Harpa Dei

As I mentioned at the end of the last meditation, I would like to include in our Lenten itinerary a short series on the transformation of the heart. On the one hand, it is a theme that appears again and again in the biblical texts of Lent, which describe how the human heart turns away […]

Today’s readings confront us very concretely with the depths of the human heart and with the evil deeds that spring from it. First, we hear part of the story of Joseph and his brothers (Genesis 37:6–22). Joseph’s brothers realized that their father, Jacob, loved Joseph the most. Joseph was the one who told their father

Today, on the sixteenth day of our “Lenten retreat,” the prophet Jeremiah reminds us unequivocally in whom we should trust and in whom we should not: “Thus says the Lord: ‘Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his arm, whose heart turns away from the Lord.’” (Jer 17:5). This is a

On the fifteenth day of our Lenten journey, I find myself in Jerusalem writing this meditation under the shadow of military action between the United States, Israel, and Iran. On the morning of February 28, 2026, a bombing campaign against Iran began under the name “Operation Roaring Lion.” Iran responded with missile launches announced by

In today’s reading (1 Kings 17:8–16), we again meet the prophet Elijah, whom God sends to Zarephath, where He had commanded a widow to feed him (v. 9). When Elijah finds her gathering wood at the city gate, he asks her to bring him water and a morsel of bread. The poor widow replies: “As

Our Lenten itinerary today presents us with a supplicatory prayer from the prophet Daniel, who was very clear about the reason why Jerusalem had fallen into ruin. “Lord our God (…), who didst bring thy people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and hast made thee a name, as at this

1 Thess 4:1–7 Finally, brethren, we beseech and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you learned from us how you ought to live and to please God, just as you are doing, you do so more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will

In today’s reading (1 Thessalonians 5:14–23), we hear St. Paul’s instructions to the community of Thessalonica on how they should live so that God’s peace may reign among them and so that their whole being may be kept blameless “at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (v. 23) Today we will focus on three

In today’s reading (Ezekiel 18:20–28), the Lord faces a dispute with His people, who accuse Him of being unjust. What is the reason? The Lord explains: “But if a wicked man turns away from all his sins which he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does what is lawful and right, he shall

Today, in our Lenten journey, we are first presented with a reading from the prophet Ezekiel (Ezekiel 18:1–9). In it, the Lord wants to clarify a false conception that was evidently held by the people of Israel and expressed in erroneous thoughts and proverbs: “What do you mean by repeating this proverb concerning the land