Catholic Church Mass Readings for Sunday, March 21, 2021: Fifth Sunday of Lent

Catholic Church Mass Readings for Sunday, March 21, 2021: Fifth Sunday of Lent

Scrutiny Year A Readings

Lectionary: 34

Reading I

Ez 37:12-14

Thus says the Lord GOD: 

O my people, I will open your graves 

and have you rise from them, 

and bring you back to the land of Israel.

Then you shall know that I am the LORD, 

when I open your graves and have you rise from them, 

O my people!

I will put my spirit in you that you may live, 

and I will settle you upon your land; 

thus you shall know that I am the LORD.

I have promised, and I will do it, says the LORD.

Responsorial Psalm

130:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8

R. (7) With the Lord there is mercy and fullness of redemption.

Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD;

    LORD, hear my voice!

Let your ears be attentive

    to my voice in supplication. 

R. With the Lord there is mercy and fullness of redemption.

If you, O LORD, mark iniquities,

    LORD, who can stand?

But with you is forgiveness,

    that you may be revered. 

R. With the Lord there is mercy and fullness of redemption.

I trust in the LORD;

    my soul trusts in his word.

More than sentinels wait for the dawn,

    let Israel wait for the LORD.

R. With the Lord there is mercy and fullness of redemption.

For with the LORD is kindness

    and with him is plenteous redemption;

And he will redeem Israel

    from all their iniquities.

R. With the Lord there is mercy and fullness of redemption.

Reading II

Rom 8:8-11

Brothers and sisters:

Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

But you are not in the flesh; 

on the contrary, you are in the spirit, 

if only the Spirit of God dwells in you.

Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.

But if Christ is in you, 

although the body is dead because of sin, 

the spirit is alive because of righteousness.

If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, 

the one who raised Christ from the dead 

will give life to your mortal bodies also, 

through his Spirit dwelling in you.

Verse Before the Gospel

Jn 11:25a, 26

I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord;

whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will never die.

Gospel

Jn 11:1-45

Now a man was ill, Lazarus from Bethany, 

the village of Mary and her sister Martha.

Mary was the one who had anointed the Lord with perfumed oil 

and dried his feet with her hair; 

it was her brother Lazarus who was ill.

So the sisters sent word to him saying, 

“Master, the one you love is ill.”

hen Jesus heard this he said,

“This illness is not to end in death, 

but is for the glory of God, 

that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.

So when he heard that he was ill, 

he remained for two days in the place where he was.

Then after this he said to his disciples, 

“Let us go back to Judea.”

The disciples said to him, 

“Rabbi, the Jews were just trying to stone you, 

and you want to go back there?”

Jesus answered,

“Are there not twelve hours in a day?

If one walks during the day, he does not stumble, 

because he sees the light of this world.

But if one walks at night, he stumbles, 

because the light is not in him.” 

He said this, and then told them,

“Our friend Lazarus is asleep,

but I am going to awaken him.”

So the disciples said to him,

“Master, if he is asleep, he will be saved.”

But Jesus was talking about his death, 

while they thought that he meant ordinary sleep. 

So then Jesus said to them clearly,

“Lazarus has died.

And I am glad for you that I was not there,

that you may believe. 

Let us go to him.”

So Thomas, called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, 

“Let us also go to die with him.”

When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus 

had already been in the tomb for four days.

Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, only about two miles away.

And many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary 

to comfort them about their brother.

When Martha heard that Jesus was coming,

she went to meet him;

but Mary sat at home.

Martha said to Jesus, 

“Lord, if you had been here,

my brother would not have died.

But even now I know that whatever you ask of God,

God will give you.”

Jesus said to her,

“Your brother will rise.”

Martha said to him,

“I know he will rise,

in the resurrection on the last day.”

Jesus told her,

“I am the resurrection and the life; 

whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, 

and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.

Do you believe this?”

She said to him, “Yes, Lord.

I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God,

the one who is coming into the world.”

When she had said this, 

she went and called her sister Mary secretly, saying, 

“The teacher is here and is asking for you.”

As soon as she heard this,

she rose quickly and went to him.

For Jesus had not yet come into the village, 

but was still where Martha had met him.

So when the Jews who were with her in the house comforting her 

saw Mary get up quickly and go out,

they followed her, 

presuming that she was going to the tomb to weep there.

When Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, 

she fell at his feet and said to him, 

“Lord, if you had been here,

my brother would not have died.”

When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who had come with her weeping, 

he became perturbed and deeply troubled, and said, 

“Where have you laid him?”

They said to him, “Sir, come and see.”

And Jesus wept.

So the Jews said, “See how he loved him.”

But some of them said, 

“Could not the one who opened the eyes of the blind man 

have done something so that this man would not have died?”

So Jesus, perturbed again, came to the tomb.

It was a cave, and a stone lay across it.

Jesus said, “Take away the stone.”

Martha, the dead man’s sister, said to him, 

“Lord, by now there will be a stench; 

he has been dead for four days.”

Jesus said to her,

“Did I not tell you that if you believe 

you will see the glory of God?”

So they took away the stone.

And Jesus raised his eyes and said,

“Father, I thank you for hearing me.

I know that you always hear me; 

but because of the crowd here I have said this, 

that they may believe that you sent me.”

And when he had said this,

He cried out in a loud voice, 

“Lazarus, come out!”

The dead man came out,

tied hand and foot with burial bands, 

and his face was wrapped in a cloth.

So Jesus said to them,

“Untie him and let him go.”

Now many of the Jews who had come to Mary

and seen what he had done began to believe in him.

OR: 

Jn 11:3-7, 17, 20-27, 33b-45

The sisters of Lazarus sent word to Jesus, saying, 

“Master, the one you love is ill.”

When Jesus heard this he said,

“This illness is not to end in death, 

but is for the glory of God, 

that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.

So when he heard that he was ill, 

he remained for two days in the place where he was.

Then after this he said to his disciples, 

+Let us go back to Judea.”

When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus 

had already been in the tomb for four days.

When Martha heard that Jesus was coming,

she went to meet him; 

but Mary sat at home.

Martha said to Jesus, 

“Lord, if you had been here,

my brother would not have died.

But even now I know that whatever you ask of God,

God will give you.”

Jesus said to her,

“Your brother will rise.”

Martha said,

“I know he will rise,

in the resurrection on the last day.”

Jesus told her,

“I am the resurrection and the life; 

whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, 

and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.

Do you believe this?”

She said to him, “Yes, Lord.

I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God,

the one who is coming into the world.”

He became perturbed and deeply troubled, and said, 

“Where have you laid him?”

They said to him, “Sir, come and see.”

And Jesus wept.

So the Jews said, “See how he loved him.”

But some of them said, 

“Could not the one who opened the eyes of the blind man 

have done something so that this man would not have died?”

So Jesus, perturbed again, came to the tomb.

It was a cave, and a stone lay across it.

Jesus said, “Take away the stone.”

Martha, the dead man’s sister, said to him, 

“Lord, by now there will be a stench; 

he has been dead for four days.”

Jesus said to her,

“Did I not tell you that if you believe 

you will see the glory of God?”

So they took away the stone.

And Jesus raised his eyes and said, 

“Father, I thank you for hearing me.

I know that you always hear me; 

but because of the crowd here I have said this, 

that they may believe that you sent me.”

And when he had said this,

He cried out in a loud voice, 

“Lazarus, come out!”

The dead man came out,

tied hand and foot with burial bands, 

and his face was wrapped in a cloth.

So Jesus said to them,

“Untie him and let him go.”

Now many of the Jews who had come to Mary

and seen what he had done began to believe in him.

Christian Holidays: How the Secular World Misses the Point

A few days ago, we celebrated St. Patrick's Day. St. Patrick was sold into slavery in Ireland, and later returned to spread the Gospel. It sounds like he had a pretty tough life! Since then, the Irish have celebrated the date of his death March 17, 461 as St. Patrick's Day. In fact, it has become a feast day all over the world with the spread of the Irish Diaspora.

On St. Patrick's Day, people's main concern is drinking beer and other drinks. Along with their drunkenness, people engage in all kinds of other questionable behavior such as sexual promiscuity, violence, and gluttony. Doesn't sound a lot like the life of St. Patrick. How many people are going to Mass to celebrate this feast day? Probably very few.

This isn't unique to St. Patrick's Day. In secular society, people have come along and taken the parts they like and find pleasurable and have ignored the rest. What's even the point of calling it what it really is if what you are doing doesn't even resemble it?

The list is almost endless as to how people have distorted holidays.

Christmas
True Meaning: God sent his only begotten Son to us to save us from eternal damnation. Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity, came to bring us the grace of salvation.

Advent: Advent is meant to be a time of spiritual preparation for the celebration of Christmas, yet few if anyone in the secular world even recognize it or know what it is beyond the chocolate-filled calendar incorrectly called an Advent Calendar (it usually goes from December 1 to December 24 every year, regardless of when Advent actually is).

Secular Celebration: Overindulging in food and desserts, drinking excessively. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with eating food and desserts and having a drink and enjoying oneself during Christmas. In fact, we should do this. But it makes no sense to celebrate "Christmas" if it has nothing about "Christ's Mass" whatsoever. Also, much of the celebration centers around Santa Claus. Although sometimes referred to as St. Nicholas, little if any recognition if given to the actual saint who was a real person.

Easter
True Meaning: Christ gave himself to be sacrificed on the cross for our salvation. From his death and resurrection come all graces to the Church.

Lent: A time of penance and self-denial in which Catholics prepare themselves spiritually with prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

Secular Celebration: Completely ignore Lent. Some ask "What is Lent?" Others give up random and very insignificant things: "I won't eat special edition mint KitKats on Thursdays between 4:30pm and 5:00pm"

For Easter, secular people ignore Christ rising from the dead on the third day after being crucified and dying. Instead they give chocolates and candies and have the Easter bunny all over the place.

Valentine's Day
True Meaning: Catholic saint and martyr who ministered to Christians being persecuted and killed by the government.

Secular World: The secular world celebrates with wining and dining and romance in general. Nothing wrong with this in principle, but often it's done with unmarried people and/or people just hooking up for a day or two. Does not contribute to society overall. No recognition of St. Valentine whatsoever.

New Years
True Meaning: Many people do not know this but January 1 is the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. In fact, January 1 was seen as the beginning of the year for several centuries from just before the 1st millennium until the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century. After this, Christian countries celebrated New Years Day on March 25. That is until the Gregorian calendar of Pope Gregory XIII came into effect in 1582. That's when he decided to change the day to January 1. January 1st is a holy day of obligation for Catholics, even in Canada where there are only two such days - the other being Christmas Day.

Secular World: Drunkenness (I'm sensing a theme) and partying. No recognition whatsoever of the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God.

Halloween
True Meaning: All Hallows Eve. The day before the celebration of All Saints Day. This is a day dedicated to all those in heaven. It is a day of prayer and reflection and asking for intercession for those who have gone on before us.

Secular Meaning: Nothing to do with contemplating death and our eternal salvation or asking for intercession. No, just another excuse for adults to party. In recent years, this event went from being for children to being mainly for adults. As usual, it involves copious drinking and partying. Oh, and of course neither All Saints Day nor All Souls Day is in any way recognized by the secular world.

Conclusion
The list could go on and on. The secular world is desperate to strip away and distort the pleasure from these legitimate Christian celebrations for their own personal satisfaction. I think they should just use their own terms when describing these events and let Christians use the true names. Their versions have essentially lost all meaning anyway, so why continue calling it by the authentic name?

Catholic Church Mass Readings for Saturday, March 20, 2021: Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Catholic Church Mass Readings for Saturday, March 20, 2021: Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Lectionary: 249

Reading I

Jer 11:18-20

I knew their plot because the LORD informed me;

at that time you, O LORD, showed me their doings.

Yet I, like a trusting lamb led to slaughter,

had not realized that they were hatching plots against me:

“Let us destroy the tree in its vigor;

let us cut him off from the land of the living,

so that his name will be spoken no more.”

    But, you, O LORD of hosts, O just Judge,

        searcher of mind and heart,

    Let me witness the vengeance you take on them,

        for to you I have entrusted my cause!

Responsorial Psalm

7:2-3, 9bc-10, 11-12

R.    (2a) O Lord, my God, in you I take refuge.

O LORD, my God, in you I take refuge;

    save me from all my pursuers and rescue me,

Lest I become like the lion’s prey,

    to be torn to pieces, with no one to rescue me.

R.    O Lord, my God, in you I take refuge.

Do me justice, O LORD, because I am just,

    and because of the innocence that is mine.

Let the malice of the wicked come to an end,

    but sustain the just,

    O searcher of heart and soul, O just God.

R.    O Lord, my God, in you I take refuge.

A shield before me is God,

    who saves the upright of heart;

A just judge is God,

    a God who punishes day by day.

R.    O Lord, my God, in you I take refuge.

Verse before the Gospel

See Lk 8:15

Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart

and yield a harvest through perseverance.

Gospel

Jn 7:40-53

Some in the crowd who heard these words of Jesus said,

“This is truly the Prophet.”

Others said, “This is the Christ.”

But others said, “The Christ will not come from Galilee, will he?

Does not Scripture say that the Christ will be of David’s family

and come from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?”

So a division occurred in the crowd because of him.

Some of them even wanted to arrest him,

but no one laid hands on him.

So the guards went to the chief priests and Pharisees,

who asked them, “Why did you not bring him?”

The guards answered, “Never before has anyone spoken like this man.”

So the Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived?

Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him?

But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed.”

Nicodemus, one of their members who had come to him earlier, said to them, 

“Does our law condemn a man before it first hears him

and finds out what he is doing?”

They answered and said to him,

“You are not from Galilee also, are you?

Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”

Then each went to his own house.

Great Explanatory Video about St. Joseph

This is a great video about St. Joseph. It's a homily given on the saint, and it clears up many questions and perhaps misconceptions people have about the saint.

Happy Feast Day of St. Joseph: Friday, March 19, 2021!

Feast Day of St. Joseph

March 19

Today, March 19, is the feast day of St. Joseph, the most-chaste spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the father of Jesus on Earth. I was listening to a talk from Sensus Fidelium a couple of months ago where he explained the significant role of St. Joseph and that Jesus, although Our Lord and Savior, listened to and obeyed his father Joseph in all things.

I also heard that St. Joseph's contemplation as to what he should do about Mary when she told him she would be the mother of God wasn't about him saving face or fleeing from embarrassment, rather, he felt it was such a serious responsibility, that he didn't know if he was up for it, but an Angel appeared to let him know God trusted him.

On a side note, consumption of meat is permitted in the Catholic Church today since it is a solemnity.

Catholic Church Readings for Friday, March 19, 2021: Solemnity of Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Catholic Church Readings for Friday, March 19, 2021: Solemnity of Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Lectionary: 543

Reading I

2 Sm 7:4-5a, 12-14a, 16

The LORD spoke to Nathan and said:

“Go, tell my servant David,

‘When your time comes and you rest with your ancestors,

I will raise up your heir after you, sprung from your loins,

and I will make his kingdom firm.

It is he who shall build a house for my name.

And I will make his royal throne firm forever.

I will be a father to him,

and he shall be a son to me.

Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me;

your throne shall stand firm forever.’”

Responsorial Psalm

89:2-3, 4-5, 27 and 29

R.    (37)  The son of David will live for ever.

The promises of the LORD I will sing forever;

    through all generations my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness,

For you have said, “My kindness is established forever”;

    in heaven you have confirmed your faithfulness.

R.    The son of David will live for ever.

“I have made a covenant with my chosen one,

    I have sworn to David my servant:

Forever will I confirm your posterity

    and establish your throne for all generations.”

R.    The son of David will live for ever.

“He shall say of me, ‘You are my father,

    my God, the Rock, my savior.’

Forever I will maintain my kindness toward him,

    and my covenant with him stands firm.”

R.    The son of David will live for ever.

Reading II

Rom 4:13, 16-18, 22

Brothers and sisters:

It was not through the law

that the promise was made to Abraham and his descendants

that he would inherit the world,

but through the righteousness that comes from faith.

For this reason, it depends on faith,

so that it may be a gift,

and the promise may be guaranteed to all his descendants,

not to those who only adhere to the law

but to those who follow the faith of Abraham,

who is the father of all of us, as it is written,

I have made you father of many nations.

He is our father in the sight of God,

in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead

and calls into being what does not exist.

He believed, hoping against hope,

that he would become the father of many nations,

according to what was said, Thus shall your descendants be.

That is why it was credited to him as righteousness.

Verse Before the Gospel

Ps 84:5

Blessed are those who dwell in your house, O Lord;

they never cease to praise you.

Gospel

Mt 1:16, 18-21, 24a

Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary.

Of her was born Jesus who is called the Christ.

Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.

When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,

but before they lived together,

she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.

Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man,

yet unwilling to expose her to shame,

decided to divorce her quietly.

Such was his intention when, behold,

the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,

“Joseph, son of David,

do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.

For it is through the Holy Spirit

that this child has been conceived in her.

She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,

because he will save his people from their sins.”

When Joseph awoke,

he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him

and took his wife into his home.

OR:

Lk 2:41-51a

Each year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover,

and when he was twelve years old,

they went up according to festival custom.

After they had completed its days, as they were returning,

the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem,

but his parents did not know it.

Thinking that he was in the caravan,

they journeyed for a day

and looked for him among their relatives and acquaintances,

but not finding him,

they returned to Jerusalem to look for him.

After three days they found him in the temple,

sitting in the midst of the teachers,

listening to them and asking them questions,

and all who heard him were astounded

at his understanding and his answers.

When his parents saw him,

they were astonished,

and his mother said to him,

“Son, why have you done this to us?

Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety.”

And he said to them,

“Why were you looking for me?

Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”

But they did not understand what he said to them.

He went down with them and came to Nazareth,

and was obedient to them.

Catholic Church Mass Readings for March 18, 2021: Thursday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Catholic Church Mass Readings for March 18, 2021: Thursday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Lectionary: 247

Reading I

Ex 32:7-14

The LORD said to Moses,

“Go down at once to your people

whom you brought out of the land of Egypt,

for they have become depraved.

They have soon turned aside from the way I pointed out to them,

making for themselves a molten calf and worshiping it,

sacrificing to it and crying out,

‘This is your God, O Israel,

who brought you out of the land of Egypt!’

The LORD said to Moses,

“I see how stiff-necked this people is.

Let me alone, then,

that my wrath may blaze up against them to consume them.

Then I will make of you a great nation.”

But Moses implored the LORD, his God, saying,

“Why, O LORD, should your wrath blaze up against your own people,

whom you brought out of the land of Egypt

with such great power and with so strong a hand?

Why should the Egyptians say,

‘With evil intent he brought them out,

that he might kill them in the mountains

and exterminate them from the face of the earth’?

Let your blazing wrath die down;

relent in punishing your people. 

Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel,

and how you swore to them by your own self, saying,

‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky;

and all this land that I promised,

I will give your descendants as their perpetual heritage.’“

So the LORD relented in the punishment

he had threatened to inflict on his people.

 

Responsorial Psalm

106:19-20, 21-22, 23

R.    (4a)  Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.

Our fathers made a calf in Horeb

    and adored a molten image;

They exchanged their glory

    for the image of a grass-eating bullock.

R.    Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.

They forgot the God who had saved them,

    who had done great deeds in Egypt,

Wondrous deeds in the land of Ham,

    terrible things at the Red Sea.

R.    Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.

Then he spoke of exterminating them,

    but Moses, his chosen one,

Withstood him in the breach

    to turn back his destructive wrath.

R.    Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.

Verse before the Gospel

Jn 3:16

God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son,

so that everyone who believes in him might have eternal life.

Gospel

Jn 5:31-47

Jesus said to the Jews: 

“If I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is not true.

But there is another who testifies on my behalf,

and I know that the testimony he gives on my behalf is true.

You sent emissaries to John, and he testified to the truth.

I do not accept human testimony,

but I say this so that you may be saved.

He was a burning and shining lamp,

and for a while you were content to rejoice in his light.

But I have testimony greater than John’s.

The works that the Father gave me to accomplish,

these works that I perform testify on my behalf

that the Father has sent me.

Moreover, the Father who sent me has testified on my behalf.

But you have never heard his voice nor seen his form,

and you do not have his word remaining in you,

because you do not believe in the one whom he has sent.

You search the Scriptures,

because you think you have eternal life through them;

even they testify on my behalf.

But you do not want to come to me to have life.

“I do not accept human praise;

moreover, I know that you do not have the love of God in you. 

I came in the name of my Father,

but you do not accept me;

yet if another comes in his own name,

you will accept him.

How can you believe, when you accept praise from one another

and do not seek the praise that comes from the only God?

Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father:

the one who will accuse you is Moses,

in whom you have placed your hope.

For if you had believed Moses,

you would have believed me,

because he wrote about me. 

But if you do not believe his writings,

how will you believe my words?”

Catholic Church Readings for Mass Wednesday, March 17, 2021: Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Catholic Church Readings for Wednesday, March 17, 2021: Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Lectionary: 246

Reading I

Is 49:8-15

    Thus says the LORD:

In a time of favor I answer you,

    on the day of salvation I help you;

    and I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people,

To restore the land

    and allot the desolate heritages,

Saying to the prisoners: Come out!

To those in darkness: Show yourselves!

Along the ways they shall find pasture,

    on every bare height shall their pastures be.

They shall not hunger or thirst,

    nor shall the scorching wind or the sun strike them;

For he who pities them leads them

    and guides them beside springs of water.

I will cut a road through all my mountains,

    and make my highways level.

See, some shall come from afar,

    others from the north and the west,

    and some from the land of Syene.

Sing out, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth,

    break forth into song, you mountains.

For the LORD comforts his people

    and shows mercy to his afflicted.

But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me;

    my Lord has forgotten me.”

Can a mother forget her infant,

    be without tenderness for the child of her womb?

Even should she forget,

    I will never forget you.

Responsorial Psalm

145:8-9, 13cd-14, 17-18

R.    (8a)  The Lord is gracious and merciful.

The LORD is gracious and merciful,

    slow to anger and of great kindness.

The LORD is good to all

    and compassionate toward all his works.

R.    The Lord is gracious and merciful.

The LORD is faithful in all his words

    and holy in all his works.

The LORD lifts up all who are falling

    and raises up all who are bowed down.

R.    The Lord is gracious and merciful.

The LORD is just in all his ways

    and holy in all his works.

The LORD is near to all who call upon him,

    to all who call upon him in truth.

R.    The Lord is gracious and merciful.

Verse before the Gospel

Jn 11:25a, 26

I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord;

whoever believes in me will never die.

Gospel

Jn 5:17-30

Jesus answered the Jews: 

“My Father is at work until now, so I am at work.”

For this reason they tried all the more to kill him,

because he not only broke the sabbath

but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God.

Jesus answered and said to them,

“Amen, amen, I say to you, the Son cannot do anything on his own,

but only what he sees the Father doing;

for what he does, the Son will do also.

For the Father loves the Son

and shows him everything that he himself does,

and he will show him greater works than these,

so that you may be amazed.

For just as the Father raises the dead and gives life,

so also does the Son give life to whomever he wishes.

Nor does the Father judge anyone,

but he has given all judgment to the Son,

so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father.

Whoever does not honor the Son

does not honor the Father who sent him.

Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word

and believes in the one who sent me

has eternal life and will not come to condemnation,

but has passed from death to life.

Amen, amen, I say to you, the hour is coming and is now here

when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God,

and those who hear will live.

For just as the Father has life in himself,

so also he gave to the Son the possession of life in himself.

And he gave him power to exercise judgment,

because he is the Son of Man.

Do not be amazed at this,

because the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs

will hear his voice and will come out,

those who have done good deeds

to the resurrection of life,

but those who have done wicked deeds

to the resurrection of condemnation.

“I cannot do anything on my own;

I judge as I hear, and my judgment is just,

because I do not seek my own will

but the will of the one who sent me.”

Catholic Church Readings for Tuesday, March 16, 2021: Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Catholic Church Readings for Tuesday, March 16, 2021: Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Lectionary: 245

Reading I

Ez 47:1-9, 12

The angel brought me, Ezekiel,

back to the entrance of the temple of the LORD,

and I saw water flowing out

from beneath the threshold of the temple toward the east,

for the façade of the temple was toward the east;

the water flowed down from the right side of the temple,

south of the altar.

He led me outside by the north gate,

and around to the outer gate facing the east,

where I saw water trickling from the right side.

Then when he had walked off to the east

with a measuring cord in his hand,

he measured off a thousand cubits

and had me wade through the water, 

which was ankle-deep.

He measured off another thousand

and once more had me wade through the water,

which was now knee-deep.

Again he measured off a thousand and had me wade;

the water was up to my waist.

Once more he measured off a thousand,

but there was now a river through which I could not wade;

for the water had risen so high it had become a river

that could not be crossed except by swimming.

He asked me, “Have you seen this, son of man?”

Then he brought me to the bank of the river, where he had me sit.

Along the bank of the river I saw very many trees on both sides.

He said to me,

“This water flows into the eastern district down upon the Arabah,

and empties into the sea, the salt waters, which it makes fresh. 

Wherever the river flows,

every sort of living creature that can multiply shall live,

and there shall be abundant fish,

for wherever this water comes the sea shall be made fresh.

Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of every kind shall grow;

their leaves shall not fade, nor their fruit fail.

Every month they shall bear fresh fruit,

for they shall be watered by the flow from the sanctuary.

Their fruit shall serve for food, and their leaves for medicine.”

Responsorial Psalm

46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9

R.    (8)  The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob. 

God is our refuge and our strength,

    an ever-present help in distress.

Therefore we fear not, though the earth be shaken

    and mountains plunge into the depths of the sea.

R.    The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob. 

There is a stream whose runlets gladden the city of God,

    the holy dwelling of the Most High.

God is in its midst; it shall not be disturbed;

    God will help it at the break of dawn.

R.    The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob. 

The LORD of hosts is with us;

    our stronghold is the God of Jacob.

Come! behold the deeds of the LORD,

    the astounding things he has wrought on earth.

R.    The Lord of hosts is with us; our stronghold is the God of Jacob. 

Verse before the Gospel

Ps 51:12a, 14a

A clean heart create for me, O God;

give me back the joy of your salvation.

Gospel

Jn 5:1-16

There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate

a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes.

In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled.

One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.

When Jesus saw him lying there

and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him,

“Do you want to be well?”

The sick man answered him,

“Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool

when the water is stirred up;

while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me.”

Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.”

Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.

Now that day was a sabbath.

So the Jews said to the man who was cured,

“It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat.” 

He answered them, “The man who made me well told me,

‘Take up your mat and walk.’“

They asked him,

“Who is the man who told you, ‘Take it up and walk’?”

The man who was healed did not know who it was,

for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there.

After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him,

“Look, you are well; do not sin any more,

so that nothing worse may happen to you.”

The man went and told the Jews

that Jesus was the one who had made him well.

Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus

because he did this on a sabbath.

This Just In 2000 Years Ago: Catholic Church cannot bless gay unions

In a stunning move unforeseen by everyone, the Vatican just issued a decree 2000 years ago stating that the Church cannot bless gay unions.

In the shocking move, Pope Francis reiterated what has been a constant teaching since the founding of the Catholic Church at Pentecost around 33AD.

Labeled as "Breaking News" by many outlets such as Associated Press and others, the Catholic Church will surprisingly not start doing something it has never done since its founding.

Many progressives were left wondering: what next? Will the Church declare there are only 7 sacraments or that Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity?

What prompted this to become "breaking" "headline news" now? Has anyone doubted this to be the case? It seems a little absurd to say the least, but apparently this question of blessing gay unions had to be addressed since there were apparently even churches doing such a thing. Despite being churches and/or priests, they were unaware of a point of doctrine that has always been the case and has never changed.

Some may draw a distinction between blessing a union and declaring it the equivalent of marriage, or something like that. However, nothing evil can be blessed. To the shock and dismay of many, the Church also cannot bless polygamous unions! Will this be the newest headline in the near future?

The Church makes clear that people with homosexual attraction are not in themselves evil, however homosexual activities are immoral and contrary to natural law, therefore the Church declares they are sinful, and always have been.