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Full lections can be read here.
Based on the Readings as Set
First Reading (Genesis 9:8-17)
After Noah, his family and the animals safely emerged from the ark, God made a covenant with them that he would not again destroy the earth with a flood. He said he would remember this covenant every time he saw its sign, a rainbow in the clouds.
Psalm (25:1-10)
Knowing that he can trust in the steadfast love and mercy of YAHWEH, the Psalmist looks to him, asking to be led in his truth and forgiven his youthful sins. YAHWEH will lead the sinner and the humble into his paths of faithful love as they keep his covenant.
Second Reading (1 Peter 3:18-22)
Christ the righteous one died for sinners to bring them to God. Made alive in the spirit, he then preached to the captive spirits of those lost in Noah’s flood. Those saved in the ark, however, prefigured our baptism. Christ is now gloriously ascended and sovereign over all.
Gospel (Mark 1:9-15)
When John baptizes Jesus a heavenly voice identifies him as God’s Beloved Son. The Spirit then drives him into the wilderness where Satan tempts him for forty days. After, Jesus begins preaching repentance and belief in the good news of the impending arrival of God’s kingdom.
CONNECTION SUGGESTIONS
- Salvation and judgment: two sides of the same coin
- God’s covenants with his creatures reflect his constancy and love
- Water as an instrument of judgment and/or salvation
- Forty days mark a new beginning in our relationship with God