First Reading

First Book of Maccabees (1 Mc 4: 36-37, 52-59)

They celebrated the dedication of the altar and joyfully offered burnt offerings.

Judas and his brothers said,

“Now that our enemies have been crushed,
let us go up to purify the sanctuary and rededicate it.”

So the whole army assembled, and went up to Mount Zion.

Early in the morning on the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month,
that is, the month of Chislev,
in the year one hundred and forty-eight,
they arose and offered sacrifice according to the law
on the new altar of burnt offerings that they had made.
On the anniversary of the day on which the Gentiles had defiled it,
on that very day it was reconsecrated
with songs, harps, flutes, and cymbals.
All the people prostrated themselves and adored and praised Heaven,
who had given them success.

For eight days they celebrated the dedication of the altar
and joyfully offered burnt offerings and sacrifices
of deliverance and praise.
They ornamented the facade of the temple with gold crowns and shields;
they repaired the gates and the priests' chambers
and furnished them with doors.
There was great joy among the people
now that the disgrace of the Gentiles was removed.
Then Judas and his brothers and the entire congregation of Israel
decreed that the days of the dedication of the altar
should be observed with joy and gladness
on the anniversary every year for eight days,
from the twenty-fifth day of the month Chislev.

— The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm

1 Chr 29: 10bcd, 11abc, 11d-12a, 12bcd

We praise your glorious name, O mighty God.

“Blessed may you be, O LORD,
God of Israel our father,
from eternity to eternity.”

“Yours, O LORD, are grandeur and power,
majesty, splendor, and glory.
For all in heaven and on earth is yours.”

“Yours, O LORD, is the sovereignty;
you are exalted as head over all.
Riches and honor are from you.”

“You have dominion over all,
In your hand are power and might;
it is yours to give grandeur and strength to all.”

Gospel

Alleluia, alleluia.

My sheep hear my voice, says the Lord; I know them, and they follow me.

Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke (Lk 19: 45-48)

You have made the house of God a den of thieves.

Jesus entered the temple area and proceeded to drive out
those who were selling things, saying to them,

“It is written,
My house shall be a house of prayer,
but you have made it a den of thieves.”

And every day he was teaching in the temple area.
The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people, meanwhile,
were seeking to put him to death,
but they could find no way to accomplish their purpose
because all the people were hanging on his words.

— The Gospel of the Lord.

First Reading

First Book of Maccabees (1 Mc 2 :15-29)

We will keep to the covenant of our fathers.

The officers of the king in charge of enforcing the apostasy
came to the city of Modein to organize the sacrifices.
Many of Israel joined them,
but Mattathias and his sons gathered in a group apart.
Then the officers of the king addressed Mattathias:

“You are a leader, an honorable and great man in this city,
supported by sons and kin.
Come now, be the first to obey the king’s command,
as all the Gentiles and the men of Judah
and those who are left in Jerusalem have done.
Then you and your sons shall be numbered among the King’s Friends,
and shall be enriched with silver and gold and many gifts.”

But Mattathias answered in a loud voice:

“Although all the Gentiles in the king’s realm obey him,
so that each forsakes the religion of his fathers
and consents to the king’s orders,
yet I and my sons and my kin
will keep to the covenant of our fathers.
God forbid that we should forsake the law and the commandments.
We will not obey the words of the king
nor depart from our religion in the slightest degree.”

As he finished saying these words,
a certain Jew came forward in the sight of all
to offer sacrifice on the altar in Modein
according to the king’s order.
When Mattathias saw him, he was filled with zeal;
his heart was moved and his just fury was aroused;
he sprang forward and killed him upon the altar.
At the same time, he also killed the messenger of the king
who was forcing them to sacrifice,
and he tore down the altar.
Thus he showed his zeal for the law,
just as Phinehas did with Zimri, son of Salu.

Then Mattathias went through the city shouting,

“Let everyone who is zealous for the law
and who stands by the covenant follow after me!”

Thereupon he fled to the mountains with his sons,
leaving behind in the city all their possessions.
Many who sought to live according to righteousness and religious custom
went out into the desert to settle there.

— The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 50: 1b-2, 5-6, 14-15

To the upright I will show the saving power of God.

God the LORD has spoken and summoned the earth,
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
From Zion, perfect in beauty,
God shines forth.

“Gather my faithful ones before me,
those who have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
And the heavens proclaim his justice;
for God himself is the judge.

“Offer to God praise as your sacrifice
and fulfill your vows to the Most High;
Then call upon me in time of distress;
I will rescue you, and you shall glorify me.”

Gospel

Alleluia, alleluia.

If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.

Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke (Lk 19: 41-44)

If this day you only knew what makes for peace.

As Jesus drew near Jerusalem,
he saw the city and wept over it, saying,

“If this day you only knew what makes for peace —
but now it is hidden from your eyes.
For the days are coming upon you
when your enemies will raise a palisade against you;
they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides.
They will smash you to the ground and your children within you,
and they will not leave one stone upon another within you
because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”

— The Gospel of the Lord.