Third Sunday of
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In this Year of Mercy the readings for today, the Third Sunday of Lent, are most appropriate. The Responsorial Psalm actually echoes all the readings, making it clear that God is a God of mercy when it says,
“The Lord is compassion and love”.
The First Reading from the Book of Exodus is an encounter between Moses and God in the burning bush, which tells us that God is fully aware of the suffering of the people of Israel at the hand of the Egyptians and that he intends to relieve their suffering and free them from their slavery.
The Second Reading from the First Letter of St Paul to the Corinthians describes how God did assist the Israelites to escape from Egypt, but how most of them disobeyed God and died. St Paul says this is a warning to us not to become complacent.
Today’s Gospel from St Luke begins with a tale concerning people who died suddenly and how Jesus uses this as a call to us all to repent of our sins. It concludes with Jesus’ parable about the barren fig tree which had failed to bear fruit in three years and its owner deciding to cut it down. The man looking after the vineyard then pleads with the owner to give him one more year in order to dig round the tree and manure it in the hope that it will bear fruit. This symbolises in a powerful way not only God’s patience with us as sinners, but his mercy in giving us all another chance to repent.
“The Lord is compassion and love”.
The First Reading from the Book of Exodus is an encounter between Moses and God in the burning bush, which tells us that God is fully aware of the suffering of the people of Israel at the hand of the Egyptians and that he intends to relieve their suffering and free them from their slavery.
The Second Reading from the First Letter of St Paul to the Corinthians describes how God did assist the Israelites to escape from Egypt, but how most of them disobeyed God and died. St Paul says this is a warning to us not to become complacent.
Today’s Gospel from St Luke begins with a tale concerning people who died suddenly and how Jesus uses this as a call to us all to repent of our sins. It concludes with Jesus’ parable about the barren fig tree which had failed to bear fruit in three years and its owner deciding to cut it down. The man looking after the vineyard then pleads with the owner to give him one more year in order to dig round the tree and manure it in the hope that it will bear fruit. This symbolises in a powerful way not only God’s patience with us as sinners, but his mercy in giving us all another chance to repent.
Father, all things work for good for those
who love you. Be patient with me and turn
to good the mistakes and sins of my life.
Help me to bring forth works of mercy by
experiencing your mercy in my own life.
Fr Adrian Wilcock
