Third Sunday of Lent
March 8, 2026 Cycle A
Purple priestly vestments symbolize penance and preparation.
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Liturgical Year 2025-2026
Introductory Acts of Worship
The Entrance Prayers: On Sunday, usually a hymn praising God is sung in place
of reciting a
Psalm from the Bible which invites us to enter more deeply
into the mystery of
God's love for us. The recited weekday Psalm expresses
a youthful heart
and spirit, delighted that we may come before the living
God.
Entrance Song / Entrance Psalm (Antiphon)
Entrance Song
Psalm 24:15-16 My
eyes are always
fixed on the Lord, for he rescues my feet from the snare.
Turn to me and
have mercy on me, for I am alone and poor.
The Priest Approaches and Kisses the Altar: The
altar is a symbol
of Christ. In it are cut five crosses to recall the
five wounds of
Christ. The altar also represents the Church and has
embedded in it the
relics of her saints. The priest comes to the altar to
celebrate the
Sacrifice in the Church's name. Because of the glory
surrounding the
altar upon which the divine Sacrifice will be made, the kiss
of the priest
unites the Church to Christ, its Redeemer.
Priest: In the name of the
Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
All:
Amen.
The Greeting: We are welcomed in God's name. Our response
unites us to our
neighbor, to the priest and to God. (The priest may
select from several
forms of greeting).
Priest: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and
the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Sprit be with you all.
All:
And with
your spirit.
The Penitential Prayers: We
recognize our
guilt for past sins, express our sorrow for them, and ask
that Mary, the
angels, the saints, and our brothers and sisters in Christ
pray for the Lord
God's mercy. (The priest may select from several
forms).
Priest: Brothers and sisters, let us acknowledge our sins, and so
prepare
ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries.
Priest / All: I confess to almighty God
and to you, my
brothers and sisters, that I have greatly sinned, in my thoughts
and in my
words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do,
through my fault,
through my fault, through my most grievous fault; therefore I
ask blessed Mary
ever-Virgin, al the Angels and Saints, any you, my brothers and
sisters, to
pray for me to the Lord our God.
The Absolution:
Priest: May almighty God have mercy on us,
forgive us our sins,
and bring us to everlasting life.
All:
Amen.
The Collect: The priest lifts the
united prayers and
petitions of the congregation to God the Father through the
merits of Jesus
Christ in the Holy Spirit.
Priest: O God, author of every
mercy and of all
goodness, who in fasting, prayer and almsgiving have shown us a
remedy for sin,
look graciously on this confession of our lowliness, that we,
who are bowed
down by your conscience, may always be lifted up by your
mercy. Through
our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of
the holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
Liturgy of the Word
Christ
is made known
to us through the Old Testament which prepares us to
recognize Him. In
those days, God inspired men who spoke His message.
Now, the New
Testament Gospel reading announces His presence to us
directly through His
Son. Both readings bring God's message to us.
Our responsibility is
to respond.
The First Reading: From the Old Testament
Priest/Reader: A reading from the book
of Exodus
First Reading: 1
Exodus
17:3-7
In those days, in their thirst for water, the people
grumbled against
Moses, saying, “Why did you ever make us leave Egypt? Was
it just to have
us die here of thirst with our children and our
livestock?” So, Moses
cried out to the Lord, “What shall I do with this people?
A little more
and they will stone me!” The Lord answered Moses, “Go over
there in front
of the people, along with some of the elders of Israel, holding
in your hand,
as you go, the staff with which you struck the river. I
will be standing
there in front of you on the rock in Horeb. Strike the
rock, and the
water will flow from it for the people to drink.” This
Moses did, in the
presence of the elders of Israel. The place was called
Massah and
Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled there and tested the
Lord, saying,
“Is the Lord in our midst or not?”
Priest/Reader: The Word of the Lord.
All:
Thanks
be to God.
The Responsorial Psalm: This Psalm praising God, is a prayer to God, or
recommends the practice of
virtue. It is sung as an interlude between the
scriptural readings.
It provides yet another instructional setting and invites
the assembly to
imitate the cantor who sings a repeated response to the
verses of an ancient
Psalm many of which are attributed to King David. The
verses are sung
first by a cantor (song leader) accompanied by instruments,
the refrain is sung
by the people.
Psalm 62:2-3, 6-7, 8-9
Cantor: If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
All: If today you hear his voice, harden not
your hearts.
Cantor: Come, let us joyfully sing to the
Lord; let us acclaim
the Rock of our salvation. Let us greet him with
thanksgiving; let us
joyfully sing psalms to him.
All: If today you hear his voice, harden not
your hearts.
Cantor: Come, let us bow down in worship; let
us kneel before
the Lord who made us. For he is our God, and we are the
people he
shepherds, the flock he guides.
All: If today you hear his voice, harden not
your hearts.
Cantor: Oh, that today you would hear his
voice; harden not
your hearts, as in the day of Massah in the desert, where your
fathers tempted
me; they tested me though they had seen my works.
All: If today you hear his voice, harden not
your hearts.
The Second Reading: Taken from the New Testament, often from a letter
written by St. Paul.
Priest/Reader: A Reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans.
Second Reading: Romans 5:1-2, 5-8
Brothers and sisters: Since we have been justified by
faith, we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have
gained access by
faith to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in hope of
the glory of
God.
And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has
been poured out
into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to
us. For
Christ, while we were still helpless, died at the appointed time
for the
ungodly. Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a
just person,
though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to
die. But
God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners
Christ died for
us.
Priest/Reader: The word of the Lord.
All: Thanks
be to God.
The Alleluia: An ancient expression of joy anticipating the Lord's
message we will hear
in the Gospel.
John 4:42. 15
Cantor: Praise to you, Lord
Jesus Christ, king
of endless glory!
ALL: R/. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ,
king of endless
glory!
Cantor: Lord, you are truly the Savior
of the world; give
me living water, that I may never thirst again.
ALL: R/. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ,
king of endless
glory!
The Gospel: The
Liturgy of the
Word is completed by the reading of the Gospel. Before
its reading, the
members of the assembly trace the sign of the cross upon the
forehead to
indicate their mental acceptance of the Truth, on the lips
to indicate their
readiness to announce it, and over the heart to indicate
their sincere desire
to accept it into their lives. The "Good News" of the
Gospel
tells that God's kingdom has come for all to hear, accept,
and announce to the
world for its salvation. It is God who is speaking to
us. Christ
comes to teach us by the example of His life and by His own
words.
Priest: Cleanse my heart and my
lips, almighty
God, that I may worthily proclaim your holy Gospel. Through
the
words of the Gospel may our sins be wiped away.
Priest: The Lord be with you.
All: And also with you.
Priest/Deacon: A reading from the holy Gospel according
to John.
All: Glory to
you, Lord.
The Gospel: John 4:5-42
John wrote to show that Christ was
the Messiah, the
Divine Son of God.
A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to
her, “Give me a
drink.” His disciples had gone into the town to buy
food. The
Samaritan woman said to him, “How can you, a Jew, ask me, a
Samaritan woman,
for a drink?” – For Jews use nothing in common with Samaritans.
– Jesus
answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God and who
is saying to
you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him and he would
have given you
living water.” The woman said to him, “Sir, you do not
even have a bucket
and the cistern is deep; where then can you get this living
water? Are
you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us this cistern and
drank from it
himself with his children and his flocks?” Jesus answered
and said to
her, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again; but
whoever drinks
the water I shall give will never thirst; the water I shall give
will becomes
in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” The
woman said to
him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may not be thirsty or
have to keep
coming here to draw water.”
Jesus said to her, “Go call your husband and come
back.” The woman
answered and said to him, “I do not have a husband.” Jesus
answered her,
“You are right in saying, ‘I do not have a husband.’ For
you have had
five husbands, and the one you have now is not your
husband. What you
have said is true.” The woman said to him, “Sir, I can see
that you are a
prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain; but you
people say
that the place to worship is in Jerusalem.” Jesus said to
her, “Believe
me, woman, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father
neither on this
mountain nor in Jerusalem. You people worship what you do
not understand;
we worship what we understand, because salvation is from the
Jews. But
the hour is coming, and is now here, when true worshipers will
worship the
Father in Spirit and truth; and indeed, the Father seeks such
people to worship
him. God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship
in Spirit and
truth.” The woman said to him, “I know that the Messiah is
coming, the
one called the Christ; when he comes, he will tell us
everything.” Jesus
said to her, “I am he, the one who is speaking with you.”
At that moment his disciples returned, and were amazed that
he was talking
with a woman, but still no one said, “What are you looking for?”
or “Why are
you talking with her?” The woman left her water jar and
went into the
town and said to the people, “Come see a man who told me
everything I have
done. Could he possibly be the Christ?” They went
out of the town
and came to him. Meanwhile, the disciples urged him,
“Rabbi, eat.”
But he said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not
know.” So,
the disciples said to one another, “Could someone have brought
him something to
eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of
the one who sent
me and to finish his work. Do you not say, ‘In four months
the harvest
will be here?’ I tell you, look up and see the fields ripe
for the
harvest. The reaper is already receiving payment and
gathering crops for
eternal life, so that the sower and reaper can rejoice
together. For here
the saying is verified that ‘One sows and another reaps.’
I sent you to reap
what you have not worked for; others have done the work, and you
are sharing
the fruits of their work.”
Many of the Samaritans of that town began to believe in him
because of the
word of the woman who testified, “He told me everything I have
done.”
When the Samaritans came to him, they invited him to stay with
them; and he
stayed there two days. Many more began to believe in him
because of his
word, and they said to the woman, “We no longer believe because
of your word;
for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly
the savior of
the world.”
Priest/Deacon: The Gospel of the Lord.
All: Praise
to you, Lord
Jesus Christ.
The Priest's Sermon: The
priest develops,
explains, and comments upon the Master's words, so our minds
may be
enlightened, and our hearts enriched.
(A
priestly
reflection upon this Gospel)
Profession of Faith: We state
in the
Nicene Creed the principles of our faith in precise and
definite terms.
All: I believe in one God,
the Father, the
Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and
unseen. I
believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the
Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light,
true God from
true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all
things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came
down from
heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary
and became
man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered
death and was buried and rose again on the third day in
accordance with the
Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the
right hand of
the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the
living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy
Spirit, the Lord,
the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who
with the
Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken
through the
prophets. I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic
Church. I
confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins and I look for
the resurrection
of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
General Intercessions: We pray
for the needs
of the pope, civic leaders, our own needs, those of others,
the sick, the
dying, those who have died, the church, and the world.
The response of
all to each intercession: Lord, hear our prayer.
All: Lord,
hear our
prayer.
The Liturgy of the Eucharist
Gifts of
bread and
wine symbolizing ourselves are presented to the priest who
will offer them to
God the Father. Through the Holy Spirit, they will
become the Body and
Blood of Jesus Christ whom we receive in Holy
Communion. Jesus unites
Himself with us for our spiritual nourishment and
strength. Today, when
individuals do not present their own personal offerings of
bread and wine, the
monetary contribution symbolizes the material of their
united sacrifice.
The priest makes and offering of the bread and wine to God.
Preparation of the Bread and Wine:
Priest: Blessed are you, Lord
God of all
creation, for through your goodness we have received the bread
we offer you:
fruit of the earth and work of human hands, it will become for
us the bread of
life.
All: Blessed
be God for
ever.
Priest: By the
mystery of
this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of
Christ, who humbled
himself to share in our humanity.
Priest: Blessed are you, Lord God of all
creation, for through
your goodness we have received the wine we offer you; fruit of
the vine and
work of human hands it will become our spiritual drink.
All: Blessed
be God for
ever.
Priest: With
humble spirit
and contrite heart may we be accepted by you, O Lord, and may
our sacrifice in
your sight this day be pleasing to you, Lord God.
The Priest's Hands are Washed: This act
was
traditionally necessary because the priest handled the
various gifts presented
by the people. Now, the cleansing act using water
reminds the priest and
ourselves of the need to cleanse not only the hands but the
soul. Soon,
the priest's hands will hold the actual body of Christ, and
we will become His
dwelling place.
Priest: Wash me O Lord, from my
iniquity and
cleanse me from my sin.
Pray, brethren, that my sacrifice and yours may be
acceptable to God,
the almighty Father.
All: May the
Lord accept
the sacrifice at your hands for the praise and glory of his
name, for our good
and the good of all his holy Church.
Prayer over the Gifts: Speaking
in our name,
the priest asks the Father to accept the gifts we offer
through him.
Priest: Be pleased, O Lord, with these
sacrificial offerings,
and grant that we who beseech pardon for our own sins, may take
care to forgive
our neighbor. Through Christ our Lord.
Eucharistic Prayer: Number Three: The priest may select from several
forms.
Priest: The Lord be with you.
All: And with your
spirit.
Priest: Lift up
your hearts.
All: We lift
them up to
the Lord.
Priest: Let us give thanks to
the Lord, our
God.
All: It is right and just.
Preface Prayer:
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and
everywhere to give you thanks, Lord, holy Father, almighty and
eternal God
through Christ our Lord. For when he asked the Samaritan
woman for water
to drink, he had already created the gift of faith within her
and so ardently
did he thirst for her faith, that he kindled in her the fire of
divine
love. And so we, too, give you thanks and with the Angels
praise your
mighty deeds, as we acclaim:
Acclamation:
Priest and All: Holy,
Holy, Holy
Lord, God of hosts. Heaven and earth are full of your
glory.
Hosanna in the highest. Blessed
is he
who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
Priest: You are indeed Holy, O Lord, and all you
have created
rightly gives you praise, for through your Son our Lord Jesus
Christ, by the
power and working of the Holy Spirit, you give life to all
things and make them
holy, and you never cease to gather a people to yourself, so
that from the
rising of the sun to its setting a pure sacrifice may be offered
to your name.
Priest: Therefore, O Lord, we humbly implore you: by the same
Spirit graciously
make holy these gifts we have brought to you for consecration,
that they may
become the Body and Blood of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ, at
whose command
we celebrate these mysteries.
The priest repeats the words which Christ used at his
Last Supper when He
changed the bread into His Body and the wine into His
Blood. His Body and
Blood are truly present but under the appearance of bread
and wine. The
death of Christ is prolonged in each of those who receive
Him worthily.
We apply His death to ourselves so that we may share His
glory. This
moment is the most solemn on earth because it is Divine act
which enables us to
apply to ourselves the Cross which Christ willingly took
upon Himself.
We are
called to die
to sin and lift our very selves to God so that we become
changed; to do as God
would have us do, to become what God would have us
become. Our own little
cross can lift us into union with Christ's Cross so we may
earn the joys of
everlasting happiness with God the Father.
The Lord's Supper: At the time he was
betrayed and entered
willingly into his Passion, he took bread and, giving thanks,
broke it, and
gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my
Body, which will be
given up for you.
In a similar way, when supper was ended, he took the
chalice and, once
more giving thanks, he gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take this, all of you, and drink from it, for this is
the chalice of my
Blood, the Blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will
be poured out for
you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this
in memory of me.
Memorial Acclamation: (The priest may
select from several
forms).
Priest: The
mystery of faith.
All: Save us, Savior of the world, for by your
Cross and
Resurrection you have set us free.
Memorial Prayer: (The
priest may
select from several forms).
Priest:
Recalls Christ's Passion, Resurrection, Ascension, the
Church, the dead,
and ourselves.
Therefore, O Lord, as we
celebrate the
memorial of the saving Passion of your Son, his wondrous
Resurrection and
Ascension into heaven, and as we look forward to his second
coming, we offer
you in thanksgiving this holy and living sacrifice. Look,
we pray, upon
the oblation of your Church and, recognizing the sacrificial
Victim by whose
death you willed to reconcile us to yourself, grant that we, who
are nourished
by the Body and Blood of your Son and filled with his Holy
Spirit, may become
one body, one spirit in Christ.
May he make of us an eternal offering to you, so that we
may obtain an
inheritance with your elect, especially with the most Blessed
Virgin Mary,
Mother of God, with blessed Joseph, her Spouse, with your
blessed
Apostles and glorious Martyrs and with all the Saints, on whose
constant
intercession in your presence we rely for unfailing help.
May this Sacrifice of our reconciliation, we pray, O Lord,
advance the
peace and salvation of all the world. Be pleased to
confirm in faith and
charity your pilgrim Church on earth, with your servant, _____
our Pope and,
_____ our Bishop, the Order of Bishops, all the clergy, and the
entire people
you have gained for your own. Listen graciously to the
prayers of this
family, whom you have summoned before you: in your compassion, O
merciful
Father, gather to yourself all your children scattered
throughout the world.
To our departed brothers and sisters and to all who were
pleasing to you
at their passing from this life, give kind admittance to your
kingdom.
There we hope to enjoy forever the fullness of your glory
through Christ our
Lord, through whom you bestow on the world all that is good.
Doxology
Prayer of Praise: Through him, with him, and in him, O God,
almighty
Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is
yours, for ever
and ever.
All: Amen.
Communion Rite
In the liturgy of the Eucharist, we symbolically offer
ourselves to the
Lord through the gifts of bread and wine. At the
Consecration, we offer
our very lives to be united the God the Father through the
Cross of
Christ. In Communion, we find that we have not died at
all but have come
to life. We have surrendered ourselves to God through
His Divine Son,
Jesus Christ. In return, become ennobled and
enriched.
We give up time and we get eternity, we give up our sin and
we receive grace,
we surrender our self-will and receive the strength of the
Divine Will, we give
up ourselves and we receive everything. For the Son of
God says to us
that unless we receive Him, we shall not have Divine life in
us. But it
is not really, we who receive Christ as it is Christ who
receives us, bringing
us into Himself.
God makes His Cross the very means of our salvation and
our life.
While we have crucified Him, His eternal love cannot be
extinguished.
Christ willed to give us the very life we crucified in our
Redemption, the
Consecration of Holy Thursday into Communion, His death into
our everlasting
life.
The Lord's Prayer:
Priest: At the Savior's command and formed by divine teaching, we
dare to say:
Priest and All: Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed
be they name;
Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in
heaven. Give us
this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive those who
trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but
deliver us from evil.
Priest: Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously
grant peace in our
days, that, by the help of your mercy, we may be always free
from sin and safe
from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming
of our Savior,
Jesus Christ.
All: For the
kingdom, the
power and the glory are yours now and forever.
Prayer for Peace:
Priest: Lord Jesus Christ, who said to your Apostles: Peace I leave you, my
peace I give you, look
not on our sins, but on the faith of your Church, and graciously
grant her
peace and unity in accordance with your will. Who live and
reign for ever
and ever.
All: Amen.
Priest: The peace of the Lord be with you always.
All: And with your spirit.
Priest: Let us offer each other the sign of
peace.
Breaking of the Bread:
Priest: May this mingling of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus
Christ bring
eternal life to us who receive it.
Priest and All: Lamb of God, you take
away the sins of
the world, have mercy on us.
Lamb
of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. Lamb of God,
you take away the sins of
the world, grant us peace.
Priestly Preparation: May the
receiving of
your Body and Blood, Lord Jesus Christ, not bring me to judgment
and
condemnation, but through your loving mercy be for me protection
in mind and
body and a healing remedy.
Priest: Behold
the Lamb of
God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world.
Blessed are those
called to the supper of the Lamb.
Priest and All: Lord, I am not worthy that you should
enter under my
roof, but only say the world and my soul shall be healed.
Priest: May the Body of Christ keep me safe for
eternal life.
May the Blood of Christ keep me safe for eternal life.
Communion Antiphon:
Psalm 9:2-3
Everyone who lies and believes in me will not die for ever,
says the Lord.
Communion of the Faithful:
Priest: The Body of Christ.
The Faithful: Amen.
Priest/Deacon/
Extraordinary Eucharistic Minister: The Blood of Christ.
The Faithful: Amen.
Cleansing of the Vessels:
Priest: What has passed our lips as food, O Lord,
may we possess
in purity of heart, that what has been given to us in time may
be our healing
for eternity.
Prayer after Communion:
Priest: Let us
pray.
Priest: As we receive the pledge of things yet
hidden in heaven
and are nourished while still on earth with the Bread that comes
from on high,
we humbly entreat you, O Lord, that what is being brought about
in us in
mystery may come to true completion. Through Christ our
Lord.
Concluding Rite
The Greeting:
Priest: The Lord be with you.
All: And with
your
spirit.
Priest: Bow down
for the
blessing.
The Blessing:
Priest: Direct, O Lord, we pray, the hearts of your faithful, and
in your kindness
grant your servants this grace: that, abiding in the love of you
and their
neighbor, they may fulfill the whole of your commands.
Through Christ our
Lord.
All: Amen.
Final Blessing:
Priest: And may the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the
Son, and the
Holy Spirit, come down on you and remain with you forever.
All: Amen.
Dismissal:
