Opening the Word is a series of prompts from The Emmaus Institute for Biblical Studies to help focus our minds and hearts on the Sunday Mass Readings. After Jesus revealed Himself to the two disciples on the Road to Emmaus, they said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” (Luke 24:32). Our Lord desires to enflame our hearts also by revealing Himself to us in His Word. Take this opportunity to pause, and allow the Lord to make Himself known to you through the opening of the Scriptures which will ready your eyes to see Him in the breaking of the bread.
Third Sunday of Lent (Year C): March 23, 2025
First Reading: Exodus 3:1-8a, 13-15
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8, 11
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12
Gospel: Luke 13:1-9
Step 1: Begin in prayer, asking the Lord to open your heart to receive how He wants to make Himself known to you. Then, attentively read the Scriptures.
Step 2: Consider these meditation prompts that follow from the readings:
- The first reading gives us the famous scene of the burning bush, where God reveals his personal name to Moses and reveals his plans to deliver his people from oppression in Egypt. Read the following lines slowly and meditate on how they reveal the heart and character of God: ““I have witnessed the affliction of my people in Egypt and have heard their cry of complaint against their slave drivers, so I know well what they are suffering. Therefore I have come down to rescue them…” What did this reveal about God to Moses? How does it continue to reveal God today?
- In the Gospel, Jesus gives the parable of the fig tree in the soil. In the parable, the tree is bearing no fruit and the gardener is ordered to cut it down. But the gardener is wise and realized that it may not be the tree itself that is not producing fruit, but the soil in which the tree is planted is unhelpful in aiding the tree to produce its fruit. Take this time in prayer to consider the environment(s) you are planted in. Do they help you bear fruits—fruits of holiness, prayerfulness, and virtue? Or, like the tree in the Gospel, is the soil of your environment inhibiting you from producing fruit? Bring these things to the Lord this day.
Step 3: Conclude with a prayer of gratitude and ask the Lord to keep these Words in your heart.
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