MEMORIAL OF SAINT KATHARINE DREXEL, VIRGIN AND SAINT CUNEGUNDES, EMPRESS |

EIGHTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Greetings and blessings, beloved family and Happy Monday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time!

May God’s grace and mercy be with us all as we prepare to begin our Lenten journey in a few days (March 5th). The month of March is dedicated to St. Joseph, the foster father of Jesus Christ. May St. Joseph intercede for us all. Amen 🙏🏽

SAINTS OF THE DAY: FEAST DAY ~ MARCH 3, 2025

MEMORIAL OF SAINT KATHARINE DREXEL, VIRGIN AND SAINT CUNEGUNDES, EMPRESS | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/

Watch “Holy Mass and Holy Rosary on EWTN | “Holy Mass from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | Pray “Holy Rosary Novena From Lourdes” | Pray “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy in song from the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy” | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/03/03/catholic-daily-mass-daily-tv-mass-march-3-2025/

The Liturgical Year in the Catholic Church | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2024/12/03/the-liturgical-year-in-the-catholic-church/

WORLD PRAYERS FOR POPE FRANCIS | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/02/26/world-prayers-for-pope-francis/

Holy Rosary Prayer for Pope Francis | March 2, 2025 | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/03/03/holy-rosary-prayer-for-pope-francis-march-2-2025/

PRAYER FOR POPE FRANCIS: May we all unite as one voice to lift up the Vicar of Christ in prayer today as his health continues to improve after a prolonged respiratory crisis. We continue to pray for our Holy Father, Pope Francis’ speedy recovery and God’s Divine healing and intervention.

Almighty God, we thank you for the loving service of Pope Francis and the hope he has inspired in so many in Your great mercy. Have mercy on him in his illness now, we pray, and guide the medical staff in his care. Grant him peace and healing. Through Christ our Lord. Amen🙏🏽

On this special feast day, with special intention through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, and the Saints, we pray for the sick and dying. We especially pray for our loved ones who have recently died and we continue to pray for the repose of their gentle souls and souls of all the faithful departed, may the Lord receive them into the light of Eternal Kingdom. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May their gentle souls and souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in perfect peace with our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen 🙏 ✝️🕯✝️🕯✝️🕯

“Blessed are those who have died in the Lord; let them rest from their abors for their good deeds go with them.” ~ Rev 14:13

PRAYER FOR THE DEAD: In your hands, O Lord, we humbly entrust our brothers and sisters. In this life, you embraced them with your tender love; deliver them now from every evil, and bid them eternal rest. The old order has passed away: welcome them into paradise, where there will be no sorrow, no weeping or pain, but fullness of peace and joy with your Son and the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen🙏

THE HOLY FATHER, POPE FRANCIS’ MONTHLY INTENTIONS FOR 2025: FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH – For families in crisis: Let us pray that broken families might discover the cure for their wounds through forgiveness, rediscovering each other’s gifts, even in their differences. (https://popesprayerusa.net/popes-intentions/)

Pray “Holy Rosary for Peace with Pope Francis” | “The Chaplet of Divine Mercy in song”| “Holy Rosary ALL 20 Mysteries | Memorare Chaplet | Prayer in Difficult Times (Powerful Prayer) | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/30/holy-rosary-for-peace-with-pope-francis/

Please find below links to the websites for Daily Reflections, Foundation and interesting topics and articles about our Catholic faith and doctrines | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/2025/01/30/daily-reflections-and-prayer-links/

DAILY SAINTS AND REFLECTIONS | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/

Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Katharine Drexel, Virgin (Patron Saint of racial justice and of philanthropists) and Saint Cunegundes, Empress (Patron Saint of Luxembourg and Lithuania). Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for the poor and the needy, for persecuted christians, for an end to religious and political unrest, for justice and peace, love and unity in our world that is torn apart by war, terrorism, racism and countless other acts of violence against human life. We continue to pray for the intentions of our Holy Father. We pray for the Clergy, our Holy Father, Pope Francis, and all the ministers, Cardinals, Bishops, Priests, Deacons, Seminarians, all religious, for vocations to the Priesthood and Consecrated life. For those consecrated to God by the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience that they may seek to live their baptismal promises more intensely and have the grace to persevere in their commitment to the Lord and serve with open hearts and willing spirits. We pray for the Divine healing upon those who are sick and dying, particularly pray for the speedy recovery and Divine healing of our Holy Father, Pope Francis, we pray for those suffering from mental illness, cancers and other terminal diseases. We pray for those who are physically and mentally suffering from stressful life events at these incredibly challenging times. We pray for the Church, for captives, prisoners, persecuted Christians, the conversion of sinners and all who have fallen away from the joy of living in God’s loving presence and grace. We pray for the renewal of our spirit and a burning desire to serve God all the days of our lives. We continue to pray for torture victims, the poor, the needy and the most vulnerable in our communities and around the world, for all the innocent who suffer violence due to political or religious unrest, and Christians all over the world. We continue to pray for peace all over the world, particularly in Africa, the Middle East, for an end to the Ukraine-Russia conflicts and for peace in our families and throughout our divided and conflicted World. May the Saints intercede for our children, children all over the world and us all. Amen 🙏🏽

Saint Katharine Drexel, Virgin and Saint Cunegundes, Empress ~ Pray for us 🙏🏽

We thank God for blessing us all with the gift of His precious son, may we be saved by the name of our Savior Jesus Christ! May the good Lord grant us His grace during this Ordinary Time as we continue to serve Him in spirit and in truth. 🙏🏽

PRAYER FOR PEACE ~ POPE FRANCIS:

Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!

A PRAYER FOR PEACE: Lord Jesus Christ, You are the true King of peace. In You alone is found freedom. Please free our world from conflict. Bring unity to troubled nations. Let Your glorious peace reign in every heart. Dispel all darkness and evil. Protect the dignity of every human life. Replace hatred with Your love. Give wisdom to world leaders. Free them from selfish ambition. Eliminate all violence and war. Glorious Virgin Mary, Saint Michael the Archangel, Every Angel and Saint: Please pray for peace. Pray for unity amongst nations. Pray for unity amongst all people. Pray for the most vulnerable. Pray for those suffering. Pray for the fearful. Pray for those most in need. Pray for us all. Jesus, Son of the Living God, have mercy on us. Jesus, hear our prayers. Jesus, I trust in You! Amen 🙏

Prayers for Peace | https://mycatholic.life/catholic-prayers/prayers-for-peace/

SAINTS OF THE DAY – MEMORIAL OF SAINT KATHARINE DREXEL, VIRGIN AND SAINT CUNEGUNDES, EMPRESS – FEAST DAY ~ MARCH 3RD: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Katharine Drexel, Virgin (Patron Saint of racial justice and of philanthropists) and Saint Cunegundes, Empress (Patron Saint of Luxembourg and Lithuania). Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary and the Saints on this feast day, we humbly pray for the poor and the needy, for persecuted christians, for an end to religious and political unrest, for justice and peace, love and unity in our world that is torn apart by war, terrorism, racism and countless other acts of violence against human life.🙏

Saint Katharine Drexel, Virgin and Saint Cunegundes, Empress ~ Pray for us 🙏🏽

Saint(s) of the Day | March 3rd | https://dailyreflectionswithphilomena.com/

SAINT KATHARINE DREXEL, VIRGIN: St. Katharine Drexel (1858-1955) was a wealthy heiress from a prominent family in Philadelphia who abandoned her family’s fortune to found an order of sisters dedicated to serving the impoverished African American and American Indian populations of the United States. Although African-Americans had been freed from slavery, they continued to suffer serious abuse and were often prevented from obtaining even a basic education. Much the same situation held in the case of the native American Indians, who had been forcibly moved into reservations over the course of the 19th century. St. Katharine was born on November 26, 1858, Philadelphia, PA to Francis Anthony Drexel and Hannah Langstroth, a wealthy and well-connected banking family. The family’s wealth, however, did not prevent them from living out a serious commitment to their faith. Her mother opened up the family house three times a week to feed and care for the poor, and her father had a deep personal prayer life. Both parents encouraged their daughters to think of the family’s wealth not as their own, but as a gift from God which was to be used to help others. During the summer months, Katharine and her sisters would teach catechism classes to the children of the workers on her family’s summer estate. The practice would prepare her for a life of service, with a strong focus on education and attention to the poor and vulnerable. She had an excellent education and traveled widely. As a rich girl, she had a grand debut into society. From a young age became imbued with love for God and neighbor, she felt called to serve the spiritual and temporal needs of the underprivileged, particularly the African American and Native American communities. She began by donating money, but quickly realized this would not bring the lasting change these communities desperately needed —the lacking ingredient was people. She had always been interested in the plight of the Indians, having been appalled by reading Helen Hunt Jackson’s A Century of Dishonor.  

While on a European tour, she met Pope Leo XIII and asked him to send more missionaries to Wyoming for her friend Bishop James O’Connor. The pope replied, “Why don’t you become a missionary?” His answer shocked her into considering new possibilities. Back home, she visited the Dakotas, met the Sioux leader Red Cloud and began her systematic aid to Native American missions. She could easily have married. But after much discussion with Bishop O’Connor, she wrote in 1889, “The feast of Saint Joseph brought me the grace to give the remainder of my life to the Indians and the Colored.” Newspaper headlines screamed “Gives Up Seven Million!” In February of 1891, she made her first vows in religious life – formally renouncing her fortune and her personal freedom for the sake of growing closer to God in solidarity with the victims of injustice. After three and a half years of training, St. Katharine founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Native Americans and African Americans, whose members would work for the betterment of those they were called to serve. From the age of 33 until her death in 1955, she dedicated her life and a fortune of 20 million dollars to this work. St. Katharine and her first band of nuns (Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Indians and Colored) build the first missions boarding school for Native Americans in Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1894. A string of foundations followed. By 1942 she had a system of African American Catholic schools in thirteen states, plus forty mission centers and twenty-three rural schools. Segregationists harassed her work, even burning a school in Pennsylvania. In all, she established fifty missions for Native Americans in sixteen states. Two saints met when she was advised by Mother Cabrini about the “politics” of getting her order’s rule approved in Rome. Her crowning achievement was the founding of Xavier University in New Orleans in 1915, the first Catholic university in the United States for African Americans. At seventy-seven, she suffered a heart attack and was forced to retire. Apparently her life was over. But now came almost twenty years of quiet, intense prayer from a small room overlooking the sanctuary. Small notebooks and slips of paper record her various prayers, ceaseless aspirations and meditation. She died at the age of ninety-six on March 3, 1955 at Cornwells Heights, Pennsylvania. At her death there were more than 500 Sisters teaching in over 63 schools throughout the country. St. Katherine was beatified by Pope John Paul II on November 20, 1988, and canonized on October 1, 2000 by the same Pontiff, making her the second American-born saint and the first one born a U.S. citizen. She’s the Patron Saint of racial justice and of philanthropists.

PRAYER: Ever loving God, you called Saint Katharine Drexel to teach the message of the Gospel and to bring the life of the Eucharist to the African American and Native American peoples. By her prayers and example, enable us to work for justice among the poor and oppressed. Keep us undivided and draw us all into the Eucharistic community of Your Church, that we may be one in you. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever… Amen🙏

SAINT CUNEGUNDES, EMPRESS: St. Cunegundes was the daughter of Siegfried, the first Count of Luxemburg, and Hadeswige, his pious wife. They instilled into her from her cradle the most tender sentiments of piety, and married her to St. Henry, Duke of Bavaria, who, upon the death of the Emperor Otho III., was chosen king of the Romans, and crowned on the 6th of June, 1002. She was crowned at Paderborn on St. Laurence’s day. In the year 1014 she went with her husband to Rome, and received the imperial crown with him from the hands of Pope Benedict VIII. She had, by St. Henry’s consent, before her marriage made a vow of virginity. Calumniators afterwards made vile accusations against her, and the holy empress, to remove the scandal of such a slander, trusting in God to prove her innocence, walked over red-hot ploughshares without being hurt. The emperor condemned his too scrupulous fears and credulity, and from that time they lived in the strictest union of hearts, conspiring to promote in everything God’s honor and the advancement of piety.

Going once to make a retreat in Hesse, she fell dangerously ill, and made a vow to found a monastery, if she recovered, at Kaffungen, near Cassel, in the diocese of Paderborn, which she executed in a stately manner, and gave it to nuns of the Order of St. Benedict. Before it was finished St. Henry died, in 1024. She earnestly recommended his soul to the prayers of others, especially to her blear nuns, and expressed her longing desire of joining them. She had already exhausted her treasures in founding bishoprics and monasteries, and in relieving the poor, and she had therefore little left now to give. But still thirsting to embrace perfect evangelical poverty, and to renounce all to serve God without obstacle, she assembled a great number of prelates to the dedication of her church of Kaffungen on the anniversary day of her husband’s death, 1025; and after the gospel was sung at Mass she offered on the altar a piece of the true cross, and then, putting off her imperial robes, clothed herself with a poor habit; her hair was cut off, and the bishop put on her a veil and a ring as a pledge of her fidelity to her heavenly Spouse. After she was consecrated to God in religion, she seemed entirely to forget that she had been empress, and behaved as the last in the house, being persuaded that she was 30 before God. She prayed and read much, worked with her hands, and took a singular pleasure in visiting and comforting the sick.

Thus she passed the last fifteen years of her life. Her mortifications at length reduced her to a very weak condition and brought on her last sickness. Perceiving that they were preparing a cloth fringed with gold to cover her corpse after her death, she changed color and ordered it to be taken away; nor could she be at rest till she was promised she should be buried as a poor religious in her habit. She died on the 3d of March, 1040. Her body was carried to Bamberg and buried near that of her husband. She was solemnly canonized by Innocent III in 1200. She’s the Patron Saint of Luxembourg and Lithuania.

PRAYER: God, You inspired St. Cunegundes to strive for perfect charity and so attain Your Kingdom at the end of her pilgrimage on earth. Strengthen us through her intercession that we may advance rejoicing in the way of love…Amen🙏

SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS:

Bible Readings for today’s Holy Mass, Monday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time | USCCB | https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading

Today’s Bible Readings: Monday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time | Monday, March 3, 2025
Reading 1, Sirach 17:19-27
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 32:1-2, 5, 6, 7
Gospel, Mark 10:17-27

Gospel Reading ~ Mark 10:17-27

“Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor”

“As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus answered him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honor your father and your mother.” He replied and said to him, “Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth.” Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, “You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” At that statement, his face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for those who have wealth to enter the Kingdom of God!” The disciples were amazed at his words. So Jesus again said to them in reply, “Children, how hard it is to enter the Kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God.” They were exceedingly astonished and said among themselves, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “For men it is impossible, but not for God. All things are possible for God.”

In today’s Gospel reading from the Gospel according to St. Mark the Evangelist, we first heard of the words of the Lord to a rich man who came up to Him and asked Him of what he needed to do in order to attain eternal life, just as the Lord had proclaimed and promised to them all. It was there that the Lord told the man that he ought to obey the Law and commandments of God, and after the rich man had replied that he had obeyed all those laws and commandments, the Lord tested his resolve and commitment by asking him to leave behind his great wealth and possessions so that he might follow Him wholeheartedly and becoming His disciple. According to the Gospel, the rich man left the Lord with great sorrow. This exchange showed to all of us that the love and desire for worldly things, possessions, wealth and other forms of attachments and ambitions can become truly serious obstacles which can prevent us from coming closer to the Lord and His salvation. It however does not mean that the Lord despises the rich and the privileged in the world, as some may have misunderstood the true intention of this Gospel reading. What the Lord warned His disciples and all of us against through this interaction with the rich man was in fact the unhealthy attachments and obsessions that we tend to have for those worldly desires, wealth, riches and other things of worldly nature that we have around us. And for those among us who have been blessed more with them, the risk and chance is indeed higher for us to be overwhelmed and misguided by those temptations.

Reflecting on the Gospel reading, it puts before us someone who was clearly living a good life and, yet, felt that there was another step he could take in response to God’s presence in his life. When Jesus put before him what this next step was for him, he couldn’t take it. Jesus was calling him to become a member of His inner circle of disciples, which would involve letting go of his great wealth and literally following in the footsteps of the one who had nowhere to lay His head. However, this was a step too far for him. His great wealth held him back from taking the path that would have brought him true happiness. As a result, we are told, ‘he went away sad’. The call of Jesus was very personal to this man. Not everyone Jesus met was called to sell everything they owned, give the money to the poor and follow Jesus in a radical way. This was this man’s particular calling. Jesus was often given hospitality in the home of Mary and Martha and there is no suggestion He asked them to sell their home and to follow Him on His journeys. Yet, there is always some further step each of us can take to grow in our relationship with the Lord, in response to His presence and call. Like this man, we can often find ourselves faced with a call to do something which seems beyond us. The temptation can be to walk away from the call, even though to say ‘yes’ to the call would be the path to life for us. The Lord can call any one of us beyond where we are; He can call on us to grow in our relationship with Him, to be more generous in our response to His presence. We may not be able to answer that call in our own strength, but we will be able to answer it with the Lord’s strength. When it comes to our journey of faith, we need always to be on the move, ready to respond to the Lord’s call to grow in our relationship with him and in the ways we live out that relationship. Like the man in the Gospel reading, we can hesitate before the Lord’s very personal call to us to keep growing in our faith in Him and in our love of Him. We can be held back in all kinds of ways. We need to keep praying for the freedom to go where the Lord is leading us. This is the freedom of the children of God which only the Holy Spirit can give us. Saint Paul once wrote, ‘where the Spirit is, there is freedom’, the freedom to become all the Lord is calling us to be, and to do all that He is calling us to do. In the Gospel reading, Jesus declares that ‘everything is possible for God’. When Blessed Virgin Mary was called to become the mother of Jesus and she hesitated, that was the message she heard. The Angel declared to her ‘Nothing will be impossible with God’. It is the message we too will hear whenever we seek to answer the Lord’s very particular call to each of us.

In our first reading today from the Book of the prophet Sirach, the prophet mentioned to the people of God of how the Lord, the Almighty God and Master of all knows everything in the hearts and minds of all of His people, and nothing can truly be hidden from Him, no matter what. The prophet Sirach also reassured the faithful that their Lord and Master has always loved them and would reward all those who have been faithful to Him with great grace and blessings, and He has always been willing to welcome back everyone who commit themselves to the path of repentance and reconciliation, ever generous and rich with His mercy, calling upon all of His people to come back to Him. At the same time, the prophet Sirach also gave a gentle warning from the Lord to the people that if they misbehaved and continued on their path of disobedience and rebellion against Him, then all of their misdeeds and wickedness would also be held against them, just as much as their righteous deeds and actions would bring them rich rewards and graces on the Day of Judgement. Essentially all of us are called through these words of the prophet Sirach that we should no longer be stubborn in closing our hearts and minds against God’s call, His love and generous mercy towards us. We should be thankful that God has always loved us all these while, and willing to forgive us our many sins and trespasses if we truly can commit ourselves to the path of repentance, turning ourselves from the darkness of sin and evil into the path of God’s light and truth.

As we reflect on the words of the Sacred Scriptures today as we come ever closer to the beginning of the season of Lent this Wednesday, all of us are reminded about the great love and kindness which God our loving Father and Creator has for each and every one of us. All of us are truly fortunate to have God Who has always loved us and patiently cared for us, ever always providing us with the help and the means for us to reach out to Him, to return to Him, ever ready to welcome us back with outstretched hands, as He awaits us all to repent from our sinful ways and embrace Him once again with genuine and sincere love. All that remain is for us to make that move to return to our loving Father, opening our hearts and minds to accept Him and His love and forgiveness, and commit ourselves anew to Him. As we are about to enter soon into the penitential season and time of Lent, each and every one of us should reevaluate our way of life and actions, how we live our lives each day, and what our focus and attention in life is, so that we do not end up losing sight on the true destination of our lives, that is the Lord and His salvation, the eternal life and true happiness that He has reassured us with. We must not allow ourselves to be swayed easily by the allures of worldly desires and ambitions, or to be misguided and misled by the many temptations of glory and power, and all the things that may lead us astray in our journey of faith. Instead, as we prepare ourselves for the coming of the holy and blessed Lenten season, let us all learn to detach ourselves from all these worldly temptations and pleasures, resisting the various pressures and temptations that may lead us astray in our path, and we should make the conscious effort to walk the path of righteousness and virtue in God, in every parts of our lives, in our every actions, words and deeds and in everything we do especially during this upcoming season of repentance and purification, so that we may truly prepare ourselves well to welcome the Lord and reorientate our lives to focus upon Him once again. We are all fortunate that God has given us constantly His generous mercy and the many opportunities that He has provided us so that we may come and seek Him once again and be reconciled with Him. We should not squander these opportunities that we have received. We are called to emulate the lives and examples of the Holy men and women, particularly those who we celebrate today,
Saint Katharine Drexel, Virgin and Saint Cunegundes, Empress. May the Lord, our most loving God and Father, our most merciful and compassionate Master continue to show us all His love and most generous mercy, and may He continue to strengthen and empower us all in our journey in life so that despite all the pressures, temptations and all the other obstacles that we may be facing in our paths, we may continue to devote ourselves thoroughly to the Lord, committing our time and effort at all times to be the worthy bearers of our Christian faith and truth, by living to the best of our abilities in glorifying God by our lives, even to the smallest and seemingly least significant of our actions. May God in His infinite grace and mercy, grant us His grace and be with us always, and may He continue to bless our every good works, efforts and endeavours, and bless our preparations for the upcoming season of Lent. Amen 🙏🏽

DEVOTION OF THE MONTH OF MARCH | MONTH OF ST. JOSEPH: The month of March is dedicated to St. Joseph, the foster father of Jesus Christ. “His was the title of father of the Son of God, because he was the Spouse of Mary, ever Virgin. He was our Lord’s father, because Jesus ever yielded to him the obedience of a son. He was our Lord’s father, because to him were entrusted, and by him were faithfully fulfilled, the duties of a father, in protecting Him, giving Him a home, sustaining and rearing Him, and providing Him with a trade”. “This patronage must be invoked as ever necessary for the Church, not only as a defense against all dangers, but also, and indeed primarily, as an impetus for her renewed commitment to evangelization in the world and to re-evangelization,” wrote St. John Paul II in Redemptoris Custos (Guardian of the Redeemer). St. John Paul II further said, “Because St. Joseph is the protector of the Church, he is the guardian of the Eucharist and the Christian family. Therefore, we must turn to St. Joseph today to ward off attacks upon the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist and upon the family. We must plead with St. Joseph to guard the Eucharistic Lord and the Christian family during this time of peril.”

The first four days of March fall during the liturgical season known as Tempus per Annum or Ordinary Time (formerly known as Time after Epiphany) which is represented by the liturgical color green. Green, the symbol of hope, is the color of the sprouting seed and arouses in the faithful the hope of reaping the eternal harvest of heaven, especially the hope of a glorious resurrection. The remainder of the month of March is the liturgical season of Lent which is represented by the liturgical color violet or purple — a symbol of penance, mortification and the sorrow of a contrite heart. All saint days that are usually Memorials are shifted to Optional Memorials during the season of Lent. As we continue our journey “up to Jerusalem” during the month of March, three prominent ideas are proposed for our contemplation by the liturgy of Lent: the Passion and Resurrection of Christ, baptism, and penance. The Solemnity of St. Joseph (March 19) is a special landmark this month in which we will celebrate the great honor bestowed upon the foster father of Jesus. The Solemnity of the Annunciation is celebrated on March 25. And if you are Irish, St. Patrick’s feast is another cause for a joyful celebration. The Saints that we will focus on this month and try to imitate are: St. Katharine Drexel (March 3); St. Casimir (March 4); Sts. Perpetua and Felicity (March 7); St. John of God (March 8); St. Patrick (March 17); St. Cyril of Jerusalem (March 18); and St. Joseph (March 19). The Optional Memorials of St. Frances of Rome (March 9) and St. Turibio de Mogrovejo (March 23) are superseded by the Lenten Sunday liturgy.

A Time of Penance and Promise: The Church’s vibrant new life has been obscured by the austerity of the penitential season of Lent. But that life is indisputable, and it will burgeon forth on Easter as Christ coming forth from His tomb! At the beginning of this month we will embark on our journey to the cross by receiving ashes and donning the purple of penance. During this month our journey to the cross with our acts of penitence. We will reflect on our mortality (Remember man thou art dust) and the shortness of life (and to dust thou shall return). We will heed the call, Now is the acceptable time, now is “the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2).” Just like Our Lord’s earthly life every moment of our lives is leading up to the last moment—when for eternity we will either go to God or suffer the fires of hell.
The Solemnity of the Annunciation bravely appears during Lent; a pure white flower in the purple Lenten landscape. It seems to be, at first glance, a Christmas feast, but upon reflection we grasp that the feast is intimately linked to the Paschal mystery. For what Christ inaugurated at His Incarnation in accepting to offer Himself for the human race, He will complete in His sacrifice on the cross. We prepare to accept the cross of blessed ashes on Ash Wednesday, falls on March 5, 2025, marking the beginning of the Lenten season and plunge ourselves into anticipating the major exercises of Lent–fasting, prayer, almsgiving–laying our thoughts and prayers on the heart of our Mother Mary. She, who offered her Son in the temple and on the Cross, will teach us how to deny ourselves, take up our cross daily, and follow after her Son. As the weeks of Lent progress let us not be tired of doing our good works and penance, but continue with the enthusiasm of the catechumens on their way to Easter and Baptism. May our Lenten observance be a joyful journey — and not a forced march. 🙏🏽

https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=12540

PRAYER INTENTIONS: We thank God for the gift of His Son and pray for His grace as we serve Him in truth and love. During this Ordinary Time, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother and the Saints we honor today, we pray for the sick and suffering, especially children and those battling epilepsy, strokes, heart disease, cancer, and other terminal illnesses. May God restore them to health and bring them comfort and peace. Every life is a gift.

We pray for the safety of our families and loved ones, for healing in marriages, and for unity in a world divided by violence and conflict. May God deliver us from hopeless situations and impossible causes.

We remember the souls in Purgatory, asking for God’s mercy upon them. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.

We pray for widows, widowers, and all who are grieving. May the Lord strengthen them in their trials.

We continue to pray for Pope Francis, the Clergy, and all those spreading the Gospel. May God bless vocations to the priesthood and religious life and protect persecuted Christians worldwide. We pray for peace in our families and throughout the world. Amen. 🙏🏽

Let us pray:

My generous Lord, You call me to perfection. You call me to turn from everything that hinders my perfect love of You and my full embrace of Your will. Please help me to sincerely turn to You every day, seeking only Your full will in all things. As I do, please set me free from all that keeps me from the life of perfection to which I am called. Jesus, I trust in You ~ Amen 🙏🏽

Save Us, Savior of the World. Our Blessed Mother Mary and Saint Katharine Drexel and Saint Cunegundes ~ Pray for us 🙏🏽

With gratitude for the gift of this new year, we pray for justice, peace, love, and unity within our families and throughout the world. May God’s Divine Mercy and Grace be upon us all during this Ordinary Time. Wishing us all a blessed, safe, grace-filled and fruitful week. May God keep us all safe and well. Amen 🙏🏽

Blessings and Love always, Philomena 💖