PRAYER OF THE DAY

Offering to Saint Joseph

O great Saint Joseph,

thou generous depositary and dispenser of immortal riches,

behold us prostrate at thy feet,

imploring thee to receive us as thy servants and as thy children.

Next to the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

of which thou art the faithful copy,

we acknowledge that there is no heart more tender,

more compassionate than thine.

What, then, have we to fear,

or, rather,

for what should we not hope,

if thou dost deign to be our benefactor,

our master, our model, our father,

and our mediator?

Refuse not, then, this favor,

O powerful protector!

We ask it of thee by the love thou hast for Jesus and Mary.

Into thy hands we commit our souls and bodies,

but above all the last moments of our lives.

May we,

after having honored, imitated, and served thee on earth,

eternally sing with thee the mercies of Jesus and Mary.

Amen.

DAILY MASS READINGS

Friday of the First Week of Lent

Reading

EZ 18:21-28

Thus says the Lord GOD:

If the wicked man turns away from all the sins he committed,

if he keeps all my statutes and does what is right and just,

he shall surely live, he shall not die.

None of the crimes he committed shall be remembered against him;

he shall live because of the virtue he has practiced.

Do I indeed derive any pleasure from the death of the wicked?

says the Lord GOD.

Do I not rather rejoice when he turns from his evil way

that he may live?

And if the virtuous man turns from the path of virtue to do evil,

the same kind of abominable things that the wicked man does,

can he do this and still live?

None of his virtuous deeds shall be remembered,

because he has broken faith and committed sin;

because of this, he shall die.

You say, “The LORD’s way is not fair!”

Hear now, house of Israel:

Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair?

When someone virtuous turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies,

it is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die.

But if the wicked, turning from the wickedness he has committed,

does what is right and just,

he shall preserve his life;

since he has turned away from all the sins that he committed,

he shall surely live, he shall not die.

Responsorial Psalm

PS 130:1-2, 3-4, 5-7A, 7BC-8

R. If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?

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. If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?

If you, O LORD, mark iniquities,

LORD, who can stand?

But with you is forgiveness,

that you may be revered.

R. If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?

I trust in the LORD;

my soul trusts in his word.

My soul waits for the LORD

more than sentinels wait for the dawn.

Let Israel wait for the LORD.

R. If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?

For with the LORD is kindness

and with him is plenteous redemption;

And he will redeem Israel

from all their iniquities.

R. If you, O Lord, mark iniquities, who can stand?

Gospel

MT 5:20-26

Jesus said to his disciples:

“I tell you,

unless your righteousness surpasses that

of the scribes and Pharisees,

you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven.

“You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,

You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.

But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother

will be liable to judgment,

and whoever says to his brother, Raqa,

will be answerable to the Sanhedrin,

and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna.

Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar,

and there recall that your brother

has anything against you,

leave your gift there at the altar,

go first and be reconciled with your brother,

and then come and offer your gift.

Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court.

Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge,

and the judge will hand you over to the guard,

and you will be thrown into prison.

Amen, I say to you,

you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.”

SAINT OF THE DAY

March 14

St. Matilda (d. 968)

Matilda was the daughter of Count Dietrich of Westphalia and Reinhild of Denmark. She was also known as Mechtildis and Maud. 

She was raised by her grandmother, the Abbess of Eufurt convent. Matilda married Henry the Fowler, son of Duke Otto of Saxony, in the year 909. He succeeded his father as Duke in the year 912 and in 919 succeeded King Conrad I to the German throne. She was noted for her piety and charitable works. She was widowed in the year 936, and supported her son Henry's claim to his father's throne. When her son Otto (the Great) was elected, she persuaded him to name Henry Duke of Bavaria after he had led an unsuccessful revolt. She was severely criticized by both Otto and Henry for what they considered her extravagant charities. She resigned her inheritance to her sons, and retired to her country home but was called to the court through the intercession of Otto's wife, Edith. When Henry again revolted, Otto put down the insurrection in the year 941 with great cruelty. Matilda censored Henry when he began another revolt against Otto in the year 953 and for his ruthlessness in suppressing a revolt by his own subjects; at that time she prophesized his imminent death. When he did die in 955, she devoted herself to building three convents and a monastery, was left in charge of the kingdom when Otto went to Rome in 962 to be crowned Emperor 

(often regarded as the beginning of the Holy Roman Empire), 

and spent most of the declining years of her life at the convent at Nordhausen she had built. 

She died at the monastery at Quedlinburg on March 14 and was buried there with Henry.

OFFICE OF READINGS

O Lord, open my lips,

and my mouth will proclaim Your Praise!

Invitatory Psalm

Psalm 66 (67)

Christ the Lord was tempted and suffered for us.

Come, let us adore him.

O God, take pity on us and bless us,

and let your face shine upon us,

so that your ways may be known across the world,

and all nations learn of your salvation.

Christ the Lord was tempted and suffered for us.

Come, let us adore him.

Let the peoples praise you, O God,

let all the peoples praise you.

Let the nations be glad and rejoice,

for you judge the peoples with fairness

and you guide the nations of the earth.

Christ the Lord was tempted and suffered for us.

Come, let us adore him.

Let the peoples praise you, O God,

let all the peoples praise you.

The earth has produced its harvest:

may God, our God, bless us.

May God bless us,

may the whole world revere him.

Christ the Lord was tempted and suffered for us.

Come, let us adore him.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

world without end.

Amen.

Christ the Lord was tempted and suffered for us.

Come, let us adore him.

Hymn

Lord, who throughout these forty days

for us didst fast and pray,

teach us with thee to mourn our sins,

and close by thee to stay.

As thou with Satan didst contend

and didst the victory win,

O give us strength in thee to fight,

in thee to conquer sin.

As thou didst hunger bear, and thirst,

so teach us, gracious Lord,

to die to self, and chiefly live

by thy most holy word.

And through these days of penitence,

and through thy Passiontide,

yea, evermore in life and death,

Jesus, with us abide.

Abide with us, that so, this life

of suffering overpast,

an Easter of unending joy

we may attain at last.

Psalm 34 (35)

The Lord, a saviour in time of persecution

O Lord, arise to help me.

Judge, Lord, those who are judging me:

attack those who are attacking me.

Take up your shield and come out to defend me.

Brandish your spear and hold back my pursuers.

Say to my soul, “I am your deliverance.”

Let them be thrown into confusion,

those who are after my life.

Let them be weakened and put to flight,

those who plan harm to me.

Let them be like chaff blowing in the wind,

when the angel of the Lord scatters them.

Let their paths be dark and slippery,

when the angel of the Lord harries them.

For it was without cause that they spread out their nets to ensnare me,

without cause that they dug a pit to take my life.

Let death come upon them suddenly,

may they be entangled in their own nets.

But my soul will exult in the Lord

and rejoice in his aid.

My bones themselves will say

“Lord, who is your equal?”

You snatch the poor man

from the hand of the strong,

the needy and weak

from those who would destroy them.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

world without end.

Amen.

O Lord, arise to help me.

Psalm 34 (35)

Lord, plead my cause;

defend me with your strength.

Lying witnesses rose up against me;

they asked me questions I could not answer.

They paid me back evil for the good I did,

my soul is desolation.

Yet I – when they were ill, I put on sackcloth,

I mortified my soul with fasting,

I prayed for them from the depths of my heart.

I walked in sadness as for a close friend, for a brother;

I was bowed down with grief as if mourning my own mother.

But they – when I was unsteady, they rejoiced and gathered together.

They gathered and beat me: I did not know why.

They were tearing me to pieces, there was no end to it:

they teased me, heaped derision on me, they ground their teeth at me.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

world without end.

Amen.

Lord, plead my cause;

defend me with your strength.

Psalm 34 (35)

My tongue shall speak of your justice, all day long.

Lord, how long will you wait?

Rescue my life from their attacks,

my only life from the lions.

I will proclaim you in the great assembly,

in the throng of people I will praise you.

Let not my lying enemies triumph over me,

those who hate me for no reason,

who conspire against me by secret signs,

who do not speak of peace,

who plan crimes against the innocent,

who cry out slanders against me,

saying “Yes! Yes! We saw it ourselves!”

You see them, Lord, do not stay silent:

Lord, do not leave me.

Rise up and keep watch at my trial:

my God and my Lord, watch over my case.

Judge me according to your justice,

Lord: my God, let them not rejoice over me!

Let them not think to themselves,

“Yes! We have what we wanted!”

Let them not say,

“We have swallowed him up.”

But let those who support my cause rejoice,

let them say always “How great is the Lord,

who takes care of his servant’s welfare.”

And my tongue too will ponder your justice,

and praise you all day long.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,

world without end.

Amen.

My tongue shall speak of your justice, all day long.

Turn back to the Lord your God,

– because he is tenderness and compassion.

First Reading

Exodus 12:21-36

Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, ‘Go and choose animals from the flock on behalf of your families, and kill the Passover victim. Then take a spray of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and with the blood from the basin touch the lintel and the two doorposts. Let none of you venture out of the house till morning. Then, when the Lord goes through Egypt to strike it, and sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, he will pass over the door and not allow the destroyer to enter your homes and strike. You must keep these rules as an ordinance for all time for you and your children. When you enter the land that the Lord is giving you, as he promised, you must keep to this ritual. And when your children ask you, “What does this ritual mean?” you will tell them, “It is the sacrifice of the Passover in honour of the Lord who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt, and struck Egypt but spared our houses.”’ And the people bowed down and worshipped. 

The sons of Israel then departed, and they obeyed. 

They carried out the orders the Lord had given to Moses and Aaron.

And at midnight the Lord struck down all the first-born in the land of Egypt: the first-born of Pharaoh, heir to his throne, the first-born of the prisoner in his dungeon, and the first-born of all the cattle. Pharaoh and all his courtiers and all the Egyptians got up in the night, and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house without its dead. And it was night when Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron. ‘Get up,’ he said ‘you and the sons of Israel, and get away from my people. Go and offer worship to the Lord as you have asked and, as you have asked, take your flocks and herds, and go. And also ask a blessing on me.’ The Egyptians urged the people to hurry up and leave the land because, they said, ‘Otherwise we shall all be dead.’ 

So the people carried off their dough, still unleavened, on their shoulders, 

their kneading bowls wrapped in their cloaks.

The sons of Israel did as Moses had told them and asked the Egyptians for silver ornaments and gold, and for clothing. The Lord gave the people such prestige in the eyes of the Egyptians, that they gave them what they asked. So they plundered the Egyptians.

Responsory

The sons of Israel shall take some of the blood of the lamb

and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of their houses.

This blood shall serve as a sign to you.

You were ransomed with the precious blood of Christ,

like that of a lamb without blemish.

This blood shall serve as a sign to you.

Second Reading

From the Mirror of Love

by Saint Aelred, abbot

Christ, the model of brotherly love

The perfection of brotherly love lies in the love of one’s enemies. We can find no greater inspiration for this than grateful remembrance of the wonderful patience of Christ. He who is more fair than all the sons of men offered his fair face to be spat upon by sinful men; he allowed those eyes that rule the universe to be blindfolded by wicked men; he bared his back to the scourges; he submitted that head which strikes terror in principalities and powers to the sharpness of the thorns; he gave himself up to be mocked and reviled, and at the end endured the cross, the nails, the lance, the gall, the vinegar, 

remaining always gentle, meek and full of peace.

In short, he was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and like a lamb before the shearers he kept silent, and did not open his mouth.

Who could listen to that wonderful prayer, so full of warmth, of love, of unshakeable serenity – Father, forgive them – and hesitate to embrace his enemies with overflowing love? Father, he says, forgive them. Is any gentleness, any love, lacking in this prayer?

Yet he put into it something more. It was not enough to pray for them: he wanted also to make excuses for them. Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing. They are great sinners, yes, but they have little judgement; therefore, Father, forgive them. They are nailing me to the cross, but they do not know who it is that they are nailing to the cross: if they had known, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory; therefore, Father, forgive them. They think it is a lawbreaker, an impostor claiming to be God, a seducer of the people. I have hidden my face from them, and they do not recognise my glory; therefore, Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.

If someone wishes to love himself he must not allow himself to be corrupted by indulging his sinful nature. If he wishes to resist the promptings of his sinful nature he must enlarge the whole horizon of his love to contemplate the loving gentleness of the humanity of the Lord. Further, if he wishes to savour the joy of brotherly love with greater perfection and delight, 

he must extend even to his enemies the embrace of true love.

But if he wishes to prevent this fire of divine love from growing cold because of injuries received, 

let him keep the eyes of his soul always fixed on the serene patience of his beloved Lord and Saviour.

Responsory

He surrendered himself to death,

letting himself be taken for a sinner.

He bore the faults of many while praying for sinners.

Jesus said, Father, forgive them:

they do not know what they are doing.

He bore the faults of many while praying for sinners.

Let us pray.

Bend our wills, Lord, so that by this Lenten observance

we may fit ourselves to celebrate the Easter festival;

and as we have all undertaken to subdue the body,

may we all be renewed in spirit.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever.

Amen.

Let us praise the Lord.

– Thanks be to God.