Catholic Missal of the day: Wednesday, February 4 2026

Wednesday of the Fourth week in Ordinary Time

2nd book of Samuel

King David said to Joab and the leaders of the army who were with him, "Tour all the tribes in Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba and register the people, that I may know their number."
Joab then reported to the king the number of people registered: in Israel, eight hundred thousand men fit for military service; in Judah, five hundred thousand.
Afterward, however, David regretted having numbered the people, and said to the LORD: "I have sinned grievously in what I have done. But now, LORD, forgive the guilt of your servant, for I have been very foolish."
When David rose in the morning, the LORD had spoken to the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying:
"Go and say to David, 'This is what the LORD says: I offer you three alternatives; choose one of them, and I will inflict it on you.'"
Gad then went to David to inform him. He asked: "Do you want a three years' famine to come upon your land, or to flee from your enemy three months while he pursues you, or to have a three days' pestilence in your land? Now consider and decide what I must reply to him who sent me."
David answered Gad: "I am in very serious difficulty. Let us fall by the hand of God, for he is most merciful; but let me not fall by the hand of man."
Thus David chose the pestilence. Now it was the time of the wheat harvest when the plague broke out among the people. (The LORD then sent a pestilence over Israel from morning until the time appointed, and seventy thousand of the people from Dan to Beer-sheba died.)
But when the angel stretched forth his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD regretted the calamity and said to the angel causing the destruction among the people, "Enough now! Stay your hand." The angel of the LORD was then standing at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.
When David saw the angel who was striking the people, he said to the LORD: "It is I who have sinned; it is I, the shepherd, who have done wrong. But these are sheep; what have they done? Punish me and my kindred."

Psalms

Blessed is he whose fault is taken away,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed the man to whom the LORD imputes not guilt,
in whose spirit there is no guile.
Then I acknowledged my sin to you,
my guilt I covered not.
I said, “I confess my faults to the LORD,”
and you took away the guilt of my sin.
For this shall every faithful man pray to you
in time of stress.
Though deep waters overflow,
they shall not reach him.
You are my shelter; from distress you will preserve me;
with glad cries of freedom you will ring me round.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark

Jesus departed from there and came to his native place,  accompanied by his disciples.
When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished. They said, "Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands!
Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?" And they took offense at him.
Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house."
So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them.
He was amazed at their lack of faith.

St. Jane of Valois(Queen and Religious (+ 1505))

SAINT JANE OF VALOIS Queen and Religious (+ 1505) Born to royal parents and herself a queen, St. Jane of Valois led a life remarkable for its humiliations even in the annals of the saints. Her father, Louis XI, who had hoped for a son to succeed him, banished Jane from his palace. It is said that he even attempted her life. At the age of 5, the neglected child offered her whole heart to God and yearned to do some special service in honor of His Holy Mother. At King Louis' wish, though against her own inclination, Jane was married to the Duke of Orleans. Toward an indifferent and unworthy husband, her conduct was ever most patient and dutiful. Her prayers and tears saved him from a traitor's death for rebellion and shortened his imprisonment. When her husband ascended the throne as Louis XII, his first act was to repudiate her by false representations. At the final sentence of separation, the saintly queen exclaimed, "God be praised Who has allowed this, that I may serve Him better." She retired to Bourges and founded the Order of the Annunciation, in honor of Mary, the Mother of God. Thus, Jane fulfilled her childhood dream of honoring Mother Mary. She was guided by St. Francis of Paula, her childhood director, and overcame serious obstacles that even "good" people raised. In 1501, the rule of the Annunciation was finally approved by Alexander VI. The Order's main goal was to imitate the ten virtues of Our Lady in the mystery of the Incarnation. The superioress was called Ancelle, "handmaid," in honor of Mary's humility. Jane built and endowed the first convent of the Order in 1502.She passed away in a state of grace after a sanctified life. She was buried in the royal crown and purple, beneath which lay the habit of her Order. Because of her heroic virtues and the miracles proceeding from her intercession, St. Jane of Valois was canonized by Pope Pius XII on May 28, 1950.

St. John de Britto(Martyr (+1693))

SAINT JOHN DE BRITTOMartyr(+ 1693) When Don Pedro II of Portugal was a child, he had among his pages a modest boy of rich and princely parents. Much had John de Britto — for so was he called — to bear from his careless-living companions, to whom his holy life was a reproach. When John became dangerously ill, he turned to St. Francis Xavier and was cured. With gratitude, John's mother vested him for a year in the garb worn by the Jesuit Fathers. From that time, John's heart burned to follow the example of the Apostle of the Indies. On December 17, 1662, John entered the novitiate of the Society in Lisbon. Eleven years later, in spite of his family and the court's opposition, he left everything to evangelize Madura's Hindus. When John's mother knew that her son was going to the Indies, she used all her influence to prevent him from leaving and persuaded the Papal Nuncio to interfere. "God, Who called me from the world into religious life, now calls me from Portugal to India," was the reply of the future martyr. For 14 years, John preached, baptized and converted multitudes. The Holy Cross was his consolation throughout privations, hardships and persecutions. After 14 years, he was seized, tortured and nearly killed. He was banished from the country and forced to return to Portugal. However, he broke through every obstacle and returned. Like St. John the Baptist, St. John de Britto died because of a woman's accusations; she had been put aside by a converted king. After a painful imprisonment, John was beheaded in 1693. St. John de Britto's heroic virtues and the miracles proceeding from his intercession saw him canonized by Ven. Pope Pius XII in 1947.

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Category: Mass by Year / Catholic Missal 2026 / Catholic Missal of february 2026