Saturday, March 15, 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
Sunday, March 16 // Second Sunday of Lent
Monday, March 17 // Optional Memorial of Saint Patrick, Bishop
Tuesday, March 18 // Optional Memorial of Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Wednesday, March 19 // Solemnity of Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Letter from the Editor //
Dear Sister,
Last Sunday we compared Lent to a desert; on the Second Sunday of Lent the Church compares our time of Lent to a mountain. In the Gospel, we go with Jesus, Peter, John, and James “up the mountain to pray” (Luke 9:28). Jesus is transfigured before them as the Father proclaims, “This is my chosen Son; listen to him” (Luke 9:35). While the Transfiguration demonstrates the divinity of Jesus, it also points to a truth about the Lord’s will for us. Saint Paul tells us that “our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20). As adopted children of God, adopted into the promise of Abraham, the Lord wants to transfigure us as well. He will transform us in this life to be united with Him, and He will ultimately “change our lowly body to conform with his glorified body” at the end of time (Philippians 3:21).
This Lent, let us continue to “wait for the LORD with courage,” believing that we “shall see the bounty of the LORD in the land of the living” (Psalm 27:13-14). The Lord has proved His promise to us through His Sacrifice on the Cross, one that Abram anticipates in his offering of “a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old she-goat,
a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon” (Genesis 15:9). Abram’s sacrifice was first fulfilled in the Law given to Moses, and finally by Jesus Himself. Let us live into that promise, believing that as baptized Christians, we are meant to be one of the stars of Abram’s descendants.
In Christ’s Love,
Susanna
Read the readings for the Second Sunday of Lent:
First Reading // Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18
Psalm // Psalm 27:1, 7-8, 8-9, 13-14.
Second Reading // Philippians 3:17-4:1
Gospel // Luke 9:28b-36
Prayer Practice // How have you been transfigured into Christ’s likeness? How do you hope to be transfigured in this season?
Susanna Spencer holds a master's in Theology from the Franciscan University of Steubenville and is the Content and Theological Editor for Blessed is She. She is a freelance writer, editor, and speaker 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; narrator for Found: Advent With the Good Shepherd and Rescued: Lent With the Lamb of God; a contributing author to our children’s devotional prayer book, Rise Up; and Theological Editor of the Blessed Conversations Studies. Find out more about her here.
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