Mass Readings for Tuesday February 6, 2007

Memorial of Saint Paul Miki, martyr, and his companions, martyrs

Reading 1

Gn 1:20-2:4a

God said,"Let the water teem with an abundance of living creatures,and on the earth let birds fly beneath the dome of the sky."And so it happened:God created the great sea monstersand all kinds of swimming creatures with which the water teems,and all kinds of winged birds.God saw how good it was, and God blessed them, saying,"Be fertile, multiply, and fill the water of the seas;and let the birds multiply on the earth."Evening came, and morning followed the fifth day.

Then God said,"Let the earth bring forth all kinds of living creatures:cattle, creeping things, and wild animals of all kinds."And so it happened:God made all kinds of wild animals, all kinds of cattle,and all kinds of creeping things of the earth.God saw how good it was.Then God said:"Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,the birds of the air, and the cattle,and over all the wild animalsand all the creatures that crawl on the ground."

God created man in his image;in the divine image he created him;male and female he created them.

God blessed them, saying:"Be fertile and multiply;fill the earth and subdue it.Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air,and all the living things that move on the earth."God also said:"See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earthand every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food;and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air,and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground,I give all the green plants for food."And so it happened.God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good.Evening came, and morning followed the sixth day.

Thus the heavens and the earth and all their array were completed.Since on the seventh day God was finished with the work he had been doing, he rested on the seventh day from all the work he had undertaken.So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy,because on it he rested from all the work he had done in creation.

Such is the story of the heavens and the earth at their creation.

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Responsorial Psalm

Ps 8:4-5, 6-7, 8-9

R. (2ab) O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!

When I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars which you set in place—

What is man that you should be mindful of him,

or the son of man that you should care for him?

R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!

You have made him little less than the angels,

and crowned him with glory and honor.

You have given him rule over the works of your hands,

putting all things under his feet.

R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!

All sheep and oxen,

yes, and the beasts of the field,

The birds of the air, the fishes of the sea,

and whatever swims the paths of the seas.

R. O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!

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Gospel

Mk 7:1-13

When the Pharisees with some scribes who had come from Jerusalemgathered around Jesus,they observed that some of his disciples ate their mealswith 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 marketplacethey 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 eldersbut 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 Godin 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 someone 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 Godin favor of your tradition that you have handed on.And you do many such things."

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Mass Readings for Monday February 5, 2007

Memorial of Saint Agatha, virgin and martyr

Reading 1

Gn 1:1-19

In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth,the earth was a formless wasteland, and darkness covered the abyss,while a mighty wind swept over the waters.

Then God said,"Let there be light," and there was light.God saw how good the light was.God then separated the light from the darkness.God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night."Thus evening came, and morning followed—the first day.

Then God said,"Let there be a dome in the middle of the waters,to separate one body of water from the other."And so it happened:God made the dome,and it separated the water above the dome from the water below it.God called the dome "the sky."Evening came, and morning followed—the second day.

Then God said,"Let the water under the sky be gathered into a single basin,so that the dry land may appear."And so it happened:the water under the sky was gathered into its basin,and the dry land appeared.God called the dry land "the earth,"and the basin of the water he called "the sea."God saw how good it was.Then God said,"Let the earth bring forth vegetation:every kind of plant that bears seedand every kind of fruit tree on earththat bears fruit with its seed in it."And so it happened:the earth brought forth every kind of plant that bears seedand every kind of fruit tree on earth thatbears fruit with its seed in it.God saw how good it was.Evening came, and morning followed—the third day.

Then God said:"Let there be lights in the dome of the sky,to separate day from night.Let them mark the fixed times, the days and the years, and serve as luminaries in the dome of the sky,to shed light upon the earth."And so it happened:God made the two great lights,the greater one to govern the day,and the lesser one to govern the night;and he made the stars.God set them in the dome of the sky,to shed light upon the earth,to govern the day and the night,and to separate the light from the darkness.God saw how good it was.Evening came, and morning followed—the fourth day.

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Responsorial Psalm

Ps 104:1-2a, 5-6, 10 and 12, 24 and 35c

R. (31b) May the Lord be glad in his works.

Bless the LORD, O my soul!

O LORD, my God, you are great indeed!

You are clothed with majesty and glory,

robed in light as with a cloak.

R. May the Lord be glad in his works.

You fixed the earth upon its foundation,

not to be moved forever;

With the ocean, as with a garment, you covered it;

above the mountains the waters stood.

R. May the Lord be glad in his works.

You send forth springs into the watercourses

that wind among the mountains.

Beside them the birds of heaven dwell;

from among the branches they send forth their song.

R. May the Lord be glad in his works.

How manifold are your works, O LORD!

In wisdom you have wrought them all—

the earth is full of your creatures;

Bless the LORD, O my soul! Alleluia.

R. May the Lord be glad in his works.

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Gospel

Mk 6:53-56

After making the crossing to the other side of the sea,Jesus and his disciples came to land at Gennesaretand tied up there.As they were leaving the boat, people immediately recognized him.They scurried about the surrounding countryand began to bring in the sick on matsto wherever they heard he was.Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered,they laid the sick in the marketplacesand begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak;and as many as touched it were healed.

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Mass Readings for Sunday February 4, 2007

Reading 1

Is 6:1-2a, 3-8

In the year King Uzziah died,I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne,with the train of his garment filling the temple.Seraphim were stationed above.

They cried one to the other,"Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts!All the earth is filled with his glory!"At the sound of that cry, the frame of the door shookand the house was filled with smoke.

Then I said, "Woe is me, I am doomed!For I am a man of unclean lips,living among a people of unclean lips;yet my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!"Then one of the seraphim flew to me,holding an ember that he had taken with tongs from the altar.

He touched my mouth with it, and said,"See, now that this has touched your lips,your wickedness is removed, your sin purged."

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying,"Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?""Here I am," I said; "send me!"

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Responsorial Psalm

Ps 138:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 7-8

R. (1c) In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart,

for you have heard the words of my mouth;

in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise;

I will worship at your holy temple

and give thanks to your name.

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

Because of your kindness and your truth;

for you have made great above all things

your name and your promise.

When I called, you answered me;

you built up strength within me.

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

All the kings of the earth shall give thanks to you, O LORD,

when they hear the words of your mouth;

and they shall sing of the ways of the LORD:

“Great is the glory of the LORD.”

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

Your right hand saves me.

The LORD will complete what he has done for me;

your kindness, O LORD, endures forever;

forsake not the work of your hands.

R. In the sight of the angels I will sing your praises, Lord.

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Reading II

1 Cor 15:1-11

I am reminding you, brothers and sisters,of the gospel I preached to you,which you indeed received and in which you also stand.Through it you are also being saved,if you hold fast to the word I preached to you,unless you believed in vain.For I handed on to you as of first importance what I also received:that Christ died for our sinsin accordance with the Scriptures;that he was buried;that he was raised on the third dayin accordance with the Scriptures;that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve.After that, Christ appeared to morethan five hundred brothers at once,most of whom are still living,though some have fallen asleep.After that he appeared to James,then to all the apostles.Last of all, as to one born abnormally,he appeared to me.For I am the least of the apostles,not fit to be called an apostle,because I persecuted the church of God.But by the grace of God I am what I am,and his grace to me has not been ineffective.Indeed, I have toiled harder than all of them;not I, however, but the grace of God that is with me.Therefore, whether it be I or they,so we preach and so you believed.

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Gospel

Lk 5:1-11

While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listeningto the word of God,he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.He saw two boats there alongside the lake;the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,"Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch."Simon said in reply,"Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,but at your command I will lower the nets."When they had done this, they caught a great number of fishand their nets were tearing.They signaled to their partners in the other boatto come to help them. They came and filled both boatsso that the boats were in danger of sinking.When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized himand all those with him,and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,who were partners of Simon.Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid;from now on you will be catching men."When they brought their boats to the shore,they left everything and followed him.

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Mass Readings for Friday February 2, 2007

Feast of the Presentation of the Lord

Reading 1

Mal 3:1-4

Thus says the Lord God:Lo, I am sending my messengerto prepare the way before me;And suddenly there will come to the templethe 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 silverthat they may offer due sacrifice to the LORD.Then the sacrifice of Judah and Jerusalemwill please the LORD,as in the days of old, as in years gone by.

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Responsorial Psalm

Ps 24:7, 8, 9, 10

R. (8) Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!

Lift up, O gates, your lintels;

reach up, you ancient portals,

that the king of glory may come in!

R. Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!

Who is this king of glory?

The LORD, strong and mighty,

the LORD, mighty in battle.

R. Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!

Lift up, O gates, your lintels;

reach up, you ancient portals,

that the king of glory may come in!

R. Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!

Who is this king of glory?

The LORD of hosts; he is the king of glory.

R. Who is this king of glory? It is the Lord!

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Reading II

Heb 2:14-18

Since the children share in blood and flesh,Jesus likewise shared in them,that through death he might destroy the onewho has the power of death, that is, the Devil,and free those who through fear of deathhad been subject to slavery all their life.Surely he did not help angelsbut rather the descendants of Abraham;therefore, he had to become like his brothers and sistersin every way,that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest before Godto expiate the sins of the people.Because he himself was tested through what he suffered,he is able to help those who are being tested.

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Gospel

Lk 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 ofa 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 Spiritthat he should not see deathbefore he had seen the Christ of the Lord. He came in the Spirit into the temple;and when the parents brought in the child Jesusto 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 the 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 destinedfor 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 childto all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.

When they had fulfilled all the prescriptionsof 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.

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