ST. JOHN, APOSTLE, EVANGELIST - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

We praise you, O God,
we acknowledge you to be the Lord.
The glorious company of the apostles praise you, O Lord. - TE DEUM

1 JOHN 1:1-4

My Soul's Beloved,

St. John, Apostle and evangelist, was dearest to You; he loved You exclusively with an undivided heart and undivided affections. This is the kind of love that we are called to give You, my Lord, and my God. We are to have a self-emptying love so we can be filled with You. 

John was given experiences that none of the others were privileged to have. He represents all who are beloved to You. He got to take Your Mama to his home as his mom too, to care for her, and to call her eema just as You did. In giving her to him, You gave her to us as well. Each of the baptised members of Your Body is privileged to call her Mama Mary, to love her, to run into her arms. To be told of You by her. She leads us to You, and she shares her wonder and her love for You with us.

Thank You, Lord, for the gift of Yourself ot us in the Holy Eucharist. Here we eat You, we taste You, we consume You. You consummate Your love and life in us. We are made one with You, and we receive strength for the journey from this life to the next. Thank You, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Something which has existed since the beginning,
that we have heard,
and we have seen with our own eyes;
that we have watched
and touched with our hands:
the Word, who is life –
this is our subject.
That life was made visible:
we saw it and we are giving our testimony,
telling you of the eternal life
which was with the Father and has been made visible to us.
What we have seen and heard
we are telling you
so that you too may be in union with us,
as we are in union
with the Father
and with his Son Jesus Christ.
We are writing this to you to make our own joy complete.

PSALM 96(97):1-2,5-6,11-12

Rejoice, you just, in the Lord.

The Lord is king, let earth rejoice,
let all the coastlands be glad.
Cloud and darkness are his raiment;
his throne, justice and right.

The mountains melt like wax
before the Lord of all the earth.
The skies proclaim his justice;
all peoples see his glory.

Light shines forth for the just
and joy for the upright of heart.
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord;
give glory to his holy name.

Rejoice, you just, in the Lord.

JOHN 20:2-8

TUESDAY OF THE FOURTH WEEK OF ADVENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

King of the peoples
and cornerstone of the Church,
come and save man,
whom you made from the dust of the earth.

MALACHI 3:1-4,23-24

My Soul's Beloved, 

We are living in days when it appears that a great spiritual darkness continues to grow and envelop the world. However, this is not the case; there is a great good, a quiet yet certain spiritual reawakening that is taking place. It is stronger than the tumultuous, strident, jarring, and oftentimes violent presence of the evil that is gripping the souls of many. The work of the Spirit, however, is palpable. We see this especially in the younger generation, who, tired of the evil culture that the world is forcefully ramming down their throats, are resisting and taking a firm stand for You and for their faith in You.  

We take heart in the prophecy of Malachi, for we know that our God has come to us in history, continues to come to us in mystery, and will come again in glory and majesty to establish Your glorious reign forever. However, the day of tribulation must come before the glorious dawn of Your return. The world and all in it will be purified as the fire of purgation will sweep over the world and rid it of all that is not of God. Come, Lord Jesus. Do not delay. We await Your coming in glory.

The Lord God says this: Look, I am going to send my messenger to prepare a way before me. And the Lord you are seeking will suddenly enter his Temple; and the angel of the covenant whom you are longing for, yes, he is coming, says the Lord of Hosts. Who will be able to resist the day of his coming? Who will remain standing when he appears? For he is like the refiner’s fire and the fullers’ alkali. He will take his seat as refiner and purifier; he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and then they will make the offering to the Lord as it should be made. The offering of Judah and Jerusalem will then be welcomed by the Lord as in former days, as in the years of old.
Know that I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before my day comes, that great and terrible day. He shall turn the hearts of fathers towards their children and the hearts of children towards their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a curse.

PSALM 24(25):4-5,8-9,10,14

Stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.

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.

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.

His ways are faithfulness and love
for those who keep his covenant and law.
The Lord’s friendship is for those who revere him;
to them he reveals his covenant.

Stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.

LUKE 1:57-66

FOURTH SUNDAY IN ADVENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and they will call him Emmanuel,
a name which means ‘God-is-with-us’. MT 1:23

ISAIAH 7:10-14

My Soul's Beloved,

Even if we are stupid and pompous like Ahaz, who refuses to ask for a sign that God Himself desires to give him, signs of Your goodness, Your Presence, and Your amazing love are everywhere for those with eyes to see and ears to hear. We look up at a perfect blue sky during the day, the night sky filled with stars and the moon, and enjoy a perfect sunrise and sunset. Trees laden with flowers and fruit. All kinds of insects and birds in gardens are rampant with the most glorious flowers in summer, while the air is redolent with their fragrance. The laughter of children at play, the gurgle of a baby, or an infant smiling in its sleep. A woman with a child in her womb, and the father protectively watching over her with great tenderness. In all of these and so many more amazing ways, we see signs of God imprinted in every created thing.

But the greatest of all signs, my Lord, and my God, is Mary's fiat and, instantly, the Holy Spirit comes upon her, the power of the Most High overshadows this new Ark of the Covenant, and the Son of God becomes incarnate in her womb. And the sole purpose of the glorious descent of heaven into the womb of a Virgin and through her to the world was to ensure that God's people could regain through Your passion, death, and glorious resurrection, the Paradise that our first parents lost and which You, Beloved, regained for us. Thank You, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Thank You, Mama Mary and St. Joseph.

The Lord spoke to Ahaz and said, ‘Ask the Lord your God for a sign for yourself coming either from the depths of Sheol or from the heights above.’ ‘No,’ Ahaz answered ‘I will not put the Lord to the test.’

Then Isaiah said:
‘Listen now, House of David:
are you not satisfied with trying the patience of men
without trying the patience of my God, too?
The Lord himself, therefore,
will give you a sign.
It is this: the maiden is with child
and will soon give birth to a son
whom she will call Immanuel,
a name which means “God-is-with-us.”’

PSALM 23(24):1-6

Let the Lord enter! He is the king of glory.

The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness,
the world and all its peoples.
It is he who set it on the seas;
on the waters he made it firm.

Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord?
Who shall stand in his holy place?
The man with clean hands and pure heart,
who desires not worthless things.

He shall receive blessings from the Lord
and reward from the God who saves him.
Such are the men who seek him,
seek the face of the God of Jacob.

Let the Lord enter! He is the king of glory.

ROMANS 1:1-7

My Soul's Beloved,

Were it not for the Apostles and St. Paul, and every one of the missionaries who left the comfort of their homes, their families, their countries, because the zeal of the Gospel impelled them to, where would we be? Most certainly, we would be pagans worshipping idols and false gods and living our lives in abject spiritual poverty and the real possibility of being separated from You eternally.

We thank God for St. Paul, the Apostles, the Gospel writers, Scripture writers, and scholars, those who dedicated their whole lives to being steeped in God's Word. They, inspired by the Holy Spirit, received the gifts of knowledge and understanding and were able to break that Word to us so we too can, through their life's study, receive, understand, and become aware of the hidden treasures and the great promises contained in them. 

The more we ponder the Word of God, the more we are able to see, touch, and experience You, the Incarnate Word of the Father, the Son of God made flesh, and descendant of David through St. Joseph, Your foster father. The Old Testament becomes alive when we see how the New is hidden in the Old and the Old comes alive in light of the New.

Thank You, Lord, for all those whose life's work is to study Scripture and to give to us the fruit of their labor so we too can grow in faith, in hope, and above all in love.

From Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus who has been called to be an apostle, and specially chosen to preach the Good News that God promised long ago through his prophets in the scriptures.
This news is about the Son of God who, according to the human nature he took was a descendant of David: it is about Jesus Christ our Lord who, in the order of the spirit, the spirit of holiness that was in him, was proclaimed Son of God in all his power through his resurrection from the dead. Through him we received grace and our apostolic mission to preach the obedience of faith to all pagan nations in honour of his name. You are one of these nations, and by his call belong to Jesus Christ. To you all, then, who are God’s beloved in Rome, called to be saints, may God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ send grace and peace.

MATTHEW 1:18-24

My Soul's Beloved, 

The words with which St. Matthew gives us an account of all that occurred in this most turbulent time in the lives of Mary and Joseph hardly give us any real inkling of the emotions they actually experienced during this most troubling time, at least for St. Joseph. Knowing the ancient prophecies of the prophet Isaiah well, and living at a time when the Messiah was expected to arrive, every virgin would at some time wonder if she was the chosen one to conceive and give birth to him. 

The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and they will call him Emmanuel.

While Mary, too, knew prophecies, she was too humble to consider herself worthy of being the one chosen by God. However, when the Angel made it known to her that she was, in fact, the one, she did as she always had done, since her response to God her whole life, from her earliest years, was, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”

St. Joseph, once it was made known to him by the Angel that he was indeed the man chosen by God to be the foster father of His only Son, and the most chaste spouse of the fairest of all God's creatures, he too did as he had done all his life. He obeyed,  did just as God asked, and took his wife, Mary, to his home.

This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’ Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son
and they will call him Emmanuel,
a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.’ When Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do: he took his wife to his home.

SATURDAY OF THE THIRD WEEK OF LENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Key of David, who open the gates of the eternal kingdom,
come to liberate from prison
the captive who lives in darkness.

ISAIAH 7:10-14

My Soul's Beloved, 

We either look eagerly for signs of Your ever-present presence with us and in us, or we reject them because we wish to live unholy lives compromised by our concupiscence. You, O Lord, who are God and the Son of God, are immanent not just in our world but in all who are baptized and grafted to Your Body. Too many of us can, with an air of false humility, say like Ahaz, 'No, I will not put the Lord to the test.' Because we are afraid that when we do, we cannot deny that God is with us, and we have to order our lives according to Your holy will.

But the prophet Isaiah would have none of it. He told him bluntly that, despite his false self-deprecation, God would fulfill His promise to His people. You, my Lord and my God, Beloved of my Soul, are the fulfillment of every prophecy, every promise, every Covenant God has made with us since the foundations of the world and the creation of our first parents, Adam and Eve.

Thank You, Lord, for Mary, Your Mama and ours, and for her 'fiat' that undid the knot of Eve's disobedience. You chose to come to her first and through her to us. Grant us this grace, Lord, to give her all the love and reverence that we owe her for her unflinching and uncompromising embrace of all that that 'Yes' entailed and the avalanche of God's grace and mercy that redeemed the world.

The Lord spoke to Ahaz and said, ‘Ask the Lord your God for a sign for yourself coming either from the depths of Sheol or from the heights above.’ ‘No,’ Ahaz answered ‘I will not put the Lord to the test.’
Then Isaiah said:
‘Listen now, House of David:
are you not satisfied with trying the patience of men
without trying the patience of my God, too?
The Lord himself, therefore,
will give you a sign.
It is this: the maiden is with child
and will soon give birth to a son
whom she will call Immanuel,
a name which means “God-is-with-us.”’

PSALM 23(24):1-6

Let the Lord enter! He is the king of glory.

The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness,
the world and all its peoples.
It is he who set it on the seas;
on the waters he made it firm.

Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord?
Who shall stand in his holy place?
The man with clean hands and pure heart,
who desires not worthless things.

He shall receive blessings from the Lord
and reward from the God who saves him.
Such are the men who seek him,
seek the face of the God of Jacob.

Let the Lord enter! He is the king of glory.

LUKE 1:26-38

My Soul's Beloved,

The day is drawing near, and soon the whole world will erupt in joyful celebration on Christmas day. While it is true that filthy commerce has tarnished for many all over the world the true meaning of this Season of Love and Grace, yet the Church and many Christians will exult at God's infinite goodness in stooping in humility, to be born in poverty, and although being God, clothing Yourself in our flesh to redeem us. One like us, through disobedience, cost us Paradise. One who became like us through perfect obedience, regained it for us. Thank You, Lord. Thank you, Mama Mary. Thank you, St. Joseph.

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, may I, like Mama Mar,y say to You always and everywhere, ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord, let what you have said be done to me.’ 

The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. He went in and said to her, ‘Rejoice, so highly favoured! The Lord is with you.’ She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean, but the angel said to her, ‘Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God’s favour. Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?’ ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you’ the angel answered ‘and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God. Know this too: your kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing is impossible to God.’ ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord,’ said Mary ‘let what you have said be done to me.’ And the angel left her.

FRIDAY OF THE THIRD OF ADVENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Root of Jesse, set up as a sign to the peoples,
come to save us,
and delay no more.

JUDGES 13:2-7,24-25

My Soul's Beloved,

God has visited His people all through salvation history and pledged to send someone to rescue them from their enemies. God can cause life to spring from barren wombs like he did for Samson's mother, for Hannah, Samuel's mother, and for Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. Nothing is impossible or too difficult for our Father in Heaven. 

God intervenes in impossible situations to show us that there is nothing He cannot or will not do to save us. We are His. We are purchased by the Blood of the Lamb. We belong irrevocably to God our Father. You, Beloved, paid the price of our redemption, and we are His and Yours forever. We can walk away, You O Lord, never will, for Your Covenant of Love with us is eternal.

Men are weak. We are sinners. We find it impossible to keep our vows. We are imperfect. We are creatures of concupiscence, and we see this time and again from the flawed leaders that God chose, beginning with Adam and Eve. It is only when God broke through time and space and sent His only Son to become incarnate in the womb of the Virgin Mary that hope and the fulfillment of all God's promises were born. It finally became possible for men to become like gods because the Son of God became a Man and by Your atoning Sacrifice on the Cross made us adopted children of Your Father. We dare to call Him Abba because You ask us to.

We are no longer barren but filled with the fruitful life of the Holy Spirit, who helps us to grow daily more and more in Your image and likeness with His ever-present and unfailing help. Thank You, Lord.

There was a man of Zorah of the tribe of Dan, called Manoah. His wife was barren, she had borne no children. The angel of the Lord appeared to this woman and said to her, ‘You are barren and have had no child. But from now on take great care. Take no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean. For you will conceive and bear a son. No razor is to touch his head, for the boy shall be God’s nazirite from his mother’s womb. It is he who will begin to rescue Israel from the power of the Philistines.’ Then the woman went and told her husband, ‘A man of God has just come to me; his presence was like the presence of the angel of God, he was so majestic. I did not ask him where he came from, and he did not reveal his name to me. But he said to me, “You will conceive and bear a son. From now on, take no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean. For the boy shall be God’s nazirite from his mother’s womb to his dying day.”’
The woman gave birth to a son and called him Samson. The child grew, and the Lord blessed him; and the spirit of the Lord began to move him.

PSALM 70(71):3-6,16-17

My lips are filled with your praise, with your glory all the day long.

Be a rock where I can take refuge,
a mighty stronghold to save me;
for you are my rock, my stronghold.
Free me from the hand of the wicked.

It is you, O Lord, who are my hope,
my trust, O Lord, since my youth.
On you I have leaned from my birth,
from my mother’s womb you have been my help.

I will declare the Lord’s mighty deeds
proclaiming your justice, yours alone.
O God, you have taught me from my youth
and I proclaim your wonders still.

My lips are filled with your praise, with your glory all the day long.

LUKE 1:5-25

MONDAY OF THE THIRD WEEK OF ADVENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Let us see, O Lord, your mercy
and give us your saving help. PS 84:8

NUMBERS 24:2-7,15-17

My Soul's Beloved,

What God has ordained, He has ordained. No power is greater than the power of the Most High. No power can gainsay what God has in store for His Church, His people, His Bride, His children, His world.

It is so easy, my Lord, to become fearful of the powers in the world and the powers of individuals who act as if they are in control. The power of evil has spun a web of deceit and has spread lies so convincingly that it is difficult not to become anxious. But You, O Lord, have won a decisive victory over evil. The head of the serpent is crushed and is in its death throes. All-powerful and all-merciful Savior, we trust in the power of Your love, and while we wait in joyful hope for Your triumphant return to claim all creation under Your Lordship, we will wait with prayer, hope, and great longing. Marantha, Lord Jesus. Maranatha! Come quickly, Beloved.

Raising his eyes Balaam saw Israel, encamped by tribes; the spirit of God came on him and he declaimed his poem. He said:

‘The oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
the oracle of the man with far-seeing eyes,
the oracle of one who hears the word of God.
He sees what Shaddai makes him see,
receives the divine answer, and his eyes are opened.
How fair are your tents, O Jacob!
How fair your dwellings, Israel!
Like valleys that stretch afar,
like gardens by the banks of a river,
like aloes planted by the Lord,
like cedars beside the waters!
A hero arises from their stock,
he reigns over countless peoples.
His king is greater than Agag,
his majesty is exalted.’
Then Balaam declaimed his poem again. He said:
‘The oracle of Balaam son of Beor,
the oracle of the man with far-seeing eyes,
the oracle of one who hears the word of God,
of one who knows the knowledge of the Most High.
He sees what Shaddai makes him see,
receives the divine answer, and his eyes are opened.
I see him – but not in the present,
I behold him – but not close at hand:
a star from Jacob takes the leadership,
a sceptre arises from Israel.’

PSALM 24(25):4-6,7a-9

Lord, make me know your ways.

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.

In you I hope all day long
because of your goodness, O Lord.
Remember your mercy, Lord,
and the love you have shown from of old.
Do not remember the sins of my youth.
In your love remember me.

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.

Lord, make me know your ways.

MATTHEW 21:23-27

My Soul's Beloved, 

More often than not, we are like the chief priests and the elders; we know the right answers, but we do not wish to say them out loud for fear of being held accountable. We desire to live according to our flesh, according to the dictates of the world and the culture, and this is why we deliberately act obtuse. We know what is right, true, and beautiful, but we want to go with the herd rather than go against the current of popular opinion. 

Lord Jesus, the time is now, the place is here, when I have to take stock of my life and my purpose in it. We are living at a time when opposition against revealed Truth is greater than at any other time. The Church and Christians are being persecuted, murdered, marginalized, ostracised, for standing firm and declaring our faith in You boldly and uncompromisingly. You warned us, Lord, that if they killed the Master, the Savior, the Lord, then we who are Your ardent followers can expect no less. 

Beloved, when the time of testing comes, grant us the courage to stand firm in our faith. Fill us with the fire of Your Holy Spirit, so we may speak boldly and fearlessly no matter the cost and be prepared to lose our lives so we may gain it eternally. Amen.

Jesus had gone into the Temple and was teaching, when the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him and said, ‘What authority have you for acting like this? And who gave you this authority?’ ‘And I’ replied Jesus ‘will ask you a question, only one; if you tell me the answer to it, I will then tell you my authority for acting like this. John’s baptism: where did it come from: heaven or man?’ And they argued it out this way among themselves, ‘If we say from heaven, he will retort, “Then why did you refuse to believe him?”; but if we say from man, we have the people to fear, for they all hold that John was a prophet.’ So their reply to Jesus was, ‘We do not know.’ And he retorted, ‘Nor will I tell you my authority for acting like this.’

THURSDAY OF THE SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Send victory like a dew, you heavens,
and let the clouds rain it down.
Let the earth open and bring forth the saviour. IS 45:8

ISAIAH 41:13-20

My Soul's Beloved, 

Holy Mother Church is an all-wise and tender Mother. We live the entire mysteries of our faith through each liturgical year and learn to be ever more grateful to God for giving us so great a Savior, Redeemer, Messiah, Friend, and Beloved. We begin the year with the season of Advent filled with hope as we ponder, reflect, and contemplate in faith, the humility of God and the inexpressible love of the Father for us in sending You into the world to ransom us back to Himself through Your life, passion, death, and glorious resurrection. 

The words of Isaiah are heartwarming, revealing to us the tenderness of the Heart of our God. It is comforting to know how greatly we are loved by the all-powerful, almighty God who stoops low over each one of us as if we were the only person in the whole wide world. You tend to us as lovingly as a mother cares for her child. The tragedy in the world today is that so many do not know You, and this is why they are suffering torments of every kind through their addictions, as well as all manner of illnesses of body, mind, soul, and spirit, often in terrible isolation, and are living lives of desperation leading to spiritual death. Those of us who know You, Beloved, do not witness as we ought that we have such a wonderful God. No one needs to suffer alone, Lord. You came to give us life and to give it abundantly. But who is witnessing to Your love? We hug our blessings and our knowledge of You to ourselves selfishly and go about our lives untouched by the terrible misery in the world.

This is the Good News that the prophet Isaiah is telling us about, and the whole world should exult and rejoice that God came down to us to be born as one of us, live among us, experience all that we do so that there is no human being, man, woman, or child that can say You do not understand. You do. You came into the world, as Scripture tells us, not to take by the hand angels, but each one of us. Thank You, Lord. We pray that the Holy Spirit fills us who know and love You, with a divine fire to make You known and loved by everyone we encounter, all the days of our lives.

I, the Lord, your God,
I am holding you by the right hand;
I tell you, ‘Do not be afraid,
I will help you.’
Do not be afraid, Jacob, poor worm,
Israel, puny mite.
I will help you – it is the Lord who speaks –
the Holy One of Israel is your redeemer.
See, I turn you into a threshing-sled,
new, with doubled teeth;
you shall thresh and crush the mountains,
and turn the hills to chaff.
You shall winnow them and the wind will blow them away,
the gale will scatter them.
But you yourself will rejoice in the Lord,
and glory in the Holy One of Israel.
The poor and needy ask for water, and there is none,
their tongue is parched with thirst.
I, the Lord, will answer them,
I, the God of Israel, will not abandon them.
I will make rivers well up on barren heights,
and fountains in the midst of valleys;
turn the wilderness into a lake,
and dry ground into waterspring.
In the wilderness I will put cedar trees,
acacias, myrtles, olives.
In the desert I will plant juniper,
plane tree and cypress side by side;
so that men may see and know,
may all observe and understand
that the hand of the Lord has done this,
that the Holy One of Israel has created it.

PSALM 144(145):1,9-13a

The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love.

I will give you glory, O God my king,
I will bless your name for ever.
How good is the Lord to all,
compassionate to all his creatures.

All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord,
and your friends shall repeat their blessing.
They shall speak of the glory of your reign
and declare your might, O God,
to make known to men your mighty deeds
and the glorious splendour of your reign.

Yours is an everlasting kingdom;
your rule lasts from age to age.

The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love.

MATTHEW 11:11-15

My Soul's Beloved, 

Every baptized Catholic is invited to be a John the Baptist, an Elijah, in short, a saint. You say of John the Baptist, that there never has been anyone born of women who is greater than he, and immediately You say, yet, the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is. This teaches us the value of humility and littleness in the eyes of God. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit unceasingly stoop low over each of us, creatures, abject sinners though we all are, and lovingly minister to each of us as if there were only one of us in the entire world. 

Beloved, You did not die for us collectively but individually. You came to save me, redeem me, give Your life for me, shed Your Blood to ransom me. You came that I may live life abundantly, and having given Your life for me, I am commissioned to share this life with everyone I meet each day.

Today, I am instructed to open my ears and to listen to You and do as You command. I am called to be a witness by the way I live my life. I am called to be little and the least. The hall of saints is filled with examples of men, women, and children who knew that the sure straight way to the Kingdom of Heaven is to forget ourselves and lose our lives for Your sake and for the Kingdom, if we are to gain entry to it.

Jesus spoke to the crowds: ‘I tell you solemnly, of all the children born of women, a greater than John the Baptist has never been seen; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is. Since John the Baptist came, up to this present time, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence and the violent are taking it by storm. Because it was towards John that all the prophecies of the prophets and of the Law were leading; and he, if you will believe me, is the Elijah who was to return. If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen!’

TUESDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK OF ADVENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

The day of the Lord is near;
Look, he comes to save us.

ISAIAH 40:1-11

My Soul's Beloved,

Thank You for Your assurance to us here and now for Your consoling words that our salvation is nearer at hand than in this present time than at any other. We take heart, Lord, for wherever we look, it would appear that the persecution of Christians is at a level never seen before. Yet you say, "Now is the time. Your salvation is at hand." You are touching more and more hearts with grace, and they, in turn, are unstoppable in preaching the Good News with fire and vigor. 

Thank You, Lord, for Your assurance that the wicked will be cast down and the lowly raised up. Those who have spread violence with impunity will be destroyed. Those who arrogantly and with murderous hate muzzled the voices of those who raised theirs to spread awareness and truth will themselves be silenced forever.

We cling to Your promises for they are true. We know from all our past experiences that You are faithful and You are a God who saves. While we wait, O Lord, we continue to pray, hope, and with confidence.

‘Console my people, console them’
says your God.
‘Speak to the heart of Jerusalem
and call to her
that her time of service is ended,
that her sin is atoned for,
that she has received from the hand of the Lord
double punishment for all her crimes.’
A voice cries, ‘Prepare in the wilderness
a way for the Lord.
Make a straight highway for our God
across the desert.
Let every valley be filled in,
every mountain and hill be laid low.
Let every cliff become a plain,
and the ridges a valley;
then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed
and all mankind shall see it;
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’
A voice commands, ‘Cry!’
and I answered, ‘What shall I cry?’”
– ‘All flesh is grass
and its beauty like the wild flower’s.
The grass withers, the flower fades
when the breath of the Lord blows on them.
(The grass is without doubt the people.)
The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of our God remains for ever.’
Go up on a high mountain,
joyful messenger to Zion.
Shout with a loud voice,
joyful messenger to Jerusalem.
Shout without fear,
say to the towns of Judah,
‘Here is your God.’
Here is the Lord coming with power,
his arm subduing all things to him.
The prize of his victory is with him,
his trophies all go before him.
He is like a shepherd feeding his flock,
gathering lambs in his arms,
holding them against his breast
and leading to their rest the mother ewes.

PSALM 95(96):1-3,10-13

Here is our God coming with power.

O sing a new song to the Lord,
sing to the Lord all the earth.
O sing to the Lord, bless his name.
Proclaim his help day by day.

Tell among the nations his glory
and his wonders among all the peoples.
Proclaim to the nations: ‘God is king.’
He will judge the peoples in fairness.

Let the heavens rejoice and earth be glad,
let the sea and all within it thunder praise,
let the land and all it bears rejoice,
all the trees of the wood shout for joy
at the presence of the Lord for he comes,
he comes to rule the earth.

With justice he will rule the world,
he will judge the peoples with his truth.

Here is our God coming with power.

MATTHEW 18:12-14

THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee!
Blessed art thou among women. LK 1:28

GENESIS 3:9-15,20

My Soul's Beloved, 

It is only after we sin that we wish to hide from Your holy and penetrating gaze. The sinless Adam was always visible to You; You did not have to seek him or call out to him, asking, 'Where are you?' But after he committed the sin of disobedience, and he heard Your voice calling to him, he was filled with shame, and he hid. So it is with us all, Lord. We have no shame when we give in to the temptation to sin; it is only when we have to face its consequences that we begin to experience the shame we ought to have felt the moment we were tempted and ought to have refrained from doing so.

It is easy to blame everyone else for our lapses in judgment and wounding our identity as children of God. All sin is abhorrent to You, and grave sin separates us permanently from You if we die without repentance. Sin makes us vulnerable, and this vulnerability should be the catalyst for us to seek to make amends by going to Confession and putting ourselves right before You, my Lord. Instead, most of us tell ourselves it's ok, and that God will understand, or we either make light of our sins and their gravity, convincing ourselves it's no big deal. It is only when we have to suffer the consequences of our actions that we either hide from You out of fear or we brazenly pretend that we did nothing wrong. Either way, we suffer the loss of our peace when we rupture our relationship with You. 

Adam immediately denied responsibility for his action, blaming the woman whom he at first loved and delighted in, when in truth, he ought to have stopped her at once from disobeying God. He got taken in by the lie that the devil had fed her because he desired to possess what was not his to have. We, too, O Lord, are no different from our first parents. Original sin has tainted us all except our blessed Mother, whose feast of the Immaculate Conception we celebrate today. 

Thank You, Lord, for giving us so powerful an intercessor who pleads before Your glorious throne for her poor, unfortunate children who weep and moan in this valley of tears. By the power of her prayers for us, bring us at last into Your glorious Presence there to remain with You in bliss eternally.

After Adam had eaten of the tree the Lord God called to him. ‘Where are you?’ he asked. ‘I heard the sound of you in the garden;’ he replied ‘I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.’ ‘Who told you that you were naked?’ he asked ‘Have you been eating of the tree I forbade you to eat?’ The man replied, ‘It was the woman you put with me; she gave me the fruit, and I ate it.’ Then the Lord God asked the woman, ‘What is this you have done?’ The woman replied, ‘The serpent tempted me and I ate.’
Then the Lord God said to the serpent, ‘Because you have done this,
‘Be accursed beyond all cattle,
all wild beasts.
You shall crawl on your belly and eat dust
every day of your life.
I will make you enemies of each other:
you and the woman,
your offspring and her offspring.
It will crush your head
and you will strike its heel.’
The man named his wife ‘Eve’ because she was the mother of all those who live.

PSALM 97(98):1-4

Sing a new song to the Lord for he has worked wonders.

Sing a new song to the Lord
for he has worked wonders.
His right hand and his holy arm
have brought salvation.

The Lord has made known his salvation;
has shown his justice to the nations.
He has remembered his truth and love
for the house of Israel.

All the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation of our God.
Shout to the Lord, all the earth,
ring out your joy.

Sing a new song to the Lord for he has worked wonders.

EPHESIANS 1:3-6,11-12

LUKE 1:26-38

2ND SUNDAY OF ADVENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Prepare a way for the Lord,
make his paths straight,
and all mankind shall see the salvation of God. LK 3:4, 6

ISAIAH 11:1-10

My Soul's Beloved,

As horrific as our world looks right now, Lord, and as hard as it seems to remember that You have in fact and in deed won the victory and are triumphant over death and evil, yet it is hard to perceive in the hate, chaos, violence, and utter mayhem that is suffocating our world. It is hard to be optimistic when we see how ruthless leaders, and those with power, wealth, and influence, are constantly crushing the voiceless, the little ones, under their feet. But this is truly not so. We cling to the promises God has made to us through the prophets of old and to the eternal Covenant You have made with us. It is a Covenant of Love sealed in Your Blood and the Holy Spirit. As dark as it may appear, the Presence of God and the glory of the Most High are all around us. Signs of God's infinite love are everywhere if we only take the time to look for them and perceive them.

You are God, and You do not make empty promises. Every prophecy ever made by the great prophets is fulfilled in You. This is the truth that we must cling to, believe, and expect to see fulfilled even in our lifetime. The successors of Peter and the Apostles give us hope even as young people everywhere, who, tired of the empty promises of the world, are discovering You with a vibrant faith and spreading the joy of the Gospel with great fervor and enthusiasm. 

Give us a clearer vision to see You at work everywhere and to know that the works of the Enemy have been destroyed. The days of evil are slowly coming to an end.

A shoot springs from the stock of Jesse,
a scion thrusts from his roots:
on him the spirit of the Lord rests,
a spirit of wisdom and insight,
a spirit of counsel and power,
a spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
(The fear of the Lord is his breath.)
He does not judge by appearances,
he gives no verdict on hearsay,
but judges the wretched with integrity,
and with equity gives a verdict for the poor of the land.
His word is a rod that strikes the ruthless,
his sentences bring death to the wicked.
Integrity is the loincloth round his waist,
faithfulness the belt about his hips.
The wolf lives with the lamb,
the panther lies down with the kid,
calf and lion feed together,
with a little boy to lead them.
The cow and the bear make friends,
their young lie down together.
The lion eats straw like the ox.
The infant plays over the cobra’s hole;
into the viper’s lair
the young child puts his hand.
They do no hurt, no harm,
on all my holy mountain,
for the country is filled with the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters swell the sea.
That day, the root of Jesse
shall stand as a signal to the peoples.
It will be sought out by the nations
and its home will be glorious.

PSALM 71(72):1-2,7-8,12-13,17

In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.

O God, give your judgement to the king,
to a king’s son your justice,
that he may judge your people in justice
and your poor in right judgement.

In his days justice shall flourish
and peace till the moon fails.
He shall rule from sea to sea,
from the Great River to earth’s bounds.

For he shall save the poor when they cry
and the needy who are helpless.
He will have pity on the weak
and save the lives of the poor.
May his name be blessed for ever
and endure like the sun.
Every tribe shall be blessed in him,
all nations bless his name.

In his days justice shall flourish, and peace till the moon fails.

ROMANS 15:4-9

My Soul's Beloved, 

People of every nation, culture, and language can take comfort in the words of St. Paul in his letter to the Romans. All that we read of the lives of great men and women in the Old Testament and all that God promised then is fulfilled in the New, and we are filled with faith, hope, and confidence in Your power to renew our lives and make them something wonderful for God. All God's promises were not made just for His chosen people of old but are made for every people, in every nation, in every generation. You came into the world to save us all.

When things get difficult in any area of our lives, both spiritual and temporal, we know, Lord, if we come to You and ask You anything in prayer with faith, You will give us all we need to be happy in this life and eternally happy in the life to come.

This season of Advent, Lord, help us to spend more time immersed in Your Word and allow it to build our faith, hope, and love for You and for our neighbor, so when Christmas arrives, we will be more like You and be salt, leaven, and light in the world.

Everything that was written long ago in the scriptures was meant to teach us something about hope from the examples scripture gives of how people who did not give up were helped by God. And may he who helps us when we refuse to give up, help you all to be tolerant with each other, following the example of Christ Jesus, so that united in mind and voice you may give glory to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
It can only be to God’s glory, then, for you to treat each other in the same friendly way as Christ treated you. The reason Christ became the servant of circumcised Jews was not only so that God could faithfully carry out the promises made to the patriarchs, it was also to get the pagans to give glory to God for his mercy, as scripture says in one place: For this I shall praise you among the pagans and sing to your name.

MATTHEW 3:1-12

My Soul's Beloved, 

Without repentance, without contrition, without humble submission to the Commandments, we cannot be saved. Too many of us delay our return to the Sacraments and ultimate reconciliation to Holy Mother Church, and sadly, many may die in their sins and be lost forever. This is why so many preachers, who like John the Baptist, are warning us that the time is now. Salvation is at hand. We must repent and believe. We must be baptized and become children of the Father and members of the Church You founded. We must be regenerated through the Sacraments You instituted. Now is the time, Beloved; tomorrow may be too late.

Beloved, like me, countless parents, siblings, relatives, and friends are praying for the conversion of their loved ones. We do so with a heavy burden on our hearts, we pray with tears, and make heartfelt supplications for them to return home to Holy Mother Church, make a good sacramental confession, be healed in every way, and be restored once again to a life of grace. This desire is in line with Your will, too, Lord, and so we know that You are even more desirous to have them re-grafted into Your Body. In Your time and in Your way, I know that we will all experience the great joy of having our prayers for their salvation answered. Thank You, Lord.

In due course John the Baptist appeared; he preached in the wilderness of Judaea and this was his message: ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is close at hand.’ This was the man the prophet Isaiah spoke of when he said:
A voice cries in the wilderness:
Prepare a way for the Lord,
make his paths straight.
This man John wore a garment made of camel-hair with a leather belt round his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judaea and the whole Jordan district made their way to him, and as they were baptised by him in the river Jordan they confessed their sins. But when he saw a number of Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism he said to them, ‘Brood of vipers, who warned you to fly from the retribution that is coming? But if you are repentant, produce the appropriate fruit, and do not presume to tell yourselves, “We have Abraham for our father,” because, I tell you, God can raise children for Abraham from these stones. Even now the axe is laid to the roots of the trees, so that any tree which fails to produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown on the fire. I baptise you in water for repentance, but the one who follows me is more powerful than I am, and I am not fit to carry his sandals; he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing-fan is in his hand; he will clear his threshing-floor and gather his wheat into the barn; but the chaff he will burn in a fire that will never go out.’

SATURDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF ADVENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

The Lord is our judge, the Lord our lawgiver,
the Lord our king and saviour. IS 33:22

ISAIAH 30:19-21,23-26

My Soul's Beloved,

What gracious promises You make to Your people, those who are called by Your Name, those who are grafted to You and are one with You. How good and kind You are to us, slow to anger and rich in mercy. While it is true that the prophet Isaiah is addressing the people of Israel and that this comforting message is directed to them, it is also eternally true for those who belong to Your New Covenant of Love. 

Looking at our world today, in every nation, there is hatred, division, violence, evil, and destruction directed at certain groups, but most especially at Christians. There are nations whose people are affiliated to a particular faith, whatever that faith may be, and Catholics and Christians are in a minority; the level of discrimination, marginalising them and almost ostracising them from public governance and discourse, is mind-boggling. This is why, Beloved, we hold on to the promises of the prophet and claim them for us in our time. You are good, and You are faithful, and we can trust You in all things.

Thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel:

People of Zion, you will live in Jerusalem and weep no more. He will be gracious to you when he hears your cry; when he hears he will answer. When the Lord has given you the bread of suffering and the water of distress, he who is your teacher will hide no longer, and you will see your teacher with your own eyes. Whether you turn to right or left, your ears will hear these words behind you, ‘This is the way, follow it.’ He will send rain for the seed you sow in the ground, and the bread that the ground provides will be rich and nourishing. Your cattle will graze, that day, in wide pastures. Oxen and donkeys that till the ground will eat a salted fodder, winnowed with shovel and fork. On every lofty mountain, on every high hill there will be streams and watercourses, on the day of the great slaughter when the strongholds fall. Then moonlight will be bright as sunlight and sunlight itself be seven times brighter – like the light of seven days in one – on the day the Lord dresses the wound of his people and heals the bruises his blows have left.

PSALM 146(147):1-6

Happy are all who hope in the Lord.

Praise the Lord for he is good;
sing to our God for he is loving:
to him our praise is due.
The Lord builds up Jerusalem
and brings back Israel’s exiles.

He heals the broken-hearted,
he binds up all their wounds.
He fixes the number of the stars;
he calls each one by its name.

Our Lord is great and almighty;
his wisdom can never be measured.
The Lord raises the lowly;
he humbles the wicked to the dust.

Happy are all who hope in the Lord.

MATTHEW 9:35-10:1,5,6-8

My Soul's Beloved,

Today's Gospel passage is a response to Isaiah's prophecies. You are the answer to our deepest longings, our core hearts' needs. You are all in all to us who believe in You, hope in You, love You, adore and worship You, and place all our trust in You. How good God is to reveal His infinite love for us by sending You, His only most beloved Son, into the world to save us. God became visible and tangible to us in You. How blessed we are to live in this time, Lord, when the Church, which has pondered and kept all things in her heart, just like Mama Mary, for over 2000 years, knows ever more deeply the wonder of our faith. The mysteries of God's love are infinite, and the Church will never fully plumb its depths, even until the end of time.

You, O Lord, are our healer, our Savior, our Redeemer, the only mediator with the Father, the fullness of Truth and Life and You are the Way - following You and walking in Your footsteps, we will finally reach our destination, which is union with You, the Father, the Holy Spirit, Mama Mary, St. Joseph and the entire company of angels and saints. Having You, Lord, we possess all we need in this life and the glorious promise of beholding the beatific vision eternally.

Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom and curing all kinds of diseases and sickness.

And when he saw the crowds he felt sorry for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest.’
He summoned his twelve disciples, and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to cast them out and to cure all kinds of diseases and sickness. These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them as follows: ‘Go rather to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And as you go, proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is close at hand. Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out devils. You received without charge, give without charge.’

FRIDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF ADVENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Behold, our Lord will come with power
and will enlighten the eyes of his servants.

ISAIAH 29:17-24

My Soul's Beloved,

This passage is so full of hope for this particular time in our world today. We see how the powerful and the godless are filled with violence, discord, division, and murderous rage against those who follow You, are called by Your Name, and incite the ignorant to hate those who are faithful in holding on to divine truths in the face of persistent and harrowing opposition.

Our Holy Father's recent apostolic visits to Turkey and Lebanon have brought fresh hope to those nations, particularly Lebanon. We apply the promises of Isaiah not just to this nation but to all the nations of the world. We who stand on the promises of God are ready for their fulfillment. Enough of bloodshed, enough of the slaughter of innocents, children of God, who are murdered for their faith and belief in You and who refuse to deny You. For babies slaughtered in wombs in the most dastardly and barbaric ways. Enough of the diabolical evil that has spread its tentacles everywhere in its strangling grip.

We are a people of hope. We have been ransomed and redeemed by the Son of God, the Lamb of God, the Savior of the world. We know that our redeemer lives and that the day of our deliverance is at hand. While we wait, Lord, we will sing Your praise and glorify and worship You. Grant us grace to remain steadfast in our faith to the end.

The Lord says this:
In a short time, a very short time,
shall not Lebanon become fertile land
and fertile land turn into forest?
The deaf, that day,
will hear the words of a book
and, after shadow and darkness,
the eyes of the blind will see.
But the lowly will rejoice in the Lord even more
and the poorest exult in the Holy One of Israel;
for tyrants shall be no more, and scoffers vanish,
and all be destroyed who are disposed to do evil:
those who gossip to incriminate others,
those who try at the gate to trip the arbitrator
and get the upright man’s case dismissed for groundless reasons.
Therefore the Lord speaks,
the God of the House of Jacob,
Abraham’s redeemer:
No longer shall Jacob be ashamed,
no more shall his face grow pale,
for he shall see what my hands have done in his midst,
he shall hold my name holy.
They will hallow the Holy One of Jacob,
stand in awe of the God of Israel.
Erring spirits will learn wisdom
and murmurers accept instruction.

PSALM 26(27):1,4,13-14

The Lord is my light and my help.

The Lord is my light and my help;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
before whom shall I shrink?

There is one thing I ask of the Lord,
for this I long,
to live in the house of the Lord,
all the days of my life,
to savour the sweetness of the Lord,
to behold his temple.

I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness
in the land of the living.
Hope in him, hold firm and take heart.
Hope in the Lord!

The Lord is my light and my help.

MATTHEW 9:27-31

My Soul's Beloved, 

The two blind men in today's Gospel were healed because of their faith in You. They begged You to take pity on them. They did not give up but followed You and kept shouting persistently, 'Take pity on us, Son of David.' You responded,'Do you believe I can do this?' They answered, 'Sir, we do.' You then touched their eyes and said, 'Your faith deserves it, so let this be done for you.' And immediately their sight was restored.

Lord Jesus Christ, we learn from this healing that we ought not to be embarrassed by what people may think when we cry out to You loudly, expressing our need. Persistence in prayer is what You ask of us. When the answer to our prayers is delayed, we are not to give up but persevere. Perseverance and persistence strengthen our faith in You and teach us dependence on Your time to give us all that we need. You are a God of love, and You will not deny us all that we need to be happy in this life and eternally happy with You in the next.

Like the two blind men, let our joy in being healed overflow bountifully and let us spread the good news of all You have done for us to all we meet, so many more may come to believe and be saved. Thank You, Lord, for every grace and blessing that You have poured so generously on me and those I love. 

As Jesus went on his way, two blind men followed him shouting, ‘Take pity on us, Son of David.’ And when Jesus reached the house the blind men came up with him and he said to them, ‘Do you believe I can do this?’ They said, ‘Sir, we do.’ Then he touched their eyes saying, ‘Your faith deserves it, so let this be done for you.’ And their sight returned. Then Jesus sternly warned them, ‘Take care that no one learns about this.’ But when they had gone, they talked about him all over the countryside.

THURSDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF ADVENT - 2025

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Seek the Lord while he is still to be found,
call to him while he is still near. IS 55:6

ISAIAH 26:1-6

My Soul's Beloved, 

It is so easy to lose confidence and hope when we look at our world today. Might is right is the unsavory lie that is being rammed down our throats. We look at those who govern the nations around the globe, and they are no better than puppets whose puppeteers are the wealthy, the powerful, and those with the greatest influence through nefarious dealings. These elected leaders remain indefinitely in power by capturing all the agencies and compelling them to kowtow to their demands or else face the consequences. In times like these, Lord, it is easy to lose heart if we lose sight of You and Your promises.

Today, Isaiah's triumphant hymn emphasizes the power of God to guard over His own and to crush those who stand against His beloved children. Lord God, Savior of the world, we are called by Your Name. We are redeemed by You. You loved us to the end, and we are built on the Rock that can never be moved or shaken.

Let us, your little ones, understand that no matter how evil the world gets, how powerful the godless, how violent the agents of lies, we keep our eyes fixed on You. The battle rages endlessly, but we know the war is won, and we are sharers in Your triumphant victory.

We make the Magnificat of our Mother Mary our own, for it is always the lowly, your own little ones, who will ultimately rejoice and be glad forever.

That day, this song will be sung in the land of Judah:

We have a strong city;
to guard us he has set
wall and rampart about us.
Open the gates! Let the upright nation come in,
she, the faithful one
whose mind is steadfast, who keeps the peace,
because she trusts in you.
Trust in the Lord for ever,
for the Lord is the everlasting Rock;
he has brought low those who lived high up
in the steep citadel;
he brings it down, brings it down to the ground,
flings it down in the dust:
the feet of the lowly, the footsteps of the poor
trample on it.

PSALM 117(118):1,8-9,19-21,25-27

Blessed in the name of the Lord is he who comes.

Give thanks to the Lord for he is good,
for his love has no end.
It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in men;
it is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in princes.
.
Open to me the gates of holiness:
I will enter and give thanks.
This is the Lord’s own gate
where the just may enter.
I will thank you for you have answered
and you are my saviour.

O Lord, grant us salvation;
O Lord, grant success.
Blessed in the name of the Lord
is he who comes.
We bless you from the house of the Lord;
the Lord God is our light.

Blessed in the name of the Lord is he who comes.

MATTHEW 7:21,24-27

My Soul's Beloved,

The one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church is built on the Rock. As long as she is our foundation, we can never be moved or shaken. She is founded on You, O Christ, the anointed of the Father, and it is the Spirit of the Father and the Son that gives her life. Having put down roots deep into Your Body, O Lord, we receive life and grace unceasingly, and this is why we remain unfazed by the works of the devil, who sows discord, destruction, death, mayhem, and division, and these things have been utterly destroyed by the precious Blood of the Lamb and the power of Your holy, glorious Name.

Lord, all I ask of You today is that we, who are Yours, not just pay lip service to our faith in You and to the Church we belong of which You are the Head and we its members. Rather, grant us a faith that moves mountains, walks on water, calms the storm, and raises the dead to life by the witness of our lives. And should it be required, O Lord, to gladly lay down our lives for Your sake and the sake of the Gospel as so many have done before us. The blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians, and the blood of those persecuted will soon yield an abundance of fruit, bringing the whole world to the knowledge of truth in the only one who has the power to save. 

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘It is not those who say to me, “Lord, Lord,” who will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the person who does the will of my Father in heaven. Therefore, everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on rock. Rain came down, floods rose, gales blew and hurled themselves against that house, and it did not fall: it was founded on rock. But everyone who listens to these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a stupid man who built his house on sand. Rain came down, floods rose, gales blew and struck that house, and it fell; and what a fall it had!’