Friday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 2 Samuel 11.1-4a, 5-10a, 13-17

At the turn of the year, at the time when kings go out,
David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel;
and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah.
But David stayed at Jerusalem.

At evening, David arose from his bed
and walked on the roof of the king’s house.
From the roof, he saw a woman bathing;
and the woman was very beautiful to look at.
David sent and inquired after the woman.
Someone said, “Is not this Bathsheba,
the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?”
David sent messengers, and took her;
She came to him, and he lay with her
Then she returned to her house.
The woman conceived;
and she sent and told David, and said, “I am with child.”

David sent to Joab, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.”
Joab sent Uriah to David.
When Uriah had come to him, David asked him how Joab did,
and how the people fared, and how the war prospered.
David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house,and wash your feet.”
Uriah departed out of the king’s house,
and a gift from the king was sent after him.
But Uriah slept at the door of the king’s house
with all the servants of his lord,
and did not go down to his house.

When they had told David, saying,
“Uriah did not go down to his house,”
David called him on the next day,
he ate and drink before David, and he made him drunk.
At evening, he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord,
but did not go down to his house.
In the morning, David wrote a letter to Joab,
and sent it by the hand of Uriah.
He wrote in the letter, saying,
“Send Uriah to the forefront of the heaviest battle,
and draw back from him, that he may be struck, and die.”
When Joab kept watch on the city, he assigned Uriah to the place
where he knew that valiant men were.
The men of the city went out, and fought with Joab.
Some of the people fell, of the officers of David;
and Uriah the Hittite died also.

Responsorial – Psalm 51.3-4, 5-6a, 6bcd-7, 10-11 Resp. 3a

R. Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Have mercy on me, God, according to your loving kindness.
According to the multitude of your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity.
Cleanse me from my sin.

R. Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

For I know my transgressions.
My sin is constantly before me.
Against you, and you alone, have I sinned,
and done what is evil in your sight;

R. Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

I have done what is evil in your sight;
that you may be proved right when you speak,
and justified when you judge.
Behold, I was born in iniquity.
A sinner, as my mother conceived me.

R. Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Let me hear joy and gladness,
That the bones which you have broken may rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all of my iniquities.

R. Have mercy, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Gospel – Mark 4.26-34

Jesus said to the crowds,
“The Kingdom of God is like when a human
casts seed on the earth,
and sleeps and rises night and day,
and the seed springs up and grows,
they know not how.
For the earth bears fruit:
first the blade, then the ear,
then the full grain in the ear.
But when the fruit is ripe,
immediately they put in the sickle,
because the harvest has come.”

He said, “To what will we compare the Kingdom of God?
Or with what parable will we illustrate it?
It is like a grain of mustard seed,
which, when it is sown in the earth,
is smaller than the other seeds that are on the earth,
yet when it is sown, grows up,
and becomes greater than all the plants,
and puts out great branches,
so that the birds of the sky
can lodge under its shadow.”
With many such parables he spoke the word to them,
as they were able to hear it.
Without a parable he did not speak to them;
but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.

Thursday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 2 Samuel 7.18-19, 24-29

So did Nathan speak to David.
Then David the king went in, and sat before the Lord, and he said,
“Who am I, Lord God, and what is my house,
that you have brought me thus far?
But this was still a small thing in your eyes, Lord God,
for you have spoken also of your servant's house for a great while to come,
and this is a teaching for mankind, Lord God!

You have established for yourself your people Israel
to be a people to you forever,
and you, O Lord, became their God.
Now, Lord God, the word that you have spoken concerning your servant,
and concerning his house, confirm it forever, and do as you have spoken.
Let your name be magnified forever, saying,
‘The Lord of hosts is God over Israel’,
and the house of your servant David shall be established before you.
For you, O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, have revealed to your servant, saying,
‘I will build you a house.’
Therefore your servant has found it in his heart to pray this prayer to you.
Now, O Lord God, you are God, and your words are truth,
and you have promised this good thing to your servant,
now therefore let it please you to bless the house of your servant,
that it may continue forever before you,
for you, Lord God, have spoken it,
and with your blessing let the house of your servant be blessed forever.”

Responsorial – Psalm 132.1-2, 3-5, 11, 12, 13-14 Resp. Luke 1.32b

R. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father, David.

Lord, remember David
and all his affliction,
how he swore to the Lord,
and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob:

R. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father, David.

“Surely I will not come into the structure of my house,
nor go up into my bed;
I will give no sleep to my eyes,
nor slumber to my eyelids;
until I find out a home for the Lord,
a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

R. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father, David.

The Lord has sworn to David in truth.
He will not turn from it:
“I will set the fruit of your body
on your throne.”

R. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father, David.

“If your sons will keep my covenant,
my testimony that I will teach them,
their sons also
will sit on your throne forevermore.”

R. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father, David.

For the Lord has chosen Zion.
He has desired it for his dwelling.
“This is my resting place forever.
Here I will live, for I have desired it.”

R. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father, David.

Gospel – Mark 4.21-25

Jesus said to his disciples,
“Is the lamp brought in in order to put it under a basket or under a bed?
Is it not put on a stand?
For there is nothing hidden, except to be revealed;
nor is anything made secret, but that it should come to light.
If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear.”
He said to them, “Take heed what you do hear.
For whatever measure you measure, will be measured out to you,
and more will be given to you.
For whoever has, to them will more be given,
and they who do not have, even that which they have will be taken away.”

Wednesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 2 Samuel 7.4-17

It happened that same night,
that the word of the Lord came to Nathan, saying,
“Go and tell my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord:
“Shall you build me a house to dwell in?

I have not dwelt in a house
from the day on which I led the children of Israel
out of Egypt to the present,
but I have been going about in a tent under cloth.
In all my wanderings everywhere among the children of Israel,
did I ever utter a word to any one of the judges
whom I charged to tend my people Israel, to ask:
Why have you not built me a house of cedar?’

“Now then, speak thus to my servant David,
‘The LORD of hosts has this to say:

I took you from the sheep pen,
from following the sheep,
that you should be prince over my people Israel.
I have been with you wherever you went,
and have cut off all your enemies from before you.
I will make you a great name,
like the name of the great ones who are in the earth.
I will appoint a place for my people Israel,
and will plant them that they may dwell in their own place,
and be moved no more;
nor shall the children of wickedness
afflict them anymore, as at first,
and from the days that I commanded judges
to be over my people Israel.
I will cause you to rest from all your enemies.
Moreover the Lord tells you
that the Lord will make you a house.
When your days are fulfilled,
and you sleep with your fathers,
I will set up your seed after you,
who shall proceed out of your loins,
and I will establish his kingdom.

He will build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

I will be his father, and he shall be my son.

If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men,
and with the stripes of the children of men;
but my loving kindness will not depart from him,
as I took it from Saul,
whom I put away before you.

Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me.
Your throne shall be established forever.”

Nathan spoke to David all these words,
according to all this vision.

Responsorial - Psalm 89.4-5, 27-28, 29-30 Resp. 29a

R. I will make my love for my servant endure forever.

“I have made a covenant with my chosen one,
I have sworn to David, my servant,
‘I will establish your offspring forever,
and build up your throne to all generations.’”

R. I will make my love for my servant endure forever.

He will call to me, ‘You are my Father,
my God, and the rock of my salvation!’
I will appoint him my firstborn,
the highest of the kings of the earth.

R. I will make my love for my servant endure forever.


I will keep my loving kindness for him forever more.
My covenant will stand firm with him.
I will also make his offspring endure forever,
and his throne as the days of heaven.

R. I will make my love for my servant endure forever.

Gospel – Mark 4.1-20

Again Jesus began to teach by the sea.
A large crowd was gathered to him,
so that he got into a boat on the sea, and sat down.
The whole crowd was on the seashore.
He taught them many things in parables, and told them in his teaching,
“Listen! Behold, the farmer went out to sow,
and as he sowed, some seed fell by the road, and the birds came and devoured it.
Others fell on the rocky ground, where it had little soil,
and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of soil.
When the sun had risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.
Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it,
and it yielded no fruit.
Others fell into the good ground, and yielded fruit, growing up and increasing.
Some produced thirty-fold, some sixty-fold, and some one-hundred-fold.”
He said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”

When he was alone, those who were by him along with the Twelve asked him about the parables.
He said to them, “To you is given the mystery of the Kingdom of God,
but to those who are outside, all things are done in parables, that
‘seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand;
lest perhaps they should turn again, and their sins be forgiven them.’”

He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable?
How will you understand any of the parables?
The farmer sows the word.
The ones by the road are the ones where the word is sown,
and when they have heard, immediately Satan comes,
and takes away the word which has been sown in them.
And these are those who are sown on the rocky places,
who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with joy.
They have no root in themselves, but are short-lived.
When oppression or persecution arises because of the word, immediately they stumble.
Others are those who are sown among the thorns.
These are those who have heard the word,
but the cares of this age, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the desire for other things
entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
Those which were sown on the good ground are those who hear the word, and accept it,
and bear fruit, some thirty-fold, some sixty-fold, and some one-hundred-fold.”

Tuesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 - 2 Samuel 6.12b-15, 17-19

David went and brought up
the Ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom
into the city of David with joy.
It took place in this way:
when those who bore the Lord’s Ark
had gone six paces,
he sacrificed an ox and a fattened calf.
David danced before the Lord with all his might;
clothed in a linen ephod.
So David and all the house of Israel
brought up the Ark of the Lord with shouting,
and with the sound of the trumpet.

They brought in the Ark of the Lord,
and set it in its place,
in the middle of the tent
that David had pitched for it;
and David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings
before the Lord.
When David had finished offering
the burnt offering and the peace offerings,
he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of Hosts.
He gave to all the people,
among the whole multitude of Israel,
both men and women, to everyone,
a portion of bread, roast meat, and raisins.
Then all the people departed,
everyone to his house.

Responsorial – Psalm 24.7, 8, 9, 10 Resp. 8

R. Who is the King of glory? The Lord.

Lift up your heads, you gates!
Be lifted up, you everlasting doors,
and the King of glory will come in.

R. Who is the King of glory? The Lord.

Who is the King of glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
the Lord mighty in battle.

R. Who is the King of glory? The Lord.

Lift up your heads, you gates;
yes, lift them up, you everlasting doors,
and the King of glory will come in.

R. Who is the King of glory? The Lord.

Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of Hosts is the King of glory!

Gospel – Mark 3.31-35

Jesus’ mother and his brothers came,
and standing outside, they sent for him, calling him.
A multitude was sitting around him,
and they told him,
“Behold, your mother, your brothers, and your sisters
are outside looking for you.”
He answered them,
“Who are my mother and my brothers?”
Looking around at those who sat around him,
he said, “Behold, my mother and my brothers!
For whoever does the will of God,
that one is my brother and sister and mother.”

Monday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 - 2 Samuel 5.1-7, 10

All the tribes of Israel
came to David at Hebron,
and spoke, saying,
“Behold, we are your bone and your flesh.
In times past, when Saul was king over us,
it was you who led out and brought in Israel.
The Lord said to you,
‘You shall be shepherd of my people Israel,
and you shall be prince over Israel.’”
So all the elders of Israel
came to the king at Hebron;
and King David made a covenant with them
in Hebron before the Lord;
and they anointed David king over Israel.

David was thirty years old
when he began to reign,
and he reigned forty years.
In Hebron he reigned over Judah
seven years and six months;
and in Jerusalem he reigned
thirty-three years over all Israel and Judah.

The king and his men went to Jerusalem
against the Jebusites,
the inhabitants of the land,
who spoke to David, saying,
“The blind and the lame will chase you away.
You shall not come in here”;
thinking, “David cannot come in here.”
But David took the stronghold of Zion;
the city of David.

David grew greater and greater;
for the Lord of Hosts was with him.

Responsorial - Psalm 89.20, 21-22, 25-26 Resp. 25a

R. My faithfulness and my loving kindness will be with him.

Then you spoke in vision
to your saints you said,
“I have bestowed strength on the warrior.
I have exalted a young man from the people.

R. My faithfulness and my loving kindness will be with him.

I have found David, my servant.
I have anointed him with my holy oil,
With him my hand shall be established.
My arm will strengthen him.

R. My faithfulness and my loving kindness will be with him.

My faithfulness and my loving kindness will be with him.
In my name, his horn will be exalted.
I will set his hand also on the sea,
and his right hand on the rivers.

R. My faithfulness and my loving kindness will be with him.

Gospel – Mark 3.22-30

The scribes who came down from Jerusalem said,
“Beelzebul has him,” and,
“By the prince of the demons he casts out the demons.”
He summoned them, and said to them in parables,
“How can Satan cast out Satan?
If a kingdom is divided against itself,
that kingdom cannot stand.
If a house is divided against itself,
that house cannot stand.
If Satan has risen up against himself,
and is divided, he cannot stand,
but is at an end.
But no one can enter into
the house of the strong man to plunder,
unless he first ties up the strong man;
and then he will plunder his house.
Amen I say to you,
all sins of the sons and daughters of humans
will be forgiven,
even their blasphemies which they might blaspheme;
but whoever may blaspheme
against the Holy Spirit
has no forgiveness in eternity,
but is bound by an eternal sin.”
because they said, “He has an unclean spirit.”

Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)

Official Translation

Reading 1 - Isaiah 8.23-9.3

They will turn their faces upward, and look to the earth,
and see distress, darkness, and the gloom of anguish.
They will be driven into thick darkness.
But there shall be no more gloom for her who was in anguish.

In the former time, the Lord brought into contempt the land of Zebulun
and the land of Naphtali;
but in the latter time he has made it glorious, by the way of the sea,
beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.

The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light.
On those who lived in the land of the shadow of death,
the light has shined.
You have multiplied the nation.
You have increased their joy.
They rejoice before you as with the harvest joy,
as humans rejoice when they divide plunder.
For the yoke of their burden,
and the staff on their shoulder,
the rod of their oppressor,
you have broken as in the day of Midian.

Responsorial – Psalm 27.1, 4, 13-14 Resp. 1a

R. The LORD is my light and my salvation.

The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the strength of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?

R. The LORD is my light and my salvation.

One thing have I desired of the LORD,
this will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the LORD,
and to study in his temple.

R. The LORD is my light and my salvation.

I believe that I will see the goodness of the LORD
in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD; be of good courage.
He will strengthen your heart. Wait for the LORD.

R. The LORD is my light and my salvation.

Reading 2 – 1 Corinthians 1.10-13, 17

Now I beg you, brothers and sisters, through the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ,
that you all speak the same thing
and that there be no divisions among you,
but that you be perfected together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
For it has been reported to me concerning you, my brothers and sisters,
by those who are from Chloe's household, that there are rivalries among you.
Now I mean this, that each one of you says,
"I follow Paul," "I follow Apollos," "I follow Cephas," or, "I follow Christ."
Is Christ divided?
Was Paul crucified for you?
Or were you baptized into the name of Paul?

Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the Gospel,
and not in the wisdom of logic,
lest the cross of Christ be emptied.

Gospel – Matthew 4.12-23

Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee.
Leaving Nazareth, he came and lived in Capernaum, which is by the sea,
in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali,
that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying:
“The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
toward the sea, beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles,
the people who sat in darkness saw a great light,
to those who sat in the region and shadow of death,
to them light has dawned.”
From that time, Jesus began to preach, and to say,
“Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”

As he was walking by the sea of Galilee,
he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and Andrew his brother,
casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.
He said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
They immediately left their nets, and followed him.
Continuing on from there, he saw two more brothers,
James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother,
in a boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.
They immediately left the boat and their father and followed him.

He went about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues,
preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom,
and healing every disease and every sickness among the people.

Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul, Apostle

Official Translation

Reading 1 – Acts 22.3-16

Paul spoke to the people in these words:
“I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city.
At the feet of Gamaliel I was instructed according to the strict tradition of the law of our fathers,
being zealous for God, even as you all are today.
I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering both men and women into prison.
As even the high priest and all the council of the elders testify,
from whom even I received letters to the brothers,
and traveled to Damascus to bring in bondage those also who were there to Jerusalem to be punished.

As I made my journey, and came close to Damascus, about noon,
suddenly a great light shone around me from the sky.
I fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’
I replied, ‘Who are you, Lord?’
He said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you persecute.’
Those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid,
but they did not understand the voice of him who spoke to me.
I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’
The Lord said to me, ‘Arise, and go into Damascus.
There you will be told about all things which are appointed for you to do.’
Since I could not see for the glory of that light,
I came into Damascus led by the hand of those who were with me.

One Ananias, a devout man according to the law,
highly spoken of by all the Jews who lived in Damascus,
came to me, and standing by me said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’
In that very hour I looked up at him.
He said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know his will,
and to see the Righteous One, and to hear a voice from his mouth.
For you will be a witness for him to all men of what you have seen and heard.
Now why do you wait? Arise, be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’”

Or Acts 9.1-22

Saul, still breathing threats and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord,
went to the high priest, and asked for letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus,
that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women,
he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

As he traveled, as he got close to Damascus,
suddenly a light from the sky shone around him.
He fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
He said, “Who are you, Lord?”
The Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
But rise up, and enter into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

The men who traveled with him stood speechless, hearing the sound, but seeing no one.
Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened, he saw nothing.
They led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus.
He was without sight for three days, and neither ate nor drank.

Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias.
The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
He said, “Behold, it is I, Lord.”
The Lord said to him, “Arise, and go to the street called Straight,
and inquire in the house of Judas for one named Saul, a man of Tarsus.
For behold, he is praying, and in a vision he has seen
a man named Ananias coming in, and laying his hands on him,
that he might receive his sight.”

But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man,
how much evil he did to your saints at Jerusalem.
Here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.”
But the Lord said to him, “Go your way, for he is my chosen vessel
to bear my name before nations and kings and the children of Israel.
For I will show him how many things he must suffer for the sake of my name.”

Ananias departed and entered into the house.
Laying his hands on him, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord sent me,
Jesus, who appeared to you on the way which you came,
that you may receive your sight, and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
Immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he received his sight.
He arose and was baptized.
He took food and was strengthened.

Saul stayed several days with the disciples who were at Damascus.
And immediately in the synagogues he proclaimed Jesus, that he is the Son of God.
All who heard him were amazed, and said,
“Is this not he who in Jerusalem harmed those who called on this name?
And he had come here intending to bring them bound before the chief priests!”
But Saul increased more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived at Damascus,
proving that this is the Christ.

Responsorial – Psalm 117.1bc, 2 Resp. Mark 16.15

R. Go to all the world and preach the Gospel. or R. Alleluia! Alleluia!

Praise the Lord, all you nations!
Extol him, all you peoples!

R. Go to all the world and preach the Gospel. or R. Alleluia! Alleluia!

For his loving kindness is great toward us.
The Lord’s faithfulness endures forever.

R. Go to all the world and preach the Gospel. or R. Alleluia! Alleluia!

Gospel – Mark 16.15-18

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Go into all the world, and preach the Gospel to the whole creation.
The one who believes and is baptized will be saved;
but the one who disbelieves will be condemned.

These signs will accompany those who believe:
in my name they will cast out demons;
they will speak with new languages;
they will take up serpents;
and if they drink any deadly thing, it will in no way hurt them;
they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

Friday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 1 Samuel 24.3-21

Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel,
and went to seek David and his men
in the rocks of the wild goats.
He came to the sheep pens along the way,
where there was a cave, and Saul went in to relieve himself.
Now David and his men were staying
in the innermost parts of the cave.
The men of David said to him,
“Behold the day on which the Lord said to you,
‘Behold, I will deliver your enemy into your hand,
and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you.’”
Then David arose, and cut off the hem of Saul’s robe secretly.
Afterward, David’s heart struck him,
because he had cut off Saul’s hem.
He said to his men, “The Lord forbid
that I should do this thing to my lord, the Lord’s anointed,
to stretch out my hand against him,
for he is the Lord’s anointed.”

So David checked his men with these words,
and did not allow them to rise against Saul.
Saul rose up out of the cave, and went on his way.
David also arose afterward, and went out of the cave,
and cried after Saul, saying, “My lord the king!”
When Saul looked behind him,
David bowed with his face to the earth, and showed respect.
David said to Saul, “Why do you listen to men’s words,
saying, ‘Behold, David seeks your hurt?’
Behold, this day your eyes have seen how that the Lord
had delivered you today into my hand in the cave.
Some urged me to kill you; but I spared you; and I said,
‘I will not stretch out my hand against my lord;
for he is the Lord’s anointed.’
Moreover, my father, behold, indeed,
see the hem of your robe in my hand;
for since I cut off the hem of your robe, but did not kill you,
know and see that there is neither evil nor disobedience in my hand,
and I have not sinned against you,
though you hunt for my life to take it.
May the Lord judge between me and you,
and may the Lord avenge me of you;
but my hand shall not be on you.
As the proverb of the ancients says,
‘Out of the wicked comes wickedness;’
but my hand shall not be on you.
Against whom has the king of Israel come out?
Whom do you pursue? A dead dog? A flea?
May the Lord therefore be judge,
and give sentence between me and you,
and see, and plead my cause,
and deliver me out of your hand.”

It came to pass, when David had finished
speaking these words to Saul,
that Saul said, “Is this your voice, my son David?”
Saul lifted up his voice, and wept.
He said to David, “You are more righteous than I;
for you have done good to me,
though I have done evil to you.
You have declared this day
how you have dealt well with me,
because when the Lord
had delivered me up into your hand,
you did not kill me.
For if a man finds his enemy,
will he let him go away unharmed?
Therefore may the Lord reward you good
for that which you have done to me this day.
Now, behold, I know that you shall surely be king,
and that the kingdom of Israel shall be
established in your hand.
Swear now therefore to me by the Lord,
that you will not cut off my seed after me,
and that you will not destroy my name
from my father’s house.”

Responsorial – Psalm 57.2, 3-4, 6+11 Resp. 2a

R. Be merciful to me, God, be merciful to me.

Be merciful to me, God, be merciful to me,
for my soul takes refuge in you.
Yes, in the shadow of your wings, I will take refuge,
until disaster has passed.

R. Be merciful to me, God, be merciful to me.

I cry out to God Most High,
to God who does for me what I ask.
He will send from heaven, and save me,
he rebukes the one who is trampling on me.
God will send out his loving kindness and his truth.

R. Be merciful to me, God, be merciful to me.

Be exalted, God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be above all the earth!
For your great loving kindness reaches to the heavens,
and your truth to the skies.

R. Be merciful to me, God, be merciful to me.

Gospel – Mark 3.13-19

Jesus went up on the mountain,
and called to himself those whom he wanted,
and they went to him.
He appointed twelve, whom he named Apostles,
that they might be with him,
and that he might send them out to preach,
and to have authority to cast out demons:
Simon, to whom he gave the name Peter;
James the son of Zebedee and John, the brother of James,
whom he called Boanerges, which means, Sons of Thunder;
Andrew; Philip; Bartholomew; Matthew;
Thomas; James, the son of Alphaeus;
Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot;
and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

Thursday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 1 Samuel 18.6-9; 19.1-7

As they came back,
when David returned
from the slaughter of the Philistine,
the women came out of all the cities of Israel,
singing and dancing,
to meet King Saul, with tambourines,
with joy, and with instruments of music.
The women sang one to another as they played,
and said, “Saul has slain his thousands,
David his ten thousands.”

Saul was very angry, and this saying displeased him;
and he said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands,
and to me they have ascribed only thousands.
What more can he have except the kingdom?”
Saul eyed David from that day forward.

Saul spoke to Jonathan his son,
and to all his servants, that they should kill David.
But Jonathan, Saul’s son, delighted much in David.
Jonathan told David, saying,
“Saul my father seeks to kill you.
Now therefore, please take care of yourself in the morning,
and go to a secret place, and hide yourself.
I will go out and stand beside my father
in the field where you are,
and I will talk with my father about you;
if I see anything, I will tell you.”
Jonathan spoke good of David to Saul his father,
and said to him, “Do not let the king
sin against his servant, against David;
because he has not sinned against you,
and because his works have been very good toward you;
for he put his life in his hand, and struck the Philistine,
and the Lord worked a great victory for all Israel.
You saw it, and rejoiced.
Why then will you sin against innocent blood,
to kill David without a cause?”
Saul listened to the voice of Jonathan,
and Saul swore, “As the Lord lives, he shall not be put to death.”
Jonathan called David, and Jonathan related all these things.
Jonathan brought David to Saul,
and he was in his presence, as before.

Responsorial – Psalm 56.2-3, 9-10a, 10b-11, 12-13 Resp. 5b

R. In God, I put my trust. I will not be afraid.

Be merciful to me, God, for man tramples on me.
All day long, he attacks and oppresses me.
My enemies trample me all day long,
for they are many who fight proudly against me.

R. In God, I put my trust. I will not be afraid.

You number my wanderings.
You put my tears into your bottle.
Are they not in your book?
Then my enemies shall turn back
in the day that I call.

R. In God, I put my trust. I will not be afraid.

I know this: God is with me.
In God, I will praise his word.
I have put my trust in God, unafraid.
What can man do to me?

R. In God, I put my trust. I will not be afraid.

Your vows are on me, God.
I will give thank offerings to you.
For you have delivered my soul from death,
and prevented my feet from falling,
that I may walk before God in the light of the living.

R. In God, I put my trust. I will not be afraid.

Gospel - Mark 3.7-12

Jesus withdrew to the sea with his disciples,
and a great multitude followed him from Galilee, from Judea,
from Jerusalem, from Idumaea, beyond the Jordan,
and those from around Tyre and Sidon.
A great multitude, hearing what great things he did,
came to him.
He told his disciples that a boat should stay near him
because of the crowd, so that they would not crush him.
For he had healed many,
so that as many as had diseases pressed on him
that they might touch him.
The unclean spirits, whenever they saw him,
fell down before him, and cried,
“You are the Son of God!”
He sternly warned them
that they should not make him known.

Wednesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 1 Samuel 17.32-33, 37, 40-51

David said to Saul,
“Let no man’s heart fail because of him.
Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”
Saul said to David,
“You are not able to go against this Philistine
to fight with him;
for you are but a youth,
and he a man of war from his youth.”

David said, “The Lord who delivered me
out of the paw of the lion,
and out of the paw of the bear,
he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.”
Saul said to David, “Go; and the Lord shall be with you.”

David took his staff in his hand,
and chose for himself
five smooth stones out of the brook,
and put them in the shepherd’s bag he had.
His sling in hand, he drew near to the Philistine.

His shield-bearer going before him,
the Philistine came forward and drew near to David.
When the Philistine looked about and saw David,
he despised him;
for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and with a fair face.
The Philistine said to David,
“Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?”
The Philistine cursed David by his gods,
and said to David, “Come to me,
and I will give your flesh to the birds of the sky
and to the animals of the field.”

Then David said to the Philistine,
“You come to me with a sword,
and with a spear, and with a javelin:
but I come to you in the name of the Lord of Armies,
the God of the armies of Israel,
whom you have defied.
Today, the Lord will deliver you into my hand.
I will strike you, and take your head from off you.
I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines
this day to the birds of the sky
and to the wild animals of the earth;
that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,
and that all this assembly may know that
the Lord does not save with sword and spear:
for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hand.”

When the Philistine arose,
and came and drew near to meet David,
David hurried, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.
David put his hand in his bag, took a stone, and slung it,
and struck the Philistine in his forehead;
and the stone sank into his forehead,
and he fell on his face to the earth.
So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone,
and struck the Philistine, and killed him;
though there was no sword in the hand of David.
Then David ran and stood over the Philistine,
and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath,
and killed him, and cut off his head with it.

Responsorial – Psalm 144.1b, 2, 9-10 Resp. 1

R. Blessed be the Lord, my rock!

Blessed be the Lord, my rock,
who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle:

R. Blessed be the Lord, my rock!

My loving kindness, my fortress,
my high tower, my deliverer,
my shield, and he in whom I take refuge;
who subdues my people under me.

R. Blessed be the Lord, my rock!

I will sing a new song to you, God.
On a ten-stringed lyre, I will sing praises to you.
You are he who gives salvation to kings,
who rescues David, his servant, from the deadly sword.

R. Blessed be the Lord, my rock!

Gospel – Mark 3.1-6

Jesus entered again into the synagogue,
and there was a man there
who had his hand withered.
They watched Jesus,
whether he would heal him on the Sabbath,
that they might accuse him.
He said to the man with the withered hand, “Stand up.”
He said to them,
“Is it lawful on the Sabbath day to do good, or to do harm?
To save a life or to kill?”
But they were silent.
When he had looked around at them with anger,
grieved at the hardening of their hearts,
he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.”
He stretched it out, and his hand was restored
as healthy as the other.
The Pharisees went out,
and immediately conspired
with the Herodians against him,
how they might destroy him.

Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 1 Samuel 16.1-13

The Lord said to Samuel,
“How long will you mourn for Saul,
since I have rejected him as king over Israel?
Fill your horn with oil, and go.
I will send you to Jesse of Bethlehem;
for I have provided a king for myself among his sons.”
Samuel said, “How can I go?
If Saul hears it, he will kill me.”
The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you,
and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’
Call Jesse to the sacrifice,
and I will show you what you shall do.
You shall anoint for me
him whom I name to you.”

Samuel did what the Lord said,
and came to Bethlehem.
The elders of the city
came to meet him trembling, and said,
“Do you come peaceably?”
He said, “Peaceably;
I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.
Sanctify yourselves,
and come with me to the sacrifice.”
He sanctified Jesse and his sons,
and called them to the sacrifice.
When they had come,
he looked at Eliab, and said that,
surely the Lord’s anointed is before him.
But the Lord said to Samuel,
“Do not look on his face,
or on the height of his stature;
for I have rejected him.
I see not as a human sees;
for a human looks at the outward appearance,
but the Lord looks at the heart.”
Then Jesse called Abinadab,
and made him pass before Samuel.
He said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.”
Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by.
He said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.”
Jesse made seven of his sons
pass before Samuel.
Samuel said to Jesse,
“The Lord has not chosen these.”

Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your children here?”
He said, “There remains yet the youngest,
and behold, he is keeping the sheep.”
Samuel said to Jesse,
“Send and get him;
for we will not sit down until he comes here.”
He sent, and brought him in.
Now he was ruddy, and had a beautiful face,
and goodly to look on.
The Lord said, “Arise, anoint him; for this is he.”
Then Samuel took the horn of oil,
and anointed him in the midst of his brothers:
and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily
on David from that day forward.
Then Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

Responsorial – Psalm 89.20, 21-22, 27-28 Resp. 21a

R. I have found David, my servant.

You spoke in a vision
to your saints you said,
“I have bestowed strength on the warrior.
I have exalted a young man over the people.

R. I have found David, my servant.

I have found David, my servant.
I have anointed him with my holy oil,
with whom my hand shall be established.
My arm will also strengthen him.

R. I have found David, my servant.

He will call to me, ‘You are my Father,
my God, and the rock of my salvation!’
I will appoint him my firstborn,
the highest of the kings of the earth.

R. I have found David, my servant.

Gospel – Mark 2.23-28

As Jesus was going on the Sabbath through the grain fields,
his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of grain.
The Pharisees said to him,
“Behold, why do they do that
which is not lawful on the Sabbath?”
He said to them,
“Did you never read what David did,
when he was in need and hungry,
he, and those who were with him?
How he entered into God’s house
when Abiathar was high priest,
and ate the show bread,
which it is not lawful to eat, except for the priests,
and also gave some to those who were with him?”
He said to them,
“The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.
Therefore the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”

Monday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 1 Samuel 15.16-23

Then Samuel said to Saul,
“Stay, and I will tell you what the Lord
said to me last night.”
He said to him, “Go on.”
Samuel said, “Though little in your own sight,
were you not made the head of the tribes of Israel?
The Lord anointed you king over Israel;
and the Lord sent you on a journey, and said,
‘Go, and utterly destroy the sinning Amalekites,
and fight against them until they are destroyed.’
Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord,
but took the plunder,
and did what was evil in the sight of the Lord?”
Saul said to Samuel,
“But I have obeyed the voice of the Lord,
and have gone the way which the Lord sent me,
and have brought Agag the king of Amalek,
and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.
But the people took of the plunder,
sheep and cattle, the chief of the devoted things,
to sacrifice to the Lord your God in Gilgal.”
Samuel said, “Has the Lord as great delight
in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
as in obeying the voice of the Lord?
Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,
and to listen than the fat of rams.
For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,
and stubbornness is as idolatry.
Because you have rejected the Lord’s word,
he has also rejected you as king.”

Responsorial – Psalm 50.8-9, 16bc-17, 21+23 Resp. 23b

R. I will show God’s salvation to the just.

I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices.
Your burnt offerings are continually before me.
I have no need for a bull from your stall,
nor male goats from your pens.

R. I will show God’s salvation to the just.

“What right do you have to declare my statutes,
and to have my covenant on your lips,
since you hate instruction,
and throw my words behind you?

R. I will show God’s salvation to the just.

You have done these things, and I kept silent,
so you thought that I was just like you.
I will rebuke you, and accuse you before your own eyes.
Whoever offers the sacrifice of thanksgiving glorifies me,
and to him who rightly goes his way, I will show God’s salvation .”

R. I will show God’s salvation to the just.

Gospel – Mark 2.18-22

John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting,
and they came and asked him,
“Why do John’s disciples
and the disciples of the Pharisees fast,
but your disciples do not fast?”
Jesus said to them,
“Can the groomsmen fast
while the bridegroom is with them?
As long as they have the bridegroom with them,
they cannot fast.
But the days will come when the bridegroom
will be taken away from them,
and then will they fast in that day.

No one sews a piece of unshrunken cloth
on an old garment, else the patch shrinks
and the new tears away from the old,
and a worse hole is made.
No one puts new wine into old wineskins,
or else the new wine will burst the skins,
and the wine and the skins will be destroyed;
so they put new wine into fresh wineskins.”

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – Isaiah 49.3, 5-6

The Lord said to me,
“You are my servant; Israel,
in whom I will be glorified.”

Now the Lord,
he who formed me from the womb to be his servant,
says to bring Jacob again to him,
and that Israel be gathered to him.
I am honorable in the eyes of the Lord,
and my God has become my strength.
Indeed, 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 also make you a light to the nations,
that you may be my salvation to the end of the earth.”

Responsorial – Psalm 40.2+4, 7-8a, 8b-9, 10 R. 8a+9a

R. Behold, I have come; I delight to do your will, my God.

I waited patiently for the Lord.
He turned to me, and heard my cry.
And he put a new song into my mouth,
a hymn to our God.

R. Behold, I have come; I delight to do your will, my God.

Sacrifice and offering you did not desire.
You have opened my ears.
You have not required burnt offering and sin offering.
Then I said, “Behold, I have come.

R. Behold, I have come; I delight to do your will, my God.

It is written about me in the scroll:
“I delight to do your will, my God.
Yes, your law is within my heart.”

R. Behold, I have come; I delight to do your will, my God.

I have proclaimed glad news
of righteousness in the great assembly.
Behold, you know I will not seal my lips, O Lord.

R. Behold, I have come; I delight to do your will, my God.

Reading 2 – 1 Corinthians 1.1-3

Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God,
and our brother Sosthenes,
to the Church of God at Corinth;
those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints,
with all who, in every place, call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
their Lord and ours.

Grace to you and peace,
from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Gospel – John 1.29-34

John the Baptist saw Jesus coming to him, and said,
“Behold, the Lamb of God,
who takes away the sin of the world!
This is he of whom I said,
‘After me comes a man
who is ranked before me, for he existed before me.’
I did not know him,
but for this reason I came baptizing in water:
that he would be revealed to Israel.”

John testified, saying,
“I have seen the Spirit
descending like a dove out of heaven,
and it remained on him.
I did not recognize him,
but he who sent me to baptize with water,
he said to me, ‘On whomever you will see
the Spirit descending, and remaining on him,
that one is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’
I have seen and have testified
that this is the Son of God.”

Saturday of the First Week In Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 1 Samuel 9.1-4, 17-19; 10.1

Now there was a man of Benjamin,
whose name was Kish,
the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror,
the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah,
the son of a Benjamite, a mighty man of valor.

He had a son, whose name was Saul,
an impressive young man,
and there was not among the children of Israel
a greater person than he.
From his shoulders up,
he was taller than any of the people.
The donkeys of Kish, Saul’s father, were lost.
Kish said to Saul his son,
“Take one of the servants with you,
and arise, go seek the donkeys.”

He passed through the hill country of Ephraim,
and passed through the land of Shalishah,
but they did not find them.
Then they passed through the land of Shaalim,
and there they were not there.
Then he passed through the land of the Benjamites,
but they did not find them.

When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said to him,
“Behold, the man of whom I spoke to you!
This very man shall have authority over my people.”
Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate,
and said, “Please tell me where the seer’s house is.”
Samuel answered Saul, and said,
“I am the seer. Go up before me to the high place,
for you shall eat with me today.
In the morning I will let you go,
and will tell you all that is in your heart.

Then Samuel took a flask of oil
and poured it on his head and kissed him and said,
“Has not the Lord anointed you to be a leader over his people Israel?
And you shall reign over the people of the Lord, Israel,
and you will save them from the hand of their enemies that surround them.
And this shall be the sign to you
that the Lord has anointed you to be a leader over his heritage.”

Responsorial – Psalm 21:2-3, 4-5, 6-7 Resp. 2a

R. The king rejoices in your strength, the Lord!

The king rejoices in your strength, the Lord!
How greatly he rejoices in your salvation!
You have given him his heart’s desire,
and have not withheld the request of his lips.

R. The king rejoices in your strength, the Lord!

For you meet him with the blessings of goodness.
You set a crown of fine gold on his head.
He asked life of you, you gave it to him,
even length of days forever and ever.

R. The king rejoices in your strength, the Lord!

His glory is great in your salvation.
You lay honor and majesty on him.
For you make him most blessed forever.
You make him glad with joy in your presence.

R. The king rejoices in your strength, the Lord!

Gospel – Mark 2.13-17

Jesus went out again by the seaside.
All the multitude came to him,
and he taught them.
As he passed by, he saw
Levi, the son of Alphaeus,
sitting at the tax office, and he said to him,
“Follow me”, and he arose and followed him.

As he was reclining at the table in his house,
many tax collectors and sinners
sat down with Jesus and his disciples,
for there were many and they followed him.
The scribes and the Pharisees,
when they saw that he was eating with
the sinners and tax collectors,
said to his disciples, “Why is it that
he eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?”
When Jesus heard it, he said to them,
“Those who are healthy have no need for a doctor,
but those who are sick do.
I came not to call the righteous but sinners.”

Friday of the First Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 1 Samuel 8.4-7, 10-22a

All the elders of Israel gathered themselves together,
and came to Samuel at Ramah; and they said to him,
“Behold, you are old,
and your sons do not walk in your ways:
now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.”
But the thing displeased Samuel,
when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.”
Samuel prayed to the Lord.

Samuel told all the Lord’s words to the people
who asked of him a king.
He said, “This will be the way of the king
who shall reign over you: he will take your sons
and assign them for his chariots and to be his horsemen;
and they shall run before his chariots;
and he will appoint them as captains of thousands,
and captains of fifties;
and he will assign some to plow his ground,
and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war,
and the instruments of his chariots.
He will take your daughters to be perfumers,
and to be cooks, and to be bakers.
He will take your fields, and your vineyards,
and your olive groves, even their best,
and give them to his servants.
He will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards,
and give to his officers and to his servants.
He will take your male servants and your female servants,
and your best young men, and your donkeys,
and put them to his work.
He will take the tenth of your flocks:
and you shall be his servants.

You shall cry out in that day because of your king
whom you shall have chosen for yourself,
and the Lord will not answer you on that day.”
But the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel,
and they said, “No; but we will have a king over us,
that we also may be like all the nations,
and that our king may judge us,
and go out before us and fight our battles.”
Samuel heard all the words of the people,
and he repeated them in the ears of the Lord.
The Lord said to Samuel, “Listen to their voice and give them a king.”

Responsorial – Psalm 89.16-17, 18-19 Resp. 2

R. I will sing of the loving kindness of the Lord forever.

Blessed are the people who learn to acclaim you.
They walk in the light of your presence, O Lord.
In your name they rejoice all day.
In your righteousness, they are exalted.

R. I will sing of the loving kindness of the Lord forever.

For you are the glory of their strength.
In your favor, our horn will be exalted.
For our shield belongs to the Lord,
our king to the Holy One of Israel.

R. I will sing of the loving kindness of the Lord forever.

Gospel – Mark 2.1-12

When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days,
it was heard that he was in the house.
Immediately many were gathered together,
so that there was no more room,
not even around the door;
and he spoke the word to them.

And a paralyzed person came to him, carried by four people.
When they could not come near to him because of the crowd,
they removed the roof where he was.
When they had broken it up,
they let down the mat that the paralyzed one was lying on.
Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralyzed one,
“Child, your sins are forgiven you.”
But there were some of the scribes sitting there,
and reasoning in their hearts,
“Why does this man speak blasphemies like that?
Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
Immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit
that they so reasoned within themselves, said to them,
“Why do you think such things in your hearts?
Which is easier, to tell the paralyzed one, ‘Your sins are forgiven;’
or to say, ‘Arise, take up your bed, and walk?’
But that you may know that the Son of Man
has authority on earth to forgive sins”—
he said to the paralyzed one—
“I tell you, arise, take up your mat, and go to your house.”
He arose, and immediately took up the mat,
and went out in front of them all;
so that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying,
“We never saw anything like this!”

Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 - 1 Samuel 4.1-11

Now Israel went out against the Philistines for battle,
and encamped beside Ebenezer,
and the Philistines encamped in Aphek.
The Philistines put themselves in array against Israel:
and when they fought the battle,
Israel was struck drown before the Philistines,
who killed from the army in the field
about four thousand men.

When the soldiers had returned to the camp,
the elders of Israel said,
“Why has the Lord struck us today before the Philistines?
Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord
out of Shiloh to us here, that it may come among us,
and save us out of the hand of our enemies.”
So the people sent to Shiloh, and they brought from there
the ark of the covenant of the Lord of Armies,
who sits above the cherubim,
and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas,
were there with the ark of the covenant of God.

When the ark of the covenant of the Lord
came into the camp,
all Israel shouted with a great shout,
so that the earth rang with it.
When the Philistines heard the noise of the shout,
they said, “What does the noise
of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews mean?”
Then they learned that the Lord’s ark had come into the camp.
The Philistines were afraid, for they said,
“God has come into the camp.”
They said, “Woe to us! For there has not been such a thing before.
Woe to us! Who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty gods?
These are the gods that struck the Egyptians
with all kinds of plagues in the wilderness.
Be strong, and behave like men,
O you Philistines, so that you do not become enslaved to the Hebrews,
as they have been to you.
Strengthen yourselves like men, and fight!”
The Philistines fought, and Israel was struck,
and they fled every man to his tent.
There was a very great slaughter;
for there fell of Israel thirty thousand soldiers.
The ark of God was taken;
and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.

Responsorial – Psalm 44.10-11, 14-15, 24-25 Resp. 27b

R. Redeem us Lord, because of your loving kindness.

But now you rejected us, and brought us to dishonor,
and do not go forth with our armies.
You make us turn back from the adversary.
Those who hate us take plunder for themselves.

R. Redeem us Lord, because of your loving kindness.

You make us a reproach to our neighbors,
a scoffing and a derision to those who are around us.
You make us a byword among the nations,
a shaking of the head among the peoples.

R. Redeem us Lord, because of your loving kindness.

Why do you hide your face,
and forget our affliction and our oppression?
For our souls are bowed down to the dust.
Our bodies cling to the earth.

R. Redeem us Lord, because of your loving kindness.

Gospel - Mark 1.40-45

A leper came to him, begging him,
kneeling down to him, and saying to him,
“If you want to, you can make me clean.”
Being moved with compassion,
he stretched out his hand,
and touched him, and said to him,
“I want to. Be made clean.”
When he had said this,
immediately the leprosy departed from him,
and he was made clean.
He strictly warned him,
and immediately sent him out,
and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anybody,
but go show yourself to the priest,
and offer for your cleansing
the things which Moses commanded,
for a testimony to them.”
But that man went out, and began to proclaim it a lot,
and to spread the report of it,
so that Jesus could no longer openly enter into a city,
but was outside in desert places,
and they came to him from everywhere.

Wednesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 - 1 Samuel 3.1-10, 19-20

Young Samuel ministered to the Lord before Eli.
The word of the Lord was rare in those days;
there was no frequent vision.
One time, Eli had laid down in his place.
Now his eyes had begun to grow dim,
so that he could not see,
and the lamp of God had not yet gone out,
and Samuel had laid down in the Lord’s temple,
where the ark of God was.

The Lord called Samuel;
and he said, “Here I am.”
He ran to Eli, and said,
“Here I am; for you called me.”
He said, “I did not call; lie down again.”
He went and lay down.
The Lord called yet again, “Samuel!”
Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said,
“Here I am; for you called me.”
He answered, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.”
Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord,
and the word of the Lord was not yet revealed to him.
The Lord called Samuel again the third time.
He arose and went to Eli, and said,
“Here I am; for you called me.”
Eli perceived that the Lord had called the child.
Therefore Eli said to Samuel,
“Go, lie down: and do thusly:
if he calls you, say,
‘Speak, Lord; for your servant listens.’”
So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
The Lord came, and stood,
and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”
Then Samuel said, “Speak; for your servant listens.”

Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him,
and let none of his words fall to the ground.
All Israel from Dan even to Beersheba
knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord.

Responsorial – Psalm 40.2+5, 7-8a, 8b-9, 10 R. 8a+9a

R. Behold, I have come; I delight to do your will, my God.

I waited patiently for the Lord.
He turned to me, and heard my cry.
Blessed is the human who makes the Lord his trust,
and does not respect idols,
nor those who turn away to lies.

R. Behold, I have come; I delight to do your will, my God.

Sacrifice and offering you did not desire.
You have opened my ears.
You have not required burnt offering and sin offering.
Then I said, “Behold, I have come.

R. Behold, I have come; I delight to do your will, my God.

It is written about me in the scroll:
“I delight to do your will, my God.
Yes, your law is within my heart.”

R. Behold, I have come; I delight to do your will, my God.

I have proclaimed glad news
of righteousness in the great assembly.
Behold, you know I will not seal my lips, O Lord.

R. Behold, I have come; I delight to do your will, my God.

Gospel – Mark 1.29-39

Immediately, when they had come out of the synagogue,
they entered the house of Simon and Andrew,
with James and John.
Now Simon’s mother-in-law lay sick with a fever,
and immediately they told him about her.
He came and took her by the hand, and raised her up.
The fever left her, and she served them.

At evening, when the sun had set,
they brought to him all who were sick
and those who were possessed by demons.
All the city was gathered together at the door.
He healed many who were sick with various diseases
and cast out many demons.
He did not allow the demons to speak,
since they knew him.

Early in the morning, while it was still dark,
he rose up and went out
and left for a deserted place and prayed there.
Simon and those who were with him
followed after him, and they found him,
and told him, “Everyone is looking for you.”
He said to them, “Let us go elsewhere
to the next towns, that I may preach there also,
because I came out for this reason.”
He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee,
preaching and casting out demons.

Tuesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Reading 1 – 1 Samuel 1.9-20

So Hannah rose up
after they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh.
Now Eli the priest was sitting on his seat
by the doorpost of the Lord’s temple.
She was in bitterness of soul,
and prayed to the Lord, weeping bitterly.
She vowed a vow, and said, “The Lord of Armies,
if you will indeed look
on the affliction of your handmaid,
and remember me, and not forget your handmaid,
but will give to your handmaid a boy,
then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life,
and no razor shall come on his head.”

It happened, as she continued praying before the Lord,
that Eli saw her mouth.
Now Hannah spoke in her heart.
Only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard.
Therefore Eli thought she was drunk.
Eli said to her, “How long will you be drunk?
Put away your wine.”
Hannah answered,
“No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit.
I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink,
but I poured out my soul before the Lord.
Do not think your handmaid a wicked woman;
for I have been speaking out of the abundance
of my complaint and my provocation.”

Then Eli answered, “Go in peace;
and may the God of Israel grant your petition
that you have asked of him.”
She said, “Let your handmaid find favor in your sight.”
So the woman went her way, and ate;
and her face was not sad anymore.
They rose up in the morning early,
and worshiped before the Lord,
and returned, and came to their house to Ramah:
and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife;
and the Lord remembered her.
It happened, when the time had come,
that Hannah conceived and bore a son;
and she named him Samuel, saying,
“I have asked for him from the Lord.”

Responsorial – 1 Samuel 2.1, 4-5, 6-7, 8abcd Resp. 1, Luke 1.47

R. My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

“My heart exults in the Lord!
My horn is exalted in the Lord.
My mouth is enlarged over my enemies,
because I rejoice in your salvation.

R. My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

“The bows of the mighty are broken.
Those who stumbled are armed with strength.
Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread.
Those who were hungry are satisfied.
Yes, the barren one has borne seven.
She who has many children languishes.

R. My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

“The Lord kills and gives life.
He brings down to Sheol,
and brings up.
The Lord makes poor and makes rich.
He brings low;
he also lifts up.

R. My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

He raises up the poor out of the dust.
He lifts up the needy from the dunghill,
To have them sit with princes,
and inherit the throne of glory.

R. My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.

Gospel – Mark 1.21-28

Jesus and his disciples went into Capernaum,
and immediately on the Sabbath
he entered the synagogue and taught.
They were astonished at his teaching,
for he taught them with authority,
and not as the scribes.
Immediately there was in their synagogue
a man with an unclean spirit,
and he cried out saying,
“What do you have to do with us , Jesus of Nazareth?
Have you come to destroy us?
I know you who you are: the Holy One of God!”
Jesus rebuked him, saying,
“Be quiet, and come out of him!”
The unclean spirit,
convulsing him and crying with a loud voice,
came out of him.
They were all amazed,
so that they asked one another, saying,
“What is this? A new teaching?
For with authority he commands
even the unclean spirits, and they obey him!”
The report of him went out immediately
everywhere in all the region of Galilee.

Monday of the First Week in Ordinary Time (II)

Official Translation

Monday of the First Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 - 1 Samuel 1.1-8

There was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim, of the hill country of Ephraim,
whose name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu,
the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite.
He had two wives; the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of other Peninnah,
and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
Every year, this man went up from his city to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of Hosts in Shiloh.
The two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, priests to the Lord, were there.
When the day came that Elkanah sacrificed,
he gave to Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters, portions,
but to Hannah he gave a double portion, for he loved Hannah though the Lord had shut up her womb.
Her rival seriously provoked her, to make her fret, because the Lord had shut up her womb.
Thus she did, year by year, when she went up to the house of the Lord, she provoked her;
therefore she wept, and did not eat.
Elkanah her husband said to her,
“Hannah, why do you weep? And why do not you eat? And why is your heart grieved?
Am I not more to you than ten sons?”

Responsorial - Psalm 116.12-13, 14-17, 18-19 Resp. 17a

R. I will offer to you Lord the sacrifice of thanksgiving. or R. Alleluia.

What will I give to the Lord
for all his benefits toward me?
I will take the cup of salvation,
and call on the name of the Lord.

R. I will offer to you Lord the sacrifice of thanksgiving. or R. Alleluia.

I will pay my vows to the Lord,
yes, in the presence of all his people.
Precious in the sight of the Lord
is the death of his saints.
O Lord, truly I am your servant.
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid.
You have freed me from my chains.

R. I will offer to you Lord the sacrifice of thanksgiving. or R. Alleluia.

I will pay my vows to the Lord,
yes, in the presence of all his people,
in the courts of the Lord’s house,
in your midst Jerusalem.

R. I will offer to you Lord the sacrifice of thanksgiving. or R. Alleluia.

Gospel - Mark 1.14-20

After John was taken into custody,
Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, and saying,
“The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand! Change your mind, and believe in the Gospel.”
Passing along by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon,
casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.
Jesus said to them, “Come follow me, and I will make you to become fishers of humans.”
Immediately they left their nets, and followed him.
Going on a little further from there, he saw James, the son of Zebedee, and John, his brother,
who were also in the boat mending the nets.
Immediately he called them, and they left their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired servants,
and went and followed him.