February
19, 2016
Friday
of the First Week of Lent
Saint
of the Day: Saint Barbatus, Bishop (+682)
Reading
1
21Thus
says the Lord GOD: If
the wicked man turns away from all the sins he committed, if
he keeps all my statutes and does what is right and just, he
shall surely live, he shall not die. 22None
of the crimes he committed shall be remembered against him; he
shall live because of the virtue he has practiced.
23Do
I indeed derive any pleasure from the death of the wicked? says
the Lord GOD. Do
I not rather rejoice when he turns from his evil way that
he may live?
24And
if the virtuous man turns from the path of virtue to do evil, the
same kind of abominable things that the wicked man does, can
he do this and still live? None
of his virtuous deeds shall be remembered, because
he has broken faith and committed sin; because
of this, he shall die.
25You
say, “The LORD’s way is not fair!” Hear
now, house of Israel: Is
it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair? 26When
someone virtuous turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies, it
is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die.
28But
if the wicked, turning from the wickedness he has committed, does
what is right and just, he
shall preserve his life; since
he has turned away from all the sins that he committed, he
shall surely live, he shall not die.
Responsorial Psalm
1Out
of the depths I cry to you, O LORD; 2LORD,
hear my voice! Let
your ears be attentive to
my voice in supplication.
R.
If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?
3If
you, O LORD, mark iniquities, LORD,
who can stand? 4But
with you is forgiveness, that
you may be revered.
R.
If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?
5I
trust in the LORD; my
soul trusts in His word. 6My
soul waits for the LORD
more
than sentinels wait for the dawn. 7aLet
Israel wait for the LORD.
R.
If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?
7bFor
with the LORD is kindness 7cand
with Him is plenteous redemption; 8And He will redeem Israel from
all their iniquities.
R.
If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?
Verse
Before The Gospel Ezekiel 18:31
Cast
away from you all the crimes you have committed, says the Lord,
and
make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit.
Gospel
20Jesus
said to His disciples: “I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of
the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.
21“You
have heard that it was said to your ancestors, You shall not kill; and whoever
kills will be liable to judgment.[1][2]
22But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to
judgment, and whoever says to his brother, Raqa, will be answerable to the
Sanhedrin, and
whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna.[3][4]
23Therefore,
if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has
anything against you, 24leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be
reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
25Settle
with your opponent quickly while on the way to court. Otherwise your opponent
will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard,
and you will be thrown into prison. 26Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you
have paid the last penny.”
Notes on Readings:
[1] Matthew 5:21-48 - Six examples of the
conduct demanded of the Christian disciple. Each deals with a commandment of
the law, introduced by You have heard that it was said to your ancestors or an equivalent
formula, followed by Jesus' teaching in respect to that commandment, But I say
to you; thus their designation as "antitheses." Three of them accept
the Mosaic law but extend or deepen it (Matthew 5:21-22, 27-28, 43-44; three reject it as a standard of conduct for the
disciples (Matthew 31:32, 33-37, 38-39).
[2] Matthew 5:21 - Compare with Exodus 20:13; Deuteronomy 5:17. The second part of the verse is not an exact quotation
from the Old Testament, but compare with Exodus 21:12.
[3] Matthew 5:22-26 - Reconciliation with
an offended brother is urged in the admonition of Matthew 5:23-24 and the parable of Matthew 5:25-26 (Luke 12:58-59). The severity of the judge in the parable is a warning
of the fate of unrepentant sinners in the coming judgment by God.
[4] Matthew 5:22 - Anger is the motive
behind murder, as the insulting epithets are steps that may lead to it. They,
as well as the deed, are all forbidden. Raqa: an Aramaic word reqa' or reqa
probably meaning "imbecile," "blockhead," a term of abuse.
The ascending order of punishment, judgment (by a local council?), trial before
the Sanhedrin, condemnation to Gehenna, points to a higher degree of
seriousness in each of the offenses. Sanhedrin: the highest judicial body of
Judaism. Gehenna: in Hebrew ge-hinnom, "Valley of Hinnom," or ge
Ben-hinnom, "Valley of the son of Hinnom," southwest of Jerusalem,
the center of an idolatrous cult during the monarchy in which children were
offered in sacrifice (see 2 Kings 23:10; Jeremiah 7:31). In Joshua 18:16 (Septuagint,
Codex Vaticanus) the Hebrew is transliterated into Greek as gaienna, which
appears in the New Testament as geenna. The concept of punishment of sinners by
fire either after death or after the final judgment is found in Jewish
apocalyptic literature (e.g., Enoch 90:26) but the name geenna is first given
to the place of punishment in the New Testament.
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Dear Humanity,
I personally encourage everyone to emulate JESUS' values on LOVE, FAITH, HOPE
and CHARITY, as the humanity has been a failure; which resulted to the more than two (2) years of pandemic and its after-effects on economy, not only here in the Philippines but worldwide.
And the saddest part of it, is that, it affected the POOREST of the POOR to even extremely be more poorer, in exchange of the affluent to be more richer.
Thank you and may GOD bless you and the whole family to have an enjoyed life's journey at home, Church, schools/universities, corporate commitments, public and places of interest.