Ash Wednesday Readings...
1 Reading
Joel 2:12-18
Even now, says the LORD,
return to me with your whole heart,
with fasting,
and weeping, and mourning;
Rend your hearts, not your garments,
and return
to the LORD, your God.
For gracious and merciful is he,
slow to anger,
rich in kindness,
and relenting in punishment.
Perhaps he will again
relent
and leave behind him a blessing,
Offerings and libations
for the
LORD, your God.
Blow the trumpet in Zion!
proclaim a fast,
call an
assembly;
Gather the people,
notify the congregation;
Assemble the
elders,
gather the children
and the infants at the breast;
Let the
bridegroom quit his room
and the bride her chamber.
Between the porch and
the altar
let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep,
And say,
“Spare, O LORD, your people,
and make not your heritage a reproach,
with
the nations ruling over them!
Why should they say among the
peoples,
‘Where is their God?’”
Then the LORD was stirred to concern
for his land
and took pity on his people.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 51: 3-4, 5-6AB, 12-13, 14 and 17
R. (see 3a) Be merciful, O Lord, for we have
sinned.
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the
greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my
guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we
have sinned.
For I acknowledge my offense,
and my sin is before
me always:
“Against you only have I sinned,
and done what is evil in your
sight.”
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
A
clean heart create for me, O God,
and a steadfast spirit renew within
me.
Cast me not out from your presence,
and your Holy Spirit take not from
me.
R. Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
Give me
back the joy of your salvation,
and a willing spirit sustain in me.
O
Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.
R. Be
merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.
2nd Reading
2 Cor. 5:20 - 6:2
Brothers and sisters:
We are ambassadors for Christ,
as if God were
appealing through us.
We implore you on behalf of Christ,
be reconciled to
God.
For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin,
so that we
might become the righteousness of God in him.
Working together,
then,
we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.
For he
says:
In an acceptable time I heard you,
and on the day of
salvation I helped you.
Behold, now is a very acceptable
time;
behold, now is the day of salvation
Gospel Reading
Matt. 6:1-6, 16-18
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Take care not to perform righteous deeds
in
order that people may see them;
otherwise, you will have no recompense from
your heavenly Father.
When you give alms,
do not blow a trumpet before
you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets
to win the
praise of others.
Amen, I say to you,
they have received their
reward.
But when you give alms,
do not let your left hand know what your
right is doing,
so that your almsgiving may be secret.
And your Father who
sees in secret will repay you.
“When you pray,
do not be like the
hypocrites,
who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street
corners
so that others may see them.
Amen, I say to you,
they have
received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room,
close the
door, and pray to your Father in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret
will repay you.
“When you fast,
do not look gloomy like the
hypocrites.
They neglect their appearance,
so that they may appear to
others to be fasting.
Amen, I say to you, they have received their
reward.
But when you fast,
anoint your head and wash your face,
so that
you may not appear to be fasting,
except to your Father who is hidden.
And
your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you."
