Mass Readings For March 26, 2021 – Friday, Fifth Week of Lent

Friday of the Fifth Week of Lent

First Reading – Jeremiah 20:10-13

I hear the whisperings of many:
“Terror on every side!
Denounce! let us denounce him!”
All those who were my friends
are on the watch for any misstep of mine.
“Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail,
and take our vengeance on him.”
But the LORD is with me, like a mighty champion:
my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph.
In their failure they will be put to utter shame,
to lasting, unforgettable confusion.
O LORD of hosts, you who test the just,
who probe mind and heart,
Let me witness the vengeance you take on them,
for to you I have entrusted my cause.
Sing to the LORD,
praise the LORD,
For he has rescued the life of the poor
from the power of the wicked!

 

Responsorial Psalm – Psalms 18:2-3A, 3BC-4, 5-6, 7

R.    (see 7)  In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
I love you, O LORD, my strength,
O LORD, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer.
R.    In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
My God, my rock of refuge,
my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold!
Praised be the LORD, I exclaim,
and I am safe from my enemies.
R.    In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
The breakers of death surged round about me,
the destroying floods overwhelmed me;
The cords of the nether world enmeshed me,
the snares of death overtook me.
R.    In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.
In my distress I called upon the LORD
and cried out to my God;
From his temple he heard my voice,
and my cry to him reached his ears.
R.    In my distress I called upon the Lord, and he heard my voice.

 

Vesper Before the Gospel – John 6:63C, 68C

Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life;
you have the words of everlasting life.

 

Gospel – John 10:31-42

The Jews picked up rocks to stone Jesus.
Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from my Father.
For which of these are you trying to stone me?”
The Jews answered him,
“We are not stoning you for a good work but for blasphemy.
You, a man, are making yourself God.”
Jesus answered them,
“Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, ‘You are gods”‘?
If it calls them gods to whom the word of God came,
and Scripture cannot be set aside,
can you say that the one
whom the Father has consecrated and sent into the world
blasphemes because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’?
If I do not perform my Father’s works, do not believe me;
but if I perform them, even if you do not believe me,
believe the works, so that you may realize and understand
that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”
Then they tried again to arrest him;
but he escaped from their power.

He went back across the Jordan
to the place where John first baptized, and there he remained.
Many came to him and said,
“John performed no sign,
but everything John said about this man was true.”
And many there began to believe in him.

 

Related Posts:
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 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? This article written in 2020 on my thoughts about the coronavirus remains relevant to the faithful, especially with regards to 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.

 

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.
The Best Catholic

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