DAILY- HOMILY

February 25, 2015 WEDNESDAY, 1st Week of Lent

Violet

Jon 3: 1-10 / Lk 11: 29-32

Reading: Jon 3: 1-10

     The word of Yahweh came to Jonah a second time: "Go to Nineveh, the great city, and announce to them the message I give you."

     In obedience to the word of Yahweh, Jonah went to Nineveh. It was a very large city, and it took three days just to cross it. So Jonah walked a single day's journey and began proclaiming, "Forty days more and Nineveh will be destroyed."

     The people of the city believed God. They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.

     Upon hearing the news, the king of Nineveh got up from his throne, took off his royal robe, put on sackcloth and sat down in ashes. He issued a proclamation throughout Nineveh:

     "By the decree of the king and his nobles, no people or beasts, herd or flock, will taste anything; neither will they eat nor drink. But let people and beasts be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call aloud to God, turn from his evil ways and violence. Who knows? God may yet relent, turn from his fierce anger and spare us."

     When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not carry out the destruction he had threatened upon them. 

Gospel: Lk 11: 29-32

     As the crowd increased, Jesus began to speak in this way, "People of the present time are evil people. They ask for a sign, but no sign will be given to them except the sign of Jonah. As Jonah became a sign for the people of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man be a sign for this generation. The Queen of the South will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and here there is greater than Solomon. The people of Nineveh will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for Jonah's preaching made them turn from their sins, and here there is greater than Jonah."

Reflection:

     Signs are very important in our day-to-day living. We work with signs in our daily lives. Everything we have is a sign which our senses perceive and transmit to our brain for processing. It is our memory which then attaches meaning to these particular signs so that we can sense the object and are then able to associate meaning to it. The meaning of the sign is usually commonly shared and understood; it is in following the understood meaning that we have order in our life and society. The importance of a sign is not so much in merely sensing it but in understanding and following the meaning of the sign.

     A traffic light and its tri-colors are signs which instruct us what to do at the road intersection. The color green is understood as "Go," yellow as "Caution," and red as "Stop." If one were to read red as "Go," one could have disastrous results.

     In today's Gospel reading Jesus reprimands the Jews for continuing to demand a sign: he had shown them many "signs" in his public ministry. Jesus reprimands them more especially for their refusal to read and accept the meaning of the signs given to them - the signs which point to his message and person as the Messiah. Jesus is concerned that this refusal and unbelief will bring them to a disastrous end, just like the driver on the road who does not see nor understand the meaning of a red traffic light.

     What signs have we received from the Lord? What signs have we ignored? We could look at areas or aspects of our lives which may be in chaos or disorder. Let us ask for his grace to be more sensitive to his signs and promptings, especially during the Lenten season.

WE PRAY FOR MTQ DAILY PRAYER DIARY INTENTIONS:

BIRTHDAY

     VERNICE

IN MEMORIAM (+)

     JOSE CHUA BENG CHONG (MAR 4, 1882 - FEB 25, 1932)

     JOSEPH CHAMSAY (JUNE 26, 1929 - FEB 25, 1995)

     JOHN PAUL UY (FEB 25, 1984 – FEB 27, 2010)

Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers and for those who need our prayers the most. 

Have a good day!

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