Daily Gospel

Jesus told his disciples a parable:"Can a blind person guide a blind person?Will not both fall into a pit?No disciple is superior to the teacher;but when fully trained,every disciple will be like his teacher.Why do you notice the splinter in your brother's eye,but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?How can you say to your brother,'Brother, let me remove that splinter in your eye,'when you do not even notice the wooden beam in your own eye?You hypocrite!  Remove the wooden beam from your eye first;then you will see clearlyto remove the splinter in your brother's eye."

Jesus said to his disciples:“To you who hear I say, love your enemies,do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you,pray for those who mistreat you.To the person who strikes you on one cheek,offer the other one as well,and from the person who takes your cloak,do not withhold even your tunic.Give to everyone who asks of you,and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.Do to others as you would have them do to you.For if you love those who love you,what credit is that to you?Even sinners love those who love them.And if you do good to those who do good to you,what credit is that to you?Even sinners do the same.If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment,what credit is that to you?Even sinners lend to sinners,and get back the same amount. But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,and lend expecting nothing back;then your reward will be greatand you will be children of the Most High,for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful.
“Stop judging and you will not be judged.Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.Forgive and you will be forgiven.Give and gifts will be given to you;a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,will be poured into your lap.For the measure with which you measurewill in return be measured out to you.”

Raising his eyes toward his disciples Jesus said:“Blessed are you who are poor,for the Kingdom of God is yours.Blessed are you who are now hungry,for you will be satisfied.Blessed are you who are now weeping,for you will laugh.Blessed are you when people hate you,and when they exclude and insult you,and denounce your name as evilon account of the Son of Man.Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!Behold, your reward will be great in heaven. For their ancestors treated the prophetsin the same way.But woe to you who are rich,for you have received your consolation.But woe to you who are filled now,for you will be hungry.Woe to you who laugh now,for you will grieve and weep.Woe to you when all speak well of you,for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way.”

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,but before they lived together,she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man,yet unwilling to expose her to shame,decided to divorce her quietly.Such was his intention when, behold,the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,"Joseph, son of David,do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.For it is through the Holy Spiritthat this child has been conceived in her.She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,because he will save his people from their sins."All this took place to fulfillwhat the Lord had said through the prophet:Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son,and they shall name him Emmanuel,which means "God is with us."

On a certain sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue and taught,and there was a man there whose right hand was withered.The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closelyto see if he would cure on the sabbathso that they might discover a reason to accuse him.But he realized their intentionsand said to the man with the withered hand,"Come up and stand before us."And he rose and stood there.Then Jesus said to them,"I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbathrather than to do evil,to save life rather than to destroy it?"Looking around at them all, he then said to him,"Stretch out your hand."He did so and his hand was restored.But they became enragedand discussed together what they might do to Jesus.

Jesus said to his disciples:"If your brother sins against you,go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother.If he does not listen,take one or two others along with you,so that 'every fact may be establishedon the testimony of two or three witnesses.'If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. If he refuses to listen even to the church,then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.Amen, I say to you,whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven,and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.Again, amen, I say to you,if two of you agree on earthabout anything for which they are to pray,it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father. For where two or three are gathered together in my name,there am I in the midst of them."

While Jesus was going through a field of grain on a sabbath,his disciples were picking the heads of grain,rubbing them in their hands, and eating them.Some Pharisees said,“Why are you doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?”Jesus said to them in reply,“Have you not read what David didwhen he and those who were with him were hungry?How he went into the house of God, took the bread of offering,which only the priests could lawfully eat,ate of it, and shared it with his companions?”Then he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.”

The scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus,“The disciples of John the Baptist fast often and offer prayers,and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same;but yours eat and drink.”Jesus answered them, “Can you make the wedding guests fastwhile the bridegroom is with them?But the days will come, and when the bridegroom is taken away from them,then they will fast in those days.”And he also told them a parable.“No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one.Otherwise, he will tear the newand the piece from it will not match the old cloak.Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins.Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins,and it will be spilled, and the skins will be ruined.Rather, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins.And no one who has been drinking old wine desires new,for he says, ‘The old is good.’”

While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening to the word of God,he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.He saw two boats there alongside the lake;the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,"Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch."Simon said in reply,"Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,but at your command I will lower the nets."When they had done this, they caught a great number of fishand their nets were tearing.They signaled to their partners in the other boatto come to help them. They came and filled both boatsso that the boats were in danger of sinking.When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized himand all those with him,and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,who were partners of Simon.Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid;from now on you will be catching men."When they brought their boats to the shore,they left everything and followed him.

After Jesus left the synagogue, he entered the house of Simon.Simon’s mother-in-law was afflicted with a severe fever,and they interceded with him about her.He stood over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her.She got up immediately and waited on them.
At sunset, all who had people sick with various diseasesbrought them to him.He laid his hands on each of them and cured them.And demons also came out from many, shouting, “You are the Son of God.”But he rebuked them and did not allow them to speakbecause they knew that he was the Christ.
At daybreak, Jesus left and went to a deserted place.The crowds went looking for him, and when they came to him,they tried to prevent him from leaving them.But he said to them, “To the other towns alsoI must proclaim the good news of the Kingdom of God,because for this purpose I have been sent.”And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.