A Homily - Holy Week, Holy Saturday (Year B) 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 Mark 16:1 – 8 ©

 

(NJB)

 

Listen!

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

 These are the takeaway from the creation myth.

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

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

 Remember this!

 The eternal God is the first source and center of all things, engendering all potentialities while interfering with none of them. The universe God created was made free from divine coercion, and yet the entirety of what is, moves according to God’s eternal purpose.

 Know this:

 God did not interact with Abraham in the way God is depicted as doing in this tale from The Book of Genesis.

 God never ordered the sacrifice of Isaac, but the culture Abraham came from did demand such a thing. His culture demanded that he make a sacrifice of his firstborn son, and Abraham rejected that demand, demonstrating to his people that God would accept something else in return; he put a lamb in the place of a human child, demanding in return that his culture accept this change in custom…and it was so.

 Be mindful.

 It is not that God wanted the sacrifice of the lamb, or any blood sacrifice, God did not. Blood does serve for the expiation of guilt, only mercy can achieves…mercy, freely given and the acceptance of it freely received.

 God did not desire the lamb, but God did desire a reform in the cult of sacrifice as practiced by Abraham’s people; in keeping with the demands of divine justice God desired that the people move away from the horrors of human sacrifice, animal sacrifice was a move in the right direction.

 Abraham gave God what God wanted; the same impetus was at work 1,400 years later when Jesus gave his life, not as a sacrifice, but so that others would be spared.

 God did not want Jesus’ blood, but God loved what Jesus did, God loved him for his fearlessness, for the compassion he showed his people and the mercy he showed to his persecutors on his way to his death on the cross.

 Know this.

 Jesus’ death was not a cosmic event, it was a political murder, all-together ordinary in every respect. There is nothing more to it than that, and there is no good reason to celebrate it. Paul and the Gospel writers did a disservice to Jesus’ memory and the Church founded in his name when they depicted his death in this way. By translating the story of his death into a substitutionary sacrifice for the expiation of sin they deviated from the way. Jesus was not a goat or lamb, and God never desired the blood and burning fat of animals for anything.

 Jesus’ death was never that. 

 Take strength from the example Jesus set while on the cross, and trust in God; faith and hope are their own reward.

 Understand this.

 God is good, and all that is good flows from God. Everything flows from divine, all things and beings exists within it. Look for the good in all creation, in everything that unfolds, find the good in you.

 There are no alien gods, there is only one. But there are trillions upon trillions of misconceptions regarding God, including our own misconceptions which persist with us through the length of our lives; be especially mindful of them.

 Be mindful.

 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.

 Know this.

 God calls all of Gods children to God’s self, no one is left out, none are abandoned, not one of us is lost.

 And know that 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 spread partisan propaganda about the divine, even through myth, fable and song, it is shameful to tell lies about the divine nature and God’s plan for the human family.

 God is the parent of us all. God is not a king, God does not lead armies, God is not a general or the lord of hosts, 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 one another, including those who have done you wrong and hurt you most.

 The blessings of the God are often depicted with images of great wealth and ostentatious power; this is not the way.

 Know that 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 nevertheless God is with us. Even when we are disconsolate, unhappy, even when we feel as if we are lost at sea, God is there, experiencing our tribulations with us, God will deliver us from them in the end.

 Consider the words of the prophet, knowing that 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 forever.

 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 all the prophets, including Jesus, Muhammad and Martin Luther King, and that covenant is meant to be a 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.

 This is the grace of God, this is the way which Jesus proclaimed, this is the way to paradise.

 Be patient; salvation flows from the wellspring of God, it flows from this life into the next world, everyone is called to drink from it, and if they look they will find it bubbling up in their hearts.

 Listen!

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

 For most folks the experience of life a mixture of sorrow and joy, of grief and delight, of pleasure and pain. How the world apportions these to the individual does not conform to any divine plan.

 God made us free and does not intervene in our affairs. There is no magic key, there is nothing we can do to bring the favor of the world to us, except insofar as we walk humbly, serve justice and do good throughout our lives.

 Be courteous, kind and loving to one another.

 We can prepare for famine and prepare against the onset of war. We can treat each other fairly and grow strong in our relationships to one another and the world. If we do this, blessings will flow from there. However, we cannot prepare for the lightning bolt, it strikes without thought of who might be standing in its path, but we can show compassion to those it consumes.

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

 We suffer what we suffer because of the choices we make, because of our shortsightedness; we suffer on account of the choices other people make concerning us, on account of the cruelty that all too often fills the human heart, 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 any of our conflicts. We do not suffer on account of God…no one does.

 When we pray for deliverance we are praying for spiritual freedom and the grace to transcend our attachment to the world. 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 may become, 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.

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

 When you are persecuted it is not God who has forgotten you, rather it is your persecutors who have forgotten 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, or if, you are in a position of power over others. Remember to look for the divine, and you will see the face of God shining in the faces of everyone.

 Be mindful.

 Jesus was not raised to new life for an extraordinary reason, but for the ordinary reason that God intends to raise all people, doing 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 as an exchange for the grace and mercy we have shown to others. The life we seek is ours when we live well, death is defeated when we stop fearing it.

 We come to an authentic life when we free ourselves from the fear of death; it is then that we  allow ourselves to live for what is good and beautiful and true, this is the way that Jesus followed and instructed us to follow as well

 Remember this.

 God is kind, loving, and merciful, even when God is exercising judgment and administering justice.

 God has no enemies.

 God does not dwell behind the wall of a city. There are no gates barring access to the divine, whose spirit dwells in all places, at all times, and is active 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 and the narrative of the empty tomb; knowing that the mythological tropes in this story are not 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, or teach us anything useful at all.

 Here is the takeaway:

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

 This history could not be unwritten, it tells us that the earliest leaders of the Church were these brave women who stood with Jesus through the long night: from his arrest and trial to the crucifixion, they stayed with him until his last breath. It is these women who bore witness to his final prayers.

 These are the matriarchs of the Church; today we should lift them up. We should celebrate their faith; it is through their faith that we hear the good news of the Eater miracle.

 

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 Mark 16:1 – 8 ©

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

Jesus of Nazareth, Who Was Crucified, Has Risen

When the sabbath was over, Mary of Magdala, Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices with which to go and anoint him. And very early in the morning on the first day of the week they went to the tomb, just as the sun was rising.

They had been saying to one another, ‘Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?’ But when they looked they could see that the stone – which was very big – had already been rolled back. On entering the tomb they saw a young man in a white robe seated on the right-hand side, and they were struck with amazement. But he said to them, ‘There is no need for alarm. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified: he has risen, he is not here. See, here is the place where they laid him. But you must go and tell his disciples and Peter, “He is going before you to Galilee; it is there you will see him, just as he told you.”’

 

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

A Homily - Holy Week, Good Friday (Year B) A Holy Day of Obligation

First Reading – Isaiah 52:13 – 53:12 ©

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 30(31):2, 6, 12 – 13, 15 – 17, 25 ©

Second Reading – Hebrews 4:14 – 16, 5:7 – 9 ©

Gospel Acclamation – Philippians 2:8 – 9

The Gospel According to John 18:1 – 19:42 ©

 

(NJB)

 

Listen!

The future is not pre-determined and God does not intervene in the affairs of human beings. If you listen you will hear God’s word in places you do not expect, in the voices of people you have discounted…just as it came from Jesus.

Know this:

The only way we can be healed, through the suffering of others, is if by witnessing their trials we change what is in our hearts.

There is no other way.

Consider the words of the psalmist and know that God’s refuge is not of this world.

Have faith in the promises God has made, understanding that when God promises to protect you, it is a commitment that looks to the great beyond and God makes the same promise to everyone.

Trust in God, but do not hope for God to take sides with you in your conflicts, or the satisfaction of your ambitions; God will not intervene on your behalf, God will not rescue you. And yet the strength of God is in you, the strength to persevere in patience, and with love. You have been given that strength, it is a gift from the divine, and with these gifts God has prepared you for the tribulations of this world.

 

Listen to the voice of God speaking in your heart; feel God tugging at your conscience, let that voice be your guide and the anchor of your faith…let it shine like a beacon on a hill so that all those who see it may find hope.

 Consider what the teaching of the apostle, ask yourself this:

 Is it true that in Jesus, the Son of God, there is no sin?

 Is it true that all things come into being and have their existence in Jesus, God’s eternal Word?

 Is it true that not one thing exists apart from God, who is Jesus?

 I ask again; is it true that in Jesus there is no sin?

 If all things and beings exist in Jese, and in Jesus there is no sin, where is sin to be found?

 Paul saw Jesus as a “high priest,” of sorts, he did not see Jesus as God. In his role as priest he is depicted as connected to his followers in an intimate way, while connecting them to the divine as an intermediary.

 In the Gospels Jesus is presented as someone who understands people and relates to them, those who hear him acknowledge his authority as a Rabai, but he is one of them..

 We confess that God made every one of God’s children, destining each of us for eternal life. We believe that there is no exception to this, because all things exist in God; not one thing exists apart from the divine, including the totality of human sin...whatever that might be.

 God asks us to walk in justice and to pursue the good joyously, with humility; knowing that whatever we suffer here is temporary, and that everyone here suffers, for which the only balm is mercy.

 Be mindful of the Church and its vanity; it too will pass away.

 Know this!

 Jesus was a man like any other, and his death was an ordinary murder; do not preach on this story in any other way.

 Preach the truth, and be like the women who were his most faithful followers, who never abandoned him, who remained with him through his trial, who watched while he was beaten and whipped, who followed him as he carried the cross up the hill, and endured the spectacle of his crucifixion.

 They remained with him. They watched him die, then they took his broken body to prepared it for burial. These courageous women honored him, even while Peter and the disciples were hiding, having sold him into captivity and abandoned him, having denied him.

 These women who were his most faithful followers anointed him; they were the first to witness the empty tomb, the miracle of the resurrection and to encounter the angel of God. They were the first to hear the good news, as the first apostles they shared it with the world.

 These women were the first evangelists: Mary, Jesus mother, Mary Magdalene his boon companion, Mary and Martha the sisters of Lazarus. Without the witness they gave, there would be no Church.

First Reading – Isaiah 52:13 – 53:12 ©

The servant of the Lord, an expiatory Sacrifice

See, my servant will prosper, he shall be lifted up, exalted, rise to great heights.

 

As the crowds were appalled on seeing him – so disfigured did he look that he seemed no longer human – so will the crowds be astonished at him, and kings stand speechless before him; for they shall see something never told and witness something never heard before:

‘Who could believe what we have heard, and to whom has the power of the Lord been revealed?’

Like a sapling he grew up in front of us, like a root in arid ground.

Without beauty, without majesty we saw him, no looks to attract our eyes; a thing despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering, a man to make people screen their faces; he was despised and we took no account of him.

And yet ours were the sufferings he bore, ours the sorrows he carried.

But we, we thought of him as someone punished, struck by God, and brought low.

Yet he was pierced through for our faults, crushed for our sins.

On him lies a punishment that brings us peace, and through his wounds we are healed.

We had all gone astray like sheep, each taking his own way, and the Lord burdened him with the sins of all of us.

Harshly dealt with, he bore it humbly, he never opened his mouth, like a lamb that is led to the slaughter-house, like a sheep that is dumb before its shearers never opening its mouth.

By force and by law he was taken; would anyone plead his cause?

Yes, he was torn away from the land of the living; for our faults struck down in death.

They gave him a grave with the wicked, a tomb with the rich, though he had done no wrong

and there had been no perjury in his mouth.

The Lord has been pleased to crush him with suffering.

If he offers his life in atonement, he shall see his heirs, he shall have a long life and through him what the Lord wishes will be done.

His soul’s anguish over he shall see the light and be content.

By his sufferings shall my servant justify many, taking their faults on himself.

Hence I will grant whole hordes for his tribute, he shall divide the spoil with the mighty, for surrendering himself to death and letting himself be taken for a sinner, while he was bearing the faults of many and praying all the time for sinners.

 

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 30(31):2, 6, 12 – 13, 15 – 17, 25 ©

Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.

In you, O Lord, I take refuge.

  Let me never be put to shame.

In your justice, set me free,

Into your hands I commend my spirit.

  It is you who will redeem me, Lord.

Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.

In the face of all my foes

  I am a reproach,

an object of scorn to my neighbours

  and of fear to my friends.

Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.

Those who see me in the street

  run far away from me.

I am like a dead man, forgotten in men’s hearts,

  like a thing thrown away.

Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.

But as for me, I trust in you, Lord;

  I say: ‘You are my God.

My life is in your hands, deliver me

  from the hands of those who hate me.

Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.

Let your face shine on your servant.

  Save me in your love.’

Be strong, let your heart take courage,

  all who hope in the Lord.

Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.

 

Second Reading – Hebrews 4:14 – 16, 5:7 – 9 ©

The Lord Burdened Him with the Sins of All of Us

Since in Jesus, the Son of God, we have the supreme high priest who has gone through to the highest heaven, we must never let go of the faith that we have professed. For it is not as if we had a high priest who was incapable of feeling our weaknesses with us; but we have one who has been tempted in every way that we are, though he is without sin. Let us be confident, then, in approaching the throne of grace, that we shall have mercy from him and find grace when we are in need of help.

During his life on earth, he offered up prayer and entreaty, aloud and in silent tears, to the one who had the power to save him out of death, and he submitted so humbly that his prayer was heard. Although he was Son, he learnt to obey through suffering; but having been made perfect, he became for all who obey him the source of eternal salvation.

 

Gospel Acclamation Philippians 2:8 – 9

Glory and praise to you, O Christ!

Christ was humbler yet, even to accepting death, death on a cross.

But God raised him high and gave him the name which is above all names.

Glory and praise to you, O Christ!

 

The Gospel According to John 18:1 – 19:42 ©

The Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ

Key: N. Narrator. ✠ Jesus. O. Other single speaker. C. Crowd, or more than one speaker.

N. Jesus left with his disciples and crossed the Kedron valley. There was a garden there, and he went into it with his disciples. Judas the traitor knew the place well, since Jesus had often met his disciples there, and he brought the cohort to this place together with a detachment of guards sent by the chief priests and the Pharisees, all with lanterns and torches and weapons. Knowing everything that was going to happen to him, Jesus then came forward and said,

✠ Who are you looking for?

N. They answered,

C. Jesus the Nazarene.

N. He said,

✠ I am he.

N. Now Judas the traitor was standing among them. When Jesus said, ‘I am he’, they moved back and fell to the ground. He asked them a second time,

✠ Who are you looking for?

N. They said,

C. Jesus the Nazarene.

N. Jesus replied,

✠ I have told you that I am he. If I am the one you are looking for, let these others go.

N. This was to fulfil the words he had spoken, ‘Not one of those you gave me have I lost.’

Simon Peter, who carried a sword, drew it and wounded the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus. Jesus said to Peter,

✠ Put your sword back in its scabbard; am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?

N. The cohort and its captain and the Jewish guards seized Jesus and bound him. They took him first to Annas, because Annas was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. It was Caiaphas who had suggested to the Jews, ‘It is better for one man to die for the people.’

Simon Peter, with another disciple, followed Jesus. This disciple, who was known to the high priest, went with Jesus into the high priest’s palace, but Peter stayed outside the door. So the other disciple, the one known to the high priest, went out, spoke to the woman who was keeping the door and brought Peter in. The maid on duty at the door said to Peter,

O. Aren’t you another of that man’s disciples?

N. He answered,

O. I am not.

N. Now it was cold, and the servants and guards had lit a charcoal fire and were standing there warming themselves; so Peter stood there too, warming himself with the others.

The high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. Jesus answered,

✠ I have spoken openly for all the world to hear; I have always taught in the synagogue and in the Temple where all the Jews meet together: I have said nothing in secret. But why ask me? Ask my hearers what I taught: they know what I said.

N. At these words, one of the guards standing by gave Jesus a slap in the face, saying,

O. Is that the way to answer the high priest?

N. Jesus replied,

✠ If there is something wrong in what I said, point it out; but if there is no offence in it, why do you strike me?

N. Then Annas sent him, still bound, to Caiaphas the high priest.

As Simon Peter stood there warming himself, someone said to him,

O. Aren’t you another of his disciples?

N. He denied it, saying,

O. I am not.

N. One of the high priest’s servants, a relation of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, said,

O. Didn’t I see you in the garden with him?

N. Again Peter denied it; and at once a cock crew.

They then led Jesus from the house of Caiaphas to the Praetorium. It was now morning. They did not go into the Praetorium themselves or they would be defiled and unable to eat the passover. So Pilate came outside to them and said,

O. What charge do you bring against this man?

N. They replied,

C. If he were not a criminal, we should not be handing him over to you.

N. Pilate said,

O. Take him yourselves, and try him by your own Law.

N. The Jews answered,

C. We are not allowed to put a man to death.

N. This was to fulfil the words Jesus had spoken indicating the way he was going to die.

So Pilate went back into the Praetorium and called Jesus to him, and asked,

O. Are you the king of the Jews?

N. Jesus replied,

✠ Do you ask this of your own accord, or have others spoken to you about me?

N. Pilate answered,

O. Am I a Jew? It is your own people and the chief priests who have handed you over to me: what have you done?

N. Jesus replied,

✠ Mine is not a kingdom of this world; if my kingdom were of this world, my men would have fought to prevent my being surrendered to the Jews. But my kingdom is not of this kind.

N. Pilate said,

O. So you are a king, then?

N. Jesus answered,

✠ It is you who say it. Yes, I am a king. I was born for this, I came into the world for this: to bear witness to the truth; and all who are on the side of truth listen to my voice.

N. Pilate said,

O. Truth? What is that?

N. and with that he went out again to the Jews and said,

O. I find no case against him. But according to a custom of yours I should release one prisoner at the Passover; would you like me, then, to release the king of the Jews?

N. At this they shouted:

C. Not this man, but Barabbas.

N. Barabbas was a brigand.

Pilate then had Jesus taken away and scourged; and after this, the soldiers twisted some thorns into a crown and put it on his head, and dressed him in a purple robe. They kept coming up to him and saying,

C. Hail, king of the Jews!

N. and they slapped him in the face.

Pilate came outside again and said to them,

O. Look, I am going to bring him out to you to let you see that I find no case.

N. Jesus then came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said,

O. Here is the man.

N. When they saw him the chief priests and the guards shouted,

C. Crucify him! Crucify him!

N. Pilate said,

O. Take him yourselves and crucify him: I can find no case against him.

N. The Jews replied,

C. We have a Law, and according to that Law he ought to die, because he has claimed to be the Son of God.

N. When Pilate heard them say this his fears increased. Re-entering the Praetorium, he said to Jesus

O. Where do you come from?

N. But Jesus made no answer. Pilate then said to him,

O. Are you refusing to speak to me? Surely you know I have power to release you and I have power to crucify you?

N. Jesus replied,

✠ You would have no power over me if it had not been given you from above; that is why the one who handed me over to you has the greater guilt.

N. From that moment Pilate was anxious to set him free, but the Jews shouted,

C. If you set him free you are no friend of Caesar’s; anyone who makes himself king is defying Caesar.

N. Hearing these words, Pilate had Jesus brought out, and seated himself on the chair of judgement at a place called the Pavement, in Hebrew Gabbatha. It was Passover Preparation Day, about the sixth hour. Pilate said to the Jews,

O. Here is your king.

N. They said,

C. Take him away, take him away! Crucify him!

N. Pilate said,

O. Do you want me to crucify your king?

N. The chief priests answered,

C. We have no king except Caesar.

N. So in the end Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.

They then took charge of Jesus, and carrying his own cross he went out of the city to the place of the skull or, as it was called in Hebrew, Golgotha, where they crucified him with two others, one on either side with Jesus in the middle. Pilate wrote out a notice and had it fixed to the cross; it ran: ‘Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews.’ This notice was read by many of the Jews, because the place where Jesus was crucified was not far from the city, and the writing was in Hebrew, Latin and Greek. So the Jewish chief priests said to Pilate,

C. You should not write ‘King of the Jews,’ but ‘This man said: “I am King of the Jews.”’

N. Pilate answered,

O. What I have written, I have written.

N. When the soldiers had finished crucifying Jesus they took his clothing and divided it into four shares, one for each soldier. His undergarment was seamless, woven in one piece from neck to hem; so they said to one another,

C. Instead of tearing it, let’s throw dice to decide who is to have it.

N. In this way the words of scripture were fulfilled:

They shared out my clothing among them.

They cast lots for my clothes.

This is exactly what the soldiers did.

Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. Seeing his mother and the disciple he loved standing near her, Jesus said to his mother,

✠ Woman, this is your son.

N. Then to the disciple he said,

✠ This is your mother.

N. And from that moment the disciple made a place for her in his home.

After this, Jesus knew that everything had now been completed, and to fulfil the scripture perfectly he said:

✠ I am thirsty.

N. A jar full of vinegar stood there, so putting a sponge soaked in the vinegar on a hyssop stick they held it up to his mouth. After Jesus had taken the vinegar he said,

✠ It is accomplished;

N. and bowing his head he gave up his spirit.

Here all kneel and pause for a short time.

It was Preparation Day, and to prevent the bodies remaining on the cross during the sabbath – since that sabbath was a day of special solemnity – the Jews asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken away. Consequently the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with him and then of the other. When they came to Jesus, they found he was already dead, and so instead of breaking his legs one of the soldiers pierced his side with a lance; and immediately there came out blood and water. This is the evidence of one who saw it – trustworthy evidence, and he knows he speaks the truth – and he gives it so that you may believe as well. Because all this happened to fulfil the words of scripture:

Not one bone of his will be broken; and again, in another place scripture says:

They will look on the one whom they have pierced.

After this, Joseph of Arimathaea, who was a disciple of Jesus – though a secret one because he was afraid of the Jews – asked Pilate to let him remove the body of Jesus. Pilate gave permission, so they came and took it away. Nicodemus came as well – the same one who had first come to Jesus at night-time – and he brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it with the spices in linen cloths, following the Jewish burial custom. At the place where he had been crucified there was a garden, and in this garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been buried. Since it was the Jewish Day of Preparation and the tomb was near at hand, they laid Jesus there.

 

Holy Week, Good Friday (Year B) A Holy Day of Obligation