WEDNESDAY IN THE 5TH WEEK OF LENT READINGS AND REFLECTION:
“THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE”
(Jn 8:31-42).
WEDNESDAY IN THE 5TH WEEK OF LENT
MASS READINGS
READING I
Dan 3:14–20, 91–92, 95
King Nebuchadnezzar said:
“Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you will not serve my god, or worship the golden statue that I set up? Be ready now to fall down and worship the statue I had made, whenever you hear the sound of the trumpet, flute, lyre, harp, psaltery, bagpipe, and all the other musical instruments; otherwise, you shall be instantly cast into the white-hot furnace; and who is the God who can deliver you out of my hands?” Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar, “There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If our God, whom we serve, can save us from the white-hot furnace and from your hands, O king, may he save us! But even if he will not, know, O king, that we will not serve your god or worship the golden statue that you set up.”
King Nebuchadnezzar’s face became livid with utter rage against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than usual and had some of the strongest men in his army bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and cast them into the white-hot furnace.
Nebuchadnezzar rose in haste and asked his nobles, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” “Assuredly, O king,” they answered. “But,” he replied, “I see four men unfettered and unhurt, walking in the fire, and the fourth looks like a son of God.” Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who sent his angel to deliver the servants who trusted in him; they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.”
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
R. Glory and praise for ever!
“Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever;
And blessed is your holy and glorious name,
praiseworthy and exalted above all for all ages.”
R. Glory and praise for ever!
“Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.”
R. Glory and praise for ever!
“Blessed are you on the throne of your kingdom,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.”
R. Glory and praise for ever!
“Blessed are you who look into the depths
from your throne upon the cherubim;
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever.”
R. Glory and praise for ever!
Et laudábile et superexaltátum in ómnibus saéculis.
“Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven,
praiseworthy and glorious forever.”
R. Glory and praise for ever!
VERSE BEFORE THE GOSPEL
Happy are they who have kept the word with a generous heart, and yield a harvest through perseverance.
GOSPEL
Jn 8:31–42
Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him, “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How can you say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. A slave does not remain in a household forever, but a son always remains. So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free. I know that you are descendants of Abraham. But you are trying to kill me, because my word has no room among you. I tell you what I have seen in the Father’s presence; then do what you have heard from the Father.”
They answered and said to him, “Our father is Abraham.” Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works of Abraham. But now you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God; Abraham did not do this. You are doing the works of your father!” So they said to him, “We were not born of fornication. We have one Father, God.” Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and am here; I did not come on my own, but he sent me.”
GOSPEL REFLECTION
Jesus said: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life”. He who believes in Jesus, and through Him in the Father, “will live forever.” Knowing Christ, and believing in Him, in the final analysis, is knowing the Truth.
“If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
- St Thomas Aquinas explains that: “In this passage, being made free does not refer to being freed of every type of wrong . . .; it means being freed in the proper sense of the word, in three ways: first, the truth of his teaching will free us from the error of untruth …; second, the truth of grace will liberate us from the slavery of sin: ‘the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death’ (Rom 8:2); third, the truth of eternity in Christ Jesus will free us from decay (cf. Rom 8:2 1)” (Commentary on St John, in loc.).
- On the other hand, St. John Paul II wrote:
- “Christ himself links liberation particularly with knowledge of the truth; ‘You will know the truth and the truth will make you free’ (Jn 8:32). This sentence testifies above all to the intimate significance of the freedom for which Christ liberates us. Liberation means man’s inner transformation, which is a consequence of the knowledge of truth. The transformation is, therefore, a spiritual process, in which man matures ‘in true righteousness and holiness’ (Eph 4:24)… (John Paul II, General Audience, 21 February 1979).
- “Jesus Christ meets the man of every age, including our own, with these words: ‘You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free’ (Jn 8:32). These words contain both a fundamental requirement and a warning: the requirement of an honest relationship with regard to truth as a condition for authentic freedom, and the warning to avoid every kind of illusory freedom, every superficial unilateral freedom, every freedom that fails to enter into the whole truth about man and the world. Today also, even after two thousand years, we see Christ as the one who brings man freedom based on truth, frees man from what curtails, diminishes and as it were breaks off this freedom at its root, in man’s soul, his heart and his conscience. What a stupendous confirmation of this has been given and is still being given by those who, thanks to Christ and in Christ, have reached true freedom and have manifested it even in situations of external constraint!” (John Paul II, Redemptor hominis, 12).
Dear brethren in Christ, the freedom which Christ has gained for us consists above all in our liberation from sin (Rm 6:14-18), and as a consequence, from eternal death and from the devil’s dominion.
- How much do we value the life of grace which Christ obtained for us on the Cross. Let us ask ourselves these questions today.
- Do we strive to grow in this life of grace — the life of holiness — daily by frequenting the sacraments, through prayer and good words? Do we avoid occasions of sin, keeping up a resolute struggle against sensuality, pride, laziness?
- Let us not forget what Our Lord said: I tell you that whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. Lord, forgive us our sins, help us more so that we would strive daily to have you in our soul.
Stay safe and God bless! Fr. Rolly Arjonillo
VIDEO REFLECTION
TOPIC: DO YOU TRY TO PREVENT YOURSELF FROM COMMITTING SIN?
In today’s first reading, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon throws three young men – Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah – into a fiery furnace for their refusal to abandon their religion and instead worship a golden statue he had made. Being favorites of the king, he thought their loyalty was absolute. The three calmly ignore the king’s threat, telling him that their God will save them, but even if He did not, their loyalty was to their God. Seeing the three with an angel walking effortlessly and unharmed through the fire, the king was won over to the true God. In the gospel reading, Jesus tells the Jews that if they were true descendants of Abraham, they will believe in Him – that He is the son of God. If they do not, they will continue to be slaves to sin.
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