Choosing Trust Over Fear

-

Lenten Feria
Eve of the Sunday of the Passion: Palm Sunday

Today's Readings:
[ Ezek 37:21b-28; Ps 121; Jn 11:45-57 ]

The readings today gather us into a quiet but powerful tension: God’s promise of unity and life on one hand, and human fear and calculation on the other.

In Ezekiel, the Lord declares, “I will make them one nation… and one king shall be king over them all”. This is not merely political unity—it is a restoration of relationship. God promises cleansing, covenant, and dwelling: “My dwelling place shall be with them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people”. This kind of unity begins not in structures but in the heart—through humility, reconciliation, and peace-making. To be “one” is to live as brothers and sisters under one Father, with nothing to divide us.

The Psalm echoes this trust: “The Lord is your keeper… The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time on and forevermore”. The Franciscan spirit delights in this dependence. Francis himself embraced a life without security in worldly terms, trusting entirely in God’s providence. There is freedom here—freedom from fear, from control, from the need to grasp at outcomes.

And yet, in the Gospel reading, we see the opposite response. After the raising of Lazarus, many believe but the authorities are afraid. “It is better for you to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed”. Fear of loss, fear of change, fear of Rome—John tells us that these lead to the decision to put Jesus to death.

How often do we, too, choose fear over trust? How often do we cling to what seems safe rather than step into the life God is offering?

Franciscan spirituality calls us to a different path: to live as people of peace, trusting that God is indeed our keeper. Even when the way is uncertain, even when the world feels divided, we are invited into that promised unity—not by force or fear, but by love.

Today, let us walk simply, trust deeply, and choose peace.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Choosing Sight and Light

-
Image
Today's Readings: [ 1 Samuel 16:1-13; Psalm 23; Ephesians 5:8-14; John 9:1-41 ] The readings today invite us to reflect on how God sees and how we see . In the First Book of Samuel, the prophet Samuel assumes that Israel’s next king must surely be the strongest and most impressive of Jesse’s sons. But God corrects him with a lesson that echoes throughout Scripture: “The Lord does not see as mortals see.” Human beings are naturally drawn to outward appearance, status, and strength. God looks instead at the heart. And so the shepherd boy David—the youngest, the overlooked one—is chosen. Psalm 23 reminds us that the Lord is still the shepherd who guides His people. Even when we walk through dark valleys, when the way forward seems uncertain, we are not abandoned. The shepherd sees the path ahead even when we do not. In the Gospel, Jesus heals a man born blind. Yet the miracle reveals more than restored physical sight. The man who had been blind comes to see clearly who Jesus is, ...
Read more

St Patrick's Day - Green Beer Or Radical Love?

-
Image
Today's readings: [  2 Cor 12:14-16, 19; Ps 131; Mt 5:43-48 ] St. Patrick’s Day often brings images of green fields, shamrocks, and joyful celebration (green beer, anyone?). Yet beneath the cultural festivities lies the story of a man who lived the Gospel in a radical way: humility, trust in God, and love even for enemies. Today’s readings trace a quiet but powerful thread through those same virtues. In Psalm 131 , the psalmist says, “I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother.” It is a picture of profound humility—of a heart that does not strive for greatness but rests in God. Franciscan spirituality holds this posture at its core. St. Francis believed that true wisdom begins when we stop grasping for status or control and instead become small before God, trusting Him as a child trusts a loving parent. Paul echoes that same spirit in 2 Corinthians , insisting that he does not seek the possessions of the people he serves but the people themselves. L...
Read more

Bread That Endures

-
Image
Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Teacher of the Faith, 386 - Commemoration Today's readings: [ Wis 7:7, 11-14; Ps 119:33-40; Jn 6:26-35 ] There is a quiet theme running through today's readings: the difference between what satisfies for a moment and what truly gives life. In Wisdom, Solomon does not ask for power, wealth, or long life, but for understanding. And in receiving wisdom, he finds that all other goods fall into place—not as idols to cling to, but as gifts rightly ordered. This is echoed in the psalmist’s plea: “Teach me… give me understanding… turn my eyes from what is worthless.” There is a deep hunger here, not just for knowledge, but for a way of seeing the world as God sees it. Then in the Gospel, Christ names the tension plainly. The crowd seeks Him because they ate their fill. Their hunger was real—but shallow. Jesus invites them deeper: “Do not work for food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life.” And then He reveals the heart of it all:...
Read more