It came to me that I should pray hard for God's mercy on the whole world and myself. During this Lent, I have been persecuted by an enemy and began to feel a tiny fraction of what the Lord must have felt as he underwent his agonies prior to his Crucifixion. Everything I heard at today's Mass was most edifying.
First, the entrance antiphon, Psalm 56.2, read: Have mercy on me, O God, for people assail me; they fight me all day long and oppose me.
In the first reading that followed from Daniel 13, we heard how two wicked, old judges falsely testified against Susanna and sentenced her to death and Daniel was able to unearth the truth and convict the two of perjury and save Susanna.
Next, the response to Psalm 23 was familiar: Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side.
Now, the Gospel acclamation, based upon Ezekiel 33,11: I take not pleasure in the death of the wicked man, says the Lord, but rather in his conversion, that he may live.
Finally, the Gospel reading from John 8 was about the woman caught in adultery. When the scribes and the Pharisees, testing Jesus, asked him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?" Jesus said to them, "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." In response, they went away one by one. Then Jesus asked the women, "Where are they? Has no one condemned you?" She replied, "No one, sir." Then Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more." In fact, today's Communion antiphon was made up from these last two verses: Have no one condemned you, woman? No one, Lord. Neither shall I condemn you. From now on, sin no more. This is the powerful mercy of our God ~ beautiful beyond words!
After hearing all this, it's as if the Lord had spoken to me personally. I was right in knowing that I should pray for God's mercy in my case.
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