 From: MorningOffering Website | Quote: "We must faithfully keep what we have promised. If through human weakness we fail, we must always without delay arise again by means of holy penance, and give our attention to leading a good life and to dying a holy death. May the Father of all mercy, the Son by his holy passion, and the Holy Spirit, source of peace, sweetness and love, fill us with their consolation." -St. Colette Today's Meditation "Oh, how sweet and pleasant to that soul and to Me is holy prayer, made in the house of knowledge of self and of Me, opening the eye of the intellect to the light of faith, and the affections to the abundance of My charity, which was made visible to you, through My visible Only-begotten Son, who showed it to you with His blood! Which blood inebriates the soul and clothes her with the fire of divine charity, giving her the food of the Sacrament . . . that is to say, the food of the Body and Blood of My Son, wholly God and wholly man, administered to you by the hand of My vicar, who holds the key of the Blood." —St. Catherine of Siena, p. 92
An excerpt from Dialogue of St. Catherine of Siena Daily Verse "[I pray that you] may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." -Ephesians 3:18-19 |  EWTN Daily Saint | | Saint John Joseph Of The Cross St. John-Joseph of the Cross (1654-1739) was born on the island of Ischia, near Naples. He joined the Franciscan Order of the Strict Observance (the reform of St. Peter of Alcantara) at age sixteen. His influence was great despite his young age, and after three years he was sent to help found a new order of friars in Piedmont, where he was ordained to the priesthood. He codified a set of guidelines for spiritual and daily life that were approved by the Holy See and became a lasting model for religious communities. In 1702 he was appointed Vicar Provincial of the Alcantarine Reform in Italy. During his time as Vicar he implemented a rule that no beggar would be turned away without assistance, and in times of extreme scarcity he would offer his own portion to the poor. He was known as a deeply holy man who served Christ and the monastic community through daily acts of mortification and humility. Despite his high ranking position, he continued to lead a life of service and took on menial tasks whenever possible, from working in the kitchen to chopping firewood. He was said to have performed numerous miracles as well as the gift of prophecy. St. John-Joseph of the Cross is the patron saint of Ischia and his feast day is March 5th. | Friday of the Second Week of Lent Lectionary: 234 Reading 1 Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28a Israel loved Joseph best of all his sons,
for he was the child of his old age;
and he had made him a long tunic.
When his brothers saw that their father loved him best of all his sons,
they hated him so much that they would not even greet him. One day, when his brothers had gone
to pasture their father's flocks at Shechem,
Israel said to Joseph,
"Your brothers, you know, are tending our flocks at Shechem.
Get ready; I will send you to them." So Joseph went after his brothers and caught up with them in Dothan.
They noticed him from a distance,
and before he came up to them, they plotted to kill him.
They said to one another: "Here comes that master dreamer!
Come on, let us kill him and throw him into one of the cisterns here;
we could say that a wild beast devoured him.
We shall then see what comes of his dreams." When Reuben heard this,
he tried to save him from their hands, saying,
"We must not take his life.
Instead of shedding blood," he continued,
"just throw him into that cistern there in the desert;
but do not kill him outright."
His purpose was to rescue him from their hands
and return him to his father.
So when Joseph came up to them,
they stripped him of the long tunic he had on;
then they took him and threw him into the cistern,
which was empty and dry. They then sat down to their meal.
Looking up, they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead,
their camels laden with gum, balm and resin
to be taken down to Egypt.
Judah said to his brothers:
"What is to be gained by killing our brother and concealing his blood?
Rather, let us sell him to these Ishmaelites,
instead of doing away with him ourselves.
After all, he is our brother, our own flesh."
His brothers agreed.
They sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. Responsorial Psalm Psalm 105:16-17, 18-19, 20-21 R. (5a) Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
When the LORD called down a famine on the land
and ruined the crop that sustained them,
He sent a man before them,
Joseph, sold as a slave.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
They had weighed him down with fetters,
and he was bound with chains,
Till his prediction came to pass
and the word of the LORD proved him true.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
The king sent and released him,
the ruler of the peoples set him free.
He made him lord of his house
and ruler of all his possessions.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done. Verse Before the Gospel John 3:16 God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son;
so that everyone who believes in him might have eternal life. Gospel Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46 Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people:
"Hear another parable.
There was a landowner who planted a vineyard,
put a hedge around it,
dug a wine press in it, and built a tower.
Then he leased it to tenants and went on a journey.
When vintage time drew near,
he sent his servants to the tenants to obtain his produce.
But the tenants seized the servants and one they beat,
another they killed, and a third they stoned.
Again he sent other servants, more numerous than the first ones,
but they treated them in the same way.
Finally, he sent his son to them,
thinking, 'They will respect my son.'
But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another,
'This is the heir.
Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.'
They seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.
What will the owner of the vineyard do to those tenants when he comes?"
They answered him,
"He will put those wretched men to a wretched death
and lease his vineyard to other tenants
who will give him the produce at the proper times."
Jesus said to them, "Did you never read in the Scriptures: The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
by the Lord has this been done,
and it is wonderful in our eyes? Therefore, I say to you,
the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you
and given to a people that will produce its fruit."
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables,
they knew that he was speaking about them.
And although they were attempting to arrest him,
they feared the crowds, for they regarded him as a prophet. | Praise to You Oh Lord Jesus Christ! |  From Word Among Us WAU.org | Daily Meditation: Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13, 17-28 His brothers . . . hated him so much that they would not even greet him. (Genesis 37:4) Does the reaction of Joseph's brothers make sense? "Logical" reasoning would say no. Their dispute is with Jacob, their father, not with their brother. If they're going to "hate" anyone, it should be him, not Joseph. After all, it was Jacob who showered Joseph with all that attention! Joseph may have gloated about it, but it was Jacob's actions that began this whole saga of envy and rivalry. But logic isn't what's driving Joseph's brothers. It's the sting of rejection as they watch Jacob favor Joseph over themselves. So when they see Joseph coming toward them, all they see is a "master dreamer" (Genesis 37:19). He is no longer their brother—he's barely even a person. Their minds have become so clouded that they have convinced themselves that it's okay to throw him into a cistern—and then casually sit down to lunch! What a graphic illustration of our own experience! It's amazing how quickly emotions like resentment and bitterness can overshadow the gift of reason that God has given us. And when emotions overtake reason, we start composing excuses or false narratives that help justify our feelings. Without even realizing it, we move further away from the truth, further away from the other person, and further away from the Lord. But we don't have to live this way. Jesus can show us the way to freedom. As "the stone that the builders rejected," he, too, knew the sting of rejection (Matthew 21:42). But he never let that sting fester into resentment or anger. Instead, he let his Father's love dissolve any bitter or spiteful thoughts before they took hold of him. He protected his human gift of reason so that he could address challenges clearly and peacefully. And that enabled him to look at each person—including those who rejected him—with love and understanding. So take Jesus as your model. Use your own God-given gift of reason to help you see clearly. Let your Father's love dissolve your own bitterness and help you meet opposition with love. And when you are tempted to embrace the illogic of envy, let his mercy for everyone soften your heart. "Jesus, teach me to think like you so that I can love like you." Psalm 105:16-21
Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46 | Reflections with Brother Adrian: |  Audio of 2 Cents | From today's Holy Gospel: "... Therefore, I say to you,
the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you
and given to a people that will produce its fruit."
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables,
they knew that he was speaking about them.
And although they were attempting to arrest him,
they feared the crowds, for they regarded him as a prophet. ..." | From Bishop Barron: "We—Israel, the Church, the world—are not the owners of this vineyard; we are tenants. One of the most fundamental spiritual mistakes we can make is to think that we own the world. We are tenants, entrusted with the responsibility of caring for it, but everything that we have and are is on loan. Our lives are not about us. Christ is God's judgment. We are all under his judgment. In the measure that we reject him or refuse to listen to him, we place our tenancy in jeopardy. And so the great question that arises from this reading: How am I using the gifts that God gave me for God's purposes? My money? My time? My talents? My creativity? My relationships? All is for God, and thus all is under God's judgment." end quote.
Allow me to interview Mr. Adrian for a bit here in the third person of myself: Interviewer Question: "Hey Adrian, have you experienced rejection for Christ in your years of ministry and so forth?" Adrian: "I believe so, but not only in ministry but in all facets of life. In ministry, there seems to be a constant wave of rejection. And lately it was felt very strongly in a men's ministry, where me as the president was told by the treasurer that he was stripping me of all my powers and assuming the leader role. That was a tough pill to swallow, because I thought we were good brothers...(in Christ). All others in the team had voted for me to remain as interim president since nobody else would assume the role. That was within this last year.
And as head of a family festival, I get all sorts of complaints, and this last year, it felt like I made an enemy by making an honest mistake on their sponsorship. That too was a hard pill to swallow, and I couldn't apologize enough, but I never really felt mercy there either. And that was within this last year too. Need I go on? One of the most heart wrenching rejections though, I mean, with real tears? As a cursillo active member, we are to meet every single week in friendship group. At first, an older brother persisted we meet, and then he didn't want to meet, and so I persisted on him. And this is how it was until he rolled over in an accident and died a few years later. Ever since I lost that brother in Christ, I have persisted on new cursillo men to meet. And some tried for a while, and then...ghosted me. And this is how it has been for now 20 years. 20 years of tears, to the point that I have about given up trying to make friends, and make them meet. I have no blood brothers. I have nobody to relate to. I have no men to fellowship with, because they reject me. I am a master dreamer. I demand high things. And I look around, and they form friendships all around me, and cliques, and I am not invited to any of their personal lives.
Even when it comes to daily prayer in my own home, I experience some static when I say "let's pray (the whole rosary)". Some of our 8 kids are tired, they whine, and complain. Not all the time, but when they do...I experience some type of rejection there too. Yet I must love...yet I must provide for their entire well being.
Is everyone bad but me? Please, hold on, allow this Mr. Holy Roller to continue!
The love of Christ is deep inside of me. They say that the one who truly loves...truly suffers. I have only listed a few rejections here. At work, there is constant rejection of my authority as president and leader too. And, at the end of the day, I have to respond to all the responsibility, all the failures, all the lawsuits, all the accidents, all the loss of opportunities, everything points to me. I have to provide solutions and for the hundreds of mouths to feed.
I have so much on my shoulders...the burdens...the cross.
This morning I woke at 3:30AM and could not go back to sleep, so I decided to lay in bed, tossing and turning with all these issues in my head..praying the rosary. In and out, it took me about 2 hours of praying. And I wake up, and my 11 year old son joins me to First Friday Holy Adoration at 6AM. And as we prayed another one of my sons, a college student, joined in prayer and adoration, to my surprise.
And there, I prayed the way of the cross but before that prayer, I saw a pamphlet of 15 minutes of Adoration prayers that seemed God was asking me to have courage..and to rely more on him. And, to be thankful for everything, even the bad because we are being formed. Even the new Stations of the Cross on my phone app seemed to be all about encouragement and getting back up with our cross, like Christ. It seems, my dear friend and interviewer, that this whole journey with Christ, is not all smooth. It is rather rough. But if we hold on to our Lord, He will make you tough, tough enough to get you through the next obstacle to a life in grace. As we speak, this is my 6th hour of meditating, studying, and praying and now writing even though I sleep, or work, or am traveling. He encourages me...and in turn, I encourage you". Lord help us love You and one another, with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. You Jesus, poured Yourself out for us on that Cross, now please help us pour ourselves out to you...the stone that is rejected...every day.
The Holy Rosary (App)
Google Play:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=app.rosario.it Apple Store:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/rosary-divine-mercy-chaplet/id1544088741 |  Click for Audio | Random Bible Verse 1
Mark 11:25 "And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses." . . . Word of the Lord! | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
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