Daily Catholic Mass Readings for March 21, 2021
First Reading: Jeremiah 31.31-34
31"Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah,32not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD.33But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.34And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more."
Psalm 51
1Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.2Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!3For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.4Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.5Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.6Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.7Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.8Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.9Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.10Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.11Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.12Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.13Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you.14Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.15O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.16For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.17The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.18Do good to Zion in your good pleasure; build up the walls of Jerusalem;19then will you delight in right sacrifices, in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings; then bulls will be offered on your altar.
Second Reading: Hebrews 5.7-9
7In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.8Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered.9And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him,
Gospel: John 12.20-33
20Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks.21So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus."22Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.23And Jesus answered them, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.24Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.25Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.26If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.27"Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? But for this purpose I have come to this hour.28Father, glorify your name." Then a voice came from heaven: "I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again."29The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, "An angel has spoken to him."30Jesus answered, "This voice has come for your sake, not mine.31Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out.32And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself."33He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.
Sermon
The readings today invite us to reflect on the profound mystery of God’s covenant with humanity and the transformative power of self-giving love. In the first reading from Jeremiah, we hear of a new covenant—one that will be written not on stone tablets but on the hearts of God’s people. This covenant is rooted in forgiveness and intimacy, where all will know the Lord without needing to be taught. It speaks of a deep interior transformation, where God’s law becomes the very fabric of our being. This passage is set in the context of Israel’s history, where the old covenant had been broken, but God promises something new and everlasting.
The second reading from Hebrews shifts our focus to Jesus, who as the Son of God, learned obedience through suffering. His prayers and tears demonstrate his humanity, but his ultimate obedience leads to eternal salvation for all. This passage emphasizes that Jesus’ journey of suffering was not in vain; it was the path to glorification and the source of salvation. It reminds us that true leadership and service are rooted in humility and sacrifice.
In the Gospel, Jesus speaks of his own glorification through death, using the metaphor of the grain of wheat that must fall to the ground and die to bear fruit. This is a call to radical self-giving, where loving one’s life means losing it for the sake of eternal life. The voice from heaven confirms that Jesus’ mission is to draw all people to himself, and his death on the cross will be the ultimate act of love that overcomes the world.
These readings are deeply connected, as they all point to the new covenant fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Jeremiah’s promise of a covenant written on the heart is realized in Jesus, who through his obedience and sacrifice, draws all people to himself. The moral lesson here is clear: true life comes through self-giving love and surrender to God’s will. Just as Jesus had to let go of his life to fulfill his mission, we too are called to let go of our own desires and fears, trusting that in doing so, we will find true life and purpose. May we open our hearts to the transformative power of God’s covenant, embracing the cross as the path to resurrection and eternal life.