Daily Mass - Wednesday of the fifth week of Lent

Mass this morning was offered for the repose of the soul of Patrick Connors (+), and secondarily for his family and friends, those who love him. May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

The first reading today is the story of the attempted execution of Saint Daniel and his friends, all orthodox Jews, who had been asked on pain of death to bow down and worship the Babylonian gods and a statue of the king himself. King Nebuchadnezzar of the Babylonians was not amused with their refusal, and had them tossed into a furnace, to be incinerated within. He was then startled to find that, their bonds being burned off in the furnace, the three young men were walking around comfortably in the fire, in the company of someone who looked 'like a son of the gods.' Presumably, an angel. The king was impressed and blessed the Most High God, rewarding Daniel and his friends for their faithfulness to Him. The whole story is in the third chapter of the book of Daniel, and also contains the hymn sung by the young men in the furnace, blessing God for his favour. Here is some of it, which was part of the psalm at Mass today:

"Blessed art thou, Lord God of our fathers, praised above all, renowned above all for ever; blessed is thy holy and glorious name, praised above all, renowned above all for ever.
Blessed art thou, whose glory fills thy holy temple, praised above all, renowned above all for ever;
blessed art thou, who reignest on thy kingly throne, praised above all, renowned above all for ever.
Blessed art thou, who art throned above the cherubim, and gazest down into the depths, praised above all, renowned above all for ever.
Blessed art thou, high in the vault of heaven, praised above all, renowned above all for ever." - Daniel 3: 52-56

The Gospel reading continues from yesterday, and contains the dialogue of Christ with the Jews in Jerusalem who had begun to believe that He was the Messiah. He says to them that He can lead them to freedom and, strangely, they say that they are nobody's slaves; although Judea was still a Roman province and under a yoke of servitude to the Herods, Idumaean princes who had become Roman governors, and had been permitted by the Romans to call themselves kings. Christ declares that every sinner is enslaved and needs redeeming from a spiritual servitude. Then they vacillate between calling Abraham their father and calling God their Father, and Christ tells them that if they were either, they would have welcomed Him as the Angel (Messenger) of God; but they have not, and are plotting against Him. As chapter eight goes on, Christ accuses them of actually honouring the devil as their father. In anger, they declared Him possessed and a Samaritan, both presumably Jewish insults, for use when there is no argument available. The conversation ends with Christ telling them that Hebrew patriarch Abraham, father of all the Faithful, had looked upon the day of Christ and rejoiced in it. When they argue with that, He calls Himself God:

"Then the Jews asked him, 'Hast thou seen Abraham, thou, who art not yet fifty years old?' And Jesus said to them, 'Believe me, before ever Abraham came to be, I AM.' Whereupon they took up stones to throw at him; but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple." - Gospel of S. John, 8: 57-59