FIRST READING
A reading from the Book of Joshua (Joshua 24:1-13)
I took your father from beyond the River,’ I brought you out of Egypt,’ I brought you to the land.

In those days: Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel; and they presented themselves before God. And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Your fathers lived of old beyond the Euphrates, Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and they served other gods. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River and led him through all the land of Canaan, and made his offspring many. I gave him Isaac; and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. And I gave Esau the hill country of Seir to possess, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. And I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt with what I did in the midst of it; and afterwards I brought you out. Then I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and you came to the sea; and the Egyptians pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. And when they cried to the Lord, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and made the sea come upon them and cover them; and your eyes saw what I did to Egypt; and you lived in the wilderness a long time. Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites, who lived on the other side of the Jordan; they fought with you, and I gave them into your hand, and you took possession of their land, and I destroyed them before you. Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel; and he sent and invited Balaam the son of Beor to curse you, but I would not listen to Balaam; therefore he blessed you; so I delivered you out of his hand. And you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho, and the men of Jericho fought against you, and also the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; and I gave them into your hand. And I sent the hornet before you, which drove them out before you, the two kings of the Amorites; it was not by your sword or by your bow. I gave you a land on which you had not laboured, and cities which you had not built, and you dwell there in; you eat the fruit of vineyards and olive yards which you did not plant.”’
The word of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM Ps136:1-3.16-18.21-22 and 24 (R.1b)
R/. For his mercy endures forever
Or: Alleluia.

O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his mercy endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his mercy endures forever. R/.

Through the desert his people he led,
for his mercy endures forever.
Nations in their greatness he struck,
For his mercy endures forever.
Kings in their spendour he slew,
For his mercy endures forever. R/.

He gave their land as a heritage,
For his mercy endures forever.
A heritage for Israel, his servant,
For his mercy endures forever.
And he snatched us away from our foes,
For his mercy endures forever. R/.

ALLELUIA See 1 Thessalonians 2:13
Alleluia. Accept the word of God, not as the word of men, but as what it really is, the word of God. Alleluia.

GOSPEL
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Matthew 19:3-12)
For your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.

At that time: Pharisees came up to Jesus and tested him by asking, “Is it lawful to divorce one’s wife for any cause?” He answered, ‘Have you not read that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one’? So they are no longer two but one. What therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder.” They said to him, “Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?” He said to them, “For your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. And I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for unchastity, and marries another, commits adultery; and he who marries a divorced woman, commits adultery.” The disciples said to him, “If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is not expedient to marry.” But he said to them, “Not all men can receive this precept, but only those to whom it is given. For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to receive this, let him receive it.”
The Gospel of the Lord.

FIRST READING
A reading from the Book of Revelation (Revelation 11:19a:12:1-6a.10ab)
A woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet.

God’s temple in heaven was opened. And a great sign appeared in heaven, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars; she was with child and she cried out in her pangs of birth, in anguish for delivery. And another sign appeared in heaven; behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems upon his heads. His tails wept down a third of the stars of heaven, and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to bear a child, that he might devour her child when she brought it forth; she brought forth a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come.”
The word of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM Psalm45:10.11.12.16 (R.10b)
R/. On your right stands the queen in gold of Ophir.

The daughters of kings are those whom you favour.
On your tight stands the queen in gold of Ophir. R/.

Listen, O daughter; pay heed and give ear;
forget your own people and your father’s house. R/.

So will the king desire your beauty.
He is your lord, pay homage to him. R/.

They are escorted amid gladness and joy;
they pass within the palace of the king. R/.

SECOND READING
A reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians (I Corinthians 15:20-27)
Christ the first fruits, then those who belong to Christ.

Brethren: Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For a sin Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. “For God has put all things in subjection under his feet.”
The word of the Lord.

ALLELUIA
Alleluia. Mary has been taken up into heaven; the host of angels rejoices. Alleluia.

GOSPEL
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke (Luke 1:39-56)
He who is mighty has done great things for me, he has exalted those of low degree.

In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the child leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden. For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is on those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm, he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts, he has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of low degree; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent empty away. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his posterity forever.” And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her home.
The Gospel of the Lord.

FIRST READING Deuteronomy 34:1-12
In those days: Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho. And the Lord showed him all the land, Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the western sea, the Negeb, and the Plain, that is, the valley of Jericho the city of palm trees, as far as Zoar. And the Lord said to him, “This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not go over there.” So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord, and he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-peor; but no man knows the place of his burial to this day. Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died; his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated. And the sons of Israel wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; then the days of weeping and mourning for Moses were ended. And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands upon him; so the people of Israel obeyed him, and did as the Lord had commanded Moses. And there has not arisen a prophet since in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face, none like him for all the signs and the wonders which the Lord sent him to do in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land, and for all the mighty power and all the great and terrible deeds which Moses wrought in the sight of all Israel.
The word of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM Ps 66: 1-3a.5 and 8.16-17 (R. see 20a, 9a)
R/. Blest be God, who gave life to my soul.

Cry out with joy to God, all the earth;
O sing to the glory of his name.
O render him glorious praise.
Say to God, “How awesome your deeds! R/.

Come and see the works of God:
Awesome his deeds among the children of men.
O peoples, bless our God;
Let the voice of his praise resound. R/.

Come and hear, all who fear God;
I will tell what he did for my soul.
To him I cried aloud,
With exaltation ready on my tongue. R/.

ALLELUIA 2 Corinthians 5:19
Alleluia. God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Alleluia.

GOSPEL Matthew 18:15-20
At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the Church; and if he refuses to listen even to the Church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
The Gospel of the Lord.

FIRST READING Deuteronomy 31:1-8
So Moses continued to speak these words to all Israel. And he said to them, “I am a hundred and twenty years old this day; I am no longer able to go out and come in. The Lord has said to me, ‘You shall not go over the Jordan.’ The Lord your God himself will go over before you; he will destroy these nations before you, so that you shall dispossess them; and Joshua will go over at your head, as the Lord has spoken. And the Lord will do to them as he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when he destroyed them. And the Lord will give them over to you, and you shall do to them according to all the commandment which I have commanded you. Be strong and of good courage, do not fear or be in dread of them: for it is the Lord your God who goes with you; he will not fail you or forsake you.” Then Moses summoned Joshua, and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and of good courage; for you shall go with this people into the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them; and you shall put them in possession of it. It is the Lord who goes before you; he will be with you, he will not fail you or forsake you; do not fear or be dismayed.”
The word of the Lord.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM Dt 32:4ab.7.8.9 and 12 (R.9a)
R/. The Lord’s portion is his people.

“For I will proclaim the name of the Lord.
Ascribe greatness to our God!
The Rock, his work is perfect;
For all his ways are justice.” R/.

“Remember the days of old,
Consider the years of many generations;
Ask your father, and he will show you;
Your elders, and they will tell you.” R/.

“When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance,
When he separated the sons of men,
He fixed the bounds of the peoples
According to the number of the sons of Israel.” R/.

“For the Lord’s portion is his people,
Jacob his allotted heritage.
The Lord alone did lead him,
And there was no foreign god with him.” R/.

ALLELUIA Matthew 11:29ab
Alleluia. Take my yoke upon you, says the Lord; and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart. Alleluia.

GOSPEL Matthew 18:1-5.10.12-14
At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them, and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me. See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that in heaven their angels always behold the face of my Father who is in heaven. What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it more than the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish.”
The Gospel of the Lord.