First reading Sirach 27:30-28:7

‘Forgive your neighbour the wrong he has done, and then your sins will be pardoned when you pray.’

Anger and wrath, these are abominations,

and the sinful man will hold them fast.

The one who seeks vengeance will be paid vengeance from the Lord,

and he who keeps a record will have his own sins recorded.

Forgive your neighbour the wrong he has done,

and then your sins will be pardoned when you pray.

Does one person harbour anger against another

and yet seek for healing from the Lord?

Does he have no mercy towards someone like himself

and yet pray concerning his own sins?

If he himself, being flesh, maintains wrath,

who will make atonement for his sins?

Remember the end of your life and cease from enmity,

remember destruction and death

and be true to the commandments.

Remember the commandments

and do not be angry with your neighbour;

remember the covenant of the Most High

and overlook error.

The word of the Lord

Responsorial Psalm Ps 103(102):1-2. 3-4. 9-10. 11-12. ℟8

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and rich in mercy.

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and all within me, his holy name.

Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and never forget all his benefits. 

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and rich in mercy.

It is the Lord who forgives all your sins,

who heals every one of your ills,

who redeems your life from the grave,

who crowns you with mercy and compassion. 

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and rich in mercy.

He will not always find fault;

nor persist in his anger for ever.

He does not treat us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our faults. 

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and rich in mercy.

For as the heavens are high above the earth,

so strong his mercy for those who fear him.

As far as the east is from the west,

so far from us does he remove our transgressions. 

The Lord is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and rich in mercy.

Second reading Romans 14:7-9

‘Whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.’

Brothers and Sisters: None of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.

The word of the Lord

Gospel Acclamation John 13:34

Alleluia, alleluia.

A new commandment I give to you, says the Lord,

that you love one another, just as I have loved you.

Alleluia.