#Holy Monday

[reformedfaith]

And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.”

Luke 19:45-46

[sunflower-chai]

happy holy monday aka Jesus cursing a fig tree and flipping tables day 👍🏻

[many-sparrows]

The Monday of Holy Week is one of my favorite days of the year. There’s a post about it somewhere. Yes, yes, the cleansing of the temple. The cursing of the tree. But more than that— he knows what is coming. He rode into Jerusalem to cries of the people he could not help but love—“save us Lord,” “Deliver us,” “Please, rescue us.” They didn’t know just how soon those Hosannahs would be answered, or at what cost, or that it would be on a cosmic scale so much bigger than a Messiah who would exist to take down a government. But he did. How much of that Holy Monday was spend ducking into corners to catch his breath, on the precipice of tears of love and joy and grief as the sun shines on the apostles’ faces? What did he think about at night as Mary and Lazarus’s house was finally quiet with sleep? Etc and so forth

[be-encouraged]

A House of Prayer

Matthew 21:12-17

As Jesus entered the temple courts on Monday, He was met not with reverence—but with corruption. The temple, meant to be a place of prayer, had become a place of profit. With righteous anger, He overturned the tables of the money changers and drove them out.

“My house shall be called a house of prayer,” Jesus declared, “but you have made it a den of robbers” (Matthew 21:13).

This was not a moment of impulsive anger—it was a holy act of purification. Jesus was defending the sacredness of God’s house. But the deeper message echoes to us today: our hearts are now His temple  (1 Corinthians 6:19).

So what tables need turning over in our own lives? Have we let distraction, bitterness, pride, or worldly ambition take up space in the place meant for prayer?

Holy Monday is a call to examine the temple of our hearts. Jesus doesn’t come to condemn, but to cleanse. His correction is an invitation to deeper intimacy.

Prayer:

Jesus, search my heart. Show me what needs to be cleansed so that I may honor You fully. Make my life a house of prayer, not just in words, but in devotion. Amen.

[pagan-stitches]

Blue Monday

Blue Monday, following Palm Sunday, is the second day of the Passion Week before Easter. This designation comes from the liturgical calendar and has deep roots in Christian tradition. The history of this name dates back to the Middle Ages, when this Monday was the day when blue vestments and blue liturgical decorations were displayed in churches.

Based on the historical awareness of the day and its connection with Easter preparations and Christian piety, people generally avoid certain activities on Blue Monday that are considered inauspicious or bad. Traditionally, it was not recommended to work in the fields on this day, in order to avoid damaging the crop or diverting God's blessings. People also avoided washing clothes, as it was believed that doing so could "wash away" good fortune and prosperity from their homes. Some even avoided swimming during this time, as there was a superstition that water could be "bewitched" or dangerous on this day, or traveling, as it was believed that there could be greater risks on the road on this day, or that traveling could attract misfortune.

For school children and students the Blue Monday was the beginning of the Spring break.

In the morning we are supposed to be thankful for our lives and place wheat sprouts on the table as a gesture of gratitude. We also salute the sky and the weather.

Sources:

[praylily]

[leonbloder]

Holy Monday - Jesus Cleanses the Temple

Throughout Holy Week, we will journey alongside Jesus as He guides us toward the Cross, deepening our faith and understanding of His mission.

According to the Gospel of Mark, following His triumphant entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, Jesus returned to the Temple on Monday and instigated a significant disruption:  

“On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, Is it not written: 'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations'? But you have made it a den of robbers.” (Mark 11:15-17).

So what exactly was Jesus doing in this moment? Theologians Marcus Borg and Dominic Crossan assert that He was staging a powerful prophetic teaching moment, reminiscent of the prophet Jeremiah, who had confronted worshippers at the Temple. 

The Temple system had devolved into corruption. The overly religious individuals of Jesus' time had begun to idolize the institution rather than worship the God who established it. 

They had started to prioritize rituals, systems, and a rigid adherence to rules over the true essence of their faith, expressing love for God through acts of justice, mercy, and compassion toward the "least" in their society.

This dangerous trajectory had been warned against by Hebrew prophets centuries earlier, such as Amos and Hosea, who delivered God's message:

“I hate, I despise your solemn festivals and take no delight in your solemn assemblies….” (Amos 5:21-23).    “I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6).

C.S. Lewis noted that this issue continues to affect the Christian church in our age. He asserted that when Christians begin to blur the lines between God and the systems, rules, and regulations of their faith, they may come to view the Christian life as a series of transactions, believing:

“...as the only thing [God] wants so that their punctual performance will satisfy Him without obedience to His demands for mercy.”

As we reflect on Jesus' actions in the Temple today, let us be called to faithfulness in our own understanding of faith. 

It is all too common for Christians to perceive their involvement in the Church as a means to earn God's love. In this pursuit, we can easily lose sight of our true calling to be a light in the world.

May we strive to follow Jesus daily, focusing less on religious practices and more on our relationship with Him, who, in the words of the Apostle Paul, “loved the Church and gave himself for it.”

As we embark on this holy journey, may the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ accompany you now and always. Amen.

[cruger2984]

HOLY MONDAY - The Anointing of Jesus

"Master, what a foolish waste! Why is it being permitted? That ointment's worth more than 300 denarii! She should have sold it, and given us the money for the poor!" "But I saved up with this ointment, to prove my love for Jesus. For He is my Lord." "But Mary, what a wasteful indulgence!" "Don't trouble her, Judas. Leave her alone. Understand?" "Since I'm the treasurer, You should take my advice. We could use the money, but You will never listen to me!"

[andrewuttaro]

The Stations you don't know

Lost to us by time or place can be some of the most interesting devotional treasures. As a teenager I was made aware of the Stations of the Cross for the first time though I cannot recall praying them with any regularity until well into my twenties. Now as I approach my thirtieth birthday, I am a little embarrassed to admit that rarely do two to three weeks go by when I don’t pray the Stations of the Cross. I am talking about outside the season of Lent when they are traditionally prayed socially: I can’t get enough of them! Perhaps it’s that awkward preteen in me who liked pop punk music expressing himself anew.

To return to humility: I think this devotion of mine was greatly assisted by a small pamphlet called “Cross Wise: A Pocket Way of the Cross”. This reading material contains all the Station of the Cross with a brief reflection and three interjecting prayers along the way. This version of the traditional “Via Crucis” also provides the traditional prayer before each station:

“We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you, because by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the World.”

As well as the traditional prayer after each station:

“Father, not my Will but yours be done.”

Don’t ask me how I first found this pamphlet. As best I can ascertain it has a copyright year of 1989 and the official Catholic Church seal of approval in latin known as the ���Imprimatur” administered by the Monsignor Maurice Byrne of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. I discovered a stock of these pamphlets in the Parish of my Youth during a recent visit. Perhaps this was where I first found this devotional tool?

The Stations of the Cross are the ultimate devotion of humility if you ask me. They are also uplifting in a way that I can’t quite put into words, so I won’t be attempting to here. They are a school in meditation because they require you to open your heart to what God might be telling you, and then go deeper. Without such an open heart these Stations can seem plainly morbid. We’re talking about Jesus Christ’s death here so that comes with the territory to a degree.

However, the very nature of devotion itself is also instructive with this. When we open our heart to the divine unexpected, not seeking to conquer an idea with our mind’s comprehension as we moderns so eagerly prefer to do, then these Stations become the very epicenter of Christ’s saving work. The charming tradition of adding a fifteenth station for the Resurrection really completes that arc.

But chances are if you’re reading this you already have some passing familiarity with the Stations of the Cross. You’re reading this far for the Stations you didn’t know as the clickbait title so successfully lured you! You want something different. Well this year I have uncovered two sets of other “Stations” related to Holy Week that may intrigue you or even enter into your devotional practice in some way.

Last Year was my first Holy Week back in the city of my birth: Rochester, New York. My wife and I are attending her childhood Parish, so we get a lot more Church time with my in-laws. Hold your jokes, this is truly a blessing. For two years straight we have participated in a Christmas pageant I can only describe as adorable.

Last year on Holy Thursday my father-in-law and I attempted to visit other Churches displaying the Blessed Sacrament for Adoration. It is an old tradition on that particular night to travel to Seven Churches where the Blessed Sacrament is so adored. Holy Thursday matters so much for us Catholics because its when we commemorate the Last Supper and, ergo, the institution of the Sacrament of Communion (the Blessed Sacrament) by Jesus Christ. If there is any day of the whole Church year for Adoration of the Sacrament, it’s the night of Holy Thursday.

Indeed, the Mass of Holy Thursday doesn’t end. It is merely the beginning of the shortest liturgical season on the Catholic calendar: Triduum. Technically Holy Thursday begins one long liturgy that doesn’t end until Easter Vigil the following Saturday. The Seven Churches Visitation is in some respect then the way some choose to honor this sacred moment as Good Friday beckons in the morning. I don’t know where this tradition originates from, but I faintly remember a retreat starting that night in my Youth Group back in High School. We called it “Passion Immersion”.

I said my father-in-law and I attempted to visit other Churches that night because we failed to do so. We only looked at the three Churches of our Parish and discovered there was no such Adoration taking place. This year I decided to prepare and found a dozen Churches within a short driving distance that we will venture out to come Thursday night. Along the way of this research, I discovered the Stations these Seven Visitations are supposed to represent: the Seven Movements of Jesus between the end of the Last Supper and the Crucifixion. Here they are:

Jesus prays in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Jesus arrested, bound, and taken before Annas.

Jesus taken before the High Priest, Caiaphas.

Jesus taken before Pontius Pilate the first time.

Jesus taken before Herod.

Jesus taken before Pontius Pilate the second time.

Jesus is given his Crown of Thorns and condemned to Crucifixion.

In a way, these are the Seven Stations preceding the Stations of the Cross. That’s a total of 21 stations, 22 if you count the Resurrection! Color me positively bedazzled upon learning this. You might also notice there is a lot of Jesus being paraded around in this sequence, twice getting thrown in front of Pontius Pilate who found the whole experience distressing at worse and bothersome at best.

That parading around lends itself to Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. We Catholics believe that little consecrated host is Jesus after all so parading him out on Holy Thursday in the interim before Good Friday feels appropriate with these Stations. Adding on the physical act of traveling to Seven different Churches really makes it feel like a pilgrimage, not unlike how the 14 Stations of the Cross developed from pilgrimages to the Holy Land where it actually happened.

But before we wrap this up, I have a parting gift for you: yet more Stations I was not aware of before this trip around the Liturgical calendar! These Seven Stations, we’ll say four because you’re probably familiar with at least three of these, are what each Day of Holy Week might be focused on in one’s devotional practice:

Palm Sunday: Jesus Triumphant entry into Jerusalem.

Holy Monday: Judas scorns Mary of Bethany for anointing Jesus’ feet.

Holy Tuesday: Jesus announces the impending betrayal of one of the twelve and Peter’s denial of him later.

Holy Wednesday: Jesus confirms Judas’ betrayal.

Holy Thursday: The Last Supper when Jesus institutes Holy Communion and the Priesthood.

Good Friday: The Passion and Death of Jesus Christ.

Holy Saturday: Jesus harrows Hell and defeats death.

Easter: the Resurrection.

I will assume Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter are probably not unfamiliar to you. These aren’t Stations as much as they are devotions for each day since Holy Tuesday and Holy Wednesday’s devotions occurred on Holy Thursday with the Last Supper. Nonetheless, there is spiritual depth here I discovered this year.

Judas taking issue with expensive nard being used to anoint Jesus’ feet instead of being sold to support the ministry is a bit of foreshadowing if you will. But consider how Jesus’ response, a call for Judas and the others to treasure him while he is still with them, speaks to a right reverence we so desperately need nowadays. We often miss the true holiness of an event or thing because we are assessing bare value and not the deeper blessing at work. This is not a bad way to re-evaluate our own personal relationship with Jesus.

Jesus announcing his betrayal in the middle of the meal sending his Apostles into a drama seems unhelpful. Yet Jesus is calling all his Apostles therein to a more sincere self-knowledge as they are about to lose him. That’s not to mention they would all be thinking Jesus knew who the betrayer was and included him nonetheless. Frankly, I can’t help but think of contentious family meals around the holidays at this juncture. Jesus shares a meal with his betrayer, can we not share a meal with those who betray our worldviews?

Peter, our favorite overzealous hothead, pledging his loyalty to Jesus in this panic only to be told he would in fact deny Jesus three times, is flatly poetic. Nobody is above betraying their most intimate relationships and values. We all betray Jesus and we all might be great leaders and advocates for his Gospel nonetheless!

Jesus confirming Judas’ betrayal is difficult for me to process to be honest. This likely refers to Matthew 26:25 when Jesus, once again in the midst of the panic he has just induced, answers Judas’ insistence he is not the betrayer by responding: “You have said so.” What are we to make of that cryptic, non-committal response? Here’s a clue: Jesus will later respond to Pontius Pilate with a very similar retort: “You say so” (Matthew 27:11). This is after Pilate asks Jesus if he is King of the Jews in a clear attempt to trap him in bogus charges against the Roman State.

It’s as if the Gospel is telling us that when we are insistent on our bad faith assertions, if not outright lies, we force Jesus into something that some theologians will tell you Jesus is not even capable of due to his divine nature: biting sarcasm. When we lie to Jesus we wound the relationship. We sin. Coming from Jesus I cannot imagine how sarcasm would not rend the heart asunder.

Lastly, skipping ahead to Holy Saturday we find Jesus’ harrowing Hell itself between Good Friday and Easter. Don’t think of this as some kind of battle, he’s God and the fight was already won on the Cross, think of this as Jesus leaving no sheep behind. Before his saving act there was a waiting room for the righteous. Heaven wasn’t open quite yet, but there were some folks who were worthy of entering nonetheless. This harrowing of Hell is Jesus going into the most miserable of all waiting rooms and retrieving his beloved sheep.

And with that we arrive at Easter, the greatest celebration Christianity has to offer. If I haven’t bored you to death with journaling my favorite devotions or sermonizing obscure Holy Week devotions, then I hope I have given you some spiritual food for this special week we find ourselves in. It’s amazing what we discover can spiritual feed us if we open our hearts to be filled with something anew.

Jesus awaits there for us.

[pinkishflowersilverycoin]

My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. - Matthew 21:12–13

After the cleansing of the Temple. Had to be on his own, reflecting on his actions which will lead to important consequences in the following days. Did he regret any of those? That's when he realized that his days are counting down?

[ausetkmt]

We would appreciate your prayers and positive energy as we deal with the loss of our matriarch.

[rivenantiqnerd]

Joseph of Aramethea is talking to his friends.

They’re all critical of him. “Why are you giving your sepulcher to this Jesus guy?”

“Well,” Joseph says, “He’s only using it for the weekend.”

[theformulaforsuccess]

Jesus didn’t flip tables just out of anger—He did it out of holy heartbreak.

On this Monday of Holy Week, step into Mark 11:15–17 and discover the deeper reason why Jesus turned over the temple tables. Was it really just about money changers… or was it a warning about corrupt religion, injustice, and how the poor were being pushed out of worship?

This message will challenge your soul, stir your heart, and make you ask the question:

What tables would Jesus flip in our lives today?

➡️ Watch now to discover the fire and grief behind Jesus' boldest moment before the cross.

📖 Scripture: Mark 11:15–17

🔥 Theme: Holy anger, judgment, compassion for the poor, calling out spiritual corruption.

🔥 What do you think Jesus was really feeling when He flipped those tables?

Drop your thoughts below—and if this hit you hard, share it with someone who needs to rethink what real faith looks like.

👇 Let’s talk about the difference between religion and righteousness.

#JesusFlipsTables #HolyWeek2025 #Mark11 #RighteousAnger #HeartbreakOfJesus #TempleCleansing #FaithOverReligion #JesusAndJustice #BibleTalks #ChristianYouTube

[levtolstoiz]

wicked witch of the west turning into blair witch project

[zenwannabe]

psalm 36

5 Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens,        and your faithfulness to the clouds. 6 Your righteousness is like the strong mountains,   your justice like the great deep;        you save both man and beast, O Lord. 7 How priceless is your love, O God!        your people take refuge under the shadow of your wings. 8 They feast upon the abundance of your house;        you give them drink from the river of your delights. 9 For with you is the well of life,        and in your light we see light.