First Reading – Jeremiah 11:18-20
I knew their plot because the LORD informed me;
at that time you, O LORD, showed me their doings.
Yet I, like a trusting lamb led to slaughter,
had not realized that they were hatching plots against me:
“Let us destroy the tree in its vigor;
let us cut him off from the land of the living,
so that his name will be spoken no more.”
But, you, O LORD of hosts, O just Judge,
searcher of mind and heart,
Let me witness the vengeance you take on them,
for to you I have entrusted my cause!
R. (2a) O Lord, my God, in you I take refuge.
O LORD, my God, in you I take refuge;
save me from all my pursuers and rescue me,
Lest I become like the lion’s prey,
to be torn to pieces, with no one to rescue me.
R. O Lord, my God, in you I take refuge.
Do me justice, O LORD, because I am just,
and because of the innocence that is mine.
Let the malice of the wicked come to an end,
but sustain the just,
O searcher of heart and soul, O just God.
R. O Lord, my God, in you I take refuge.
A shield before me is God,
who saves the upright of heart;
A just judge is God,
a God who punishes day by day.
R. O Lord, my God, in you I take refuge.
Verse Before The Gospel – Luke 8:15
Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart
and yield a harvest through perseverance.
Gospel – John 7:40-53
Some in the crowd who heard these words of Jesus said,
“This is truly the Prophet.”
Others said, “This is the Christ.”
But others said, “The Christ will not come from Galilee, will he?
Does not Scripture say that the Christ will be of David’s family
and come from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?”
So a division occurred in the crowd because of him.
Some of them even wanted to arrest him,
but no one laid hands on him.
So the guards went to the chief priests and Pharisees,
who asked them, “Why did you not bring him?”
The guards answered, “Never before has anyone spoken like this man.”
So the Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived?
Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him?
But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed.”
Nicodemus, one of their members who had come to him earlier, said to them,
“Does our law condemn a man before it first hears him
and finds out what he is doing?”
They answered and said to him,
“You are not from Galilee also, are you?
Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”
Then each went to his own house.
Heaven and Earth Await: The Annunciation of Our Lord in the Words of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
In his homily “In Praise of the Virgin Mother,” Saint Bernard of Clairvaux dramatically and eloquently contemplates the Annunciation, particularly how all of God’s creation await the response of the Blessed Virgin. On this Feast of the Annunciation, meditate upon Mary’s Fiat through these beautiful and evocative words of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux.
March 25 Feast of the Day — The Annunciation: Making Life Choices the Way Mary Did
March 25 is the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord. This Post sums up why the Annunciation, through Mary’s participation, is a very significant day in the history of mankind. My Reflection gives you three simple but meaningful reminders about life choices: why a godly choice matters, what to keep in mind when making a choice, and how to choose following the example of Mary.
Have you been afflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic? Perhaps you are now under lockdown, or in self-quarantine? I encourage you to read this article I wrote on my thoughts about the coronavirus and its historic impact on the Catholic Church: the temporary suspension of Holy Mass and the Sacraments. My Reflection tackles the deeper meaning of these events for Catholics—in the light of the Third of the Seven Sorrows of Mary. So wherever you are in the world, this Post may serve as a source of strength and faith in this uncertain and trying time.
Act of Spiritual Communion
If you are unable to physically receive Holy Communion, especially in the midst of this pandemic, make a solemn recitation of this Prayer for Spiritual Communion by Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori.
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