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Matthew 5:1-12a When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain,and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him.He began to teach them, saying:"Blessed are the poor in spirit,for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.Blessed are they who mourn,for they will be comforted.Blessed are the meek,for they will inherit the land.Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,for they will be satisfied.Blessed are the merciful,for they will be shown mercy.Blessed are the clean of heart,for they will see God.Blessed are the peacemakers,for they will be called children of God.Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute youand utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.Rejoice and be glad,for your reward will be great in heaven."

Luke 14:1, 7-11 On a sabbath Jesus went to dineat the home of one of the leading Pharisees,and the people there were observing him carefully. He told a parable to those who had been invited,noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table.“When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet,do not recline at table in the place of honor.A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited by him,and the host who invited both of you may approach you and say,‘Give your place to this man,’and then you would proceed with embarrassmentto take the lowest place.Rather, when you are invited, go and take the lowest placeso that when the host comes to you he may say,‘My friend, move up to a higher position.’Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table.For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled,but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Luke 14:1-6 On a sabbath Jesus went to dineat the home of one of the leading Pharisees,and the people there were observing him carefully.In front of him there was a man suffering from dropsy.Jesus spoke to the scholars of the law and Pharisees in reply, asking,“Is it lawful to cure on the sabbath or not?”But they kept silent; so he took the man and,after he had healed him, dismissed him.Then he said to them   “Who among you, if your son or ox falls into a cistern,would not immediately pull him out on the sabbath day?”  But they were unable to answer his question.

Luke 13:31-35 Some Pharisees came to Jesus and said,“Go away, leave this area because Herod wants to kill you.”He replied, “Go and tell that fox,‘Behold, I cast out demons and I perform healings today and tomorrow,and on the third day I accomplish my purpose.Yet I must continue on my way today, tomorrow, and the following day,for it is impossible that a prophet should dieoutside of Jerusalem.’ “Jerusalem, Jerusalem,you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you,how many times I yearned to gather your children togetheras a hen gathers her brood under her wings,but you were unwilling!Behold, your house will be abandoned.But I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say,Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”

Luke 6:12-16 Jesus went up to the mountain to pray,and he spent the night in prayer to God.When day came, he called his disciples to himself,and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles:Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew,James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew,Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus,Simon who was called a Zealot,and Judas the son of James,and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

Luke 13:18-21 Jesus said, “What is the Kingdom of God like?To what can I compare it?It is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in the garden.When it was fully grown, it became a large bushand the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches.” Again he said, “To what shall I compare the Kingdom of God?It is like yeast that a woman tookand mixed in with three measures of wheat flouruntil the whole batch of dough was leavened.”

Luke 13:10-17 Jesus was teaching in a synagogue on the sabbath.And a woman was there who for eighteen yearshad been crippled by a spirit;she was bent over, completely incapable of standing erect.When Jesus saw her, he called to her and said,“Woman, you are set free of your infirmity.”He laid his hands on her,and she at once stood up straight and glorified God.But the leader of the synagogue,indignant that Jesus had cured on the sabbath,said to the crowd in reply,“There are six days when work should be done.Come on those days to be cured, not on the sabbath day.”The Lord said to him in reply, “Hypocrites!Does not each one of you on the sabbathuntie his ox or his ass from the mangerand lead it out for watering?This daughter of Abraham,whom Satan has bound for eighteen years now,ought she not to have been set free on the sabbath dayfrom this bondage?”When he said this, all his adversaries were humiliated;and the whole crowd rejoiced at all the splendid deeds done by him.

Matthew 22:34-40 When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees,they gathered together, and one of them,a scholar of the law tested him by asking,"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" He said to him,"You shall love the Lord, your God,with all your heart,with all your soul,and with all your mind.This is the greatest and the first commandment.The second is like it:You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments."

Luke 13:1-9 Some people told Jesus about the Galileanswhose blood Pilate had mingled with the blood of their sacrifices.He said to them in reply, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were greater sinners than all other Galileans?By no means!But I tell you, if you do not repent,you will all perish as they did!Or those eighteen people who were killed when the tower at Siloam fell on them–do you think they were more guilty than everyone else who lived in Jerusalem?By no means!But I tell you, if you do not repent,you will all perish as they did!” And he told them this parable: “There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard, and when he came in search of fruit on it but found none,he said to the gardener,‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none.So cut it down.Why should it exhaust the soil?’He said to him in reply,‘Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future.If not you can cut it down.’”

Luke 12:54-59 Jesus said to the crowds,“When you see a cloud rising in the westyou say immediately that it is going to rain–and so it does;and when you notice that the wind is blowing from the southyou say that it is going to be hot–and so it is.You hypocrites!You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky;why do you not know how to interpret the present time? “Why do you not judge for yourselves what is right?If you are to go with your opponent before a magistrate,make an effort to settle the matter on the way;otherwise your opponent will turn you over to the judge,and the judge hand you over to the constable,and the constable throw you into prison.I say to you, you will not be releaseduntil you have paid the last penny.”

Luke 12:49-53 Jesus said to his disciples:“I have come to set the earth on fire,and how I wish it were already blazing!There is a baptism with which I must be baptized,and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished!Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth?No, I tell you, but rather division.From now on a household of five will be divided,three against two and two against three;a father will be divided against his sonand a son against his father, a mother against her daughterand a daughter against her mother,a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-lawand a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

Luke 12:39-48 Jesus said to his disciples: “Be sure of this:if the master of the house had known the hourwhen the thief was coming,he would not have let his house be broken into.You also must be prepared,for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.” Then Peter said,“Lord, is this parable meant for us or for everyone?”And the Lord replied,“Who, then, is the faithful and prudent stewardwhom the master will put in charge of his servantsto distribute the food allowance at the proper time?Blessed is that servant whom his master on arrival finds doing so.Truly, I say to you, he will put himin charge of all his property.But if that servant says to himself,‘My master is delayed in coming,’and begins to beat the menservants and the maidservants,to eat and drink and get drunk,then that servant’s master will comeon an unexpected day and at an unknown hourand will punish the servant severelyand assign him a place with the unfaithful.That servant who knew his master’s willbut did not make preparations nor act in accord with his willshall be beaten severely;and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s willbut acted in a way deserving of a severe beatingshall be beaten only lightly. Much will be required of the person entrusted with much,and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.”

Luke 12:35-38 Jesus said to his disciples: “Gird your loins and light your lampsand be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding,ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks.Blessed are those servantswhom the master finds vigilant on his arrival.Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself,have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them.And should he come in the second or third watchand find them prepared in this way,blessed are those servants.”

GOSPEL - Luke 12:13-21 Someone in the crowd said to Jesus,“Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.”He replied to him,“Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?”Then he said to the crowd,“Take care to guard against all greed,for though one may be rich,one’s life does not consist of possessions.” Then he told them a parable.“There was a rich man whose land produced a bountiful harvest.He asked himself, ‘What shall I do,for I do not have space to store my harvest?’And he said, ‘This is what I shall do:I shall tear down my barns and build larger ones.There I shall store all my grain and other goodsand I shall say to myself, “Now as for you,you have so many good things stored up for many years,rest, eat, drink, be merry!”’But God said to him,‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you;and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?’Thus will it be for the one who stores up treasure for himselfbut is not rich in what matters to God.”

GOSPEL - Matthew 22:15-21 The Pharisees went offand plotted how they might entrap Jesus in speech. They sent their disciples to him, with the Herodians, saying,"Teacher, we know that you are a truthful manand that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.And you are not concerned with anyone's opinion,for you do not regard a person's status.Tell us, then, what is your opinion:Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?" Knowing their malice, Jesus said,"Why are you testing me, you hypocrites? Show me the coin that pays the census tax." Then they handed him the Roman coin. He said to them, "Whose image is this and whose inscription?" They replied, "Caesar's."At that he said to them,"Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesarand to God what belongs to God."