Second Sunday of Lent year C

Sunday readings in brief 2 Lent C
Gen 15:5-12,17-18; Ps 26 (27); Phi 3:17-4:1; Lk 9:28-36
The Covent of hope
Dear friends, today is the second Sunday of Lent. As we continue to deepen our meditation upon the sufferings and death of our Lord, the readings brings us the message of hope. When there is a promise of hope at the end, any amount of suffering is bearable. However, when there is no hope at all, even small suffering make us despair and lose even the meaning of living on. Hope is the spouse of faith and these two begets love. As Christians, we have a covenant with God that was sealed by the blood of Christ, that if we keep our part of the bargain, we would indeed enter the kingdom of heaven. Our part of bargain is to believe in God and live according to the teachings of his Christ.
In the first reading, we hear that “Abraham believed in God, and was justified because of this”. Abraham had all the human reasons to doubt the promise of God because at their old age, he and his wife Sarah had no hope of bearing a child to be the heir. However, Abraham put his trust in God and indeed, he became a great nation. Dear friends, God want to accomplish great things in the life of each one of us. However, the greatest obstacle is our lack of sufficient faith in God’s promises. Many are those baptized in the name of Jesus Christ but live completely against the Christian values in every sense.
These St. Paul say, “Are living as the enemies of the cross of Christ”. Anyone of us can become the enemy of the cross if the things we do are against the Christian values into which we were baptized. This is partly because some were baptized without first appreciating the depth of the way of life of a Christian and partly because of lack of ongoing formation. Many received what we can call “popular baptism” on a very emotional filled crusades but after the crusade was over, they went back home and did not even know what was done to them. Faith instructions are as important as any training for other careers. One needs skills on how to go about his journey as a Christian after baptism. It is not a shock that many cannot relate all the clauses of the Nicaea-Constantinople Creed without looking at the prayer book.
In the Gospel today, Jesus gives to Peter, John and James a foretaste of what he was hoping for after accomplishing his mission. The glory of the transfiguration was so overwhelming that Peter wanted them to remain there and not go back down the mountain where suffering and the cross ware imminent. There are many Christians who think like Peter. They would rather spend hours and hour in the adoration chapel praying for all problems in their families than sitting down with other family members to sort their differences. We go to the Church to worship but the real Christian life is lived in our families, neighbourhood, streets, work places, etc. This is where our faith is tested and weighed and not how solemn and convincing our prayers seem. If we do well we will be heirs of the kingdom that God has promised to us in Christ Jesus.
Dear friends, I invite us today to evaluate ourselves and see if we are well instructed and well skilled to live fruitful Christian lives.
Have a fruitful Lent
Fr. Lawrence Muthee, SVD