Whispers of love to paths of freedom

Feb 23, 2024

Reflecting on our Sunday Readings with Deacon Clement Samuel

2nd Sunday of Lent (B)
Readings: Genesis 22:1-2, 9-13, 15-18;
Romans 8:31-34;
Gospel: Mark 9:2-10

Maria Conceicao is one of the toughest women in the world. Having no athletic background whatsoever, she achieved, within 12 years, ten Guinness World Records, running marathons, trekking to the North Pole, and reaching the summit of Mount Everest. What motivated her? It was a visit to the slums of Bangladesh that changed her. Seeing abject poverty and misery touched her deeply. She then decided to start a foundation to raise funds to educate 600 poor children there.

As we enter the Second Sunday of Lent, let us ask ourselves, ‘Where are we as Catholics?’ Have we become sloppy, lukewarm, indifferent, heartless, clueless, and directionless churchgoers without any real motivation or drive to reach out to the needs of others? Have we become distracted or addicted to the ‘glitter’ of today’s culture that keeps us self-absorbed and entertained by the exhilarating simulations of sound, drama and even the titillating pornographic images that appear as normal today in mainstream media such as Netflix, Facebook etc.

Lent is a time of honest soul-searching. Our Master and Founder, Jesus Christ, with utter selfless determination and a sheer spirit of austerity enters the ‘Desert’ to prepare for a mission for humanity that will eventually cost Him His life.
The ‘Desert’ of last Sunday and the ‘Mountain’ of today’s Gospel from Mark 9:2-10 situate us in the Exodus story of the Old Testament. In that story, we see the liberation of the Israelites from slavery under an oppressive Pharaoh, where they were led by Moses through the Red Sea, across the desert to freedom in the Promised Land.

Pope Francis, in his Lenten message, chose the Exodus journey for reflection. He says, ‘When our God reveals Himself, His message is always one of freedom: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery” (Ex 20:22) He also encourages us not to be discouraged by the demands of the journey because it is God who calls and transforms us; ‘God shapes His people; He enables us to leave our slavery behind and experience a Passover from death to life. Like a bridegroom, the Lord draws us once more to Himself, whispering words of love to our hearts.’

Yes, this Lent we need to hear the voice of God, especially the whispers of His words of love and freedom. In the first reading from Genesis 22, Abraham clearly hears the voice of love after his conscience is purified when the call to sacrifice his son Isaac was only a test of obedience. His conscience must have been pricked when he saw the Canaanites offering child sacrifices to Moloch, their god. The conscience is referred to by St John Henry Newman as the ‘the aboriginal (primitive) vicar of Christ in the soul’. He also said, ‘To live is to change and to be perfect is to have changed often.’ Thus, in every human heart there is a desire to do something great for the one we love but that desire and our actions need to change when we hear more clearly the voice of love.

The voice of freedom and the whisper of love are also heard in the Gospel today. The story of the transfiguration must be seen in the light of the Exodus. In Luke’s version of this Gospel, he describes Moses and Elijah discussing with Christ about His departure from Jerusalem. Jesus’ death and resurrection is the great Passover, from death to life eternal, earth to heaven, humiliation to glory and defeat to victory. The Apostles on the mountain, heard the ultimate voice of conscience “This is My beloved Son. Listen to Him.” (Mk 9: 7). This voice will sustain the apostles through the awful torture and death of their beloved master. This voice will also sustain us in our trials but also keep challenging us each Lent to draw closer to God and to let go of all the things that enslave us.

Pope Francis tells us ‘The voice of God, who says, “You are my Son, the Beloved” (Mk 1:11), and “You shall have no other gods before me” (Ex 20:3) is opposed by the enemy and his lies. Even more to be feared than Pharaoh are the idols that we set up for ourselves; we can consider them as his voice speaking within us. To be all-powerful, to be looked up to by all, to dominate over others: every human being is aware of how deeply seductive that lie can be. It is a road well-travelled. We can become attached to money, to certain projects, ideas or goals, to our position, to a tradition, even to certain individuals. Instead of making us move forward, they paralyse us. Instead of encounter, they create conflict.’

Let us then, this Lent, continue our journey from slavery to freedom by being open to new encounter beginning with the whispers of the voice of love.