But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah,from you shall come forth for me one who is to rule in Israel,whose origin is from of old, from ancient days. Micah 5: 1-4 (NRSV) Mary’s birthday has been celebrated since the sixth century, nine months to the day of…
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For our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed. Therefore, let us celebrate the festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (1 Cor 5:1-8 NRSV) At the beginning of this reading, Paul has the difficult task of confronting the recently established Christian…
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If I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked ones, you shall surely die’, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from their ways, the wicked shall die in their iniquity, but their blood I will require at your hand. From Ezechiel 33:7-9 (NRSV) God makes it clear to the prophet Ezechiel…
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We are fools for the sake of Christ, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honour, but we in disrepute. To the present hour we are hungry and thirsty, we are poorly clothed and beaten and homeless, and we grow weary from the work of…
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Think of us in this way, as servants of Christ and stewards of God’s mysteries. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they should be found trustworthy. From 1 Corinthians 4: 1-5 (NRSV) As the anniversary of St Cuthbert’s death is 20 March which is always in Lent, today is offered as a possible alternative.…
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We were gentle among you, like a nurse tenderly caring for her own children. So deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to us. From 1 Thessalonians 2: 2-8 (NRSV) The…
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Neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. The one who plants and the one who waters have a common purpose, and each will receive wages according to the labour of each. For we are God’s servants, working together; you are God’s field, God’s…
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As it is written,‘What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the human heart conceived,what God has prepared for those who love him’—these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. . From 1 Corinthians 2: 9-16 (NRSV) For those using the Catholic cycle…
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The word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long.If I say, ‘I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name’,then within me there is something like a burning fire shut up in my bones;I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot. From Jeremiah 20: 7-9…
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God is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, in order that, as it is written, ‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.’ From 1 Corinthians 1: 26-31 (NRSV) Most of us have met people who are boastful. Sometimes,…
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