Fear Not 220

Beloved brethren gathered in the twilight of this sacred evening, let us turn our hearts to the words of the holy prophet: "The LORD has done great things for us, and we rejoiced." These verses from the hundred and twenty-sixth psalm echo the song of Israel returning from Babylonian captivity, when the Lord, through the decree of Cyrus, restored His people to Zion after seventy years of exile. In that moment of liberation, sorrow turned to laughter, and tears to songs of joy, as the nations themselves confessed that the Lord had done great things for them. As the blessed Augustine expounds in his Enarrations on the Psalms, this captivity prefigures our own bondage to sin and the glorious freedom wrought by Christ our Redeemer. Just as the exiles sowed in tears yet reaped in joy, so the Early Church, persecuted yet steadfast, rejoiced in the great things accomplished through the Cross and Resurrection. Chrysostom, in his homilies on the Psalms preserved in the Catena Aurea, reminds us that true rejoicing springs not from earthly prosperity but from the recognition of divine mercy, turning the heart from the fleeting shadows of this world to the eternal light of grace. In the days of the Fathers, amid the trials of the infant Church, these words nourished the faithful during evening gatherings, much like our own compline prayers. They recalled how God had delivered Israel from Pharaoh and Babylon, yet pointed beyond to the ultimate deliverance from death itself. We, too, in this unplugged hour of reflection, are called to count the great things the Lord has wrought: the gift of faith, the sacraments that sustain us, and the promise of everlasting life. Let not the cares of the day dim this joy, but let it rise like incense as night falls. Brethren, may this psalm awaken in us a profound gratitude, that our mouths may be filled with laughter and our tongues with rejoicing, even as we await the fullness of redemption. For the Lord who turned captivity long ago continues to work wonders in our souls today. #FearNot220 #FearNotUNPLUGGED #204of220 #Catholic

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