Each year on the third, fourth and fifth Sundays of Lent, some congregations will hear the readings from Cycle A and others from Cycle B, the current cycle. Cycle A is used every year at Masses where there are people present who are preparing for baptism, confirmation and Eucharist at the Easter Vigil. These thoughts are based on Cycle B. In the first reading we have the Exodus account of the Ten Commandments — including these lines: “You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain … Remember to keep holy the sabbath day.” Hmm. As a culture we seem to have made “OMG” a completely acceptable expression; and as a culture, many of us must work so many others of us can play, or shop, or…. In the Gospel for this Sunday, Jesus clears the temple of those making money off the worshippers — trying to make it holy again. And then we get those wonderful final lines from John: Jesus “did not need anyone to testify about human nature. He himself understood it well.” What specific actions do I take to create space for God and reverence God’s holiness? Do I sometimes take God for granted and lose my sense of awe at the immensity, power and beauty of the Divine?
– Blog entry by Sister Mary Garascia