Vinny’s Day Try “Rack of Lamb Persillade”
- Las Fallas in Valencia, Spain March 1-19 Enjoy a high-spirited fiesta in Valencia, Spain’s third-largest city. The annual bash, held in commemoration of Saint Joseph, sees neighborhoods transformed into lively parties over a boisterous five-day period.
· 37th Annual Parade & Festival Sunday March 16 10:30-5:00
o St. Patrick's Day Festival brings the Irish spirit to Tucson in 2025!
· Saturday Litany of the Hours Invoking the Aid of Mother Mary
- Spirit hour: Cocktails to Kick the Cold and Flu
- Elderflower tea is great for colds and flu’s
- Bucket Item trip: Ethiopia
Introduction to Zechariah
The prophecies of
First Zechariah can be dated to the late sixth century B.C., contemporary with
those of Haggai; the oracles of Second Zechariah are somewhat later. The most
striking feature of First Zechariah is a series of visions in which the prophet
describes the centrality of Jerusalem, its Temple, and its leaders, who
function both in the politics of the region and of the Persian empire and in
God’s universal rule. These visions clearly relate to the Temple restoration
begun in 520 B.C. The prophet is acutely aware of the devastation that comes
from disobedience to God’s word, as had been spoken by God’s prophetic
emissaries. Yet, it was now clear in this century after the rebuilding of the
Temple and the repatriation of many of the exiles, that Judah would not soon
regain political autonomy and a Davidic king. So the various poems, narratives,
oracles, and parables of Second Zechariah maintain the hope of previous prophets
by depicting a glorious restoration. At that time all nations will recognize Jerusalem’s
centrality and acknowledge God’s universal sovereignty.
MARCH 15 Saturday of The First Week of Lent-Ember
Day
St. Longinus-Ides of March-Lantern Festival-Holi
Zachariah, Chapter 8, Verse 13-15
13 Just as you became a curse among
the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you that you
may be a blessing. Do not fear; let your hands
be strong. 14
Thus says the LORD of hosts: Just as I intended to
harm you when your ancestors angered me—says the LORD of hosts—and I did not
relent, 15 so
again in these days I intend to favor Jerusalem and the house of Judah; do not fear!
As gentiles who are God-fearing, we must accept our salvation by living the Shema Israel daily seeking to love Him with our whole heart, mind, soul and strength (let our hands be strong). This morning as I said the Shema Israel I thought Lord I don’t understand how to love you with my whole soul, but I decided to say the prayer looking in the mirror at myself. I then said, “Hear O Israel that the Lord our God is one, and you shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart, (I touched my heart) and with your whole mind, (I touched the side of my temple) with your whole soul (I instinctively touched my eyes; which are the windows of the soul) and flexed my arms and said with my whole strength.
It
was then that I realized what the Lord had revealed to me. My eyes: with
my eyes I see things as a child of God, or as a selfish clot. With my eyes I
see the good in the world or I see things that I want. With my eyes I see
another human as a beloved or as an object to be used. Yes, indeed with my eyes
my soul does exist and I will now love the Lord my God with my whole eyes which
are the windows of the soul.
Today reflect on how the Rosary meditations show us how Mary, Jesus and the Holy Spirit show us how to love God with our whole Heart, Mind, Soul and Strength.
Saturday of The First Week of Lent-Ember Day
EPISTLE, i. Thess. v. 14-23.
BRETHREN: We beseech you, rebuke the unquiet, comfort the feeble-minded, support the weak, be patient towards all men. See that none render evil for evil to any man: but ever follow that which is good towards each other, and towards all men. Always rejoice. Pray without ceasing. In all things give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concern ing you all. Extinguish not the spirit. Despise not prophecies. But prove all things: hold fast that which is good. From all appearance of evil refrain yourselves. And may the God of peace Himself sanctify you in all things: that your whole spirit, and soul, and body, may be preserved blameless in the coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Gospel and Prayer the same as those of to-morrow.
Station "With St. Peter
And the Lord hath chosen thee this day
to be His peculiar people (1st lesson)
It is Ember Saturday. Oremus, flectamus genna! Let us pray, and in spirit kneel at the tomb of St. Peter, the great priest and supreme shepherd of Christ's flock, and let us listen with reverence to the words of his successor Pius XI "On the Priesthood," for on this day, in hundreds of cathedrals, apostolic hands will be laid on young levites, levites "who have chosen the Lord, this day, to be their God, and to walk in His ways and keep His ceremonies, and precepts and judgments, and obey His commands" (epistle).
"The human race has always felt the need of a priesthood: of men who have the official charge to be mediators between God and humanity, men who should consecrate themselves entirely to this mediation as to the very purpose of their lives; men who are set aside to offer to God public prayers and sacrifices in the name of human society. For human society as such is bound to offer to God public and social worship. It is bound to acknowledge in Him its supreme Lord and first beginning, and to strive towards Him as to its last end, to give Him thanks and to offer Him propitiation.
"The Apostle of the Gentiles perfectly sums up what may be said of the greatness, the dignity and the duty of the Christian priesthood: 'Let a man so account of us as of the ministers of Christ and the dispensers of the mysteries of God.' The priest is the minister of Christ--an instrument, that is to say, in the hands of the divine Redeemer. He continues the work of the redemption in all its world-embracing universality and divine efficacy, that work which wrought so marvelous a transformation in the world. Thus the priest, as is said with good reason, is indeed 'another Christ'; for in some way, he is himself a continuation of Christ. 'As the Father hath sent Me, I also send you,' is spoken to the priest; and hence the priest, like Christ, continue to give 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will.'" (From the Encyclical Letter of His His Holiness Pope Pius XI.)
Let us pray, then, for all who in these days will be raised to this high and responsible position "that the God of peace may sanctify them in all things; that their whole spirit, and soul, and body, may be preserved blameless, for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (epistle); that the Lord may make them worthy laborers in His vineyard; that the Holy Spirit may fill them with Pentecostal fire and apostolic fortitude for the great work of "incorporating all things in Christ."
St. Peter, rock of the Church, bearer of the keys of God's kingdom, great priest of Jesus Christ, holy shepherd of His flock, bless those who are about to become fishers of men.
Prayer Source: Orate Fratres/Worship: A Review Devoted to the Liturgical Apostolate, The Liturgical Press
St.
Longinus[1] Roman Catholic Church (pre-1969)
St.
Longinus was the Roman centurion who pierced the side of Christ with a lance.
He is said to have converted to Christianity after experiencing the darkness after
Christ's death.
St.
Luke tells us that the centurion "gave praise to God", and exclaimed,
"Truly this was an upright man." (Luke 23:47)
What
was believed to be the Holy Lance of Longinus, was given to Innocent VIII in
1492.
Things to Do:
·
Read more about the statue of
St. Longinus at St. Peter's Basilica.
·
Read the Life of Saint
Longinus from the Golden Legend.
Catechism
of the Catholic Church
Day
272 2083-2094
PART THREE: LIFE IN CHRIST
SECTION TWO-THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
CHAPTER
ONE-YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR
SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND
Article 1-THE FIRST COMMANDMENT
I. "You Shall Worship the Lord Your God and Him Only
Shall You Serve"
2083 Jesus
summed up man's duties toward God in this saying: "You shall love the Lord
your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your
mind." This immediately echoes the solemn call: "Hear, O Israel:
the LORD our God is one LORD."
God has loved us first. the love of the One God is recalled in the first of the
"ten words." the commandments then make explicit the response of love
that man is called to give to his God.
2084 God makes
himself known by recalling his all-powerful loving, and liberating action in
the history of the one he addresses: "I brought you out of the land of
Egypt, out of the house of bondage." the first word contains the first
commandment of the Law: "You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve
him.... You shall not go after other gods." God's first call and just
demand is that man accept him and worship him.
2085 The one
and true God first reveals his glory to Israel. The revelation
of the vocation and truth of man is linked to the revelation of God. Man's
vocation is to make God manifest by acting in conformity with his creation
"in the image and likeness of God":
There will
never be another God, Trypho, and there has been no other since the world began
. . . than he who made and ordered the universe. We do not think that our God
is different from yours. He is the same who brought your fathers out of Egypt
"by his powerful hand and his outstretched arm." We do not place our
hope in some other god, for there is none, but in the same God as you do: the
God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
2086 "The
first commandment embraces faith, hope, and charity. When we say 'God' we
confess a constant, unchangeable being, always the same, faithful and just,
without any evil. It follows that we must necessarily accept his words and have
complete faith in him and acknowledge his authority. He is almighty, merciful,
and infinitely beneficent. Who could not place all hope in him? Who could not
love him when contemplating the treasures of goodness and love he has poured
out on us? Hence the formula God employs in the Scripture at the beginning and
end of his commandments: 'I am the LORD.'"
Faith
2087 Our moral
life has its source in faith in God who reveals his love to us. St. Paul speaks
of the "obedience of faith" as our first obligation. He shows
that "ignorance of God" is the principle and explanation of all moral
deviations. Our duty toward God is to believe in him and to bear witness
to him.
2088 The first
commandment requires us to nourish and protect our faith with prudence and
vigilance, and to reject everything that is opposed to it. There are various
ways of sinning against faith:
Voluntary doubt about the faith disregards or refuses to hold as true what God
has revealed and the Church proposes for belief. Involuntary doubt refers to
hesitation in believing, difficulty in overcoming objections connected with the
faith, or also anxiety aroused by its obscurity. If deliberately cultivated doubt
can lead to spiritual blindness.
2089
Incredulity is the neglect of revealed truth or the willful refusal to assent
to it. "Heresy is the obstinate post-baptismal denial of some truth which
must be believed with divine and catholic faith, or it is likewise an obstinate
doubt concerning the same; apostasy is the total repudiation of the Christian
faith; schism is the refusal of submission to the Roman Pontiff or of communion
with the members of the Church subject to him."
Hope
2090 When God
reveals Himself and calls him, man cannot fully respond to the divine love by
his own powers. He must hope that God will give him the capacity to love Him in
return and to act in conformity with the commandments of charity. Hope is the
confident expectation of divine blessing and the beatific vision of God; it is
also the fear of offending God's love and of incurring punishment.
2091 The first commandment is also concerned with sins against hope, namely, despair and presumption:
By despair, man ceases to hope for his personal salvation from God, for help in attaining it or for the forgiveness of his sins. Despair is contrary to God's goodness, to his justice - for the Lord is faithful to his promises - and to his mercy.
2092 There are
two kinds of presumption. Either man presumes upon his own capacities, (hoping
to be able to save himself without help from on high), or he presumes upon
God's almighty power or his mercy (hoping to obtain his forgiveness without
conversion and glory without merit).
Charity
2093 Faith in
God's love encompasses the call and the obligation to respond with sincere love
to divine charity. The first commandment enjoins us to love God above
everything and all creatures for him and because of him.
2094 One can sin against God's love in various ways:
- indifference neglects
or refuses to reflect on divine charity; it fails to consider its prevenient
goodness and denies its power.
- ingratitude fails or refuses to acknowledge divine charity and to
return him love for love.
- lukewarmness is
hesitation or negligence in responding to divine love; it can imply refusal to
give oneself over to the prompting of charity.
- acedia or spiritual sloth
(I don’t care attitude) goes so far as to refuse the joy that comes from
God and to be repelled by divine goodness.
- hatred of God comes from pride. It is contrary to love of God, whose goodness it denies, and whom it presumes to curse as the one who forbids sins and inflicts punishments.
Ides
of March
In modern times, the Ides
of March is best known as the date on which Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC. Caesar
was stabbed to death at a meeting of the Senate. As many as 60 conspirators, led
by Brutus and Cassius, were involved.[2]
Caesar
could garner so much power, but in the end, he was assassinated. No matter how
powerful a person or corporation may be, there will be an end to their reign
and their influence. By way of contrast, the Lord is the everlasting God. Jesus
is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, who has the power of an endless life.
Remembering the frailty and fallenness of all men is a crucial part of gaining
wisdom. Solomon captured this so well when he wrote “The fear of the Lord is
the beginning of wisdom” (Prov. 9:10) but “the fear of man is a snare” (29:25).
Remembering the fact that no matter how powerful a position a man or woman may
hold, God “holds their breath in His hands and owns all their ways” (Dan. 5:23)
and that “death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to
heart” (Eccl. 7:2).[3]
Chinese
Lantern Festival[4]
Also known as the Shang Yuan Festival or the Yuan Xiao Jie Festival, the Lantern Festival is a traditional Chinese holiday that falls during the first month of the lunar calendar, on the fifteenth day. The festival is a celebration of the end of the Chinese New Year celebrations and the start of the new year. It’s a time for families to come together and enjoy food, entertainment, and the lighting of lanterns. One of the fundamental traditions of the Lantern Festival is the display and appreciation of colorful lanterns as well as other activities such as fireworks displays, parades, and traditional dance and music performances. Many people also participate in cultural activities such as solving riddles written on lanterns or eating sweet dumplings, called yuanxiao.
History of Lantern
Festival
The origins of the Lantern Festival can be traced back to
the Han Dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD) in ancient China. According to legend, the
festival was originally a celebration of the deity Taiyi,
who was believed to be responsible for the creation of the universe. Over time,
the festival evolved to become a celebration of the new year and the end of the
winter season.
During the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907 AD), the Lantern
Festival became an important cultural event that was celebrated by people from
all walks of life as a time to pay respect to their ancestors and to pray for
good fortune in the new year.
In the modern era, the Lantern Festival is still an
important cultural event in China and is celebrated by millions of people
around the world. It is a time for celebration, reflection, and coming together
with loved ones, and is an integral part of Chinese culture and tradition.
How to Celebrate Lantern Festival
There are many ways in which people celebrate the Lantern
Festival. Some common traditions and activities include:
Displaying and
Appreciating Lanterns
People display lanterns of all shapes and sizes, often in
the form of parades or displays. The lanterns are made from a variety of
materials, including paper, silk, and metal, and come in a wide range of shapes
and sizes. Some lanterns are shaped like animals or objects, while others are
simple round or cylindrical shapes.
Lighting Lanterns
Many people also light lanterns as part of the festival
celebrations. These lanterns can be small handheld lanterns or larger lanterns
that are suspended in the air. In some cases, people release lanterns into the
sky as a symbol of letting go of the past and welcoming the future.
Solving Riddles
Some lanterns may have riddles written on them, and people
try to solve these riddles, which is seen as a fun and interactive way to
celebrate the holiday.
Eating Traditional Foods
The Lantern Festival is also a time for people to enjoy traditional foods, such as yuanxiao, a type of sweet dumpling made from glutinous rice flour. Other traditional foods that are often eaten during the festival include tangyuan (sweet rice balls) and other sweet treats.
Enjoying Performances
The Lantern Festival is often accompanied by performances
of traditional Chinese music and dance, as well as other forms of entertainment
such as acrobatics and theater.
Fireworks Displays
In some areas, fireworks displays are an important part of
the Lantern Festival celebrations. These displays are often elaborate and
spectacular, and are enjoyed by people of all ages.
· Lyte
Sky Lantern Festival 2025.
o Saturday, March
15th, 2025
o 5:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Daily Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Today's Fast: The Families of St. Joseph
Porters
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Make
reparations to the Holy Face
[1]https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2021-03-15
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