Invitation
May I hereby draw your attention to
the daily reading of the Gospel?
This invitation wants to share with You the joy
of the Gospel. Everyone, no one excepted,
can experience that joy by opening their hearts
to the healing power of God’s word.
Available every day.
Opening word
Through the purple of penance
breaks a little light today.
We may already rejoice
for the light coming into the world.
Let us open our hearts
and love the darkness no longer.
Let us look forward to the light that God brings to us
and let ourselves be fully imbued
of his saving nearness
in Jesus, his only-begotten Son.
FIRST READING 2 Chron. 36, 14-16,19-23
The Lord’s wrath and compassion are made clear
through the exile and deliverance of the people.
From the second Book of Chronicles
In those days, all the distinguished people and the people
were repeatedly guilty of the abominations of the pagans
and profaned the temple of Jerusalem
which was dedicated to the Lord.
And the Lord, the God of their forefathers,
sent envoys to them all the time,
for He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling.
But they despised God’s envoys,
mocked their message
and made fun of the prophets
so that finally the wrath of the Lord
did have to erupt mercilessly on the people.
The king of the Chaldeans had the temple set on fire
and tear down the wall of Jerusalem
and all the palaces he had burnt down
so that all the valuables were lost.
All those who had escaped the sword,
he sent them into exile in Babylon
where they had to serve him and his sons as slaves
until the Persian empire came to power.
Thus was fulfilled the prophecy
which the Lord had made through Jeremiah:
“As long as the land has not had its sabbatical years repaid ,
it will remain fallow: for seventy years.”
In the first year of reign of Cyrus, king of Persia,
the prophecy was fulfilled
which the Lord had made through Jeremiah:
the Lord raised the spirit of Cyrus, king of Persia.
The latter had the following message proclaimed throughout his kingdom
had the following message proclaimed
and also spread it in writing:
“Thus speaks Cyrus, the king of Persia:
The Lord, the God of heaven ,
hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth.
He has commissioned me
to build for Him a temple at Jerusalem in Judah:
Let all among you who belong to the Lord’s people,
under the care of the Lord their God,
return to Jerusalem.”
RESPONSORIAL Psalm Ps. 137(136), 1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
Refrain
May my tongue stick in my mouth
When I think of you no more.
We sat by Babylon’s streams and wept,
thought back to Zion;
And on the willows around us
We hung our harps.
There those who had kidnapped us wished,
To hear our songs.
Mirth demanded our oppressors:
“Sing us of Zion a song!”
Could we then sing of the Lord
here in this strange land?
If I ever forget thee, Jerusalem,
may my hand be paralysed.
May my tongue stick in my mouth,
If I think of you no more;
If I no longer see in Jerusalem
The origin of all my joy.
SECOND READING Ephesians 2, 4-10
Though we were dead in our sins ,
we owe to his grace our salvation.
From the letter of the holy apostle Paul to the Christians of Ephesus
Brothers and sisters,
God, who is rich in mercy,
because of the great love with which he loved us,
raised us to life with Christ,
though we were dead in our sins;
To His grace you owe your salvation.
And he hath raised us up together with him
And seat us in the heavens, in Christ Jesus,
in order that the approaching ages may know
the exceeding riches of his grace
through His goodness towards us in Christ Jesus.
Yes, to that grace you owe your salvation, through faith;
not to yourselves: it is God’s gift;
not to your achievements; no one should harbour faith.
God’s work is us,
created in Christ Jesus
to realise in our lives the good deeds
which God has already prepared for us.
Verse for the Gospel John 3:16
Praise and honour be to You, Lord Jesus.
So much did God love the world
That He gave His only begotten Son,
that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.
Praise and honour be to You, Lord Jesus.
GOSPEL Jn 3:14-21
God sent his Son so that
the world would be saved through Him.
From the holy gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
John
At that time Jesus spoke to Nicodemus:
“The Son of Man must be lifted up
as Moses once lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,
so that everyone who believes,
in Him will have eternal life.
“For so much did God love the world
That He gave His only begotten Son,
that whoever believes in Him shall not perish
but shall have eternal life.
“God did not send his Son
not sent into the world to judge the world ,
but because the world would be saved through Him.
“Whoever believes in Him will not be judged,
but he who does not believe has already been judged,
because he has not believed in the Name
of the only-begotten Son of God.
“Herein consists judgment:
the light has come into the world,
but men loved darkness more than light,
because their deeds were evil.
“Every one who acts wickedly is disgusted with the light
and does not go towards the light
for fear that his works will be made public.
“But he who does the truth goes to the light,
that his deeds may be shown to be done in God.”
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Laudato Si
Encyclic by
POPE FRANCIS
On caring for the common home
Joy and peace
222. Christian spirituality proposes a different way of understanding quality of life and encourages a style of prophetic and contemplative living capable of knowing deep joy without being obsessed by consumption. It is important to follow up on an ancient teaching present in various religious traditions and also in the Bible. It concerns the belief that “less is more”. Indeed, the constant accumulation of opportunities to consume distracts the heart and prevents it from appreciating every thing and every moment. In contrast, quietly facing every reality, however small, opens up more possibilities for understanding and personal realisation for us. Christian spirituality implies a growth in sobriety and an ability to enjoy with little. It is a return to simplicity that allows us to pause to enjoy the little things, to give thanks for the opportunities that life offers, without becoming attached to what we have, or sad for what we do not possess. This requires avoiding the dynamics of domination and sheer accumulation of pleasures.
To be continued
The Bible text in this issue is taken from The New Bible Translation,
©Dutch Bible Society 2004/2007.
Considerations from Liturgical suggestions for weekdays and Sundays
Laudato Si Official English translation
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