Eucharistic Readings

Honor physicians for their services,

for the Lord created them;

for their gift of healing comes from the Most High,

and they are rewarded by the king.

The skill of physicians makes them distinguished,

and in the presence of the great they are admired.

The Lord created medicines out of the earth,

and the sensible will not despise them.

And he gave skill to human beings

that he might be glorified in his marvelous works.

By them the physician heals and takes away pain;

the pharmacist makes a mixture from them.

God's works will never be finished;

and from him health spreads over all the earth.

My child, when you are ill, do not delay,

but pray to the Lord, and he will heal you.

Give up your faults and direct your hands rightly,

and cleanse your heart from all sin.

Then give the physician his place, for the Lord created him;

do not let him leave you, for you need him.

There may come a time when recovery lies in the hands of physicians,

for they too pray to the Lord

that he grant them success in diagnosis

and in healing, for the sake of preserving life.

As for you, always be sober, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, carry out your ministry fully.

As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

Do your best to come to me soon, for Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica; Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful in my ministry. I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus. When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments.

Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.

When he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:

'The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because he has anointed me

to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives

and recovery of sight to the blind,

to let the oppressed go free,

to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."

And he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."

¹ Bless the Lord, O my soul, *
 and all that is within me bless his holy name.
² Bless the Lord, O my soul, *
 and forget not all his benefits;
³ Who forgives all your sins *
 and heals all your infirmities;
⁴ Who redeems your life from the Pit *
 and crowns you with faithful love and compassion;
⁵ Who satisfies you with good things, *
 so that your youth is renewed like an eagle’s.
⁶ The Lord executes righteousness *
 and judgement for all who are oppressed.
⁷ He made his ways known to Moses *
 and his works to the children of Israel.
⁸ The Lord is full of compassion and mercy, *
 slow to anger and of great kindness.
⁹ He will not always accuse us, *
 neither will he keep his anger for ever.
¹⁰ He has not dealt with us according to our sins, *
 nor rewarded us according to our wickedness.
¹¹ For as the heavens are high above the earth, *
 so great is his mercy upon those who fear him.
¹² As far as the east is from the west, *
 so far has he set our sins from us.
¹³ As a father has compassion on his children, *
 so is the Lord merciful towards those who fear him.
¹⁴ For he knows of what we are made; *
 he remembers that we are but dust.
¹⁵ Our days are but as grass; *
 we flourish as a flower of the field;
¹⁶ For as soon as the wind goes over it, it is gone, *
 and its place shall know it no more.
¹⁷ But the merciful goodness of the Lord is from of old
   and endures for ever on those who fear him, *
 and his righteousness on children’s children;
¹⁸ On those who keep his covenant *
 and remember his commandments to do them.
¹⁹ The Lord has established his throne in heaven, *
 and his kingdom has dominion over all.
²⁰ Bless the Lord, you angels of his, *
 you mighty ones who do his bidding
   and hearken to the voice of his word.
²¹ Bless the Lord, all you his hosts, *
 you ministers of his who do his will.
²² Bless the Lord, all you works of his,
   in all places of his dominion; *
 bless the Lord, O my soul.

Then he brought me back to the entrance of the temple; there, water was flowing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east); and the water was flowing down from below the south end of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar. Then he brought me out by way of the north gate, and led me around on the outside to the outer gate that faces toward the east; and the water was coming out on the south side. Going on eastward with a cord in his hand, the man measured one thousand cubits, and then led me through the water; and it was ankle-deep. Again he measured one thousand, and led me through the water; and it was knee-deep. Again he measured one thousand, and led me through the water; and it was up to the waist. Again he measured one thousand, and it was a river that I could not cross, for the water had risen; it was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be crossed. He said to me, "Mortal, have you seen this?" Then he led me back along the bank of the river. As I came back, I saw on the bank of the river a great many trees on the one side and on the other. He said to me, "This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah; and when it enters the sea, the sea of stagnant waters, the water will become fresh. Wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish, once these waters reach there. It will become fresh; and everything will live where the river goes. People will stand fishing beside the sea from En-gedi to En-eglaim; it will be a place for the spreading of nets; its fish will be of a great many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea. But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt. On the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing."

Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed.

¹ God be gracious to us and bless us *
 and make his face to shine upon us,
² That your way may be known upon earth, *
 your saving power among all nations.
³ Let the peoples praise you, O God; *
 let all the peoples praise you.
⁴ O let the nations rejoice and be glad, *
 for you will judge the peoples righteously
   and govern the nations upon earth.
⁵ Let the peoples praise you, O God; *
 let all the peoples praise you.
⁶ Then shall the earth bring forth her increase, *
 and God, our own God, will bless us.
⁷ God will bless us, *
 and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.

¹ Sing to the Lord a new song; *
 sing to the Lord, all the earth.
² Sing to the Lord and bless his name; *
 tell out his salvation from day to day.
³ Declare his glory among the nations *
 and his wonders among all peoples.
⁴ For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised; *
 he is more to be feared than all gods.
⁵ For all the gods of the nations are but idols; *
 it is the Lord who made the heavens.
⁶ Honour and majesty are before him; *
 power and splendour are in his sanctuary.
⁷ Ascribe to the Lord, you families of the peoples; *
 ascribe to the Lord honour and strength.
⁸ Ascribe to the Lord the honour due to his name; *
 bring offerings and come into his courts.
⁹ O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness; *
 let the whole earth tremble before him.
¹⁰ Tell it out among the nations that the Lord is king. *
 He has made the world so firm that it cannot be moved;
   he will judge the peoples with equity.
¹¹ Let the heavens rejoice and let the earth be glad; *
 let the sea thunder and all that is in it;
¹² Let the fields be joyful and all that is in them; *
 let all the trees of the wood shout for joy before the Lord.
¹³ For he comes, he comes to judge the earth; *
 with righteousness he will judge the world
   and the peoples with his truth.

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger who announces peace, who brings good news, who announces salvation, who says to Zion, "Your God reigns." Listen! Your sentinels lift up their voices, together they sing for joy; for in plain sight they see the return of the LORD to Zion. Break forth together into singing, you ruins of Jerusalem; for the LORD has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem. The LORD has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.

Acts 1:1-8

In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father. ‘This,’ he said, ‘is what you have heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.’

So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’