Mass Readings for Friday, July 2, 2010

FIRST READING: Amos 8: 4 - 6, 9 - 12

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4 Hear this, you who trample upon the needy, and bring the poor of the land to an end,

5 saying, "When will the new moon be over, that we may sell grain? And the sabbath, that we may offer wheat for sale, that we may make the ephah small and the shekel great, and deal deceitfully with false balances,

6 that we may buy the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals, and sell the refuse of the wheat?"

9 "And on that day," says the Lord GOD, "I will make the sun go down at noon, and darken the earth in broad daylight.

10 I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; I will bring sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness on every head; I will make it like the mourning for an only son, and the end of it like a bitter day.

11 "Behold, the days are coming," says the Lord GOD, "when I will send a famine on the land; not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.

12 They shall wander from sea to sea, and from north to east; they shall run to and fro, to seek the word of the LORD, but they shall not find it.

PSALM: Psalms 119: 2, 10, 20, 30, 40, 131

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2 Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart,

10 With my whole heart I seek thee; let me not wander from thy commandments!

20 My soul is consumed with longing for thy ordinances at all times.

30 I have chosen the way of faithfulness, I set thy ordinances before me.

40 Behold, I long for thy precepts; in thy righteousness give me life!

131 With open mouth I pant, because I long for thy commandments.

GOSPEL: Matthew 9: 9 - 13

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9 As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax office; and he said to him, "Follow me." And he rose and followed him.

10 And as he sat at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples.

11 And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

12 But when he heard it, he said, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.

13 Go and learn what this means, `I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.' For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners."

Mass Readings for Thursday, July 1, 2010

FIRST READING: Amos 7: 10 - 17

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10 Then Amazi'ah the priest of Bethel sent to Jerobo'am king of Israel, saying, "Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words.

11 For thus Amos has said, `Jerobo'am shall die by the sword, and Israel must go into exile away from his land.'"

12 And Amazi'ah said to Amos, "O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there;

13 but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king's sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom."

14 Then Amos answered Amazi'ah, "I am no prophet, nor a prophet's son; but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycamore trees,

15 and the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, `Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'

16 "Now therefore hear the word of the LORD. You say, `Do not prophesy against Israel, and do not preach against the house of Isaac.'

17 Therefore thus says the LORD: `Your wife shall be a harlot in the city, and your sons and your daughters shall fall by the sword, and your land shall be parceled out by line; you yourself shall die in an unclean land, and Israel shall surely go into exile away from its land.'"

PSALM: Psalms 19: 8 - 11

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8 the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes;

9 the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever; the ordinances of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether.

10 More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.

11 Moreover by them is thy servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.

GOSPEL: Matthew 9: 1 - 8

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1 And getting into a boat he crossed over and came to his own city.

2 And behold, they brought to him a paralytic, lying on his bed; and when Jesus saw their faith he said to the paralytic, "Take heart, my son; your sins are forgiven."

3 And behold, some of the scribes said to themselves, "This man is blaspheming."

4 But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, "Why do you think evil in your hearts?

5 For which is easier, to say, `Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, `Rise and walk'?

6 But that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins" -- he then said to the paralytic -- "Rise, take up your bed and go home."

7 And he rose and went home.

8 When the crowds saw it, they were afraid, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

Mass Readings for Wednesday, June 30, 2010

FIRST READING: Amos 5: 14 - 15, 21 - 24

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14 Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the LORD, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said.

15 Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the LORD, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.

21 "I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

22 Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and cereal offerings, I will not accept them, and the peace offerings of your fatted beasts I will not look upon.

23 Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen.

24 But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

PSALM: Psalms 50: 7 - 13, 16 - 17

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7 "Hear, O my people, and I will speak, O Israel, I will testify against you. I am God, your God.

8 I do not reprove you for your sacrifices; your burnt offerings are continually before me.

9 I will accept no bull from your house, nor he-goat from your folds.

10 For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills.

11 I know all the birds of the air, and all that moves in the field is mine.

12 "If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the world and all that is in it is mine.

13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats?

16 But to the wicked God says: "What right have you to recite my statutes, or take my covenant on your lips?

17 For you hate discipline, and you cast my words behind you.

GOSPEL: Matthew 8: 28 - 34

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28 And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demoniacs met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way.

29 And behold, they cried out, "What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?"

30 Now a herd of many swine was feeding at some distance from them.

31 And the demons begged him, "If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of swine."

32 And he said to them, "Go." So they came out and went into the swine; and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea, and perished in the waters.

33 The herdsmen fled, and going into the city they told everything, and what had happened to the demoniacs.

34 And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their neighborhood.

Mass Readings for Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles

FIRST READING: Acts 12: 1 - 11

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1 About that time Herod the king laid violent hands upon some who belonged to the church.

2 He killed James the brother of John with the sword;

3 and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread.

4 And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.

5 So Peter was kept in prison; but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.

6 The very night when Herod was about to bring him out, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison;

7 and behold, an angel of the Lord appeared, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, "Get up quickly." And the chains fell off his hands.

8 And the angel said to him, "Dress yourself and put on your sandals." And he did so. And he said to him, "Wrap your mantle around you and follow me."

9 And he went out and followed him; he did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.

10 When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened to them of its own accord, and they went out and passed on through one street; and immediately the angel left him.

11 And Peter came to himself, and said, "Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting."

PSALM: Psalms 34: 2 - 9

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2 My soul makes its boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and be glad.

3 O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together!

4 I sought the LORD, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.

5 Look to him, and be radiant; so your faces shall never be ashamed.

6 This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.

7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.

8 O taste and see that the LORD is good! Happy is the man who takes refuge in him!

9 O fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him have no want!

SECOND READING: 2 Timothy 4: 6 - 8, 17 - 18

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6 For I am already on the point of being sacrificed; the time of my departure has come.

7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

8 Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

17 But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength to proclaim the message fully, that all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion's mouth.

18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil and save me for his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.

GOSPEL: Matthew 16: 13 - 19

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13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesare'a Philip'pi, he asked his disciples, "Who do men say that the Son of man is?"

14 And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, others say Eli'jah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"

16 Simon Peter replied, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

17 And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.

18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it.

19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

Mass Readings for Monday, June 28, 2010

 Memorial of Saint Irenaeus, Bishop and Martyr

FIRST READING: Amos 2: 6 - 10, 13 - 16

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6 Thus says the LORD: "For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of shoes --

7 they that trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth, and turn aside the way of the afflicted; a man and his father go in to the same maiden, so that my holy name is profaned;

8 they lay themselves down beside every altar upon garments taken in pledge; and in the house of their God they drink the wine of those who have been fined.

9 "Yet I destroyed the Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of the cedars, and who was as strong as the oaks; I destroyed his fruit above, and his roots beneath.

10 Also I brought you up out of the land of Egypt, and led you forty years in the wilderness, to possess the land of the Amorite.

13 "Behold, I will press you down in your place, as a cart full of sheaves presses down.

14 Flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not retain his strength, nor shall the mighty save his life;

15 he who handles the bow shall not stand, and he who is swift of foot shall not save himself, nor shall he who rides the horse save his life;

16 and he who is stout of heart among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day," says the LORD.

PSALM: Psalms 50: 16 - 23

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16 But to the wicked God says: "What right have you to recite my statutes, or take my covenant on your lips?

17 For you hate discipline, and you cast my words behind you.

18 If you see a thief, you are a friend of his; and you keep company with adulterers.

19 "You give your mouth free rein for evil, and your tongue frames deceit.

20 You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother's son.

21 These things you have done and I have been silent; you thought that I was one like yourself. But now I rebuke you, and lay the charge before you.

22 "Mark this, then, you who forget God, lest I rend, and there be none to deliver!

23 He who brings thanksgiving as his sacrifice honors me; to him who orders his way aright I will show the salvation of God!"

GOSPEL: Matthew 8: 18 - 22

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18 Now when Jesus saw great crowds around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side.

19 And a scribe came up and said to him, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go."

20 And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head."

21 Another of the disciples said to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."

22 But Jesus said to him, "Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead."

Mass Readings for Sunday, June 27, 2010

FIRST READING: 1 Kings 19: 16, 19 - 21

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16 and Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint to be king over Israel; and Eli'sha the son of Shaphat of A'bel-meho'lah you shall anoint to be prophet in your place.

19 So he departed from there, and found Eli'sha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing, with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the twelfth. Eli'jah passed by him and cast his mantle upon him.

20 And he left the oxen, and ran after Eli'jah, and said, "Let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you." And he said to him, "Go back again; for what have I done to you?"

21 And he returned from following him, and took the yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the yokes of the oxen, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he arose and went after Eli'jah, and ministered to him.

PSALM: Psalms 16: 1 - 2, 5, 7 - 11

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1 Preserve me, O God, for in thee I take refuge.

2 I say to the LORD, "Thou art my Lord; I have no good apart from thee."

5 The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup; thou holdest my lot.

7 I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me.

8 I keep the LORD always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices; my body also dwells secure.

10 For thou dost not give me up to Sheol, or let thy godly one see the Pit.

11 Thou dost show me the path of life; in thy presence there is fulness of joy, in thy right hand are pleasures for evermore.

SECOND READING: Galatians 5: 1, 13 - 18

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1 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

13 For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love be servants of one another.

14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

15 But if you bite and devour one another take heed that you are not consumed by one another.

16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.

17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you would.

18 But if you are led by the Spirit you are not under the law.

GOSPEL: Luke 9: 51 - 62

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51 When the days drew near for him to be received up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.

52 And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him;

53 but the people would not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem.

54 And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, "Lord, do you want us to bid fire come down from heaven and consume them?"

55 But he turned and rebuked them.

56 And they went on to another village.

57 As they were going along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go."

58 And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head."

59 To another he said, "Follow me." But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."

60 But he said to him, "Leave the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God."

61 Another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home."

62 Jesus said to him, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God."

Mass Readings for Saturday, June 26, 2010

 Saint Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer (Optional Memorial)

FIRST READING: Lamentations 2: 2, 10 - 14, 18 - 19

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2 The Lord has destroyed without mercy all the habitations of Jacob; in his wrath he has broken down the strongholds of the daughter of Judah; he has brought down to the ground in dishonor the kingdom and its rulers.

10 The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the ground in silence; they have cast dust on their heads and put on sackcloth; the maidens of Jerusalem have bowed their heads to the ground.

11 My eyes are spent with weeping; my soul is in tumult; my heart is poured out in grief because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, because infants and babes faint in the streets of the city.

12 They cry to their mothers, "Where is bread and wine?" as they faint like wounded men in the streets of the city, as their life is poured out on their mothers' bosom.

13 What can I say for you, to what compare you, O daughter of Jerusalem? What can I liken to you, that I may comfort you, O virgin daughter of Zion? For vast as the sea is your ruin; who can restore you?

14 Your prophets have seen for you false and deceptive visions; they have not exposed your iniquity to restore your fortunes, but have seen for you oracles false and misleading.

18 Cry aloud to the Lord! O daughter of Zion! Let tears stream down like a torrent day and night! Give yourself no rest, your eyes no respite!

19 Arise, cry out in the night, at the beginning of the watches! Pour out your heart like water before the presence of the Lord! Lift your hands to him for the lives of your children, who faint for hunger at the head of every street.

PSALM: Psalms 74: 1 - 7, 20 - 21

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1 O God, why dost thou cast us off for ever? Why does thy anger smoke against the sheep of thy pasture?

2 Remember thy congregation, which thou hast gotten of old, which thou hast redeemed to be the tribe of thy heritage! Remember Mount Zion, where thou hast dwelt.

3 Direct thy steps to the perpetual ruins; the enemy has destroyed everything in the sanctuary!

4 Thy foes have roared in the midst of thy holy place; they set up their own signs for signs.

5 At the upper entrance they hacked the wooden trellis with axes.

6 And then all its carved wood they broke down with hatchets and hammers.

7 They set thy sanctuary on fire; to the ground they desecrated the dwelling place of thy name.

20 Have regard for thy covenant; for the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence.

21 Let not the downtrodden be put to shame; let the poor and needy praise thy name.

GOSPEL: Matthew 8: 5 - 17

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5 As he entered Caper'na-um, a centurion came forward to him, beseeching him

6 and saying, "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, in terrible distress."

7 And he said to him, "I will come and heal him."

8 But the centurion answered him, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.

9 For I am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, `Go,' and he goes, and to another, `Come,' and he comes, and to my slave, `Do this,' and he does it."

10 When Jesus heard him, he marveled, and said to those who followed him, "Truly, I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.

11 I tell you, many will come from east and west and sit at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,

12 while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness; there men will weep and gnash their teeth."

13 And to the centurion Jesus said, "Go; be it done for you as you have believed." And the servant was healed at that very moment.

14 And when Jesus entered Peter's house, he saw his mother-in-law lying sick with a fever;

15 he touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she rose and served him.

16 That evening they brought to him many who were possessed with demons; and he cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick.

17 This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah, "He took our infirmities and bore our diseases."

Mass Readings for Friday, June 25, 2010

FIRST READING: 2 Kings 25: 1 - 12

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1 And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnez'zar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem, and laid siege to it; and they built siegeworks against it round about.

2 So the city was besieged till the eleventh year of King Zedeki'ah.

3 On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land.

4 Then a breach was made in the city; the king with all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, by the king's garden, though the Chalde'ans were around the city. And they went in the direction of the Arabah.

5 But the army of the Chalde'ans pursued the king, and overtook him in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him.

6 Then they captured the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, who passed sentence upon him.

7 They slew the sons of Zedeki'ah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedeki'ah, and bound him in fetters, and took him to Babylon.

8 In the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month -- which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnez'zar, king of Babylon -- Nebu'zarad'an, the captain of the bodyguard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem.

9 And he burned the house of the LORD, and the king's house and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he burned down.

10 And all the army of the Chalde'ans, who were with the captain of the guard, broke down the walls around Jerusalem.

11 And the rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, together with the rest of the multitude, Nebu'zarad'an the captain of the guard carried into exile.

12 But the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and plowmen.

PSALM: Psalms 137: 1 - 6

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1 By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered Zion.

2 On the willows there we hung up our lyres.

3 For there our captors required of us songs, and our tormentors, mirth, saying, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!"

4 How shall we sing the LORD's song in a foreign land?

5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand wither!

6 Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you, if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy!

GOSPEL: Matthew 8: 1 - 4

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1 When he came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him;

2 and behold, a leper came to him and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, if you will, you can make me clean."

3 And he stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, "I will; be clean." And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

4 And Jesus said to him, "See that you say nothing to any one; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to the people."

Mass Readings for Thursday, June 24, 2010

 Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist

FIRST READING: Isaiah 49: 1 - 6

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1 Listen to me, O coastlands, and hearken, you peoples from afar. The LORD called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name.

2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me a polished arrow, in his quiver he hid me away.

3 And he said to me, "You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified."

4 But I said, "I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity; yet surely my right is with the LORD, and my recompense with my God."

5 And now the LORD says, who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him, and that Israel might be gathered to him, for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD, and my God has become my strength --

6 he says: "It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved of Israel; I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth."

PSALM: Psalms 139: 1 - 3, 13 - 15

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1 O LORD, thou hast searched me and known me!

2 Thou knowest when I sit down and when I rise up; thou discernest my thoughts from afar.

3 Thou searchest out my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.

13 For thou didst form my inward parts, thou didst knit me together in my mother's womb.

14 I praise thee, for thou art fearful and wonderful. Wonderful are thy works! Thou knowest me right well;

15 my frame was not hidden from thee, when I was being made in secret, intricately wrought in the depths of the earth.

SECOND READING: Acts 13: 22 - 26

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22 And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king; of whom he testified and said, `I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.'

23 Of this man's posterity God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised.

24 Before his coming John had preached a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.

25 And as John was finishing his course, he said, `What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.'

26 "Brethren, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you that fear God, to us has been sent the message of this salvation.

GOSPEL: Luke 1: 57 - 66, 80

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57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to be delivered, and she gave birth to a son.

58 And her neighbors and kinsfolk heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.

59 And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they would have named him Zechari'ah after his father,

60 but his mother said, "Not so; he shall be called John."

61 And they said to her, "None of your kindred is called by this name."

62 And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he would have him called.

63 And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, "His name is John." And they all marveled.

64 And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, blessing God.

65 And fear came on all their neighbors. And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea;

66 and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, "What then will this child be?" For the hand of the Lord was with him.

80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness till the day of his manifestation to Israel.

Mass Readings for Wednesday, June 23, 2010

FIRST READING: 2 Kings 22: 8-13; 23:1-3

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8 And Hilki'ah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, "I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD." And Hilki'ah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it.

9 And Shaphan the secretary came to the king, and reported to the king, "Your servants have emptied out the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of the workmen who have the oversight of the house of the LORD."

10 Then Shaphan the secretary told the king, "Hilki'ah the priest has given me a book." And Shaphan read it before the king.

11 And when the king heard the words of the book of the law, he rent his clothes.

12 And the king commanded Hilki'ah the priest, and Ahi'kam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Micai'ah, and Shaphan the secretary, and Asai'ah the king's servant, saying,

13 "Go, inquire of the LORD for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that has been found; for great is the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us."

1 Then the king sent, and all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem were gathered to him.

2 And the king went up to the house of the LORD, and with him all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the priests and the prophets, all the people, both small and great; and he read in their hearing all the words of the book of the covenant which had been found in the house of the LORD.

3 And the king stood by the pillar and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes, with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book; and all the people joined in the covenant.

PSALM: Psalms 119: 33 - 37, 40

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33 Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes; and I will keep it to the end.

34 Give me understanding, that I may keep thy law and observe it with my whole heart.

35 Lead me in the path of thy commandments, for I delight in it.

36 Incline my heart to thy testimonies, and not to gain!

37 Turn my eyes from looking at vanities; and give me life in thy ways.

40 Behold, I long for thy precepts; in thy righteousness give me life!

GOSPEL: Matthew 7: 15 - 20

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15 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.

16 You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles?

17 So, every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit.

18 A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.

19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

20 Thus you will know them by their fruits.

Mass Readings for Tuesday, June 22, 2010

FIRST READING: Kings 19: 9 - 11, 14 - 21, 31 - 36

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9 And when the king heard concerning Tirha'kah king of Ethiopia, "Behold, he has set out to fight against you," he sent messengers again to Hezeki'ah, saying,

10 "Thus shall you speak to Hezeki'ah king of Judah: `Do not let your God on whom you rely deceive you by promising that Jerusalem will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.

11 Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, destroying them utterly. And shall you be delivered?

14 Hezeki'ah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezeki'ah went up to the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD.

15 And Hezeki'ah prayed before the LORD, and said: "O LORD the God of Israel, who art enthroned above the cherubim, thou art the God, thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth.

16 Incline thy ear, O LORD, and hear; open thy eyes, O LORD, and see; and hear the words of Sennach'erib, which he has sent to mock the living God.

17 Of a truth, O LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands,

18 and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone; therefore they were destroyed.

19 So now, O LORD our God, save us, I beseech thee, from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou, O LORD, art God alone."

20 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezeki'ah, saying, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Your prayer to me about Sennach'erib king of Assyria I have heard.

21 This is the word that the LORD has spoken concerning him: "She despises you, she scorns you -- the virgin daughter of Zion; she wags her head behind you -- the daughter of Jerusalem.

31 for out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the LORD will do this.

32 "Therefore thus says the LORD concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city or shoot an arrow there, or come before it with a shield or cast up a siege mound against it.

33 By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, says the LORD.

34 For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David."

35 And that night the angel of the LORD went forth, and slew a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians; and when men arose early in the morning, behold, these were all dead bodies.

36 Then Sennach'erib king of Assyria departed, and went home, and dwelt at Nin'eveh.

PSALM: Psalms 48: 2 - 4, 10 - 11

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2 beautiful in elevation, is the joy of all the earth, Mount Zion, in the far north, the city of the great King.

3 Within her citadels God has shown himself a sure defense.

4 For lo, the kings assembled, they came on together.

10 As thy name, O God, so thy praise reaches to the ends of the earth. Thy right hand is filled with victory;

11 let Mount Zion be glad! Let the daughters of Judah rejoice because of thy judgments!

GOSPEL: Matthew 7: 6, 12 - 14

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6 "Do not give dogs what is holy; and do not throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under foot and turn to attack you.

12 So whatever you wish that men would do to you, do so to them; for this is the law and the prophets.

13 "Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.

14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

Mass Readings for Monday, June 21, 2010

 Memorial of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga, religious

FIRST READING: Kings 17: 5 - 8, 13 - 15, 18

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5 Then the king of Assyria invaded all the land and came to Sama'ria, and for three years he besieged it.

6 In the ninth year of Hoshe'a the king of Assyria captured Sama'ria, and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria, and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.

7 And this was so, because the people of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods

8 and walked in the customs of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel, and in the customs which the kings of Israel had introduced.

13 Yet the LORD warned Israel and Judah by every prophet and every seer, saying, "Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets."

14 But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the LORD their God.

15 They despised his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and the warnings which he gave them. They went after false idols, and became false, and they followed the nations that were round about them, concerning whom the LORD had commanded them that they should not do like them.

18 Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight; none was left but the tribe of Judah only

PSALM: Psalms 60: 3 - 5, 12 - 13

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3 O God, you rejected us, broke our defenses; you were angry but now revive us.

4 You rocked the earth, split it open; repair the cracks for it totters.

5 You made your people go through hardship, made us stagger from the wine you gave us.

12 Was it not you who rejected us, God? Do you no longer march with our armies?

13 Give us aid against the foe; worthless is human help.

GOSPEL: Matthew 7: 1 - 5

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1 Jesus said to his disciples: "Judge not, that you be not judged.

2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get.

3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?

4 Or how can you say to your brother, `Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when there is the log in your own eye?

5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.

Mass Readings for Sunday, June 20, 2010

 FIRST READING: Zechariah 12: 10-11; 13:1

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10 "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of compassion and supplication, so that, when they look on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a first-born.

11 On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Hadadrim'mon in the plain of Megid'do.

1 "On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.

PSALM: Psalms 63: 2 - 6, 8 - 9

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2 So I have looked upon thee in the sanctuary, beholding thy power and glory.

3 Because thy steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise thee.

4 So I will bless thee as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on thy name.

5 My soul is feasted as with marrow and fat, and my mouth praises thee with joyful lips,

6 when I think of thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the watches of the night;

8 My soul clings to thee; thy right hand upholds me.

9 But those who seek to destroy my life shall go down into the depths of the earth;

SECOND READING: Galatians 3: 26 - 29

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26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.

27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.

GOSPEL: Luke 9: 18 - 24

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18 Now it happened that as he was praying alone the disciples were with him; and he asked them, "Who do the people say that I am?"

19 And they answered, "John the Baptist; but others say, Eli'jah; and others, that one of the old prophets has risen."

20 And he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" And Peter answered, "The Christ of God."

21 But he charged and commanded them to tell this to no one,

22 saying, "The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised."

23 And he said to all, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

24 For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake, he will save it.

Mass Readings for Saturday, June 19, 2010

 FIRST READING: 2 Chronicles 24: 17 - 25

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17 Now after the death of Jehoi'ada the princes of Judah came and did obeisance to the king; then the king hearkened to them.

18 And they forsook the house of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and served the Ashe'rim and the idols. And wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their guilt.

19 Yet he sent prophets among them to bring them back to the LORD; these testified against them, but they would not give heed.

20 Then the Spirit of God took possession of Zechari'ah the son of Jehoi'ada the priest; and he stood above the people, and said to them, "Thus says God, `Why do you transgress the commandments of the LORD, so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the LORD, he has forsaken you.'"

21 But they conspired against him, and by command of the king they stoned him with stones in the court of the house of the LORD.

22 Thus Jo'ash the king did not remember the kindness which Jehoi'ada, Zechari'ah's father, had shown him, but killed his son. And when he was dying, he said, "May the LORD see and avenge!"

23 At the end of the year the army of the Syrians came up against Jo'ash. They came to Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the princes of the people from among the people, and sent all their spoil to the king of Damascus.

24 Though the army of the Syrians had come with few men, the LORD delivered into their hand a very great army, because they had forsaken the LORD, the God of their fathers. Thus they executed judgment on Jo'ash.

25 When they had departed from him, leaving him severely wounded, his servants conspired against him because of the blood of the son of Jehoi'ada the priest, and slew him on his bed. So he died; and they buried him in the city of David, but they did not bury him in the tombs of the kings.

PSALM: Psalms 89: 4 - 5, 29 - 34

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4 `I will establish your descendants for ever, and build your throne for all generations.'" [Selah]

5 Let the heavens praise thy wonders, O LORD, thy faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones!

29 I will establish his line for ever and his throne as the days of the heavens.

30 If his children forsake my law and do not walk according to my ordinances,

31 if they violate my statutes and do not keep my commandments,

32 then I will punish their transgression with the rod and their iniquity with scourges;

33 but I will not remove from him my steadfast love, or be false to my faithfulness.

34 I will not violate my covenant, or alter the word that went forth from my lips.

GOSPEL: Matthew 6: 24 - 34

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24 "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

25 "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body, what you shall put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

27 And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life?

28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin;

29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O men of little faith?

31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, `What shall we eat?' or `What shall we drink?' or `What shall we wear?'

32 For the Gentiles seek all these things; and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.

33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well.

34 "Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day's own trouble be sufficient for the day.