Theme: Be holy for I, the Lord your God, am holy.
Scripture: Lev. 19:1-2, 11-8; Ps. 18:8-10,15; Mt. 25:31-46
The holy scriptures and the magisterium of the Church has been constantly calling us to holiness. Pope Francis in his recent apostolic exultation ‘Gaudete et exultate’ has reminded us once again to grow in holiness. The book of Leviticus (chapter 19) is considered to be grand chapter that reminds us of the call to holiness. The second verse is the main verse of the chapter. The God makes constant efforts to say that the call to holiness is not optional because He is holy. It is interesting to note that there is constant reminder by God at the end of each section; “I am the Lord (your God). The people of God are called to be holy and holiness means to imitate God. Some scholars say that the chapter 19 of Leviticus is the practical illustration of the Decalogue. The Decalogue is basically divided on the love of God and love of neighbour. It is actually calls everyone to holiness. It is practiced at every sphere of our lives; in the field, at home, in business, with friends, with aliens and foreigners, in the worship and with family.
In the Gospel, Jesus goes still further to instruct us how to be holy in order to enter into heaven. This is the last saying of Jesus in the eschatological discourse in the Gospel of Mathew. Jesus satisfies the hunger of those who seek the kingdom of God. He gives a simple criterion to enter into the kingdom of God i.e. the holiness. It is practiced through the love of neighbour especially those who are in needs such as hungry, thirsty, stranger, naked, sick and imprisoned. All those who reach out to them are the one who meet the lord. God who is all holy constantly reach to those who are in need. We need to imitate God in His holiness means we need to reach out to those who are in needs. The above mentioned areas of works are the corporal works of mercy. They complement the Decalogue. When the young man came to Jesus wanting to know what should he do to get eternal life. Jesus told him to follow the commandments. He wanted to know more. Jesus told him to sale everything and give it to the poor then follow him. He became sad. The true love of neighbour has to be seen in action.
The season of Lent is a beautiful occasion to reach out to the poor and needy thus making sure the final place in heaven. God calls us to holiness, in other words, He calls us to imitate Him in our day to day. Our love for Jesus has to be put into action. We need to get involved in lives of others who are in needs. May this Lenten observance help us to grow in holiness. Amen.
Fr. Alex D’Mello
