4th Week of Lent 2026 - Wednesday (school mass) - Eyes fixed on Jesus

 

We have reached the half-way point of Lent. For the first half of Lent, our Scripture readings focus on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

Now, as we get closer and closer to Holy Week: to Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, and Good Friday, our Scripture readings shift focus. No longer are the daily scriptures reminding us of the importance of prayer and fasting. By now, prayer and fasting are our dear friends. We know them well. And we understand their value.

But now, half-way through Lent, our scriptures begin to focus more and more on Jesus, specifically the hostility and opposition he faces leading up to his arrest and crucifixion. Our readings help us to understand, “why?”. Why did they hate him so much that they lied about him, mocked him, conspired against him, arrested him, whipped him, crucified and killed him?

This morning, our Gospel reading contains a very clear answer to these questions: “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.” They hated him, they tried all the more to kill him because he claimed to be God.

That is very important for us to understand. Jesus was not simply a nice man who told people to be kind. He was not merely a wise teacher with good advice. He was not just a miracle worker or even a prophet. Jesus claimed something much greater. He claimed equality with the Father. His work, his ministry, his preaching—was the work and words of God.

Because Jesus is God, we cannot be indifferent to Him. We cannot treat Him as unimportant. We cannot just fit Him in when it is convenient. We must listen to Him, trust Him, obey Him, and love Him.

These readings also help us to understand that all that Jesus suffers during Holy Week, especially on Good Friday, he does so because He loves us, God loves us. And he endures all of these things to save us from our sins, to save us from being people who turn their hearts away from God, like those who sought to murder him because they didn’t like his words.

So in these remaining weeks of Lent, let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. Praying and fasting, yes, but also growing in faith, gratitude, and love for Him. And may our hearts not harden against His word, but open more fully to the God who suffers to save us, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

 

As we continue our Lenten journey and fix our eyes more closely on Jesus, true God and true man, let us bring our prayers before our heavenly Father.

 

For the Pope Leo, and all bishops, priests, and deacons, that they may preach Christ faithfully and lead God’s people more deeply into the mysteries of His Passion, Death, and Resurrection.  Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

For a quick and peaceful resolution to all violent conflict in the world, and that the wisdom of God may govern all of our national and international affairs. Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

For those whose hearts have grown cold, distracted, or indifferent toward the Lord, that God may soften their hearts and draw them back to faith, repentance, and love.  Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

For our parish and school community, that in these remaining weeks of Lent we may keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, listen to His word, and grow in gratitude for all He endured to save us from our sins.  Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

For the sick, the suffering, and all who carry the weight of the cross in their lives, that they may find comfort in Christ, who suffered out of love for us and who never abandons His people.  Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

For the faithful departed, that they may come to share forever in the glory of the risen Christ.  Let us pray to the Lord. Lord, hear our prayer.

Heavenly Father, hear the prayers we place before you. Keep our hearts fixed on your Son, that walking with Him through His Passion, we may come to share in the joy of His Resurrection. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

4th Week of Lent 2026 - Monday - Focusing on Christ

 

The fourth Sunday of Lent marks a threshold.  No longer will our weekday readings emphasize prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. The Church assumes, that at this point, we have habituated these practices. Rather, from now until Holy Week, our weekday scripture readings will focus on the identity of Jesus as the Divine Messiah, and the mounting hostility he faced leading up to his arrest and crucifixion. 

The gospel book changes as well.  Since Ash Wednesday, the weekday scripture readings have been taken from the Synoptic Gospels: Matthew, Mark, or Luke.  For the rest of Lent, we will read predominately from the Gospel of John.

Where the Synoptic Gospels are filled with stories of Jesus’ miracles: Matthew includes about 20, Mark, the shortest Gospel has around 18, Luke records about 24, John features only 7. 

The seven miracles of John’s Gospel serve to emphasize to the reader, Jesus’ identity—he is the Word made flesh come to accomplish what no one else can do—to save us from our sins. 

Chronologically, today’s Gospel is the second of the seven miracle stories: the healing of the nobleman’s son.  

It is good for us to remember that has we progress through Lent.  Jesus is not merely a teacher, telling us to be nice to each other.  He just doesn’t cure people’s ailments, like an itinerant medicine man.  He is God come to save us from our sins.  

If the Scripture readings for first three weeks of Lent helped us to focus on prayer, fasting and almsgiving, how should we be responding to God’s Word in this latter half of Lent?

I think the answer is this: with deeper faith and focus on Jesus himself. The first half of Lent teaches us what to do. The second half of Lent reminds us why we are doing it, and for whom. We pray, fast, and give alms not as ends in themselves, not as spiritual exercises for their own sake, but to be drawn more fully to Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the one who alone can heal and save.

Look at the nobleman in today’s Gospel. He comes to Jesus with faith, though it is still imperfect. He begs for his son’s life. And Jesus calls him to an even deeper faith—not merely faith in what he can see, but faith in the power of Christ’s word. “You may go; your son will live.” And the man believed what Jesus said and left. That is the response these later Lenten readings are meant to awaken in us: to take Jesus at His word, to trust Him more completely, and to entrust our lives to Him.

So in these coming days, as the readings reveal more clearly who Jesus is and as opposition to Him increases, we should ask for the grace for our love, and grace, and sympathy for Him to be deepened. We should not give up on our Lenten practices, but our hearts are not to be fixed on them, but on Jesus—in appreciation, and wonder, and awe, for what he endures for us for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

- - - -  

Let us lift up our prayers to the Father. 

For the Church, that during these latter days of Lent she may proclaim with clarity that Jesus is the Divine Messiah, and lead many hearts to deeper faith in Him.  Let us pray to the Lord.

Lord, hear our prayer.

For those preparing to receive the Easter Sacraments, that the Lord may deepen their faith and draw them into a living and lasting friendship with Jesus.  Let us pray to the Lord.

Lord, hear our prayer.

For those whose faith is weak, imperfect, or burdened by doubt, that like the nobleman in the Gospel they may learn to trust in the power of Christ’s word and entrust their lives more completely to Him.  Let us pray to the Lord.

Lord, hear our prayer.

For those who oppose the Gospel, persecute Christians, or harden their hearts against Christ, that the mercy of God may soften them and lead them to repentance and faith.  Let us pray to the Lord.

Lord, hear our prayer.

For those who are sick, suffering, or carrying heavy burdens for loved ones, that they may turn to Jesus with confidence and find in Him healing, strength, and peace.  Let us pray to the Lord.

Lord, hear our prayer.

For the faithful departed, that they may behold forever the face of Christ, whom they trusted on earth and now see in glory.  Let us pray to the Lord.

Lord, hear our prayer.

Heavenly Father, hear these prayers we offer in faith. Deepen our trust in your Son, fix our hearts upon Him, and lead us through this holy season to the joy of Easter. Through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

4th Sunday of Lent 2026 - To see with the eyes of Christ

 

The story of the man born blind comes just a few chapters after last Sunday’s Gospel, the story of the woman at the well. Last week, we heard of the woman estranged from her community, going from one assumably failed marriage to the next, estranged from her God. Yet, Jesus comes into the messiness of her life, and offers her a drink of the life-giving waters that well up to eternal life. Her story is our story. Jesus doesn’t wait for our lives to be perfect, he enters into the messiness of our lives, and offers us water to drink—and sends us out to offer that life-giving water to others.

In the Gospel today, we heard of the man born blind.  His story, also, is our story. Each of us struggles with some amount of spiritual blindness. We don’t see as we should.  We don’t see our neighbor as we should, we don’t see our God as we should, we don’t see ourselves as we should, we don’t see the changes we need to make in our lives, in the patterns of our speech and behavior, as we should.  As Jesus offered sight to the blind man at the pool of siloam, so too, He offers sight to us, as well.

Jesus Christ came to restore sight to the spiritually blind, and so by the light of Christ, we are now able live in the light of the truth, not only avoiding those behaviors and attitudes that are harmful to our souls, but seeing how good it is to live virtuously. Spiritual sight helps us to be ever-more attentive to the needs of the suffering, so that we may come to their aid. Spiritual sight even enables us to see ourselves as God sees us, as sons and daughters worth dying for.

The ancient theologian Origen said, “to be holy is to see with the eyes of Christ.”  “To be holy is to see with the eyes of Christ.” 

Here’s an illustration from my own life. During the semester I studied in Rome, I attended several masses at St. Peter’s basilica. Pope St. John Paul II was Pope, and the basilica would often be packed with those hoping to get close to the saintly Holy Father. During Holy Week that year, I went to St. Peter’s for the Chrism mass at which the Pope blesses the holy oils for the upcoming year. I got there very early so that I could get a good seat, and I found myself right on the aisle, where the Pope would be processing up to the altar.

This was in 2004, and the Pope’s health was not great, but he walked up the aisle that day, and I tell you, for a moment, the saint and I locked eyes. And it was if I was looking right into the eyes of Jesus. This spiritual light emanated from the eyes of the Pope. And I felt seen by God, and loved, and confirmed in my vocation. It was so beautiful. I saw the love of Jesus in the Pope’s eyes—a love that was for me and for all. He was truly a saint, for he “saw with the eyes of Christ”, as Origen said, which are eyes of love.

And that’s the goal for all of us: to be so filled with the light of God, the peace of God, the wisdom of God, the compassion of God, that we see with the eyes of Christ. But that only happens when we allow ourselves to be washed, and cleansed, healed and anointed.

When people look into your eyes, what do they see? Harshness, criticism, rash judgment, annoyance? Or do they see patience? Do they see welcome and understanding? Do they see someone who will calmly lead them to the God? If not, why not?

What has yet to be healed in you, so that the light of God can be seen in your eyes? What spiritual blindness is causing you to see not with the eyes of Christ, but with the eyes of the world—the cold, calculating, critical, self-interested eyes of the world? Do you see others as inconveniences or people God has put into your life for you to love?

When we seek to see Christ in others, they will see Christ in us. That was certainly true for the other saintliest group people I have ever met, the missionary sisters of charity, the order of consecrated religious sisters founded by St. Mother Theresa.

I told this story during my first weekend as pastor, how each Friday, when I lived in Rome I would volunteer at the missionary sisters of charity men’s homeless shelter. 

Each week, a group of us seminarians and college students were blessed to work along the sisters in their care for the homeless. And it was always so powerful to be serving alongside these holy woman. Each one of the sisters had this beautiful Christ-like light in their eyes. For their charism was to see Christ in others, and to serve the poorest of the poor as they would serve Christ himself.

We would assist with serving breakfast to the homeless men, and helping the sisters do the laundry. Since Mother Theresa didn’t believe in modern conveniences like electric washing machines, this meant washing the homeless men’s clothing, soiled sheets and towels on old fashioned scrub boards.

One Friday, during Lent, one of the seminarians asked one of the sisters, “Sister, are you ready for Easter?” And in all seriousness she replied, “No, I still have much dying to do.” And she was probably one of the most joyful people I had ever met. “No, I still have much dying to do”. Here was a woman who lived every day in what appeared to be total- selflessness—no possessions, no comforts, spending her days washing soiled sheets and washing the grime off of the homeless. Yet she said, “I still have much dying to do.”

I think about her words quite a bit. For, I know that her words contain one of the most important lessons: that without dying to self, without learning to see with eyes purified by the salve of Christ, we will never have real joy.

On the fourth Sunday of Lent—Laetare Sunday—the priest vests in rose-colored vestments, the color of dawn's first light before sunrise. The liturgical color, rose, symbolizes joyful anticipation for easter—signaling that easter joy is on the horizon. And, yet at the half way point of Lent, it is a reminder that if we want to see that joy, we still have much dying to do.

Our Lenten prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, our Lenten repenting, our Lenten penances, our Lenten confessions are aimed at helping us to die to self that we may see rightly. “Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God”.

From what do I still need to be purified? What impurity is still rooted in me so deeply that I don’t even detect it? Or what impurity am I afraid to acknowledge because of the change that will be demanded of me if it is healed?

To remain in spiritual darkness is to be deprived of joy. There are none so blind than those who choose not to see, and they are quite joyless as well.

 But, the Lord wishes that joy may be in us and joy may be in abundance. So may we not be afraid to expose the darkest parts of our lives to the light of the Lord, to allow him to heal us, to fill us with light, to help us to see with His eyes and joyfully love with his heart, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

3rd Week of Lent 2026 - Wednesday (school mass) - Be careful!

 

“Be careful”. Oftentimes as a kid, my parents and grandparents would warn me, “be careful”. “Be careful, the food is hot”, “be careful, that object is sharp”, “be careful walking on that patch of ice, you might slip”, “be careful with holding your baby sister, she is delicate”, “be careful with that object, it can break easily”.

One of the most important lessons we are to learn in life is to be careful. Be careful with your body, how you handle things, where you walk so you don’t get hurt. Be careful with your words, lest you say something that you shouldn’t and hurt someone with your words. Be careful, be mindful, make extra effort to think about what you are doing.

As we practice being careful, we get better at it. One of the reasons you have to be 16 in order to drive a car, is because 16 year olds have developed a certain amount of carefulness. Because if you get in a car, and you are careless with how you drive, you will seriously hurt, or even kill someone.

Being careful with your words is important. Would you trust someone with a secret, if they are careless with their words? No, because if they are careless with their words, then they are likely to tell your secret to those they shouldn’t.

In the first reading today, Moses is explaining to the people that they are to observe the laws of God carefully. “Observe them carefully,” he says, “for thus will you give evidence of your wisdom and intelligence to the nations…and take care not to forget the things which your own eyes have seen, nor let them slip from your memory as long as you live, but teach them to your children and to your children's children."

Just as we are to be careful with our words, and careful with our actions, and careful with delicate objects, we are to be careful about keeping God’s commandments. We should not treat God’s commandments carelessly, casually, or as though they do not matter. If something is precious, you handle it with care. And God’s commandments are precious, because they come from God Himself and they show us the way to live.

That is why Moses says in the first reading, “Observe them carefully.” He does not just say to know them, or talk about them, or admire them. He certainly doesn’t say, “let them go in one ear and out the other”. “Observe them carefully.”

Why? Being careless has consequences. If we are careless on ice, will slip and fall. If we are careless with a car, we can really hurt someone. If we are careless with the commandments of God, that shows that we don’t really care about the one who gave them.

Being careless with God’s commandments hurts our friendship with Him. But being careful with them helps us grow in holiness. And helps others to know about him as well. So today let us ask the Lord for a careful heart: a heart that pays attention to His word, takes His commandments seriously, and wants to please Him in all things. Because that is the kind of carefulness that leads to heaven, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

- - - 

 

Trusting in God, who teaches us to walk carefully in His ways, let us offer Him our prayers.

For the Church, that she may faithfully teach God’s commandments and help all people to follow them with love and care. Let us pray to the Lord.

For our leaders and all who make laws, that they may act with prudence, justice, and care for the good of every human person. Let us pray to the Lord.

For all parents, grandparents, and teachers, who help children learn to be careful in their words and actions, that God may bless them in their work. Let us pray to the Lord.

For those who have grown careless in their friendship with God, that this holy season of Lent may lead them to repentance and a new beginning. Let us pray to the Lord.

For the sick, the suffering, and all those in need, that Christ may strengthen them and surround them with loving care. Let us pray to the Lord.

For the faithful departed, that they may be welcomed into the joy of heaven. Let us pray to the Lord.

Priest: Heavenly Father, you have shown us the path of life in your commandments. Give us careful hearts, so that we may love your will, walk in your ways, and one day come to the joy of your kingdom. Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

 

3rd Week of Lent 2026 - Monday - Naaman and Nazareth: A challenging contrast

 

Each year, I’m always struck by the contrast between Naaman in our first readying, who came to believe, and the people of Nazarath, who hardened their hearts toward Jesus.

You would expect the stories to be reversed, no? You would expect Naaman, a pagan, a gentile, to reject the God of Israel. But he takes a  leap of faith—he follows the strange instructions of the prophet Elisha—he bathes in the waters of the Jordan, and he is cleansed, and comes to proclaim “there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel."

And then contrast Naaman’s faith, with the faithlessness of the people of Nazareth. They drive him to the edge of town to throw him over a cliff.

Mother Church presents us with this contrast during this Lenten season, no doubt to challenge us—to ensure that we are responding to God in faith and not hardening our hearts when we are presented with the call to conversion.

Naaman in a sense makes us think of the Catechumens—pagans, who have now come to believe in the one, true God. During Lent, they are praying, and fasting, and preparing for their Easter Sacraments—to wash in the saving waters. And they are doing so wholeheartedly.

Contrast that to the attitude of many life-long Catholics, who fail to seek any real conversion for themselves during the Lenten season. Many harden their hearts when their priests encourage them to go to confession, practice mortification, pray more fervently.

These scriptures present us with a warning, don’t they: be careful that familiarity and habit don’t  become obstacles to faith. The people of Nazareth thought they knew Jesus already. Their self-certainty became not just an obstacle to faith, but the genesis of hostility toward the Lord’s prophetic call to conversion.

We’re about halfway through the Lenten season, and we’re challenged to ensure that we don’t fall into this same trap. To say: I know God as well as I can, I already know what it means to be Christian, I am as conformed to the Word of God as I possibly can be.

Like Naaman, the Lord will certainly invite us to encounter him in some new way: new prayer, new penance, new act of charity. Let us respond like him in humble faith for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

- - - - - 

That the season of Lent may bring the most hardened hearts to repentance and bring to all people purification of sin and selfishness.

For those preparing for baptism and the Easter sacraments, that they may continue to conform themselves to Christ through fervent prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

That we may generously respond to all those in need: the sick, the suffering, the homeless, the imprisoned, and victims of violence.

For all who have died, and for all the poor souls in purgatory, and for X. for whom this Mass is offered.

Grant, we pray, O Lord, that your people may turn to you with all their heart, so that whatever they dare to ask in fitting prayer they may receive by your mercy. Through Christ our Lord.

3rd Sunday of Lent 2026 - Scrutinies and the Samaritan Woman

We celebrated today, with our Catechumens, the first of the three Scrutinies. The three scrutinies are celebrated on the third, fourth, and fifth Sundays of Lent with those who are preparing to enter the Church at Easter.  The three scrutinies are solemn rituals in which we pray to help to purify, enlighten and strengthen the catechumens as they prepare for the Easter Sacraments.

The word "scrutinize" means to examine in minute detail, and in the scrutinies, the Church prays that every-last minute detail of the lives of the Catechumens may be converted to Christ. The ritual book for the scrutitines says that their purpose is to "heal all that is weak, defective, or sinful in the hearts of the elect" and "to give them strength in Christ, who is the way, the truth, and the life".  And that’s something each of us need to seek, every day: to turn to the Lord to heal anything that is defective or sinful in our hearts.

Catechism says, “In order to reach perfection, the faithful should use the strength dealt out to them by Christ’s gift, so that . . . doing the will of the Father in everything, they may wholeheartedly devote themselves to the glory of God and to the service of their neighbor.” We are to utilize all of the strength at our disposal--the strength of our intellect and will, the gifts of the spirit—to root out sin so that we may live more fully for God.

We do this before Sacramental Confession of course. We thoroughly scrutinize our moral decisions since our last confession. But it’s a very good idea to get in the habit of doing this every day; before bed, make an examination of your day—your choices and decisions and conversations and interactions—scrutinize your day in the light of Christ. That daily scrutiny is a powerful spiritual help for growth in holiness.

“Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God” promises Jesus. We seek to purify ourselves of sin, so that we may see God in this life and in the next. Sin obscures spiritual vision—it clouds the intellect. We will hear more about the curing of spiritual blindness next week—in the gospel of the healing of the blind man at the pool of siloam. Yet, this Sunday’s Gospel also had to do with spiritual vision in a sense, as the Samaritan woman came to spiritually see Jesus for who he really is—the one who can quench our thirst for living waters.

This is really a powerful Gospel. There are a couple important details right at the beginning of the story: “Jesus came to a town of Samaria.” Jesus enters this place, where no pious Jew would go. . Samaria was filled with half-breeds—Jews who had intermarried with the Assyrians invaders of centuries past.

First, insight: Jesus doesn’t go around the unclean land or the unclean person. Jesus loves the unclean, the marginalized, the outsider. In the Second Reading, we are reminded by St. Paul that Jesus loves the sinner so much, he lays down his life for them.

Secondly: this woman, goes to the well, at the hottest part of the day, by herself. She is likely ostracized by her own people. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that she had five husbands and was living with a man to whom she was not married. She is surrounded with stigma, she’s living in sin. And it is precisely with her, that jesus converses and offers the gift of life-giving waters.

The Samaritan woman represents every one of us.  She is wounded, complicated, burdened by her past, and yet still sought out by Christ. Jesus waits for her at the well. And Jesus waits for us too. He is not afraid of the mess of her life, and He is not afraid of the mess in ours. He sees everything. He sees every sin, every compromise, every disappointment, every attempt we have made to find fulfillment apart from God—and still He speaks to us. Still He desires to give us living water.

This too makes the Samaritan woman’s faith is so striking—“Sir, give me this water”. She doesn’t quite yet understand who Jesus is completely. She doesn’t have a master’s degree in theology. But she recognizes that Jesus can do for her what no one else can. Her life may not be completely in order—but she gets this right. Recognizing Jesus as Savior, was life changing.

And then the next striking thing about this story: this encounter was so meaningful that she immediately becomes a missionary. This woman who had been avoiding others now runs to them. Once she encounters Christ, she can no longer keep Him to herself.

Here is a sign of authentic conversion. A real encounter with Jesus never remains private. It bears fruit. It changes how we speak, how we act, how we love, how we see others. When we ourselves have been healed, we are moved by love to desire that healing for others.

We know the suffering that comes from living apart from God, and so we desire to help others know Him. We know the emptiness the world has to offer, and so we desire to help others experience the fullness that comes from Him.

We do not want the people around us to remain thirsty, burdened, wounded, confused, or far from God. We want them to know the One we have come to know. We want them to encounter the mercy that has begun to heal us. That is what we see in the Samaritan woman. Once she begins to recognize who Jesus is, she leaves behind her water jar and goes her family and fellow townsfolk. She becomes, almost immediately, a witness. She does not yet understand everything about Jesus. Her faith is still new, still developing. But even so, she has found something—or rather Someone—too important to keep to herself.

And that is often how conversion works. A person who has really encountered Christ may not yet be able to explain every doctrine or answer every theological question, but we know this: I was thirsty, and He met me. I was burdened, and He spoke to me. I was wandering, and He began to lead me. I was hurting, and he comforted me. That’s evangelization.

Evangelization is not only the task of apologists, theologians, clergy, and catechists. Certainly, we have an important role in the Church. But at its heart, Christian witness is simple. I was wounded and empty, and he healed me. It is one beggar showing another where to find bread; one thirsty soul showing another where to find water.

This Lent, the Lord invites us to scrutinize our lives—to lay them bare that we may drink every-more-deeply of the life-giving waters, then sends us out to make that invitation to others—for the glory of God and salvation of souls.

 

2nd Week of Lent 2026 - Wednesday (School Mass) - Worldly Greatness or Great Holiness

 

It has been two weeks since Ash Wednesday, two weeks since the beginning of these 40 days of Lent. One of the reasons Lent is 40 days, as many of you do, is because Jesus spent 40 days in the desert. He fasted and prayed in the desert for 40 days, and so we fast and pray for 40 days.

You probably know the story how while in the desert, the devil appeared to Jesus to tempt him—to tempt him to turn away from His Father and from his mission.

And Jesus really was tempted, he experienced temptation Jesus like we do. One of the ways that the devil tempted Jesus was with greatness. The devil took Jesus to a very high place and showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the world. And the devil told Jesus, “all these things I will give you, if you worship me”. In other words, the devil told Jesus, I will make you king of the world, I will give you all the riches, and palaces, and power you could every possibly need and more, if you just turn away from the cross.

In the Gospel today, it seems like that same temptation has made its way into the heart of the mother of the apostles James and John. She wants her sons to be great. She asks Jesus if her sons can sit on thrones to his right and his left. She wants riches and power for her sons; she wants her sons to be great in the eyes of the world.

And Jesus responds, “you don’t know what you’re talking about. You don’t understand what is really important. I’ve not come to make people great in the eyes of the world, but in the eyes of God.

If you want to be truly great, seek God’s will, not just your own—and that means becoming as holy as we possibly can, by becoming like Jesus—faithful, self-giving, self-sacrificing because that is what God wants for us.

The season of Lent is a time for growing in greatness—greatness in the eyes of God—by practicing fasting, like Jesus did, prayer, like Jesus did, self-giving like Jesus did. So that when we are tempted by the promises of the world, we may remain faithful as Jesus did—seeking not worldly greatness, but great faithfulness--for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

 

 

 

As we journey through Lent with Christ, let us place our needs before the Father.

For the Church throughout the world: that she may be faithful in bearing witness to the Cross as the path to true life.

For all who face strong temptations—especially to pride, popularity, and the desire for power or riches: that, like Jesus, they may remain faithful to the Father and choose what is right even when it is hard.

For our parish school community—students, teachers, staff, and families: that our Lenten fasting and prayer may shape our hearts to become more like Jesus: faithful, self-giving, and self-sacrificing.

For those who are poor, hungry, or without security: that the Lord may provide for their needs, and that our Lenten sacrifices may become real acts of generosity and care for them.

For the faithful departed: that, they may come to share forever in the true greatness of Heaven.

For X, for whom this mass is offered, and for the petitions we voice now in the silence of our hearts.

Father, we thank you for your loving care for us. Hear our prayers and help us to remain always faithful to your Holy Will, through Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.