This Sunday's Readings

Church of the Sacred Heart

16TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

18 & 19 JULY 2026

Let us pray.

Show favour, O Lord, to your servants

and mercifully increase the gifts of your grace,

that, made fervent in hope, faith and charity,

they may be ever watchful in keeping your commands.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

God, for ever and eve

Amen.

First Reading 

A reading from the book of Wisdom.                           12:13,16-19

After sin you will grant repentance.

There is no god, other than you, who cares for everything,

to whom you might have to prove that you never judged unjustly.

Your justice has its source in strength,

your sovereignty over all makes you lenient to all.

You show your strength when your sovereign power is questioned

and you expose the insolence of those who know it;

but, disposing of such strength, you are mild in judgement,

you govern us with great lenience,

for you have only to will, and your power is there.

By acting thus you have taught a lesson to your people

how the virtuous man must be kindly to his fellow men,

and you have given your sons the good hope

that after sin you will grant repentance.

The word of the Lord.

Response: Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm

R.  O Lord, you are good and forgiving.

O Lord, you are good and forgiving,

    full of love to all who call.

Give heed, O Lord, to my prayer

    and attend to the sound of my voice.

R.  O Lord, you are good and forgiving.

All the nations shall come to adore you

    and glorify your name, O Lord:

for you are great and do marvellous deeds,

    you who alone are God.

R.  O Lord, you are good and forgiving.

But you, God of mercy and compassion,

    slow to anger, O Lord,

abounding in love and truth,

    turn and take pity on me.

R.  O Lord, you are good and forgiving.

Second Reading 

A reading from the letter of St Paul to the Romans.               8:26-27

The Spirit expresses our plea in a way that could never be put into words.

The Spirit comes to help us in our weakness. For when we cannot choose words in order to pray properly, the Spirit himself expresses our plea in a way that could never be put into words, and God who knows everything in our hearts knows perfectly well what he means, and that the pleas of the saints expressed by the Spirit are according to the mind of God.

The word of the Lord.

Response: Thanks be to God.

Gospel Acclamation

Alleluia, alleluia!

May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ

enlighten the eyes of our mind,

so that we can see what hope his call holds for us.

Alleluia!

Gospel 

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew.                    13:24-43

Response: Glory to you, O Lord.

Let them both grow till the harvest.

Jesus put a parable before the crowds: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everybody was asleep his enemy came, sowed darnel all among the wheat, and made off. When the new wheat sprouted and ripened, the darnel appeared as well. The owner’s servants went to him and said, “Sir, was it not good seed that you sowed in your field? If so, where does the darnel come from?” “Some enemy has done this” he answered. And the servants said, “Do you want us to go and weed it out?” But he said, “No, because when you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it. Let them both grow till the harvest; and at harvest time I shall say to the reapers: First collect the darnel and tie it in bundles to be burnt, then gather the wheat into my barn.”’

    He put another parable before them: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the biggest shrub of all and becomes a tree so that the birds of the air come and shelter in its branches.’

    He told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like the yeast a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour till it was leavened all through.’

    In all this Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables; indeed, he would never speak to them except in parables. This was to fulfil the prophecy:

I will speak to you in parables

and expound things hidden since the foundation of the world.

Then, leaving the crowds, he went to the house; and his disciples came to him and said, ‘Explain the parable about the darnel in the field to us.’ He said in reply, ‘The sower of the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world; the good seed is the subjects of the kingdom; the darnel, the subjects of the evil one; the enemy who sowed them, the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; the reapers are the angels. Well then, just as the darnel is gathered up and burnt in the fire, so it will be at the end of time. The Son of Man will send his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all things that provoke offences and all who do evil, and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. Then the virtuous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Listen, anyone who has ears!’

The Gospel of the Lord.

Response: Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Prayer Of The Faithful

Introduction: Confident in the abounding mercy and compassion of our all-powerful God, let us bring our petitions and needs before Him as we pray.

Response: Lord, hear our prayer.

1. For our Pope, Bishops and all who exercise leadership in the Church. That with humility and compassion, they may form us through the teachings of the Gospel and guide us to our loving and forgiving God. We pray to the Lord.

2. For all who lead with authority in the world. That they may choose the ways of the Holy Spirit to rise above evil and lead all peoples with justice, integrity and fairness. We pray to the Lord.

3. For those who do not know Christ. That they may be open to encountering Christ as they search for the knowledge and truth to live purposeful lives. We pray to the Lord.

4. For those who struggle with illness, loneliness and the burdens of life. That they may recognise the face of Christ and His compassion in all who care for them. We pray to the Lord.

5. For our parish community. That the Holy Spirit who works through our imperfections may transform us to bear God’s grace, and so, grow in faith and charitable love for one another. We pray to the Lord.

6. For our out-going Parish Priest, Rev Fr Gregoire. That called forth to the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Lord will bless him with renewed zeal, good health and peace in this new mission he is entrusted with. We pray to the Lord.

7. We now pray in silence for other needs and intentions …

For these other needs and intentions, we pray to the Lord.

Conclusion: Heavenly Father, we know and profess that You are a God of power and mercy. We beseech You to listen kindly to our petitions and grant them according to your holy will. We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.