Sunday, February 28, 2016
Liturgical Season: 
III The Season of Great Fast
Special Significance: 
Cnanoitho Sunday (Curing the Daughter of Cananite woman)
IV Sunday of the Great Fast
Prophet Obadiah

Mk 7:24-30

The Syrophoenician Woman’s Faith. 24h From that place he went off to the district of Tyre.* He entered a house and wanted no one to know about it, but he could not escape notice. 25Soon a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him. She came and fell at his feet. 26The woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by birth, and she begged him to drive the demon out of her daughter.i 27He said to her, “Let the children be fed first.* For it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” 28She replied and said to him, “Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.” 29Then he said to her, “For saying this, you may go. The demon has gone out of your daughter.” 30When the woman went home, she found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.

Ex 16:1-12

The Wilderness of Sin. 1Having set out from Elim, the whole Israelite community came into the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month* after their departure from the land of Egypt. 2Here in the wilderness the whole Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. 3The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died at the LORD’s hand in the land of Egypt, as we sat by our kettles of meat and ate our fill of bread! But you have led us into this wilderness to make this whole assembly die of famine!”

The Quail and the Manna. 4Then the LORD said to Moses:a I am going to rain down bread from heaven* for you. Each day the people are to go out and gather their daily portion; thus will I test them, to see whether they follow my instructions or not. 5On the sixth day, however, when they prepare what they bring in, let it be twice as much as they gather on the other days. 6So Moses and Aaron told all the Israelites,b “At evening you will know that it was the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt; 7and in the morning you will see the glory of the LORD, when he hears your grumbling against him. But who are we that you should grumble against us?” 8And Moses said, “When the LORD gives you meat to eat in the evening and in the morning your fill of bread, and hears the grumbling you utter against him, who then are we? Your grumbling is not against us, but against the LORD.”

9Then Moses said to Aaron, “Tell the whole Israelite community: Approach the LORD, for he has heard your grumbling.” 10But while Aaron was speaking to the whole Israelite community, they turned in the direction of the wilderness, and there the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud! 11The LORD said to Moses: 12I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them: In the evening twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will have your fill of bread, and then you will know that I, the LORD, am your God.

1 Sm 7:2-11

Samuel the Judge. 2From the day the ark came to rest in Kiriath-jearim, a long time, twenty years, elapsed, and the whole house of Israel turned to the LORD. 3Then Samuel addressed the whole house of Israel: “If you would return to the LORD with your whole heart, remove your foreign gods and your Astartes, fix your hearts on the LORD, and serve him alone, then the LORD will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.”a 4So the Israelites removed their Baals and Astartes,* and served the LORD alone. 5Samuel then gave orders, “Gather all Israel to Mizpah, that I may pray to the LORD for you.”b 6When they had gathered at Mizpah, they drew water and poured it out* on the ground before the LORD, and they fasted that day, saying, “We have sinned against the LORD.” It was at Mizpah that Samuel began to judge the Israelites.c

Rout of the Philistines. 7When the Philistines heard that the Israelites had gathered at Mizpah, their leaders went up against Israel. Hearing this, the Israelites became afraid of the Philistines 8and appealed to Samuel, “Do not stop crying out to the LORD our God for us, to save us from the hand of the Philistines.”d 9Samuel therefore took an unweaned lamb and offered it whole as a burnt offering to the LORD.e He cried out to the LORD for Israel, and the LORD answered him. 10While Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near for battle with Israel. That day, however, the LORD thundered loudly against the Philistines, and threw them into such confusion that they were defeated by Israel.f 11Thereupon the Israelites rushed out from Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, striking them down even beyond Beth-car.

Sir 10:6-18

6No matter what the wrong, never harm your neighbor

or go the way of arrogance.d

7Odious to the Lord and to mortals is pride,

and for both oppression is a crime.

8Sovereignty is transferred from one people to another

because of the lawlessness of the proud.

9Why are dust and ashes proud?*

Even during life the body decays.

10A slight illness—the doctor jests;

a king today—tomorrow he is dead.

11When a people die,

they inherit corruption and worms, gnats and maggots.e

12The beginning of pride is stubbornness

in withdrawing the heart from one’s Maker.

13For sin is a reservoir of insolence,

a source which runs over with vice;

Because of it God sends unheard-of afflictions

and strikes people with utter ruin.f

14God overturns the thrones of the proud

and enthrones the lowly in their place.

15God plucks up the roots of the proud,

and plants the lowly in their place.

16The Lord lays waste the lands of the nations,

and destroys them to the very foundations of the earth.

17He removes them from the earth, destroying them,

erasing their memory from the world.

18Insolence does not befit mortals,

nor impudent anger those born of women.

Is 55:1-9

1All you who are thirsty,*

come to the water!

You who have no money,

come, buy grain and eat;

Come, buy grain without money,

wine and milk without cost!a

2Why spend your money for what is not bread;

your wages for what does not satisfy?

Only listen to me, and you shall eat well,

you shall delight in rich fare.

3Pay attention and come to me;

listen, that you may have life.

I will make with you an everlasting covenant,

the steadfast loyalty promised to David.b

4As I made him a witness to peoples,

a leader and commander of peoples,

5So shall you summon a nation you knew not,

and a nation* that knew you not shall run to you,

Because of the LORD, your God,

the Holy One of Israel, who has glorified you.c

6* Seek the LORD while he may be found,

call upon him while he is near.

7Let the wicked forsake their way,

and sinners their thoughts;

Let them turn to the LORD to find mercy;

to our God, who is generous in forgiving.

8For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

nor are your ways my ways—oracle of the LORD.

9For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways,

my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

1 Jn 2:1-6

Christ and His Commandments. 1My children,* I am writing this to you so that you may not commit sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous one.a 2He is expiation for our sins, and not for our sins only but for those of the whole world.b 3The way we may be sure* that we know him is to keep his commandments.c 4Whoever says, “I know him,” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him.d 5But whoever keeps his word, the love of God is truly perfected in him. This is the way we may know that we are in union with him:e 6whoever claims to abide in him ought to live [just] as he lived.

Rom 7:13-25

Sin and Death.* 13Did the good, then, become death for me? Of course not! Sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin, worked death in me through the good, so that sin might become sinful beyond measure through the commandment.i 14We know that the law is spiritual; but I am carnal, sold into slavery to sin.j 15What I do, I do not understand. For I do not do what I want, but I do what I hate. 16Now if I do what I do not want, I concur that the law is good. 17So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 18For I know that good does not dwell in me, that is, in my flesh. The willing is ready at hand, but doing the good is not.k 19For I do not do the good I want, but I do the evil I do not want. 20Now if [I] do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. 21So, then, I discover the principle that when I want to do right, evil is at hand. 22For I take delight in the law of God, in my inner self, 23l but I see in my members another principle at war with the law of my mind, taking me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.* 24Miserable one that I am! Who will deliver me from this mortal body? 25Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Therefore, I myself, with my mind, serve the law of God but, with my flesh, the law of sin.m

Mt 15:21-28

The Canaanite Woman’s Faith.* 21i Then Jesus went from that place and withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out, “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon.” 23But he did not say a word in answer to her. His disciples came and asked him, “Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.” 24* He said in reply, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25j But the woman came and did him homage, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26He said in reply, “It is not right to take the food of the children* and throw it to the dogs.” 27She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” 28k Then Jesus said to her in reply, “O woman, great is your faith!* Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that hour.