23/08/2026
CATHOLIC MASS READINGS – SUNDAY, 23 AUGUST 2026
21st Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year A
FIRST READING
Isaiah 22:19-23
“I place the key of the House of David on his shoulder.”
A reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah:
Thus says the Lord to Shebna, master of the palace:
“I will thrust you from your office and pull you down from your station. On that day I will summon my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah.
I will clothe him with your robe and gird him with your sash, and give over to him your authority. He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.
I will place the key of the House of David on Eliakim’s shoulder; when he opens, no one shall shut; when he shuts, no one shall open.
I will fix him like a peg in a sure spot, to be a place of honour for his family.”
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
SECOND READING
Romans 11:33-36
“From Him, through Him and for Him are all things.”
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans:
Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable are His judgments and how mysterious His ways!
For who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has been His counsellor?
Or who has given anything to Him that He may be repaid?
For from Him and through Him and for Him are all things.
To Him be glory forever.
Amen.
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION
Alleluia, Alleluia.
You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
Alleluia.
HOLY GOSPEL
Matthew 16:13-20
“You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church.”
A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew:
Glory to You, O Lord.
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi and asked His disciples:
“Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
He said to them:
“But who do you say that I am?”
Simon Peter said in reply:
“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus said to him:
“Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father.
And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Then He strictly ordered His disciples not to tell anyone that He was the Christ.
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ.
Reflection:
God's wisdom is greater than human understanding. When we build our lives on Christ, our faith becomes stronger than every challenge we face. Jesus continues to ask each one of us today:
“But who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15)