Blessing and Blame

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to reject our human attitudes of entitlement and victim blaming as we serve broken people with care and compassion.

Blessing without Blame

The Reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah proclaims Authentic Sabbath Observance That Leads to Blessing.

* [58:6–12] Fasting is not genuine without reforming one’s way of life. A true social morality will ensure prosperity.

* [58:13–14] Sabbath observance becomes a cornerstone of postexilic piety; cf. 56:2, 4, 6. (Isaiah, CHAPTER 58 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 86 presents an individual lament desiring God’s protection.

* [Psalm 86] An individual lament. The psalmist, “poor and oppressed” (Ps 86:1), “devoted” (Ps 86:2), “your servant” (Ps 86:2, 4, 16), “rescued from the depths of Sheol” (Ps 86:13), attacked by the ruthless (Ps 86:14), desires only God’s protection (Ps 86:1–7, 11–17). (Psalms, PSALM 86 | USCCB, n.d.)

The Gospel of Luke proclaims The Call of Levi.

* [5:17–6:11] From his Marcan source, Luke now introduces a series of controversies with Pharisees: controversy over Jesus’ power to forgive sins (Lk 5:17–26); controversy over his eating and drinking with tax collectors and sinners (Lk 5:27–32); controversy over not fasting (Lk 5:33–36); and finally two episodes narrating controversies over observance of the sabbath (Lk 6:1–11). (Luke, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB, n.d.)

Vivian Amu reminds us that Jesus' purpose is to meet us in our brokenness: “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” Mercy is placed above judgment, just as God proclaimed through Isaiah. 

So, who are the Levis in our lives? Where does suspicion or self-righteousness still keep us from extending God’s love?

Despite our best intentions as children of God, many of us have an unconscious tendency towards selective compassion. Often, we divide the world into categories: “us” and “them,” “righteous” and “sinner,” “deserving” and “undeserving.” We might not name these divisions out loud, but our actions often speak for us —through whom we help, whom we welcome, or whom we avoid. It is comforting to believe that the table of God’s love is wide, and that all we need to do is come hungry, recognizing that it is not just the “other” who needs this radical inclusivity—we need it too. (Amu, 2026)

Don Schwager quotes Our All-powerful Physician, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 AD

"Our wound is serious, but the Physician is all-powerful. Does it seem to you so small a mercy that, while you were living in evil and sinning, he did not take away your life, but brought you to belief and forgave your sins? What I suffer is serious, but I trust the Almighty. I would despair of my mortal wound if I had not found so great a Physician." (excerpt from Sermon 352, 3) (Schwager, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments that in Third Isaiah the people are complaining that they have not seen the restoration promised in Second Isaiah. They faced hardships and they performed religious deeds but only superficially. The text exhorts them to reach out and keep the Sabbath as a holy day. “I get to go to Mass because I want to” We sometimes say Mass is portrayed as an obligation, but Mass is a privilege. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus reaches out to the anawim and in this case to the tax collector, Levi, working for Rome, thought to be a collaborator and the taxation method was an incentive for dishonesty. The Pharisees were concerned their sinfulness was a contagion but Jesus sees their brokenness and Jesus chooses to help and even if “they brought it upon themselves”. Friar Jude reminds us that “bringing it upon themselves” does not exclude them from Jesus' love or from our mission to address their brokenness.

The Word Among Us Meditation on Isaiah 58:9-14 comments that the biblical word for this kind of contract is “covenant,” and it is much more than a business agreement. At the heart of a covenant is a relationship between the Lord and his people. The two “parties” are not looking at production levels or profit margins. They are looking at each other and offering themselves to each other in a sacred bond.

Consider what God is calling you to in today’s reading: remove oppression, refrain from false accusation, feed the hungry, keep the Sabbath. He is giving you concrete ways to live out your covenant with him. When you treat the Sabbath as a time to rest in his presence rather than filling it with “your own pursuits” (Isaiah 58:3), you are loving the Lord. When you treat your neighbors with honor and dignity—especially those who are struggling—you are honoring God. When you look at anyone through the lens of his love, you are returning the “covenant gaze” with which the Lord is looking at you.

As you respond to God’s call in this way, you’ll experience his love for you more deeply—both in prayer and through the people around you. Reread today’s reading and savor God’s desire to love you. Let him show you the way that will lead you to “delight” in him (Isaiah 58:14).

“O God, teach me to love you and delight in you.” (Meditation on Isaiah 58:9-14, n.d.)

Fr Richard Rohr, OFM, comments Spiritual teacher and writer Christine Valters Paintner invites us to imitate the desert monks in their commitment to spiritual practices as a path to freedom and transformation:

They went to seek this kind of radical communion with the sacred presence, which teaches us that it is not the cell itself that brings inner peace…. Their wisdom reminds us that we can bring presence and focus in the midst of a crowd, and we can also sit in a silent place and be overwhelmed by thoughts and distractions….

Allow a few moments to center and breathe deeply, drawing your awareness back to yourself. Rest in the presence of the Beloved who dwells in the cave of your heart, that interior cell where you are called to simply be. Invite in the presence of some of the desert mothers and fathers to be with you. Notice how they appear to you. Notice if one or two of them approach you, and invite them to sit with you for a while. Share with them where you are in this season of your life and what the questions of your heart are right now. Listen for their response. (Rohr, 2025)

We exhort the Spirit to illuminate the “brokenness” in our environment and inspire our movement to help with Jesus' compassion and care and rejection of blame and transactional agendas.

References

Amu, V. (2026, February 21). Daily Reflection February 21, 2026 | Creighton Online Ministries. Creighton Online Ministries. Retrieved February 21, 2026, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-february-21-2026 

Isaiah, CHAPTER 58 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved February 21, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/isaiah/58? 

Luke, CHAPTER 5 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved February 21, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/5?27 

Meditation on Isaiah 58:9-14. (n.d.). Word Among Us. Retrieved February 21, 2026, from https://wau.org/meditations/2026/02/21/1506356/ 

Psalms, PSALM 86 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Bible Readings. Retrieved February 21, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/86?1 

Rohr, R. (2025, March 13). The Desert and Transformation: Weekly Summary. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved February 21, 2026, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/the-desert-and-transformation-weekly-summary/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Jesus Calls Sinners to Follow Him. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved February 21, 2026, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/ 

Hypocrisy and Holiness

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to authentic actions that proclaim our solidarity with the suffering of people who work for justice and peace for all God’s children in our world.

Housing and Holiness

The Reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah examines our Reasons for Judgment and exhorts us to Authentic Fasting That Leads to Blessing.

* [58:1–5] The prophet is commanded to condemn the formalism of the people, specifically their hypocritical fasting.

* [58:6–12] Fasting is not genuine without reforming one’s way of life. A true social morality will ensure prosperity. (Isaiah, CHAPTER 58 | USCCB, n.d.)

Psalm 51 prays for the removal of the personal and social disorders that sin has brought.

* [Psalm 51] A lament, the most famous of the seven Penitential Psalms, prays for the removal of the personal and social disorders that sin has brought. The poem has two parts of approximately equal length: Ps 51:3–10 and Ps 51:11–19, and a conclusion in Ps 51:20–21. The two parts interlock by repetition of “blot out” in the first verse of each section (Ps 51:3, 11), of “wash (away)” just after the first verse of each section (Ps 51:4) and just before the last verse (Ps 51:9) of the first section, and of “heart,” “God,” and “spirit” in Ps 51:12, 19. The first part (Ps 51:3–10) asks deliverance from sin, not just a past act but its emotional, physical, and social consequences. The second part (Ps 51:11–19) seeks something more profound than wiping the slate clean: nearness to God, living by the spirit of God (Ps 51:12–13), like the relation between God and people described in Jer 31:33–34. Nearness to God brings joy and the authority to teach sinners (Ps 51:15–16). Such proclamation is better than offering sacrifice (Ps 51:17–19). The last two verses express the hope that God’s good will toward those who are cleansed and contrite will prompt him to look favorably on the acts of worship offered in the Jerusalem Temple (Ps 51:19 [20–21]). (Psalms, PSALM 51 | USCCB, n.d.)

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus addresses The Question About Fasting.

* [9:15] Fasting is a sign of mourning and would be as inappropriate at this time of joy, when Jesus is proclaiming the kingdom, as it would be at a marriage feast. Yet the saying looks forward to the time when Jesus will no longer be with the disciples visibly, the time of Matthew’s church. Then they will fast: see Didache 8:1. (Matthew, CHAPTER 9 | USCCB, n.d.)

Rev. George Meze, SJ, comments that true fasting means sacrificing comfort for the good of others, following Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice on the Cross; to lose the self in serving God.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus teaches us that while He is with us, we rejoice, but when He is taken away, we fast. This teaches that we celebrate and fast with Him, participating in both the joys and struggles of our neighbors, in whom Jesus is ever present.

A few weeks ago, I met a student who faced a painful Christmas with her sick and dying grandmother. She was reluctant to go home, fearing the pain it would bring. Yet she chose to spend Christmas with her grandmother. There was sorrow, but amid the tears came great consolation in being present for one another. True togetherness in such difficult moments is always expressed in the quiet celebration of love. In our faith, fasting becomes an opportunity to celebrate God’s love and to bring consolation to others. The grace to fast for love is itself a gift. (Meze, 2026)

Don Schwager quotes True fasting, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 AD

"All the endeavors for fasting are concerned not about the rejection of various foods as unclean, but about the subjugation of inordinate desire and the maintenance of neighborly love. Charity especially is guarded - food is subservient to charity, speech to charity, customs to charity, and facial expressions to charity. Everything works together for charity alone." (excerpt from Letter 243, 11) (Schwager, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler comments the passage from Isaiah comes from the experience after the exile when the people returned to Israel and things were not going well. They complained that God is not taking care of them. Isaiah observes the people are not embracing service of God and others.  Almsgiving is a religious activity of God. Why do we practice fasting? It helps to keep Christ at the centre of our life. It is a sign of solidarity. The death of a beloved in many societies is marked by fasting because things are not normal. We fast to recall Jesus died for us. Friar Jude reviews the traditional Catholic rules for fasting on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday that involves meals and abstinence  from meat. We don’t have to overdo it. Fasting is not restricted to food, but to anything that keeps us from reaching out to our neighbour.

The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 9:14-15 comments that St. John Paul II once called fasting a “therapy for the soul.” It can help us “in the interior effort of listening to God” (Angelus, March 10, 1996). Denying ourselves, even of the most basic things, like food, can help us identify the attitudes that separate us from the Lord. Through fasting, we can release these attitudes to God and so come to a deeper conversion.

Even if health reasons keep you from fasting from food, there are always other things you can do. You can take some of the time you spend watching TV or scrolling on social media and pray instead. You can “fast” from selfishness or from resentment against a neighbor. Whatever you do, know that God wants you to make a sincere offering to him. He wants you to turn your heart to him so that when Lent is over, you will “taste” more of the joy of his resurrection.

“Lord, help me to turn my heart to you.” (Meditation on Matthew 9:14-15, n.d.)

Fr Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that Author Lisa Colón DeLay reflects on the purpose behind the asceticism that is commonly found in the teachings and stories of the early desert spirituality.

All the desert abbas and ammas show us that one-off special insights are not what bring us spiritual maturity or peace. Through the layering of situations, struggles, and seasons, we grow more devoted, mature, and wise. The inheritance in the kingdom of heaven means possessing Christlikeness; this inheritance comes in slow disbursements that take diligence and attention to learn and receive. We accomplish this not over weeks or months but over decades—over our lifetime and even into and throughout generations. The place is slow. Let’s get accustomed to that and settle in for the long haul.

The spiritual seeds the ammas and abbas once planted in the fertile soil of seekers can still beautifully bloom now in the soil of you, more than 1,500 years later. This is how the glory of God works. You are the glory of God made manifest. [2] (Rohr, n.d.)

We seek the Wisdom of the Spirit as we contemplate our Lenten “fasting” and act with a focus on deepening our relationship with God and the people we encounter without hypocrisy.

References

Isaiah, CHAPTER 58 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved February 20, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/isaiah/58?1 

Matthew, CHAPTER 9 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved February 20, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/9?14 

Meditation on Matthew 9:14-15. (n.d.). Word Among Us. Retrieved February 20, 2026, from https://wau.org/meditations/2026/02/20/1505893/ 

Meze, G. (2026, February 20). Daily Reflection February 20, 2026 | Creighton Online Ministries. Creighton Online Ministries. Retrieved February 20, 2026, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/daily-reflections/daily-reflection-february-20-2026 

Psalms, PSALM 51 | USCCB. (n.d.). Daily Readings. Retrieved February 20, 2026, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/51?3 

Rohr, R. (n.d.). A Living Tradition. Center for Contemplation and Action. Retrieved February 20, 2026, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/living-tradition/ 

Schwager, D. (n.d.). Fasting for the Kingdom of God. Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved February 20, 2026, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/