our eyes.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

 

The Gospel According to Matthew 28:1-10 ©

He Has Risen from the Dead and Now He is Going Before You into Galilee

After the sabbath, and towards dawn on the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala and the other Mary went to visit the sepulchre. And all at once there was a violent earthquake, for the angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled away the stone and sat on it. His face was like lightning, his robe white as snow. The guards were so shaken, so frightened of him, that they were like dead men. But the angel spoke; and he said to the women, ‘There is no need for you to be afraid. I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said he would. Come and see the place where he lay, then go quickly and tell his disciples, “He has risen from the dead and now he is going before you to Galilee; it is there you will see him.” Now I have told you.’ Filled with awe and great joy the women came quickly away from the tomb and ran to tell the disciples.

And there, coming to meet them, was Jesus. ‘Greetings’ he said. And the women came up to him and, falling down before him, clasped his feet. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers that they must leave for Galilee; they will see me there.’

 

Holy Week, Holy Saturday (Year A) A Holy Day of Obligation