Good Friday of the Lord's Passion The Responsorial (Psalm 31) expresses the choice our whole lives should lead to: “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” The readings show us the faith, hope and love we need to do it. Both Isaiah 52:13 to 53:12 and Hebrews 4:14-16 and 5:7-9 are reflections on the Passion Narrative, John 18:1 to 19:42. Isaiah looks ahead to it; Hebrews looks back on it. Both are meditations. Isaiah tells us Jesus’ life had value “because he surrendered

Holy Thursday of the Lord's Passion Holy Thursday (Thursday, Friday and Saturday really should be together with Easter Sunday, but we put them here because many people still think of them as being part of Lent). Mass of the Lord’s Supper The Responsorial is: “The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ?” (1 Corinthians 10:16). Psalm 116 elaborates on it. The “Easter triduum” are three days that constitute one single celebration. Any one of th

Wednesday of Holy Week Note: Holy Thursday, Good Friday, the Holy Saturday Vigil and Easter Sunday are all one extended celebration called the “Easter Triduum” (three days). So the Easter season actually begins on Holy Thursday. The Responsorial (read all of Psalm 69) is the constant prayer of the servants of God: “Lord, in your great love, answer me.” Isaiah 50: 4-9 is the third Song of the Servant. The Servant neither depends on human support nor fears human opposition. His

Tuesday of Holy Week The Responsorial (Psalm 71) is a reflex response: “I will sing of your salvation.” Isaiah 49: 1-6 is the beginning of the second Song of the Servant. These songs portray the ideal Servant of God, the perfect Israelite, whose consecration to the divine will, even in the midst of overwhelming suffering, ‘takes away the sins of many.’ The Servant’s identity is complex: The Servant is “Israel, alive in all of her great leaders and intercessors.... But the col

Monday of Holy Week The Responsorial (Psalm 27) invites us to find life through light: “The Lord is my light and my salvation.” Isaiah 42: 1-7 is the first “Song of the Servant of Yahweh, whom God calls “my chosen one with whom I am well pleased.” But the description is valid for anyone who would do the work of God. As disciples we ponder the characteristics of the person God chooses for his work, to whom he says, “On you I have put my spirit.” • One who will “bring forth jus

THE SIXTH SUNDAY OF LENT (Year A) PALM SUNDAY OF THE LORD’S PASSION Conversion to Unconditional Discipleship Inventory Do I ever grow weary of praying? Of reading Scripture or reflecting on the word of God? Do I sometimes feel it is useless, that nothing ever comes of it? Do I ever feel that God just doesn’t care about me? Did Jesus feel this? Input The Responsorial Psalm is the first verse of Psalm 22, the verse Jesus quoted on the cross: “My God, my God, why have you abando