Word Wide Open: The Second Sunday of Lent (C) - 3/13/21

First Reading (Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18)

A reading from the Book of Genesis.

The Lord God took Abram outside and said,

“Look up at the sky and count the stars, if you can.

Just so,” he added, “shall your descendants be.”

Abram put his faith in the LORD,

who credited it to him as an act of righteousness.

He then said to him,

“I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans

to give you this land as a possession.”

“O Lord GOD,” he asked,

“how am I to know that I shall possess it?”

He answered him,

“Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old she-goat,

a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”

Abram brought him all these, split them in two,

and placed each half opposite the other;

but the birds he did not cut up.

Birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses,

but Abram stayed with them.

As the sun was about to set, a trance fell upon Abram,

and a deep, terrifying darkness enveloped him.

When the sun had set and it was dark,

there appeared a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch,

which passed between those pieces.

It was on that occasion that the LORD made a covenant with Abram,

saying: “To your descendants I give this land,

from the Wadi of Egypt to the Great River, the Euphrates.”

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? What are the promises God makes to us? How do we know that God fulfills His promises?


Second Reading (Philippians 3:17-4:1)

A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Philippians.

Join with others in being imitators of me, brothers and sisters,

and observe those who thus conduct themselves

according to the model you have in us.

For many, as I have often told you

and now tell you even in tears,

conduct themselves as enemies of the cross of Christ.

Their end is destruction.

Their God is their stomach;

their glory is in their “shame.”

Their minds are occupied with earthly things.

But our citizenship is in heaven,

and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

He will change our lowly body

to conform with his glorified body

by the power that enables him also

to bring all things into subjection to himself.

Therefore, my brothers and sisters,

whom I love and long for, my joy and crown,

in this way stand firm in the Lord.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? How can we imitate Christ? What does it mean to be a citizen of heaven?

Gospel (Luke 9:28b-36)

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Luke.

Jesus took Peter, John, and James

and went up the mountain to pray.

While he was praying his face changed in appearance

and his clothing became dazzling white.

And behold, two men were conversing with him, Moses and Elijah,

who appeared in glory and spoke of his exodus

that he was going to accomplish in Jerusalem.

Peter and his companions had been overcome by sleep,

but becoming fully awake,

they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.

As they were about to part from him, Peter said to Jesus,

“Master, it is good that we are here;

let us make three tents,

one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

But he did not know what he was saying.

While he was still speaking,

a cloud came and cast a shadow over them,

and they became frightened when they entered the cloud.

Then from the cloud came a voice that said,

“This is my chosen Son; listen to him.”

After the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone.

They fell silent and did not at that time

tell anyone what they had seen.

 

The Gospel of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this Gospel reading? What is the Transfiguration such an important moment? How is Peter relatable in this reading?