Catholic Missal of the day: Friday, February 12 2016
Friday after Ash Wednesday
Friday after Ash Wednesday
1. ReadingBook of Isaiah
58,1-9a.]Thus says the Lord GOD: Cry out full-throated and unsparingly, lift up your voice like a trumpet blast; Tell my people their wickedness, and the house of Jacob their sins.
]They seek me day after day, and desire to know my ways, Like a nation that has done what is just and not abandoned the law of their God; They ask me to declare what is due them, pleased to gain access to God.
]"Why do we fast, and you do not see it? afflict ourselves, and you take no note of it?" Lo, on your fast day you carry out your own pursuits, and drive all your laborers.
]Yes, your fast ends in quarreling and fighting, striking with wicked claw. Would that today you might fast so as to make your voice heard on high!
]Is this the manner of fasting I wish, of keeping a day of penance: That a man bow his head like a reed, and lie in sackcloth and ashes? Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD?
]This, rather, is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; Setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke;
]Sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; Clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own.
]Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed; Your vindication shall go before you, and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
]Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer, you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am!
Psalms
51(50),3-4.5-6ab.18-19.]Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
]Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
]For I acknowledge my offense,
and my sin is before me always:
]"Against you only have I sinned,
]and done what is evil in your sight."
]For you are not pleased with sacrifices;
should I offer a burnt offering, you would not accept it.
]My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit;
a heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew
9,14-15.]The disciples of John approached Jesus and said, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast much, but your disciples do not fast?"
]Jesus answered them, "Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast."
Martyrs of Abitene((+304))
A translation of Benedict XVI's homily during the closing Mass of the 24th Italian National Eucharistic Congress, in the esplanade of Marisabella: "This Eucharistic congress, which comes to a close today, intended to present Sunday again as a 'weekly Easter,' expression of the identity of the Christian community and center of its life and mission. The theme chosen, 'We Cannot Live without Sunday,' takes us back to the year 304, when Emperor Diocletian prohibited Christians, under pain of death, to possess the Scriptures, to meet on Sunday to celebrate the Eucharist and to build premises for their assemblies. In Abitene, a small village in what today is Tunis, 49 Christians, meeting at the home of Octavius Felix, were taken by surprise on a Sunday while celebrating the Eucharist, defying the imperial prohibitions. Arrested, they were taken to Carthage to be interrogated by the proconsul Anulinus. "Significant, in particular, was the response given to the proconsul by Emeritus, after being asked why he had violated the emperor's order. He said: 'Sine dominico non possumus,' we cannot live without meeting on Sunday to celebrate the Eucharist. We would not have the strength to face the daily difficulties and not succumb. After atrocious tortures, the 49 martyrs of Abitene were killed. Thus, they confirmed their faith with the shedding of blood. They died, but they were victorious; we now remember them in the glory of the risen Christ."
St. Benedict of Anian(Abbot (c.750 - 821))
SAINT BENEDICT OF ANIAN(c. 750-821) St. Benedict was the son of Aigulf, the governor of Languedoc, France. In his youth, he served as a cup-bearer to King Pepin and to the latter's son Charlemagne. Hewas baptized at 20 years old and practiced an ascetical lifestyle: giving his body a little less than it asked for (St. Josemaria Escriva). A narrow escape from drowning caused him to pursue a religious vocation and enter the cloister of St. Seine. As a reward for his self-denial in the monastic state, St. Benedict received gift of tears. He was appointed the monastery's procurator and served with humility and serenity. He was hospitable to the poor and to guests alike. Fr. Benedict declined the abbacy and established a hermitage on the brook Anian. He spent years in holy solitude, but continued counseling and directing disciples. They became so numerous that he eventually built a large abbey. In a short time, he became the abbot of three hundred monks. Fr. Benedict became the great restorer of monastic discipline throughout France and Germany. He implemented the code of discipline of Saint Benedict, Europe's patron saint. Saint Benedict's Rule is profound and simple. It includes speaking moderately, listening as a form of prayer and praying with heartfelt compunction instead of many words. The Benedictine Sunday Mass is sung in Latin; and the chants are ancient, profound and melodic. In a Provincial Council of 813, presided by King Charlemagne, a decree obliged all Western monks to adopt the rule of Saint Benedict. Benedictine monasteries are found on six continents and are centers of worship, learning and direction.
St. Damian()
Category: Mass by Year / Catholic Missal 2016 / Catholic Missal of february 2016
Published: 2026-07-14T18:16:07Z | Modified: 2026-07-14T18:16:07Z