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
At our baptism, we were clothed with Christ.
In everything we do, in all our lives,
we therefore try to be an image of Him.
Today, He invites us to be merciful.
When we love our enemies and pray for those who hate us,
we resemble Jesus who forgives his executioners
and did not strike back when he himself was beaten.
Let us immerse ourselves in God’s merciful love,
first receiving mercy ourselves
to then be merciful to others.
FIRST READING 1 Sam. 26, 2.7-9.12-13.22-23
The Lord had handed you over to me, but I did not want to lay hands on his anointed.
From the first book of Samuel
In those days Saul, with three thousand select Israelites, set out
on their way to the desert of Zif to seek David there.
David and Abisaï arrived at the army in the night
and there Saul was sleeping in the chariot camp.
His lance was thrust into the ground by his headboard.
Abner and his men were lying in a circle around him.
Then Abisaï said to David:
‘Now God delivers your enemy to you.
‘Let me pierce him to the ground with his own lance!
‘One punch and he’s gone!’
But David said to Abishaï:
‘Nay, slay him not!
‘Who strikes the hand of the Lord’s anointed with impunity?’
David then took the lance and the pitcher of water away
from the headboard of Saul
and they withdrew.
No one saw it, no one noticed anything,
no one woke up; everyone slept on,
for the Lord had plunged them into a deep sleep.
When David had come to the other side ,
he stood far away on a mountain,
so that there was a great distance between them.
He called Saul and said:
‘King, here is your lance,
let one of your men come and get it.
‘The Lord will repay everyone’s righteousness and faithfulness,
the Lord had handed you over to me today,
but I did not want to lay hands on his anointed.’
Answer Psalm Ps 103(102) 1-2, 3-4, 8 and 10, 12-13
Refrain
The Lord is merciful and benevolent.
Glorify, my soul, the Lord,
His holy Name from the depths of your being!
Glorify, my soul, the Lord!
forget not his benefits!
It is He who forgives you your debts,
who heals thee from thy afflictions.
It is He who saves you from destruction,
who surrounds you with his favour and mercy.
The Lord is merciful and benevolent,
longsuffering and kind.
He does not deal with us as we deserve,
does not repay us our guilt.
As far as the distance from east to west,
so He drives us away from sin.
As much as a father loves his children ,
so much does the Lord love His servants.
SECOND READING 1 Cor. 15, 45-49
As we have borne the image of the earthly man, so shall we also
bear the image of the heavenly man.
From the holy apostle Paul’s first letter to the Christians of Corinth
Brothers and sisters,
The first man, Adam, became a living being.
The last Adam became a living Spirit.
But the spiritual does not come first;
the natural comes before,
then comes the spiritual.
The first man, taken from the earth, is earth;
the second is from heaven.
As the first man of earth, so are all earthly men,
as the heavenly Man, so shall all heavenly ones be.
And as we have borne the image of the earthly Man,
so shall we also bear the image of the heavenly Man.
Verse for the gospel John 13, 34
Alleluia.
A new commandment I give unto you , saith the Lord;
ye must love one another
as I have loved you.
Alleluia.
GOSPEL Lk 6:27-38
Be merciful as your Father is merciful.
From the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
Luke
At that time, Jesus said to his disciples :
‘To you who listen to Me I say :
Love your enemies,
do good to those who hate you,
bless those who curse you
and pray for those who mistreat you.
‘If anyone strikes you on one cheek
turn to him the other also ;
And if anyone takes your outer garment from you
do not prevent him from taking your undergarment too.
‘Give to anyone who asks you anything,
and if anyone takes away what belongs to you
do not demand it back.
‘As you want people to treat you
ye must do to them.
‘If ye love whom ye love,
what right to thanks hast thou then?
‘Even sinners love whom they love.
‘If ye do good to those who do you favours,
what right have ye to give thanks?
‘So do sinners.
‘If ye lend to those from whom ye hope to get back,
what right have ye to give thanks?
‘Sinners also lend to sinners
with the intention of getting back as much.
‘Nay,
love your enemies,
do good
and lend without counting on getting anything in return.
‘Then shall thy reward be great,
then you will be children of the Most High,
for he is also good to the ungrateful and the wicked.
‘Be merciful as your Father is merciful.
‘Judge not,
then you will not be judged.
‘Judge not,
then you will not be judged.
‘Speak freely
And you will be acquitted.
‘Give
and ye shall be given :
a good, pounded, shaken and overflowing measure
shall be poured into thy lap.
‘The measure that ye use
shall also be used for thee.’
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Fratelli tutti
Encyclical of
POPE FRANCISCUS
On brotherhood and social friendship
198. Approaching each other, expressing oneself, listening to each other,
look at each other, getting to know each other, trying to understand each other, seeking points of contact,
all these are summed up in the word ‘dialogue’. In order to
meet and help each other, we need to have a dialogue. There is no need to
say what a dialogue is for. It suffices for me to think of
what the world would be like without the patient dialogue of so many
generous individuals who have kept families and communities united
held together. Tenacious and courageous dialogue does not make the news like
clashes and conflicts, but discreetly helps the world live better
far more than we realise.
To be continued
Every day at 1 am
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
Fratelli tutti Official English translation
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