Mass Readings

First Reading – 1 Thes 2:9-13

You recall, brothers and sisters, our toil and drudgery. Working night and day in order not to burden any of you, we proclaimed to you the Gospel of God. You are witnesses, and so is God, how devoutly and justly and blamelessly we behaved toward you believers. As you know, we treated each one of you as a father treats his children, exhorting and encouraging you and insisting that you walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His Kingdom and glory. And for this reason we too give thanks to God unceasingly, that, in receiving the word of God from hearing us, you received it not as the word of men, but as it truly is, the word of God, which is now at work in you who believe.

Responsorial Psalm – Ps 139:7-8, 9-10, 11-12ab (R.1)

R. You have searched me and You know me, Lord.

Where can I go from Your spirit?
From Your presence where can I flee?
If I go up to the heavens, You are there;
if I sink to the nether world, You are present there. R.

If I take the wings of the dawn,
if I settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
Even there Your hand shall guide me,
and Your right hand hold me fast. R.

If I say, “Surely the darkness shall hide me,
and night shall be my light”–
For You darkness itself is not dark,
and night shines as the day. R.

Gospel – Mt 23:27-32

Jesus said, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every kind of filth. Even so, on the outside you appear righteous, but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and evildoing. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites. You build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the memorials of the righteous, and you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have joined them in shedding the prophets’ blood.’ Thus you bear witness against yourselves that you are the children of those who murdered the prophets; now fill up what your ancestors measured out!”

Featured Saints

St. Pammachius (†410). Roman senator and close friend of St. Jerome. As a widower, he devoted himself to a life of piety and works of charity.

 Blessed Eustachius van Lieshout, priest (†1943). A priest of Dutch origin belonging to the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary in Brazil. He was favoured with the gift of healing and acquired a reputation for sanctity during his life.

St. Margaret Ward, virgin, martyr (+1588). She was arrested during the reign of Elizabeth I for helping a priest escape from prison, but refused under torture to reveal his hiding place or to renounce her Faith. She was executed in London.

Blessed Maria Rafols, virgin (†1853). Through many hardships, with wisdom and holy zeal she guided the Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of St. Anne, which she had founded in Zaragoza, Spain.

Blessed John Juvenal Ancina, bishop (†1604). Young doctor who entered the Congregation of the Oratory and stood out as a preacher in Naples, Italy; he was named Bishop of Saluzzo.

St. Fiacre, hermit (†c. 670). Native of Ireland, he settled in a solitary place in France where he built a cell and an oratory dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The multitudes that flocked there seeking his aid eventually  gave rise to the village of Saint-Fiacre.

St. Bononius, abbot (†1026). He lived a hermetic life in Egypt and on Mount Sinai. Upon returning to Italy, he was appointed abbot of Lucedio.

Blessed Alfred Ildefonso Schuster, bishop (†1954). Benedictine monk, he was abbot of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome, and later Archbishop of Milan.