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2nd Sunday of Lent
Please join us in this prayer service patterned after the rhythm of the Mass. It is another way to unite us to Christ and to each other at Saint Hubert.
Opening Our Heart to God
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Lord, I know you are with me, always. You lead us to insight and truth. Help me to open my heart and eyes to see you and hear what it is I need to hear today. To ready myself for this time of prayer, I ask for your mercy and peace.
I confess to almighty God
and to you, my brothers and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done,
and in what I have failed to do;
through my fault, through my fault,
through my most grievous fault;
therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,
all the Angels and Saints,
and you, my brothers and sisters,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.
to the Lord our God.
Amen.
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- Lord, have mercy.
- Christ, have mercy
- Lord, have mercy.
Opening Prayer
O God, who have commanded us
to listen to your beloved Son,
be pleased, we pray,
to nourish us inwardly by your word,
that, with spiritual sight made pure,
we may rejoice to behold your glory.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, forever and ever. Amen.
The Word of God: The Words of Life
Second Sunday of Lent | USCCB
First Reading: Genesis 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18
Abraham follows God’s command to take Isaac up the mountain.
Responsorial: Psalm 25
I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living.
Second Reading: Romans 8:31b-34
Paul encourages us to hold onto an important truth: Through Christ, God is with us, not against us. He intercedes for us.
Gospel: Mark 9:2-10
Jesus takes Peter, James and John up a mountain and they experience the Transfiguration.
A Reflection by Fr. Mike
Both the first reading and the gospel involve mountain climbing. In the Genesis passage, it’s Abraham and Isaac making the journey; in the gospel it’s Jesus, Peter, James and John. In both cases, incredible things happen on the mountain: There’s a conversation that happens between heaven and earth and they’re a part of it.
For a long time, spiritual writers and theologians have noticed that encounters with God happen after a climb. Someone goes up the mountain—as high as they can go—and God comes down often in the clouds. In the bible, a cloud is one of the signs of God’s presence. We ascend, God descends, and we meet.
What we also notice, is that when people encounter God on their journey, it tends to involve seeing and listening.
In the gospel, Peter, James and John saw the incredible vision of the Transfiguration—and Mark tells us it was so powerful it terrified Peter. In fact, Peter didn’t know what to say, so he kind of just blurted something out. But did Peter really have to say anything at all? Did he have to comment? Maybe he thought the vision required a response. But at that point, God obviously didn’t want him to talk; he wanted him to listen. His message is for us, too: Listen to Jesus.
And that’s an important thing to consider. In this age of social media and so much opinion, we’re getting really, really good at commenting on just about anything and everything. But what about listening? Is it becoming a lost art? Every conversation needs it for it to be a conversation. It’s in listening that we find insight and understanding. It’s true of our relationship with God and also in the relationships we have with others. When we listen, we receive.
In the first reading, Abraham’s whole reason for doing what he did was based on listening to God. God tests his faith, and it involved going up a mountain called Moriah, which interestingly means “the place of seeing.” The kind of seeing Abraham received that day was insight.
One of the big question scholars wrestle with is why God tested Abraham to begin with. If God is all knowing and powerful, the argument goes, wouldn’t he know whether or not Abraham would be faithful or not? He would. So we can conclude that the test wasn’t for God, but the test was for Abraham to discover something about himself.
Abraham discovered that his faith was solid. If God wanted his child to be sacrificed, Abraham might not have understood it, but it’s clear from the text he would have done it. But in the end, God didn’t want a child to be sacrificed, as was the custom in other religions at that time. What he wanted Abraham to see was the mark of his faith—his trust in God was unshakable.
In the gospel, seeing led to listening. In Abraham’s case, listening led to seeing. And in both situations, the epiphanies happened after a journey up a mountain where they encountered God. But it didn’t just happen to them. It can happen with us too.
Believe it or not, we experience a moment like we had in the readings today every single time we come together for Mass because Mass is about seeing and listening…and climbing a mountain., In most Catholic Churches, the altar and the ambo are meant to be the highest places. The mountain top in today’s world is the sanctuary where Word and Eucharist meet. We journey up it every time we come together for Mass. It’s where we listen and see God at work.
At the ambo, we listen to God’s only son. We take in God’s word about how to live. It’s not meant to go in one ear and out the other, but to penetrate our hearts and souls. In listening we receive insight from God for our own lives. At the altar, we focus on seeing the sacrifice. Jesus is present to us in a way for us to take him in. We see him in the Eucharist—not it all his glory, but ironically in all his simplicity. We don’t have to hide our face, terrified of him. Instead, we keep our eyes fixed on him. It’s a transfiguration moment. We no longer see bread and wine, but the body and blood of Christ with us because we listened for Jesus’ words at the time of consecration.
So just like Peter, James, John, we’ve trusted enough to climb the mountain today to have an encounter with God. And hopefully whatever insight we need today in our life will make its way into our hearts and minds because we’ve accepted Jesus’ invitation to make the climb with him.
Take some time to share some of your own thoughts and reflections on today’s readings. How well are you at listening? Is listening part of your time of prayer? What is God hoping you’ll see and hear today?
All I Believe
As an alternative to the Nicene Creed, the Church also encourages Catholics around the world to profess the most ancient creed of our faith, The Apostle’s Creed.
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth;
and in Jesus Christ, his only Son Our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell;
the third day he rose again from the dead;
He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God,
the Father almighty;
from there he shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body
and life everlasting.
Amen.
The Prayers of the Faithful
Good and gracious God, in union with my brothers and sisters at St. Hubert, we bring our prayers to you.- For the Church, that we all listen to the word of the Lord to help us become closer to God, we pray to the Lord.
- For all nations to strive for a lasting peace, and for an end to terrorism and violent acts around the world, we pray to the Lord.
- For the respect and protection of human life in all its stages, from conception to natural death, we pray to the Lord.
- For returning military, that they can find peace in their daily life, we pray to the Lord.
- For the sick, that they find comfort in their faith, including Carl Miller, Joe Polanco, Joseph Morgan, Michael Morgan, Kimberly McMahon, Tom Brzizinski, John Marks, Jerry Goggin, Debbie O’Connor, Kathy Sher, those struggling with the Coronavirus, and for those for whom you’d like to pray, we pray to the Lord.
- For those who have died that they find eternal peace and joy through Christ, including Ken Kountz, Joseph Gajewski, Valerie Doppke, James Wadas, Ricardo De Los Reyes, Rich Case, for those who have lost their lives to COVID-19, and for those you would like to remember, we pray to the Lord.
- For those for whom we are offering Masses for this weekend: Bob Podgorski, David Catrone, Mary Therese Cassara, Pat Kolvek and our Saint Hubert Parishioners. For the needs of those listed in the book of prayer intentions, and for your needs, we pray to the Lord.
A Spiritual Offering
During the Mass, we bring up gifts of bread and wine and thank God for them, because he gave them to us. Those gifts are then returned to us. God gives himself to us through Jesus Christ. What do you offer to God today of yourself, that can be returned as a gift to others? Who would you like to remember or offer this time of prayer for?
Longing for Communion
As we contemplate our desire to have Jesus Christ in our life, we prepare our hearts—knowing the angels and the saints are in communion with the One we long to be with. Let us lift up our hearts to the Lord.
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, Holy Father, almighty and eternal God
through Christ our Lord.
For after he had told the disciples of his coming Death,
on the holy mountain he manifested to them his glory,
to show, even by the testimony of the law and the prophets,
that the Passion leads to the glory of the Resurrection.
And so, with the Powers of heaven,
we worship you constantly on earth,
and before your majesty,
without end we acclaim:
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts.
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
The Prayer that Unites Us
United with my brothers and sisters at St. Hubert and with Catholics around the world, with one voice we pray the prayer Jesus teaches us to pray together.
Our Father, who art in heaven…
A Time for Peace
Lord, Jesus Christ,
You said to your apostles, “Peace I leave you, my peace I give you”.
Please graciously grant peace to all of us,
to those in our family
and to everyone in our parish.
Allow us to be of one mind and heart.
Allow us to be an instrument of your peace.
(If praying with others, offer a sign of peace to one another.)
A Time for Spiritual Communion
As we long for the Eucharist, we long to be with Christ and share in his life. Let us spend some moments now in prayer uniting our life to the life of Jesus Christ. (You may even want to look upon a crucifix or hold it, or look upon an image or statue of Jesus Christ.)
My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the most Blessed Sacrament.
I love You above all things and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot now receive You sacramentally,
come at least spiritually into my heart.
I embrace You as if You were already there,
and unite myself wholly to You.
Never permit me to be separated from You.
Amen.
An Act of Contrition, Inspired by Psalm 51
Lord God, in your goodness have mercy on me: do not look on my sins, but take away all my guilt.
Create in me a clean heart and renew within me an upright spirit.
Amen.
Pastoral Note:
For those who may want to experience a more contemplative form of prayer, allow the Holy Spirit to pray within you. One way is to center ourselves by being conscious of our own breathing. Slowly breathe in. As you hold your breath for a second or two, picture Jesus Christ or even his name in your mind. Then slowly breathe out. You can repeat this type of spiritual exercise until you are ready to close in prayer. This can be done as easily with children as with adults. It can be very comforting, peaceful and a way to find communion with God by feeling His presence.
A Closing Prayer
Lord,
As we seek this spiritual communion
and desire Your presence,
we pray, that You will protect us in these uncertain times.
Please give us the hope we need day by day,
strengthen our desire to help one another,
and keep our St. Hubert Parish community close to You.
We long to gather together again
without fear and uncertainty;
one family of faith, united, and of one mind and heart,
worshipping You at your altar of praise.
In the meantime, please give us the strength
and connection we need
as we seek to be with you and one another.
We ask all our prayers, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Going Forth
Thank you, God, for this time we have shared.
I know you are with me.
Send me forward in peace.
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
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