3RD SUNDAY OF LENT : OUR COMPASSIONATE GOD AND THE COMPASSION WE HAVE FOR OTHERS..........

On this 3rd Sunday of Lent, as parishes celebrate the First Scrutiny of the Rite of Christian Initiation, the Sacred Scriptures speak to us not only of Repentance and Conversion, but the necessity of Compassion. In the Book of Exodus we hear how Moses who was called by the Lord God in the burning bush to lead His Chosen People back to the Promised Land from captivity in Egypt, did so until he ran afoul of the Egyptians and fled. But Moses' compassion for his own people in bondage, caused Moses to return and deliver them from their oppression. That is the lesson Jesus is teaching us as His Disciples in the first part of our Gospel Proclamation from St. Luke today. Like all Galileans and other sinners in the Gospel story, every person equally deserves our compassion for that is what is expected of us by our compassionate and merciful God. To illustrate this point in my Sunday homily today I told the story of my near four year experience of knowing and being friends with my Presentation parishioner pal, Alex Mauro who passed away on Wednesday night at age 20, while undergoing surgery. The lessons of compassion Alex taught me and so many others during his twice abbreviated life : first by the drunken driver whose crashing into their family van left Alex physically and intellectually disabled; and then in his sudden death during spinal fusion surgery this past Wednesday.....Who will you be called upon to show compassion for this week, this Lent, this year ??? Each of us as Christian Disciples are given ample opportunities to be compassionate, if only we remain alert to the needs for compassion surrounding us. As People of God we must break through and overcome layers of unawareness and indifference that will otherwise keep us oblivious and unresponsive. What are you and will you do to make compassion and empathy for others who need a central response of your Discipleship in Christ Jesus ?..........May Your Compassion Put Your Faith In Action, Fr. Troy