The Evangelical Catholic - With Jesus to the Cross, Year A, Leader/Individual: A Lenten Guide on the Sunday Mass Readings

WITH JESUS TO THE CROSS

A LENTEN GUIDE ON THE SUNDAY MASS READINGS

YEAR A

The Evangelical Catholic

LEADER/INDIVIDUAL

Copyright 2020 by The Evangelical Catholic

All rights reserved.

Published by The Word Among Us Press

7115 Guilford Drive, Suite 100

Frederick, Maryland 21704

www.wau.org

24 23 22 21 201 2 3 4 5

Nihil obstat: The Reverend Monsignor Michael Morgan, JD, JCL

Censor Librorum

October 26, 2016

Imprimatur: Most Reverend Felipe J. Estvez, S.T.D.

Bishop of St. Augustine

October 26, 2016

ISBN: 978-1-59325-393-6

eISBN: 978-1-59325-394-3

Scripture texts are taken from the Catholic Edition of the Revised Standard Version Bible, 1965, 1966 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used with permission.

All rights reserved.

Excerpts from the English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for use in the United States of America 1994, United States Catholic Conference, Inc.Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with Permission.

Cover design by Andrea Alvarez

Cover image: Compassion!, 1897

William-Adolphe Bouguereau (18251905)

Location: Musee dOrsay, Paris, France

Photo Credit: RMN-Grand Palais/Art Resource, NY

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the author and publisher.

Made and printed in the United States of America

Library of Congress Control Number: 2019917675

CONTENTS

Introduction

Yet even now, says the LORD,

return to me with all your heart,

with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;

and rend your hearts and not your garments.

Return to the LORD, your God,

for he is gracious and merciful,

slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love,

and repents of evil.

Joel 2:12-13

The moment has come! The time is now! The hour is upon you regardless of your past mistakes or the difficulty of your current circumstancesor even if your spirit feels distant from God or if your heart feels hardened. Even now, the Lord calls, return to me with all your heart (verse 12).

Gods plea is straightforward and simple: he wants you close to him. He yearns for you as a father or mother longs for a lost child. God is asking you to stop what you normally do and take the time this Lent to discover what he means in your life and what he could mean.

The inner turbulence so many people experience today tells us that the promises of the world do not satisfy the deepest hunger of our hearts. We all repeat the same questions: Why am I striving so hard? What am I searching for? How can I find true life, purpose, and fulfillment? These thoughts persist because they cannot be answered without God or a relationship with Jesus that allows us to hear Gods voice in his.

Jesus wants that relationship with you. This book will help you seek him as he is seeking you, by reflecting on the Lenten Sunday Mass readings, either alone or in a small group. If you enter in with all your heart (verse 12), you will be able to respond to Jesus call to conversion. This time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel (Mark 1:15). Those were the first words of Jesus as he began his public ministry. The biblical Greek word for repent is metanoia, which means change your mind and your heart. Conversion of heart is the core of the gospel.

Encountering Jesus makes that change possible. He can transform our hearts, if we let him in. The kingdom of God broke into the physical world through him in a completely new and unprecedented way. In Jesus the fullness of God became present, tangible, and accessible to you and the whole human family. And he is still with you: And lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age (Matthew 28:20). If youre part of a small group, he will be there: For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them (18:20).

If we believe this is true, that the Lord has come, that the kingdom of God is at hand because Jesus is truly with us, then what else would we want to do but know him and grow close to him?

Reflecting on the Scriptures opens to us the reality of who Jesus is. Once we come to know his lovea love so great that he forgave the people who were crucifying him while they were doing itwe want to surrender our whole lives to him. He extends to us the love that forgave even those who crucified him on the cross. Seeking him, we find the mercy we crave and the grace to forgive others. Jesus heals not only our own hearts but, through us, sometimes even those who are our enemies, our families, and our friends. He is our way to peace.

Jesus is also the corrective to any erroneous impressions we may have about God the Father: that God wants to punish or belittle us for wandering or that he is a cold, distant superpower rather than a person who loves us. Through Jesus relationship with his Father, we see that God is not a heavenly scorekeeper, tallying our mistakes and weighing them against our merits. Lent is not a time when God wants to chasten us for our guilt but a time when he wants to welcome us home, like the Father in the story of the prodigal son (see Luke 15:11-32).

Coming home requires figuring out what it is that gets in our way from enjoying a loving relationship with God. The self-examination that Lent encourages breaks down the barriers that we dont even know are there in our hearts and minds. Then true communion becomes possible.

Thats why a spiritually fruitful Lent requires more than giving up chocolate or caffeine. Outward signs and rituals play a role: they help our inward transformation to happen and manifest that change in our lives. But the Lord says through Joel, Rend your hearts and not your garments (verse 13). That means dying to the tyranny of self and all that stymies our spiritual journey or undermines or inhibits full communion with our loving God.

We pray with the Church that the Liturgy of the Word will penetrate your heart in a new way this year, bearing fruit that will endure forever in the kingdom of God. The time is now. Return to the Lord with all your heart through Lenten penance, almsgiving, and prayer so that you can fully experience the joy of the resurrection this Easter.

How to Use This Guide

Welcome to With Jesus to the Cross: Year A, a guide to help you know Jesus of Nazareth more deeply and understand more fully what his death and resurrection mean in your life.

Weekly Sessions

The weekly sessions use the Sunday Mass readings for Lent to help you enter into the mystery of Christs life, suffering, and resurrection, the source of our salvation.

Each session includes written opening and closing prayers, the Scripture passages to be discussed that week, questions for discussion, ideas for action, and prayer prompts to carry you through the week. Sometimes excerpts from saints, popes, or other great teachers are included that shed light on the message of the gospel.