| Sat Feb 28 | am: 55 pm: 138, 139 | Gen 41:1-13 | 1 Cor 4:1-7 | Mark 2:23-3:6 |
SATURDAY IN LENT I – St. John Cassian, Priest 435
LITURGICAL THEME FOR THE DAY: John Cassian was a 5th-century monastic saint known for his writings on monastic life. His feast day in the Orthodox Church is February 29 (celebrated on February 28 in non-leap years). He occupies an important place among ascetic writers and theologians of the patristic age. Like Evagrius of Pontus in the East, Cassian systematized and popularized Eastern asceticism in the West. His ascetic writings had a considerable influence on the development of Western ascetic tradition. In this work, Cassian managed to combine the experience of Eastern Christian and Western Christian asceticism in the era of its development and establishment in the late 4th – early 5th century. His teaching about the order of monastic life, ascetic work, and mystical contemplation gained him enduring glory in subsequent centuries.
BIBLICAL MEDITATION OF THE DAY: During this season of forty days, we are invited to examine what we hold and how we manage it. Paul reminds the Corinthians—and us—that every believer is a steward, a caretaker of gifts that do not belong to us: the gospel, the grace that sustains us, the talents God has poured into our lives, and the very breath that makes us alive. The Lenten journey rests not on what we achieve, but on the faithfulness with which we use what God has given us. When we fast, pray, or give alms, we practice this humility, learning to be content with “nothing” while trusting that God supplies all. This holy season encourages us to offer our offerings—time, money, prayer—only to God, not to the eyes of people.
PRAYER OF THE DAY: Eternal Father, turn our hearts to you. By seeking your kingdom and loving one another, may we become a people who worship you in spirit and truth. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen
ANCIENT WISDOM/PRESENT GRACE: “We cannot better assure our eternal happiness than by living and dying in the service of the poor, in the arms of Providence, and with genuine renouncement of ourselves to follow Jesus Christ.” – St. Vincent DePaul
LENTEN DISCIPLINE – Pay a visit to the St. Vincent DePaul Society by either donating items or bringing a person there who would benefit from such charity.
SONG OF THE HEART, SONG OF THE SEASON – Wings of the Morning by Echoes and Legends