Readings

Proper readings

First Reading
Is 60:1-6

The glory of the Lord shines upon you.

A reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah

Rise up in splendor, Jerusalem! Your light has come,
   the glory of the Lord shines upon you.
See, darkness covers the earth,
   and thick clouds cover the peoples;
but upon you the LORD shines,
   and over you appears his glory.
Nations shall walk by your light,
   and kings by your shining radiance.
Raise your eyes and look about;
   they all gather and come to you:
your sons come from afar,
   and your daughters in the arms of their nurses.

Then you shall be radiant at what you see,
   your heart shall throb and overflow,
for the riches of the sea shall be emptied out before you,
   the wealth of nations shall be brought to you.
Caravans of camels shall fill you,
   dromedaries from Midian and Ephah;
all from Sheba shall come
   bearing gold and frankincense,
   and proclaiming the praises of the LORD.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-11, 12-13

R. :

℟. (cf. 11) Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

O God, with your judgment endow the king,
   and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
   and your afflicted ones with judgment.

℟. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

Justice shall flower in his days,
   and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
   and from the River to the ends of the earth.

℟. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

The kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts;
   the kings of Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute.
All kings shall pay him homage,
   all nations shall serve him.

℟. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
   and the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
   the lives of the poor he shall save.

℟. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

Second Reading
Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6

Now it has been revealed that the Gentiles are coheirs of the promise.

A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Ephesians

Brothers and sisters:
You have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace
   that was given to me for your benefit,
   namely, that the mystery was made known to me by revelation.
It was not made known to people in other generations
   as it has now been revealed
   to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit:
   that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body,
   and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

Acclamation before the Gospel
Mt 2:2

℟. Alleluia, alleluia.

We saw his star at its rising
and have come to do him homage.

℟. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel
Mt 2:1-12

We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage.

✠ A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea,
   in the days of King Herod,
   behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying,
   “Where is the newborn king of the Jews?
We saw his star at its rising
   and have come to do him homage.”
When King Herod heard this,
   he was greatly troubled,
   and all Jerusalem with him.
Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people,
   he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
They said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea,
   for thus it has been written through the prophet:
      And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah,
         are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
      since from you shall come a ruler,
         who is to shepherd my people Israel.”
Then Herod called the magi secretly
   and ascertained from them the time of the star’s appearance.
He sent them to Bethlehem and said,
   “Go and search diligently for the child.
When you have found him, bring me word,
   that I too may go and do him homage.”
After their audience with the king they set out.
And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them,
   until it came and stopped over the place where the child was.
They were overjoyed at seeing the star,
   and on entering the house
   they saw the child with Mary his mother.
They prostrated themselves and did him homage.
Then they opened their treasures
   and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod,
   they departed for their country by another way.

At the end of the Gospel, the Deacon, or the Priest, acclaims:

The Gospel of the Lord.

All reply:

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Then he kisses the book, saying quietly:

Through the words of the Gospel
may our sins be wiped away.

Where it is the practice, if appropriate, the moveable Feasts of the current year may be proclaimed after the Gospel.

The Creed is said.

Weekday readings

First Reading
1 Jn 4:7-10

God is love.

A reading from the first Letter of Saint John

Beloved, let us love one another,
   because love is of God;
   everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God.
Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love.
In this way the love of God was revealed to us:
   God sent his only-begotten Son into the world
   so that we might have life through him.
In this is love:
   not that we have loved God, but that he loved us
   and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.

The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 72:1-2, 3-4, 7-8

R. :

℟. (See 11) Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

O God, with your judgment endow the king,
   and with your justice, the king’s son;
He shall govern your people with justice
   and your afflicted ones with judgment.

℟. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

The mountains shall yield peace for the people,
   and the hills justice.
He shall defend the afflicted among the people,
   save the children of the poor.

℟. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

Justice shall flower in his days,
   and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea,
   and from the River to the ends of the earth.

℟. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.

Acclamation before the Gospel
Lk 4:18

℟. Alleluia, alleluia.

The Lord has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor
and to proclaim liberty to captives.

℟. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel
Mk 6:34-44

Multiplying the loaves, Jesus shows himself as a prophet.

✠ A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark

When Jesus saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them,
   for they were like sheep without a shepherd;
   and he began to teach them many things.
By now it was already late and his disciples approached him and said,
   “This is a deserted place and it is already very late.
Dismiss them so that they can go
   to the surrounding farms and villages
   and buy themselves something to eat.”
He said to them in reply,
   “Give them some food yourselves.”
But they said to him,
   “Are we to buy two hundred days’ wages worth of food
   and give it to them to eat?”
He asked them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”
And when they had found out they said,
   “Five loaves and two fish.”
So he gave orders to have them sit down in groups on the green grass.
The people took their places in rows by hundreds and by fifties.
Then, taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven,
he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples
   to set before the people;
   he also divided the two fish among them all.
They all ate and were satisfied.
And they picked up twelve wicker baskets full of fragments
   and what was left of the fish.
Those who ate of the loaves were five thousand men.

At the end of the Gospel, the Deacon, or the Priest, acclaims:

The Gospel of the Lord.

All reply:

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Then he kisses the book, saying quietly:

Through the words of the Gospel
may our sins be wiped away.