First Reading

The Book of Ezekiel (Ez 24: 15-23)

Ezekiel shall be a sign for you: all that he did you shall do.

The word of the LORD came to me:
Son of man, by a sudden blow
I am taking away from you the delight of your eyes,
but do not mourn or weep or shed any tears.
Groan in silence, make no lament for the dead,
bind on your turban, put your sandals on your feet,
do not cover your beard, and do not eat the customary bread.
That evening my wife died,
and the next morning I did as I had been commanded.
Then the people asked me,

“Will you not tell us what all these things
that you are doing mean for us?”

I therefore spoke to the people that morning, saying to them:
Thus the word of the LORD came to me:
Say to the house of Israel:
Thus says the Lord GOD:
I will now desecrate my sanctuary, the stronghold of your pride,
the delight of your eyes, the desire of your soul.
The sons and daughters you left behind shall fall by the sword.
Ezekiel shall be a sign for you:
all that he did you shall do when it happens.
Thus you shall know that I am the LORD.
You shall do as I have done,
not covering your beards nor eating the customary bread.
Your turbans shall remain on your heads, your sandals on your feet.
You shall not mourn or weep,
but you shall rot away because of your sins and groan one to another.

— The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm

Deuteronomy 32: 18-19, 20, 21

You have forgotten God who gave you birth.

You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you.
You forgot the God who gave you birth.
When the LORD saw this, he was filled with loathing
and anger toward his sons and daughters.

“I will hide my face from them,” he said,
“and see what will then become of them.
What a fickle race they are,
sons with no loyalty in them!”

“Since they have provoked me with their ‘no-god’
and angered me with their vain idols,
I will provoke them with a ‘no-people’;
with a foolish nation I will anger them.”

Gospel

Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.

Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew (Mt 19: 16-22)

If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.

A young man approached Jesus and said,

“Teacher, what good must I do to gain eternal life?”

He answered him,

“Why do you ask me about the good?
There is only One who is good.
If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

He asked him,

“Which ones?”

And Jesus replied,

“You shall not kill;
you shall not commit adultery;
you shall not steal;
you shall not bear false witness;
honor your father and your mother;
and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

The young man said to him,

“All of these I have observed. What do I still lack?”

Jesus said to him,

“If you wish to be perfect, go,
sell what you have and give to the poor,
and you will have treasure in heaven.
Then come, follow me.”

When the young man heard this statement, he went away sad,
for he had many possessions.

— The Gospel of the Lord.

First Reading

The Book of Proverbs (Prv 9: 1-6)

Come, eat of my food, and drink of the wine I have mixed.

Wisdom has built her house,
she has set up her seven columns;
she has dressed her meat, mixed her wine,
yes, she has spread her table.
She has sent out her maidens; she calls
from the heights out over the city:

“Let whoever is simple turn in here;
To the one who lacks understanding, she says,
Come, eat of my food,
and drink of the wine I have mixed!
Forsake foolishness that you may live;
advance in the way of understanding.”

— The word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm

Ps 34: 2-3, 4-5, 6-7

Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Let my soul glory in the LORD;
the lowly will hear me and be glad.

Glorify the LORD with me,
let us together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.

Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,
and your faces may not blush with shame.
When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,
and from all his distress he saved him.

Second Reading

Letter of Saint Paul to the Ephesians (Eph 5: 15-20)

Try to understand what is the will of the Lord.

Brothers and sisters:
Watch carefully how you live,
not as foolish persons but as wise,
making the most of the opportunity,
because the days are evil.
Therefore, do not continue in ignorance,
but try to understand what is the will of the Lord.
And do not get drunk on wine, in which lies debauchery,
but be filled with the Spirit,
addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing and playing to the Lord in your hearts,
giving thanks always and for everything
in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father.

— The word of the Lord.

Gospel

Alleluia, alleluia.

Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him, says the Lord.

Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John (Jn 6: 51-58)

My flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.

Jesus said to the crowds:

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven;
whoever eats this bread will live forever;
and the bread that I will give
is my flesh for the life of the world.”

The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying,

“How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

Jesus said to them,

“Amen, amen, I say to you,
unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood,
you do not have life within you.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood
has eternal life,
and I will raise him on the last day.
For my flesh is true food,
and my blood is true drink.
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood
remains in me and I in him.
Just as the living Father sent me
and I have life because of the Father,
so also the one who feeds on me
will have life because of me.
This is the bread that came down from heaven.
Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died,
whoever eats this bread will live forever.”

— The Gospel of the Lord.