Celtic Daily Reading (March 8)

[Celtic Daily]

8 March

Feast Day: St. Senan of Scattery Island, St. Felix of Dunwich, St.
Beoadh, St. Duthac of Ross, St. Rhian

Theme: Rapport

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Declaration of faith

To whom shall we go?
You have the words of eternal life,
and we have believed and have come to know
that You are the Holy One of God.

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ,
King of endless glory.

Psalm 133:
A Song of Ascents. Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers
dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down
upon the beard, upon the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of
his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of
Zion! For there the LORD has commanded the blessing, life for evermore.
Old Testament: 1 Samuel 20 :1-23

Then David fled from Nai'oth in Ramah, and came and said before
Jonathan, "What have I done? What is my guilt? And what is my sin before
your father, that he seeks my life?" And he said to him, "Far from it!
You shall not die. Behold, my father does nothing either great or small
without disclosing it to me; and why should my father hide this from me?
It is not so." But David replied, "Your father knows well that I have
found favor in your eyes; and he thinks, 'Let not Jonathan know this,
lest he be grieved.' But truly, as the LORD lives and as your soul
lives, there is but a step between me and death." Then said Jonathan to
David, "Whatever you say, I will do for you." David said to Jonathan,
"Behold, tomorrow is the new moon, and I should not fail to sit at table
with the king; but let me go, that I may hide myself in the field till
the third day at evening. If your father misses me at all, then say,
'David earnestly asked leave of me to run to Bethlehem his city; for
there is a yearly sacrifice there for all the family.' If he says,
'Good!' it will be well with your servant; but if he is angry, then know
that evil is determined by him. Therefore deal kindly with your servant,
for you have brought your servant into a sacred covenant with you. But
if there is guilt in me, slay me yourself; for why should you bring me
to your father?" And Jonathan said, "Far be it from you! If I knew that
it was determined by my father that evil should come upon you, would I
not tell you?" Then said David to Jonathan, "Who will tell me if your
father answers you roughly?" And Jonathan said to David, "Come, let us
go out into the field." So they both went out into the field. And
Jonathan said to David, "The LORD, the God of Israel, be witness! When I
have sounded my father, about this time tomorrow, or the third day,
behold, if he is well disposed toward David, shall I not then send and
disclose it to you? But should it please my father to do you harm, the
LORD do so to Jonathan, and more also, if I do not disclose it to you,
and send you away, that you may go in safety. May the LORD be with you,
as he has been with my father. If I am still alive, show me the loyal
love of the LORD, that I may not die; and do not cut off your loyalty
from my house for ever. When the LORD cuts off every one of the enemies
of David from the face of the earth, let not the name of Jonathan be cut
off from the house of David. And may the LORD take vengeance on David's
enemies." And Jonathan made David swear again by his love for him; for
he loved him as he loved his own soul. Then Jonathan said to him,
"Tomorrow is the new moon; and you will be missed, because your seat
will be empty. And on the third day you will be greatly missed; then go
to the place where you hid yourself when the matter was in hand, and
remain beside yonder stone heap. And I will shoot three arrows to the
side of it, as though I shot at a mark. And behold, I will send the lad,
saying, 'Go, find the arrows.' If I say to the lad, 'Look, the arrows
are on this side of you, take them,' then you are to come, for, as the
LORD lives, it is safe for you and there is no danger. But if I say to
the youth, 'Look, the arrows are beyond you,' then go; for the LORD has
sent you away. And as for the matter of which you and I have spoken,
behold, the LORD is between you and me for ever."
Meditation:
For whom do I pray?
May the great God be between your two shoulders
to protect you in your going and your coming.
May the Son of Virgin Mary be near your heart
and the perfect Spirit be upon you pouring.
- Carmina Gadelica
New Testament: Hebrews 10:1-25
For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of
the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices
which are continually offered year after year, make perfect those who
draw near. Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered? If the
worshipers had once been cleansed, they would no longer have any
consciousness of sin. But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sin
year after year. For it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats
should take away sins. Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he
said, "Sacrifices and offerings thou hast not desired, but a body hast
thou prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings thou hast
taken no pleasure. Then I said, 'Lo, I have come to do thy will, O God,'
as it is written of me in the roll of the book." When he said above,
"Thou hast neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and
offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings" (these are offered
according to the law), then he added, "Lo, I have come to do thy will."
He abolishes the first in order to establish the second. And by that
will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus
Christ once for all. And every priest stands daily at his service,
offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.
But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he
sat down at the right hand of God, then to wait until his enemies should
be made a stool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected
for all time those who are sanctified. And the Holy Spirit also bears
witness to us; for after saying, "This is the covenant that I will make
with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put my laws on their
hearts, and write them on their minds," then he adds, "I will remember
their sins and their misdeeds no more." Where there is forgiveness of
these, there is no longer any offering for sin. Therefore, brethren,
since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus,
by the new and living way which he opened for us through the curtain,
that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the
house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of
faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our
bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our
hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful; and let us
consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not
neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging
one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Closing Prayer:

LIFE be in my speech,
Sense in what I say,
The bloom of cherries on my lips,
Till I come back again.

The love Christ Jesus gave
Be filling every heart for me,
The love Christ Jesus gave
Filling me for every one.

Traversing corries, traversing forests,
Traversing valleys long and wild.
The fair white Mary still uphold me,
The Shepherd Jesu be my shield,
The fair white Mary still uphold me,
The Shepherd Jesu be my shield.
[Carmina Gadelica p317]


Sent out at approximately midnight G.M.T.

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