Mass Readings For Thursday January 25, 2007

The Conversion of St. Paul, Apostle (Feast)

FIRST READING : Acts 22: 3 - 16 or 9: 1 - 22

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3 "I am a Jew, born at Tarsus in Cili'cia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gama'li-el, educated according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as you all are this day.

4 I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women,

5 as the high priest and the whole council of elders bear me witness. From them I received letters to the brethren, and I journeyed to Damascus to take those also who were there and bring them in bonds to Jerusalem to be punished.

6 "As I made my journey and drew near to Damascus, about noon a great light from heaven suddenly shone about me.

7 And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, `Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?'

8 And I answered, `Who are you, Lord?' And he said to me, `I am Jesus of Nazareth whom you are persecuting.'

9 Now those who were with me saw the light but did not hear the voice of the one who was speaking to me.

10 And I said, `What shall I do, Lord?' And the Lord said to me, `Rise, and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all that is appointed for you to do.'

11 And when I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me, and came into Damascus.

12 "And one Anani'as, a devout man according to the law, well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there,

13 came to me, and standing by me said to me, `Brother Saul, receive your sight.' And in that very hour I received my sight and saw him.

14 And he said, `The God of our fathers appointed you to know his will, to see the Just One and to hear a voice from his mouth;

15 for you will be a witness for him to all men of what you have seen and heard.

16 And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on his name.'

--OR--

1 But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest

2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

3 Now as he journeyed he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed about him.

4 And he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"

5 And he said, "Who are you, Lord?" And he said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting;

6 but rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do."

7 The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one.

8 Saul arose from the ground; and when his eyes were opened, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.

9 And for three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.

10 Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Anani'as. The Lord said to him in a vision, "Anani'as." And he said, "Here I am, Lord."

11 And the Lord said to him, "Rise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for a man of Tarsus named Saul; for behold, he is praying,

12 and he has seen a man named Anani'as come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight."

13 But Anani'as answered, "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to thy saints at Jerusalem;

14 and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call upon thy name."

15 But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel;

16 for I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name."

17 So Anani'as departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came, has sent me that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit."

18 And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized,

19 and took food and was strengthened. For several days he was with the disciples at Damascus.

20 And in the synagogues immediately he proclaimed Jesus, saying, "He is the Son of God."

21 And all who heard him were amazed, and said, "Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called on this name? And he has come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests."

22 But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ.

PSALM : Psalms 117: 1 - 2

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1 Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples!

2 For great is his steadfast love toward us; and the faithfulness of the LORD endures for ever. Praise the LORD!

GOSPEL : Mark 16: 15 - 18

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15 And he said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation.

16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.

17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

18 they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover."

Mass Readings For Wednesday January 24, 2007

St. Francis de Sales, Bishop, Doctor of the Church (Memorial)

FIRST READING : Hebrews 10: 11 - 18

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11 And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.

12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God,

13 then to wait until his enemies should be made a stool for his feet.

14 For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.

15 And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying,

16 "This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds, "

17 then he adds, "I will remember their sins and their misdeeds no more."

18 Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.

PSALM : Psalms 110: 1 - 4

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1 The LORD says to my lord: "Sit at my right hand, till I make your enemies your footstool."

2 The LORD sends forth from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your foes!

3 Your people will offer themselves freely on the day you lead your host upon the holy mountains. From the womb of the morning like dew your youth will come to you.

4 The LORD has sworn and will not change his mind, "You are a priest for ever after the order of Melchiz'edek."

GOSPEL : Mark 4: 1 - 20

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1 Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land.

2 And he taught them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them:

3 "Listen! A sower went out to sow.

4 And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it.

5 Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it had not much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil;

6 and when the sun rose it was scorched, and since it had no root it withered away.

7 Other seed fell among thorns and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain.

8 And other seeds fell into good soil and brought forth grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold."

9 And he said, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

10 And when he was alone, those who were about him with the twelve asked him concerning the parables.

11 And he said to them, "To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables;

12 so that they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand; lest they should turn again, and be forgiven."

13 And he said to them, "Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?

14 The sower sows the word.

15 And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown; when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word which is sown in them.

16 And these in like manner are the ones sown upon rocky ground, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy;

17 and they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. 1

8 And others are the ones sown among thorns; they are those who hear the word,

19 but the cares of the world, and the delight in riches, and the desire for other things, enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.

20 But those that were sown upon the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold."

Mass Readings For Tuesday January 23, 2007

FIRST READING: Hebrews 10: 1 - 10

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1 For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices which are continually offered year after year, make perfect those who draw near.

2 Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered? If the worshipers had once been cleansed, they would no longer have any consciousness of sin.

3 But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sin year after year.

4 For it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins.

5 Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, "Sacrifices and offerings thou hast not desired, but a body hast thou prepared for me;

6 in burnt offerings and sin offerings thou hast taken no pleasure.

7 Then I said, `Lo, I have come to do thy will, O God, 'as it is written of me in the roll of the book."

8 When he said above, "Thou hast neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings" (these are offered according to the law),

9 then he added, "Lo, I have come to do thy will." He abolishes the first in order to establish the second.

10 And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

PSALM: Psalms 40: 2, 4, 7 - 8, 10 - 11

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2 He drew me up from the desolate pit, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure.

4 Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after false gods!

7 Then I said, "Lo, I come; in the roll of the book it is written of me;

8 I delight to do thy will, O my God; thy law is within my heart."

10 I have not hid thy saving help within my heart, I have spoken of thy faithfulness and thy salvation; I have not concealed thy steadfast love and thy faithfulness from the great congregation.

11 Do not thou, O LORD, withhold thy mercy from me, let thy steadfast love and thy faithfulness ever preserve me!

GOSPEL: Mark 3: 31 - 35

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31 And his mother and his brothers came; and standing outside they sent to him and called him.

32 And a crowd was sitting about him; and they said to him, "Your mother and your brothers are outside, asking for you."

33 And he replied, "Who are my mother and my brothers?"

34 And looking around on those who sat about him, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers!

35 Whoever does the will of God is my brother, and sister, and mother."

Mass Readings For Monday January 22, 2007

Anniversary of Roe versus Wade

FIRST READING: Hebrews 9: 15, 24 - 28

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15 Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred which redeems them from the transgressions under the first covenant.

24 For Christ has entered, not into a sanctuary made with hands, a copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.

25 Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the Holy Place yearly with blood not his own;

26 for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

27 And just as it is appointed for men to die once, and after that comes judgment,

28 so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

PSALM: Psalms 98: 1 - 6

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1 O sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have gotten him victory.

2 The LORD has made known his victory, he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.

3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.

4 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises!

5 Sing praises to the LORD with the lyre, with the lyre and the sound of melody!

6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn make a joyful noise before the King, the LORD!

GOSPEL: Mark 3: 22 - 30

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22 And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He is possessed by Be-el'zebul, and by the prince of demons he casts out the demons."

23 And he called them to him, and said to them in parables, "How can Satan cast out Satan?

24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.

25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.

26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end.

27 But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man; then indeed he may plunder his house.

28 "Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter;

29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin" --

30 for they had said, "He has an unclean spirit."