Listen, today’s readings are all about God entering human history not as an idea, but as a real presence that demands a real yes. The prophecy from Isaiah gives the promise of Emmanuel, God with us. The Psalm answers with the language of obedience, a heart ready to do the will of God. Then the Gospel brings us to Nazareth, where the entire course of salvation history turns on Mary’s response to the angel. What makes this day so powerful is that it holds together divine initiative and human surrender. God speaks first. Grace comes first. But the mystery still waits for Mary’s yes. Today’s Word reminds us that salvation enters the world through obedience, humility, and trust. The Annunciation is not only about what God did in Mary. It is also about the pattern of every faithful life: hearing God’s word, receiving it without resistance, and allowing it to take flesh through surrender.

Reading I

Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10

The LORD spoke to Ahaz, saying:

Ask for a sign from the LORD, your God;
let it be deep as the nether world, or high as the sky!

But Ahaz answered,
“I will not ask! I will not tempt the LORD!”

Then Isaiah said:

Listen, O house of David!
Is it not enough for you to weary people,
must you also weary my God?
Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign:
the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son,
and shall name him Emmanuel,
which means “God is with us!”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 40:7-8a, 8b-9, 10, 11

R. (8a and 9a) Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.

Sacrifice or oblation you wished not,
but ears open to obedience you gave me.
Holocausts or sin-offerings you sought not;
then said I, “Behold I come.”

R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.

“In the written scroll it is prescribed for me,
To do your will, O my God, is my delight,
and your law is within my heart!”

R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.

I announced your justice in the vast assembly;
I did not restrain my lips, as you, O LORD, know.

R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.

Your justice I kept not hid within my heart;
your faithfulness and your salvation I have spoken of;
I have made no secret of your kindness and your truth
in the vast assembly.

R. Here I am, Lord; I come to do your will.

Reading II

Hebrews 10:4-10

Brothers and sisters:

It is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats
take away sins.

For this reason, when Christ came into the world, he said:

“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
but a body you prepared for me;
in holocausts and sin offerings you took no delight.
Then I said, ‘As is written of me in the scroll,
behold, I come to do your will, O God.’”

First he says, “Sacrifices and offerings,
holocausts and sin offerings,
you neither desired nor delighted in.”
These are offered according to the law.

Then he says, “Behold, I come to do your will.”
He takes away the first to establish the second.
By this “will,” we have been consecrated
through the offering of the Body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Verse Before the Gospel

John 1:14ab

The Word of God became flesh and made his dwelling among us;
and we saw his glory.

Gospel

Luke 1:26-38

The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.

And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”

But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.

Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.

Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”

But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”

And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”

Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”

Then the angel departed from her.

Listen, today’s readings are all about what happens when sin poisons vision and only God can heal what people cannot fix themselves. In the first reading, Israel grows impatient, complains against God, and suffers the consequences of that rebellion. Yet even in judgment, God provides a path to healing through the bronze serpent lifted up before the people. The Psalm carries the cry of those in distress who know they cannot save themselves and must be heard by the Lord. Then the Gospel pushes even deeper, as Jesus tells the Pharisees that if they do not believe in who he is, they will die in their sins. The turning point comes in the lifting up of the Son of Man. Today’s Word shows that healing does not come from denial, self-justification, or pride. It comes from turning toward the one God has lifted up for our salvation. The same Lord who confronted Israel in the desert now confronts every soul with the question of whether it will look to him and live.

Reading I

Numbers 21:4-9

From Mount Hor the children of Israel set out on the Red Sea road,
to bypass the land of Edom.
But with their patience worn out by the journey,
the people complained against God and Moses,
“Why have you brought us up from Egypt to die in this desert,
where there is no food or water?
We are disgusted with this wretched food!”

In punishment the LORD sent among the people saraph serpents,
which bit the people so that many of them died.
Then the people came to Moses and said,
“We have sinned in complaining against the LORD and you.
Pray the LORD to take the serpents away from us.”
So Moses prayed for the people, and the LORD said to Moses,
“Make a saraph and mount it on a pole,
and whoever looks at it after being bitten will live.”
Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole,
and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent
looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 102:2-3, 16-18, 19-21

R. (2) O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.

O LORD, hear my prayer,
and let my cry come to you.
Hide not your face from me
in the day of my distress.
Incline your ear to me;
in the day when I call, answer me speedily.

R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.

The nations shall revere your name, O LORD,
and all the kings of the earth your glory,
When the LORD has rebuilt Zion
and appeared in his glory;
When he has regarded the prayer of the destitute,
and not despised their prayer.

R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.

Let this be written for the generation to come,
and let his future creatures praise the LORD:
“The LORD looked down from his holy height,
from heaven he beheld the earth,
To hear the groaning of the prisoners,
to release those doomed to die.”

R. O Lord, hear my prayer, and let my cry come to you.

Verse Before the Gospel

The seed is the word of God, Christ is the sower

all who come to him will live for ever.

Gospel

John 8:21-30

Jesus said to the Pharisees:
“I am going away and you will look for me,
but you will die in your sin.
Where I am going you cannot come.”

So the Jews said,
“He is not going to kill himself, is he,
because he said, ‘
Where I am going you cannot come’?”

He said to them, “You belong to what is below,
I belong to what is above.
You belong to this world,
but I do not belong to this world.
That is why I told you that you will die in your sins.
For if you do not believe that I AM,
you will die in your sins.”

So they said to him, “Who are you?”
Jesus said to them, “What I told you from the beginning.
I have much to say about you in condemnation.
But the one who sent me is true,
and what I heard from him I tell the world.”

They did not realize that he was speaking to them of the Father.
So Jesus said to them,
“When you lift up the Son of Man,
then you will realize that I AM,
and that I do nothing on my own,
but I say only what the Father taught me.
The one who sent me is with me.
He has not left me alone,
because I always do what is pleasing to him.”

Because he spoke this way, many came to believe in him.

Listen, today’s readings take us deep into the heart of love that mourns and the strange way of Christ: David grieves a fallen friend and king with raw sorrow, the Psalm cries out for God’s saving face amidst tears and conflict, the Alleluia calls us to open our hearts to Christ’s word, and in the Gospel Jesus is so close to the crowds that his own think he’s lost his mind. In this **Memorial of Saint Francis de Sales, Bishop and Doctor of the Church**, we’re reminded that love is patient with grief, faithful in prayer, and rooted in the wisdom of Christ’s way, even when it seems surprising to the world. Today isn’t about neat answers: it’s about the depth of compassion that refuses to shy away from pain while trusting in the Lord’s presence. As we walk through these texts, we meet a God who weeps with us and a Savior whose closeness changes how we understand love and life. Let that shape your prayer today with trust and honest heart. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}

Reading I

2 Samuel 1:1-4, 11-12, 19, 23-27

After the death of Saul, when David had returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, David remained two days in Ziklag; and on the third day, behold, a man came from Saul’s camp, with his clothes rent and earth upon his head. And when he came to David, he fell to the ground and did obeisance. David said to him, “Where do you come from?” And he said to him, “I have escaped from the camp of Israel.” … Then David took hold of his clothes, and rent them; and so did all the men who were with him; and they mourned and wept and fasted until evening for Saul and for Jonathan his son and for the people of the LORD and for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword. “Thy glory, O Israel, is slain upon thy high places! How are the mighty fallen! Saul and Jonathan, beloved and lovely! In life and in death they were not divided; they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions. Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, who clothed you daintily in scarlet, who put ornaments of gold upon your apparel. How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle! Jonathan lies slain upon thy high places. I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan; very pleasant have you been to me; your love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women. How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!”

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 80:2-3, 5-7

R. (4b) Let us see your face, Lord, and we shall be saved. O shepherd of Israel, hearken, O guide of the flock of Joseph! From your throne upon the cherubim, shine forth before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh. Rouse your power, and come to save us. R. Let us see your face, Lord, and we shall be saved. O LORD of hosts, how long will you burn with anger while your people pray? You have fed them with the bread of tears and given them tears to drink in ample measure. You have made us a laughingstock to our neighbors, and our enemies mock us. R. Let us see your face, Lord, and we shall be saved.

Alleluia

Acts 16:14b

R. Alleluia, alleluia. Open our hearts, O Lord, to listen to the words of your Son. R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel

Mark 3:20-21

Jesus came with his disciples into the house. Again the crowd gathered, making it impossible for them even to eat. When his relatives heard of this they set out to seize him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”