Catholic Sunday Mass Reading, 20th March 2022 + Reflection – Time To Convert

Sunday Mass Reading, March 20, 2022

THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT C

Office – Psalter Week 3

Mass prop., Creed. Preface of Lent

Vestment: Violet 

Today’s Rosary: Glorious Mystery

Vespers II of the Third Sunday of Lent

THEME OF THE SUNDAY: Time to Convert.  

In Lent, more than at any other time of the year, God invites us to change our ways. In the gospel Jesus shows us that his Father is always calling us. Time is short; we should choose to follow him now. The first reading tells us about Moses who, when God called him, abandoned his own plans and accepted the Lord’s proposal to return to Egypt and liberate his people. The journey to freedom is long and hard. The children of Israel in the desert gave into many temptations. This happens to us even when we choose to follow the Lord. This is the message of the second reading.

ON THIS SUNDAY WE CELEBRATE THE FIRST SCRUTINY in preparation for the Baptism of the catechumens who are to be admitted to the Sacraments of Christian Initiation at the Easter Vigil, using the proper prayers and intercessions as given in The Roman Missal.

NO GLORIA

FIRST READING

 “‘I am’ has sent me to you.” 

A reading from the Book of Exodus (Exodus 3:1-8a.13- 15)

In those days: Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian; and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, “I will turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.” When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here am I.” Then he said, “Do not come near; put off your shoes from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. Then the Lord said, “I have seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters; I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey.” Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the sons of Israel, ‘I am’ has sent me to you.”’ God also said to Moses, “Say this to the sons of Israel, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you’: this is my name for ever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.”

The word of the Lord

RESPONSORIAL PSALM Psalm 103:1-2.3-4, 6-7, 8 and 11 (R. 8a)

R/. The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, 

and all within me, his holy name. 

Bless the Lord, O my soul, 

and never forget all his benefits. R/.

It is the Lord who forgives all your sins, 

who heals every one of your ills, 

who redeems your life from the grave, 

who crowns you with mercy and compassion. R/.

R/. The Lord is compassionate and gracious.

The Lord does just deeds, 

gives full justice to all who are oppressed. 

He made known his ways to Moses, 

and his deeds to the children of Israel. R/.

The Lord is compassionate and gracious, 

slow to anger and rich in mercy. 

For as the heavens are high above the earth, 

so strong his mercy for those who fear him. R/.

SECOND READING

“These things that happened to the people with Moses in the desert were written down for our instruction” 

A reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 10: 1-6.10-12) 

I want you to know, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptised into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same supernatural food and all drank the same supernatural drink. For they drank from the supernatural Rock which followed them, and the Rock was Christ. Nevertheless with most of them God was not pleased; for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things are warnings for us, not to desire evil as they did, nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the destroyer. Now these things happened to them as a warning, but they were written down for our instruction, upon whom the end of the ages has come. Therefore let any one who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.

The word of the Lord

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION (VERSE BEFORE THE GOSPEL Matthew 4:17)

Glory and praise to you, O Christ. Repent, says the Lord, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Glory and praise to you, O Christ

GOSPEL

“Unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” 

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Luke 13:1-9)

There were some present at that very time who told Jesus of the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered thus? I tell you, No; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. Or those eighteen upon whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who dwelt in Jerusalem? I tell you, No; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” And he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Behold, these three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I find none. Cut it down; why should it use up the ground?’ “And he answered him, ‘Let it alone, sir, this year also, till I dig about it and put on manure. And if it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.”’

The Gospel of the Lord.

Creed 

I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible, I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ the only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father from all ages, God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten not made, consubstantial with the Father, through Him all things were made.  For us men and for our salvation.  He came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried and rose again on the third day in accordance with the scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord the giver of life, who proceed from the Father and Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. I believe in one holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and life of the world to come. Amen.

PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL

“God said, “I am who I am.”

PRIEST: God is always with us in our pilgrimage through life. He is willing to listen to us no as we make our prayers to him.

READER: FOR THE CHURCH, (pause) may she always be conscious of God’s abiding presence in her midst, that he who delivered the Jews from the bondage of slavery will liberate the church of Christ from the snares of her enemies. (pause) Lord, hear our prayer; and be with us always we pray Oh Lord.

FOR THE GOVERNMENTS OF OUR WORLD, (pause) may they be true to the Christian principles of the basic dignity of man, who is made in God’s image and likeness. (pause) Lord, hear our prayer; and be with us always we pray Oh Lord.

FOR THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED AND SUFFER HARDSHIPS, (pause) may they be encouraged by the ever-present compassion and love of God, who sees their afflictions and will deliver them from evil. (pause) Lord, hear our prayer; and be with us always we pray Oh Lord.

FOR CHRISTIANS EVERYWHERE, ESPECIALLY THIS COMMUNITY, (pause) may we, through prayer and repentance, fix our minds and hearts on God, and turn away from those things which destroy our relationship with him and with one another. (pause) Lord, hear our prayer; and be with us always we pray Oh Lord.

We pray in silence to God our Father, who is always ready to answer our petitions.

PRIEST: Father, you are forever present to us, calling us to repentance. May we, this Lent, be mindful of your mercy, and re-consecrate our lives to you. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

TODAY’S REFLECTION:

“I have seen the miserable state of my people…and heard their appeal to be free.. I am well aware of their sufferings. I mean to deliver them.” These are words of hope for the people of Israel under bondage in Egypt. Moses is commissioned to reassure them of God’s nearness and saving power, God is not deaf or blind, unfeeling or indifferent to what is happening with us. His name is “I am who I am” – the one and only – who is there always for us and with us. Knowledge and experience of the abiding presence of God demand not complacency but radical transformation of life and attitude (exodus/metanoia), “Unless you repent you will all perish as they did” may be threatening, but it reminds us that God’s presence is grace – opportunity to bear fruit of repentance and be saved. If only we could cooperate with God’s grace by bearing good fruit!

PERSONAL DEVOTIONAL FOR LENT

Food and drink is good for the body when taken in proportion to what the body needs to function to maximum capacity. However, when you let food and drink control you or you take it more than you need it or less than you need it, you will definitely have a problem. The watch-word is to do it with moderation. Before you eat or drink, first ask yourself, do you need it and how much of it do you need? Then, remember that when you share what you have as food and drink with others who do not have to eat and drink, you make the world a better place.

 Today, When you place that food before you to eat and that drink too, remember that you only need a little of it to function well and be healthy and when you try to share it with those who do not have, you will be doing what Jesus did in the Scripture. 

Let us pray,

Lord give me your food that lasts forever, and give the grace also, to share the food I have freely with those that don’t have in the community.