Recognizing Jesus at Our Doorstep

March 10, 2025 Monday of the First Week of Lent
Daily Readings: Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18; Matthew 25:31-46

Today’s Gospel offers a powerful glimpse of the Day of Judgment, where humanity will be separated—sheep on one side, inheriting eternal life, and goats on the other, inheriting damnation. The basis for this separation is simple yet profound: love expressed through works of mercy. The “sheep” respond to the real needs of others, while the “goats” fail to act.

Why does the Church place this passage at the beginning of Lent? It serves as a call to personal conversion. Lent is not just a time for penance; it is an opportunity to recognize Christ in the needy, the suffering, and the marginalized. Our salvation is closely tied to how we respond to the cries of those around us. This is what today’s first reading clearly teaches: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Today’s readings echo the story of Lazarus and the rich man. The rich man’s sin was not just in what he did but in what he failed to do—ignoring Lazarus at his doorstep. St. Mother Teresa wisely said, “If sometimes our poor people have had to die of starvation, it is not because God didn’t care for them, but because you and I were not instruments of love in the hands of God.”

As we journey through Lent, let us ask ourselves: Do we truly see Christ in others? Do we respond with mercy and love as Christ has done for us? Our eternal destiny may depend on our answer.

Call to Action for Catholic Living: Let us open our eyes and hearts to recognize Christ in the poor, the suffering, and the forgotten, responding with genuine acts of love and mercy.