January 29, 2005 - Saturday, 3rd Week in Ordinary Time

Why Are You Afraid?

Readings:
Heb 11:1-2, 8-19; Lk 1:69-75; Mk 4:35-41

Opening Prayer

God of power and might,
when we cry our to you in the tempests of life,
reassure us that you care and that you are with us,
even when you seem absent and silent.
Let our faith remain calm and peaceful
and deepen it in every trial.
Keep us believing that the waves obey you
and that at your command the powers of evil cannot harm us.
Stay with us through your Son,
Jesus Christ, our Lord for ever.

Liturgy of the Word

First Reading Introduction:
        Faith is a trust and commitment that express themselves in a mentality, an attitude of one’s whole life that sees beyond the appearance of things and lives accordingly, with total trust in God’s future. This kind of faith moved Abraham, the pagan, to follow an unknown God to a destiny of human insecurity. It is a faith that helps us to hold on without fear when the Church is rocked by the waves of our times. Is this our kind of faith?

First Reading: Heb 11:1-2, 8-19

Faith is the assurance of what we hope for, being certain of what we cannot see. Because of their faith our ancestors were approved.

It was by faith that Abraham, called by God, set out for a country that would be given to him as an inheritance; for he parted without knowing where he was going. By faith he lived as a stranger in that promised land. There he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, beneficiaries of the same promise. Indeed, he looked forward to that city of solid foundation of which God is the architect and builder.

By faith Sarah herself received power to become a mother, in spite of her advanced age; since she believed that he who had made the promise would be faithful.

Therefore, from an almost impotent man were born descendants as numerous as the stars of heavens, as many as the grains of sand on the seashore.

Death found all these people strong in their faith. They had not received what was promised, but they had looked ahead and had rejoiced in it from afar, saying that they were foreigners and travelers on earth. Those who speak in this way prove that they are looking for their own country. For if they had longed for the land they had left, it would have been easy for them to return, but no, they aspired to a better city, that is, a supernatural one; so God, who prepared the city for them is not ashamed of being called their God.

By faith Abraham went to offer Isaac when God tested him. And so he who had received the promise of God offered his only son although God had told him: Isaac's descendants will bear your name. Abraham reasoned that God is capable even of raising the dead, and he received back his son, which has a figurative meaning.

Responsorial Psalm: Luke 1:69-75

R (see 68) Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel;
he has come to his people.

He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
R (see 68) Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel;
he has come to his people.

Through his holy prophets he promised of old.
that he would save us from our sins
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
R (see 68) Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel;
he has come to his people.

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the bonds of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
R (see 68) Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel;
he has come to his people.

Gospel Introduction:
       Many people are afraid today. Our times are very insecure in many aspects, with wars, violence, and economic and moral crises. Life seems to move too fast for many. And the Church in its leaders and members is often upset and afraid. God seems far away, like a God who sleeps, a God who seems indifferent to our fears and incertitude. Where are our faith and hope? Let us turn to him who journeys with us and wake him up, Jesus, our Lord and brother here among us.

Gospel Reading: Mk 4:35-41

One day when evening had come, Jesus said to the disciples, “Let’s go across to the other side.” So they left the crowd and took him away in the boat he had been sitting in, and other boats set out with him. Then a storm gathered and it began to blow a gale. The waves spilled over into the boat so that it was soon filled with water. And Jesus was in the stern, asleep on the cushion.

They woke him up and said, “Master, don’t you care if we sink?” As Jesus awoke, he rebuked the wind and ordered the sea, “Quiet now! Be still!” The wind dropped and there was a great calm. Then Jesus said to them, “Why are you so frightened? Do you still have no faith?”

But they were terrified and they said to one another, “Who can this be? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”

Commentary

JESUS often leaves where he has been teaching, borrows a boat and goes across to the other side of the lake. A storm comes up and Jesus is asleep, oblivious to the rages of water, rain and wind. They wake him and he stands and rebukes the elements: "Quiet now! Be still!" And creation obeys him. Jesus turns to the disciples and asks: "why are you so frightened? Do you still have no faith?" They are oblivious to his presence and have no knowledge of who this man Jesus is-they are terrified that the wind and sea obey him.

Do we know this man Jesus or have we slipped into relating to him as a teacher, a man with insight or wisdom and forgotten that this is the Jesus, savior, the Word of God, stronger than any prophet of old, beloved Son of God, the wisdom of God in flesh, the power of God in a human being? What frightens us? Jesus, help us to remember your presence with us!

General Intercessions

–          For the Church of Jesus Christ, that its faith and love may not waver in the difficulties and storms of our time, we pray:

–          For those who doubt their faith and are afraid of facing the future, that God may give them courage and that we may refresh their hope, we pray:

–          For sailors and fishers, that the sea may be peaceful and generous to them; for all who travel, that they may safely reach their destination, we pray:

Prayer over the Gifts

Keep alive in us, Lord our God,
our faith and trust in you
through the bread of love and justice
of your son Jesus Christ.
Even when we do not know
what the future will bring,
keep us going to the city with foundations
of which you are the designer and builder,
the city of justice, peace and lasting love
proclaimed to us by Jesus Christ our Lord.

Prayer after Communion

God our Father,
by the stirring word of your Son
you have called us, people of little faith,
away from our safe security.
By his bread of life you have restored our strength.
When the waves and winds of fear
threaten to engulf us and to blow us off-course,
keep us here and all your people
firm with the assurance that your Son is with us
and that he will never desert us,
for he is our Lord for ever and ever.

Blessing

This has been a celebration of encouragement and trust. Jesus has assured us: I am with you. Do not fear. Face life and its problems, as a Church and as persons. Trust me. May almighty God give you this trusting faith and bless you, the Father and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

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