28/2/18  Wednesday of the Second week of Lent

First Reading   Book of Jeremiah 18:18-20. 
The people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem said, “Come, let us contrive a plot against Jeremiah. It will not mean the loss of instruction from the priests, nor of counsel from the wise, nor of messages from the prophets. And so, let us destroy him by his own tongue; let us carefully note his every word.” 
Heed me, O LORD, and listen to what my adversaries say. 
Must good be repaid with evil that they should dig a pit to take my life? Remember that I stood before you to speak in their behalf, to turn away your wrath from them.

Gospel   Matthew 20:17-28. 
As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the Twelve disciples aside by themselves, and said to them on the way, Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death, 
and hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and scourged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.” Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee approached him with her sons and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something. He said to her, “What do you wish?” She answered him, “Command that these two sons of mine sit, one at your right and the other at your left, in your kingdom.” 
Jesus said in reply, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” They said to him, “We can.”He replied, “My cup you will indeed drink, but to sit at my right and at my left, this is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” 
When the ten heard this, they became indignant at the two brothers. 
But Jesus summoned them and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great ones make their authority over them felt. 
But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; 
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

27/2/18   Tuesday of the Second week of Lent

First Reading  Book of Isaiah 1:10.16-20. 
Hear the word of the LORD, princes of Sodom! Listen to the instruction of our God, people of Gomorrah! 
Wash yourselves clean! Put away your misdeeds from before my eyes; cease doing evil; 
learn to do good. Make justice your aim: redress the wronged, hear the orphan’s plea, defend the widow. 
Come now, let us set things right, says the LORD: Though your sins be like scarlet, they may become white as snow; Though they be crimson red, they may become white as wool. 
If you are willing, and obey, you shall eat the good things of the land; 
But if you refuse and resist, the sword shall consume you: for the mouth of the LORD has spoken! 

Gospel   Matthew 23:1-12. 
Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, 
saying, “The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses.
Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but they do not practice. 
They tie up heavy burdens (hard to carry) and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them.
All their works are performed to be seen. They widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels.
They love places of honor at banquets, seats of honor in synagogues,
greetings in marketplaces, and the salutation ‘Rabbi.’ 
As for you, do not be called ‘Rabbi.’ You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers.
Call no one on earth your father; you have but one Father in heaven. 
Do not be called ‘Master’; you have but one master, the Messiah.
The greatest among you must be your servant. 
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled; but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” 

26/2/18 Monday of the Second week of Lent

First Reading   Book of Daniel 9:4b-10. 
“Lord, great and awesome God, you who keep your merciful covenant toward those who love you and observe your commandments! 
We have sinned, been wicked and done evil; we have rebelled and departed from your commandments and your laws. 
We have not obeyed your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, our fathers, and all the people of the land. 
Justice, O Lord, is on your side; we are shamefaced even to this day: the men of Judah, the residents of Jerusalem, and all Israel, near and far, in all the countries to which you have scattered them because of their treachery toward you. 
O LORD, we are shamefaced, like our kings, our princes, and our fathers, for having sinned against you. 
But yours, O Lord, our God, are compassion and forgiveness! Yet we rebelled against you 
and paid no heed to your command, O LORD, our God, to live by the law you gave us through your servants the prophets. 

Gospel   Luke 6:36-38. 
Jesus said to his disciples: «Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. 
Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you; a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured into your lap. For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you.” 

25/2/18  Second Sunday of Lent

First Reading   Book of Genesis 22:1-2.9a.10-13.15-18. 
God put Abraham to the test. He called to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am!” he replied. 
Then God said: “Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. There you shall offer him up as a holocaust on a height that I will point out to you.” 
When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. Next he tied up his son Isaac, and put him on top of the wood on the altar. 
Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son. 
But the LORD’S messenger called to him from heaven, “Abraham, Abraham!” “Yes, Lord,” he answered. 
“Do not lay your hand on the boy,” said the messenger. “Do not do the least thing to him. I know now how devoted you are to God, since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.” 
As Abraham looked about, he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. So he went and took the ram and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son. 
Again the LORD’S messenger called to Abraham from heaven 
and said: “I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son, 
I will bless you abundantly and make your descendants as countless as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore; your descendants shall take possession of the gates of their enemies, 
and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing–all this because you obeyed my command.’ 

Second Reading  Letter to the Romans 8:31b-34. 
Brothers and sisters: If God is for us, who can be against us? 
He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he not also give us everything else along with him? 
Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who acquits us. 
Who will condemn? It is Christ (Jesus) who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. 

Gospel  Mark 9:2-10. 
Jesus took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, 
and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them. 
Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus. 
Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, “Rabbi, it is good that we are here! Let us make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified. 
Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them; then from the cloud came a voice, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”
Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone but Jesus alone with them. 
As they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone, except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what rising from the dead meant. 

24/2/18  Saturday of the First week of Lent

First Reading   Book of Deuteronomy 26:16-19. 
Moses spoke to the people, saying: “This day the LORD, your God, commands you to observe these statutes and decrees. Be careful, then, to observe them with all your heart and with all your soul. 
Today you are making this agreement with the LORD: he is to be your God and you are to walk in his ways and observe his statutes, commandments and decrees, and to hearken to his voice. 
And today the LORD is making this agreement with you: you are to be a people peculiarly his own, as he promised you; and provided you keep all his commandments, 
he will then raise you high in praise and renown and glory above all other nations he has made, and you will be a people sacred to the LORD, your God, as he promised.” 

Gospel   Matthew 5:43-48. 
Jesus said to his disciples: “You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. 
But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, 
that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust. 
For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not the tax collectors do the same?
And if you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that? Do not the pagans do the same?
So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

23/2/18  Friday of the First week of Lent

First Reading   Book of Ezekiel 18:21-28. 
Thus says the Lord GOD: If the wicked man turns away from all the sins he committed,  if he keeps all my statutes and does what is right and just, he shall surely live, he shall not die. 
None of the crimes he committed shall be remembered against him; he shall live because of the virtue he has practiced. 
Do I indeed derive any pleasure from the death of the wicked? says the Lord GOD. Do I not rather rejoice when he turns from his evil way that he may live? 
And if the virtuous man turns from the path of virtue to do evil, the same kind of abominable things that the wicked man does, can he do this and still live? None of his virtuous deeds shall be remembered, because he has broken faith and committed sin; because of this, he shall die. 
You say, “The LORD’S way is not fair!” Hear now, house of Israel: Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair? 
When a virtuous man turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies, it is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die. 
But if a wicked man, turning from the wickedness he has committed, does what is right and just, he shall preserve his life; 
since he has turned away from all the sins which he committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die. 

Gospel   Matthew 5:20-26. 
Jesus said to his disciples:  “I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter into the Kingdom of heaven. 
You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment.’
But I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment, and whoever says to his brother, ‘Raqa,’ will be answerable to the Sanhedrin, and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ will be liable to fiery Gehenna.
Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, 
leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 
Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. 
Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.” 

22/2/18  Chair of Saint Peter, apostle – Feast

First Reading  First Letter of Peter 5:1-4. 
Beloved: I exhort the presbyters among you, as a fellow presbyter and witness to the sufferings of Christ and one who has a share in the glory to be revealed. 
Tend the flock of God in your midst, (overseeing) not by constraint but willingly, as God would have it, not for shameful profit but eagerly. 
Do not lord it over those assigned to you, but be examples to the flock. 
And when the chief Shepherd is revealed, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. 

Gospel   Matthew 16:13-19. 
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 
Simon Peter said in reply, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.
And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

 

21/2/18  Wednesday of the First week of Lent

First Reading   Book of Jonah 3:1-10. 
The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time: 
“Set out for the great city of Nineveh, and announce to it the message that I will tell you.” 
So Jonah made ready and went to Nineveh, according to the LORD’S bidding. Now Nineveh was an enormously large city; it took three days to go through it. 
Jonah began his journey through the city, and had gone but a single day’s walk announcing, “Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed,” 
when the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth. When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in the ashes. 
Then he had this proclaimed throughout Nineveh, by decree of the king and his nobles: “Neither man nor beast, neither cattle nor sheep, shall taste anything; they shall not eat, nor shall they drink water. 
Man and beast shall be covered with sackcloth and call loudly to God; every man shall turn from his evil way and from the violence he has in hand. 
Who knows, God may relent and forgive, and withhold his blazing wrath, so that we shall not perish.” 
When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out. 

Gospel   Luke 11:29-32. 
While still more people gathered in the crowd, Jesus said to them, “This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it, except the sign of Jonah. 
Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. 
At the judgment the queen of the south will rise with the men of this generation and she will condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and there is something greater than Solomon here. 
At the judgment the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it, because at the preaching of Jonah they repented, and there is something greater than Jonah here.” 

20/2/18  Tuesday of the First week of Lent

First Reading  Book of Isaiah 55:10-11. 
Thus says the LORD: Just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down and do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats, 
So shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; It shall not return to me void, but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it. 

Gospel   Matthew 6:7-15. 
Jesus said to his disciples: 
“In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words. 
Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 
This is how you are to pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread;
and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors;
and do not subject us to the final test, but deliver us from the evil one.
If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.” 

19/2/18 

First Reading   Book of Leviticus 19:1-2.11-18. 
The LORD said to Moses, 
“Speak to the whole Israelite community and tell them: Be holy, for I, the LORD your God, am holy. 
“You shall not steal. You shall not lie or speak falsely to one another. 
You shall not swear falsely by my name, thus profaning the name of your God. I am the LORD. 
“You shall not defraud or rob your neighbor. You shall not withhold overnight the wages of your day laborer. 
You shall not curse the deaf, or put a stumbling block in front of the blind, but you shall fear your God. I am the LORD. “You shall not act dishonestly in rendering judgment. Show neither partiality to the weak nor deference to the mighty, but judge your fellow men justly. 
You shall not go about spreading slander among your kinsmen; nor shall you stand by idly when your neighbor’s life is at stake. I am the LORD. 
“You shall not bear hatred for your brother in your heart. Though you may have to reprove your fellow man, do not incur sin because of him. 
Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against your fellow countrymen. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.” 

Gospel    Matthew 25:31-46. 
Jesus said to his disciples: “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, 
naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.’ 
Then the righteous will answer him and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 
When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’ 
And the king will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’ Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 
a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.’ Then they will answer and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?’
He will answer them, ‘Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.’ And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

18/2/18 First Sunday of Lent

First Reading  Book of Genesis 9:8-15. 
God said to Noah and to his sons with him : 
“See, I am now establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you 
and with every living creature that was with you: all the birds, and the various tame and wild animals that were with you and came out of the ark. 
I will establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all bodily creatures be destroyed by the waters of a flood; there shall not be another flood to devastate the earth.” 
God added: “This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come, of the covenant between me and you and every living creature with you: 
I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 
When I bring clouds over the earth, and the bow appears in the clouds, 
I will recall the covenant I have made between me and you and all living beings, so that the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all mortal beings.” 

Second Reading   First Letter of Peter 3:18-22. 
Beloved: Christ suffered for sins once, the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might lead you to God. Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the Spirit. 
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. 
This prefigured baptism, which saves you now. It is not a removal of dirt from the body but an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 
who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him. 

Gospel   Mark 1:12-15. 
The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, 
and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him. 
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.” 

 

17/2/18  Saturday after Ash Wednesday

First Reading   Book of Isaiah 58:9b-14. 
Thus says the LORD: If you remove from your midst oppression, false accusation and malicious speech; 
If you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; Then light shall rise for you in the darkness, and the gloom shall become for you like midday.
Then the LORD will guide you always and give you plenty even on the parched land. He will renew your strength, and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring whose water never fails. 
The ancient ruins shall be rebuilt for your sake, and the foundations from ages past you shall raise up; “Repairer of the breach,” they shall call you, “Restorer of ruined homesteads.” 
If you hold back your foot on the sabbath from following your own pursuits on my holy day; If you call the sabbath a delight, and the LORD’S holy day honorable; If you honor it by not following your ways, seeking your own interests, or speaking with malice– 
Then you shall delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will nourish you with the heritage of Jacob, your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken. 

Gospel   Luke 5:27-32. 
Jesus saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the customs post. He said to him, “Follow me.” 
And leaving everything behind, he got up and followed him.
Then Levi gave a great banquet for him in his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were at table with them. 
The Pharisees and their scribes complained to his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” 
Jesus said to them in reply, “Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do. 
I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners.” 

16/2/18  Friday after Ash Wednesday

First Reading   Book of Isaiah 58:1-9a. 
Thus says the Lord GOD: Cry out full-throated and unsparingly, lift up your voice like a trumpet blast;  Tell my people their wickedness, and the house of Jacob their sins. 
They seek me day after day, and desire to know my ways, Like a nation that has done what is just and not abandoned the law of their God; They ask me to declare what is due them, pleased to gain access to God. 
“Why do we fast, and you do not see it? afflict ourselves, and you take no note of it?” Lo, on your fast day you carry out your own pursuits, and drive all your laborers. 
Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting, striking with wicked claw. Would that today you might fast so as to make your voice heard on high! 
Is this the manner of fasting I wish, of keeping a day of penance: That a man bow his head like a reed, and lie in sackcloth and ashes? Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD? 
This, rather, is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; Setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; 
Sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; Clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own. 
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed; Your vindication shall go before you, and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. 
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer, you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am! 

15/2/18   Thursday after Ash Wednesday

First Reading  Book of Deuteronomy 30:15-20. 
Moses said to the people: “Today I have set before you life and prosperity, death and doom. 
If you obey the commandments of the LORD, your God, which I enjoin on you today, loving him, and walking in his ways, and keeping his commandments, statutes and decrees, you will live and grow numerous, and the LORD, your God, will bless you in the land you are entering to occupy. 
If, however, you turn away your hearts and will not listen, but are led astray and adore and serve other gods, 
I tell you now that you will certainly perish; you will not have a long life on the land which you are crossing the Jordan to enter and occupy. 
I call heaven and earth today to witness against you: I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life, then, that you and your descendants may live, 
by loving the LORD, your God, heeding his voice, and holding fast to him. For that will mean life for you, a long life for you to live on the land which the LORD swore he would give to your fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” 

 

Gospel  Luke 9:22-25. 
Jesus said to his disciples: “The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.” 
Then he said to all, “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 
What profit is there for one to gain the whole world yet lose or forfeit himself?” 

14/2/18  Ash Wednesday

First Reading  Book of Joel 2:12-18. 
Even now, says the LORD, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, and weeping, and mourning; 
Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the LORD, your God. For gracious and merciful is he, slow to anger, rich in kindness, and relenting in punishment. 
Perhaps he will again relent and leave behind him a blessing, Offerings and libations for the LORD, your God. 
Blow the trumpet in Zion! proclaim a fast, call an assembly; 
Gather the people, notify the congregation; Assemble the elders, gather the children and the infants at the breast; Let the bridegroom quit his room, and the bride her chamber. 
Between the porch and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep, And say, “Spare, O LORD, your people, and make not your heritage a reproach, with the nations ruling over them! Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?'” Then the LORD was stirred to concern for his land and took pity on his people. 

Second Reading   Second Letter to the Corinthians 5:20-21.6:1-2. 
Brothers and sisters: We are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 
For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. Working together, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 
For he says: “In an acceptable time I heard you, and on the day of salvation I helped you.” Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 

Gospel   Matthew 6:1-6.16-18. 
Jesus said to his disciples: “Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them; otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father. 
When you give alms, do not blow a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets to win the praise of others. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right is doing, 
so that your almsgiving may be secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you. 
When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners so that others may see them. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward. 
But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
When you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites. They neglect their appearance, so that they may appear to others to be fasting. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 
so that you may not appear to be fasting, except to your Father who is hidden. And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you.” 

13/2/18

First Reading  James 1:12-18

Blessed is the man who endures trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life which God has promised to those who love him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted with evil and he himself tempts no one; but each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin; and sin when it is full-grown brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good endowment and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

Gospel   Mark 8:14-21

Now they had forgotten to bring bread; and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. And he cautioned them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” And they discussed it with one another, saying, “We have no bread.” And being aware of it, Jesus said to them, “Why do you discuss the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.” “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.” And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

12/2/18  Monday of the Sixth week in Ordinary Time

First Reading   Letter of James 1:1-11. 
James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes in the dispersion, greetings. 
Consider it all joy, my brothers, when you encounter various trials, 
for you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 
And let perseverance be perfect, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 
But if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and he will be given it. But he should ask in faith, not doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed about by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord, 
since he is a man of two minds, unstable in all his ways. The brother in lowly circumstances should take pride in his high standing, and the rich one in his lowliness, for he will pass away “like the flower of the field.” 
For the sun comes up with its scorching heat and dries up the grass, its flower droops, and the beauty of its appearance vanishes. So will the rich person fade away in the midst of his pursuits. 

 

Gospel    Mark 8:11-13. 
The Pharisees came forward and began to argue with Jesus, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. 
He sighed from the depth of his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Amen, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.” 
Then he left them, got into the boat again, and went off to the other shore. 

11/2/18  Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

First Reading  Book of Leviticus 13:1-2.44-46. 
The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 
“If someone has on his skin a scab or pustule or blotch which appears to be the sore of leprosy, he shall be brought to Aaron, the priest, or to one of the priests among his descendants, 
the man is leprous and unclean, and the priest shall declare him unclean by reason of the sore on his head. 
The one who bears the sore of leprosy shall keep his garments rent and his head bare, and shall muffle his beard; he shall cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ 
As long as the sore is on him he shall declare himself unclean, since he is in fact unclean. He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp.” 

Second Reading   First Letter to the Corinthians 10:31-33.11:1. 
So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God. 
Avoid giving offense, whether to Jews or Greeks or the church of God, 
just as I try to please everyone in every way, not seeking my own benefit but that of the many, that they may be saved. 
Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

Gospel    Mark 1:40-45. 
A leper came to him and kneeling down begged him and said, “If you wish, you can make me clean.” 
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched him, and said to him, “I do will it. Be made clean.” 
The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean. 
Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once. 
Then he said to him, “See that you tell no one anything, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.” 
The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter. He spread the report abroad so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly. He remained outside in deserted places, and people kept coming to him from everywhere.

10/2/18  Saturday of the Fifth week in Ordinary Time

First Reading  1st book of Kings 12:26-32.13:33-34. 
Jeroboam thought to himself: “The kingdom will return to David’s house. 
If now this people go up to offer sacrifices in the temple of the LORD in Jerusalem, the hearts of this people will return to their master, Rehoboam, king of Judah, and they will kill me.” 
After taking counsel, the king made two calves of gold and said to the people: “You have been going up to Jerusalem long enough. Here is your God, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” 
And he put one in Bethel, the other in Dan. 
This led to sin, because the people frequented these calves in Bethel and in Dan. 
He also built temples on the high places and made priests from among the people who were not Levites. 
Jeroboam established a feast in the eighth month on the fifteenth day of the month to duplicate in Bethel the pilgrimage feast of Judah, with sacrifices to the calves he had made; and he stationed in Bethel priests of the high places he had built. 
Jeroboam did not give up his evil ways after this event, but again made priests for the high places from among the common people. Whoever desired it was consecrated and became a priest of the high places. 
This was a sin on the part of the house of Jeroboam for which it was to be cut off and destroyed from the earth.

 

Gospel  Mark 8:1-10. 
In those days when there again was a great crowd without anything to eat, Jesus summoned the disciples and said, My heart is moved with pity for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them away hungry to their homes, they will collapse on the way, and some of them have come a great distance.”  His disciples answered him, “Where can anyone get enough bread to satisfy them here in this deserted place?” Still he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” “Seven,” they replied. 
He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then, taking the seven loaves he gave thanks, broke them, and gave them to his disciples to distribute, and they distributed them to the crowd.
They also had a few fish. He said the blessing over them and ordered them distributed also. 
They ate and were satisfied. They picked up the fragments left over–seven baskets. 
There were about four thousand people. He dismissed them 
and got into the boat with his disciples and came to the region of Dalmanutha. 

9/2/18 Friday of the Fifth week in Ordinary Time

First Reading  1st book of Kings 11:29-32.12:19. 
At that time Jeroboam left Jerusalem, and the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite met him on the road. The two were alone in the area, and the prophet was wearing a new cloak. 
Ahijah took off his new cloak, tore it into twelve pieces, 
and said to Jeroboam: “Take ten pieces for yourself; the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will tear away the kingdom from Solomon’s grasp and will give you ten of the tribes. 
One tribe shall remain to him for the sake of David my servant, and of Jerusalem, the city I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel. 
and Israel went into rebellion against David’s house to this day. 

8/2/18   Thursday of the Fifth week in Ordinary Time

First Reading  1st book of Kings 11:4-13. 
When Solomon was old his wives had turned his heart to strange gods, and his heart was not entirely with the LORD, his God, as the heart of his father David had been. 
By adoring Astarte, the goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom, the idol of the Ammonites, 
Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD; he did not follow him unreservedly as his father David had done. 
Solomon then built a high place to Chemosh, the idol of Moab, and to Molech, the idol of the Ammonites, on the hill opposite Jerusalem. He did the same for all his foreign wives who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. The LORD, therefore, became angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice 
(for though the LORD had forbidden him this very act of following strange gods, Solomon had not obeyed him). 
So the LORD said to Solomon: “Since this is what you want, and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes which I enjoined on you, I will deprive you of the kingdom and give it to your servant. 
I will not do this during your lifetime, however, for the sake of your father David; it is your son whom I will deprive. Nor will I take away the whole kingdom. I will leave your son one tribe for the sake of my servant David and of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.” 

Gospel  Mark 7:24-30. 
Jesus went to the district of Tyre. He entered a house and wanted no one to know about it, but he could not escape notice. Soon a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him. She came and fell at his feet. The woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by birth, and she begged him to drive the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, “Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” She replied and said to him, “Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.” Then he said to her, “For saying this, you may go. The demon has gone out of your daughter.” 
When the woman went home, she found the child lying in bed and the demon gone. 

7/2/18 Wednesday of the Fifth week in Ordinary Time

First Reading  1st book of Kings 10:1-10. 
The queen of Sheba, having heard of Solomon’s fame, came to test him with subtle questions. 
She arrived in Jerusalem with a very numerous retinue, and with camels bearing spices, a large amount of gold, and precious stones. She came to Solomon and questioned him on every subject in which she was interested. 
King Solomon explained everything she asked about, and there remained nothing hidden from him that he could not explain to her. When the queen of Sheba witnessed Solomon’s great wisdom, the palace he had built, 
the food at his table, the seating of his ministers, the attendance and garb of his waiters, his banquet service, and the holocausts he offered in the temple of the LORD, she was breathless. 
“The report I heard in my country about your deeds and your wisdom is true,” she told the king. 
“Though I did not believe the report until I came and saw with my own eyes, I have discovered that they were not telling me the half. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report I heard. 
Happy are your men, happy these servants of yours, who stand before you always and listen to your wisdom. 
Blessed be the LORD, your God, whom it has pleased to place you on the throne of Israel. In his enduring love for Israel, the LORD has made you king to carry out judgment and justice.” 
Then she gave the king one hundred and twenty gold talents, a very large quantity of spices, and precious stones. Never again did anyone bring such an abundance of spices as the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon. 

 

Gospel   Mark 7:14-23. 
Jesus summoned the crowd again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand. 
Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile.” 
When he got home away from the crowd his disciples questioned him about the parable.
He said to them, “Are even you likewise without understanding? Do you not realize that everything that goes into a person from outside cannot defile, 
since it enters not the heart but the stomach and passes out into the latrine?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.)
But what comes out of a person, that is what defiles. 
From within people, from their hearts, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, 
adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. 
All these evils come from within and they defile.” 

6/2/18  Tuesday of the Fifth week in Ordinary Time

First Reading   1st book of Kings 8:22-23.27-30. 
Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of the whole community of Israel, and stretching forth his hands toward heaven, 
he said, “LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below; you keep your covenant of kindness with your servants who are faithful to you with their whole heart. 
“Can it indeed be that God dwells among men on earth? If the heavens and the highest heavens cannot contain you, how much less this temple which I have built! Look kindly on the prayer and petition of your servant, O LORD, my God, and listen to the cry of supplication which I, your servant, utter before you this day. May your eyes watch night and day over this temple, the place where you have decreed you shall be honored; may you heed the prayer which I, your servant, offer in this place. Listen to the petitions of your servant and of your people Israel which they offer in this place. Listen from your heavenly dwelling and grant pardon. 

 

Gospel   Mark 7:1-13. 
When the Pharisees with some scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus, 
they observed that some of his disciples ate their meals with unclean, that is, unwashed, hands. 
(For the Pharisees and, in fact, all Jews, do not eat without carefully washing their hands, keeping the tradition of the elders.
And on coming from the marketplace they do not eat without purifying themselves. And there are many other things that they have traditionally observed, the purification of cups and jugs and kettles and beds.) 
So the Pharisees and scribes questioned him, “Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders but instead eat a meal with unclean hands?”He responded, “Well did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines human precepts.’
You disregard God’s commandment but cling to human tradition.” 
He went on to say, “How well you have set aside the commandment of God in order to uphold your tradition! 
For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and ‘Whoever curses father or mother shall die.’ 
Yet you say, ‘If a person says to father or mother, “Any support you might have had from me is qorban”‘ (meaning, dedicated to God),
you allow him to do nothing more for his father or mother. 
You nullify the word of God in favor of your tradition that you have handed on. And you do many such things.” 

3/2/18   Saturday of the Fourth week in Ordinary Time

First Reading    1st book of Kings 3:4-13. 
Solomon went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, because that was the most renowned high place. Upon its altar Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings.
In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream at night. God said, “Ask something of me and I will give it to you.” Solomon answered: “You have shown great favor to your servant, my father David, because he behaved faithfully toward you, with justice and an upright heart; and you have continued this great favor toward him, even today, seating a son of his on his throne. 
O LORD, my God, you have made me, your servant, king to succeed my father David; but I am a mere youth, not knowing at all how to act. 
I serve you in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a people so vast that it cannot be numbered or counted. Give your servant, therefore, an understanding heart to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong. For who is able to govern this vast people of yours?” 
The LORD was pleased that Solomon made this request. 
So God said to him: “Because you have asked for this–not for a long life for yourself, nor for riches, nor for the life of your enemies, but for understanding so that you may know what is right– 
I do as you requested. I give you a heart so wise and understanding that there has never been anyone like you up to now, and after you there will come no one to equal you. In addition, I give you what you have not asked for, such riches and glory that among kings there is not your like. 

Gospel     Mark 6:30-34. 
The Apostles gathered together with Jesus and reported all they had done and taught. 
He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” People were coming and going in great numbers, and they had no opportunity even to eat.
So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place. 
People saw them leaving and many came to know about it. They hastened there on foot from all the towns and arrived at the place before them. 
When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. 

2/2/18  Presentation of the Lord – Feast

First Reading     Book of Malachi 3:1-4. 
Thus says the Lord God: Lo, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me; and suddenly there will come to the temple the Lord whom you seek, and the messenger of the covenant whom you desire. Yes, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. 
But who will endure the day of his coming? And who can stand when he appears? For he is like the refiner’s fire, or like the fuller’s lye. 
He will sit refining and purifying (silver), and he will purify the sons of Levi, Refining them like gold or like silver that they may offer due sacrifice to the LORD. 
Then the sacrifice of Judah and Jerusalem will please the LORD, as in days of old, as in years gone by. 

Gospel      Luke 2:22-40. 
When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, Mary and Joseph took Jesus up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, 
just as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord,” 
and to offer the sacrifice of “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons,” in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord. 
Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the holy Spirit was upon him.
It had been revealed to him by the holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord. He came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, 
he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying:  Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, 
which you prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.” The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; 
and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted 
(and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage, 
and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer. 
And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem. 
When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions of the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. 
The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him. 

1/2/18  Thursday of the Fourth week in Ordinary Time

First Reading    1st book of Kings 2:1-4.10-12. 
When the time of David’s death drew near, he gave these instructions to his son Solomon: 
“I am going the way of all flesh. Take courage and be a man. 
Keep the mandate of the LORD, your God, following his ways and observing his statutes, commands, ordinances, and decrees as they are written in the law of Moses, that you may succeed in whatever you do, wherever you turn, 
and the LORD may fulfill the promise he made on my behalf when he said, ‘If your sons so conduct themselves that they remain faithful to me with their whole heart and with their whole soul, you shall always have someone of your line on the throne of Israel.’ 
David rested with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. 
The length of David’s reign over Israel was forty years: he reigned seven years in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. 
When Solomon was seated on the throne of his father David, with his sovereignty firmly established, 

Gospel     Mark 6:7-13. 
Jesus summoned the Twelve and began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over unclean spirits. 
He instructed them to take nothing for the journey but a walking stick–no food, no sack, no money in their belts. They were, however, to wear sandals but not a second tunic. 
He said to them, “Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave from there.
Whatever place does not welcome you or listen to you, leave there and shake the dust off your feet in testimony against them.”  So they went off and preached repentance. 
They drove out many demons, and they anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.