Holy Week & Triduum Devotions: Sundown on Holy Thursday during Holy Week marks the beginning of three sacred days (Triduum) that changed the destiny of the human race. Here are some suggestions for prayer and reflection to help you make the most of Holy Week, especially Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday....
13 April, 2025 No comment
Holy Thursday, the Lord's Supper, the institution of the Holy Eucharist, Corpus Christi -- What did Jesus mean when he said "This is my body and this is my blood" and "Do this in Memory of Me"? And what does the Catholic mean by talking about transubstantiation and the body of Christ?...
13 April, 2025 3 Comments
Bernard of Clairvaux on the martyrdom of the Virgin Mary at the foot of the cross – her heart is pierced by a sword as Simeon predicted. For the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows on September 15....
06 April, 2025 No comment
Cyprian, a north African bishop of the third century, himself eventually died a martyr. Here he exhorts fellow Christians to courage as they face the contest of faith in a hostile pagan society. Following Ephesians 6, he urges Christians to put on the whole armor of God. In so doing, note the reference to the sign of the cross on the forehead and the importance of the Eucharist, the body of the Lord, which in his time was taken in the hand....
06 April, 2025 No comment
Passion Sunday -- The Sunday before Easter, Palm Sunday, is observed by virtually all Christians. But for Roman Catholics it is also Passion Sunday during which all stand for the entire passion account. It's a bittersweet day, beginning with hosanna's, ending in suffering....
06 April, 2025 No comment
Augustine, reflecting on how the Lord Jesus Christ was tempted in the wilderness for forty days, points out that it is only by means of overcoming trials and temptations that we progress in the spiritual life and grow in holiness....
30 March, 2025 No comment
St. John Chrysostom's five paths of repentance show that conversion is a continuous journey of healing and transformation that involves contrition, prayer, forgiveness, almsgiving and humility....
30 March, 2025 No comment
The adulterous woman to whom Jesus said "neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more" was the recipient of the free gift of a grace that was costly, not cheap. The pardon of the adulteress, and all of us, cost Jesus his life....
30 March, 2025 2 Comments
The Solemnity or Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord is celebrated on March 25. Here, in his typically lyrical language and powerful imagery, Leo the Great ponders the unfathomable mystery of God becoming man in the womb of a Virgin who had the courage to say "I am the handmaiden of the Lord; let it be done unto me according to your word." Through the Father's love and Mary's faith, the Word became flesh and dwelt among us....
23 March, 2025 No comment
Bernard here dramatically celebrates Mary's Fiat, or statement of consent in response to the announcement by the archangel Gabriel, behold the handmaiden of the Lord; "let it me done to me according to your word." Appropriate for Advent or for the Solemnity of the Annunciation on March 25....
23 March, 2025 No commentNotifications