A: The readings are predetermined by a cycle of readings within the Catholic Liturgical Calendar established by the Church. They are compiled in a Lectionary book. Our current Lectionary was determined by the Second Vatican Council. The Church’s calendar walks through our Lord’s life and salvation history as it points to Christ through the daily and weekend Mass readings and the liturgical calendar of events celebrated, including feasts, solemnities and memorials. This helps us relive Christ’s life in our own lives as we listen to the daily and Sunday Mass readings.

The Church’s Sunday Mass readings cycle follows the synoptic Gospels every 3 years: Years A (Matthew), B (Mark), C (Luke) with the Gospel of John used during Easter Season. The weekday reading cycle is divided into odd or even years: Year I is for odd years, II for even years. 2025 is Year I for weekday readings and year C for Sunday readings; 2026 is Year II for weekdays and C for Sundays. The Church’s liturgical calendar year starts on the first Sunday of Advent. The daily Mass readings point to the Sunday Mass readings as its summary and high point.

During the Sundays in Ordinary Time, the Gospel appointed for the year is read more or less continuously. The first reading and Psalm are chosen in harmony with the Gospel reading. The first reading is typically from the Old Testament, except at Easter when it is chosen from the  book of Acts. The Old Testament first reading brings in Salvation History, which draws us to see the fulfillment in Christ. The second reading is chosen from the New Testament, principally from St. Paul’s letters, and it is also read semi-continuously. The second reading in Ordinary Time is not intended to coordinate with the Gospel or the first reading, but there are some pairings.

There are optional readings for Saints (Sanctoral Cycle) that pair with the Seasonal Cycle. They are called the Proper of Saints and the Proper of Tiime, respectively. Both are organized and published in the liturgical calendar. Each year of the Liturgical Calendar also has a theme. 2025’s theme is “Jubilee Year, Pilgrims of Hope”; 2026 will be “Year of Grace”.

 

​Feeling Uneasy about the death of a loved one?
Recently we had a parishioner ask our Abbey Corner the question “I am uneasy about my deceased parents’ salvation, how do I know if they are in heaven?”
     Let us look at scripture and the Catechism for our answers. People during St Paul’s time in Thessalonica had the same worries about their loved ones. It is human to mourn the death of a loved one; but in that mourning it is Christian to keep our sadness from sliding down to despair. Paul told the Thessalonians … and tells us, “We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died” (1Thess4:13-18). A few things to look at in these verses. Paul is addressing brothers and sisters of the Church, those faithful who believed in Jesus and His resurrection. As Christians, we have the hope of our own resurrection after death made possible by Jesus’ own resurrection. But it is a hope, for no one knows the heart fully, not even our own, only God does (Pvb21:2, Jer17:10). No one can judge or fully know if their loved one is in heaven except for when we have evidence of miracles from saints through the investigation of the Church and her Magisterium of those miracles.
    We as Christians know our Lord is merciful wanting all to be with Him in heaven. Jesus loved his own to the end. He washed the feet of his betrayer, gave the Eucharist to those who would deny him. Jesus wants all people to be in unity with Him forever after they die. But God alone, not any of us, can judge if someone has changed or repented right up to the end. Only God knows the heart. “All who die in God’s grace and friendship but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven. The Church gives the name Purgatory to this final purification of the elect, which is different from the punishment of the damned” (CCC1030-1). The key words in the Catechism is if they die in God’s grace.
     “We cannot be united with God unless we freely choose to love Him. To die in mortal sin without repenting and accepting God’s merciful love means remaining separated from Him forever by our own free choice” (1033). “The teaching of the Church affirms the existence of hell and its eternity, its punishment is eternal separation from God” (CCC1035). But only God knows the heart, it is not ours to judge. Paul tells Timothy, “If we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he will also deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful—for he cannot deny himself (2Tim2:11-13).
    Our hope, which is truly something to grasp onto, is in the knowledge that our Lord is merciful and loves us more than we have ever loved anyone or anything. He wishes that all go to heaven to be united with Him forever. But it is also mercy that only those in His grace enter heaven. We trust in His mercy, and need to pray for our loved ones.