A priest shared about a repentant penitent who confessed her sin of abortion. She carried the guilt in her heart for many years, robbing her of peace. What struck me was that the priest didn’t give her any penance, saying that suffering through those years of unrest and guilt was penance enough. Jesus spoke tenderly to the woman through the priest, offering His forgiveness to her repentant heart. 

Receiving “from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins” (Isaiah 40:2) doesn’t mean God punished her twice. Rather, it’s a reference to the custom of that time where a creditor would write the amount of an unpaid debt on a paper and nail it on the debtor’s front door for everyone to see. But if someone paid the debt for him, then the creditor would put another paper over it or “double” the paper and nail it to the door as a sign that his debt had been paid. What a beautiful image of how we have received “double” from Jesus who has fully paid for our sins through His sacrifice on the cross. Marjorie Duterte (writersretreatph@gmail.com)

Reflect:

Is there a sin that you think God cannot forgive? Go to confession. He is waiting there to give you His forgiveness and peace. Pope Saint Gregory III, pray for us.

Dear Jesus, Son of the living God, have mercy on me, a sinner. Thank You for Your sacrifice on the cross. Thank You for dying for me so I will be free.

Pope Saint Gregory III, pray for us.

The Jews are exiled in a foreign land. Such an experience must have had a debilitating effect on their faith and trust in God. What on earth was God doing by allowing them to suffer such hardship and indignity? Isaiah proclaims that God has heard their cry. He does not remind them of their unfaithfulness to Him, but he proclaims God’s mercy for His people and the time of joy that is to come.

¹ Comfort, give comfort to my people, says your God. ² Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her service is at an end, her guilt is expiated; indeed, she has received from the hand of the Lord double for all her sins. ³ A voice cries out: In the desert prepare the way of the Lord! Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God! ⁴ Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill shall be made low; the rugged land shall be made a plain, the rough country, a broad valley. ⁵ Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. ⁶ A voice says, “Cry out!” I answer, “What shall I cry out?” “All flesh is grass, and all their glory like the flower of the field. ⁷ The grass withers, the flower wilts, when the breath of the Lord blows upon it. So then, the people is the grass. ⁸ Though the grass withers and the flower wilts, the word of our God stands forever.” ⁹ Go up onto a high mountain, Zion, herald of glad tidings; cry out at the top of your voice, Jerusalem, herald of good news! Fear not to cry out and say to the cities of Judah: Here is your God! ¹⁰ Here comes with power the Lord God, who rules by his strong arm; here is his reward with him, his recompense before him. ¹¹ Like a shepherd he feeds his flock; in his arms he gathers the lambs, carrying them in his bosom, and leading the ewes with care.

Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 96:1-2, 3, 10, 11-12, 13

R: The Lord our God comes with power.

¹ Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all you lands. ² Sing to the Lord; bless his name; announce his salvation, day after day. (R) ³ Tell his glory among the nations; among all peoples, his wondrous deeds. ¹⁰ Say among the nations: The Lord is king; he governs the peoples with equity. (R) ¹¹ Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice; let the sea and what fills it resound; ¹² let the plains be joyful and all that is in them! Then let all the trees of the forest rejoice. (R) ¹³ They shall exult before the Lord, for he comes; for he comes to rule the earth. He shall rule the world with justice and the peoples with his constancy. (R)

Gospel | Matthew 18:12-14

Jesus tells us that God rejoices over a sinner who returns to Him. Thus, let us not be afraid to return to the Lord and repent of our sins. Not only is this good for us, but we will also bring great joy to those in heaven. Let us pray for openness to the life-changing grace of conversion that God offers us.

Gospel Acclamation

The day of the Lord is near: Behold, he comes to save us.

¹² Jesus said to his disciples: “What is your opinion? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills and go in search of the stray? ¹³ And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not stray. ¹⁴ In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father that one of these little ones be lost.”

Read the Bible in one year! Read 1 TIMOTHY 1 - 3 today.

There is a saying that goes, “The lover only has eyes for the beloved.” This is similar to what Saint Augustine prays in Confessions: “O good and all-powerful God, who care for each of us as though each were the only one, and for all alike with the same tenderness you show to each” (Book III. 11, 19). God has His eyes on each of us.   

In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus illustrates this through a shepherd who would go as far as leaving ninety-nine of his sheep to find one lost sheep. This is how dedicated and responsible the Good Shepherd is toward His flock. As a Good Shepherd, Jesus exhibits exceptional commitment to His flock that He would go searching for a lost sheep and bringing it back to the fold. For practical reasons, should a shepherd rather leave the ninety-nine and expose them to the dangers of wolves and brigands in favor of the one lost sheep? I guess no!   

But this parable is no exaggeration of the fact that the shepherd loves all his sheep equally. He cannot afford to lose even one of his flock. The point being made here is that our God loves us unconditionally and He is not only ready to have us back in the fold but is positively overjoyed about our return. Through the image of the shepherd leaving the ninety-nine sheep to find the lost one, we see in Jesus how loving and merciful God is to all of His children.     

In today’s readings, we see a God who loves us and welcomes us as we are. In Jesus, we are reminded of God’s shepherding love, His faithfulness, His seeking us out when we stray, His forgiving and healing goodness. He rejoices when we turn to Him and repent. We may feel broken and lost at times, but we are definitely loved. Fr. Rick Montañez, AA

reflection question

Do you make an effort to look after those who are straying from the right path?

Lord, grant me the courage to seek out the least, the last, and the lost among us, Your flock. Amen.

Today, I pray for: ______________________________________