Readings for Sunday, February 28, 2010

1st Reading -- From the Book of Genesis 15: 5-12, 17-18

God speaks to Abram and tells him that he will have as many descendants as the stars up in the sky, and then some more... Being an old man, Abram has trouble believing in God's words...

Abram is nothing but human, and he analizes God's prediction from a human perspective. The idea is hard to accept, after all Abram's body is old (75?) and common knowledge along with science have established that a man of such age can no longer father children. Though at first Abram fails to hear God's prediction with his soul, he is-first and foremost- a believer, and ultimately decides to give value to God's words based on their source. Abram's descendants have nothing to do with common knowledge or science, they have to do with the will of God Almighty. The children are a part of God's covenant, to turn Abram's descendants into a great and powerful nation.

Abram receives a second promise from God: fertil and prosperous land from Wadi of Egypt to the Great River (the Euphrates), the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites" ... This time Abram is not as sure as with the first prediction. So, filled with doubt, Abram asks God for evidence of this promise. He needs to be convinced in order to relate to others the news of God's promises.

"Be careful with what you wish for... You might just get it" the saying goes... Just a weekend ago Jesus told the devil "Do not tempt the Lord, your God"...

With special pirothecnical effects, God demonstrates to Abram what he is capable of doing. Abram asked, God responded, and Abram felt fear...

Let us never question God, for He keeps his promises.

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2nd Reading -- From the letter of Paul to the Phillipians 3:17- 4:1

Transformation, change: two words that are deeply rooted in our Christian faith.

From the transformation of a 16-year-old virgin into the expectant mother of the Messiah, to the miracle of turning water into wine, to the miracle of the transformation of a dead body into a living one... Our Christian faith is all based on change, on transformation from one state to another.

On the 2nd reading of Sunday's Scriptures, Paul addresses the Phillipians, people very dear to his heart, and he calls for their transformation from their old wordly ways into the way of the Lord. Paul asks them to leave the bickering behind, to become one in the Lord, to transform. And yet, they remain hard of hearing...

Paul uses himself as public example of transformation: he used to be a zealous Pharisee, a "full blown Jew", and after experiencing a change of heart, he transformed himself into a vocal representative of Christ and the Christian principles of our faith. Paul them, spoke out loud the news of the new Covenant.

Paul's request for the Phillipian's transformation is the same request that God asks from us. During this time of lent, when we recognize ourselves as sinners -as we receive ashes on Ash Wednesday-, God asks us to not just recognize the sin in us, but to transform ourselves into men and women of faith, of love. Paul asks us to copy him, to pay more attention to our internal transformation than to the external symbols of God's followers.

It is not circumcision that will grant us acceptance into Heaven, but intstead, it is the transformation of our hearts that will grant us citizenship in the Kingdom of God.

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The Gospel according to Luke 9: 28b-36

Today's Gospel also brings up the issue of transformation.

We find Jesus on top of Mount Tabor, meditating... Our faith has paid great attention to "mountain tops", always linking them to the fact on the top of a mountain is where deep meditation and sincere connection with God can be achieved.

The three disciples accompanying Jesus, Peter, John, and James, awake from deep sleep and become confused when confronted by a vision of Jesus talking with the prophets Moses and Elijah. So confused they are, that Peter first idea is to build them three tents...

God our father does not want us to be confused and in the dark, for He knows what these circumstances do to our spirits. So God, speaking from within a cloud above says to the disciples "This is my chosen son, listen to Him"... In other words, do not be afraid, who you see is not a stranger, he is the one I sent to protect you...

God's message is plain and simple, and it is very clear: our job is to listen to Jesus's words, and to follow his commands, for he is acting on behalf of God the Father.

Let us not be paralized by fear of the unknown, instead, let us put our trust in the Lord... Let us be like Abram, who with deep faith believed God's promise of a great number of descendants... Let us copy Paul's conviction so our hearts can be changed and citizenship into God's Kingdom can be achieved... Le us listen to God our Father with open hearts...