Thursday - March 25, 2021
“Fasting cleanses the soul, raises the mind, subjects one’s flesh to the spirit, renders the heart contrite and humble, scatters the clouds of concupiscence, quenches the fire of lust, kindles the true light of chastity.”
-St. Thomas Aquinas
TODAY'S READINGS
March 25, 2021
Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord
Lectionary: 545
Reading 1
The LORD spoke to Ahaz, saying:
Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God;
let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky!
But Ahaz answered,
“I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!”
Then Isaiah said:
Listen, O house of David!
Is it not enough for you to weary people,
must you also weary my God?
Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign:
the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son,
and shall name him Emmanuel,
which means “God is with us!”
Responsorial Psalm
R. (8a and 9a) Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Holocausts or sin-offerings you sought not;
then said I, “Behold I come.”
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
“In the written scroll it is prescribed for me,
To do your will, O my God, is my delight,
and your law is within my heart!”
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
I announced your justice in the vast assembly;
I did not restrain my lips, as you, O Lord, know.
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Your justice I kept not hid within my heart;
your faithfulness and your salvation I have spoken of;
I have made no secret of your kindness and your truth
in the vast assembly.
R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.
Reading 2
Brothers and sisters:
It is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats
take away sins.
For this reason, when Christ came into the world, he said:
“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
but a body you prepared for me;
in holocausts and sin offerings you took no delight.
Then I said, ‘As is written of me in the scroll,
behold, I come to do your will, O God.’”
First he says, “Sacrifices and offerings,
holocausts and sin offerings,
you neither desired nor delighted in.”
These are offered according to the law.
Then he says, “Behold, I come to do your will.”
He takes away the first to establish the second.
By this “will,” we have been consecrated
through the offering of the Body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Verse Before the Gospel
The Word of God became flesh and made his dwelling among us;
and we saw his glory.
Gospel
The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”
But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.
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Increasing Your Courage
In the Gospel today, Mary has a very difficult decision to make. According to her society's rules, when a woman gets pregnant outside of marriage, she could be stoned to death for her blatant disregard of the sacredness of marriage. Surely Mary wondered how her beloved Joseph would react. The angel Gabriel did nothing to reassure her that Joseph would believe her explanation. And at first, he didn't!
What would her parents think? Even if they believed her, would the other relatives? Would her friends? She faced disapproval and misunderstanding from every direction. How did she find the courage to say yes to God's plan without reassurance that everything would turn out okay?
I think we all wish that God would describe his plans for us, outlined in 10 easy steps with the end results clearly detailed. How do you feel about uncertainty? Is it paralyzing you? How do you feel about people's disapproval? Do you have the courage to follow God's inspiration no matter what, or are you waiting for him to reassure you that all will turn out well?
He rarely gives us that reassurance. He prefers that we trust him and rely on him instead. Mary found her courage in God. Trust is not a feeling; trust is a decision to depend on God's love and power and wisdom. To whatever extent we're controlled by fear or by the disapproval of others, this is how much we're not guided by our faith in God.
Here's a simple but powerful way to silence the voices of fear so that courage can grow:
1. Identify what message your fears are telling you. What are you afraid will happen if you forge ahead and do what God seems to be asking of you?
2. Remember that fear's message is based at least partially on falsehoods; ask the Holy Spirit to remind you of all the truths that contradict these lies.
3. Choose to act upon those truths -- respond to the truth instead of the fear. Move forward emboldened and encouraged ("in courage") by the awareness that you can safely trust in God's desire and ability to help you do everything that he asks of you. This is the moment of your own Annunciation experience. This is your opportunity to give God your own fiat, your own "Yes! Let it be done to me as you say!"
God speaks to us in annunciations every day. If we learn from Mary's example, she helps us to say "yes", and she's available as our nurturing mother and guide to help us live out that "yes."
Today's Prayer
Lord, forgive me for refusing Your love in so many ways. Take Your place in me. I want You to be the King and Lord of my life. I belong to You. Amen.
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The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”
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