Readings at Mass

First reading	Isaiah 25:6-10 ©

On this mountain,

the Lord of Hosts will prepare for all peoples

a banquet of rich food, a banquet of fine wines,

of food rich and juicy, of fine strained wines.

On this mountain he will remove

the mourning veil covering all peoples,

and the shroud enwrapping all nations,

he will destroy Death for ever.

The Lord will wipe away

the tears from every cheek;

he will take away his people’s shame

everywhere on earth,

for the Lord has said so.

That day, it will be said: See, this is our God

in whom we hoped for salvation;

the Lord is the one in whom we hoped.

We exult and we rejoice

that he has saved us;

for the hand of the Lord

rests on this mountain.

Psalm	Psalm 22:1-6 ©

In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.

The Lord is my shepherd;

there is nothing I shall want.

Fresh and green are the pastures

where he gives me repose.

Near restful waters he leads me,

to revive my drooping spirit.

In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.

He guides me along the right path;

he is true to his name.

If I should walk in the valley of darkness

no evil would I fear.

You are there with your crook and your staff;

with these you give me comfort.

In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.

You have prepared a banquet for me

in the sight of my foes.

My head you have anointed with oil;

my cup is overflowing.

In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.

Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me

all the days of my life.

In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell

for ever and ever.

In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell for ever and ever.

Gospel Acclamation	Is33:22

Alleluia, alleluia!

The Lord is our judge, the Lord our lawgiver,

the Lord our king and our saviour.

Alleluia!

Or

Alleluia, alleluia!

Look, the Lord will come to save his people.

Blessed those who are ready to meet him.

Alleluia!

Gospel	Matthew 15:29-37 ©

Jesus reached the shores of the Sea of Galilee, and he went up into the hills. He sat there, and large crowds came to him bringing the lame, the crippled, the blind, the dumb and many others; these they put down at his feet, and he cured them. The crowds were astonished to see the dumb speaking, the cripples whole again, the lame walking and the blind with their sight, and they praised the God of Israel.

But Jesus called his disciples to him and said, ‘I feel sorry for all these people; they have been with me for three days now and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them off hungry, they might collapse on the way.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Where could we get enough bread in this deserted place to feed such a crowd?’ Jesus said to them, ‘How many loaves have you?’ ‘Seven’ they said ‘and a few small fish.’ Then he instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground, and he took the seven loaves and the fish, and he gave thanks and broke them and handed them to the disciples who gave them to the crowds. They all ate as much as they wanted, and they collected what was left of the scraps, seven baskets full.