FIRST READING
“May the name of our Lord Jesus Christ be glorified in you, and you in him.”
The beginning of the second Letter of Saint Paul to the Thessalonians (2 Thessalonians 1:1 -5. 11b- 12)
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, to the Church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. We are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren, as is fitting, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast of you in the churches of God for you steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the affliction which you are enduring. This is evidence of the righteous judgement of God, that you may be made worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. May our God make you worthy of his call, and fulfil every good resolve and work of faith by his power, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
The word of the Lord.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM Psalm 96: 1-2a.2b-3.4-5 (R. see 3)
R/. Tell among all the peoples the wonders of the Lord.
O sing to the Lord a new song;
sing to the Lord, all the earth!
Sing to the Lord, bless his name. R/.
Proclaim his salvation day by day.
Tell among the nations his glory,
and his wonders among all the peoples. R/.
R/. Tell among all the peoples the wonders of the Lord
For the Lord is great and highly to be praised,
to be feared above all gods.
For the gods of the nations are naught.
It was the Lord who made the heavens. R/.
ALLELUIA John 10:27
Alleluia. My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord; and I know them, and they follow me. Alleluia.
GOSPEL
“Woe to you, blind guides.”
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew (Matthew 23:13-22)
At that time: Jesus said, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because you shut the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither enter yourselves, nor allow those who would enter to go in. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you traverse sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves. Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If any one swears by the temple, it is nothing; but if any one swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred? And you say, ‘If any one swears by the altar, it is nothing; but if any one swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’ You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred? So he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by everything on it; and he who swears by the temple, swears by it and by him who dwells in it; and he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
Today’s Reflection
There is a connection in the succession of events in life. The beginning of events in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary is her Immaculate Conception and, from there, all other events in her life flow and are connected. The Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which the Church celebrates today, flows from her immaculate conception through her Assumption into heaven. Every event in the life of the Virgin Mary is a result of her heroic and willing contribution to the history of human salvation. As we celebrate this feast today we are called to make active and willing contributions towards the salvation of others in our world so that we too may be privileged to enjoy the glory of God in heaven with the saints. We pray for Mary’s intercession that we may find joy in doing God’s will always.