Monday in Holy Week 2021
Introduction – During Holy Week we meditate on Jesus’ final days before his death on the cross. With the readings and prayers and a brief devotional, we contemplate these final days in Jesus’ earthly life. Today’s gospel commemorates the anointing of Jesus by Mary, a foreshadowing of his death and burial. Isaiah speaks of the suffering servant who is a light for the nations and who faithfully brings forth justice. For Christians, Jesus’ suffering is the path to resurrection and new life. We eagerly await the celebration of the great Three Days later this week.
Prayer of the Day – O God, your Son chose the path that led to pain before joy and to the cross before glory. Plant his cross in our hearts, so that in its power and love we may come at last to joy and glory, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
First Reading: Isaiah 42:1-9 – God’s servant is endowed with God’s spirit in order to bring justice to the nations. The servant will not exercise authority boisterously or with violence, nor will weariness ever prevent the fulfilling of the servant’s task. God’s old promises have been fulfilled; the servant’s new assignment is to bring light to the nations.
1Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights;
I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.
2He will not cry or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street;
3a bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice. 4He will not grow faint or be crushed
until he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his teaching.
5Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk in it:
6I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations,
7to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
from the prison those who sit in darkness. 8I am the Lord, that is my name;
my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to idols.
9See, the former things have come to pass,
and new things I now declare; before they spring forth, I tell you of them.
I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.
2He will not cry or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street;
3a bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not quench;
he will faithfully bring forth justice. 4He will not grow faint or be crushed
until he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his teaching.
5Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out,
who spread out the earth and what comes from it,
who gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk in it:
6I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness,
I have taken you by the hand and kept you;
I have given you as a covenant to the people, a light to the nations,
7to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,
from the prison those who sit in darkness. 8I am the Lord, that is my name;
my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to idols.
9See, the former things have come to pass,
and new things I now declare; before they spring forth, I tell you of them.
Psalm: Psalm 36:5-11
5Your love, O Lord, reaches | to the heavens, and your faithfulness | to the clouds.
6 Your righteousness is like the strong mountains, your justice like | the great deep;
you save humankind and ani- | mals, O Lord.
7How priceless is your | love, O God! All people take refuge under the shadow | of your wings.
8 They feast upon the abundance | of your house;
you give them drink from the river of | your delights.
9For with you is the | well of life, and in your light | we see light.
10 Continue your lovingkindness to | those who know you,
and your favor to those who are | true of heart.
11Let not the foot of the | proud come near me, nor the hand of the wicked push | me aside.
6 Your righteousness is like the strong mountains, your justice like | the great deep;
you save humankind and ani- | mals, O Lord.
7How priceless is your | love, O God! All people take refuge under the shadow | of your wings.
8 They feast upon the abundance | of your house;
you give them drink from the river of | your delights.
9For with you is the | well of life, and in your light | we see light.
10 Continue your lovingkindness to | those who know you,
and your favor to those who are | true of heart.
11Let not the foot of the | proud come near me, nor the hand of the wicked push | me aside.
Second Reading: Hebrews 9:11-15 – Prior to Christ, forgiveness was mediated through animal sacrifice. Christ came as the great high priest to establish a new covenant. Through his blood we are liberated from our sins and promised eternal life.
11When Christ came as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation), 12he entered once for all into the Holy Place, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. 13For if the blood of goats and bulls, with the sprinkling of the ashes of a heifer, sanctifies those who have been defiled so that their flesh is purified, 14how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to worship the living God!
15For this reason he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, because a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions under the first covenant.
15For this reason he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, because a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions under the first covenant.
Gospel: John 12:1-11
A few days after raising Lazarus from the dead, Jesus visits the man’s home. Lazarus’s sister Mary anoints the feet of Jesus with costly perfume.
1Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 2There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. 3Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. 4But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, 5“Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” 6(He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) 7Jesus said, “Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. 8You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.”
9When the great crowd of the Jews learned that he was there, they came not only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 10So the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death as well, 11since it was on account of him that many of the Jews were deserting and were believing in Jesus.
9When the great crowd of the Jews learned that he was there, they came not only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 10So the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death as well, 11since it was on account of him that many of the Jews were deserting and were believing in Jesus.
HOMILY: On this Monday in Holy Week, Jesus returns to visit his friends Mary and Martha, and to see his buddy Lazarus whom he had raised from the dead a short time before. It is during this gathering, around food and drink, that something remarkable happens. Mary took costly perfume and poured it over Jesus’ feet and then wiped them clean with her hair. In ancient times, a woman’s hair was her crowning glory, so this act of wiping Jesus’ feet with her hair was a sign of Mary’s deep humility. The anointing of his feet with this costly perfume causes us to remember the gift of myrrh from the Magi at Epiphany-a gift for one who would die. This act of Mary, and the gift of the Magi, are foreshadowings of what is to come.
When Jesus died on the cross on Good Friday, his body was removed quickly from the cross so that those who touched him would not be barred from sharing in the Jewish Sabbath. It was forbidden in Jewish law to touch the body of a dead person on the Sabbath-if one did so, they were not allowed to participate in worship. Sabbath time for the Jews is sundown Friday through sundown Saturday (as Christians celebrate the Sabbath sundown Saturday through sundown Sunday). As we learn from the Gospel, this was the time of Passover, so the Sabbath celebrations were of particular meaning for the faithful as they reflected on the Exodus of God’s people from slavery in Egypt, led by Moses. No faithful Jew wanted to be banned from worship at this time of year. Thus, the body of Jesus was removed quickly on Good Friday without all the regular preparations for burial-no washing and anointing of the body before wrapping it in linen for the tomb. That’s why Mary Magdalene and her friend Mary showed up early on Easter, after the Jewish Sabbath was concluded, so that they could finish the regular burial preparations.
In this Gospel, Mary, obedient and faithful, loving Jesus as much as she did, washed his feet with costly perfume and humbly wiped them dry with her hair so that he might still receive the anointing as one who would die. In preparation for his burial, because it could not be done at the actual time, Mary anointed Jesus and he blessed her for it. Her act of love was a comfort to him and a sign of her deep faith and love.
Like Mary, let us look for ways to humbly serve Jesus, offering him the very best of our lives, to show him how grateful we are for his sacrifice for us-a sacrifice that cost him his life so that we might live lives fulfilled on earth and perfected in heaven. A blessed Holy Monday be with you all.
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