Texts taken from the missal “Upon Your Word” March-April 2025
XXth Sunday of Lent (C)
XXth week in Ordinary Time
FIRST READING
From the Book of Genesis (Gen 1:1 – 2:2)
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the abyss, while the spirit of God hovered over the waters. God said, “Let there be light!” And there was light. God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light day, while he called the darkness night. And there was evening and there was morning: the first day. God said, “Let there be a firmament between the waters to separate the waters from the waters.” God made the firmament and separated the waters that are below the firmament from the waters that are above the firmament. And so it happened. God called the firmament heaven. And there was evening and there was morning: the second day. God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered into one place and let the dry land appear.” And so it happened. God called the dry land earth, while he called the mass of waters sea. God saw that it was good. God said, “Let the earth produce vegetation: plants yielding seed and fruit trees bearing fruit with seed in it, each according to its kind.” And so it happened. The earth produced vegetation, plants yielding seed, each according to its kind, and trees bearing fruit with seed in it, each according to its kind. God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning: the third day. God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to separate the day from the night; let them be signs for festivals, days, and years, and let them be lights in the firmament of the heavens to illuminate the earth.” And so it happened. And God made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night, and the stars. God placed them in the firmament of the heavens to illuminate the earth, to rule the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning: the fourth day. God said, “Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth, across the firmament of the heavens.” God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves and teems in the waters, according to its kind, and every winged bird, according to its kind. God saw that it was good. God blessed them: “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters of the seas; let the birds multiply on the earth.” And there was evening and there was morning: the fifth day. God said, “Let the earth produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creeping things, and wild animals, according to their kinds.” And so it happened. God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kind, and all the creeping things of the ground according to their kinds. God saw that it was good. God said, “Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness: let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the heavens, over the livestock, over all the wild animals, and over all the creeping things that crawl on the earth.” And God created humankind in his image; in the image of God he created them: male and female he created them. God blessed them, and God said to them: “Be fruitful and multiply, fill the earth and subdue it; rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the heavens and over every living creature that crawls on the earth.” God said: “Behold, I give you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree bearing fruit with seed in it: they shall be your food. And to all the wild animals, to all the birds of the heavens, and to all the creatures that crawl on the earth and have the breath of life in them, I give every green plant for food.” And so it happened. God saw all that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning: the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their array. On the seventh day God completed the work he had done, and on the seventh day he ceased from all the work he had done.
– The word of God.
SECOND READING
From the Book of Genesis (Gen 22:1-18)
In those days, God put Abraham to the test and said to him: “Abraham!” He answered: “Here I am!” Then he continued: “Take your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I will show you.” Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled the donkey, took with him two servants and his son Isaac, split the wood for the burnt offering, and set out for the place that God had indicated to him. On the third day Abraham raised his eyes and saw the place from afar. Then Abraham said to his servants: “Stay here with the donkey; the boy and I will go on over there, worship, and then come back to you.” Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and loaded it onto his son Isaac; he took in his hand the fire and the knife, and the two of them went on together. Isaac spoke to his father Abraham and said: “My father!” He answered: “Here I am, my son.” He continued: “Here are the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” Abraham answered: “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together. Thus they arrived at the place that God had indicated to him; here Abraham built the altar, arranged the wood, bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said: “Abraham, Abraham!” He answered: “Here I am!” The angel said: “Do not stretch out your hand against the boy, and do not do anything to him! Now I know that you fear God and have not refused me your son, your only son.” Then Abraham raised his eyes and saw a ram caught by its horns in a thicket. Abraham went and took the ram and offered it as a burnt offering instead of his son. Abraham called that place “The Lord sees”; hence today it is said: “On the mountain the Lord reveals himself.” The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said: “I swear by myself, declares the Lord: because you have done this and have not spared your son, your only son, I will indeed bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars of heaven and the sand on the seashore; your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies. All the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by your descendants, because you have obeyed my voice.” – The word of God.
THIRD READING
From the Book of Exodus (Ex 14:15 – 15:1)
In those days, the Lord said to Moses: “Why do you cry out to me? Tell the Israelites to resume their journey. Meanwhile, raise your staff, stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, so that the Israelites may enter the sea on dry ground. Behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, so that they will go in after them, and I will display my glory over Pharaoh and all his army, over his chariots and his horsemen. The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I display my glory against Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.” The angel of God, who went before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front of them and stood behind them. It came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel. The cloud was dark for the one, while for the other it illuminated the night; thus the one could not approach the other throughout the night. Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. And the Lord drove back the sea with a strong east wind throughout the night, making it dry; the waters were divided. The Israelites entered the sea on dry ground, while the waters were a wall for them on their right and on their left. The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots and his horsemen went in after them into the midst of the sea. But at the morning watch the Lord, from the pillar of fire and cloud, looked down on the Egyptian camp and threw it into confusion. He clogged the wheels of their chariots, so that they could hardly move them. Then the Egyptians said: “Let us flee from Israel, because the Lord is fighting for them against the Egyptians!” The Lord said to Moses: “Stretch out your hand over the sea, so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians, over their chariots and their horsemen.” Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and, at daybreak, the sea returned to its usual level, while the Egyptians, fleeing, were heading toward it. The Lord swept them into the midst of the sea. The waters returned and covered the chariots and horsemen of Pharaoh’s entire army, who had entered the sea after Israel; not one of them survived. But the Israelites had walked on dry ground through the midst of the sea, while the waters were a wall for them on their right and on their left. On that day the Lord saved Israel from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the shore of the sea; Israel saw the mighty hand with which the Lord had acted against Egypt, and the people feared the Lord and believed in him and in Moses his servant. Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord and said:
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
From the Book of Exodus (Ex 15:1-18)
«I will sing to the Lord,
because he has triumphed gloriously:
horse and rider
he has cast into the sea.
My strength and my song is the Lord,
he has been my salvation.
He is my God: I will praise him,
the God of my father: I will exalt him! ℞.
The Lord is a warrior,
the Lord is his name.
Pharaoh's chariots and his army
he has hurled into the sea;
his chosen warriors
they were submerged in the Red Sea. ℞.
The depths covered them,
they sank like a stone.
Your right hand, Lord,
is glorious in power,
your right hand, Lord,
he annihilates the enemy. ℞.
You bring him in and plant him
on the mountain of your inheritance,
the place for your dwelling,
Lord, you have prepared,
Lord, have founded.
the sanctuary that your hands,
The Lord reigns
forever and ever!». ℞.
FOURTH READING
From the Book of the Prophet Isaiah (Is 54:5-14)
Your husband is your creator, the Lord of hosts is his name; your redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, he is called the God of all the earth. Like a woman abandoned and distressed in spirit, the Lord has called you back. Is a wife married in her youth perhaps rejected? - says your God. For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with immense love I will gather you. In a burst of anger I hid my face from you for a little while; but with everlasting affection I have taken pity on you, says your redeemer, the Lord. For me this is now as in the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again flood the earth; so now I swear not to be angry with you again and never to threaten you. Though the mountains move and the hills totter, my affection for you shall not depart, nor shall my covenant of peace totter, says the Lord who has mercy on you. Afflicted, battered by the storm, unconsoled, behold, I set your stones in antimony and lay your foundations on sapphires. I will make your battlements of rubies, your gates of beryl, and your entire wall of precious stones. All your children shall be disciples of the Lord, great shall be the prosperity of your children; you shall be founded on justice. Keep far from oppression, for you shall have nothing to fear, and from terror, for it shall not come near you. - The word of God.
FIFTH READING
From the book of the prophet Isaiah (Is 55:1-11)
Thus says the Lord: “All you who are thirsty, come to the water; you who have no money, come, buy and eat; come, buy wine and milk without money, without cost. Why do you spend money for what is not bread, your earnings for what does not satisfy? Listen to me and you will eat what is good and delight in rich food. Pay attention and come to me; listen, and you will live. I will establish with you an everlasting covenant, the favors assured to David. See, I have appointed him as a witness to the peoples, a prince and ruler over the nations. See, you will summon nations you do not know, and nations that do not know you will hasten to you, because of the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, who honors you. Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous person his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, who will have mercy on him, and to our God, who generously forgives. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. For just as rain and snow come down from heaven and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to the sower and bread to the one who eats, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth: it shall not return to me empty, but shall accomplish that which I desire and succeed in the purpose for which I sent it.” – The word of God.
SIXTH READING
From the Book of the Prophet Baruch (Bar 3:9-15.32 – 4:4)
Listen, Israel, to the commandments of life; lend your ear to learn prudence. Why, Israel? Why are you in enemy territory and have grown old in a foreign land? Why have you defiled yourself with the dead and are counted among those who go down to the underworld? You have abandoned the source of wisdom! If you had walked in the way of God, you would have dwelt forever in peace. Learn where prudence is, where strength is, where understanding is, so that you may also understand where longevity and life are, where the light of the eyes and peace are. But who has discovered its dwelling, who has entered its treasures? But the one who knows everything knows it and has examined it with his understanding; the one who formed the earth forever and filled it with four-legged creatures; the one who sends forth the light, and it runs; he called it, and it obeyed him with trembling. The stars shone in their watch posts and rejoiced; he called them, and they answered, “Here we are!” and shone with joy for the one who created them. He is our God, and no other can be compared with him. He discovered every path of wisdom and gave it to Jacob, his servant, to Israel, his beloved. For this reason it appeared on earth and lived among human beings. It is the book of God’s decrees and the law that endures forever; all who hold fast to it will have life, but those who abandon it will die. Return, Jacob, and receive it; walk in the radiance of its light. Do not give your glory to another or your privileges to a foreign nation. Blessed are we, O Israel, because what pleases God is known to us. – The word of God.
SEVENTH READING
From the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel (Ezek 36:16-17a, 18-28)
The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, when the house of Israel lived in its land, it defiled it by its conduct and actions. Therefore I poured out my wrath upon them because of the blood they had shed in the land and because of the idols with which they had defiled it. I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed among other lands: I judged them according to their conduct and actions. When they came among the nations where they had been driven, they profaned my holy name, because it was said of them: ‘These are the people of the Lord, yet they have been driven out of his land.’ But I had regard for my holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations where they had gone. Therefore announce to the house of Israel: ‘Thus says the Lord God: It is not for your sake, house of Israel, that I am acting, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone. I will sanctify my great name, profaned among the nations, profaned by you in their midst. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord - oracle of the Lord God - when I show my holiness through you before their eyes. I will take you from among the nations, gather you from every land, and bring you back to your soil. I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be cleansed; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and place a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will put my spirit within you and make you live according to my statutes, and I will make you observe and practice my ordinances. You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be my people, and I will be your God.’” - The word of God.
EPISTLE
From the Letter of Saint Paul the Apostle to the Romans (Rom 6:3-11)
Brothers and sisters, do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore, through baptism we were buried with him into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in the likeness of his death, we shall also be united with him in the likeness of his resurrection. We know that our old self was crucified with him so that this sinful body might be rendered powerless and we might no longer be slaves to sin. For whoever has died has been freed from sin. But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him, knowing that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more; death no longer has power over him. For in that he died, he died to sin once for all; but in that he lives, he lives for God. So you too must consider yourselves dead to sin but alive for God, in Christ Jesus. – The Word of God.
GOSPEL
From the Gospel according to Luke (Lk 24:1-12)
On the first day of the week, at early dawn, [the women] went to the tomb, taking with them the spices they had prepared. They found that the stone had been rolled away from the tomb and, when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, behold, two men stood before them in dazzling garments. The women were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, but the men said to them: “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember what he told you while he was still in Galilee, saying: ‘The Son of Man must be handed over to sinners, be crucified, and rise on the third day.’” Then they remembered his words and, returning from the tomb, announced all this to the Eleven and to all the others. They were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James. The other women who were with them also told these things to the apostles. But these words seemed to them like nonsense, and they did not believe them. Peter, however, got up, ran to the tomb, and, bending down, saw only the linen cloths. Then he went back, amazed at what had happened. – The Word of the Lord.
