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First Reading: 1 Kings 8:1-7, 9-13
The elders of Israel and all the leaders of the tribes,
the princes in the ancestral houses of the children of Israel,
came to King Solomon in Jerusalem,
to bring up the ark of the Lord's covenant
from the City of David, which is Zion.
All the people of Israel assembled before King Solomon
during the festival in the month of Ethanim (the seventh month).
When all the elders of Israel had arrived,
the priests took up the ark;
they carried the ark of the Lord
and the meeting tent with all the sacred vessels
that were in the tent.
(The priests and Levites carried them.)
King Solomon and the entire community of Israel
present for the occasion
sacrificed before the ark sheep and oxen
too many to number or count.
The priests brought the ark of the covenant of the Lord
to its place beneath the wings of the cherubim in the sanctuary,
the holy of holies of the temple.
The cherubim had their wings spread out over the place of the ark,
sheltering the ark and its poles from above.
There was nothing in the ark but the two stone tablets
which Moses had put there at Horeb,
when the Lord made a covenant with the children of Israel
at their departure from the land of Egypt.
When the priests left the holy place,
the cloud filled the temple of the Lord
so that the priests could no longer minister because of the cloud,
since the Lord's glory had filled the temple of the Lord.
Then Solomon said, "The Lord intends to dwell in the dark cloud;
I have truly built you a princely house,
a dwelling where you may abide forever."
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 132:6-7, 8-10
R./ Lord, go up to the place of your rest!
Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah;
we found it in the fields of Jaar.
Let us enter into his dwelling,
let us worship at his footstool.
R./ Lord, go up to the place of your rest!
Advance, O Lord, to your resting place,
you and the ark of your majesty.
May your priests be clothed with justice;
let your faithful ones shout merrily for joy.
For the sake of David your servant,
reject not the plea of your anointed.
above the mountains the waters stood.
R./ Lord, go up to the place of your rest!
You send forth springs into the watercourses
that wind among the mountains.
Beside them the birds of heaven dwell;
from among the branches they send forth their song.
R./ Lord, go up to the place of your rest!
How manifold are your works, O Lord!
In wisdom you have wrought them all–
the earth is full of your creatures;
Bless the Lord, O my soul! Alleluia.
R./ May the Lord be glad in his works.
Gospel Reading: Mark 6:53-56
After making the crossing to the other side of the sea,
Jesus and his disciples came to land at Gennesaret
and tied up there.
As they were leaving the boat, people immediately recognized him.
They scurried about the surrounding country
and began to bring in the sick on mats
to wherever they heard he was.
Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered,
they laid the sick in the marketplaces
and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak;
and as many as touched it were healed.
STS. PETER BAUTISTA, PAUL MIKI
AND COMPANIONS, Martyrs
Memorial - February 5
In 1597, twenty-six Christians were nailed to crosses at Nagasaki, Japan. The best-known among them was Paul Miki, but there was also a Spanish Franciscan who had worked about ten years in the Philippines, Pedro Bautista. Their feast reminds us that the gospel is not destined merely for traditionally Christian countries. Everywhere in the world there are people who can follow Christ in a radical way, perhaps more consistently than we are willing to do. The Church is destined for all people.
Opening Prayer
God, Father of all,
we honor today missionaries and their flock
in whom Christ lived
and in whom he was crucified.
Give that messengers and teachers
of the good news of Jesus
may be one with their people
in life and in death
and dedicated to one another
and to you, our loving God,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Prayer over the Gifts
God, our Father,
from the rising of the sun to its setting
let your faithful people celebrate
the holy sacrifice of Jesus your Son.
Let this be a living witness
that you are the Father of all
and that Jesus lived and died for all
to make us all one,
now and for ever.
Prayer after Communion
God our Father,
your Son Jesus invites all to his table,
however different we may be
in faces, character, personality, nationality.
May we dream and work with Jesus
for a new humanity everywhere
where we learn to encounter all people
in their multifaceted human dignity
and in the riches of their culture.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
