1st Sunday of Lent Year B
Sunday February 18, 2024
What date is the 1st Sunday of Lent 2024?
Sunday February 18, 2024
What are the Mass readings for Sunday February18, 2024, the 1st Sunday of Lent Year B?
- First Reading: Genesis 9:8-15
- Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 25:4-5, 6-7, 8-9
- Second Reading: 1 Peter 3:18-22
- Gospel: Mark 1:12-15
The readings for the 1st Sunday of Lent for Year B get us thinking how God is faithful even when we wander away from him. The first reading is the story of Noah’s Ark. The psalm remind us to be faithful. The second reading explains that the great flood in the time of Noah preceded our baptisms. And the gospel tells us that Jesus spent 40 days (like the 40 days of the flood) fasting in the desert and returned ready to spread his message.
These readings for the 1st Sunday of Lent Year B get us started on our Lenten journey. It is time to commit to prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. There are many ideas for this on the Catholic Ideas for Lent page.
What Are the themes for the Mass readings for Sunday February 18, 2024, the 1st Sunday of Lent Year B?
- Our plans for the 40 days of Lent
- Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving
- The temptations of thinking that we will never want, we will never suffer, and we will control our destiny
- The ways our culture misuses personal power, spiritual power, and political power
The 1st Sunday of Lent Year B is also a good time to remember that God always keeps His promises. We can place our hope in Him.
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Resources, Prayers, Games, and Lesson Plans for the 1st Sunday of Lent Year B
In the Desert – A Lesson Plan on Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving
This In the Desert lesson plan on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving will help youth understand the connection between the temptation of Jesus in the desert and Lenten focus on spirituality, sacrifice, and service. Youth will come to understand why we give things up for Lent.
Could You Give It Up Game
Could You Give It Up is a Lenten variation of the Ten Fingers game. Youth must try to outwit each other by guessing what they would give up for Lent which the others would not.
Get on Noah’s Ark Game
Get on Noah’s Ark is an easy game for youth of all ages. All you need is some laundry baskets and stuffed animals. Even your youngest students will enjoy this game.
Repent and Believe! Discussion and Reflection Questions
This reflection will help youth consider what it means to repent. “What do I need to change to become closer to Jesus?” This focuses on the gospel for the 1st Sunday of Lent Year B.
Lenten Ideas for the 1st Sunday of Lent Year B
Fast on a Day Other Than Ash Wednesday or Good Friday
Catholics are required to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Adding another day of fasting is a way of practicing an additional sacrifice during Lent. You can decide to fast one day per week. (Friday would be a traditional choice for this.) Or you can just fast a single day or a few days of your choosing.
Start a Prayer Journal
Developing a healthy prayer routine requires some discipline. A prayer journal is a good way to stay focused during prayer. This can be an especially helpful practice for teens who are trying to develop a deeper prayer life
Make an Offering Box
Lent is a beautiful opportunity to offer ourselves to our Lord. An offering box is a tangible way to make our offerings. It can be used for many different types of offerings
Go to a Weekday Mass
One of the traditional Lenten practices for Catholics is prayer. During this holy season we are called to grow closer to our Lord by increasing and focusing our prayer life.
See More Lenten Ideas
See specific ideas for practicing prayer, fasting, and almsgiving during the Lenten season.
Homilies and Reflections for the 1st Sunday of Lent Year B
The Ark, the Mass, and Re-Ordering the World (Bishop Robert Barron)
The story of Noah relates to the Mass. Just as Noah preserved life through the flood, we preserve life through the ark of the Church.
The New Creation (Scott Hahn)
The story of Noah recalls the start of a new world. Our world is made new again through the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Some Quotes from the Mass Readings for the 1st Sunday of Lent Year B
See, I am now establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you and with every living creature that was with you
First Reading: Genesis 9:8-15
Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth to those who keep your covenant.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 25
In it he also went to preach to the spirits in prison, who had once been disobedient while God patiently waited in the days of Noah during the building of the ark, in which a few persons, eight in all, were saved through water.
Second Reading: 1 Peter 3:18-22
The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan.
Gospel: Mark 1:12-15
After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.
Gospel: Mark 1:12-15