GospelMk 10:13-16People were bringing children to Jesus that he might touch them,but the disciples rebuked them.When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them,“Let the children come to me; do not prevent them,for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.Amen, I say to you,whoever does not accept the Kingdom of God like a childwill not enter it.”Then he embraced the children and blessed them,placing his hands on them.

GospelMk 10:1-12Jesus came into the district of Judea and across the Jordan.Again crowds gathered around him and, as was his custom,he again taught them.The Pharisees approached him and asked,“Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?”They were testing him.He said to them in reply, “What did Moses command you?”They replied,“Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorceand dismiss her.”But Jesus told them,“Because of the hardness of your heartshe wrote you this commandment.But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother            and be joined to his wife,            and the two shall become one flesh.So they are no longer two but one flesh.Therefore what God has joined together,no human being must separate.”In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this.He said to them,“Whoever divorces his wife and marries anothercommits adultery against her;and if she divorces her husband and marries another,she commits adultery.”

GospelMk 9:41-50Jesus said to his disciples:“Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drinkbecause you belong to Christ,amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin,  it would be better for him if a great millstonewere put around his neckand he were thrown into the sea.If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off.It is better for you to enter into life maimed  than with two hands to go into Gehenna,into the unquenchable fire.And if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off.It is better for you to enter into life crippled  than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna.And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.Better for you to enter into the Kingdom of God with one eyethan with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna,where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.“Everyone will be salted with fire.Salt is good, but if salt becomes insipid,with what will you restore its flavor?Keep salt in yourselves and you will have peace with one another.”

GospelJn 15:18-21Jesus said to his disciples:"If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first.If you belonged to the world, the world would love its own;but because you do not belong to the world,and I have chosen you out of the world,the world hates you.Remember the word I spoke to you,'No slave is greater than his master.'If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you.If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.And they will do all these things to you on account of my name,because they do not know the one who sent me."

GospelMt 16:13-19When Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippihe asked his disciples,“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah,still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”Simon Peter said in reply,“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah.For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.And so I say to you, you are Peter,and upon this rock I will build my Church,and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.I will give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven.Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven;and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

Readings here. 

GospelLk 6:27-38Jesus said to his disciples:“To you who hear I say,love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.To the person who strikes you on one cheek,offer the other one as well,and from the person who takes your cloak,do not withhold even your tunic.Give to everyone who asks of you,and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.Do to others as you would have them do to you.For if you love those who love you,what credit is that to you?Even sinners love those who love them.And if you do good to those who do good to you,what credit is that to you?Even sinners do the same.If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment,what credit is that to you?Even sinners lend to sinners,and get back the same amount.But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,and lend expecting nothing back;then your reward will be greatand you will be children of the Most High,for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.“Stop judging and you will not be judged.Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.Forgive and you will be forgiven.Give, and gifts will be given to you;a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,will be poured into your lap.For the measure with which you measurewill in return be measured out to you.”

Reading IJas 3:1-10Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters,for you realize that we will be judged more strictly,for we all fall short in many respects.If anyone does not fall short in speech, he is a perfect man,able to bridle the whole body also.If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us,we also guide their whole bodies.It is the same with ships:even though they are so large and driven by fierce winds,they are steered by a very small rudderwherever the pilot’s inclination wishes.In the same way the tongue is a small memberand yet has great pretensions.Consider how small a fire can set a huge forest ablaze.The tongue is also a fire.It exists among our members as a world of malice,defiling the whole bodyand setting the entire course of our lives on fire,itself set on fire by Gehenna.For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature,can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species,but no man can tame the tongue.It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.With it we bless the Lord and Father,and with it we curse menwho are made in the likeness of God.From the same mouth come blessing and cursing.My brothers and sisters, this need not be so.  GospelMk 9:2-13Jesus took Peter, James, and Johnand led them up a high mountain apart by themselves.And he was transfigured before them,and his clothes became dazzling white,such as no fuller on earth could bleach them.Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses,and they were conversing with Jesus.Then Peter said to Jesus in reply,“Rabbi, it is good that we are here!Let us make three tents:one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified.Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them;then from the cloud came a voice,“This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”Suddenly, looking around, the disciples no longer saw anyonebut Jesus alone with them.As they were coming down from the mountain,he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone,except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead.So they kept the matter to themselves,questioning what rising from the dead meant.Then they asked him,“Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”He told them, “Elijah will indeed come first and restore all things,yet how is it written regarding the Son of Manthat he must suffer greatly and be treated with contempt?But I tell you that Elijah has comeand they did to him whatever they pleased,as it is written of him.”

GospelMk 8:34–9:1Jesus summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them,“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,take up his cross, and follow me.For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,but whoever loses his life for my sakeand that of the Gospel will save it.What profit is there for one to gain the whole worldand forfeit his life?What could one give in exchange for his life?Whoever is ashamed of me and of my wordsin this faithless and sinful generation,the Son of Man will be ashamed ofwhen he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”He also said to them,“Amen, I say to you,there are some standing here who will not taste deathuntil they see that the Kingdom of God has come in power.”