This Sunday's Readings;

FIRST READING: Book of the Prophet Job 3:1.8-11

Here your proud waves shall break.

From the heart of tempest the Lord gave Job his answer. He said:

Who pent up the sea behind closed doors when it leapt tumultuous out of the womb,
when I wrapped it in a robe of mist and made black clouds its swaddling bands;
when I marked the bounds it was not to cross and made it fast with a bolted gate?
Come thus far, I said, and no farther: here your proud waves shall break.

The Word of the Lord.

Psalm 106

Response: - O give thanks to the Lord,for his love endures for ever.

or - Alleluia!

1. Some sailed to the sea in ships
to trade on the mighty waters.
These men have seen the Lord’s deeds,
the wonders he does in the deep. - Response

2. For he spoke; he summoned the gale.
tossing the waves of the sea
up to heaven and back into the deep;
their soul melted away in their distress. - Response

3. Then they cried to the Lord in their need
and he rescued them from their distress
He stilled the storm to a whisper:
all the waves of the sea were hushed. - Response

4. They rejoiced because of the calm
and he led them to the haven they desired.
Let them thank the Lord for his love,
the wonders he does for men. - Response

SECOND READING: St Paul to the Corinthians 5:14-17

Now the new creation is here.

Now the new creation is here. The love of Christ overwhelms us when we reflect that if one man has died for all, then all men should be dead; and the reason he died for all was so that living men should live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised to life for them.

From now onwards, therefore, we do not’ judge anyone by. the standards of the flesh. Even if we did once know Christ in the flesh, that is not how we know him now. And for anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation; the old creation has gone, and now the new one is here.

The Word of the Lord.

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION : Eph 1:17. 18

Alleluia, alleluia!
May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christenlighten the eyes of our mind,
so that we can see what hope his call holds for us.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL : Mark 4:35-41

Who can this be? Even the wind and the sea obey him.’

With the coming of evening, Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Let us cross over to the other side.’ And leaving the crowd behind they took him, just as he was, in the boat; and there were other boats with him. Then it began to blow a gale and the waves were breaking into the boat so that it was almost swamped. But he was in the stern, his head on the cushion, asleep. They woke him and said to him, ‘Master, do you not care? We are going down!’

And he woke up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Quiet now! Be calm!’ And the wind dropped, and all was calm again. Then he said to them, ‘Why are you so frightened? How is it that you have no faith?’ They were filled with awe and said to one another, ‘Who can this be? Even the wind and the sea obey him.’

The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Readings from The Jerusalem Bible © 1966 by Darton Longman & Todd Ltd and Doubleday and Company Ltd.
Psalm © The Grail (England) published by HarperCollins.

Understanding the Liturgical Cycle

The Lectionary is arranged into two cycles, one for Sundays and one for weekdays. The Sunday cycle is divided into three years, labeled A, B, and C. 2005 was Year A, 2006 was Year B, 2007 was Year C, and so on. The Liturgical Year begins on the 1st Sunday of Advent (usually late November) and ends with the Feast of Christ the King.

In Year A, we read mostly from the gospel of Matthew. In Year B, we read the gospel of Mark and chapter 6 of the gospel of John. In Year C, we read the gospel of Luke. The gospel of John is read during the Easter season in all three years.

The first reading, usually from the Old Testament, reflects important themes from the gospel reading. The second reading is usually from one of the epistles, a letter written to an early church community. These letters are read semi-continuously. Each Sunday, we pick up close to where we left off the Sunday before, though some passages are never read.

The weekday cycle is divided into two years, Year I and Year II. Year I is read in odd-numbered years (2003, 2005, etc.) and Year II is used in even-numbered years (2002, 2004, etc.) The gospels for both years are the same. During the year, the gospels are read semi-continuously, beginning with Mark, then moving on to Matthew and Luke. The gospel of John is read during the Easter season. For Advent , Christmas, and Lent , readings are chosen that are appropriate to the season. The first reading on weekdays may be taken from the Old or the New Testament. Typically, a single book is read semi-continuously (i.e. some passages are not read) until it is finished and then a new book is started.

Year (2020) is Year A Sundays / Year II Weekdays
Year (2021) is Year B Sundays / Year I Weekdays