Saying yes to love is the commitment for this week that introduces us to Holy Week, which begins with Palm Sunday, when we are called to accompany Jesus during the final days of his earthly journey.
«Feel called to put your life on the line. Do not be afraid to spend it for God and for others; you will gain from it! Because life is a gift received by giving oneself. And because the greatest joy is saying yes to love, without ifs or buts. Saying yes to love, without ifs or buts. Just as Jesus did for us». Let us truly feel challenged by these words of Pope Francis as we live this week with the right disposition of heart, drawing closer with a renewed heart to the mystery of Jesus' passion, death, and resurrection, which we will experience next week.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24
Beginning of the novena to Saint Francis of Paola
Even the birth of Francis of Paola in 1416 was miraculous, because after years of waiting, his parents had asked Saint Francis of Assisi for the grace of a child and, precisely in his honor, named him Francis. Because of the many miracles he performed during his lifetime, he is known in the Church as a wonderworker. The many witnesses who testified during the process of his canonization dwelt at length on the numerous miracles he performed. Most of them involved healing.
In his exhortation to prayer, written in the Rule of the Order of Minims, the Saint says: «With the proper appreciation of heavenly things, you will raise supplications and thanksgiving to God for all the benefits he has bestowed upon you». Let us turn with confidence to his intercession and rediscover his life and example.
For further reflection:
• The Thirteen Fridays of Saint Francis of Paola
THURSDAY, MARCH 25
Annunciation of the Lord
The solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord was instituted by the Church of Constantinople in the fifth century and extended to the entire Church in the seventh century. It is celebrated nine months before Christmas, because it commemorates the announcement of the angel Gabriel to Mary in the city of Nazareth. Jesus is conceived through the work of the Holy Spirit. God himself, through the angel, comes to meet humanity. Time and space stand still to welcome the Word of God made flesh in a creature. This event changes and transforms the history of salvation: it was made possible thanks to the “yes” of a young woman. Commenting on the event we celebrate today, Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori writes: “To understand the height to which Mary was raised, one would have to understand how sublime the height and greatness of God are. It is enough simply to say that God made her his mother, to understand that God could not exalt her more than he did.” Saint Alphonsus continues: “As Arnald of Bonneval rightly says, by making himself the Son of the Virgin, God ‘placed her above all the saints and angels.’ Thus she, ‘without comparison, is higher than all the heavenly spirits,’ apart from God, as Saint Ephrem writes.”
For further reflection:
• The Glories of Mary
SUNDAY, MARCH 28
Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday introduces us to Holy Week, during which we are called to retrace with Christ, day by day, the culminating moments of his passion and death, so that we may reach Easter morning with renewed hearts.
Pope Francis reminds us that, “in his entry into Jerusalem, [the Lord] shows us the way. For in that event the evil one, the Prince of this world, had a card to play: the card of triumphalism, and the Lord responded by remaining faithful to his way, the way of humility. Triumphalism seeks to approach the goal by means of shortcuts and false compromises. It aims to climb aboard the victor's chariot. Triumphalism lives on gestures and words that have not passed through the crucible of the cross; it feeds on comparison with others, always judging them to be worse, flawed, failures… A subtle form of triumphalism is spiritual worldliness, which is the greatest danger, the most insidious temptation threatening the Church (De Lubac). Jesus destroyed triumphalism through his Passion.” Let us meditate on these words so that we may truly live today's celebration with intensity.
For further reflection:
• With Living Water (March-April 2021)
• On Your Word - (March-April 2021 Daily Missal)
Saint Thérèse of Lisieux said: “Fear makes me draw back; with love, I not only go forward, but fly.”
It is indeed so: only by opening ourselves to God's love can we reach spiritual heights; only by saying yes to love will our joy be complete.
Have a blessed journey!
