March 8, 2026
Third Sunday of Lent
LORD, WHO THROUGHOUT THESE FORTY DAYS
1 Lord, who throughout these forty days
For us did fast and pray,
Teach us to overcome our sins
And close by you to stay.
2 As you did hunger and did thirst,
So teach us, gracious Lord,
To die to self and so to live
By your most holy word.
The Introductory Rites
Greeting
- In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
- Amen.
- The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
- And with your spirit. (Et cum spiritu tuo.)
Penitential Act (omitted)
The Kyrie, eleison (Lord, have mercy) invocations follow, unless they have just occurred in a formula of the Penitential Act.
- Lord, have mercy (or Kyrie, eleison).
- Lord, have mercy (or Kyrie, eleison).
- Christ, have mercy (or Christe, eleison).
- Christ, have mercy (or Christe, eleison).
- Lord, have mercy (or Kyrie, eleison).
- Lord, have mercy (or Kyrie, eleison).
The absolution by the Presider follows:
- May almighty God have mercy on us,
forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life.
- Amen.
The Liturgy of the Word
You can follow the Readings also in other languages:
First Reading
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?”
- The word of the Lord.
- Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Come, let us sing joyfully to the LORD;
let us acclaim the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us joyfully sing psalms to him.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
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.
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
Oh, that today you would hear his voice:
“Harden not your hearts as at Meribah,
as in the day of Massah in the desert,
Where your fathers tempted me;
they tested me though they had seen my works.”
R. If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
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.
- The word of the Lord.
- Thanks be to God.
Gospel Acclamation
John 4:42, 15
R. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ,
King of endless Glory
Lord, you are truly the Savior of the world;
give me living water, that I may never thirst again.
R. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ,
King of endless Glory
Gospel
John 4:5-42
- The Lord be with you.
- And with your spirit.
- A reading from the holy Gospel according to John
- Glory to you, O Lord.
Jesus came to a town of Samaria called Sychar,
near the plot of land that Jacob had given to his son Joseph.
Jacob’s well was there.
Jesus, tired from his journey, sat down there at the well.
It was about noon.
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 become 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 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.”
- The Gospel of the Lord.
- Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
Creed
I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
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 forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Prayer of the Faithful
Loving Father, who through your Son Jesus, offers us daily the living water of eternal life, we come with gratitude and humility to present our prayers to thee. Let us pray together saying: Lord, hear our prayer
R. Lord hear our prayer.
1.In today’s Gospel Jesus tells us we must worship the Father in spirit and truth. As we go through Lent, we pray that we listen to his words and are guided by the Spirit to live a life dedicated to love of God and love of neighbour.
We pray to the Lord R. Lord hear our prayer.
2. At Jacob’s Well the Samaritan woman begs Jesus – “Give me this water so that I may not be thirsty” Let us pray for those in our world who thirst for their basic human rights and ask the Lord for the grace to play our part in supporting them.
We pray to the Lord R. Lord hear our prayer.
3. As we reflect on our lives during Lent, let us renew our commitment to Christ and allow the waters of baptism transform the desert of our lives into a fruitful vineyard in which God’s love and mercy flourish.
We pray to the Lord R. Lord hear our prayer.
4. As we today celebrate International Women’s Day, we ask the Lord to bless all women, so that their important role in our society be recognised and rewarded. We pray particularly for mothers who daily strive to nurture their children and bring peace to their families, their homes and their communities.
We pray to the Lord R. Lord hear our prayer.
5. We bow our heads and remember in silence our own personal intentions and the intentions of those who have asked for our prayers
We pray to the Lord R. Lord hear our prayer.
Lord, we ask that you hear our prayers and grant us new life and hope through faith in your infinite love and generosity. We ask this through Christ, our Lord,
-Amen.
O SACRED HEAD, SURROUNDED
1 O sacred Head, surrounded
By crown of piercing thorn.
O bleeding Head, so wounded,
Reviled, and put to scorn!
Death’s pallid hue comes o’er thee,
The glow of life decays,
Yet angel hosts adore thee,
And tremble as they gaze.
2 In this thy bitter passion,
Good Shepherd, think of me
With thy most sweet compassion, \
Unworthy though I be:
Beneath thy cross abiding
For ever would I rest,
In thy dear love confiding,
And with thy presence blest.
The Liturgy of the Eucharist
The Offertory
- 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.
- Blessed be God for ever. (Benedíctus Deus in sǽcula.)
- 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.
- Blessed be God for ever. (Benedíctus Deus in sǽcula.)
...
- Pray, brethren (brothers and sisters),
that my sacrifice and yours
may be acceptable to God,
the almighty Father.
- 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.
OR
- Oráte, fratres:
ut meum ac vestrum sacrifícium
acceptábile fiat
apud Deum Patrem omnipoténtem.
- Suscípiat Dóminus sacrifícium de mánibus tuis
ad laudem et glóriam nóminis sui,
ad utilitátem quoque nostram
totiúsque Ecclésiæ suæ sanctæ.
...
The Eucharistic Prayer
Preface
- The Lord be with you. (Dóminus vobíscum.)
- And with your spirit. (Et cum spíritu tuo.)
- Lift up your hearts. (Sursum corda.)
- We lift them up to the Lord. (Habémus ad Dóminum.)
- Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. (Grátias agámus Dómino Deo nostro.)
- It is right and just. (Dignum et iustum est.)
It is truly right and just ...
...we acclaim:
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts.
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Full of your glory!
Hosanna in the highest.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name
of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
Hosanna in the highest.
Hosanna in the highest.
Hosanna in the highest.
OR
Sanctus, sanctus, sanctus Dominus Deus Sabaoth.
Pleni sunt caeli et terra gloria tua.
Hosanna in excelsis.
Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini.
Hosanna in excelsis.
The mystery of faith. (Mystérium fídei.)
We proclaim your Death, O Lord,
and profess your Resurrection
until you come again.
OR
Mortem tuam annuntiámus, Dómine,
et tuam resurrectiónem confitémur,
donec vénias.
The Communion Rite
- At the Saviour’s command and formed by divine teaching, we dare to say:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy 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.
OR
Pater noster, qui es in cælis:
sanctificétur nomen tuum;
advéniat regnum tuum;
fiat volúntas tua,
sicut in cælo, et in terra.
Panem nostrum cotidiánum da nobis hódie;
et dimítte nobis débita nostra,
sicut et nos dimíttimus debitóribus nostris;
et ne nos indúcas in tentatiónem;
sed líbera nos a malo.
- 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.
- For the kingdom,
the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
(Quia tuum est regnum,
et potéstas, et glória
in sǽcula.)
- 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.
- Amen.
- The peace of the Lord be with you always. (Pax Dómini sit semper vobíscum.)
- And with your spirit. (Et cum spíritu tuo.)
Then, if appropriate, the Deacon, or the Priest, adds:
Let us offer each other the sign of peace.
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.
OR
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccáta mundi:
miserére nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccáta mundi:
miserére nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccáta mundi:
dona nobis pacem.
- 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.
- Lord, I am not worthy
that you should enter under my roof,
but only say the word
and my soul shall be healed.
OR
- Ecce Agnus Dei,
ecce qui tollit peccáta mundi.
Beáti qui ad cenam Agni vocáti sunt.
- Dómine, non sum dignus, ut intres
sub téctum meum:
sed tantum dic verbo,
et sanábitur ánima mea.
WERE YOU THERE
1 Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
2 Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?
Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?
Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?
3 Were you there when they laid him in the tomb?
Were you there when they laid him in the tomb?
Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when they laid him in the tomb?
PADRE, PERDONA
R. Signore ascolta: Padre, perdona!
Fa' che vediamo il tuo amore.
1 A te guardiamo,
Redentore nostro,
da te speriamo
gioia di salvezza,
fa' che troviamo
grazia di perdono.
R
.
2 Ti confessiamo
ogni nostra colpa,
riconosciamo,
ogni nostro errore,
e ti preghiamo:
dona il tuo perdono.
R.
3 O buon Pastore,
tu che dai la vita;
Parola certa,
Roccia che non muta:
perdono ancora,
con pietà infinita.
R.
The Concluding Rites
Blessing
-The Lord be with you
-And with your spirit
- May almighty God,
the Father, and the Son, + and the Holy Spirit,
bless you.
- Amen.
To dismiss the people the Deacon sings or says:
- We have a Mass, go in peace
- Thanks be to God,
AT THE CROSS HER VIGIL KEEPING
1 At the cross her vigil keeping,
Mary stood in sorrow, weeping,
When her Son was crucified.
2 While she waited in her anguish,
Seeing Christ in torment languish,
Bitter sorrow pierced her heart.
3 With what pain and desolation,
With what noble resignation,
Mary watched her dying Son.