Third Sunday in Lent
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves” (Mt 11:28-29).
The Lord invites us to find peace and joy in Him this Sabbath as we set aside time to worship and rest.
“Remember the sabbath day—keep it holy. Six days you may labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God.”
Sabbath comes from the Hebrew word “Shabbat”, which literally means “to stop.” Keeping holy the Sabbath is not just a commandment, but an invitation. An invitation from the Lord to stop our work, stop our worrying, stop our striving. An opportunity to fid rest and to be renewed. A chance to refocus on the things that truly matter - the Lord, family, community. In our culture, Sunday has become a day to “catch up” on everything that didn’t get done during the week, and any time left over is often seen as an opportunity just to “get ahead” for next week. But we Christians have a chance now to remember what it means to keep the Sabbath. During this pandemic the Lord is calling us back to Himself, offering us a chance to reclaim the gift of the Sabbath, reminding us again what it means to “keep it holy.”
A basic principle for observing the Sabbath is only to do things that can be considered “rest” or “worship”. Here are a few ideas to consider to begin more to enter into the Sabbath. Maybe pick just one thing to focus on this Sunday, then next Sunday keep that practice in addition to a second one. And then the next Sunday add a third, to slowly over time begin to enter into this great gift of the Sabbath more and more.
Keep the Lord at the center - read the Mass readings ahead of time, participate in Mass, make more time for prayer, spend some extra time in silence focusing on the Lord
Try not to work - resist the urge to check your email, or catch up on a few things, and leave it for Monday
Plan ahead - take care of what needs to be done before Sunday, so plan the rest of your week to make sure you get the laundry done, have gone grocery shopping, etc.so you don’t have to do any of it on Sunday
Spend the day “screen free” - try to stay off social media, internet news, and your phone as much as possible. If you can’t make it the whole day try to go for at least a few hours
Be intentional with others - if you live with others (ie. family, roommates), is there something you can do together like play a game or go on a hike? If you live alone, can you reach out to a good friend and catch up?
Leisure, not entertainment - try to do things that are life giving; binge-watching a favorite show or playing video games for hours rarely leaves anyone with a new zeal for life. Read a good book, go on a long walk, develop a hobby.
PARTICIPATE
“Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Mt 18:20). Each Sunday we are called to “keep holy the Sabbath” and although that may look different for right now we will still come together as a St. Ann community through the gift of technology.
MASS READINGS
GIVING
Take a few minutes to give to St. Ann Parish. Please give generously and sacrificially as an act of faith during these difficult times. You can give online:
After giving, offer ways to be generous of your whole self during this trying time for our world.
“Each must do as already determined without sadness or compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. Moreover, God is able to make every grace abundant for you, so that in all things, always having all you need, you may have an abundance for every good work.”
PROCESS
“The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul.” (Ps 19:7)
Today’s responsorial psalm, Psalm 19, picks up in the middle of the psalm. The first verses, which we do not hear in today’s Mass, speak of God’s glory manifested in creation. The psalmist speaks of the heavens declaring God’s glory. Looking up at a clear night sky, especially away from the lights of the city, leaves us breathless. Seeing the beauty of a night sky, we feel compelled to praise the Artist who set all the lights in the dark canvas. How many artists have tried to capture the majesty of a sunrise or a sunset? How many of us have been brought back to the delights of childhood seeing a rainbow after storm?
The psalmist sees that same beauty, dignity, majesty, and delight in God’s law. God knew how our hearts were prone to jealousy and envy, and so He gave us commandments against coveting. He knew that anger would often reign in our hearts, and so we have commandments against killing. God made us for truth, or rather for Truth itself, and so gave us a commandment against false witness. Through our pride, we often declare ourselves our own rulers and makers, so God teaches us to honor our parents. In honoring our parents, we are strengthened and formed to respond to God, to live as He made us to live.
Knowing that our hearts tend to be distracted by earthly things, God commands us to make no idols, but to worship Him alone. God teaches us to honor Him and His name, giving him the respect due to His great power and love. God knows how we like to busy ourselves and distract ourselves, so He gave us the sabbath day, a day to rest in Him and with Him, a day to gaze upon the One who loves us more than we could ever hope or imagine. Now in the new covenant, through the great gift of Jesus upon the cross, we have the opportunity to not only gaze upon the One who loves us, but we hear His voice in the reading of the scriptures and He enters into our very bodies when we eat His flesh in the Eucharist.
God’s creation proclaims the glory of the Lord. And His law speaks of that same glory to our hearts. As the psalmist says, God’s law “refreshes the soul,” “gives wisdom to the simple,” “rejoices the heart,” and “enlightens the eye.”Let us pray that we find the commandments as life-giving as God intends them to be.
Practice
Our sabbath guides begin with a suggestion for how to structure our sabbath. This week, we invite you to take a step further specifically in regards to the Mass: choose one way to enter into Mass more deeply.
One way we can enter into Mass more deeply is to pray with the scriptures ahead of time. You can easily find the readings on the USCCB website. Take time to sit down, read through the scriptures, and ponder what they might mean for your life. Ask God to make clear what he wants to tell you through these particular passages. This way, while you are at Mass, listening to the readings will be like greeting an old and familiar friend - yet you can still get something new out of hearing the readings proclaimed at Mass.
Another way to enter into Mass more deeply is to learn more about the Mass, its structure, and the beauty behind the various things you see, hear, taste, and smell. Fr. Paul and Joey Scancella have a great series on the “Prodigal and the Priest” podcast. The first episode in the series is “Mass Part 1”.
Yet another way to enter into Mass more deeply is to “cleanse your temple” - to remove anything distracting you from truly worshipping God with your whole heart, mind, and soul. Perhaps a fast from social media or gossipping would most honor the Lord. Or maybe you refrain from checking your phone before going into Mass and instead take 10 minutes to read over the scriptures or pray silently. You might consider getting rid of certain items that lead to unhealthy habits in your life.
Although “keep holy the sabbath” meant something very different in Old Testament times, it is no less important today. It is perhaps even more important in today’s day and age where Sunday just seems to be yet another day to get stuff done. Let’s take this time to set Sunday apart and consecrate it for the Lord as he has repeatedly asked us to do. After all, the commandment to “honor the sabbath” is not for God’s benefit, but rather for ours!
Discussion Questions
Think about how you can continue to reflect on God’s word to you this week, and how you can invite others into the conversation. You can use the questions below for personal reflection, or to grow with others. Be creative! You could consider gathering with friends and family, or starting a group text, or a group FaceTime, to discuss the questions below.
What stands out to you from the readings this week? What might God be speaking to you at this time?
How was your time alone with Jesus last week? How can you continue to enter into solitude this Lent?
What makes it hard for you to enter fully into the Mass? What can you do to enter more deeply into the Mass?
Which of the commandments is the easiest for you to honor? Which of the commandments do you find most difficult to honor?
The first part of our Sabbath guides give structure for how to honor the Sabbath. Have you been able to honor the Sabbath well in recent months? What can you do to better honor God on the Sabbath?
Today, we do not think of “carving idols” in the way the Israelites did, but we do indeed still have idols today. What idols do you think God is asking you to get rid of? Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit - how do you think God desires to cleanse this temple?
Why do you think the psalmist thinks of God’s words as “more precious than gold”? Do you have a similar attitude towards the word of God?