Readings for the Feast of St. Sixtus II and companions

Readings for the Feast of St. Sixtus II and companions
Pope and Martyrs
August 7

ENTRANCE SONG
The holy martyrs shed their blood on earth for Christ. Therefore, they have received an everlasting reward.

PRAYER
Father,
by the power of the Holy Spirit
you enabled St. Sixtus and his companions to lay down their lives
for Your word in witness to Jesus.
Give us the grace to believe in You
and the courage to profess our faith.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

FIRST READING          Wisdom 3:1-9
But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,
and no torment will ever touch them.
In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died,
and their departure was thought to be a disaster,
and their going from us to be their destruction;
but they are at peace.
For though in the sight of others they were punished,
their hope is full of immortality.
Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good,
because God tested them and found them worthy of himself;
like gold in the furnace he tried them,
and like a sacrificial burnt-offering he accepted them.
In the time of their visitation they will shine forth,
and will run like sparks through the stubble.
They will govern nations and rule over peoples,
and the Lord will reign over them for ever.
Those who trust in him will understand truth,
and the faithful will abide with him in love,
because grace and mercy are upon his holy ones,
and he watches over his elect.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM          126:1bc-2ab, 2cd-3, 4-5, 6

R. (5) Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
When the LORD brought back the captives of Zion,
we were like men dreaming.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with rejoicing.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Then they said among the nations,
“The LORD has done great things for them.”
The LORD has done great things for us;
we are glad indeed.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like the torrents in the southern desert.
Those that sow in tears
shall reap rejoicing.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.
Although they go forth weeping,
carrying the seed to be sown,
They shall come back rejoicing,
carrying their sheaves.
R. Those who sow in tears shall reap rejoicing.

ALLELUIA          Jas 1:12
Blessed is the man who perseveres in temptation,
for when he has been proved he will receive the crown of life.

GOSPEL          Matthew 10:28-33
Jesus said, "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna. Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father's knowledge. Even all the hairs of your head are counted. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Everyone who acknowledges me before others I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father. But whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father.

PRAYER OVER THE OFFERINGS
Lord,
we who celebrate the death of your holy martyrs
offer you the sacrifice
which gives all martyrdom its meaning.
Be pleased with our praise
We ask this through Christ our Lord.

COMMUNION ANTIPHON Romans 8:38-39
Neither death nor life nor anything in all creation can come between us and Christ's love for us.

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Lord,
keep your gift ever strong within us.
May the Eucharist we receive
in memory of Saints Cosmas and Damian
bring us salvation and peace.
We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.

Liturgy of the Hours
Sixtus II, Pope and Martyr and Companions, Martyrs

From the Common of Several Martyrs, except the following:

Office of Readings

SECOND READING

From a letter by Saint Cyprian, bishop and martyr
(Epist 80; CSEL, 3, 839-840)

We know that the soldiers of Christ are not slain but crowned

I did not write to your community at once, dearest brother, because all the clergy, exposed as they are to the imminent danger of being put to the test and prepared in a spirit of dedication for the divine glory of heaven, were quite unable to leave here. But you must know that the messengers whom I dispatched to Rome have now returned. I sent them to find out the truth and report back whatever may have been decreed in our regard, for many conflicting and unreliable rumors are current.

The true state of affairs is this. Valerian has issued an edict to the Senate to the effect that bishops, presbyters and deacons shall suffer the death penalty without delay. Senators, distinguished men and members of the equestrian class, are to be deprived of their rank and property, and if, after forfeiting their wealth and privileges, they still persist in professing Christianity, they too are to be sentenced to death. Ladies of the upper classes are to be deprived of their property and exiled. In the case of members of the imperial staff, any who have either previously confessed or do now confess to being Christians shall have their property confiscated and shall be assigned as prisoners to the imperial estates.

To this decree the Emperor Valerian attached a copy of the letter he had sent to the provincial governors concerning us. Every day we are hoping that this letter will arrive, for we are standing firm in faith and ready to endure suffering, in expectation of winning the crown of eternal life through the help and mercy of the Lord. I must also inform you that Sixtus was put to death in a catacomb on the sixth of August, and four deacons with him. Moreover, the prefects in Rome are pressing this persecution zealously and without intermission, to such a point that anyone brought before them is punished and his property is claimed by the treasure.

I ask you to make these facts known to the rest of our fellow bishops, in order that by the exhortation of their pastors the brethren everywhere may be strengthened and prepared for the spiritual combat. Let all our people fix their minds not on death but rather on immortality; let them commit themselves to the Lord in complete faith and unflinching courage and make their confession with joy rather than in fear, knowing that in this contest the soldiers of God and Christ are not slain but rather win their crowns.

Farewell in the Lord, dearest brother.

RESPONSORY 2 Corinthians 4:11; Psalm 44:3
We are being handed over to death for Jesus' sake
- so that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our mortal bodies.

For your sake, O Lord, we are being put to death all day long,
and we are treated like sheep for the slaughter.
- So that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our mortal bodies.

PRAYER
Father,
by the power of the Holy Spirit
you enabled St. Sixtus and his companions to lay down their lives
for Your word in witness to Jesus.
Give us the grace to believe in You
and the courage to profess our faith.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

Home

Prayers

The
Saints