General. The sacrament of Reconciliation is considered by the Fathers of the Church as a second Baptism. It is receiving God’s grace once again, after having departed from His Will and repenting our ways. The Confiteor recited at the beginning of the Eucharist is prayer beseeching God’s pardon for venial sins – mortal ones necessarily have to be confessed – so that we can reconcile ourselves with God and make ourselves worthy of such a great feast and banquet as the Eucharist.

Exodus. Moses intercedes for the chosen people to soothe God’s wrath. The people, far away from Moses and his intermediation with God, went back to their idolatrous and soft ways, chosing more the pleasures and comforts of the world than the rough way that leads to God. We may also put ourselves in the same category of tough headed people if only we realize how often we do not heed the words given to us by God through our elders.

Epistle to Timothy. St Paul is very aware of God’s mercy towards him after having persecuted the Christians in his early days. Yet now, as a convert to faith, Paul can tell what grace and love really mean and the driving force these give him to go out and make other converts to believe in Jesus as Son of God. Converts find mercy in salvation through Jesus, who shows patience and fortitude by way of example of future believers seeking life everlasting. Indeed, grace, faith, love and fortitude lead to eternal life as from one’s own lifetime on earth.

St Luke. Ours is a personalized faith, in that each one of us believes in God personally while being aware that God has loved him and had him in His thoughts from the very beginning of time. Collective worship, such as in Sunday praise, only makes us aware of a dimension that can be seen of God in one’s neighbour. Verily, heaven rejoices when sinners repent, and a single person has great value in God’s eyes Who does not, however, forget all others who walk obediently in grace and faith.

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