Saturday of the First week in Ordinary Time

1st book of Samuel

There was a stalwart man from Benjamin named Kish, who was the son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah, a Benjaminite.
He had a son named Saul, who was a handsome young man. There was no other Israelite handsomer than Saul; he stood head and shoulders above the people.
Now the asses of Saul's father, Kish, had wandered off. Kish said to his son Saul, "Take one of the servants with you and go out and hunt for the asses."
Accordingly they went through the hill country of Ephraim, and through the land of Shalishah. Not finding them there, they continued through the land of Shaalim without success. They also went through the land of Benjamin, but they failed to find the animals.
When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the LORD assured him, "This is the man of whom I told you; he is to govern my people."
Saul met Samuel in the gateway and said, "Please tell me where the seer lives."
Samuel answered Saul: "I am the seer. Go up ahead of me to the high place and eat with me today. In the morning, before dismissing you, I will tell you whatever you wish.
Then, from a flask he had with him, Samuel poured oil on Saul's head; he also kissed him, saying: "The LORD anoints you commander over his heritage. You are to govern the LORD'S people Israel, and to save them from the grasp of their enemies round about. "This will be the sign for you that the LORD has anointed you commander over his heritage:

Psalms

O LORD, in your strength the king is glad;
in your victory how greatly he rejoices!
You have granted him his heart’s desire;
you refused not the wish of his lips.
For you welcomed him with goodly blessings,
you placed on his head a crown of pure gold.
He asked life of you: you gave him
length of days forever and ever.
Great is his glory in your victory;
majesty and splendor you conferred upon him.
You made him a blessing forever,
you gladdened him with the joy of your face.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark

Jesus went out along the sea. All the crowd came to him and he taught them.
As he passed by, he saw Levi, son of Alphaeus, sitting at the customs post. He said to him, "Follow me." And he got up and followed him.
While he was at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners sat with Jesus and his disciples; for there were many who followed him.
Some scribes who were Pharisees saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors and said to his disciples, "Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?"
Jesus heard this and said to them (that), "Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners."

St. Hilary of Poitiers(Bishop and Doctor of the Church (c. 315- c. 367))

SAINT HILARY OF POITIERS Bishop and Doctor of the Church (c. 315-c. 367) St. Hilary was a native of Poitiers in Aquitaine. He was raised and educated as a pagan. It was not till middle age that he embraced Christianity, moved thereto by God presented in the Holy Scriptures. He soon converted his wife and daughter and detached himself from anti-Christian company. At the beginning of his conversion, St. Hilary would not eat with Jews or heretics, nor salute them by the way. He relaxed his severity later on and became a fisher of men (Mk. 1:14-20, Mt. 4:18-22). He received Holy Orders; and in 350, was consecrated bishop of Poitiers. The Arian heresy, under the protection of Emperor Constantine, was then at its peak. St. Hilary supported the orthodox cause in several Gallic councils where Arian bishops formed an overwhelming majority. As a consequence, he was banished to Phrygia. He spent four years in exile composing his great Treatise on the Trinity, and many others works. In 359, he attended the Council of Seleucia in Constantinople. He went there with the council's deputies and contended with Arians and other heretics. There, he confounded the reasoning of the Arian sect, which dismayed their leaders, to the point that they asked the emperor to make him return to Gaul. Bp. Hilary traversed Gaul, Italy and Illyria, disproving heresies in their inconsistency and procuring the triumph of orthodoxy. Heresy stems from hard reasoning and moods like indignation. "Heresy sets the mood against the mind," says Chesterton. After seven or eight years of missionary travel, St. Hilary returned to Poitiers. He passed away peacefully in 368.

St. Veronica of Binasco(Religious (c. 1445-1497))

SAINT VERONICA OF BINASCO Religious (c. 1445-1497) Veronica's parents were peasants from a village near Milan. Since childhood, Veronica toiled in the fields and home, but cheerfully performed every task. Gradually, the desire for perfection grew within her. She became deaf to self-centered jokes and songs, and sometimes hid her face and wept. Although illiterate, she became enamored with learning; and rose secretly at night to teach herself to read. Our Lady told her that other things were necessary, but not this. She showed Veronica three mystical letters which would teach her more than books. The first signified purity of intention; the second, abhorrence of murmuring or criticism; the third, daily meditation on the Passion. By the first, she learned to begin her daily duties for no human motive, but God alone; by the second, she finished what she had begun by attending to her own affairs - never judging her neighbor, but praying for those who erred. By the third, she forgot her own pains and sorrows in those of the Lord - weeping hourly, but silently, for sins. She experienced ecstasies; and saw in successive visions the whole life of Jesus. By a special grace, neither her raptures nor her tears ever interrupted her labors. After three years' patient waiting, Veronica was received as a lay-sister in the convent of St. Martha at Milan. The community was extremely poor, and Veronica's duty was to beg for their food. Three years after receiving the habit, she was afflicted with a secret but constant bodily pain, yet never consented to be relieved of her labors. By exact obedience, she became a living copy of the rule, and obeyed with a smile the least hint of her superior. She sought the hardest and most humbling occupations, but through cheerful giving enjoyed the highest favors granted to the saints. St. Veronica passed away in 1497, after a six-months illness, in the thirtieth year of her religious profession.

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Category: Mass by Year / Catholic Missal 2024 / Catholic Missal of january 2024