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23 March 2025 3rd Sunday of LentSanto Toribio de Mogrovejo, Arequipa, PerúReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: Violet. Year: C(I).First readingExodus 3:1-8,13-15'I AM has sent me to you'Moses was looking after the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law priest of Midian. He led his flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in the shape of a flame of fire, coming from the middle of a bush. Moses looked; there was the bush blazing but it was not being burnt up. ‘I must go and...

Daily Readings from the USCCB“‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none. So cut it down. Why should it exhaust the soil?’ He said to him in reply, ‘Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down.’” Luke 13:7–9Imagine for a moment that you were the owner of the orchard in which this fig tree was planted. After the gardener asked you to wait for one...

“‘Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you’” (Matthew 5:12). Jesus provides us with two reasons for our rejoicing and being glad when we are persecuted for His sake. First, He says, “Your reward in heaven is great.” Whatever we do for the Lord now, including suffering for Him—especially suffering for Him—reaps eternal divi-dends. But God’s dividends aren’t ordinary dividends. They are not only “eternal” but also “great.” We often hear, and perhaps are tempted to think, that it is unspiritual and crass to...

22 March 2025 Saturday of the 2nd week of Lent Immaculate Conception Ukrainian Catholic Church, Hamtramck, MI Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Violet. Year: C(I).First readingMicah 7:14-15,18-20Have pity on us one more timeWith shepherd’s crook, O Lord, lead your people to pasture,the flock that is your heritage,living confined in a forestwith meadow land all around.Let them pasture in Bashan and Gileadas in the days of old.As in the days when you came out of Egyptgrant us to see wonders.What god can compare with you: taking fault away,pardoning crime,not cherishing anger for everbut delighting in showing mercy?Once more have pity on...

By Dr. John BergsmaIn this third week of our spiritual journey through Lent, the Scripture readings remind us of what we might call the “Moses stage” of salvation history, and also drive home the theme of repentance during this holy season. 1. Our First Reading is Exodus 3:1-8a, 13-1Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. Leading the flock across the desert, he came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There an angel of the LORD appeared to Moses in fire flaming out of a bush. As he looked on, he was surprised to see...

“‘Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you’” (Matthew 5:12). The Christian’s response to persecution and affliction should not be to retreat and hide. Jesus told us we are the “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world” (Matt. 5:13–14). For our salt to flavor the earth and our light to lighten the world, we must be active in the world. The gospel is not given to be hidden but to enlighten. “Let your light shine before men in such a way...

Daily Readings from the USCCB“Look, all these years I served you and not once did I disobey your orders; yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends. But when your son returns who swallowed up your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughter the fattened calf.” Luke 15:22–24This was the reaction of the faithful son in the Parable of the Prodigal Son. Recall that after squandering his inheritance, the Prodigal Son returns home humiliated and poor, asking his father if he will take him back and treat him as if he were a...

[Catholic Caucus] EXCLUSIVE: Bishop Schneider believes a pope will one day celebrate Latin Mass in St. Peter’s again‘This celebration of the Mass, I call it the Mass of the ages, is indestructible, and a pope cannot destroy it, no matter how hard he tries,’ Bishop Schneider said.Pilgrimage on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of Summorum Pontificum, at Saint Peter's Chair, Rome, September 16, 2017.Bishop Athanasius Schneider said that a pope will someday celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) in St. Peter’s Basilica again.In an interview conducted in German with LifeSiteNews journalist Andreas Wailzer, Bishop Schneider discussed the importance of...

21 March 2025 Friday of the 2nd week of Lent Benedetta Cambiagio Frassinello church, Ajaccio, ItalyReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: Violet. Year: C(I).First readingGenesis 37:3-4,12-13,17-28Let us kill him: then we shall see what becomes of his dreamsIsrael loved Joseph more than all his other sons, for he was the son of his old age, and he had a coat with long sleeves made for him. But his brothers, seeing how his father loved him more than all his other sons, came to hate him so much that they could not say a civil word to him. His brothers went to...

Daily Readings from the USCCB“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.” Matthew 21:42Are you among those from whom the Kingdom of God will be taken away? Or among those to whom it will be given so as to produce good fruit? This is an important question to sincerely answer. The first grouping of people, those who will have the Kingdom of God taken away from them, are represented in this parable by the tenants of the vineyard. It is clear that one...

“‘Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. . . . Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you’” (Matthew 5:10, 12). Jesus pronounces a double blessing on those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, which is for His own sake. The specific blessing promised is that “theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus said, “Truly I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or...

“‘Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me’” (Matthew 5:11). Faithfulness to Christ will bring enemies of the gospel who will “falsely say all kinds of evil against” us. Whereas “insults” are abusive words said to our faces, these “evil” things are primarily abusive words said behind our backs. Jesus’ critics said of Him, “Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!” (Matt. 11:19). If the world said that of the sinless Christ, what things can His followers expect to...

Daily Readings from the USCCBJesus said to the Pharisees: “There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen and dined sumptuously each day. And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.” Luke 16:19–21One of the reasons this story is so powerful is because of the clear descriptive contrast between the rich man and Lazarus. The contrast is not only seen in the passage above,...

“‘Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me’” (Matthew 5:11). Faithfulness to Christ will bring enemies of the gospel who will “falsely say all kinds of evil against” us. Whereas “insults” are abusive words said to our faces, these “evil” things are primarily abusive words said behind our backs. Jesus’ critics said of Him, “Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!” (Matt. 11:19). If the world said that of the sinless Christ, what things can His followers expect to...

20 March 2025Thursday of the 2nd week of Lent St. Cuthbert is buried at Durham Cathedral in the UK Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: Violet. Year: C(I).First readingJeremiah 17:5-10A curse on the man who puts his trust in man and turns from the LordThe Lord says this:‘A curse on the man who puts his trust in man,who relies on things of flesh,whose heart turns from the Lord.He is like dry scrub in the wastelands:if good comes, he has no eyes for it,he settles in the parched places of the wilderness,a salt land, uninhabited.‘A blessing on the man who puts his...

[Catholic Caucus] EXCLUSIVE: Bishop Schneider says next pope must reaffirm doctrine on marriage, sexuality, male clergyBishop Schneider said the next pope must clarify Catholic teaching in ‘those aspects that have caused the most confusion’ in recent years, especially sexual morality, marriage, the all-male clergy, and relativism.Bishop Athanasius Schneider has said that the next pope must clarify Church doctrine on marriage, sexuality, and the solely male priesthood to combat confusion on these dogmatic issues within the Church.In an interview conducted in German with LifeSiteNews journalist Andreas Wailzer, Bishop Schneider explained what he believes are the main issues the next pope should...

Daily Readings from the USCCBWhen Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home. Matthew 1:24What is it that made Saint Joseph so great? He wasn’t immaculately conceived as our Blessed Mother was. He was not divine like Jesus. But he was the head of the Holy Family, its guardian and its protector. He became the legal father of the Savior of the World and the spouse of the Mother of God. But Joseph is not great only because he was given such incredible privileges. First and foremost, he...

“‘Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me’” (Matthew 5:11). Beyond physical persecution, Jesus encouraged believers with blessing for having insults cast against them. The Greek word for “insult” carries the idea of reviling, upbraiding, or serious insulting. To insult someone is to throw abusive words in the face of an opponent, to mock viciously. To be an obedient citizen of the kingdom is to court verbal abuse and reviling. As He stood before the Sanhedrin after His arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus was...

Wednesday 19 March 2025 Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary SolemnitySt Joseph Church, NazarethReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: C(I).First reading2 Samuel 7:4-5,12-14,16The Lord will give him the throne of his ancestor DavidThe word of the Lord came to Nathan: ‘Go and tell my servant David, Thus the Lord speaks: “When your days are ended and you are laid to rest with your ancestors, I will preserve the offspring of your body after you and make his sovereignty secure. (It is he who shall build a house for my name, and I will make his royal throne secure...

Remember the Springtime in the Church: Reality is Demographic Winter!It's bad news for Catholics from a PEW Survey on Religion in America, the first since 2014. For every 100 new Catholics entering the Church, 800 leave. This from Eric Sammons at Crisis Magazine:No other religion has nearly as bad of a join/leave ratio. For every 100 people that become Protestant, 180 leave. That’s bad, but it’s not Catholic bad. Conversely, for every 100 people who leave the religious “nones” (i.e., they join a religion), a full 590 become part of that irreligious cohort. Where are the former Catholics going? Of...