Understanding the Day
Season
Lent
Week
Week 1 of Lent
Rank
Weekday
Ember Saturday in Lent (Sabbato Quatuor Temporum in Quadragesima) falls within the first week of Lent and is part of a small set of seasonal days called Ember Days. These are days of prayer, penance, and gratitude for the gifts of creation and the Church’s ministry. Lent itself is a forty-day season of preparation before Easter focused on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. There is no octave or vigil implied here; the day stands within Lent’s regular weekly rhythm.
Introit (Daily Prayer)
Ps 87:3
Let my prayer come before You; incline Your ear to my call for help, O Lord.
Ps 87:2
O Lord, the God of my salvation, by day I cry out, at night I clamor in Your presence.
Glory Be to the Father…
Let my prayer come before You; incline Your ear to my call for help, O Lord.
Ps 87:2
O Lord, the God of my salvation, by day I cry out, at night I clamor in Your presence.
Glory Be to the Father…
O God, You Who tempered the flames of fire for the three young men, mercifully grant that the flames of sin may not burn us, Your servants.
Through our Lord…
Through our Lord…
Weekly Prayer
Come, Holy Spirit
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful
and enkindle in them the fire of Thy love.
℣ Send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be created.
℟ And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.
Let us pray.
O God, Who didst instruct the hearts of the faithful by the light of the Holy Spirit, grant us in the same Spirit to be truly wise, and ever to rejoice in His consolation.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
and enkindle in them the fire of Thy love.
℣ Send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be created.
℟ And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.
Let us pray.
O God, Who didst instruct the hearts of the faithful by the light of the Holy Spirit, grant us in the same Spirit to be truly wise, and ever to rejoice in His consolation.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Weekly Formation
Beatitude 1
The Beatitudes
Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.
Poverty of spirit is freedom from placing the heart’s security in wealth, status, or self-sufficiency. It belongs to rich and poor alike when they depend humbly on God and remain willing to surrender created goods rather than offend Him.
Saint & Feast
Principal celebrationCalendar title
Ember Saturday in Lent
A biography or feast reflection has not yet been prepared.
Customs & Fasting
Traditional fast · Complete abstinence
Traditional Lenten Ember Saturday fast and complete abstinence.
Today in Church History
Pope Benedict XVI Resignation (2013)
2013EventIn 2013, Pope Benedict XVI made history by resigning, the first pope to do so in nearly 600 years. His decision was rooted in a desire for the Church to have a leader capable of fulfilling the demands of the papacy, reflecting a profound humility and commitment to the Church's mission.
The resignation of a pope reminds us of the importance of humility and discernment in leadership.
Catechism
Catechism of the Catholic Church
In the Catechism, we learn that the title “Christ” means “anointed one.” Jesus fulfills Israel’s messianic hope as priest, prophet, and king. His birth was announced to the shepherds as the birth of the promised Savior, Christ the Lord, and he was conceived as holy in Mary’s virginal womb. God called Joseph to take Mary as his wife so that Jesus, who is called Christ, should be born of Joseph’s spouse into David’s messianic lineage. Anointed by the Father with the Holy Spirit, Jesus’ words and works revealed him as the Holy One of God. Although some understood the Messiah in political terms, Jesus showed that his kingship is found in his redemptive mission: he came to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. The full meaning of his kingship is revealed on the cross and proclaimed after his Resurrection.
In the Old Testament, the title “son of God” can describe angels, the Chosen People, the children of Israel, and their kings, expressing an adoptive sonship and a special closeness to God. Peter’s confession that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God,” however, acknowledges Christ’s divine sonship, a truth revealed by the Father and central to the apostolic faith. Jesus speaks of himself as the Son who knows the Father and carefully distinguishes his own sonship from that of his disciples. At his Baptism and Transfiguration, the Father calls Jesus his beloved Son, and Jesus names himself the only Son of God. The full meaning of this title is revealed in the Paschal mystery, and after the Resurrection the apostles proclaim the glory of the only Son from the Father. For family devotion, these readings offer a reverent way to reflect on Jesus Christ, the beloved and only Son of God.
¶ 438
Jesus' messianic consecration reveals his divine mission, "for the name 'Christ' implies 'he who anointed', 'he who was anointed' and 'the very anointing with which he was anointed'. the one who anointed is the Father, the one who was anointed is the Son, and he was anointed with the Spirit who is the anointing.'" His eternal messianic consecration was revealed during the time of his earthly life at the moment of his baptism by John, when "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power", "that he might be revealed to Israel" as its Messiah. His works and words will manifest him as "the Holy One of God".