THURSDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK OF LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Blessed are those who,
with a noble and generous heart,
take the word of God to themselves
and yield a harvest through their perseverance. LK 8:15

JEREMIAH 17:5-10 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Nothing is more pleasing to you than a childlike spirit. Humility and trust in Your goodness, mercy, and love will always move Your Sacred Heart to grant us all that we need to navigate the troubles and trials of this life. These are necessary I know for they strengthen our faith, increase our hope, and deepen our love for You. 

Grant me this grace O Lord, when trials come to throw myself into Your loving arms and remain there content like a weaned child on its mother's breast. I have experienced the foolishness of looking for human help that often never comes and if it does it is inadequate and disappoints.

Keep my gaze ever on You, Beloved. In times of distress and suffering may I take Your hand which is always extended to help me. Thank You for assuring me that You are my ever-present help in times of trouble.

PSALM 1:1-4,6 ©

Happy indeed is the man

who follows not the counsel of the wicked;
nor lingers in the way of sinners
nor sits in the company of scorners,
but whose delight is the law of the Lord
and who ponders his law day and night.

He is like a tree that is planted

beside the flowing waters,
that yields its fruit in due season
and whose leaves shall never fade;
and all that he does shall prosper.

Not so are the wicked, not so!

For they like winnowed chaff
shall be driven away by the wind:
for the Lord guards the way of the just
but the way of the wicked leads to doom.

Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord.

LUKE 16:19-31 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

This parable of Dives and Lazarus reveals how selfish and self-absorbed we can become when we have all the things that make life easy and comfortable. Our senses are insatiable. The more we indulge them the more they demand until they overwhelm, blind, and destroy us.

So it was with the rich man. He was blind to the plight of the poor man at his gate. He went in and out several times a day and yet his gaze never once rested on Lazarus. We too can become so self-absorbed with our needs, our wants, and our desires that we spend all our time tirelessly catering to them. We can become so obsessed with self-indulgence and self-pandering that we could easily die without ever noticing those whose lives are torment and misery to them that they long for death to release them from their suffering.

Beloved, You teach us that we are only stewards of all we have received and we will have to give a strict account of our stewardship. Whether the gifts are material or spiritual they are meant to be used generously to ensure that those who have more have nothing left over and those who have little will lack nothing. This is the world that You desire, this is what is expected of us who are called by Your Name. When we recognize that we are all members of Your mystical body and work towards ensuring the good of all only then will we experience the peace that You came to give. Your peace O Lord is a gift that surpasses all human understanding and when we all possess it the Kingdom of God will come among us.

‘The rich man replied, “Father, I beg you then to send Lazarus to my father’s house, since I have five brothers, to give them warning so that they do not come to this place of torment too.” “They have Moses and the prophets,” said Abraham “let them listen to them.” “Ah no, father Abraham,” said the rich man “but if someone comes to them from the dead, they will repent.” Then Abraham said to him, “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead.”’

WEDNESDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK OF LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

I am the light of the world, says the Lord;
anyone who follows me will have the light of life. JN 8:12

JEREMIAH 18:18-20 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Ever since the fall Satan has insidiously wormed his way into the hearts and minds of those who are prideful and filled with all-consuming hate and envy of those who are in a covenant relationship with You. Every prophet in the Old Testament faced the murderous hatred of the worldly, the wealthy, and the powerful because they were unafraid to call out their sins publicly but warned them that God would crush them and they would be consigned to eternal death if they did not repent.

The scribes and the Pharisees were no different. They saw You as a threat to the powerful religious positions they held because You exposed their hypocrisy publicly and repeatedly pointed out their duplicitous compromising of the Law of God. They kept the letter of the Law while neglecting its spirit.

In our world today, Lord, nothing has changed. It boggles the mind to see how much worse our world is than Sodom and Gomorrah. The world hates the Church because she is unwavering and uncompromising on matters of faith, morals, and Your Word handed down to her from You to the Apostles and their successors. The rich and unbroken Tradition is handed on from one generation to the next without alteration or change. Whereas the world demands that she change with the ever-changing sinful and immoral culture. The vitriol and pure malice spewed on the Church and the violence and murderous hate shown to those who live the faith publicly only serve to strengthen her. You assure us that if they hate us we ought not to worry for the world hated You first and not only were You hated they put You to death just as they did the prophets before You. The blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians - it is the good seed that continues to bear fruit some 30, some 60, and some a hundred.  

Like Moses, You stand in the breach and we will be safe until You return in glory.

PSALM 30(31):5-6,14-16 ©

Release me from the snares they have hidden

for you are my refuge, Lord.
Into your hands I commend my spirit.
It is you who will redeem me, Lord.

I have heard the slander of the crowd,

fear is all around me,
as they plot together against me,
as they plan to take my life.

But as for me, I trust in you, Lord;

I say: ‘You are my God.
My life is in your hands, deliver me
from the hands of those who hate me.’

Save me in your love, O Lord.

TUESDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK OF LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Shake off all your sins – it is the Lord who speaks –
and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. EZK 18:31

ISAIAH 1:10,16-20 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Indeed, adversity often brings us to our knees. When faced with trials we implore You to take remove the cup of suffering from us. Often it is our sins that have brought about our punishment. We make ungodly, foolish choices and then whine and complain when the expected outcome of those choices occurs. Our culture must surely draw greater divine outrage than that which destroyed the people of Sodom and Gomorrah because we know better. But God sent You into the world to reveal His love for us and to pay the price of our iniquity. 

Beloved, all generations in every age ought to give God unending praise from the rising of the sun to its setting for granting us forgiveness, mercy, and pardon through the power of Your Blood. 

Today Your Word invites us to wash ourselves clean in the Blood of the Lamb. To cease doing evil and learn to do good and You will bless us, our families, our nations, and the whole world.

Grant us wisdom O Lord and humility to acknowledge our sins and our need to return to You with all our hearts confident that You will forgive us: 

‘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.’

PSALM 49(50):8-9,16-17,21,23 ©

‘I find no fault with your sacrifices,
your offerings are always before me.
I do not ask more bullocks from your farms,
nor goats from among your herds.

‘But how can you recite my commandments

and take my covenant on your lips,
you who despise my law
and throw my words to the winds,

‘You do this, and should I keep silence?

Do you think that I am like you?
A sacrifice of thanksgiving honours me
and I will show God’s salvation to the upright.’

I will show God’s salvation to the upright.

MATTHEW 23:1-12 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

You warned the people and Your disciples to listen to what the scribes and the Pharisees said because they occupied the chair of Moses however they were not to do as they did. The faithful today are sadly in an even more precarious situation since some of our shepherds often teach erroneously and can lead many astray by their false teachings.

They are not good shepherds but wolves in sheep's clothing since they slyly distort the truth to suit their own sinful inclinations or to appease certain groups so they can be in good standing with them. The power of evil often has a stranglehold on those who struggle to keep the faith, hold on to the truth, and live by it despite the persecutions they face.

We thank You Beloved, for Peter and his successors and for all who heed Your invitation to the priesthood and religious life. Keep them safe from the Enemy just as You promised until You return again in glory. As for us O Lord keep us humble, obedient, teachable, little, and above all faithful.

MONDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK OF LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life;
you have the message of eternal life. JN 6:63, 68

DANIEL 9:4-10 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

The prayer of Daniel is the prayer of the Church, it is the prayer of all Christians, and it is the prayer of every individual Catholic and Christian. Our world is in shambles today, the Church has failed so many of her children because of bad, unholy, unfaithful shepherds. Parents have failed to raise Godfearing children because they were failed by their parents, or they were too consumed with making provision for the material needs of their family and neglected the greater spiritual needs. 

I strike my breast O Lord for my part in the state of the Church, in the family, in the community, in my parish, in my country, and in the world. I have been indifferent, neglectful, careless, uncaring, selfish, self-willed, ignorant, proud, greedy, vain, complacent and I ask for mercy and pardon. Forgive me Lord for I have sinned. Do not punish us as we deserve but for the sake of Your sorrowful passion have mercy on me and on the whole world. 

To us, Lord, the look of shame belongs, to our kings, our princes, our ancestors, because we have sinned against you. To the Lord our God mercy and pardon belong, because we have betrayed him, and have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God nor followed the laws he has given us through his servants the prophets.

Change begins with me. You make grace available in abundance - align my will to Yours Lord and with the help of the Holy Spirit assist me in fulfilling God's purpose for my life. You have saved us and we are saved - may the Holy Spirit make actual what You O Lord have made possible by Your incarnation, life, passion, death, and glorious resurrection and ascension into heaven.

Jesus, meek and humble of heart, make my heart like Yours. Amen.

PSALM 78(79):8-9,11,13 ©

Do not hold the guilt of our fathers against us.

Let your compassion hasten to meet us;
we are left in the depths of distress.

O God our saviour, come to our help.

Come for the sake of the glory of your name.
O Lord our God, forgive us our sins;
rescue us for the sake of your name.

Let the groans of the prisoners come before you;

let your strong arm reprieve those condemned to die.
But we, your people, the flock of your pasture,
will give you thanks forever and ever.
We will tell your praise from age to age.

Do not treat us according to our sins, O Lord.

LUKE 6:36-38 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

We live in a world that believes that compassion means pretending normalcy and being tolerant when a minority of people who are wounded in heart, mind, soul, body, and spirit embrace sterile lifestyles. Everything that lives has to be fecund and fruitful according to the purpose for which it is created and exists. Any living thing that feeds on itself will wither and die. 

We are created by the Author of Love and Life for love and life. The lover's gaze is always on the beloved. Our gaze must ever be on our Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier, and for the sake of the great love shown to us, we are to love as we are loved. Unless we love You O Lord with our whole hearts, our whole minds, our whole strength, and our neighbor as ourselves this beautiful world will continue to cave in on itself as we devour each other. 

Grant us divine wisdom and simplicity of heart that we may be authentic witnesses of God's love in this fallen world and hasten Your coming again in glory. Amen. 

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge, and you will not be judged yourselves; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned yourselves; grant pardon, and you will be pardoned. Give, and there will be gifts for you: a full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap; because the amount you measure out is the amount you will be given back.’

SECOND SUNDAY IN LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

From the bright cloud the Father’s voice was heard:
‘This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to him.’ MT 17:5

GENESIS 22:1-2,9-13,15-18 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

All God's promises made to Abraham, our father in faith, have been fulfilled however, they have been fulfilled even more fully in You. 

Beloved, when You call me may my response always be, 'Here I am. I am here.' Lord, God, when I am put to the test may I never doubt Your immense love for me. All testing when endured in the right spirit helps our faith to strengthen and grow. Because we have faith we believe in Your promises and are never disappointed for Your Word O Lord is true.

God asked Abraham to sacrifice his only son Isaac and he obeyed. He did not question how all His promises to him would be fulfilled. He just did as God asked trusting God to keep His Word. 

God had no intention of permitting Abraham to offer his son as a burnt offering - it was a test of his faith and having trusted in God, his faith is held up as a model to all generations. This was only a prefiguration of what God, our Father would actually do when He gave You up, His only Son, for our redemption. You are the Altar, the Priest, and the Sacrifice immemorial offered as a perfect offering to God for the salvation of the world.

Having poured out Your life in perfect obedience to the Father's will, He has put all things under Your feet. You are seated at the right hand of the Father and are far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else. At Your Name, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess to the glory of God, that You O God are Lord. Thank You, Lord, for dying for me, for giving me life, and the assurance of a glorious future with You, the Father, and the Holy Spirit in the life to come. 

PSALM 115(116):10,15-19 ©

I trusted, even when I said:

‘I am sorely afflicted,’
O precious in the eyes of the Lord
is the death of his faithful.

Your servant, Lord, your servant am I;

you have loosened my bonds.
A thanksgiving sacrifice I make;
I will call on the Lord’s name.

My vows to the Lord I will fulfil

before all his people,
in the courts of the house of the Lord,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.

I will walk in the presence of the Lord in the land of the living.

ROMANS 8:31-34 ©

With God on our side who can be against us? Since God did not spare his own Son, but gave him up to benefit us all, we may be certain, after such a gift, that he will not refuse anything he can give. Could anyone accuse those that God has chosen? When God acquits, could anyone condemn? Could Christ Jesus? No! He not only died for us – he rose from the dead, and there at God’s right hand he stands and pleads for us.

MARK 9:2-10 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Unless we give the Holy Spirit complete freedom to direct our lives we will, like  Peter, James, and John who were privileged to witness so many astounding miracles, continue to have a very small, flickering faith. Before the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles You told them time and time again who You were. They witnessed extraordinary signs and miracles. You demonstrated to them Your power over nature, life, and death, over the spiritual realm.  You told them why You came into the world. You spoke of being given up into the hands of evil men and of being put to death. You also revealed that You would rise again three days after Your burial. 

Peter James and John witnessed Your transfiguration. The veil was parted and they were given a glimpse of Your glory as the Son of God and yet when their faith was tested they all fled and You were left alone to face the Enemy, grapple with evil, and conquer death. 

They can be excused, Lord, for the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon them. We have none for we have received the Holy Spirit at Baptist. We are children of God. We belong to the household of God. We have the Sacraments. We eat Your Flesh and drink Your Blood and yet our faith is vacillating, weak, and at the first moment of the testing of our faith we become despondent, we complain, we whine, and we forget every grace and blessing that You have poured out upon us. We receive grace upon grace through the Sacraments and yet we forget so easily that You truly are the beloved Son of the Living God and we must always at all times listen to You and do just what You say. 

‘This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to him.’ 

SATURDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Now is the favourable time:
this is the day of salvation. 2 COR 6:2

DEUTERONOMY 26:16-19 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Yes, Lord, I believe Your Word that it is You who chose us to be Your own. You called us by name from eternity to be a people who are consecrated to You, anointed by You, grafted into Your Body, and fed by the Flesh and Blood of that same Body that You received from Your Mother, Mary. 

Knowing our weaknesses personally, since You became a Man like us in all things save sin, You instituted the Sacraments. Through them, we receive all the graces we need in this life to persevere in faith hope, and love, with the help of Your Holy Spirit, until we come to the end of our pilgrim journey on earth. Without Him, it would be impossible for us to say You are Lord.

At our baptism, our parents and Godparents made solemn vows on our behalf that we would be raised in the faith, when we attained the age of reason we confirmed our acceptance of these vows. We have broken Your commandments often, Lord, but thank You for the Sacrament of Reconciliation - no matter how many times and how grievously we fall every day, when we are truly contrite and resolve to sin no more, You forgive us all and restore Your friendship with us.

Thank You for giving us the Bread of Angels, without this weekly sustenance and for those who desire it, daily, we would fall by the wayside and be trampled upon or devoured. Grace waters our good intentions, and enables us to keep our will aligned with Your. The Sacraments help us with all our needs - physical, spiritual, emotional, and mental. Continue to take us by the hand and guide us safely through this wilderness, this valley of tears, until we reach safe harbor.

‘And the Lord has today made this declaration about you: that you will be his very own people as he promised you, but only if you keep all his commandments; then for praise and renown and honour he will set you high above all the nations he has made, and you will be a people consecrated to the Lord, as he promised.’

PSALM 118 (119):1-2,4-5,7-8 ©

They are happy whose life is blameless,

who follow God’s law!
They are happy who do his will,
seeking him with all their hearts.

You have laid down your precepts

to be obeyed with care.
May my footsteps be firm
to obey your statutes.

I will thank you with an upright heart

as I learn your decrees.
I will obey your statutes;
do not forsake me.

They are happy who follow God’s law!

MATTHEW 5:43-48 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

We long for peace, we pray earnestly for it. We hanker for the good old days, looking at them with rose-tinted glasses we believe that they were better than the present, but we are mistaken. True peace is in every heart that steadfastly keeps Your Word. It is not shaken or affected by the actions of others, whether good or bad, because it is anchored in You.

We are called to be unfailingly good, kind, charitable, gentle, long-suffering, and generous with all irrespective of who they are or how they treat us. Every human being is a child of God created in His image and likeness. God loves each one of us individually and You died for all. We may not all be actually saved but we are all potentially saved. This is why we are called to preach the Gospel and make it come alive by the way we live our lives and the way we treat one another. 

More often than not those who are assigned the task of being teachers, elders, and leaders often fall far short of the mark, and as a result, the whole Church is maligned. We can make a difference when each of us begins to love as You have taught us to love. Self-sacrificial,  agape love saved the world and continues to save it. 

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘But I say this to you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; in this way you will be sons of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on bad men as well as good, and his rain to fall on honest and dishonest men alike. For if you love those who love you, what right have you to claim any credit? Even the tax collectors do as much, do they not? And if you save your greetings for your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Even the pagans do as much, do they not? You must therefore be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect.’

FRIDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Shake off all your sins – it is the Lord who speaks –
and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. EZK 18:31

EZEKIEL 18:21-28 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

We become prisoners of our shame when it prevents us back from going to Confession and receiving total absolution for all the grave sins that we have committed. When we hold on to our shame we are bound in chains but when we bring that shame with humility and contrition to the confessional we are set free. Beloved, in fact, this is precisely why You instituted the Sacrament of Reconciliation. 

When we fail to renounce sin we become sick in heart, mind, soul, body, and spirit and we find it increasingly difficult to resist temptation. We become more susceptible to the temptations of the flesh, the world, and the devil and become even more afflicted in body and spirit until we find that we are incapable of renouncing the voracious demands of sin that prey on us. And yet there is such a simple remedy for sin in the Sacrament of Reconciliation but the longer we stay away from it the more difficult it becomes to find the courage as well as humility, to confess our sins to the priest and receive Your healing and forgiveness. 

You desire that all of us be saved this is why You died for us in perfect obedience to Your Father's will. Grant me this grace O Lord and grant this grace not just to me but to all my family members and the whole world that we renounce our wickedness and live. 

PSALM 129(130) ©

Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord,

Lord, hear my voice!
O let your ears be attentive
to the voice of my pleading.

If you, O Lord, should mark our guilt,

Lord, who would survive?
But with you is found forgiveness:
for this we revere you.

My soul is waiting for the Lord.

I count on his word.
My soul is longing for the Lord
more than watchman for daybreak.
(Let the watchman count on daybreak
and Israel on the Lord.)

Because with the Lord there is mercy

and fullness of redemption,
Israel indeed he will redeem
from all its iniquity.

If you, O Lord, should mark our guilt, Lord, who would survive?

MATTHEW 5:20-26 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

If we are self-absorbed like the scribes and Pharisees, if our virtue is only cosmetic and we display it for all to see like window-dressing but there is no substance to it then as You rightly point it we will never get into the kingdom of heaven. You have neither affection nor patience with hypocrites. 

True virtue costs something. It demands the giving up of self for the good of the other, of the renunciation of our will in exchange for You in all circumstances, in renouncing the world, the flesh, and the devil. It means denying the senses even of legitimate pleasure. To seek You ardently and be united to You no matter what it costs us for it is only in dying to ourselves that we will find eternal life.

It cost God everything to save us likewise we must be prepared to give up all for Your Sake and the sake of the Kingdom if we desire to be saved.

ST. PETER'S CHAIR - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

You are Peter,
and on this rock I will build my Church.
And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. MT 16:18

1PETER 5:1-4 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

All of us in some way are elders and a witness to those who are placed in our care in some capacity or other whether as a parent, a sibling, a relative, a neighbor, a friend, a parishioner, etc. Today, we are reminded that we have to be faithful in whatever role is entrusted to us. We are to be upright, and set a good example, whether seen or unseen we must do our duty simply and trustfully. We must be humble, docile, and obedient to Your will. We are called to be gentle in word and deed and yet uncompromising in matters of the faith, in the teachings and doctrines of the Church. 

By the witness of our lives, we are called to give testimony to You O Lord. We must pray constantly and be vigilant at all times lest we become a stumbling block to those who are weak. On the day when You return O Lord, our chief shepherd we will stand before You unashamed. By Your grace and Your grant that this is so. 

PSALM 22(23) ©

The Lord is my shepherd;

there is nothing I shall want.
Fresh and green are the pastures
where he gives me repose.
Near restful waters he leads me,
to revive my drooping spirit.

He guides me along the right path;

he is true to his name.
If I should walk in the valley of darkness
no evil would I fear.
You are there with your crook and your staff;
with these you give me comfort.

You have prepared a banquet for me

in the sight of my foes.
My head you have anointed with oil;
my cup is overflowing.

Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me
all the days of my life.
In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell
forever and ever.

The Lord is my shepherd: there is nothing I shall want.

MATTHEW 16:13-19 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Today, looking at me You ask me directly just as You asked the Twelve and as You ask every disciple in every age, ‘But you, who do you say I am?’ I make the same declaration that Peter and all his successors have done and will do until Your glorious second coming, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ Your response to Peter reveals that the gift of insight he had received concerning Your identity was given to him directly from Your Father. It was a sign to You too that God had selected Peter to be the head of the Apostles. He was to be the rock on which You would build Your Church and You O Lord, have assured her that the gates of hell shall never prevail against her for she is the pillar and the bulwark of Truth.

‘Simon son of Jonah, you are a happy man! Because it was not flesh and blood that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.’

WEDNESDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Now, now – it is the Lord who speaks –
come back to me with all your heart,
for I am all tenderness and compassion. JOEL 12:13

JONAH 3:1-10 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

You sent Jonah to Nineveh to preach repentance - it was a great city steeped in sin and evil and disaster was to come upon them and total destruction as a result of their grave sins. It was a pagan city and yet You had pity on them and wanted to give them a chance to repent. The prophet Jonah preached baldly and succinctly, ‘Only forty days more and Nineveh is going to be destroyed.’ It had the desired effect on the Ninevites - they repented sincerely and not just they but the king as well. He issued a decree stating: ‘Men and beasts, herds and flocks, are to taste nothing; they must not eat, they must not drink water. All are to put on sackcloth and call on God with all their might; and let everyone renounce his evil behaviour and the wicked things he has done. Who knows if God will not change his mind and relent, if he will not renounce his burning wrath, so that we do not perish?’ 

Sometimes Lord all it takes is for someone to care enough to point out our sins and urge us to repent or else we will lose our immortal souls, we believe, we repent and are forgiven. This is why You have given each of the baptized a mission to go into the world and to preach the good news of salvation if not with words at least by our lives.

You O Lord are a God of mercy and tender compassion slow to anger and eager to forgive. Let all sinners take heart Lord that You are a God of love and You are pleased with the least effort we make to turn away from sin and to turn to You and be saved just as You did for the people of Nineveh.

God saw their efforts to renounce their evil behavior, and God relented: he did not inflict on them the disaster which he had threatened.

PSALM 50(51):3-4,12-13,18-19 ©

Have mercy on me, God, in your kindness.

In your compassion blot out my offence.
O wash me more and more from my guilt
and cleanse me from my sin.

A pure heart create for me, O God,

put a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your presence,
nor deprive me of your holy spirit.

For in sacrifice you take no delight,

burnt offering from me you would refuse,
my sacrifice, a contrite spirit.
A humbled, contrite heart you will not spurn.

A humbled, contrite heart, O God, you will not spurn.

LUKE 11:29-32 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

I believe that nothing is more painful to Your mystical body than the divisions that exist between Christians the root causes for this are ignorance on the part of many who are clueless about the rich heritage of the faith that You entrusted to the Apostles and this treasure is not only safeguarded by the Church but is handed down faithfully from one generation to the next. Sadly while people are willing to spend a large portion of their lives studying hard to make a living there is little or no curiosity on matters of faith and doctrine even though this would have a great impact for good in their lives. The second and even graver reason is pride. Pride is an enormous stumbling block because it prevents them from truly seeking the truth with a childlike simplicity of heart ready to follow wherever the Holy Spirit leads them even where they are afraid to go. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to lead and guide all believers into the Truth the whole Truth and nothing but the Truth. 

All too often good men and women who genuinely love You and desire to keep Your commandments falter and fail because they stubbornly refuse to let go of their long-held prejudices. They embrace outright lies about the Church You established, the Rock You established her on, and her successors as well as her members. But the Holy Spirit is constantly at work and we can be certain if they are truly men and women of goodwill He will find a chink in their armor and the Truth will invade their souls. Or else:

On Judgement day the Queen of the South will rise up with the men of this generation and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and there is something greater than Solomon here. On Judgement day the men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation and condemn it, because when Jonah preached they repented; and there is something greater than Jonah here.’

May Your prayer that we may all be one be answered sooner rather than later so You O Lord can hasten the day of Your coming in glory. Maranatha! Lord Jesus, Maranatha!

TUESDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Man does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. MT 4:4

ISAIAH 55:10-11 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Your Word is the Living Word, the Eternal Word, and it is etched in the hearts of all the redeemed. When we were baptized we were grafted to You and Your life became our life. We are sons and daughters of the Father and God desires that all His children be saved and come to the knowledge of truth. 

Even before the foundations of the world O Lord, You are  Your Word is Spirit, Truth, Life, and Light. God uttered His Word before the dawn of creation and everything that God desired came into existence. We are saved, we are redeemed, we are sanctified, we belong to God utterly and irrevocably and the powers of darkness can never overcome the Light and the Life that we have received from You. 

Thank You, Father, for completing all that You set out to do for us in the Eternal Word that proceeded from Your Mouth. 

PSALM 33(34):4-7,16-19 ©

Glorify the Lord with me.

Together let us praise his name.
I sought the Lord and he answered me;
from all my terrors he set me free.

Look towards him and be radiant;

let your faces not be abashed.
This poor man called, the Lord heard him
and rescued him from all his distress.

The Lord turns his face against the wicked

to destroy their remembrance from the earth.
The Lord turns his eyes to the just
and his ears to their appeal.

They call and the Lord hears

and rescues them in all their distress.
The Lord is close to the broken-hearted;
those whose spirit is crushed he will save.

The Lord rescues the just in all their distress.

MATTHEW 6:7-15 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Our hearts, minds, and wills must be engaged as one when we pray. Catholics are often accused by our Christian brothers and sisters of repetition when we pray - especially when we pray the Holy Rosary. But we know that this prayer beloved of saints and sinners alike is contemplative, and scriptural, and draws us close to Your Sacred Heart through the heart of the Immaculata.  

The more we contemplate the Sacred Mysteries of our faith the more we come to love You, adore You, and worship You and our hearts are filled with gratitude and overwhelming love, for all that You have done for us through Your incarnation, Your life, Your passion death and glorious resurrection.

Thank You for giving us the prayer of the Our Father. It is based on Your intimate knowledge of Your Father and ours. You teach us in this beautiful prayer how we are to approach God as Father, give Him praise, honor, and glory, and pray for His will to be accomplished perfectly in our lives and in the world just as it is in heaven and finally we are to provide for our needs. We then ask that our Father give us daily sustenance first by giving us the Bread of Angels, the Holy Eucharist without which we will surely die, and then to provide for our daily needs for our physical body. Next, we ask for forgiveness for all our sins for we fall so often in the day because we are weak. Thank You, Lord, for reminding us that we cannot expect to be forgiven unless we first forgive anything we have against another and finally we ask that we may not be tested beyond our ability to resist. All glory and praise to You O Lord our God, now and forever. Amen.

MONDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Now is the favourable time:
this is the day of salvation. 2 COR 6:2

LEVITICUS 19:1-2,11-18 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

This book was written over a thousand years before God sent You into the world at a time when the world was godless, or pagan, and wholly barbaric. Who then can deny that the Commandments given to Moses were out of this world. The people in the ancient world thought nothing of committing the most outrageous crimes against each other. They were lawless. Their conscience was ill-formed. But God, having created us for Himself, chose Abraham to begin the work of revealing Himself to us which would ultimately lead to our redemption and our salvation.  

This is what God had to say to His people, to us, and to the whole world until You come again in glory.

“Be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy.”

If we strive with the help of the grace that You so readily make available to us when we ask for it, then we will keep all the commandments that have been given to us. When we begin to love our neighbor as we love ourselves then the Kingdom of God will definitely be visible among us. 

Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life. Help us to keep Your words, Beloved.

PSALM 18(19):8-10,15 ©

The law of the Lord is perfect,

it revives the soul.
The rule of the Lord is to be trusted,
it gives wisdom to the simple.

The precepts of the Lord are right,

they gladden the heart.
The command of the Lord is clear,
it gives light to the eyes.

The fear of the Lord is holy,

abiding for ever.
The decrees of the Lord are truth
and all of them just.

May the spoken words of my mouth,

the thoughts of my heart,
win favour in your sight, O Lord,
my rescuer, my rock!

Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.

MATTHEW 25:31-46 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

The Law of God is written in our hearts whether we know You or not because we are created by God. This is why many, though they did not know You, have done great works of charity because their hearts were moved to compassion and empathy by the natural law that is imprinted on every heart. 

The pity and tragedy is when we O Lord, who are called by Your Name are indifferent to the poor, the suffering, the sick, the outcast, the stranger, the weak, the prisoner, the homeless, those broken in heart, mind, soul, body, and spirit. On us will fall a harsher judgment. 

While we have time, Lord, grant us the grace to see You in everyone we meet especially those less fortunate than we are. We are but stewards of the gifts You have given us and You will demand a strict account of our stewardship. We are called to have open hands and open hearts. Help us to share while we still can not just material things but more importantly of ourselves and above all the treasure of God's Word and saving work. At the end of our lives may we be counted among those to whom You will say: 

 “Come, you whom my Father has blessed, take for your heritage the kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was a stranger and you made me welcome; naked and you clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison and you came to see me.” Then the virtuous will say to him in reply, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you; or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and make you welcome; naked and clothe you; sick or in prison and go to see you?” And the King will answer, “I tell you solemnly, in so far as you did this to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me.”

FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Man does not live on bread alone,
but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. MT 4:4

GENESIS 9:8-15 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Every Covenant that God made beginning with Abraham is a Covenant made with me in mind for I was conceived in the heart and mind of God in eternity. Eternity with You O my beloved Lord is what God has destined for me.

Yes I know I am a sinner. I was conceived in sin, and I continue to sin because I am weak, frail, willful, and selfish. I know that I often lack the will to choose what is good, true, and beautiful over my sinful inclinations but I also know that I desire to love You with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength and You O Lord are so good You will bless me and grant me the desires of my heart.

Thank You for the final Covenant that God has made with me and with the whole human race in You my Lord and my God. I give my God unceasing praise and thanks for You, my Living God, and my hope of eternal joy and salvation.

PSALM 24(25):4-6,7b-9 ©

Lord, make me know your ways.

Lord, teach me your paths.
Make me walk in your truth, and teach me:
for you are God my saviour.

Remember your mercy, Lord,

and the love you have shown from of old.
In your love remember me,
because of your goodness, O Lord.

The Lord is good and upright.

He shows the path to those who stray,
He guides the humble in the right path,
He teaches his way to the poor.

Your ways, Lord, are faithfulness and love for those who keep your covenant.

1 PETER 3:18-22 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

While it is true that You willingly, in obedience to the Father's will took on Yourself our sins, our guilt, and our death because God loves us, because of Your perfect submission to His will God has raised You high above all in heaven on earth and under the earth. God has made You supreme over all creatures and all created things. To You is given all rule, all power, and judgment. Your reign is unending.

Thank You, Lord, for entering into my sin, my shame, my guilt, my death, and in exchange for my miserable and sinful life You have given me Your life and Your Spirit. Keep me faithful to the end and not just me, Beloved, but all those I love. Those who have to be restored to sacramental life grant them the grace to return home to You and to Holy Mother Church. Those who need to be converted, grant them conversion through baptism. Thank You.

MARK 1:12-15 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Today, the first Sunday in Lent, we reflect of Mark's short version of the 40 days You spent in the wilderness. The Church has set aside 40 days for us too to get back to what's important for our salvation. How we need to reflect on our way of living and whether or not it is conducive to making us holy and perfect as our Father is holy and perfect.

It is difficult, and sometimes we believe impossible for us to discipline our appetites for the things of the world, the material things, the things that give our body pleasure. These are not always bad or sinful but this time of Lent gives us an opportunity to train ourselves to control those passions, the desires of the body, its appetites, and to focus on what is spiritual. The things that the soul longs for - silence, contemplation, meditation. Adoration before Your eucharistic presence in the chapel where You wait for us. To take a moment to focus on the Gifts of the Holy Spirit and to use these gifts so the fruits of the Spirit can become evident in our lives.

You O Lord were both human and divine and there is nothing about the human condition that is beyond Your ability to understand and so I come to You this day and ask for the grace to exercise discipline on the appetites of my flesh. It is not easy Lord and I am sure that on some days I will fail but as long as I strive honestly I know You will supply all the help I need and You will be pleased. Thank You, Lord.

SATURDAY AFTER ASH WEDNESDAY - 2024

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

I take pleasure, not in the death of a wicked man
– it is the Lord who speaks –
but in the turning back of a wicked man
who changes his ways to win life. EZK 33:11

ISAIAH 58:9-14 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

We are called to be holy and perfect just as our Father is holy and perfect. He created us in Your image and likeness - the image and likeness of His only beloved Son and You O Lord our God have put Your own Spirit in us. He is breathed into our souls and this is why we can, sinners though we are, strive after holiness and perfection if we so desire. We must will it only then can You have Your way with us. You can make us what the Father desires us to be if we only let You. 

Today's first reading tells us clearly how we can live holy lives pleasing to God in every way. Unless we acknowledge that we are only sojourners in this world and here only for a few short years for which we will have to give a strict account to You then we will always have heaven before our eyes. We are only strangers here our true home is in heaven - help us never to forget this truth and live our lives accordingly. We are heaven-bound, Beloved, may we always keep this glorious goal before our eyes no matter how hard the tests and temptations that we must first endure.

If you refrain from trampling the sabbath,

and doing business on the holy day,
if you call the Sabbath ‘Delightful’,
and the day sacred to the Lord ‘Honourable’,
if you honour it by abstaining from travel,
from doing business and from gossip,
then shall you find your happiness in the Lord
and I will lead you triumphant over the heights of the land.
I will feed you on the heritage of Jacob your father.
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

PSALM 85(86):1-6 ©

Turn your ear, O Lord, and give answer

for I am poor and needy.
Preserve my life, for I am faithful;
save the servant who trusts in you.

You are my God, have mercy on me, Lord,

for I cry to you all the day long.
Give joy to your servant, O Lord,
for to you I lift up my soul.

O Lord, you are good and forgiving,

full of love to all who call.
Give heed, O Lord, to my prayer
and attend to the sound of my voice.

Show me, Lord, your way so that I may walk in your truth.

LUKE 5:27-32 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

You are God, You see all, You know all, You noticed the tax collector, You saw the true state of his soul, You knew how lonely he was. He hated being considered a sinner and an outcast and wished ardently to be a part of the people of God but was judged and condemned for his profession. Surely Levi would have heard of You for Your fame had spread everywhere perhaps You caught his gaze on You and You saw the regret, pain, and hopelessness in his glance and Your Heart was filled with great tenderness, compassion, and love for him and You invited him to follow You.

Those two words, 'Follow me' were like a clap of thunder or maybe sweet music to his ears. Incredulity filled his soul. Did he hear right? Were You actually inviting him to follow You? Once he realized that You did, he did hesitate for an instant but leaving everything got up and followed You. 

O my Lord and my God, if only I was like Levi. You call to me unceasingly yet I often close my ears to the sound of Your voice because I prefer my own will to Yours. I prefer a life of ease and self-indulgence rather than denial and mortification of my flesh and to align my will to Yours in all things. In this alone is true joy. Grant me the grace I need to respond generously, wholeheartedly, obediently, promptly, and above all gladly to Your call.

Thank You, Lord, for assuring me and every sinner that You came to call sinners to repentance and not the virtuous. Keep me aware of my need of You and grant me the grace to cling to You and follow You all the days of my life.