Thursday, January 15
Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time – Year A
First Reading – 1 Samuel 4:1-11
And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out to battle against the Philis′tines; they encamped at Ebenezer, and the Philistines encamped at A′phek. The Philis′tines drew up in line against Israel, and when the battle spread, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who slew about four thousand men on the field of battle. And when the troops came to the camp, the elders of Israel said, “Why has the Lord put us to rout today before the Philis′tines? Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord here from Shiloh, that he may come among us and save us from the power of our enemies.”
So the people sent to Shiloh, and brought from there the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts, who is enthroned on the cherubim; and the two sons of Eli, Hoph′ni and Phin′ehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God. When the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, all Israel gave a mighty shout, so that the earth resounded. And when the Philis′tines heard the noise of the shouting, they said, “What does this great shouting in the camp of the Hebrews mean?” And when they learned that the ark of the Lord had come to the camp, the Philis′tines were afraid; for they said, “A god has come into the camp.” And they said, “Woe to us! For nothing like this has happened before. Woe to us! Who can deliver us from the power of these mighty gods? These are the gods who struck the Egyptians with every sort of plague in the wilderness. Take courage, and acquit yourselves like men, O Philis′tines, lest you become slaves to the Hebrews as they have been to you; acquit yourselves like men and fight.”
So the Philis′tines fought, and Israel was defeated, and they fled, every man to his home; and there was a very great slaughter, for there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers. And the ark of God was captured; and the two sons of Eli, Hoph′ni and Phin′ehas, were slain.
Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 44:10-11, 14-15, 24-25
℟ Redeem us, Lord, because of your mercy.
You have made us turn back from the foe; and our enemies have gotten spoil.
You have made us like sheep for slaughter, and have scattered us among the nations.
℟ Redeem us, Lord, because of your mercy.
You have made us a byword among the nations, a laughingstock among the peoples.
All day long my disgrace is before me, and shame has covered my face,
℟ Redeem us, Lord, because of your mercy.
Why do you hide your face? Why do you forget our affliction and oppression?
For our soul is bowed down to the dust; our body clings to the ground.
℟ Redeem us, Lord, because of your mercy.
Alleluia – Matthew 4:23
℟ Alleluia!
And he went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every infirmity among the people.
℟ Alleluia!
Gospel – Mark 1:40-45
And a leper came to him begging him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. And he sternly charged him, and sent him away at once, and said to him, “See that you say nothing to any one; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to the people.” But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.
Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition, Ignatius Press, Copyright ⓒ 2006.
