First Reading

Reading from the letter of the Apostle Saint Paul to the Ephesians

Ephesians 5, 21-33

Brothers and sisters: Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ: wives should be subject to their husbands as to the Lord, because the husband is head of the wife, just as Christ is head and savior of the Church, which is his body. Therefore, just as the Church is subject to Christ, so also wives should be subject to their husbands in everything.

Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.

In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the Church, for we are members of his body.

“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the Church.

However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

Gospel

Reading from the holy Gospel according to Saint Luke

Luke 13, 18-21

At that time, Jesus said: “What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds perched in its branches.”

Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”