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“Christ became obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name.”

~Phillipians 2:8-9~

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me (Psalm 23:4).

Brothers and sisters: Whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come. And all this is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and given us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. So we are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.

~2 Corinthians 5:17-21~

The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise (Psalm 51:17).

The LORD spoke to Ahaz, saying: Ask for a sign from the Lord, your God; let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky! But Ahaz answered, “I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!” Then Isaiah said: Listen, O house of David! Is it not enough for you to weary people, must you also weary my God? Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.” ~Isaiah 7:10-14~

Luke 1:26-38

The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.

Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”

But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” And the angel said to her in reply, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God.” Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

Azariah stood up in the fire and prayed aloud: “For your name’s sake, O Lord, do not deliver us up forever, or make void your covenant. Do not take away your mercy from us, for the sake of Abraham, your beloved, Isaac your servant, and Israel your holy one, to whom you promised to multiply their offspring like the stars of heaven, or the sand on the shore of the sea. For we are reduced, O Lord, beyond any other nation, brought low everywhere in the world this day because of our sins.

We have in our day no prince, prophet, or leader, no burnt offering, sacrifice, oblation, or incense, no place to offer first fruits, to find favor with you. But with contrite heart and humble spirit let us be received; as though it were burnt offerings of rams and bullocks, or thousands of fat lambs, so let our sacrifice be in your presence today as we follow you unreservedly; for those who trust in you cannot be put to shame. And now we follow you with our whole heart, we fear you and we pray to you. Do not let us be put to shame, but deal with us in your kindness and great mercy. Deliver us by your wonders, and bring glory to your name, O Lord.” (Daniel 3:2; 3:11-20)

The Solemnity of St. Joseph

St. Joseph pray for us!

St. Patrick’s Cathedral

The people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem said, “Come, let us contrive a plot against Jeremiah. It will not mean the loss of instruction from the priests, nor of counsel from the wise, nor of messages from the prophets. And so, let us destroy him by his own tongue; let us carefully note his every word.”

“Heed me, O LORD, and listen to what my adversaries say. Must good be repaid with evil that they should dig a pit to take my life Remember that I stood before you to speak in their behalf, to turn away your wrath from them”. ~Jeremiah 18:18-20~

When I look at our Lord on the cross I see a God who loves me unconditionally to send his only Son to die for the salvation of my soul; He crucified my sins on the cross. I see a compassionate God who forgives without reservation and who knows no boundaries. I see the Second Person of the Holy Trinity who was unjustly condemned and yet fulfilled the Will of God without any complaint and even asked forgiveness for those who judged him unjustly. He gave life to those who gave him death. He gave us the gift of being called sons and daughters of God; to be able to call God our Father, making us brothers and sisters in Christ. Do we love unconditionally or do we judge? Are we compassionate? Do we forgive unreservedly or do we remain resentful? If we intend to serve and follow Christ, we must imitate our Lord and do the same. Let us ask God for the grace this Lent to love as He (Jesus) did; forgive and ask for forgiveness. Let us ask Christ for the grace of humility and purity of heart. I myself continue to ask God for these graces even when I am unjustly accused; judged; and without being forgiven by the sinner. For he who forgives his neighbor demonstrates God’s mercy by putting the Word of God into practice. Amen.

The Second Sunday of Lent