† Quote of the Day "Pray with great confidence, with confidence based on the goodness and infinite generosity of God and upon the promises of Jesus Christ. God is a spring of living water which flows unceasingly into the hearts of those who pray." — St. Louis De Montfort Today's Meditation "I saw my Guardian Angel, who ordered me to follow him. In a moment I was in a misty place full of fire in which there was a great crowd of suffering souls. They were praying fervently, but without effect for themselves; only we can come to their aid. The flames which were burning them do not touch me at all. My Guardian Angel did not leave me for an instant. I asked these souls what their greatest suffering was. They answered me in one voice that their greatest torment was longing for God . . . [I heard an interior voice] which said, My mercy does not want this, but justice demands it." —St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, p. 35 An excerpt from Hungry Souls Daily Verse "If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing." — 1 John 1:9 | St. Cyril Of Jerusalem St. Cyril of Jerusalem (315-386 A.D.) was a well-educated man from Jerusalem and a scholar of Sacred Scripture. He was ordained a priest by the bishop of Jerusalem shortly after the legalization of Christianity in the Roman Empire. He was given the task of catechizing new Christians leading up to and immediately following their baptism. Later he himself became bishop of Jerusalem, and soon after his ordination a miraculous apparition of a cross appeared in the sky, visible to the whole city. Because St. Cyril defended Christ's full humanity and divinity against the Arian heresy, he was exiled from his bishopric three times in twenty years due to misunderstandings, intrigue, and politics. Saint Cyril of Jerusalem is one of the early Church Fathers and one of the most important sources for how the early Church celebrated the liturgy and sacraments during the first few decades after Christianity was legalized. For St. Cyril's work in catechesis he was named a Doctor of the Church by Pope Leo XIII in 1883. His feast day is March 18th. | Reading 1 Isaiah 1:10, 16-20 Hear the word of the LORD,
princes of Sodom!
Listen to the instruction of our God,
people of Gomorrah! Wash yourselves clean!
Put away your misdeeds from before my eyes;
cease doing evil; learn to do good.
Make justice your aim: redress the wronged,
hear the orphan's plea, defend the widow. Come now, let us set things right,
says the LORD:
Though your sins be like scarlet,
they may become white as snow;
Though they be crimson red,
they may become white as wool.
If you are willing, and obey,
you shall eat the good things of the land;
But if you refuse and resist,
the sword shall consume you:
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken! Responsorial Psalm Psalm 50:8-9, 16bc-17, 21 and 23 R. (23b) To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
"Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you,
for your burnt offerings are before me always.
I take from your house no bullock,
no goats out of your fold." R. To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
"Why do you recite my statutes,
and profess my covenant with your mouth,
Though you hate discipline
and cast my words behind you?" R. To the upright I will show the saving power of God.
"When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it?
Or do you think that I am like yourself?
I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes.
He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me;
and to him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God."
R. To the upright I will show the saving power of God. Verse Before the Gospel Ezekiel 18:31 Cast away from you all the crimes you have committed, says the LORD,
and make for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. Gospel Matthew 23:1-12 Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying,
"The scribes and the Pharisees
have taken their seat on the chair of Moses.
Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you,
but do not follow their example.
For they preach but they do not practice.
They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry
and lay them on people's shoulders,
but they will not lift a finger to move them.
All their works are performed to be seen.
They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.
They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues,
greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation 'Rabbi.'
As for you, do not be called 'Rabbi.'
You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers.
Call no one on earth your father;
you have but one Father in heaven.
Do not be called 'Master';
you have but one master, the Christ.
The greatest among you must be your servant.
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled;
but whoever humbles himself will be exalted." | Praise to You Oh Lord Jesus Christ! | Daily Meditation: Isaiah 1:10, 16-20 Redress the wronged, hear the orphan's plea, defend the widow. (Isaiah 1:17) In today's first reading, the prophet Isaiah confronts the people of Jerusalem for their sin. "Wash yourselves clean!" he cries out to them. "Make justice your aim: redress the wronged, hear the orphan's plea, defend the widow" (1:16, 17). In other words, the prophet is telling them—and us—that if we truly want to repent and turn back to the Lord, we have to do it by loving our neighbor and caring for those who live on the margins. During the season of Lent, we often focus our attention on the practices of prayer and fasting. But the almsgiving Isaiah describes is another powerful way we can bear the fruit of repentance. That's because almsgiving is a form of love, the love that "covers a multitude of sins" (1 Peter 4:8). The Catechism calls this kind of love "charity." It tells us that charity is the "virtue by which we love God above all things . . . and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God" (1822). And like any other virtue, it grows and deepens in us as we put it into practice. The more we practice charity and the more we follow the Spirit's promptings to act in love, the closer we come to experiencing God's love for us. So how are you going to love your neighbor during this Lent? Maybe you don't actually know someone who is orphaned, but you can certainly make a donation to an orphanage. Maybe your next-door neighbor is a widow, and you can help mow her lawn or invite her to dinner at your home. Or you can help in the soup kitchen at your parish or donate some of your clothes to the needy. The options are endless! During this season in which we turn our hearts to the Lord, let's make it a priority to love our neighbor. Let's make justice our aim so that "the orphan's plea" does not go unnoticed and "the widow" does not remain alone (Isaiah 1:17). Let's imitate Jesus' love so that we can produce the fruit of joy, peace, and mercy. "Lord, help me to turn my heart to you by loving others as you love me!" Psalm 50:8-9, 16-17, 21, 23
Matthew 23:1-12 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: | From today's Holy Gospel: "They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues,
greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation 'Rabbi.'
As for you, do not be called 'Rabbi.'
You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers.
Call no one on earth your father;
you have but one Father in heaven.
Do not be called 'Master';
you have but one master, the Christ.
The greatest among you must be your servant.
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled;
but whoever humbles himself will be exalted."....." - Word of the Lord! | From Roberto Juarez:
"Jesus warns against the hypocrisy of the scribes and Pharisees. It teaches us that true greatness is not in appearance or power, but in humility and service.
Jesus recognizes that the scribes and Pharisees teach the Law of Moses correctly, but their lives do not match their words. They demand of others what they themselves do not fulfill. Do I live according to what I preach? Am I coherent between what I believe and how I act?" end quote Roberto.
From Bishop Robert Barron:
"Friends, in today's Gospel, Jesus turns his sharp eye and withering critique on the many ways that religious leaders fall into corruption. What precisely is bothering Jesus? Some religious leaders get their kicks from burdening people, laying the law on them heavily, making demands that are terrible, exulting in their own moral superiority.
At the core of Jesus' program is a willingness to bear other people's burdens, to help them carry their loads. And this applies to the moral life as well. If we lay the burden of God's law on people, we must be willing, at the same time, to help them bear it.
Another classic problem with religious people and especially religious leaders: they use the law and morality as a means of inflating the ego. The trouble is that this drug wears off rather quickly, and then we want more of it. We need a greater title, more respect, more recognition.
What is Jesus' recommendation for those caught in this dilemma? To be great is to be a servant: lowly, simple, often forgotten. Eschew marks of respect; don't seek them. Be satisfied with doing your work, whatever it is, on behalf of God's kingdom."
Our Lord Jesus came to earth and set the record straight. He said He is the Father, the Rabbi, the Master, and no one else. Amen?
He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father, except through Him. Amen? So what about all the saints and Mary and all that jazz protestants are so worried about? They all come through Jesus too! Amen? What's the fuss all about?
I'm on ministries to men and in other ministries too. Boy, I wish we could just get over ourselves sometimes. Having kids has taught me more about being a father than anything. Yes, I am a father, my kids know I am the father, they tell others who their father is. This is the job of good children, to tell others about their father, but this father points to the true Father, that is my job. We have but one True Father to be calling the Father of all fathers. I am the priest of the family, but this is not the same ministry as a Catholic Priest who fathers children when He personifies Chris on earth in the Sacraments. Call no one teacher? Call no one father? Call no one good? Jesus also said "why do you call me good teacher?", remember that one? HE said we have but one Good Father and Teacher in Heaven. You see how He points to God the Father always in and everything He does? This is what He means. Yes, we can call a priest a father of the parish, just like my kids tell others I'm their father too. But our Lord wants to make it crystal clear who is the true Father and Teacher, the Master.
And now that the word Master has come in, this means we are disciples of the Master. Jesus is the Master. We are to be in the discipline of Christ. Lent is about learning the discipline to master ourselves for God. Have you noticed the sin that we need to let go of in our lives? Have you noticed the hold of the world and how it tries to pull us from God? This is the purpose of going into the desert with Christ for 40 days, praying, fasting, and giving, so that we may let go of the world to gain the discipline of Christ more and forever in our hearts.
That we may be transformed, into Him, so the world may see Him more clearly in us all. | Random Bible Verse 1
Romans 8:2 "For the law of the Spirit of life has set you1 free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death." Word of the Lord. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
