Daily Catholic Mass Readings for February 15, 2025
First Reading: Genesis 3.9-24
9But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?"10He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."11And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?"12The man said, "The woman you put here with me-she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it."13Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."14So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, "Cursed are you above all the livestock and all the wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.15And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."16To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."17To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,'"Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.18It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field.19By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."20Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living.21The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.22And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever."23So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken.24After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.
Psalm 90
1Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.2Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.3You turn men back to dust, saying, "Return to dust, O sons of men."4For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.5You sweep men away in the sleep of death; they are like the new grass of the morning-6though in the morning it springs up new, by evening it is dry and withered.7We are consumed by your anger and terrified by your indignation.8You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.9All our days pass away under your wrath; we finish our years with a moan.10The length of our days is seventy years- or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their span is but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away.11Who knows the power of your anger? For your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you.12Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.13Relent, O LORD! How long will it be? Have compassion on your servants.14Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.15Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, for as many years as we have seen trouble.16May your deeds be shown to your servants, your splendor to their children.17May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us- yes, establish the work of our hands.
Gospel: Mark 8.1-10
1During those days another large crowd gathered. Since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said,2"I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat.3If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance."4His disciples answered, "But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?"5"How many loaves do you have?" Jesus asked. "Seven," they replied.6He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people, and they did so.7They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them.8The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.9About four thousand men were present. And having sent them away,10he got into the boat with his disciples and went to the region of Dalmanutha.
Sermon
The readings today present us with two distinct yet interconnected moments in the story of salvation. In the first reading from Genesis, we witness the aftermath of Adam and Eve’s disobedience in the Garden of Eden. Their choice to eat from the forbidden tree leads to a rupture in their relationship with God and with each other. The serpent, a symbol of temptation and deceit, is cursed, and Adam and Eve face the consequences of their actions. Yet, even in the midst of judgment, there is a glimmer of hope: the promise of enmity between the serpent and the woman, and the ultimate triumph of her offspring over evil. This passage reminds us that sin has real consequences, but it also points to the enduring promise of redemption.
In the Gospel, we see Jesus, the ultimate fulfillment of that promise, as he feeds a crowd of four thousand with just seven loaves and a few fish. This miracle, like the feeding of the five thousand before it, reveals Jesus’ compassion for those who are physically hungry and spiritually weary. It also mirrors the divine provision seen in the Old Testament, such as the manna in the wilderness. Yet, unlike the first Adam, who failed to trust God’s provision, Jesus, the new Adam, shows us what it means to trust and obey the Father. Through this act of multiplication, Jesus demonstrates that he is the bread of life, capable of satisfying our deepest hungers.
These readings invite us to reflect on our own relationship with God and our response to his gifts. Like Adam and Eve, we often doubt God’s goodness and provision, leading us into sin. But Jesus calls us to trust in his abundance and to seek him in our times of need. Just as he fed the crowd in the wilderness, he feeds us today through the Eucharist and through the everyday blessings of life. Let us turn to him with gratitude and faith, knowing that he is always near, ready to satisfy our hunger and restore our relationship with him.