Sunday Scriptures — Corpus Christi A, June 14, 2020

First Reading — Deuteronomy 8:2-3, 14b-16a

Second Reading — 1 Corinthians 10:16-17

Gospel — John 6:51-58 

The feast day formerly called Corpus Christi — and widely still called that — occurred on June 14 this year. In the Roman calendar, it is the Thursday after Trinity Sunday, but the bishops of the United States decided that it was so important to the faith of the people that they transferred it to the Sunday following Trinity Sunday so that all Mass-goers would share the celebration.  During my sophomore year at Georgetown, I was living in a dorm adjacent to the quadrangle where Dahlgren Chapel was. One day a freshman asked me if I went to Mass every day. When I said, “No,” he was amazed, and asked how I could fail to take advantage of the opportunity just outside my door to participate in the sacrifice by which we are redeemed and receive Jesus himself into my body and soul.

Church law requires us to attend Mass every Sunday (or the vigil Mass on Saturday) unless we have serious reason to miss — or we have a dispensation because of a pandemic or the like. But when we realize what a privilege it is to be able to participate in Mass and receive Jesus in Communion, the obligation will not feel like a burden. We want to be there, law or no law. Some of the reasons are found in our readings for today. I say some of the reasons because the Eucharist is so multifaceted, so meaningful, that one could speak for hours without exhausting the topic. But here are some things which the readings tell us.

Manna  When Jesus says he is the true bread which came down from heaven, he is reminding his hearers of what we hear in the first reading. After the Israelites had left Egypt, they wandered for forty years in the desert. What we heard today is part of Moses’ speech to them just before the end of their journey, as they were at the Jordan River, just east of Canaan. Twice he tells the people not to forget  all that the Lord has done for them, and twice he reminds them of the miraculous food God provided for them, a food called manna, which had never been known before. They were absolutely dependent on God for their existence in the desert and fir their arrivsl st the promised land.

Bread of Life  It is the same with us. Jesus tells us that his flesh is true food, and his blood true drink. This is a food previously unknown. Cannibals can eat someone’s body once, but Jesus’ body and blood are made available over and over to the whole world. But unlike the manna in the desert, which sustained physical life, this food gives eternal life. We need this food to reach end end of our journey, life in God’s presence. It’s important to note what Jesus says about those who have the eternal life conferred by eating his flesh and drinking his blood: he will raise us on the last day. We will have a bodily resurrection. People sometimes wonder how this is possible, but we should realize that our bodies are not the same aggregation of atoms and molecules through our life. Atoms come and atoms go,but we are the same person. And the God who created the whole universe can seurely recreate or bodies and join them to our souls.

We sometimes use the phrase, “Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity” to emphasize how completely we receive Jesus in Communion. Jesus only speaks of flesh and blood, but the fact is that it is impossible to separate them from his soul and divinity: in him humanity and divinity are inseparably joined in one person. We receive the entire Jesus in Holy Communion. And this is also why we receive his blood as well as his flesh in the sacred host: the two are inseparable joined in Our Lord’s risen body.

One Body  St. Paul draws out one consequence of our consuming the body and blood of Jesus. We are made one. The Eucharist creates unity among us, creates community. This isn’t just with our fellow parishioners. We are one with the Church around the world. We need to live that basic unity even if we legitimately disagree about questions which the Magisterium of the Church hasn’t settled, or if we disagree about secular issues. The Body and Blood of Christ make us one.

Our unity is necessary because, like the Israelites in the desert, we can’t make it alone. We don’t consecrate the Body and Blood of Christ ourselves; we need the ordained priesthood. We support one another in our difficulties and celebrate our joys. We need to be in community. We need others, and they need us.

There is much more that could be said about the sacrament of the Lord’s Body and Blood, but what we have in these scriptures make clear what a privilege it is, what a joy it should be, to be able to participate in the Mass and receive the sacrament. It makes us a community, it sustains us on our way to heaven, it gives us resurrection and eternal life. How could anybody prefer something else? We should always remember what God has done and continues to do in this wonderful sacrament.

Sunday Scriptures — Trinity Sunday A, June 7, 2020

First Reading — Exodus 34:4b-6,  8-9

Second Reading — 2 Corinthians 13:11-13

Gospel — John 3:6-8

Introduction

The most appropriate readings the Church could find to set before us on the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity deal with peace, mercy, kindness, and salvation for eternal life. Although there are other passages which speak more explicitly of the three persons of the Trinity, and we hear some of them in other years, this year’s readings seem to direct us to think about what this God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit means for our lives.

We Can’t Understand

But for starters, lets just look at some of the ways the doctrine has been formulated through the centuries, as recounted by Wikipedia.

In Trinitarian doctrine, God exists as three persons or hypostases, but is one being, having a single divine nature.[81] The members of the Trinity are co-equal and co-eternal, one in essence, nature, power, action, and will. As stated in the Athanasian Creed, the Father is uncreated, the Son is uncreated, and the Holy Spirit is uncreated, and all three are eternal without beginning.[82] “The Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” are not names for different parts of God, but one name for God[83] because three persons exist in God as one entity.[84] They cannot be separate from one another. Each person is understood as having the identical essence or nature, not merely similar natures.[85]
According to the Eleventh Council of Toledo (675) “For, when we say: He who is the Father is not the Son, we refer to the distinction of persons; but when we say: the Father is that which the Son is, the Son that which the Father is, and the Holy Spirit that which the Father is and the Son is, this clearly refers to the nature or substance”[86]
The Fourth Lateran Council (1215) adds: “In God there is only a Trinity since each of the three persons is that reality — that is to say substance, essence or divine nature. This reality neither begets nor is begotten nor proceeds; the Father begets, the Son is begotten and the holy Spirit proceeds. Thus there is a distinction of persons but a unity of nature. Although therefore the Father is one person, the Son another person and the holy Spirit another person, they are not different realities, but rather that which is the Father is the Son and the holy Spirit, altogether the same; thus according to the orthodox and catholic faith they are believed to be consubstantial.”[87]

The doctrine of the Trinity is mind-boggling. But we believe it because Jesus said to baptize people in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. And we realize that our minds are limited. Here as elsewhere in speaking of God, we can say things which are not false, but even when we say things that are true, they can’t fully express the truth, and often, we can’t even fully understand them.

So what can we say beyond, “We can’t understand”? We can say what John says in his first epistle: God is love. And that’s what we see in the readings of today’s Mass. We see a God who is merciful and will accompany us despite our disobedience. We see a God who comes into the world to save, not to condemn. We see a God of peace who calls us to live in peace.

Sunday Scriptures — Pentecost A, May 31, 2020

First Reading — Acts 2:1-11

Second Reading — 1 Corinthians 12:3b-7, 12-13

Gospel — John 20:19-23

We are sent by Jesus with the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish the work he has given us as a Church and as members of the Church.

The Descent of the Holy Spirit

The story in the first reading of the descent of the Holy Spirit at the first Pentecost, with the loud sound and the tongues of fire, is familiar to most of us. We are familiar with everybody being able to understand them, despite any language barrier. There are a couple of details that I hadn’t paid much attention to. The first detail isn’t even stated in the text. But they were in the house when they received the Holy Spirit. Then the people who gathered at the wind-like sound heard them speaking. They must have gone  out from the house. The Spirit moved them. It may have been only a few steps, but they were no longer closed in. They had gone out on mission.

The second detail, which gets lost in the amazement that everyone can understand them in his or her own language, is that they were “speaking … of the mighty acts of God.” Can we doubt that those mighty acts were the resurrection and ascension of Jesus as well as his teachings and miracles?

Something similar happens in the gospel, and again I’m paying attention to a detail I had tended to overlook. There is an appearance of the resurrected Jesus in his glorified body, no longer subject to the limitations of matter. He confers the Holy Spirit on the disciples and empowers them to forgive (or retain) sins. But tucked in between those things are his words, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” The disciples now have Jesus’ mission as their own. Perhaps forgiving sin could be one way of summarizing it, but it surely involves “speaking of the mighty acts of God.”

Different Gifts — One Spirit

The passage from Corinthians extends what we learned from Acts and the gospel. The Holy Spirit gives different gifts to different people so that each one can do something worthwhile. Let’s remember that Paul isn’t writing to the people who received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. The apostles aren’t the only ones who have gifts for some benefit. He’s writing some decades later to the community of converts at Corinth. It’s not just the leaders of the community, but “we were all given to drink of one Spirit.” Everybody in the community has a gift. Perhaps the most important gift is what he says at the beginning of the reading: being able to say “Jesus is Lord,” which is also a way of “speaking of the mighty acts of God.”

Our Pentecost

What Jesus said to the disciples, he says to us, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” We receive the Holy Spirit at our baptism with specific gifts at confirmation. It’s not just clergy and other church leaders who have the Holy Spirit. The gifts of the Holy Spirit aren’t limited to those who serve in church ministries or on committees or on staffs. The differing gifts of the Spirit are also given to those who spend their days at work and their evenings at home and their weekends relaxing. I hope they make it a priority to pray regularly and come to Mass and send their children to religious education, because those thing are very useful in building up the community of believers. But just considering oneself a believer, considering oneself a Christian, amounts to saying “Jesus is Lord.” That self-image is a precious gift from God which has been received and accepted.

Conclusion

Our job today is not to judge how well others are doing with their gifts. We are invited to be consciious of what a great gift it is to have the Holy Spirit living in us, enabling us to do something in the world, something that Jesus sends us to do with the power of the Spirit making it possible.

Sunday Scriptures — Fifth Sunday of Easter A, May 10, 2020

Better late than never, I hope, here are some thoughts about the Mass readings for May 10.

After two Sundays in which the first reading, from Acts, gave portions of Peter’s address to the people on Pentecost, today we skip forward — past the healing of the cripple and Peter and John’s subsequent run-in with the Sanhedrin — to the event which is generally regarded as the establishment of the diaconate. Acts 6:1-7. There are several elements to consider.

• The initial duty of the deacons was “to serve at table.” Feeding the hungry is one of the “corporal works of mercy” which gain one entry into he kingdom of the Father, according to Matthew 25:35.
• The duty of overseeing the distribution is an item of control over community goods. In subsequent centuries, deacons came to be responsible for administering the goods of the Church. From their intimate knowledge of church administration, they were often considered ideal candidates to succeed deceased bishops (including popes).
• But the first deacons also had to be “reputable men, filled with the Spirit and wisdom.” These qualities led Stephen to proclaim the gospel of Jesus as Messiah boldly and irrefutably, leading to his martyrdom Acts 6-7. Philip also evangelized, and he baptized the Ethiopian eunuch. Acts 8:4-8, 26-40.

Eventually, the diaconate came to be treated as the final step of preparation for priesthood. When the Second Vatican Council called for the restoration of the diaconate as a permanent ministry, the primary focus was on the ministry of service (but not broader administration within the Church). The ministries of word (including proclaiming the gospel at Mass and at least occasional preaching) and sacrament (baptizing, ministering Communion, serving at the altar during Mass, and presiding at weddings and funerals outside Mass) were also part of the restored diaconate. It is tempting to read “serve at table” expansively to include serving at the altar table.

For the other readings, I’ll quote what I wrote about the three years ago.

In the second reading — 1 Peter 2:4-9 — we have a metaphor of stones. Christ is a living stone, and we too are to be living stones built into a “spiritual house,” the Church, with Jesus as the foundation. As parts of the Church, we are not inert. Being living stones, we are to be a priesthood, offering sacrifices to God. Of course the most important sacrifice is the one in which we join with the Church as the Church unites with Jesus in offering the sacrifice of Calvary. Beyond that, through Christ we can offer our personal sacrifices to the Father by enduring sufferings and obeying God’s will as we understand it.

The gospel — John 14:1-12 — presents a scene at the Last Supper. First,  Jesus promises that he will prepare a place for the disciples (and us) in his Father’s house and he will take us there. He tells Thomas that he is the only way to the Father, the truth, and the (eternal) life. He assures Philip [not the deacon we read abut in acts, but the apostle] that his identification with the Father is so close that to see him is the same as seeing the Father.

Although Jesus is the sole way to the Father, we are told in Matthew 25:31-46 that explicit faith in him is not required. Works of mercy toward his least brothers are sufficient.

The Father is in Jesus and Jesus in the Father, so that he is the image of the Father. In the same way, the parable of the vine and the branches, John 15:1-10, tells that Jesus is in us and we are in Jesus, which makes us images of him and, by extension, of the Father, which is what imposes on us the duty of loving one another and letting our love overflow in service to our neighbors.

Sunday Scriptures — Third Sunday of Easter A, April 26, 2020

We are still celebrating the resurrection of Jesus with its consequences for us.

The first reading — Acts 2:14a, 22-33 — gives an excerpt from Peter’s address to the people on Pentecost. After reminding the crowd of the death of Jesus, Peter goes on to proclaim his resurrection, using Psalm 16, with its promise of deliverance from death, to support his testimony. Since David, believed to be the author of the psalm, has died, the promise must be a prophecy about his promised descendant, the Messiah; and it is fulfilled in Jesus. At the conclusion of Peter’s speech, as later verses tell us, his testimony with its scriptural support proves persuasive, and 3,000 people were baptized.

The responsorial psalm quotes some of the same verses we heard in the first reading. The congregation’s refrain, “Lord, you will show us the path to life,” accepts the prophecy of overcoming death as applying to believers as well as to Jesus himself.

The second reading — 1 Peter 1:17-21 — speaks of the “futile conduct” (another translation has “futile way of life”) handed on by the hearers’ ancestors. I see two sense for this phrase. It can be understood as referring to the entire way of life of the Gentiles before their conversion. Rather than continuing in that way of life, sinful in a number of ways, those redeemed by the precious blood of Christ are to live virtuous lives, “with reverence.” In another sense, the futile conduct can be considered the pagan sacrifices and rituals invoking nonexistent deities. By contrast, Jesus’ sacrifice is offered to the true God and thus can truly save us from sin, so that we have faith and hope in God, who raised Jesus from the dead — implying that we look forward to a like resurrection.

The account in today’s gospel of the disciples’ encounter with the risen Jesus — Luke 24:13-35 — can readily be understood as a primitive witness to the general form of the Mass. The “congregation” gathers, and Jesus is with them. The scriptures are explained. We have readings and a homily. After that comes the breaking of bread: bread and wine are prepared and blessed, with Jesus’ words being central to that blessing. Then the body and blood of Jesus are distributed to the people. The disciples’ zeal to share the good news about Jesus should also be reflected in our desire to share that good news.

As I was looking over this gospel passage, one word struck me in a way it never had before: “all.” Jesus rebukes the disciples for being “slow … to believe all that the prophets spoke.” This suggests that they believed some of what the prophets spoke. They had hoped he would be “the one to redeem Israel,” that is, the Messiah. But in this hope, they believed the elements of the Messianic prophecies which fit the commonplace expectations about the Messiah, which they (and the apostles) shared — namely, that he would be a great military leader and ruler, like David, and would drive out the Romans and restore Israel to the glory it had under David. This image failed to include other prophecies of the meekness, suffering, and death of God’s servant. So Jesus had to explain all the passages that referred to him. No doubt we see this explanation reflected in Peter’s speech on Pentecost, as well as in all the other references to scripture found in the New Testament and in the writings of the Church Fathers.

Now, we need to be careful not to let our belief become partial. We should not let ourselves become so focused on one part of doctrine, worship and devotion, or right conduct, that we ignore other elements of Christian faith and life. Care for the poor and sexual morality and right to life. Mass and sacraments and private prayer. Scripture and tradition and responding to the “signs of the times.”

Easter 2020

On March 28, 2016, I posted about the readings for Easter Sunday Mass, which are the same every year. I invite you to check out that post for a fairly general overview. (The tag Easter may help you get to it.) Today, I just want to consider a couple of points which struck me as I listened to the livestream from St. Anselm Abbey.

In the first reading, Peter tells Cornelius and his household that after the resurrection Jesus was “visible, not to all the people, but to us, the witnesses chosen by God in advance, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.” None of Peter’s hearers ask, “Why not to all?” but some people could, with the thought that appearing to all the people would be a stronger proof of the resurrection. But even that would not sway those who wouldn’t believe. In the first place, who are “all the people?” Doubters could say it’s just a double. They’d demand miracles, even though miracles hadn’t persuaded everyone before Jesus’ death. And once Jesus’ Ascension took place, we’d basically be exactly where we are now. Faith is never a matter of compelled belief; it is a gift from God which one is open to accept.

The reading from Colossians, which is the one I heard today, reminds us to “seek what is above,” and “think of what is above, not of what is on earth.” Clearly, we can’t simply ignore our earthly life and surroundings. so that can’t be what it means. We have the physical necessities of life to which we must attend. We have our families and communities in which we are called to live lovingly as Jesus’ followers. And now we have the coronavirus disrupting our lives in various ways, some small, some large, and in some cases tragic. I think St. Paul is telling us is that if we make this present life our focus, we’ll rob ourselves of the hope which the resurrection of Jesus gives us: the promise of our own resurrection and everlasting joy.

So, like Peter and John in today’s gospel, we may not completely understand every question that theologians ponder. But we can still believe that Jesus is risen from the dead, the Savior of the world.

Sunday Scriptures — Passion Sunday (Palm Sunday) A, Apr. 5, 2020

Gospel of the Entry into Jerusalem — Matthew 21:1-11

First Reading — Isaiah 50:4-7

Second Reading — Philippians 2:6-11

Gospel — Matthew 26:14-27:66

I  posted for this Sunday three years ago. Certainly there is more that could be said about the first, second and passion readings, and many speakers and writers have done so. But I’d like to base this post on the gospel passage about Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, which is read at the blessing of palms at the beginning of Mass. One preliminary note: as the citations show, this passage is from the beginning of Chapter 21 of Matthew’s Gospel. There are five chapters between it and the passion narrative. In other words, a lot took place in the meantime. There was the cleansing of the temple, followed by many parables and other teaching, and the anointing of Jesus at Bethany. You might want to check it out between now and Holy Thursday.

When the crowds acclaim Jesus as “Son of David,” they are recognizing him as the Messiah, since the belief in a Messiah rested on the Old Testament promises that a descendant of David would rule over Israel forever. Te crowds were right that Jesus is the Messiah, but they probably held the general belief that the Messiah would be a political-military ruler who would end the Roman occupation and restore the independence of the Jewish people. As we know, Messiahship did not include military or political rule.

Many preachers lament what they see as the fickleness of the crowd: on Palm Sunday we hear, “Hosanna in the highest,” and on Good Friday the shout is “Crucify him!” But when we pay close attention to the closing lines of this passage we hear, “The whole city was shaken and asked, ‘Who is this?’ And the crowds replied, ‘This is Jesus the prophet, from Nazareth in Galilee.'” Neither the Palm Sunday crowd nor the Good Friday crowd was the whole population of Jerusalem. It is possible that some of the former were part of the latter, but we have no reason to believe that all (or even many) of those who shouted “Hosanna” were there in front of Pontius Pilate.

Still, it is worthwhile for us to be reminded that our faith should be constant and steady. It is certainly not wrong to have moments of great enthusiasm for the Lord in our joy at being saved by his merciful grace. But that enthusiasm should continue into our daily lives as a steady commitment to living according to his call. God’s grace should strengthen us to resist the temptation to go along with the crowds who would deny Jesus or depart from the way of love which he teaches.

Sunday Scriptures — Lent A 04, Mar. 22, 2020

First Reading — 2 Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a

Second Reading — Ephesians 5:8-14

Gospel — John 9:1-41

Today’s gospel passage calls to mind the line in the hymn “Amazing Grace” which says “I  once … was blind, but now I see.” We understand the healing of blindness from birth in the context of Lent: the preparation of catechumens for baptism. They understand themselves as having been born spiritually blind in a pagan culture. Now they are ready to receive spiritual sight in the light of Christ. Some scholars believe that St. Paul is quoting a very early baptismal hymn with the words, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”

The Easter Vigil, during which the catechumens are baptized, begins with the blessing and lighting of the Paschal Candle, which is then carried in procession to a place near the altar, during which the deacon chants three times, “Christ, our light,” and the people respond, “Thanks be to God.” The candle — which is lit at Masses throughout Eastertide and at baptisms and funerals — represents Christ risen, the light of the world.

After the healing, and the man’s controversy with the Pharisees, Jesus reveals himself to the healed man as the messianic Son of Man, and the man believes in him. St Paul draws out the implication for all who have been baptized. We must all “live as children of light” and always avoid the “works of darkness.

While Samuel’s anointing of David to be King of Israel does not seem to be directly related to the spiritual enlightenment and baptism of the catechumens, there are a couple of points. One is that our merely human sight and estimation don’t necessarily correspond to how God sees and evaluates things. We need to see things in the light God gives us. Also, when Samuel anointed Davis, the Holy Spirit came upon him to enable him to fulfill the office of king. At baptism, we are anointed as a symbol of the Holy Spirit coming upon us to enable us to live the life to which we are called as children of light.

Sunday Scriptures — Lent B 04 & 05, Mar. 11 & 18, 2018

Fourth Sunday – March 11

First Reading — 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23

Second Reading — Ephesians 2:4-10

Gospel — John 3:14-21

A unifying thread of these readings is God’s merciful care for his people. Chronicles concludes with the release of the Israelites from the Babylonian captivity. In Ephesians Paul speaks not of a political captivity but of the spiritual death of sin. The Israelites did not effect their own liberation. It was the Persian king, raised up by God to liberate them for the consequences of their violations of the covenant. In the same way, it is not our own works that save us from the death of sin; it is God’s freely given grace. Jesus died and rose, and God has “raised us up with him.”

Jesus’ dialogue with Nicodemus, quoted in part in this day’s gospel, includes the classic text, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. The passage begins with a reference to the story in Numbers 21:4-9: the Israelites were being bitten by venomous serpents, and God told to make a bronze image of a serpent and mount it on a pole. Whoever looked at the bronze serpent was healed. Jesus, mounted — lifted up — on the cross heals those who look on him with faith. The grace of faith brings us to leave the darkness of our sins behind.

 

Fifth Sunday – March 18

First Reading — Jeremiah 31:31-34

Second Reading — Hebrews 5:7-9

Gospel — John 12:20-23

In the gospel some Greek believers in Judaism go to one of  the apostles with a Greek name and ask to see Jesus. He gets the other apostle with a Greek name, and they relay the request of those believing gentiles. Jesus’ response, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified,” seems enigmatic. I think it has to do with the fact that his message is reaching beyond his Jewish followers. His resurrection must take place before the gentile world is evangelized. The text does not say whether Jesus actually met with those Greeks. It is entirely possible that he did. What is important for us is that their request heralds Jesus’ death and resurrection. As in the fourth Sunday’s gospel, Jesus again speaks of being “lifted up” (like the bronze serpent) and drawing everyone, Jews and gentiles to himself.

Jesus is the epitome of self-abnegation for the sake of producing fruit. He willingly accepted crucifixion and death in order to be “the source of salvation for all who obey him,” and invites all to this obedience. But we are also called to share his attitude of “hat[ing] our life in this world.” We will not necessarily have to die directly as a result of following Jesus, but our lives must not be ones of self-seeking.

We believe that Jesus inaugurates the new covenant of which Jeremiah speaks. It is a covenant in which our sins are forgiven and God’s law is written in our hearts — the Holy Spirit guides our consciences.

Ash Wednesday — 2018

Joel 2:12:18
2 Corinthians 5:20 – 6:2
Matthew 6:1- 16-18

The readings for Ash Wednesday are the same every year. Joel calls for fasting and penance accompanied by assemblies in which the priests would pray for mercy. He concludes with an assurance that God is moved by these things to have pity on his people. Paul starts with the same premise as Joel: the people have sinned. They need to be reconciled to God, and this is the time to do it. In today’s context, the Church views Lent as Paul’s “acceptable” time. In the gospel, Jesus refers to the elements of prayer and fasting called for by Joel, and adds almsgiving. He takes for granted that his followers will do all three, saying, “When you give alms, … When you pray, … When you fast, ….” His command is that we not do it for our own glory, but, as St. Paul told the Corinthians in last Sunday’s second reading (1 Corinthians 10:31 — 11:1), for the glory of God.

We don’t undertake our Lenten practices so we can congratulate ourselves on how much we’ve done, much less so others will be impressed. We do these things — extra prayer, extra fasting or self-denial, extra almsgiving — because as sinners we need to turn away from evil and do good, to develop habits of doing good, and to join our penance to Jesus’ supreme self-denial on the cross for our redemption and that of the world.