Readings

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Readings for Wednesday, 16th September 2020.

Numbers 21. 4-9

From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; but the people became impatient on the way. The people spoke against God and against Moses, ‘Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we detest this miserable food.’ Then the Lord sent poisonous serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, ‘We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you; pray to the Lord to take away the serpents from us.’ So Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live.’ So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live.

Philippians 2. 5-11

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
who, though he was in the form of God,
   did not regard equality with God
   as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself,
   taking the form of a slave,
   being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
   he humbled himself
   and became obedient to the point of death—
   even death on a cross.
  Therefore God also highly exalted him
   and gave him the name
   that is above every name,
   so that at the name of Jesus
   every knee should bend,
   in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
   and every tongue should confess
   that Jesus Christ is Lord,
   to the glory of God the Father.

Gospel
John 3. 13-17

No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. ‘Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 

Readings for Wednesday, 9th September 2020 – Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Collect

Impart to your servants , we pray, O Lord,
the gift of heavenly grace,
that the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin
may bring deeper peace
to those for whom the birth of her Son
was the dawning of salvation.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Amen

1st Reading – Micah 5. 1-5

Now you are walled around with a wall;
   siege is laid against us;
with a rod they strike the ruler of Israel
   upon the cheek.
² But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah,
   who are one of the little clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
   one who is to rule in Israel,
whose origin is from of old,
   from ancient days.
³ Therefore he shall give them up until the time
   when she who is in labour has brought forth;
then the rest of his kindred shall return
   to the people of Israel.
⁴ And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the Lord,
   in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall live secure, for now he shall be great
   to the ends of the earth;
⁵ and he shall be the one of peace.
   If the Assyrians come into our land
   and tread upon our soil,
we will raise against them seven shepherds
   and eight installed as rulers.

 

Psalm 113

R. From the rising of the sun to it’s setting
 let the name of the Lord be praised. after v.s 2,4,6,8.

¹ Praise the Lord!
Praise, O servants of the Lord;
   praise the name of the Lord.
² Blessed be the name of the Lord
   from this time on and for evermore.
R. From the rising of the sun to it’s setting
let the name of the Lord be praised.

³ From the rising of the sun to its setting
   the name of the Lord is to be praised.
⁴ The Lord is high above all nations,
   and his glory above the heavens.
R. From the rising of the sun to it’s setting
let the name of the Lord be praised.

⁵ Who is like the Lord our God,
   who is seated on high,
⁶ who looks far down
   on the heavens and the earth?
R. From the rising of the sun to it’s setting
let the name of the Lord be praised.

⁷ He raises the poor from the dust,
   and lifts the needy from the ash heap,
⁸ to make them sit with princes,
   with the princes of his people.
From the rising of the sun to it’s setting
                                let the name of the Lord be praised.
⁹ He gives the barren woman a home,
   making her the joyous mother of children.
Praise the Lord!
R. From the rising of the sun to it’s setting
let the name of the Lord be praised.

 Gospel
Luke 1, 39-57

In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, ⁴⁰where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit ⁴²and exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. ⁴³And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? ⁴⁴For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leapt for joy. ⁴⁵And blessed is she who believed that there would be^e a fulfilment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.’46 And Mary^f said,
‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
⁴⁷   and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour,
⁴⁸ for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.
   Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
⁴⁹ for the Mighty One has done great things for me,

 

Readings for Wednesday, 2nd September 2020 – S. Aidan of Lindisfarne

Collect

God of might, giver of every good gift,
put into our hearts the love of your name,
so that, by deepening our sense of reverence,
you may nurture in us what is good
and, by your watchful care,
keep safe what you have nurtured.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reign with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen

First Reading – 1 Cor 2:1-5

When I came to you brothers, 
it was not with any show of oratory or philosophy,
but simply to tell you what God had guaranteed.
During my stay with you,
the only knowledge I claimed to have about Jesus,
and only about him as the crucified Christ.
Far from relying on any power of my own,
I came among you in great ‘fear and trembling’ and in my speeches
and sermons that I gave,
there were none of the arguments that belong to philosophy;
only a demonstration of the power of the Spirit.
And I did this so that your faith should not depend on human philosophy
but on the power of God.

Responsorial Psalm 118 (119):97-102

R. Lord, how I love your law!

Lord, how I love your law!
It is ever in my mind.
Your command makes me wiser than my foes;
for it is mine for ever.
R.

I have more insight than all who teach me
for I ponder your will.
I have more understanding than the old
for I keep your precepts.
R.

I turn my feet from evil paths
to obey your word.
I have not turned from your decrees;
you yourself have taught me.
R, Lord, how I love your law!

Gospel
Luke 4:16-30

¹⁶ And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up; and he went to the synagogue, as his custom was, on the sabbath day.^a] And he stood up to read; ¹⁷ and there was given to him the book of the prophet Isaiah. He opened the book and found the place where it was written,

²⁰ And he closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. ²¹ And he began to say to them, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” ²² And all spoke well of him, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth; and they said, “Is not this Joseph’s son?” ²³ And he said to them, “Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb, ‘Physician, heal yourself; what we have heard you did at Caper′na-um, do here also in your own country.’” ²⁴ And he said, “Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his own country. ²⁵ But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Eli′jah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when there came a great famine over all the land; ²⁶ and Eli′jah was sent to none of them but only to Zar′ephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. ²⁷ And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Eli′sha; and none of them was cleansed, but only Na′aman the Syrian.” ²⁸ When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. ²⁹ And they rose up and put him out of the city, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw him down headlong. ³⁰ But passing through the midst of them he went away.