• St. Sebastian

• First Reading: Hebrews 6:10-20

  10: For 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.
  11: And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness in realizing the full assurance of hope until the end,
  12: so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
  13: For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself,
  14: saying, "Surely I will bless you and multiply you."
  15: And thus Abraham, having patiently endured, obtained the promise.
  16: Men indeed swear by a greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation.
  17: 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,
  18: 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.
  19: We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner shrine behind the curtain,
  20: where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest for ever after the order of Melchiz'edek.

• Psalm: Psalms 111:1-2, 4-5, 9 and 10c

  1: Praise the LORD. I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
  2: Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who have pleasure in them.
  4: He has caused his wonderful works to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and merciful.
  5: He provides food for those who fear him; he is ever mindful of his covenant.
  9: He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant for ever. Holy and terrible is his name!
  10: The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who practice it. His praise endures for ever!

• Gospel: Mark 2:23-28

  23 And it came to pass again, as the Lord walked through the corn fields on the sabbath, that his disciples began to go forward and to pluck the ears of corn.
  24 And the Pharisees said to him: Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?
  25 And he said to them: Have you never read what David did when he had need and was hungry, himself and they that were with him?
  26 How he went into the house of God, under Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the loaves of proposition, which was not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave to them who were with him?
  27 And he said to them: The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath.
  28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord of the sabbath also.
  

04:50 am | Archbishops Nienstedt and Chaput defend CCHD as criticisms continue

01:46 am | Holy Father reminds the hearing impaired they are also recipients of the Gospel

09:07 pm | CNN poll finds 61% of Americans oppose government-funded abortions

08:02 pm | USCCB: Senate health care bill 'morally unacceptable'

05:54 pm | Mexican expert: Don’t believe false 'end of world' Mayan prophecies