2nd Sunday of Lent

Date: February 24, 2013

First Reading (Genesis 15: 5–12 and 17–18)
A reading from the book of Genesis.
The Lord God brought Abram outside and stated to him, "Look up at the sky and count the stars if you can. Your descendants will like that." Abram believed in the Lord who, because of this, held him to be an upright man. And he stated, "I am the Lord who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as your possession." Then Abram asked, "My Lord, how am I to know that it shall be mine?" The Lord replied, "Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove and a young pigeon." Abram brought all these animals, cut them in two, and laid each half facing its other half, but he did cut the birds in half. The birds of prey came down upon them, but Abram drove them away. As the sun was going down, a deep sleep came over Abram, and a dreadful darkness took hold of him. When the sun had already set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot and a flaming torch passed between the halves of the victims. On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, stating, "To your descendants I have given this country from the river of Egypt to the Great River, the Euphrates."

Second Reading (Philippians 3:17 – 4:1)
A reading from the letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians.
Unite in imitating me, brothers and sisters, and look at those who walk in our way of life. For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. I have stated it to you many times, and now I repeat it with tears: they are heading for ruin; their belly is their god and they feel proud of what should be their shame. They only think of earthly things. For us, citizenship is in heaven, from where we await the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ, the Lord. He will transfigure our lowly body, making it like his own body, radiant in Glory, through the power which is his to submit everything to himself. Therefore, my brothers and  sisters, whom I love and long for, you my glory and crown, be steadfast in the Lord.

Gospel (Luke 9: 28b–36)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke.
Jesus took Peter, John and James and went up to the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the aspect of his face was changed and his clothing became dazzling white. Two men were conversing with Jesus: Moses and Elijah. They had just appeared in heavenly glory and were telling him about his departure that had to take place in Jerusalem. Peter and his companions had fallen asleep, but they awoke suddenly and saw Jesus' Glory and the two men standing with him. As Moses and Elijah were about to leave, Peter stated to Jesus, "Master, how good it is for us to be here, for we can make three tents, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." For Peter did not know what to say. And no sooner had he spoken than a cloud appeared and covered them; and the disciples were afraid as they entered the cloud. Then these words came from the cloud: "This is my Son, my Chosen one, listen to him." And after the voice had spoken, Jesus was alone; Moses and Elijah had vanished. The disciples kept this to themselves at the time, telling no one of anything they had seen.

1st Sunday of Lent

Date: February 17, 2013

First Reading (Deuteronomy 26: 4–10)
A reading from the book of Deuteronomy.
Moses proclaimed to the people, "The priest shall take the large basket from your hands and place it before the altar of the Lord, your God, and you shall say these words before the Lord, 'My father was a wandering Aramean. He went down to Egypt to find refuge there, while still few in number; but in that country, he became a great and powerful nation. The Egyptians maltreated us, oppressed us and subjected us to harsh slavery. So we called to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, and the Lord listened to us. He saw our humiliation, our hard labor and the oppression to which we were subjected. He brought us out of Egypt with a firm hand, manifesting his power with signs and awesome wonders. And he brought us here to give us this land flowing with milk and honey. So now I bring and offer the firstfruits of the land which you, the Lord, have given me.'"

Second Reading (Romans 10: 8–13)
A reading from the letter of Saint Paul to the Romans.
Brothers and sisters: What does Scripture say? The word of God is near your, on your lips and in your hearts. This is the message that we preach, and this is faith. You are saved if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and in your heart you believe that God raised him from the dead. By believing from the heart, you obtain true righteousness; by confessing the faith with your lips you are saved. For Scripture says: No one who believes in him will be ashamed. Here there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; all have the same Lord, who is very generous with whoever calls on him. Truly, all who call upon the name of the Lord will be saved.

Gospel (Luke 4: 1–13)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke.
Jesus was now full of Holy Spirit as he returned from the Jordan, the Spirit led him into the desert where he was tempted by the devil for forty days. He did not eat anything during that time, and in the end, he was hungry. The devil then stated to him, "If you are the son of God, tell this stone to transform into bread." However, Jesus answered, "But the Scripture states: People cannot live on bread alone." Then the devil took him up to a high place and shows him in a flash all the nations of the world. And he stated to Jesus, "I can give your power over all the nations and their wealth have been delivered to me and I give them to whom I wish. All this will be yours provided you worship me." But Jesus replied, "But the Scripture states: You shall worship the Lord your God and serve him alone." Then the devil took Jesus up to Jerusalem and set him on the highest wall of the Temple; and he stated, "If you are the son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written in the Scriptures: God will order his angels to take care of you and again: They will hold you in their hands, lest you hurt your foot against the stones." But Jesus replied, "But Scripture also states: You shall not challenge the Lord your God." When the devil had exhausted every way of tempting Jesus, he left him, to return another time.

Ash Wednesday

Date: February 13, 2013

First Reading (Joel 2: 12–18)
A reading from the book of Joel.
The Lord says, "Yet even now, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, weeping and mourning. Rend your heart, not your garment. Return to the Lord, your God — gracious and compassionate." The Lord is slow to anger, full of kindness and he repents of having punished. Who knows? Probably he will relent once more and spare some part of the harvest from which we may bring sacred offerings to the Lord, your God. Blow the trumpet in Zion, proclaim a sacred fast, call a solemn assembly. Gather the people, sanctify the community, bring together the elders, even the children and infants at the breast. Let the bridegroom leave his bed, and the bride her room. Between the vestibule and the altar, let the priests, the Lord's ministers, weep and say: Spare your people, O Lord. Do not humble them or make them an object of scorn among the nations. Why should it be stated among the peoples: Where is their God? Yahweh has become jealous for his land; he has had pity on his people.

Second Reading (2 Corinthians 5:20 – 6:2)
A reading from the second letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians.
Brothers and sisters: So we present ourselves as ambassadors in the name of Christ, as if God himself makes an appeal to you; through us. Let God reconcile you, this we ask you in the name of Christ. He had no sin, but God made him bear our sin, so that in him we might share the holiness of God. Being God's helpers we implore you, let it not be in vain that you received this grace of God. For the Scripture says: At the favorable time I listened to you, on the day of salvation I helped you. This is the favorable time and this is the day of salvation.

Gospel (Matthew 6: 1–6 and 16–18)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew.
Jesus states this by teaching his disciples up on the mountain: "Be careful not to make a show of your righteousness before people. If you do so, you will not gain anything from your Father in heaven. When you give something to the poor, do not have it trumpeted before you, as do those who want to be seen in the synagogues and in the streets in order to be praised by the people. I assure you, they have been already paid in full. If you give something to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your gift remains really secret. Your Father who sees what is kept confidential, shall reward you. When you pray, do not be like those who want to be seen. They love to stand and pray in the synagogues or on street corners to be seen by everyone. I assure you, they have already been paid in full. When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father who is with you in secret; and your Father who sees what is kept confidential, shall reward you. When you fast, do not put on a miserable face as what the hypocrites do. They put on a gloomy face, so people can see that they are fasting. I tell you this: they have been paid in full already. When you fast, wash your face and make yourself look cheerful, because you are not fasting for appearances or for people, but for your Father who sees beyond appearances. And your Father, who sees what is kept confidential, shall reward you."

5th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Date: February 10, 2013

First Reading (Isaiah 6: 1-2a and 3-8)
A reading from the book of the Prophet Isaiah.
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted; the train of his robe filled the Temple. Above him were seraphs. They were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is Yahweh Sabaoth. All the earth is filled with his Glory!" At the sound of their voices the foundations of the threshold shook and the Temple was filled with smoke. I stated, "Poor me! I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips living among a people of unclean lips, and yet I have seen the King, Yahweh Sabaoth. Then one of the seraphs flew to me; in his hands was a live coal which he had taken with tongs from the altar. He touched my mouth with it and stated, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin is forgiven." Then I heard the voice of the Lord, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" I answered, "Here I am. Send me!"

Second Reading (1 Corinthians 15: 1-11)
A reading from the first letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians.
Let me remind you, brothers and sisters, of the Good News that I preached to you and which your received and on which you stand firm. By that Gospel you are saved, provided that you hold to it as I preached it. Otherwise, you will have believed in vain. In the first place, I have passed on to you what I myself received: that Christ died for our sins, as Scripture states; that he was buried; that he was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures; that he appeared to Cephas and then to the Twelve. Afterwards he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters together; most of them are still alive, although some have already gone to rest. Then he appeared to James and after that to all the apostles. And last of all, he appeared to the most despicable of them, this is to me. For I am the last of the apostles, and I do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God. Nevertheless, by the grace of God, I am what I am, and his grace towards me has not been without fruit. Far from it, I have toiled more than all of them, although not I, rather the grace of God in me. Now, whether it was I or they, this we preach and this you have believed.

Gospel (Luke 5: 1-11)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke.
One day, as Jesus stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, with a crowd gathered around him listening to the word of God, he caught sight of two boats left at the water's edge by the fishermen now washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to pull out a little from the shore. There he sat and continued to teach the crowd. When he had finished speaking, he stated to Simon, "Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch." Simon replied, "Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing. But if you say so, I will lower the nets." This they did and caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. They signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats almost to the point of sinking. Upon seeing this, Simon Peter fell at Jesus' knees, saying, "Leave me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!" For he and his companions were amazed at the catch they had made and so were Simon's partners, James and John, Zebedee's sons. Jesus stated to Simon, "Do not be afraid. You will catch people from now on." So they brought their boats to land and followed him, leaving everything.

4th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Date: February 3, 2013

First Reading (Jeremiah 1: 4–5 and 17–19)
A reading from the book of the Prophet Jeremiah.
The word of the Lord came to me, "Even before I formed you in the womb I have known you; even before you were born I had set you apart, and appointed you a prophet to the nations! But you, get ready for action; stand up and say to them all that I command you. Be not scared of them or I will scare you in their presence! See, I will make you a fortified city, a pillar of iron with walls of bronze, against all the nations, against the kings and princes of Judah, against the priests and the people of the land. They will fight against you but shall not over come you, for I am with you to rescue you — it is the Lord who speaks."

Second Reading (1 Corinthians 12:31 – 13:13)
A reading from the letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians.
Brothers and sisters: Be that as it may, set your hearts on the most precious gifts, and I will show you a much better way. If I could speak all the human and angelic tongues, but had no love, I would only be sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. If I had prophecy, knowing secret things with all kinds of knowledge, and had faith great enough to remove mountains, but had no love, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I had to the poor, and even gave up my own body, but only to receive praise and not through love, it would be of no value to me; I acquire nothing. Love is patient, kind, without envy. It is not boastful or arrogant. It is not ill-mannered nor does it seek its own interest. Love overcomes anger and forgets offenses. It does not take delight in wrong, but rejoices in truth. Love excuses everything, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love will never end. Prophecies may cease, tongues be silent and knowledge disappear. For knowledge grasps something of the truth and prophecy as well. And when what is perfect comes, everything imperfect will pass away. When I was a child, I thought and reasoned like a child, but when I grew up, I gave up childish ways. Likewise, at present we see dimly as in a faulty mirror, but then it shall be face to face. Now we know in part, but then I will know as I am known. Now we have faith, hope, and love, these three, but the greatest of these is love.

Gospel (Luke: 4: 21–30)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke.
Jesus stated to the people in the synagogue, "Today, these prophetic words come true even as you listen." All agreed with him and were lost in wonder, while he kept on speak of the grace of God. Nevertheless they asked, "Who is this but Joseph's son?" So, Jesus stated, "Doubtless you will quote me the saying: 'Doctor, heal yourself! Do here in your town what they say you did in Capernaum.'" Jesus added, "No prophet is honored in his own country. Truly, I say to you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens withheld rain for three years and six months and a great famine came over the whole land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow of Zarephath, in the country of Sidon. There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha, the prophet, and no one was healed except Naaman, the Syrian." On hearing these words, the whole assembly became indignant. They rose up and brought him out of the town, to the edge of the hill on which Nazareth is built, intending to throw him down the cliff. However, Jesus passed through their midst and went his way.