FIRST READING
Lord spoke, and it was so.
The beginning of the Book of Genesis (Genesis 1:1-19)
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day. And God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.” And God made the firmament and separated the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament. And it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day. And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. And God said, “Let the earth put forth vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, upon the earth.” And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a third day. And God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, and let them be lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. And God made the two great lights, the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night; he made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light upon the earth, to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
The word of the Lord.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM Psalm 104:1-2a.5-6. 10 and 12.24
R/. May the Lord rejoice in his works!
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
O Lord my God, how great you are,
clothed in majesty and honour,
wrapped in light as with a robe! R.
You set the earth on its foundation,
immovable from age to age.
You wrapped it with the depths like a cloak;
the waters stood higher than the mountains. R.
R/. May the Lord rejoice in his works!
You make springs gush forth in the valleys;
they flow in between the hills.
There the birds of heaven build their nests;
from the branches they sing their song. R.
How many are your works, O Lord!
In wisdom you have made them all.
The earth is full of your creatures.
Bless the Lord, O my soul. R.
ALLELUIA Matthew 4:23
Alleluia. Jesus was preaching the Gospel of the kingdom and healing every infirmity among the people. Alleluia.
GOSPEL
“As many as touched it were made well. ”
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mark 6:53-56)
At that time: When Jesus and his disciples had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret, and moored to the shore. And when they got out of the boat, immediately the people recognised him, and ran about the whole neighbourhood and began to bring sick people on their pallets to any place where they heard he was. And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or country, they laid the sick in the market places, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment; and as many as touched it were made well.
The Gospel of the Lord.
Today’s Reflection
The Apostles came back from their mission and briefed Jesus about all they taught and did. Jesus wanted them to go to a lonely place and have some rest as they were tired. But the crowd reached the destination before they could. This is typical of people. They are eager to make sacrifices and take risks to get whatever they dearly cherish. This they did and deprived the apostles of their rest. Jesus, who wanted to have privacy with them, rescinded his decision. He had compassion on the crowd and began to teach “for they were like sheep without a shepherd”. Sometimes we have to set aside our programmes and schedules to reach out to humanity or to God. For in giving we receive, and with the Lord by our side, we can rest assured of our strength being renewed. Don’t lose hope.