Monday of the 4th week in Lent March 23, 2009

MONDAY MARCH 23, 2009 OF THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT
Readings; Isaiah 65: 17-21 Psalm 30 John 4: 43-54
“I will praise You, Lord, for You will answer me.:

The next to the last chapter of Isaiah portends of a future Jerusalem. The Israelites who heard or read these words had no inkling, Isaiah was foretelling of the New Jerusalem, the Church God would establish centuries into distant time.
Hyperbole wasn’t unheard of in prophecy. Therefore, the focus is on the good God would create.
Unfortunately, we haven’t reached the pinnacles outlined in Isaiah’s writings. No question, our salvation, the forgiveness of sin, has yet to be completed. However, in Jesus, God is manifested to us through His Apostles and His Church .
Our Country has been the recipient of God’s benevolence. We have been blessed these past 250 Years. However, the forces of the irreligious, if we are unable to pray our way out of this dilemma, may convince the majority of their unbelief.
As a result, the call of the Church to repentance may never come about. Perhaps someone, like Isaiah, will prophesize the impending disaster and we’ll positively react.

Shades of Purgatory exude from the first few verses of the Psalm. Bringing souls up from the nether word and rescuing them from going down into the pit, seems to forecast the possibility of a merciful God allowing impurities to be erased in the ‘fire’ of a repentant Spirit.

The success of Jesus’ appeal to the Samaritan woman and her associates led Jesus to Galilee a few miles to the east. There the Galileans greeted Him wholeheartedly because they had witnessed His miracles in Judea. His fame spread, even into pagan territories.
There a court official from Capernaum, came to Jesus and appealed to Him for help with his son, who was dying from some ailment and the doctors didn’t know what to do. At first, He reprimands him because he was looking for Jesus to come to his house to lay His hands on him and cure him. Not understanding the Jewish tradition of not entering a gentile abode. When Jesus hesitated, the royal official, concerned for his child, pleaded for his son saying,” Sir, come down before my son dies”. Moved with pity, Jesus told him, “Go, your son lives”.
With nothing but Faith, the official departed. When he was near his home, he was met by his servants who assured him, his son was alive and had been suddenly cured at the same hour when Jesus said, Your son lives”.
His whole household became believers!
What will it take for us to believe as the official did?
Jesus, throughout the Scriptures, tells us, if we believe whatever we ask will be granted us and more.
The official had only hearsay to believe! And he was rewarded for his Faith.
Our Church provides us with all we need spiritually, to have the same faith and more. However, it is our privilege to learn all the Church teaches so the learning will improve our faith.