Catholic Missal of the day: Sunday, February 25 2024
Second Sunday of Lent
Book of Genesis
22,1-2.9a.10-13.15-18.God put Abraham to the test. He called to him, "Abraham!" "Here I am!" he replied.
Then God said: "Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. There you shall offer him up as a holocaust on a height that I will point out to you."
When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. Next he tied up his son Isaac, and put him on top of the wood on the altar.
Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.
But the LORD'S messenger called to him from heaven, "Abraham, Abraham!" "Yes, Lord," he answered.
"Do not lay your hand on the boy," said the messenger. "Do not do the least thing to him. I know now how devoted you are to God, since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son."
As Abraham looked about, he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. So he went and took the ram and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son.
Again the LORD'S messenger called to Abraham from heaven
and said: "I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son,
I will bless you abundantly and make your descendants as countless as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore; your descendants shall take possession of the gates of their enemies,
and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing--all this because you obeyed my command.'
Psalms
116(115),10.15.16-17.18-19.I believed, even when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted”;
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
I am your servant; the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people.
In the courts of the house of the LORD,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Letter to the Romans
8,31b-34.Brothers and sisters: If God is for us, who can be against us?
He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he not also give us everything else along with him?
Who will bring a charge against God's chosen ones? It is God who acquits us.
Who will condemn? It is Christ (Jesus) who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark
9,2-10.Jesus took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves. And he was transfigured before them,
and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them.
Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus.
Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, "Rabbi, it is good that we are here! Let us make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."
He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified.
Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them; then from the cloud came a voice, "This is my beloved Son. Listen to him."
Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone but Jesus alone with them.
As they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone, except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what rising from the dead meant.
St. Tarasius(Patriarch of Constantinople (+ 806))
SAINT TARASIUSPatriarch of Constantinople (+ 806) St. Tarasius was born in Constantinople during the middle of the eighth century. His mother Eucratia taught him to cultivate supernatural virtues. He gained prestige as a state official and was later promoted to consul. Later, he was appointed secretary of state to Emperor Constantine and Empress Irene. In the midst of the court and its highest honors, he lived a contemplative life. Paul, the patriarch of Constantinople, conformed to the reigning heresy in some respects, but had several good qualities. He was beloved for his charity to the poor and esteemed by the court for his prudence. Touched with remorse, Paul abdicated the patriarchal see and put on a religious habit at the monastery of Florus in Constantinople. Tarasius was his successor, but refused to minister because the see was cut off from Catholic communion. Thus, Tarasius obtained a general council to resolve the dispute on holy images and became Constantinople's patriarch on Christmas Day. The general council was opened on August 1, 786, at the Church of the Apostles in Constantinople, but was adjourned because of iconoclasts' rioting. The council met again the following year at the Church of St. Sophia in Nice. The council declared the sensibility of allowing holy pictures and images a relative honor and closed with acclamations and prayers for the emperor and empress. Afterward, synodal letters were sent to all the churches and to the pope, who approved the council. Patr. Tarasius was never immune to intrigue and was eventually pulled into conflict. Emperor Constantine VI was infatuated with Empress Mary's maid of honor, Theodota, and settled on divorcing Mary to legitimize the affair. Emperor Constantine made every effort to gain Tarasius' approval, but the latter outrightly refused. The life of Patr. Tarasius was a model to the clergy and the people. His table contained only the necessities of life; and he spent his leisure time reading and praying. He gave up his soul to God on February 25, 806, after serving for twenty-one years and two months.
St. Ethelbert of Kent()
Category: Mass by Year / Catholic Missal 2024 / Catholic Missal of february 2024
Published: 2024-02-29T22:07:02Z | Modified: 2024-02-29T22:07:02Z