Understanding the Scripture Readings at Mass
In the Liturgy of the Word . . . God speaks to us, and the same Holy Spirit who inspired the sacred Scriptures opens our minds and hearts to that living word. At the table of God’s word, we find nourishment for our lives as we listen to the Old and the New Testaments proclaim the one mystery of Christ and call for our response. Drawing from the richness of the Church’s Lectionary, the Liturgy of the Word invites us to silent openness to God’s saving message as it resounds in the ecclesial assembly and continues God’s constant dialogue with his people, the Church.
- Pope Francis, General Audience, 31st January 2018
Preparing yourself to participate fully in the celebration of Holy Mass is important for all involved – priest and people, including those who are asked to proclaim the Word of God in the scripture readings. Our parish wishes to provide support to all who wish to spend time in reflecting on the Scripture passages which feature in Sunday Masses throughout the year.
CLICK HERE to find guidance for St Columbkille’s Parish Readers about reading at Mass.
CLICK HERE to find batches of Commentaries on Sunday Scripture readings.
In addition, the websites listed below may be useful. Some of these enable you to read the actual Scripture readings used at Mass each day. Others offer commentary on, and some explanation of, theScripture readings – how they are connected and how we might make sense of them in our own lives. You can access these websites either by clicking on the linked text below or by using the menu on the right sidebar of this page.
- Universalis provides the texts of the Daily Mass Readings, as well as the various prayers (such as Morning Prayer) which form the Office of the Church.
- Lector Notes is an excellent website, especially for Readers because it offers some background to each Sunday reading and suggests how to proclaim each reading.
- Living Space is a website maintained by an Irish Jesuit community which provides a daily commentary on Mass readings, with some suggestions for prayer.
- Sunday Connection is an American Jesuit website which provides some background on the Gospel Reading for each Sunday. A link is also provided to the scripture texts but these are taken from the New American Bible.
- Word Sunday provides short reflections written by an American Religious Education Director on each Sunday Scripture Reading, sometimes accompanied by a short audio commentary.
- Sunday Gospel Commentaries offers reflections on each Sunday Scripture reading, written by an Italian Missionary Priest.
BELOW you will find a document which provides background information on how the Scripture passages are selected for inclusion in the Lectionary from which the Scripture Readings are proclaimed during Mass. This document an be enlarged for reading on-screen or downloaded for printing.
Understanding Lectionary Texts