Invitation to Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, and bring to the light what we keep in the darkness, that we might become more like Christ.

Reflection: “Thank you, Catholic Telegraph! How cool! This Irish descendant would love to write a reflection for you on St. Patrick’s Day!”

As you might be able to tell by the number of exclamation points, I was excited to receive this message.

Then I opened up the readings (shared above).

And I was humbled – humbled by the humility shown and referred to in these excerpts of the Word of God. From the first reading to the psalm and to Jesus’ own words in the Gospel, we see a glaring truth: we are sinners in need of God’s grace. The prophet Daniel admits it. The Psalmist admits it. Jesus instructs us to admit it. And wasn’t that what St. Patrick did for the very people that once kidnapped him! It was not out of judgment that St. Patrick called the people of Ireland to repentance and conversion to Christ; it was out of love. It was out of mercy, the same mercy he had received from Christ.

In an excerpt from “St. Patrick’s Breastplate: Prayer for Protection”, one of the lines says: Christ in every ear that hears me.

Is that how people hear me, as they hear Christ? Do I speak as He does – with mercy, with love? Do I live as He lived – with mercy, with love? When I don’t, may I remember the example of St. Patrick and of Jesus Himself, and may I be the first to say: “Help us, O God our savior, because of the glory of your name”!

Prayer: “St. Patrick’s Breastplate: Prayer for Protection”:

Christ with me,

Christ before me,

Christ behind me,

Christ in me,

Christ beneath me,

Christ above me,

Christ on my right,

Christ on my left,

Christ when I lie down,

Christ when I sit down,

Christ when I arise,

Christ in the heart of every man who

thinks of me,

Christ in the mouth of everyone who

speaks of me,

Christ in every eye that sees me,

Christ in every ear that hears me.

Closing: How can you recognize Christ’s presence in your life today, leading you, protecting you, and calling you to conversion?

Molly Gallagher is a YDisciple Coach for NET Ministries and parishioner at St. Cecilia of the Eastside Catholics in Cincinnati.

Invitation to Prayer: For they preach but they do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them. Matthew 23: 3b-4

Reflection: Spoiler alert! Today’s readings are cringe-inducing with a dash of “you talkin’ to me?” thrown in. Of course, we are not scribes, pharisees or claim to be rabbis, but if we look closer at the Scriptures, we might see some descriptions of actions that really look a lot like what we do – sometimes without thinking!

We preach the faith, but we don’t always practice it. Love our neighbors, but only if they are in our zip code or in our political circle? Does Jesus mean neighbors are those people who live in remote corners of the world who are hungry or could benefit from learning new agriculture practices in a challenging climate? People we may never meet, but who could merely survive with international aid assistance from a richer nation?

Does it feel like we are standing in front of a mirror when we hear about putting a heavy burden on others, but not lifting a finger to help them? Ouch!

Before that burden of guilt weighs heavy on us, Jesus, who is ever merciful, identifies the kind of sacrifice we should be giving. Sacrifice ourselves to be a servant to others. Exchange being exalted for being humble.

Prayer:  Jesus, Bread of Life, as we encounter you in the Eucharist this Lent, nourish us with your love, unite us in communion with our sisters and brothers, showing us how we are connected. Transform our hearts, that we may be moved to share bread for life with our global family and work for a world where all can thrive. Amen (CRS Lenten Prayer)

Closing: This day consider a donation to Catholic Relief Services’ Rice Bowl and advocate for the continuation of the merciful work they do and have been doing around the world for the past 50 years.

Pam Long is the chair of the Social Action Commission for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and the Director of Love in Action for the St. Stephen Family of Parishes in Hamilton, Ohio. She also is a co-lead of a Catholic Relief Services Chapter in southwest Ohio and co-lead of the Ohio CRS Coalition. She and her husband Bob celebrated 50 years of marriage last October. They gave birth to three children with one now in heaven and are grateful for three grandchildren.

March 19- Solemnity of Saint Joseph,  Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Readings: 2 Samuel 7:4-5a, 12-14a, 16; Psalm 89:2-3, 4-5, 27 and 29; Romans 4:13, 16-18, 22; Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24a

Invitation to Prayer: “’You are my father, my God, the Rock, my savior.” 

Reflection:  What a gift to be able to learn from St. Joseph! He has long been one of my favorite patrons; in fact, today’s Gospel option from Luke was pivotal in my discernment to pursue my now-wife, and now that we’ve recently welcomed our first child into the world on January 8 this year, St. Joseph has become a model for me in a whole new way as I embrace the joys and responsibilities of fatherhood. As I reflect on what we have to learn from him today, there are two things that strike me about today’s readings: 

The first thing I find significant is St. Joseph’s responsiveness. In the Gospel option from Matthew, we hear that, “When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home.” A similar event occurs later when St. Joseph is told to flee with his family to Egypt to escape the Slaughter of the Innocents by Herod. I don’t expect many of us to be in the habit of waking up from dreams and taking drastic action of any kind, but what this says to me about St. Joseph is that he was a man who was deeply familiar with the voice of the Lord: he knew how to discern between a message from God and any other kind of dream. And not only could he recognize God’s voice, he had also built up enough trust over his entire life to act without reserve or hesitation in his response to the will of God. 

In the Gospel option from Luke, Jesus asks what seems to be a rather impertinent question to his parents, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” He says it as if it’s so obvious, and though they didn’t understand what he said, I wonder whether he said it because he knew that Mary and Joseph knew what it meant to be in his Father’s house and to have that intimacy with God. How can we grow in our own responsiveness to God? Only by going to our Father’s house ourselves, becoming familiar with his voice, and striving to allow him to help us learn to trust completely in him. 

The second thing that stands out to me is that though we aren’t asked to be the parents of God, I think we underestimate the greatness of what God desires to do with us. The promise he makes to David and to Abraham is fulfilled in Jesus, and this promise is not just of a kingdom or of descendants, but of a relationship with God the Father. “I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me.” And through our Baptism, we are made adopted children of the Father and co-heirs of Christ, sharing in Jesus’ own relationship with the Father. That is an unimaginable gift, that we finite creatures could call the Creator of the universe our own Father. 

And what does our Father desire for his children? He wants to make us nothing less than saints, not just for our own sake, but for the sake of every person we encounter. He has a unique and unrepeatable vocation for each of us, which is not merely the choice of a state-in-life at a single point in our journey, but a consistent and lifelong call to communion and mission. We must, as St. Joseph did, learn to dwell in our Father’s house, to recognize his voice, to know his will, so that every time our Father invites us to take the next step in our great adventure with him, we have the faith and love to respond wholeheartedly. 

Prayer: Loving Father, through the example and intercession of St. Joseph, help me to dwell in your house, to hear your voice, and to respond to your call. 

Paco Patag delights in helping others discover, receive, and respond to their vocation, and is grateful to be able to do so as the Associate Director for Adult Evangelization & Pastoral Ministry for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. He and his wife, Beth, and their daughter, Lily, are parishioners in the Queen of Apostles Parish Family.

March 20- Thursday of the Second Week of Lent
Readings: Jeremiah 17:5-10; Psalm 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6; Luke 16:19-31

Invitation to Prayer: Lord, help me to know you. Help me to be attentive to Your Word, to see the truth it contains, and to have the fortitude to allow Your Word to penetrate my entire being.

Reflection: This Gospel passage calls to mind the reality of eternity in Heaven or eternity in Hell. I don’t think we spend enough time thinking about Heaven and Hell or even acknowledging that Hell exists. We have a God that loves us and it’s hard to imagine a life without Him, but God’s love for us is so radical that He doesn’t force it on us and gives us a choice. Humanity chooses Hell instead of choosing to live a life with God. The rich man at the end of the Gospel is begging for someone to go tell his brothers that God is real in order for them to repent and not have eternal life in torment.

This caused me to reflect on my own life, on my need for repentance and conversion. I desire eternal life with God, but that means that I need to detach myself from sin and even from some of the comforts of this world in order to make more room for the Lord. What might the Lord be calling you to repent of or detach from this Lent?

The other area of reflection this stirred up in me was the people in my life who need to hear about God’s love and plan for them. Who are the people that I would want to send a messenger to so that they could repent now and spend eternity with God. Is God calling me to walk with them to share my faith more intentionally or to pray more fervently for their conversion?

I’d challenge you to take a few minutes to reflect on these three questions:
1. What is the Lord calling me to repent of and detach from this Lent?
2. Who is the Lord calling me to evangelize and witness this great gift of faith to?
3. Can I make time this week to go to confession and share my faith with one other person?

Prayer: Jesus, prepare our hearts to receive you more fully. Help us to welcome others into our lives and your Church. Grant us the grace we need to repent of our sins and turn to you and the Sacraments to receive your love and mercy.

Andrea Patch is the Eastern Regional Director for NET Ministries. Andrea is a wife and a mother to four young children and enjoys spending time playing board games and talking with friends.

March 21 – Friday of the Second Week of Lent
Readings: Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28a; Psalm 105:16-17, 18-19, 20-21; Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46

Invitation to Prayer: “Therefore, I say to you, the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruit.” Matthew 21:43

Reflection: We hear in today’s Gospel that Jesus is addressing the “chief priests and elders of the people” as he tells them the parable of a landowner who plants a vineyard, equips it with all necessary features, and then rents it out to tenants before going away. When I have taught high school students about parables, I teach them that parables are used by Jesus to tell us something about the Kingdom of God…what it is like, what the King (God) is like, and/or what is necessary to enter the Kingdom.

Today’s parable focuses in on what it takes to enter the Kingdom with the vineyard representing the house of Israel; the tenants are God’s chosen people, specifically the leaders of Israel; and the landowner is God. The tenants are expected to care for the vineyard and provide a portion of the harvest to the landowner. However, when the harvest time arrives, the tenants refuse to fulfill their obligations. Instead, they mistreat and kill the servants sent by the landowner to collect the fruits of the vineyard.

This repeated rejection escalates to the ultimate act of defiance when the tenants kill the landowner’s son, who is sent as a final attempt to reclaim what is rightfully his. Jesus uses this story to illustrate the relationship between God and His chosen people, emphasizing how the leaders of Israel have failed in their duties and have rejected the prophets sent to guide them culminating in the killing of God’s own son in Jesus.

The conclusion of the parable reveals a stark warning: the landowner will destroy the wicked tenants and lease the vineyard to others who will honor their responsibilities. This moment highlights the message of Jesus concerning the transition of God’s covenant from the Jewish leaders to the broader community of believers, which includes Gentiles. However, it also underscores the idea that those who are entrusted with God’s message must be faithful and accountable if they are to enter God’s Kingdom.

I also teach my students that when listening to or reading a parable, we are called to ask ourselves who we are in the narrative. This parable prompts us to consider our own responsibilities as stewards of the gifts and opportunities we have been given. It raises significant questions about accountability and the consequences of our actions. Are we, like the tenants, ignoring our duties and rejecting God’s guidance? Are we bearing the fruit God is asking of us?

This Lent, consider God’s invitation for us to reflect on how we react to His authority, our commitment to our faith, and our moral responsibilities to one another. The message is clear: accountability to God and the acceptance of His son are essential if we are to live in God’s abundant vineyard for all of eternity.

Prayer: Glorious King, I pray that Your Kingdom will grow and that many souls will come to know You as their Lord and God. Use me, dear Lord, for the upbuilding of that Kingdom and help all my actions in life to bear abundant and good fruit.

Closing: What are you doing this Lent to show that you can be entrusted to care for God’s vineyard?

Al Kovacic is the Director of Campus Ministry at Elder High School. He also coaches cross country at Villa Madonna Academy (KY) and enjoys spending time outdoors. Al and his wife Melinda have 4 sons and reside in Villa Hills, KY as members of Saint Joseph Parish in Crescent Springs.

March 22 – Saturday of the Second Week of Lent
Readings- Micah 7:14-15, 18-20, Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 9-10, 11-12, Luke 15:1-3, 11-32

Invitation to Prayer: Heavenly Father, as we journey through the desert of this lenten season, help us to know that you offer us your very Self, not simply material wealth.

Reflection: Today’s Gospel is often referred to as “ The Prodigal Son” but there is more than one prodigal son in this story.  I want to focus this reflection on the older son.  I think we regular church goers are probably a lot like the older son, because we have stayed with the Father, we assume we are in a great spot. But we regularly need to ask ourselves, am I in right relationship with Him?   The father’s desire is to restore his relationship with both of his sons, to bring connection back. Both sons miss the point of what the father is really like, they miss the extreme generosity, limitless forgiveness and true affection he wants to lavish on them. They are confused when he throws caution and respectability to the wind in order to have this relationship with them.

The older brother coveted the possessions of the father as much as the younger son did; he might not have run off and spent the father’s money, but he is concerned about how long he’s served him and what he’s doing with the fatted calf.  He thought he could earn his father’s love and work towards deserving his possessions. The father, on the other hand, is unconcerned with his goods; he doesn’t ask for them back.  He wants his older son to have a father/son not a father/servant relationship.

The older son is also in need of  lessons on forgiveness, mercy and love. The father goes out and invites the older son into the celebration, he invites him to have mercy on his brother and also to share in the overflowing love that he has for both of them. The older son is angry, but who is he really angry at? His anger seems more directed towards the father, as if the father doesn’t really love him. His underlying problem is that he doesn’t believe in the love of the father.

The possibility of restoring right relationship is always present in this life, coming back to God.  Can we  learn from these prodigal brothers to find courage and make our way back?  If we turn towards our Father, he will see us coming, even from far off.

Prayer: Lord, you are always with us. Help us to turn to You, to spend time with You. Throughout this Lenten Season, Lord, help us to commit to spending time with You daily, so that we can unite our crosses with Yours.

Sarah Franck is the Pastoral Associate at the St. Henry Parish. Her main focus is on evangelization, especially in small group settings for teens and middle schoolers.

March 23 – Sunday of the Third Week of Lent
Readings: Exodus 3:1-8a, 13-15; Psalm 103: 1-2,3-4,6-7,8,11; 1 Corinthians 10:1-6,10-12; Luke 13:1-9

Invitation to Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, teach me how to pray, teach me how to love.

Reflection: In today’s gospel, Jesus addresses the crowd about the tragic events of his time, where some people were killed by Pilate, and others died when a tower fell. He emphasizes that these tragedies are not signs of greater sin in those who suffered, but rather a call for everyone to repent. Jesus uses these events as an opportunity to reflect on the brevity of life and the need for spiritual readiness.

This passage invites us to consider how we view suffering and calamity in the present day. Tragedies such as natural disasters, pandemics, and acts of violence often lead us to question the reasons behind them. Jesus reminds us that these events are not punishments for specific sins, but a part of the fallen world we live in. More importantly, he urges us to look inward, to assess our own lives, and to repent, turning toward God with urgency.

In today’s world, where we are confronted with global challenges and personal hardships, this reflection calls us to focus not on judging others or trying to explain the “why” of suffering, but on living with a sense of spiritual urgency. The parable of the fig tree, where the owner gives it one more chance to bear fruit before cutting it down, also speaks to the idea of grace and the opportunity for transformation. Just as the fig tree is given another year to produce, we are called to make the most of the time we have, to bear good fruit, and to live in alignment with God’s will.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, I humbly acknowledge my shortcomings and ask for your forgiveness. Help me to turn away from my sins and walk in your ways.

Closing: Jesus’ message is as relevant today as it was in His time. He reminds us that life is fragile, and it challenges us to examine our hearts, seek repentance, and live with purpose, knowing that our time to make a difference in the world is limited. As we journey through Lent, let us ask God for the guidance and strength to follow His path.

Sean Ferguson is a Development Officer with the Stewardship Department for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. He and his wife Liz are excited to be expecting their first child later this summer. They live in Independence, KY and met through campus ministry at the University of Dayton.

March 24 – Monday of the Third Week of Lent
Readings: 2 Kings 5:1-15a; Psalm 42:2, 3; 43:3, 4; Luke 4:24-30

Invitation to Prayer:
To fight for the right
Without question or pause
To be willing to march, march into Hell
For that Heavenly cause

Reflection: In Luke’s gospel ,Jesus said to the people in the synagogue at Nazareth: “Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place.”

As we journey onward this Lent it’s easy to get distracted by the news of the day, to be distracted by the thirst to be accepted. And our Saviour tells us no prophet is accepted in his own native place. Later they looked for a way to get rid of him as he challenged their world.

We are a counter cultural people, not always easy to accept that description. Even when you’re at the most devout of your life, things don’t always go well, in fact sometimes the darkness invades our soul.

Thomas Merton was quoted “I have come to think that care of the soul requires a high degree of resistance to the culture around us, simply because that culture is dedicated to values that have no concern for the soul.”

Mark Twain Observed: “Be good and you will be lonesome.” in Following the Equator, a Journey around the World.

GK Chesterton said “So I guess being counter cultural is just rediscovering what it means to be Christian.”

I definitely struggle with taking the stand, having strength to spread the gospel Christ. I’m an alcoholic and though sober for a while, a lot of that was the culture: I was the fun guy, the party guy, and I liked the adulation only to realize the foundation of that culture can crumble at a moments notice. There was a time I felt honored when others told the stories from yesteryear of my antics: and letting the devil himself enter my soul to where I justified the antics as “hey everyone had a good time didn’t they”, except I was destroying my own life drink by drink accepting the lie.

Lent is always a literal cleaning house and building for the future and it’s never too late to start.

Did you ever keep a lie in your heart? And it may not have been a big lie, but something you didn’t want anyone to know, and I tricked myself that no one will  know until the realization that God knows. I’ve let a few secrets go, the relief of truth is the greatest tonic in the world. And the reaction nine times out of ten is “we knew that.” We’re not as mysterious as we think.

Following Christ is a path to a true freedom.

Prayer; Lord Jesus, let me live in your grace of truth, soften my harden heart to live your will, not my will.

Action: I’ve listed several authors. Begin the exercise of reading great writings from the likes of GK Chesterton, Thomas Merton, Flannery O’Connor and so many more.

Greg Hartman is a staffer at The Catholic Telegraph.

March 25: Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord
Readings: Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10; Psalm 40:7-8a, 8b-9, 10, 11; Hebrews 10:4-10; Luke 1:26-38

Invitation to prayer: Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.

Reflection: We celebrate the Solemnity of the Annunciation today, hearing the angel’s proclamation that Mary will give birth to the long-awaited Messiah. Mary’s fiat, her “yes” to the call to be the Mother of God, has rung throughout the centuries as the model for every follower of her Son: listen, discern, and say yes to God’s will, be honest and question when you don’t understand, “How can this be?” but do not let the mystery or the fear or the risk of the call prevent you from responding.

In this Lenten season, we reflect on the life, passion, and death of Mary’s Son. We hear again how Jesus, God who is with us, loves us so deeply that he gave himself completely for us. Our Lord suffered an agonizing death on the cross in total surrender to the loving will of the Father so that the world might forever know God’s mercy, forgiveness, and compassion. And during Lent, we consider again, or perhaps for the first time in a real way, how we are called to conform our hearts, minds, and lives to the heart, mind, and life of Christ, in whom we have been immersed in the waters of baptism, and in whose Body we are members.

Today, as we remember the angel’s announcement of the incarnation to Mary in the midst of the season of Lent, we might ask ourselves how we are to announce God’s justice, kindness, and truth through our words and actions. How are we called to give ourselves completely, pouring out the love of God in our time and place?

Prayer: Lord, conform my heart and mind to delight in your will. Guide my life so that my words and actions may announce your justice, faithfulness, and salvation. Inspire me to bring your kindness and truth to all without fear; strengthen me to be your messenger so that the world will know your mercy, forgiveness, and love.

Closing: Take stock of your Lenten journey today. What mid-course action or correction might you make so that you may more deeply know, delight, and do God’s loving will? Take a step today toward that action.

Leisa Anslinger is a Parish Vitality Specialist for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. She has served in parish and school ministry and is an author and speaker. Leisa and her husband Steve reside in Lebanon, Tennessee.

March 26: Wednesday of the Third Week of Lent
Readings: Dt 4:1; 5-9; Ps 147:12-13, 15-16, 19-20; Mt 5:17-19

Invitation to Prayer: “Be perfect, as your heavenly father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48)

Reflection: I have always appreciated the parallels that we see throughout scripture, and our lectionary does an incredible job of reflecting these connections in accordance with our liturgical year. As we journey through our own desert of Lent, we wander with the Israelites as they seek out the promised land. Today’s readings focus on the commandments as gifts from God demonstrated through two happenings, first through the revelation of the commandments to Moses and again through Christ- the fulfillment of the law. We first hear from Moses, who reminds the people of Israel to obey the statutes and decrees of the Lord as they prepare to enter the promised land. He remarks on the uniquely intimate relationship between the Lord and Israel. Moses asks, “For what great nation is there that has gods so close to it as the LORD, our God, is to us whenever we call upon him?” God, out of love for his chosen people, gave them the gift of his law through divine revelation to guide them toward salvation.

Moving on to the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus reinforces the importance of the commandments by introducing his teaching about the law during the Sermon on the Mount. He states, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” But what does it mean to fulfill the law? Christ is the fulfillment of the law in two ways. First, Jesus, fully human and fully divine, is the perfect living example of the law. Being sinless in nature, Christ demonstrates to all of humankind how to live a life of holiness. Secondly, Jesus, through his Paschal Mystery, grants us the salvation that the law has promised. He is the completion of God’s covenant with Israel, ensuring eternal life for all who follow him.

Christ emphasizes that he has “come not to abolish but to fulfill.” The law remains, but salvation is now completely attainable through the death and resurrection of Jesus. As disciples of Christ, we are called to be His imitators and follow His perfect example- we must follow the law of the Lord in our path toward holiness. As Catholics, we are called to participate in the sacrament of Reconciliation during this Lenten season. This is an opportunity to reflect on the times we failed to “be perfect as our Holy Father is perfect.” We examine our consciences according to the law of the Lord to receive the grace of forgiveness. As we continue through the desert of Lent, let us seek to embrace the law of the Lord and be penitent for our shortcomings.

Prayer:  Lord God, you have given us your law in love and fulfilled it through Christ our Savior. As we journey through Lent, help us to repent, seek your mercy, and walk in holiness. Draw us closer to you so that we may one day share in your promise. Amen.

Closing: In what ways can I better embrace God’s law as a gift of love rather than a burden? How is Jesus calling me to imitate His holiness in my daily life this Lenten season? What sins or shortcomings must I bring before God in the Sacrament of Reconciliation to grow closer to Him?

Noelle Collis-DeVito is the English Curriculum Research Assistant for the Institute for Pastoral Initiatives at the University of Dayton. She just completed her Master’s Degree in Pastoral Ministry with a Certificate in Disability and Ministry and is excited to put her skills to use in her work, creating curriculum for adult faith formation and adaptive resources for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She serves on the Council on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities for the National Catholic Partnership on Disability. She is on the Board for the Respect Life Fund and the Respect Life Award for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. She is also the advisor for Flyers for Life at the University of Dayton.

March 27 – Thursday of the Third Week of Lent 2025
Readings: Jeremiah 7:23-28, Psalm 95:1-2, 6-7. 8-9, Luke 11:14-23

Invitation to Prayer: “Every kingdom divided against itself, will be laid waste…but if it is by the finger of God that I drive out demons, then the Kingdom of God has come upon you.”

Reflection: I’m a member of a ministry team called “That Man Is You;” men striving after God’s own heart. Several weeks ago we watch a video titled “A Limitless Love.” The speaker, John Pridmore, a former London mafia gangster, a feared enforcer and bouncer in the underworld shared his story of how God transformed, transfigured his heart. He stated that he lived without God for 28 years. He made tons of money, did as many drugs, and had many affairs.

Reflecting on John’s testimony I couldn’t help but consider how his life was “divided.” He was born and raised Catholic but after his parents’ divorce, his life changed horribly. At the age of 10, his step-mother would beat him often, cursed him, and made his childhood a living hell. By 13 he had been arrested several times for fighting, stealing, and robbery. By the age of 15 he was accustom to life in jail. John was angry; he was mad at his father for marrying a terrible violent woman, mad at the world, mad at God for allowing all this to happen to him. His life was divided.

At the age of 15, once out of jail, John ran away. He sought the gangs and up until the age of 28 he was involved in the London mafia. Being such a big man John worked his way up the chain of command in the mafia and became a notorious gangster. He drove the nicest cars, had plenty of money, and plenty of girls and drugs but John was not happy. No joy filled his heart. He knew he had to make a change or he was going to hell. John went to Confession after 28 years and asked for Jesus help.

God reached down into his heart and pulled out all those stones of sin and refilled his heart with His unfathomable, limitless love, mercy and forgiveness. John stated he cried for three days. God’s hand was upon John and he was transformed, transfigured and the Kingdom of God was embedded in John’s new way of life.

My dear friends, the importance of going to Confession is essential in our Catholic lives. We do not want our heart to be “divided,” especially from the one who loves us, died for us. We do not want to be away from His eternal limitless love, mercy, and forgiveness. Thank goodness John felt God’s absence in His life and desired Him back. Thank goodness John accepted God’s invitation of grace to go to Confession and be reunited with God.

Prayer: Father God, we come before You in humble prayer to touch our heart with Your eternal limitless love, mercy, and forgiveness and to remove those stones of sin that divide us. Provide for us the grace to make a good Confession so that we made never be separated from You and Your presence in our lives.

Closing: John’s story touched our hearts that Saturday morning of the importance of Confession, the importance of remaining united with God, and of His unfathomable, limitless love, mercy and forgiveness for us.

Deacon Henry Jacquez, ordained April 2013, serves in the Queen of Apostles Family of Parishes, serves as Secretary on the Board of Trustees for Our Lady of the Holy Spirit Center. He has been married to his wife, Betsy for 45 years, and is father of three children and seven grandsons.

March 28 – Friday in the 3rd Week of Lent
Readings: Hosea 14:2-10, Ps 81:6c-8a, 8bc-9, 10-11ab, 14 and 17, Mark 12:28-34

Invitation to Prayer: Dear Lord, in the 2nd Letter to the Corinthians God told St. Paul “In weakness My power is made perfect” and “My grace is sufficient for you.” This Lent, may we in our weakness rely on your grace and strength to overcome our sinful desires and seek your forgiveness.

Reflection: The book of Hosea is among the most poignant and profound of the Old Testament. It tells the story of God longing for Israel, his bride. But she has left Him for another god; for any other god it seems. So often has Israel been unfaithful that the Lord likens her to a harlot who, no matter who she is with, is always looking for her next lover.

So, God tells Hosea the prophet, to marry a woman named Gomer, who was openly and widely known to be a prostitute. In this way God enabled all of Israel to see with their own eyes how they were prostituting themselves by worshipping false gods. And Hosea lived out this sign painfully and publicly before all of Israel for Gomer did not cease prostituting herself after they were married. She conceived other sons and daughters, some by Hosea, others in blatant unfaithfulness to him. Yet Hosea remained faithfully committed to his adulteress wife. Though broken-hearted, he never abandoned her. He even tried to woo her back with gifts, pleaded with her to be faithful, and showed her unwavering fidelity despite her infidelity. Yes, sometimes he would become angry with her obstinance and shameless behavior. But he was always willing to take her back. But even when they did reconcile, it wasn’t for long. For she would soon leave yet again to be with someone else.

In this way, Hosea and Gomer mirrored the history of God and Israel in microcosm: the love of God for Israel, Israel’s infidelity, God’s anger, their reconciliation, and then the tragic repetition of this cycle over and over again. Yet God never stopped loving Israel – his chosen, his beloved. Heartbroken, he always sought her out and longed for her to come back and be faithful to Him.

And of course, just as God called ancient Israel to come back to him, just as Hosea called Gomer to come back, God calls you and I in just the same way when we separate ourselves from Him through sin.

There is a song about the story of Hosea and Gomer called “Come back to me.” The song reminds us of God’s unending love for us, his devotion to us, and his desire to start our relationship anew. One of the most poignant lines is: “Long have I waited for your coming, home to me and living deeply our new lives.” God will always take us back.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, may we know in our heart of hearts that no matter how we have failed, no matter how we have sinned, you are always ready and even eager to forgive us!

Closing: This Lent, may we readily acknowledge our weakness and rely on His grace and strength!

Deacon Rusty Baldwin is assigned to the St. Gaspar Family of Parishes. He has been married to his wonderful wife Heather for 40 years. They have 8 children. He is retired but keeps quite busy serving in various roles in his Family of Parishes.

March 29 – Saturday of the Third Week of Lent
Readings: Hosea 6:1-6; Psalm 51:3-4, 18-19, 20-21ab; Luke 18:9-14

Invitation to Prayer: “Come, let us return to the Lord” (Hosea 6:1a)

Reflection: In the Gospel today, Jesus gives us two examples: the Pharisee and the tax collector. The tax collector is the one who humbles himself to the Lord, seeks forgiveness, and asks for the Lord’s mercy. It is a good reminder in the middle of this Lent the disposition we should have in encountering the Lord.

The psalm further develops how we should approach the Lord. The interior disposition is of upmost importance. Showy offerings and boastful prayers have no effect. “Should I offer a burnt offering, you would not accept it” (Ps 51:18b). God is not looking for material offerings. He is looking for a contrite spirit, and humbled heart (Ps 51:19).

Hosea adds that we are to know the Lord and this is better than sacrifice (Hosea 6:6). A humbled heart is one that is open and docile to the will of the Lord. It is willing to do his will, to turn from sin and begin a new life. We are healed and our wounds are bound. By humbling ourselves to the knowledge that God gives us, we are promised exaltation by our Lord.

In offering our hearts to the Lord “He will come to us…like the spring rain that waters the earth” (Hosea 6:3c). What an image for us in late March! This water – which cleanses and renews – is a powerful image. Our hearts, when broken open to the Lord, are then filled with this grace. He gives a renewed heart, a soft heart, one disposed to the newness of the Gospel message.

Prayer: Lord, open my heart to your will. Help me to better offer myself to the love you offer me and forgive of my sins. Amen.

Closing: In what ways do I approach the Lord as the Pharisee? How can I better encounter the Lord and open my heart to his will?

Matt Hess is the Director of Ministry at the Maria Stein Shrine of the Holy Relics.

March 30 – Fourth Sunday of Lent
Readings: Joshua 5:9a, 10-12; Psalm 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21; Luke 15:1-3, 11-32

Invitation to prayer: Lord, we praise you and are most thankful for your mercy. Open our hearts to receive you, and guide us to share you with all of your people.

Reflection: This is a Sunday to be grateful. In case we’ve forgotten, today’s readings repeatedly remind us of what God has done for us and why we should be so thankful. The Israelites, long sworn to come to the promised land, have arrived and are eating of the fruit of the land. Paul is celebrating becoming a new creation through Christ and being reconciled to God. And Jesus, through the Parable of the Prodigal Son, reminds us that no matter what we do, whenever we sin, however we waste God’s blessings and turn away from God, God is always there, looking into the distance, eager to welcome us back into God’s loving arms.

What we don’t see today is anyone being forgotten. We don’t see anyone being excluded. There is no mention of harsh judgement or anyone being too far gone to be welcomed (back) into God’s loving presence.

We are, then, challenged in two ways today. First, are we every day and at every turn, thanking God for all of God’s goodness? Do we remember the hardships we’ve come through, the poor decisions we’ve made, the ways we’ve turned our back to God – and that every time God is there for us? Second, are we extending this mercy, this grace, to those around us? Are we sharing of God’s bounty? Are we celebrating how God has changed us and joyfully encouraging others to see God’s work in their lives? Do we limit our love for others, or is our love limitless and without ceasing because we know that God will continue to pour love back into us?

As we stand at the midpoint of our Lenten journey, let us rejoice in our savior and our God, and let us recommit ourselves to this time of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Let us draw nearer to God – and bring everyone with us.

Prayer: God, as we continue in this season of Lent, open our hearts to receive your love, be grateful for your love, and share your love.

Closing: In the spirit of gratitude and mercy, where can you better recognize God’s loving presence in your life? How can you share that story and that love with your neighbors?

Andrew Musgrave has served as the Director of the Catholic Social Action office since 2019. He is a member of the Crescent Family of Parishes, and he is married to Ana with whom he has two amazing daughters, Layla and Juliet.

March 31- Monday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Readings: Isaiah 65:17-21, Psalm 30:2 and 4, 5-6, 11-12a and 13b, John 4:43-54

Invitation to Prayer: I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me… You changed my mourning into dancing.

Reflection: In today’s readings we hear a lot about weeping and rejoicing; mourning and dancing; death and life.

My wife and I still have young kids in our house so these readings reflecting on weeping and rejoicing strike home. It is not uncommon for us to have a toddler who is crying one minute and laughing the next. Or to have one of my grade school children storming off at one moment and then sharing their latest joke with me the next. One of the hardest things as a parent is knowing how to react to those moments of weeping, frustration, and anger. Do I let them figure it out themselves? Do I let them cry it out? Do I comfort them? Do I correct them? We pray for wisdom in each moment.

But praise God that He, our Father, and Jesus, our Brother, know perfectly when to step in and when to “rescue” us. For in the fullness of time, God sent His only Son to rescue us from sin and death so that we might know joy and life eternal. May I, like the royal official in today’s Gospel, believe and trust in God’s work to bring me joy and life and may I ever cooperate with his plan to rescue me and those I love.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, you desired happiness and life for us so greatly that you allowed your son, Jesus, to be tortured and killed for us. Help us to embrace the plan and life you have in store for us now and in eternity. May we not despair in the sorrows and trials of this life but rather, rejoice always in your promises of eternal happiness with you in Heaven. Amen.

Matt Reinkemeyer is the Director of Leadership Giving for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati Stewardship Office. He helps coordinate the annual Catholic Ministries Appeal where he loves the opportunity to connect the generosity of donors with ministries that carry forward the works of mercy here in our archdiocese.

April 1 – Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Readings: Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12; Psalm 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9; John 5:1-16

Invitation to Prayer:  A clean heart create for me, O God; give me back the joy of your salvation.

Reflection:  Throughout the Lenten season, we are reminded of the Sacrament of Baptism.  The catechumen eagerly preparing for their own baptism, formed in the teachings of the Church.  The Gospel readings for the Scrutiny Rites speak to these baptismal saving waters; to the light of Christ; and to being raised from the death of sin to be reborn as a child of God.   So it is that the waters of the font are foreshadowed in our readings from the prophet Ezekiel and the Gospel of John today.

Having received grace from our own baptism, we accept the responsibility to be the bearers of fresh and good and righteous fruit, strengthened by the saving waters.  We have the responsibility to do as the Rite of Baptism tells us: to go forth, making disciples of all nations.  The psalmist reminds us that the Lord of Hosts is with us as we live a Christ-like life.

The crippled man in today’s Gospel was in pain for nearly 40 years.   Jesus’s heart was full of compassion as He understood the man’s desire to be healed.  Jesus saw in the man what He sees in us when we totally abandon our lives to Him: the virtue of patience and endurance.  This virtue is the food that sustains us in the midst of trial.  As disciples of Jesus, we know that we will endure some of the hardships that He did during His ministry.  We will need His strength.  We will need His gift of healing.  We will need to remain steadfast in our faith.

The 40 days of Lent are our time to focus anew on patient endurance as we put aside our temptations and as we walk in the desert with Jesus to achieve the goal of one day climbing God’s mountain to be with Him for all time.   Bearing good fruit in our discipleship, in bringing people to Jesus, there is a spiritual strength that emanates from us, radiating for others to see the light of Christ that is within each of us.

Prayer:  My Lord of all hope, You endured so much in life and persevered through it all in perfect obedience to the will of the Father. Give me strength so that I can grow strong in the hope and the joy that comes with that strength. May I turn away from sin and turn to You in complete trust. Jesus, I trust in You.

Closing:  Reflect, today, upon the grace of your baptism and the virtuous gift of patient endurance. The trials of life need not be seen solely in a negative way but as an invitation to trust in the God that created us; an invitation to hope.  Pray for the gift of this virtue and seek to imitate the crippled man.

Deacon Ed Bayliss is assigned to the St. Gregory the Great family of parishes: Immaculate Heart of Mary, St. John Fisher and Guardian Angels. He is the Business Manager and serves also as deacon at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter in Chains.  He and his wife Kim live in New Richmond.

April 2 – Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Readings: Isaiah 49:8-15, Psalm 145:8-9, 13cd-14, 17-18; John 5:17-30

Invitation to Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, open our hearts, minds, and ears this day so that we may receive all you have in store for us.

Reflection: What powerful words from Jesus. “Amen, amen, I say to you, the Son cannot do anything on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing; for what he does, the Son will do also.” As I was reading and reflecting upon these readings, I kept coming back to these words. Specifically, “the Son cannot do anything on his own.”

If you’re anything like me, I find that I often try to” tough it out,” or “pick myself up by my bootstraps” when life gets tough. I have a really bad habit of wanting to fix my problems. And Jesus is reminding us today, that even He, the Son of God, relies on God the Father’s help daily. We regularly see Jesus retreating in prayer to the Father for comfort and aid. Yet, why is it so difficult for us to follow Jesus’s example?

For me, I sometimes fall into the trap of thinking that God is not listening. If you read my reflection from Saturday, March 15th, you may recall my struggle to forgive someone. A big reason this was hard for me to do, was because of my own stubbornness. I looked at the struggle I was in and said “He doesn’t deserve my forgiveness, I can get over this on my own.” Guess how well that went. Spoiler alert, not well.

Since I kept all of this inward and refused to bring it to the Lord for so long, it created a wall between me and the Father that made prayer feel empty and pointless. Similar to how today’s reading from Isaiah ends, “But Zion said, ‘The LORD has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.”

Luckily, I had an awesome spiritual director who entered my life and he reminded me of the last part of this Isaiah passage, “Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you.”

This is such a needed reminder in today’s world. God our Father has never forgotten you! Whatever you’re struggling with, chronic illness, addiction, pain, suffering, etc. the Lord our God holds you so close to His heart! If you don’t believe me, believe Jesus, “For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything that he himself does, and he will show him greater works than these, so that you may be amazing.”

Today, let’s take some time to truly sit with the Lord. Let’s bring him all the things that make us feel isolated and removed from him and hand them over to him. Let’s lower our defenses and make ourselves vulnerable to God our Father so that he can do mighty works in our lives.

Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, the love of God the Father and God the Son, help us to truly experience God’s Love in a new way today.

Closing: You are NEVER alone!

Alex Bodenschatz served as a NET Missionary from 2018-2020 and now works with NET Ministries as the Easter Regional Recruiter.

April 3 – Thursday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Readings: Exodus 32:7-14; Psalm 106:19-20, 21-22, 23; John 5:31-47

Invitation to prayer: Jesus, please give us the desire to desire you above all.

Reflection: In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells his listeners: “you do not want to come to me to have life” (Jn 5:40). How often are we those listeners who don’t want to go to him? How often are we like God’s chosen people we hear about in the First Reading and Psalm? Those people were led out of bondage in Egypt and into a covenantal relationship with God at Sinai, only to forget him weeks later and turn to a golden calf as the life of their party.

So too, we forget God and seek sources of life elsewhere. We get distracted by the lights and sounds of our decadent culture. We become nervous at the thought of God and we think he will ask too much of us or take something away that makes our lives joyful. We might struggle with vices, sins, or patterns of addiction that have sunk deep roots in our way of being and disordered our desires. Too often we position ourselves as masters of our own destiny — doing what we want when we want it. Frankly, we like the idols we’ve made of ourselves or for ourselves, just because we like the feeling of control. The truth is, we forget God when we, his creatures, choose to not depend on him, instead making ourselves the source of our lives. That’s why we don’t come to him to have life, because we’d rather be in control.

Lent invites us to consider our desires and to repent of those that are not ordered to the Lord and his will for our lives. It invites us to consider our own hardheartedness. It’s interesting how the Israelites were saved from Pharoah’s hardness of heart only to later transplant his dead and stony heart into their own chests. Lenten repentance is hard. It’s so hard, in fact, that we may not even want to want to do it. We may not even want to want to come to the Lord. So maybe we need to start there: God, grant me the desire to desire you above all.

Prayer: Father, as Moses stood before you and interceded on behalf of a sinful people, thank you for sending your Son, the source of true life, to intercede on our behalf. Through Jesus’ intercession and the help of the Holy Spirit, may we come to desire you above all things and trust that you are the source of life.

Closing: What prevents you from coming to the Lord as the source of your life? Are you willing to allow God to transform your desires? If so, ask him for that grace and persist in this request till Easter.

Brad Bursa is director of evangelization for the Stella Maris Family of Parishes.

April 4 – Friday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Readings: Wisdom 2:1a, 12-22; Psalm 34:17-18, 19-20, 21 and 23; John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30

April 5 – Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Readings: Jeremiah 11:18-20; Psalm 7:2-3, 9bc-10, 11-12; John 7:40-53

Invitation to Prayer: Others said “This is the Christ”

Reflection: The Pharisees are getting uncomfortable in today’s Gospel. The Gospel states “a division occurred in the crowd.” But what division and why is it occurring now? The Pharisees begin to define a division between themselves and their people. An unhealthy us versus them mentality appears when they say “but this crowd who has separated from the law is accursed.” They forget that they belong to these very people and they draw distinctions between those “in the know” and those who “don’t understand” what the law is about. But the people are educated in a different law, the one that is written in their hearts. The law of love that is shifting their hearts to believe in the person of Jesus Christ. He is no longer just a healer, He is their Messiah, the one they want to follow. This is revealed when the guards say “never before has anyone spoken like this man.” Jesus was not rejecting the law, He was making sense of it. God’s laws are good; the Church’s laws are good – they guard, protect, and indicate the way that leads to Heaven. The Pharisees – at least these Pharisees – didn’t see that the laws were in place to lead them to a relationship with God.

The Pharisees up to this point tolerate Jesus, they don’t like Him, but have taken no action against Him. But something has changed, the Pharisees no longer see him as just a sideshow that is distracting their followers with His miracles. When the people begin to transfer loyalty from the Pharisees to Jesus, they feel threatened. What will they do if they can’t control the people through the law? They cross a line from dislike into hatred as they encourage each other in their anger until it turns into a consuming desire for revenge and destruction. They want to silence Jesus at all costs. And all costs were indeed paid when that anger led “religious” people to crucify our Lord.

Are we guarding our own hearts against unchecked anger that leads to hatred? Do we let angry thoughts consume us and drive us to desperate means for revenge and thoughts of silencing our adversaries? Do we separate ourselves from our brothers and sisters with faux boundaries? What is our own relationship with Jesus? Are we listening to Him, letting His commandments transform our hearts to be like His own? Or are we trying to save ourselves by following laws? All the while disassociating from the love we ought to have for the person who came to save us and ultimately gave all for us.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, as we journey on in life open my eyes through my sins of revenge that blind me to your kingdom.

Sarah Franck is the Pastoral Associate at the St. Henry Parish. Her main focus is on evangelization, especially in small group settings for teens and middle schoolers.

 

April 6 – Fifth Sunday of Lent
Readings: Isaiah 43:16-21, Psalm 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6. Philippians 3:8-14 John 8:1-11

Invitation to Prayer: Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”

Reflection: This is a tough reading for today and in our times.

We always look at the woman who is condemned and breathe a sigh of relief for her – and maybe for ourselves? – that she got off the hook, but if we look at it from the perspective of the people wanting to condemn her, then we might learn the lesson that Jesus and Saint Paul seem to be trying to teach us. Perhaps the hardest sacrifice this lent, in this year, is to give up condemning others.

That is one real sacrifice. We have to set aside our condemnation of others and pray that as followers of Jesus they’ll set aside their condemnation of us.

It is not easy, but it is the way forward as Saint Paul says. We must set aside, not only our sins, but also our condemnation of others. Now here comes the really scary part – If we do this, we might ask ourselves, what do we have left?

The answer is clear – to follow Jesus in love. We read the writing in the sand and drop our stones. Walk away and sin no more against our neighbor or our God and we don’t condemn our neighbor.

Prayer: Jesus, Bread of Life, as we encounter you in the Eucharist this Lent, nourish us with your love, unite us in communion with our sisters and brothers, showing us how we are connected. Transform our hearts, that we may be moved to share bread for life with our global family and work for a world where all can thrive. Amen (CRS Lenten Prayer)

Closing: Today drop the stone of condemnation and talk to someone you know who does not agree with you on one or more issues. Speak out of love and listen with understanding.

Pam Long is the chair of the Social Action Commission for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and the Director of Love in Action for the St. Stephen Family of Parishes in Hamilton, Ohio. She also is a co-lead of a Catholic Relief Services Chapter in southwest Ohio and co-lead of the Ohio CRS Coalition. She and her husband Bob celebrated 50 years of marriage last October. They gave birth to three children with one now in heaven and are grateful for three grandchildren.

April 7 – Monday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Readings: Daniel 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62 or 13:41c-62; Psalm 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6; John 8:12-20

Invitation to Prayer: “Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side.” Psalm 23

Reflection: In today’s first reading, we learn of Susanna, described as a beautiful and virtuous woman, who is the wife of Joakim. Despite her piety, she becomes the target of two elders who are infatuated with her beauty. These men conspire against her, taking advantage of their societal status to manipulate the situation. They attempt to coerce Susanna into a compromising position, but she refuses to submit to their advances, demonstrating her strong moral character.

In the elders’ desperation to maintain their power and reputation, they falsely accuse Susanna of infidelity, claiming to have witnessed her with a young man. The narrative then shifts to the trial, where Susanna stands alone, facing the judgment of the community. The elders, confident in their deceit, recount their fabricated story, and the assembly believes them without question. As she is being led to her execution, God intervenes and sends Daniel who ultimately catches the elders in their lie and turns the tables on them.

Today’s gospel shows the Pharisees attempt to confront and challenge Jesus in order to trap him and find a reason to arrest him. Jesus does not back down but speaks the truth right back to them in clear language about who he is and where he came from.

Today’s readings have the theme of trusting in God and His plan even as we are under attack from those who seek to do us great evil and harm, but we also get a lesson on hope…hope that God will ultimately triumph over evil and will make a great good come from all suffering.

We all struggle with forces that seem to overwhelm us or powers that seek to destroy us. Malice cannot overpower the will of God. Susanna was ultimately saved from execution because she relied on her faith in God’s saving power. Jesus was not arrested at the time as God did not permit it “because his hour had not yet come”. This shows that God is ultimately in control of even the malice of others and will only allow malice to appear to triumph when He sees some greater purpose for allowing such a thing to happen. The Father ultimately permits the malice of the Pharisees to be the instrument of Jesus’ glorification through the sufferings He endured in this hour. From the divine perspective, His hour does not become one of defeat; rather, it becomes one of ultimate victory.

Soon we will enter into the glories of Holy Week and ponder, once again, that the Father did permit Jesus to enter into the cruelest suffering and death imaginable. We will be confronted with the apparent scandal of His arrest and the illusion of the victory of the malicious leaders of the day. But their victory is only an illusion since the permissive will of the Father had other intentions.

Prayer: Lord of all hope, I glorify You for Your wisdom and power and rejoice in the perfect will of the Father in Heaven. Help me to see that you are at my side through all the trials and sufferings I face. Give me faith to know and believe that you use evil and malice to bring about your greater glory. Bless this coming Holy Week, dear Lord, and permit me to rejoice in Your glorious victory. Amen

Closing: As Holy Week draws near, begin preparing for this annual celebration of the hour of Jesus and enter into it with the utmost confidence and faith. Trust in God’s plan to have ultimate victory over evil. Be strong in the face of temptation and pray for God’s will to triumph.

Al Kovacic is the Director of Campus Ministry at Elder High School. He also coaches cross country at Villa Madonna Academy (KY) and enjoys spending time outdoors. Al and his wife Melinda have 4 sons and reside in Villa Hills, KY as members of Saint Joseph Parish in Crescent Springs.

April 8 – Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Readings: Num. 21:4-9, Ps. 102:2-3, 16-18, 19-21, Jn. 8:21-30

Invitation to Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, open my heart to hear your word, to know your truth, and to abide in your loving presence, both now and for eternity.

Reflection: This Gospel passage calls to mind the reality of eternity. Jesus hints to eternity and His own death as He tells them, “Where I am going, you cannot come.” The Pharisees did not understand Him. At first glance, in reading the Gospel, I judged the pharisees and thought how little do they understand. Then, I reflected on my own life and how easy it is to distract myself from believing in God and putting him first in my life. How much more could the Lord judge me for not understanding, but instead the Lord looks upon me with love and mercy.

The Lord asks us to repent of our sins. Jesus says, “You belong to this world, but I do not belong to this world. That is why I told you that you will die in your sins.” If we do not believe in Jesus Christ, we will die in our sins. The Gospel concludes by saying, “Because he spoke this way, many came to believe in him.” I pray that in reflecting on today’s readings, many more will come to believe in the Lord and even more will make the time to go to confession and receive forgiveness of their sins.

This caused me to reflect on my own life, on my need for repentance and conversion. I desire eternal life with God, but that means that I need to detach myself from sin and even from some of the comforts of this world in order to make more room for the Lord. I have found this lent a calling to fast from my snooze button and to start each day in prayer. So, as soon as I hear my alarm go off, I turn it off and pray Lord, open my lips and my heart will proclaim your praise. This seemed so simple, but I am still tempted to lay my head back down and hit the snooze button. I have also been working on fasting from my phone. It’s amazing how easy it is to pick up my phone and scroll anytime I have a spare minute, but it is so much better to spend that time in prayer or investing in the person that is in front of me.

What is the Lord calling you to repent of and detach from this Lent? Can I make time this week to go to confession so that I don’t die in sin?

Prayer: Jesus, prepare our hearts to receive you more fully as we enter into Holy Week. Grant us the grace we need to repent of our sins and turn to you and the Sacraments to receive your love and mercy.

Andrea Patch is the Eastern Regional Director for NET Ministries. Andrea is a wife and a mother to four young children.

April 9 – Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Lent 2025
Readings: Daniel 3:14-20, 91-92, 95; Psalm 3:52-56; Gospel John 8:31-42

Invitation to Prayer: “Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart and yield a harvest through perseverance.” (Verse before the Gospel)

Reflection: Throughout this Lenten season our Pastor as been preaching that we need to pray and persevere for a “transformative heart” for this is our mission. This is our willingness and desire to encounter the Paschal Mystery more fully and forever be changed; forever becoming that intentional disciple of the Lord. Our parochial vicar has complemented the Pastor’s mission by expressing through his mission talk this year the three weapons to persevere through all temptations as Jesus shared with us in His desert experience with prayer, fasting, and almsgiving which transforms one’s heart and prepares us to battle the tempter’s lies.

The beautiful harvest of perseverance I have witnessed in our family of parishes lies rooted in this mission to strive with a “transformed heart” to generously give time and time again, to step up and embrace the many ministry opportunities to serve. These individuals serve as lectors, sacristans, altar servers, and extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist, participate in our St. Vincent de Paul team, engage themselves in fish fries, mission talk organization plans, Knights of Columbus, men and women prayer groups, and many other mission oriented ministries.

Most recently, our Pro-Life team stepped out their comfort zone to battle the culture of death Planned Parenthood promotes. They ran a benefit drive “Love Them Both” to raise awareness for those women who struggle with having a baby in this embattled culture where abortions reign supreme as a reproductive health care model for these women who need our unconditional love when they need it most. The proceeds of diapers, diapers wipes, baby clothes, baby strollers, baby bath items, and items for Mom along with literature and thousands of prayers offered up was a remarkable testimony to their “transformative hearts” persevering in their called to mission.

In the first reading today, the three gentlemen, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego give us a great example what “transformative hearts” for those who persevere in their faith can do to change a heart. With a heart of faith they stood up, steadfast against King Nebuchadnezzar pagan culture to serve his golden statue god and convinced him to say, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who sent his angel to deliver the servants who trusted in him.”
The King Nebuchadnezzars of our world today are constantly challenging us to stand down from our faith, to stand down against all those temptations that steer us away from God, to stand down for others who need our prayer, our fasting, and our almsgiving to support them with our “transformative hearts” persevering in our efforts to love unconditionally; fast, pray, and gives alms unconditionally.

Prayer: Father God “transform our hearts” as we lift up this year all those struggling with their faith, struggling with their sufferings, struggling with their pain, and struggling just to make it through their day. May they encounter Your presence in their life and forever persevere to be changed with a generous heart to yield Your harvest.

Closing: May this Lenten season reminds us that our mission is to persevere through the year with prayer, fasting, and almsgiving as we heard in that verse before the Gospel: “Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart and yield a harvest through perseverance.”

Deacon Henry Jacquez, ordained April 2013, serves in the Queen of Apostles Family of Parishes. He has been married to his wife, Betsy for 45 years, and is father of three children and seven grandsons and a huge shout out blessing to his brother Frank, who turns 70 today.

Invitation to Prayer: If today you hear His voice, harden not your hearts. (Psalm 95:8)

Reflection: Even from the beginning of my life in the Church, Lent has been a difficult season for me both spiritually and emotionally; perhaps you can relate. An inverse of the season of Advent, when we joyfully anticipate our Savior’s birth, I spend my Lents waiting with, it seems, chronic anguish for Jesus to die. I know how the story ends – with His glorious resurrection and ascension into heaven, and triumph over sin and death – yet sometimes my despair overcomes me during this liturgical season. I look around my parish, home, and workplace and see that I am not alone. Perhaps our forty days reliving our Lord’s journey to the cross reminds us of the times we fail to follow Him. I struggle: how can I face Jesus as He suffers on the cross when I am burdened by all the times I have shunned Him by my thoughts, words, actions, and inactions?

In today’s Gospel, Jesus explains to the crowd of Jews a crucial truth: God is faithful to us always, though we fail to be faithful to Him. The Old Testament is chock-full of God’s promises to His people, each one building upon the last. Jesus goes as far as assuring us, “Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM” – even before God’s promise to make Abraham’s descendants as numerous as the stars, the Son was one with the Father, and the divine plan for humanity’s salvation was in motion.

When I let my Lenten prayer, fasting, and almsgiving devolve into fearful self-pity about my sins, I’m missing out on the opportunity God has placed before me to see the ways He remains faithful to me through every circumstance, regardless of my merits and shortcomings. Despite my imperfections as a new wife, God blessed my husband and me with our son, and in the pain of losing him to miscarriage, God sheltered our health and our hearts with family and community. Even in the midst of my failures at my new job – the times when I lose my patience, panic, forget, and neglect – God protects the people I serve and gives me the encouragement I need to keep showing up and doing better.

Brothers and sisters, your sinfulness cannot derail the plan. The most important part has already happened. Jesus has already conquered sin and death, and this Lent is our much-needed reminder of the depths of His faithfulness to us.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, throughout the remainder of this Lenten season, help me to offer up my failings to You, with sincere sorrow for my sins and deep desire to submit to Your goodness. Where I am tempted to give in to discouragement, remind me instead of Your great faithfulness. Amen.

Closing: As the end of Lent nears, what are the ways you can acknowledge your failings and refocus your gaze on Jesus?

Clare Cash, A Dayton native, is an eager member of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul and has embraced her life-long tenure as a well-meaning loudmouth. In August of 2024, she became a 911 call-taker for the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office

April 11- Friday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Readings: Genesis 17:3-9, Psalm 105:4-5, 6-7, 8-9, John 8:51-59

Invitation to Prayer: Lord Jesus, help us to understand your works and accept who You are.

Reflection: What a way to begin a Gospel Reading! After receiving the words of the prophet Jeremiah and the Psalmist – words which speak of being beset by adversaries and how God can deliver us from these troubles – we are greeted in John’s Gospel with Our Lord, about to be stoned! This kind of story, where Jesus is being aggressively confronted by those He has been sent to speak to, might not be unfamiliar to us. Certainly, Jesus was not the kind of Messiah that the Jewish people had been expecting or felt they had been promised. He offered something radically new and regenerative – a continuation of God’s great promise to the people of Israel, spun out to draw in the whole world. The beginning of this chapter sees Jesus famously refer to Himself as the Good Shepherd, and we His own sheep to whom He offers life in abundance.

Directly before the reading we hear at Mass, the Evangelist sets the scene of this confrontation between Jesus and the Jewish authorities. We are told that it takes place in the winter, during the Feast of the Dedication. We may know this more readily as the eight-day festival of lights known as Hanukkah. This feast celebrate the triumph of the Jewish people over a culture that wished to supplant the worship of God with their own weak, pagan approximations. As a first century Jew, one might be acutely attuned during this time to anything that sounded like someone trying to assert a divinity other than the one true God whom they worshiped.

The conflict with Jesus that our Gospel describes, then, comes in part because those who wish to stone Him fundamentally misunderstand who Jesus is. They believe He is another false prophet, blaspheming against God or trying to place Himself in the role of divine judge. They are so afraid that He is their adversary, that they cannot receive the truth that He is their Good Shepherd. They are convinced that they have Him pinned as a charlatan or deceiver, and cannot accept Him as the Son of God, performing His Father’s works.

How many today struggle with knowing or accepting who Jesus is? One might struggle to accept that Jesus is God as He claimed, or that He is truly as forgiving as He promises. We might bristle at the things He wants to speak into our lives, rejecting His authority to invite us to conversion and repentance. We can sometimes be just as ready to stone Jesus (metaphorically), when all He wants to do is offer us a way to the life He has planned for us. As we venture toward Easter, let’s put down our guard (and our stones) and be willing to accept Jesus as who He truly is.

Prayer: Jesus, Your name means “God saves.” Help us to see your mighty works, to believe that You are our Savior, as your name proclaims. Give us the grace to accept You, since You have given Yourself completely to us.

Closing: What misconception of God do I need to lay down in these last weeks of Lent?

Bradley Barnes is the Campus Minister at Newport Central Catholic High School and a parishioner in the Riverview Catholic Family of Parishes. He and his wife Meghan live in Anderson Township

April 12 – Fifth Saturday of Lent 
Readings: Ezekiel 37:21-28, Jeremiah 31:10, 11-12abcd, 13, John 11:45-56 

Invitation to prayer: Lord, despite all the evil there is in this world, we know that you are always with us, always protecting us, always loving us. Open our hearts to receive you and trust in your unending mercy. 

Reflection: Here we are, about to enter Holy Week, the highest and holiest days of the Christian calendar. We’ve come to the end of our Lenten journey, and tomorrow we celebrate the arrival of Jesus in Jerusalem, which is the place where he will be crucified. Each year on Palm Sunday, we face this dual reality – joy and sorrow.  

The readings today provide another juxtaposition, perhaps preparing us for Palm Sunday. Reading 1 and the Responsorial Psalm (both from the prophets) are comforting and supportive, pointing to a resolution of difficult times through the grace and mercy of the Lord. On the other hand, the Gospel gives the next step in the plot to kill Jesus.  

In Ezekiel, we read these powerful words: “I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” God unequivocally states God’s commitment to God’s people. It echoes the words of Ruth – “Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.” (Ruth 1:16-17) – but takes on a much more profound depth and universal reality. In Jeremiah, the last line we read is, “I will turn their mourning into joy, I will console and gladden them after their sorrows.” We might have gone through the most difficult and tragic of times, but God is there for us and will heal our souls.  

But then in John, we read this fateful and horrifying words: “So from that day on they planned to kill him.” 

This, I suppose, is the reality of life. Even if we turn our hearts and minds fully towards the Lord and the Lord’s work, we are bound to face difficulties and failures. Whether it be in work, family, community engagement, or something else, challenges will surely arise. The risk of putting your love and energy into your work is that it might not go well. Thankfully, our success in whatever we do is not the standard by which we are measured. The Lord knows our hearts and our intentions, knows when we are open to God’s love and seeking to pour it out on others. When we act not to receive love but because we ARE loved, we are becoming the best versions of ourselves – the version that is most Christ-like – and the Lord will always be there to comfort us and say, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” (Mt 25:21)  

Prayer: God, as we conclude this season of Lent, open our hearts to receive your love, be grateful for your love, share your love, and trust in your love.  

Closing: Where might you be forgetting God’s infinite love and mercy, and how can you remind yourself of this miracle? How can you remind others?  

Andrew Musgrave has served as the Director of the Catholic Social Action office since 2019. He is a member of the Crescent Family of Parishes, and he is married to Ana with whom he has two amazing daughters, Layla and Juliet.

April 13 – Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion
Readings: Luke 19:28-40, Isaiah 50:4-7, Psalm 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24, Philippians 2:6-11, and Luke 22:14—23:56

Invitation to Prayer: Merciful Father, as we again walk with Our Lord in His Passion, may we offer any sufferings, trials, and injustices we have experienced to you for the sake of those “who know not what they do.”

Reflection: Have you ever noticed how kids love to hear certain family stories over and over again? Especially younger kids. There are certain stories my kids want to hear again even though they’ve heard them dozens of times. Their favorites are the ones they’re in, like the trip to the hospital on the day they were born, or scary/funny ones like when we thought my four-year-old daughter was lost, only to find out she’d crawled behind some suitcases we’d put under a bed to take a 2-hour nap! Stories about aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents – their lives, struggles, and adventures, or what they did in the war are favorites too.
They never seem to tire of the stories and always have lots of questions about our family history because it’s part of who they are, it’s part of who our family is – the good, the bad, and the ugly. Family shapes who you are and how we think of ourselves.

Think about it, if we were related to someone like St. Teresa of Calcutta, a Pope, or some other holy person – you would rightly and naturally feel some measure of pride. Likewise in the opposite situation. Imagine being related to Hitler, or a notorious thief or criminal. You would feel shame. But why would you feel pride or shame? You didn’t lovingly care for thousands of dying and disease-ridden men and women in Calcutta, Mother Teresa did. Neither did you condemn millions of innocent Jews and others to the gas chamber – men, women, and children – Hitler did that.

So why then do we feel pride or shame for what someone else in our family has done? It’s because our family’s story is OUR story, it’s part of who WE are, it’s our heritage, and in a very real way it defines our mission in life – a mission to continue a noble family legacy or perhaps to start one.

Today in the Gospel of Our Lord’s Passion we hear again a family story – our family story for we are all brothers and sisters in Christ. The story of Our Lord’s passion reminds us of who we are, what family we belong to, and our mission in life. Our family story is the greatest story ever told! It’s the ultimate epic struggle of good versus evil. It’s about the unfathomable love Our Father has for us – a Father we didn’t even know we had until Jesus told us! It’s a true story about the unbreakable bond of love between a mother and her son – our Mother Mary and Jesus our brother – a brother who came on a rescue mission to save his family – you and me. It’s about his love for us, a love so great he willingly died for us. Envy, betrayal, torture, murder, and heartbreak all enter into the epic struggle. Evil appears to triumph over our brother, almost everyone turned against him, his closest friends abandoned him, only our Mother Mary, St. John, and women close to the family are brave enough to stand by him. Our family’s story is a love story about our Father’s overwhelming love for his children even though most of them take him for granted most of the time. And even though we know everything works out; we want to hear the rest of the story. But like a child who is being sent to bed, we won’t hear the rest now; we’ll have to wait for Easter.

But even when we hear the rest of the story, that isn’t the end of the story. For that’s where our mission, our part in the story begins. Jesus has won the victory – but we still have battles to fight! That’s why we are called the Church Militant. We’re on a search and rescue mission, and we are being opposed by a determined enemy. But when, where, and how we will encounter the enemy is by no means certain. When, where, and how we will encounter those we were sent to rescue isn’t certain either. And that’s why I can’t understand those who say Mass is boring. To paraphrase Dr. Peter Kreeft, Don’t we know what’s going on in church? Don’t we know we’re attending a meeting of spies plotting a revolution against the Prince of This World? Don’t we know it’s the great Lion of the Tribe of Judah who sneaks into our churches in disguise to meet us there? It’s madness for us to be wearing suits and ties and dresses to church; we should be wearing crash helmets! Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares. They should lash us to our pews!
If you are bored at Mass, if you find living out your Christian faith is boring, then I would submit it is you who are boring because no one who is in the midst of a struggle is bored! In fact, it has been said that boredom is the only human emotion that has never been felt in battle. The cure is to realize whose family you and I are part of, to realize that our noble heritage and mission comes from a long line of holy men, women, and incredible saints who have gone before us – who even at this very moment are praying for us. The cure is to realize that our destiny is to continue our brother and Lord Jesus Christ’s rescue mission; to save our brothers and sisters who don’t know they have a Father who loves them. The cure is to realize our Father is depending on us, his children who DO know him, to do everything we can to bring our brothers and sisters home.

Prayer: Dear Lord, help me to never forget the price you paid to redeem me from my sins. May I always be mindful that you have entrusted me with a mission and the grace to accomplish it; a mission to be a bold witness for you in the world and to care for the poor and needy.

Closing: In imitation of Our Lord in His Passion, let us joyfully take up our cross and follow Him!

Deacon Rusty Baldwin is assigned to the St. Gaspar Family of Parishes. He has been married to his wonderful wife Heather for 40 years. They have 8 children. He is retired but keeps quite busy serving in various roles in his Family of Parishes.

April 14-Monday of Holy Week
Readings: Isaiah 42:1-7 and John 12:1-11

Invitation to Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, open our hearts, minds, and ears this day so that we may receive all you have in store for us.

Reflection: Have you ever experienced something for the last time? I vividly remember the last time I was on my high school’s soccer field. I was a senior on the varsity team, it was the playoffs, and I was playing against my cousin’s school. When the game ended, I did my normal post-game routine: I shook hands with the opponents and the referee and listened to the coach’s closing remarks. Before I left, Coach B wrapped his arm around me and said, “You gave 110% out there tonight and you should be proud of that. Not everyone can say that tonight, but you can.” I said thank you for a great season, grabbed my bag, and started to leave.

As I reached the center circle, it dawned on me, “This is the last time I will ever be on this field.” Memories of success, failure, joy, and sadness flooded my mind, and I stopped. Then I saw my family, and I lost it. I began to cry knowing that something I loved was about to end when I stepped off this field. My dad, one of the coaches, came to me and hugged me, told me he was proud of me, and walked me off the field to see my family.

Why do I share this story with you? Well, I think Mary may have experienced something similar to this. The Gospel of John tells us that it was 6 days before the Passover, and Jesus had predicted His death 3 times by now. Mary probably realized that this may be the last time Jesus would ever set foot in her family’s home. So what does she do? She brings out the most expensive perfume she can buy, anoints Jesus’s feet, and uses her hair to dry them. What an act of love and recognition of what was to come!

So how does this all connect? Well, this is the start of Holy Week and the ending of Lent. All our prayers, sacrifices, and almsgiving we took on for Lent have led us to this moment of preparing to say goodbye to our savior in the Triduum. How will you say goodbye? Will you kneel before the Lord and wash his feet with the best you have? Or will you simply let this week be like any other and let it pass you by? Will you finish Lent knowing that you gave 110%? Or will you look back at this Lent and say, “I wish I gave more?” Do not miss this opportunity to sit at Jesus’s feet and hear him say, “Well done my good and faithful servant.”

Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, the love of God the Father and God the Son, help us to treat this last week of Lent as if it were our first week, our only week, and our last week.

Closing: Lent is almost over. Don’t get complacent and give everything to the God who is about to do something AMAZING for us.

Alex Bodenschatz served as a NET Missionary from 2018-2020 and now works with NET Ministries as the Easter Regional Recruiter.

April 16 -Wednesday of Holy Week
Readings: Isaiah 50:4-9a, Psalm 69:8-10, 21-22, 31 and 33-34, Matthew 26:14-25

Invitation to Prayer: “For the Lord hears the poor, and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.”

Reflection: “Surely it is not I, Lord?”

I hate that just reading that question has me squirming as it brings to mind the most recent of my sins. I’ve been Judas – I am Judas – over and over and over. I too have turned away from the source of all goodness to satisfy my appetites for the paltriness of passing pleasures. I too have dismissed my greatest friend. I too have betrayed my Lord. And I don’t think I’m alone in that.

Immersed as we are in our subtle American Pelagianism, it’s easy to get frustrated when even our most tenacious efforts to rid ourselves of our most deeply ingrained vices prove to be insufficient. This self-reliance can cut both ways: perhaps, having failed to amend my life, I might dismiss my sin as being such a little thing with a thousand justifications; or perhaps, I might turn back on myself until the shame and guilt that the accuser piles upon me destroys me, as it destroyed Judas.

But Judas’ end need not be our own. While his betrayal seems to have defined his life, it doesn’t have to define ours. Yes, our sin is a weighty thing, and it is evidence that not all is as it should be, but it is not so weighty that it cannot be lifted by a love that is stronger than death. Judas might have at any point turned back to be reconciled to the Lord but instead gave into despair. Through the grace of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we have that same opportunity for forgiveness – do we take it?

On our own, we could never hope to overcome our woundedness, nor withstand the onslaught of temptation, nor ever be worthy of the calling we’ve been given. But this is the very reason that Jesus Christ came: to redeem us from our sins and to share with us his own relationship with the Father.

Do we have the humility to ask for healing from the Lord whom we have wounded? We can do so in confidence, remembering that it is we who tire of asking for his grace, not he who tires of pouring it out, “For the Lord hears the poor, and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.”

Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, grant us the grace to turn back to your mercy and receive your forgiveness and love.

Paco Patag delights in helping others discover, receive, and respond to their vocation, and is grateful to be able to do so as the Associate Director for Adult Evangelization & Pastoral Ministry for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. He and his wife, Beth, and their daughter, Lily, are parishioners in the Queen of Apostles Parish Family.