Saturday of the Third Week of Advent
Reading 1 Isaiah 7:10-14
The LORD spoke to Ahaz:
Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God;
let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky!
But Ahaz answered,
“I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!”
Then Isaiah said:
Listen, O house of David!
Is it not enough for you to weary men,
must you also weary my God?
Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign:
the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and shall name him Emmanuel.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 24:1-2, 3-4ab, 5-6
R. (see 7c and 10b) Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
The LORD’s are the earth and its fullness;
the world and those who dwell in it.
For he founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers.
R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD?
or who may stand in his holy place?
He whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean,
who desires not what is vain.
R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
He shall receive a blessing from the LORD,
a reward from God his savior.
Such is the race that seeks for him,
that seeks the face of the God of Jacob.
R. Let the Lord enter; he is the king of glory.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
O Key of David,
opening the gates of God's eternal Kingdom:
come and free the prisoners of darkness!
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Luke 1:26-38
In the sixth month,
the angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”
But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
Saturday, April 19, 2025
Happy Saturday, friend! We are so excited to share with you what's coming up this week as we all prepare our hearts by praying with readings for Sunday, the day of rest with our Lord.
Live Liturgically // This Week’s Feast Days
Saturday, April 19 (today!) // Holy Saturday and the Easter Vigil
April 20 // Easter Sunday of The Resurrection of the Lord
April 21 // Monday in the Octave of Easter
April 22 // Tuesday in the Octave of Easter
April 23 //Wednesday in the Octave of Easter
April 24 // Thursday in the Octave of Easter
April 25 // Friday in the Octave of Easter
Letter from the Editor //
Dear Sister,
Today is Holy Saturday, a day when the tabernacles in Catholic churches all over the world stand open and empty. The altars are stripped bare, and we wait beside the tomb, which we know will be empty tomorrow on Easter Sunday, as empty as the tabernacles of today. But for now let us rest here and wait with all of creation, which anticipates tomorrow. Then tomorrow, as Mary of Magdala does in the Gospel, we go to the tomb “early in the morning” while it is “still dark” (John 20:1). Tomorrow we can follow her back to the Apostles and hear her worried report. Tomorrow we can run back with Peter and the other disciple and see the burial cloths and believe (see John 20:8).
But for today, let us hide with Jesus in the Tomb. We can tuck our hearts into His pierced side and ask Him for all that is sinful in us to die with Him. In doing this our “life is hidden with Christ in God,” and we know that tomorrow we will be “raised with Christ” and will have good reason to hope to one day “appear with him in glory” (Colossians 3:1, 3-4). And when He rises, we can be bold like Saint Peter in bearing witness to the whole world (see Acts 10:39), that those of us who believe “shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord” (Psalm 118:17).
In Christ’s Love,
Susanna
Read the readings for the Resurrection of the Lord (Mass of Easter Day):
First Reading // Acts 10:34a, 37-43
Psalm // Psalm 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23
Second Reading // Colossians 3:1-4
Gospel // John 20:1-9
Prayer Practice // How will you rest and wait with hope today?
Susanna Spencer holds a master's in Theology from the Franciscan University of Steubenville and is the Devotions Editor for Blessed is She. She is a freelance writer and editor and a teacher-in-training living with her philosopher husband and four kids in Saint Paul, Minnesota. She loves reading theology, attending beautiful liturgies, cooking delicious food, and casually following baseball. She is the author of the Gospel Studies including Seek His Kingdom: A Meditation on Matthew , Listen to Him: A Meditation on Mark, and Abide in His Love: A Meditation on John. She was narrator for Found: Advent With the Good Shepherd and Rescued: Lent With the Lamb of God and a contributing author and editor for our children’s devotional prayer book, Rise Up. She was the Theological Editor of the Blessed Conversations Studies. Find out more about her here.
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