1 March 2026 (Sunday) / 2nd Sunday of Lent

1 March 2026 (Sunday)

2nd Sunday of Lent.

Readings from the Bible of the Roman Catholic Church:

First Reading: Genesis 12: 1-4a
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 33: 4-5, 18-19, 20, 22
Second Reading: Second Timothy 1: 8b-10
Verse Before the Gospel: Matthew 17: 5
Gospel: Matthew 17: 1-9

First Reading : Genesis 12:1‐4a

The Lord said to Abram, ‘Leave your country, your family and your father’s house, for the land I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name so famous that it will be used as a blessing.
‘I will bless those who bless you:
I will curse those who slight you.
All the tribes of the earth
shall bless themselves by you.’
So Abram went as the Lord told him.

Responsive Psalm : Psalm 32(33):4‐5,18‐20,22

May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all our hope in you.
The word of the Lord is faithful
  and all his works to be trusted.
The Lord loves justice and right
  and fills the earth with his love.
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all our hope in you.
The Lord looks on those who revere him,
  on those who hope in his love,
to rescue their souls from death,
  to keep them alive in famine.
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all our hope in you.
Our soul is waiting for the Lord.
  The Lord is our help and our shield.
May your love be upon us, O Lord,
  as we place all our hope in you.
May your love be upon us, O Lord, as we place all our hope in you.

Second Reading : 2 Timothy 1:8b‐10

With me, bear the hardships for the sake of the Good News, relying on the power of God who has saved us and called us to be holy – not because of anything we ourselves have done but for his own purpose and by his own grace. This grace had already been granted to us, in Christ Jesus, before the beginning of time, but it has only been revealed by the Appearing of our saviour Christ Jesus. He abolished death, and he has proclaimed life and immortality through the Good News.

Verse Before the Gospel: Matthew 17: 5
5 He was still speaking when suddenly a bright cloud covered them with shadow, and suddenly from the cloud there came a voice which said, "This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favour. Listen to him."

Gospel : Matthew 17:1‐9

Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain where they could be alone. There in their presence he was transfigured: his face shone like the sun and his clothes became as white as the light. Suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared to them; they were talking with him. Then Peter spoke to Jesus. ‘Lord,’ he said ‘it is wonderful for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.’ He was still speaking when suddenly a bright cloud covered them with shadow, and from the cloud there came a voice which said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favour. Listen to him.’ When they heard this the disciples fell on their faces, overcome with fear. But Jesus came up and touched them. ‘Stand up,’ he said ‘do not be afraid.’ And when they raised their eyes they saw no one but only Jesus.
  As they came down from the mountain Jesus gave them this order, ‘Tell no one about the vision until the Son of Man has risen from the dead.’

For our reflection today:

The Gospel of this second Sunday of Lent presents to us the account of Jesus’ Transfiguration (cf. Matthew 17:1-9). Jesus took aside three of the Apostles, Peter, James and John, and led them up a high mountain, where this singular phenomenon happened: Jesus’ face “shone like the sun, and His garments became white as light” (v. 2). The Lord thus made that divine glory shine in His person, which could be received with faith in His preaching and in His miraculous gestures. The Transfiguration on the mountain was accompanied by the apparition of Moses and Elijah, “talking with Him” (v. 3).

The “luminosity” that characterised this extraordinary event symbolised its purpose: to enlighten the minds and hearts of the disciples, so that they were able to understand clearly who their Master was. It was a sudden flash of light on the mystery of Jesus, illuminating His whole person and His whole story. By now decisively on the way to Jerusalem, where he will be condemned to death by crucifixion, Jesus wishes to prepare His followers for this scandal – the scandal of the Cross – for this scandal that is too strong for their faith and, at the same time, to announce in advance His resurrection, manifesting Himself as the Messiah, the Son of God. And Jesus prepares them for that sad moment of great pain.

Indeed, Jesus is showing them a Messiah Who differs from their expectations, from what they imagined of the Messiah, of how the Messiah would be: not a powerful and glorious king, but a humble and disarmed; not a lord of great wealth, a sign of blessing, but a poor man with nowhere to rest His head; not a patriarch with many descendants but an unmarried man with neither house nor home. It is truly a revelation of God turned upside down, and the most disconcerting sign of this scandalous reversal is the cross. But it is precisely through the cross that Jesus will attain His glorious resurrection which will be definitive, unlike this transfiguration that lasted a moment, an instant. Jesus transfigured on Mount Tabor wished to show His glory to His disciples not to avoid their passing through the cross, but to show where the cross leads.

He who dies with Christ, will rise again with Christ. And the cross is the door of the Resurrection. Those who fight with Him will triumph with Him. This is the message of hope contained in Christ’s cross, urging fortitude in our existence. The Christian Cross is not an ornament for the home or to wear; the Christian cross is an appeal to the love with which Jesus sacrificed Himself to save humanity from evil and from sin. In this Lenten Season, we contemplate with devotion the image of Jesus crucified on the cross: it is the symbol of the Christian faith; it is the emblem of Jesus, dead and risen for us. Let us therefore regard the Cross as marking the stages of our Lenten journey, to understand increasingly the gravity of sin and the value of the sacrifice with which the Redeemer saved us all. The Holy Virgin was able to contemplate Jesus’ glory hidden in His humanity. May she help us to be with Him in silent prayer, and may we let ourselves by enlightened by His presence, to keep in our heart, through the darkest nights, a reflection of His glory.
(The Pope Francis's words at the Angelus prayer)

Jonathan Fabian Ginunggil,
Pelayan Atasan Tertinggi / Most High Servant,
Yesus, Maria, Yusuf Pelayanan Kasih / Jesus, Mary, Joseph Ministry of Love 
(Blessed and Saints and the Nine Choirs of Angels)

My vocation is Blessed and Saints.

"I am the most humble of all the Saints in Heaven" Mary, Mother of God."

"I am the handmaid of the Lord, said Mary ‘let what you have said be done to me."

Mother Mary is the most humble Saint in Heaven and she is also the Mother of God for us all
(Luke 1:38)