Sunday Mass

FIRST READING: Book of Wisdom 7:7-11

Compared with Wisdom, I held riches as nothing.

I prayed, and understanding was given me; I entreated, and the Spirit of Wisdom came to me.
I esteemed her more than sceptres and thrones; compared with her, I held riches as nothing.
I reckoned no priceless stone to be her peer, for compared with her, all gold is a pinch of sand,
and beside her silver ranks as mud.

I loved her more than health or beauty, preferred her to the light,
since her radiance never sleeps.
In her company all good things came to me, at her hands riches not to be numbered.

The Word of the Lord.

Psalm 89:12-17

Response: - Fill us with your love that we may rejoice.

or - Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!

1. Make us know the shortness of our life that we may gain wisdom of heart.
Lord, relent! Is your anger for ever? Show pity to your servants. - Response

2. In the morning, fill us with your love; we shall exult and rejoice all our days.
Give us joy to balance our affliction for the years when we knew misfortune. - Response

3. Show forth your work to your servants; let your glory shine on their children.
Let the favour of the Lord be upon us: give success to the work of our hands. - Response

SECOND READING: Hebrews 4:12-13

The word of God can judge the secret emotions and thoughts.

The word of God is something alive and active:
it cuts like any double-edged sword but more finely:
it can slip through the place where the soul is divided from the spirit, or joints from the marrow;
it can judge the secret emotions and thoughts.
No created thing can hide from him; everything is uncovered and
open to the eyes of the one to whom we must give account of ourselves.

The Word of the Lord.

GOSPEL ACCLAMATION : Mt 11: 25

Alleluia, alleluia!
Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
for revealing the mysteries of the kingdom to mere children.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL : Mark 10:17-30

Go and sell everything you own and follow me.

Jesus was setting out on a journey when a man ran up, knelt before him and put this question to him,
‘Good master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’
Jesus said to him,
‘Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.
You know the commandments: You must not kill; You must not commit adultery;
You must not steal; You must not bring false witness;
You must not defraud; Honour your father and mother.‘

And he said to him,
‘Master, I have kept all these from my earliest days.’
Jesus looked steadily at him and loved him, and he said,
‘There is one thing you lack. Go and sell everything you own and give the money to the poor,
and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’
But his face fell at these words and he went away sad, for he was a man of great wealth.

Jesus looked round and said to his disciples,
‘How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!’
The disciples were astounded by these words, but Jesus insisted,
‘My children,’ he said to them, ‘how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!
It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.‘
They were more astonished than ever.

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 (2024) is Year B Sundays / Year II Weekdays

Year (2025) is Year C Sundays / Year I Weekdays