Welcome Fr. Ernest! I would like to begin my Pastor’s Corner this
week by welcoming Fr. Ernest Ezeogu to our parish community. Fr. Ernest comes to us from Nigeria and is
here on sabbatical. I thank him wholeheartedly for being here to help at a time
when we need it most. In your usual
welcoming fashion, I know that you will make his stay here, a very pleasant
one. I would also like to thank Fr. Milton Remedios who has been so generous
with his time in coming to assist Fr. Noel and myself and celebrate the liturgy
with you. Fr. Milton will continue to be
here on a regular basis too!
You will have noticed last week that if you
attended the noon Mass where the first scrutiny rite was celebrated, you would
have heard the Gospel about the woman at the well from Year A. At every other Mass, you will recall the
theme of opening ourselves to God’s forgiveness and repenting. During this time
in Lent, we celebrate the Scrutiny Rites of the R.C.I.A. using the Gospel
passages from Liturgical Year A. since they are very powerful readings and
reflect what our Elect are experiencing week to week, a deepening of their
faith and a real understanding of who Jesus is in their lives.
The Gospel readings in their assigned
sequence reflect the very purpose of the Scrutiny Rites. That is, little by
little, these readings with their prescribed rites uncover what is weak and
strengthen what is good and upright in the elect. Through them, “the elect are
instructed gradually about the mystery of sin, from which the whole world and
every person longs to be delivered...”
In the story of the woman at the well, the
Samaritan woman hears Jesus then goes and tells the villagers what she has
heard, causing them to seek him out for themselves. The reading ends with the
villagers saying to the woman, “We no longer believe because of your word; for
we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the savior of the
world” (John 4:42). Was this not the starting point of every elect? They heard
a word, a word that they discovered over time to be Christ. Upon discovering
who was speaking to them, they no longer believed because of hearsay,
obligation, or pressure, but because they heard Christ’s voice for themselves.
In the story of the man born blind, today’s
R.C.I.A. Gospel from Year A, the man healed of his blindness gradually grows to
see as Christ sees. He regains his sight right at the start of the story. But
only because of the interrogation he receives from his neighbors and the
Pharisees and his struggle to respond to them faithfully, does he little by
little begin to see the identity of who it was who healed him. By the end of
the story, the one who healed him was no longer to him just “the man called
Jesus” (John 9:11) or simply “a prophet” (John 9:17) or “from God” (John 9:33).
He was “Lord” (John 9:38) in whom he believed. For the elect this progression
may be familiar. At the start of their catechumenate, their eyes are signed
“that they may see the glory of God”. Through their catechesis over the years
and their experience with the community of believers they grow in understanding
of what they see—who the man Jesus was, the prophetic words he spoke, his
unique relationship with the Father, and finally his true identity as Lord.
Next Sunday we have the Gospel about the
raising of Lazarus for the 3rd and final scrutiny rite. I will
tackle that Gospel in my column next Sunday.
Just to let you know, I will see the
surgeon again on March 13 and I am expecting to know the surgery dates then. As
usual, I will keep you informed as I am able. I sincerely miss not being with
you especially in this time of Lent.
Fr.
Phil
