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TWENTIETH OF JUNE
MEMORIAL OF SAINT ALBAN, MARTYR
ENGLAND
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COLLECT
O God, by whose grace Saint Alban
gave himself up for his friend
and received the martyr’s crown
as the first in this land
to shed his blood for Christ,
grant, we pray,
that following his example
and supported by his prayers
we may worship you, the living God,
and give true witness to Christ our Lord.
Who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God,
for ever and ever.
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FIRST READING
2 TIMOTHY 2:8-13.3:10-12
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A READING FROM THE SECOND LETTER OF SAINT PAUL TO TIMOTHY
(ANYBODY WHO TRIES TO LIVE IN DEVOTION TO CHRIST IS CERTAIN TO BE ATTACKED.)
Remember the Good News that I carry,“
Jesus Christ risen from the dead,
sprung from the race of David”;
it is on account of this that I have my own hardships to bear,
even being chained like a criminal
– but they cannot chain up God’s news.
So bear it all for the sake of those who are chosen,
so that in the end they may have
the salvation that is in Christ Jesus
and the eternal glory that comes with it.
Here is a saying that you can rely on:
if we have died with him, then we shall live with him;
if we hold firm, then we shall reign with him;
if we disown him, then he will disown us;
we may be unfaithful, but he is always faithful,
for he cannot disown his own self.
You know, though, what I have taught,
how I lived, what I have aimed at;
you know my faith, my patience and my love;
my constancy and the persecutions
and hardships that came to me in places like
Antioch, Iconium and Lystra
– all the persecutions I have endured;
and the Lord has rescued me from every one of them.
You are well aware, then,
that anybody who tries to live in devotion to Christ
is certain to be attacked.
The word of the Lord.
R.) Thanks be to God.
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responsorialpsalmcatholic 