Catholic Mass Readings and Reflection February 08, 2026
Sunday – Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
08th February 2026 (Sunday)
Psalter: Week 1
Readings of the Day
First Reading: Isaiah 58:7-10
Thus says the Lord: Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rearguard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.
Psalm 112:4-5, 6-7, 8a and 9 (R. 4a)
R/. A light rises in the darkness for the upright. or Alleluia.
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 2:1-5
When I came to you, brothers I did not come to you the proclaiming testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.
Gospel Acclamation
V/. Alleluia
R/. Alleluia
V/. I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will have the light of life.
R/. Alleluia
Gospel: Matthew 5:13-16
At that time: Jesus said to his disciples, “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”
Daily Gospel Reflection
Sunday – Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Main Point: Faith is not a private hobby we have and it is done behind our backs. It is meant to be visible. God is not impressed with how holy we appear in church but how much mercy we show when we walk out of the building.
1. There is a tough question lurking within today’s readings. It asks us the following questions: Does my faith really show up when it matters? I don’t mean in church, or in the prayers that we know by heart. What I mean is out there, real life, when things are messy.
2. In the first reading, prophet Isaiah does not mince words. He doesn’t talk of great prayers and loud worship. He gets straight to the point: Share your bread with the hungry. Bring the homeless into yours house. Don’t turn your back on your own people.
3. Here is the thing, Isaiah is letting us know that God is not impressed with religion that keeps comfortable. God is moved by Mercy that gets its hands dirty. He says that when we help the poor and satisfy the afflicted then our light will rise in the darkness. Not before.
4. I am going to be honest with you – this is uncomfortable. It is much easier to light a candle in church than to carry someone’s burden in life. It is easier to quote a Bible verse than to share our time, our food or our patience with a difficult neighbor. But, God desires our heart not only our rituals.
5. St. Paul takes this same thread in the second reading. He tells the Corinthians, “I came to you in weakness and with fear.” He didn’t use fancy words or smart things to say. He didn’t put on a performance. He just brought Jesus.
6. Paul shows us that faith does not operate by demonstrations of power. It operates through just plain trust. We need not be superstars for service for God. We just need to be real.
7. Then, in the Gospel, Jesus does bring it all home. And he looks at his disciples; normal fishermen and they were just tax collectors, and he says, “You are the salt of the earth.” You are the light of the world.”
8. Notice what He doesn’t say. He doesn’t say “You should try to make yourself salt.” He says “You ARE.” You already have it. But we have to use it. Salt does not shout, it just quietly alters the taste of the food. So light doesn’t fight in the darkness, it just shines in the darkness.
9. Think of it such: A good word in a tense room is salt. To be honest when everybody else is cheating is light. Forgiving heart where anger is easier to feel is flavour.
10. But Jesus also warns us. Salt can lose its taste. Light can be concealed under a basket. This is the danger to good church-going people like us. We can believe all of the right things, but keep our light covered – covered by fear, covered by comfort, or covered by the thought that “someone else will do it.”
11. Jesus asks for visibility. Not to show off, but to show God. He says, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and give glory to your Father.”
12. That is the goal. We don’t do good deeds so that people will praise us and say, “Oh, what a holy person.” We do them so that through our kindness some may see God a bit the clearer.
My Practice: If somebody followed me around during this week, would they know that I was a Christian by my conduct, or just by me telling them? Where is one “dark” or “tasteless” situation in my life at this point where I can create a little light and flavor?
