FIRST READING
We have this hope as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul.
A reading from the Letter to the Hebrews (Hebrews 6:10-20)
Brethren: God is not so unjust as to overlook your work and the love which you showed for his sake in serving the saints, as you still do. And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness in realising the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” And thus Abraham, having patiently endured, obtained the promise. Men indeed swear by a greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he interposed with an oath, so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible that God should prove false, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to seize the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner shrine behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest for ever according to the order of Melchizedek.
The word of the Lord.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM Psalm 111: 1bc-2.4-5.9 and 10c (R. 5b)
R. The Lord keeps his covenant ever in mind.
Or: Alleluia.
I will praise the Lord with all my heart,
in the meeting of the just and the assembly.
Great are the works of the Lord,
to be pondered by all who delight in them. R.
He has given us a memorial of his wonders.
The Lord is gracious and merciful.
He gives food to those who fear him;
keeps his covenant ever in mind. R.
R. The Lord keeps his covenant ever in mind.
Or: Alleluia.
He has sent redemption to his people,
and established his covenant forever.
Holy his name, to be feared.
His praise endures forever! R.
ALLELUIA Ephesians 1:17-18
Alleluia. May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ enlighten the eyes of our hearts that we might know what is the hope to which he has called us. Alleluia.
GOSPEL
“The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.”
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark (Mark 2:23-28)
It happened that one sabbath Jesus was going through the grain-fields; and as they made their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. And the Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?” And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God, when Abiathar was high priest, and ate the showbread, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” And he said to them, “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath; so the Son of man is lord even of the sabbath.”
The Gospel of the Lord
Today’s Reflection:
In God, nothing about us is forgotten, except our sins, through His mercy. This is why the Book of Hebrews tells us that our good efforts and deeds can never be forgotten. Our every good deed for God and His Church will be repaid. This is how God repaid Abraham, fulfilling the promises He had made him. It is not our past good deeds that gives our present blessings but the good deeds we have continued to do in perseverance. The good deeds of David that were sustained gave him and his followers the privilege to eat the meal of the High Priests. God can waive laws in order to see us saved. We in turn must not be inhumanly strict.