DIVINE WHISPER with Fr. PiusRalph EFFIONG, SMMM

FRIDAY OF THE 15TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME OF THE YEAR 

Mystery of the day: Sorrowful 

Celebration: Ferial

Liturgical Colour: Green

Table of the Word 

First Reading: Exodus 11:10—12:14

Gospel: Matthew 12:1–8

Theme: ...and when I see the blood, I will pass over you.

Reflection 

Today’s liturgy draws our attention to God’s liberating power and the true meaning of mercy. Both readings highlight a transition from slavery to freedom, from ritual to mercy, from burdensome religion to grace.

The first reading gives an account of the Lord’s Passover - the foundational event of Israel's deliverance from Egypt. Here God commands His people to mark their doorposts with the blood of the lamb so that the angel of death will "pass over" them. This is not only a moment of liberation but a call to remembrance: “This day shall be a memorial feast for you.” (cf. Exodus 12:1–14)

This prefigures the Paschal Mystery of Christ, the true Lamb whose blood saves us from eternal death. The Church celebrates this deliverance in every Eucharist. As the Catechism teaches: “The Eucharist is the memorial of Christ’s Passover, that is, of the work of salvation accomplished by the life, death, and resurrection of Christ” (CCC §1409). At the celebration of the Eucharist, the unblemished Lamb made reference to in the first reading prefigures the "sinless Lamb" of the New Testament - our Lord; whose salvific mission brought about unfathomable grace to release believers from the shackle of total condemnation. 

It is against this backdrop, that Evangelist Matthew in today's Gospel pericope recounts our Lord's defence of His disciples quoting Hosea 6:6, He says, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice” (cf. Matthew 12:1–8).

Jesus, who is the Lord of the Sabbath, reminds us that rigid ritualism without mercy contradicts God’s heart. As Pope Francis affirms in Misericordiae Vultus, “The Church’s very credibility is seen in how she shows merciful and compassionate love.”

However, beloved in Christ Jesus, these readings urge us to move from external religiosity to interior transformation. That is being what we say, and living it out even behind the dark. The priest and all believers must be ministers of liberation and mercy, not enforcers of burdens. It is in doing this, that we can in certainty be called Christians - Christ followers. And the outcome of this is eternal salvation, for when He sees the blood He will pass over us.

+ Peace be with you. 

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