Daily Mass Readings For Thursday, March 6, 2025
Thursday after Ash Wednesday
Reading 1 :
Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Verse Before the Gospel :
Matthew 4:17
Gospel :
Luke 9:22-25
Liturgical vestments: Purple
Thursday, March 6, 2025: Readings & Responsorial Psalm & Gospel
Each day, the Mass readings invite us into a deeper encounter with God. Through Scripture, we hear His voice speaking to our hearts, guiding us, comforting us, and calling us to a life of holiness. The Word of God is not just a story from the past; it is alive, relevant, and transformative.
Every reading is an opportunity for grace. Some days, the words challenge us to grow; other days, they console us in our struggles. But always, they nourish our souls, strengthening our faith and drawing us closer to Christ.
Let us open our hearts to the Word of God daily. May we not just hear it but live it, allowing it to shape our actions and deepen our love for Him. Lord, speak to us today, and help us to follow You more faithfully. Amen.
Reading 1
Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Moses said to the people:
"Today I have set before you
life and prosperity, death and doom.
If you obey the commandments of the LORD, your God,
which I enjoin on you today,
loving him, and walking in his ways,
and keeping his commandments, statutes and decrees,
you will live and grow numerous,
and the LORD, your God,
will bless you in the land you are entering to occupy.
If, however, you turn away your hearts and will not listen,
but are led astray and adore and serve other gods,
I tell you now that you will certainly perish;
you will not have a long life
on the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and occupy.
I call heaven and earth today to witness against you:
I have set before you life and death,
the blessing and the curse.
Choose life, then,
that you and your descendants may live, by loving the LORD, your God,
heeding his voice, and holding fast to him.
For that will mean life for you,
a long life for you to live on the land that the LORD swore
he would give to your fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob."
Verse Before the Gospel
Matthew 4:17
Repent, says the Lord;
the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Jesus said to his disciples:
"The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected
by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed and on the third day be raised."
Then he said to all,
"If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself
and take up his cross daily and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.
What profit is there for one to gain the whole world
yet lose or forfeit himself?"
Reflection
“Let us look steadfastly to the blood of Christ, and see how precious that blood is to God which, having been shed for our salvation, has set the grace of repentance before the whole world.” (Saint Clement of Rome)
“We cannot think about the Christian life apart from this journey that He first made. It is the journey of humility. For the Christian way of life without the cross is not in fact Christian, and if the cross is a cross without Jesus, it is not Christian.” (Francis)
“Conversion is accomplished in daily life by gestures of reconciliation, concern for the poor, the exercise and defense of justice and right, (…) acceptance of suffering, endurance of persecution for the sake of righteousness. Taking up one's cross each day and following Jesus is the surest way of penance.” (Catechism Of The Catholic Church, Nº 1435)
“If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (v. 24). In this way he indicates the way of the true disciple, showing two attitudes. The first is “to renounce oneself”, which does not mean a superficial change, but a conversion, a reversal of mentality and of values. The other attitude is that of taking up one’s own cross. It is not just a matter of patiently enduring daily tribulations, but of bearing with faith and responsibility that part of toil, and that part of suffering that the struggle against evil entails. The life of Christians is always a struggle. The Bible says that the life of Christians is a military undertaking: fighting against the evil spirit, fighting against Evil. Thus the task of “taking up the cross” becomes participating with Christ in the salvation of the world. Considering this, let us make sure that the cross hanging on the wall at home, or that little one that we wear around our neck, is a sign of our wish to be united with Christ in lovingly serving our brothers and sisters, especially the littlest and most fragile. The cross is the holy sign of God’s Love, it is a sign of Jesus’ Sacrifice, and is not to be reduced to a superstitious object or an ornamental necklace. Each time we fix our gaze on the image of Christ crucified, let us contemplate that he, as the true Servant of the Lord, has accomplished his mission, giving life, spilling his blood for the pardoning of sins. And let us not allow ourselves to be drawn to the other side by the temptation of the Evil One. Therefore, if we want to be his disciples, we are called to imitate him, expending our life unreservedly out of love of God and neighbour. (Angelus, 30 August 2020)