Daily Mass Readings for Monday, November 7, 2011

FIRST READING: Wisdom 1: 1 - 7

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1 Love righteousness, you rulers of the earth, think of the Lord with uprightness, and seek him with sincerity of heart;

2 because he is found by those who do not put him to the test, and manifests himself to those who do not distrust him.

3 For perverse thoughts separate men from God, and when his power is tested, it convicts the foolish;

4 because wisdom will not enter a deceitful soul, nor dwell in a body enslaved to sin.

5 For a holy and disciplined spirit will flee from deceit, and will rise and depart from foolish thoughts, and will be ashamed at the approach of unrighteousness.

6 For wisdom is a kindly spirit and will not free a blasphemer from the guilt of his words; because God is witness of his inmost feelings, and a true observer of his heart, and a hearer of his tongue.

7 Because the Spirit of the Lord has filled the world, and that which holds all things together knows what is said.

PSALM: Psalms 139: 1 - 10

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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.

4 Even before a word is on my tongue, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.

5 Thou dost beset me behind and before, and layest thy hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain it.

7 Whither shall I go from thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence?

8 If I ascend to heaven, thou art there! If I make my bed in Sheol, thou art there!

9 If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

10 even there thy hand shall lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.

GOSPEL: Luke 17: 1 - 6

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1 And he said to his disciples, "Temptations to sin are sure to come; but woe to him by whom they come!

2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung round his neck and he were cast into the sea, than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin.

3 Take heed to yourselves; if your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him;

4 and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, and says, `I repent,' you must forgive him."

5 The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!"

6 And the Lord said, "If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this sycamine tree, `Be rooted up, and be planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.

Daily Mass Readings for Sunday, November 6, 2011

FIRST READING: Wisdom 6: 12 - 16

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12 Wisdom is radiant and unfading, and she is easily discerned by those who love her, and is found by those who seek her.

13 She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.

14 He who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty, for he will find her sitting at his gates.

15 To fix one's thought on her is perfect understanding, and he who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care,

16 because she goes about seeking those worthy of her, and she graciously appears to them in their paths, and meets them in every thought.

PSALM: Psalms 63: 2 - 8

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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;

7 for thou hast been my help, and in the shadow of thy wings I sing for joy.

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

SECOND READING: 1 Thessalonians 4: 13 - 18 Or 4: 13 - 14

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13 But we would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.

14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.

15 For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, shall not precede those who have fallen asleep.

16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel's call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first;

17 then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall always be with the Lord.

18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.

Or

13 But we would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.

14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.

GOSPEL: Matthew 25: 1 - 13

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1 "Then the kingdom of heaven shall be compared to ten maidens who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.

2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.

3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them;

4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.

5 As the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.

6 But at midnight there was a cry, `Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.'

7 Then all those maidens rose and trimmed their lamps.

8 And the foolish said to the wise, `Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'

9 But the wise replied, `Perhaps there will not be enough for us and for you; go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.'

10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast; and the door was shut.

11 Afterward the other maidens came also, saying, `Lord, lord, open to us.'

12 But he replied, `Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.'

13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

Daily Mass Readings for Saturday, November 5, 2011

Memorial of All the Deceased of the Seraphic Order 

FIRST READING: Wisdom 3: 1 - 9

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1 But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will ever touch them.

2 In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died, and their departure was thought to be an affliction,

3 and their going from us to be their destruction; but they are at peace.

4 For though in the sight of men they were punished, their hope is full of immortality.

5 Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good, because God tested them and found them worthy of himself;

6 like gold in the furnace he tried them, and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted them.

7 In the time of their visitation they will shine forth, and will run like sparks through the stubble.

8 They will govern nations and rule over peoples, and the Lord will reign over them for ever.

9 Those who trust in him will understand truth, and the faithful will abide with him in love, because grace and mercy are upon his elect, and he watches over his holy ones.

PSALM: Psalms 23: 1 - 6

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1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want;

2 he makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters;

3 he restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.

5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

GOSPEL: John 6: 37 - 40

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37 All that the Father gives me will come to me; and him who comes to me I will not cast out.

38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me;

39 and this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up at the last day.

40 For this is the will of my Father, that every one who sees the Son and believes in him should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day."

Daily Mass Readings for Friday, November 04, 2011

Memorial of Saint Charles Borromeo, Bishop

FIRST READING: Romans 15: 14 - 21

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14 I myself am satisfied about you, my brethren, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, and able to instruct one another.

15 But on some points I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder, because of the grace given me by God

16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.

17 In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to be proud of my work for God.

18 For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has wrought through me to win obedience from the Gentiles, by word and deed,

19 by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Holy Spirit, so that from Jerusalem and as far round as Illyr'icum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ,

20 thus making it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on another man's foundation,

21 but as it is written, "They shall see who have never been told of him, and they shall understand who have never heard of him."

PSALM: Psalms 98: 1 - 4

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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!

GOSPEL: Luke 16: 1 - 8

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1 He also said to the disciples, "There was a rich man who had a steward, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his goods.

2 And he called him and said to him, `What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.'

3 And the steward said to himself, `What shall I do, since my master is taking the stewardship away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg.

4 I have decided what to do, so that people may receive me into their houses when I am put out of the stewardship.'

5 So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, `How much do you owe my master?'

6 He said, `A hundred measures of oil.' And he said to him, `Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.'

7 Then he said to another, `And how much do you owe?' He said, `A hundred measures of wheat.' He said to him, `Take your bill, and write eighty.'

8 The master commended the dishonest steward for his shrewdness; for the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light.