MY ACTION MY CHARACTER

TUESDAY SECOND WEEK OF LENT: LEARN TO DO GOOD

PRAYER BEFORE HOLY MASS Act of Love before Mass

O my God, I love Thee with all my heart, with all my soul, with all my strength and with no other desire than to be inseparably united to Thee.

It is through Thy Divine Son that this union is about to be realized within me. In Holy Communion I long to identify myself with Him, that it will no longer be myself, but Him, who lives in me; and when I have received Jesus within myself, then I shall love and be loved by Thee in that same measure, in which I am united to Him.

Hasten then, to give me Thy Divine Son, at the hands of Thy priest, that through Jesus, I may unite myself forever to Thee, O God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit.

First Reading Isaiah 1:10,16-20 Cease to do evil; learn to do good Readings

Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom; listen to the command of our God,you people of Gomorrah.

‘Wash, make yourselves clean. Take your wrong-doing out of my sight. Cease to do evil. Learn to do good, search for justice, help the oppressed, be just to the orphan, plead for the widow.

‘Come now, let us talk this over, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.

‘If you are willing to obey, you shall eat the good things of the earth. But if you persist in rebellion, the sword shall eat you instead.’

Responsorial Psalm: I will show God's salvation to the upright

Gospel Matthew 23:1-12 They do not practise what they preach Lectures

Addressing the people and his disciples Jesus said, ‘The scribes and the Pharisees occupy the chair of Moses. You must therefore do what they tell you and listen to what they say; but do not be guided by what they do: since they do not practise what they preach.

They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but will they lift a finger to move them? Not they! Everything they do is done to attract attention, like wearing broader phylacteries and longer tassels, like wanting to take the place of honour at banquets and the front seats in the synagogues, being greeted obsequiously in the market squares and having people call them Rabbi.

‘You, however, must not allow yourselves to be called Rabbi, since you have only one master, and you are all brothers. You must call no one on earth your father, since you have only one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor must you allow yourselves to be called teachers, for you have only one Teacher, the Christ. The greatest among you must be your servant. Anyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and anyone who humbles himself will be exalted.’ Reflections

My God, my Father wash me, make me clean. Make me holy remove from me wrong-doing. Create in me a pure heart. Teach me to do good. May I promote justice, defend the helpless and oppressed. Help me Father to be just to the orphan, and plead for the widow in my society.

Father you are good and merciful I come before you forgive me my sins, make me clean. I am willing to obey may I return to you, and may I not persist in being rebellious. Guide and direct my actions, may they give glory to your name as they refelct my true character. Loving Father I am your child, created in your image and likeness. Bless our Pope, Cardnals, Bishops, Priests and Religious. Guide and protect them.

Lord Jesus Christ thank you for loving me. Jesus I trust in you. Virgin Mary pray for me. Saint Joseph pray for me. My Angel Guardian pray for me. Guide and protect me. God's Holy Angels pray for me.

Pray the Holy Rosary. Our Lady Queen of Peace pray for us. Bring us to your Son Jesus Christ Prince of Peace.

Your Birthday Saint: St. Louise de Merillac, Foundress. May she pray for you as you celebrate your birthday.

TRUST GOD, TRUST IN ME

Fifth Sunday of Easter 'I am going now to prepare a place for you' First Reading Acts 6:1-7 They elected seven men full of the Holy Spirit About this time, when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenists made a complaint against the Hebrews: in the daily distribution their own widows were being overlooked. So the Twelve called a full meeting of the disciples and addressed them, ‘It would not be right for us to neglect the word of God so as to give out food; you, brothers, must select from among yourselves seven men of good reputation, filled with the Spirit and with wisdom; we will hand over this duty to them, and continue to devote ourselves to prayer and to the service of the word.’ The whole assembly approved of this proposal and elected Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, together with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus of Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these to the apostles, who prayed and laid th...

THE BREAD FROM HEAVEN

Tuesday week 3 of Eastertide - ‘I can see heaven thrown open’ First Reading 7:51-8,1 'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit' Stephen said to the people, the elders and the scribes: ‘You stubborn people, with your pagan hearts and pagan ears. You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, just as your ancestors used to do. Can you name a single prophet your ancestors never persecuted? In the past they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, and now you have become his betrayers, his murderers. You who had the Law brought to you by angels are the very ones who have not kept it.’ They were infuriated when they heard this, and ground their teeth at him. But Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand. ‘I can see heaven thrown open’ he said ‘and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’ At this all the members of the council shouted out and stopped their ears with their hands; then they ...

YOU MUST NOT KILL

First Reading Ezekiel 18:21-28 I prefer to see the wicked man renounce his wickedness and live Thus says the Lord: ‘If the wicked man renounces all the sins he has committed, respects my laws and is law-abiding and honest, he will certainly live; he will not die. All the sins he committed will be forgotten from then on; he shall live because of the integrity he has practised. What! Am I likely to take pleasure in the death of a wicked man – it is the Lord who speaks – and not prefer to see him renounce his wickedness and live? ‘But if the upright man renounces his integrity, commits sin, copies the wicked man and practises every kind of filth, is he to live? All the integrity he has practised shall be forgotten from then on; but this is because he himself has broken faith and committed sin, and for this he shall die. But you object, “What the Lord does is unjust.” Listen, you House of Israel: is what I do unjust? Is it not what you do that is unjust? When the upright ma...

RELIGION AND ART

Search This Blog