Memorial of St. Justin, martyr
(†c. 165 Rome) A pagan philosopher who embraced Christianity and thenceforth became a prolific apologist for the Faith. Denounced to the Roman authorities by one of his disciples, he suffered martyrdom for love of Christ.
Mass Readings
First Reading – 2 Peter 1:2-75
Beloved: May grace and peace be yours in abundance through knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has bestowed on us everything that makes for life and devotion, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and power. Through these, he has bestowed on us the precious and very great promises, so that through them you may come to share in the divine nature, after escaping from the corruption that is in the world because of evil desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, virtue with knowledge, knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with devotion, devotion with mutual affection, mutual affection with love.
Responsorial Psalm – Ps 91:1-2, 14-15b, 15c-16 (R.2b)
R. In you, my God, I place my trust.
You who dwell in the shelter of the Most High,
who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,
Say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.” R.
Because he clings to me, I will deliver him;
I will set him on high because he acknowledges my name.
He shall call upon me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in distress. R.
I will deliver him and glorify him;
with length of days I will gratify him
and will show him my salvation. R.
Gospel – Mk 12:1-12
Jesus began to speak to the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, put a hedge around it, dug a wine press, and built a tower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and left on a journey. At the proper time he sent a servant to the tenants to obtain from them some of the produce of the vineyard. But they seized him, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. Again he sent them another servant. And that one they beat over the head and treated shamefully. He sent yet another whom they killed. So, too, many others; some they beat, others they killed. He had one other to send, a beloved son. He sent him to them last of all, thinking, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ So they seized him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come, put the tenants to death, and give the vineyard to others. Have you not read this Scripture passage: The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; by the Lord has this been done, and it is wonderful in our eyes?” They were seeking to arrest him, but they feared the crowd, for they realized that he had addressed the parable to them. So they left him and went away.
Featured Saints
St. Hannibal Maria di Francia, priest (†1927). Founded the Congregation of Rogationist Fathers of the Heart of Jesus and the Daughters of Divine Zeal.
St. Simeon of Syracuse, hermit (†1035). Born in Italy to a Greek father, he lived as a hermit near Bethlehem and on Mount Sinai, and later in Trier, Germany, where he died.
St. Joseph Túc, martyr (†1862). Peasant farmer decapitated in the city of Hoàng Xá, Bac Ninh, Vietnam, for refusing to to trample a cross, during the anti-Christian persecution of the emperor Tu-Duc.
Blessed John Baptist Scalabrini, bishop (†1905). Governed the Diocese of Piacenza, Italy, dedicating himself especially to priests, workers and farmers. He founded the Congregation of the Missionaries of St. Charles, and the Missionary Sisters of St. Charles to aid emigrants leaving for America.
Blessed John Pelingotto (†1304). Franciscan tertiary from Urbino, Italy. He lived in a cell, which he only left to attend the poor and sick.
St. Iñigo, abbot (†1060). At the request of King Sancho III of Navarre, he left contemplative and solitary life to become abbot of the Monastery of Oña, in Burgos. near Burgos, Spain.
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