• Psalm 72
• Psalm 92
• Isaiah 51:17—52:12
• Matthew 2:1–12
• Large Catechism I:245–253

Today we celebrate the Festival of St. John, Apostle and Evangelist. St. John, son of Zebedee and brother of James the Elder, was among the first disciples to be called by Jesus, and became known as “the disciple whom Jesus loved”. During Christ’s ministry, John witnessed many of Christ’s miracles, was present for the Transfiguration, went with Peter to reserve the upper room for the Last Supper, and, alone among the Disciples, did not forsake Christ during His Passion, remaining near Christ through the crucifixion. From the cross, Jesus made John guardian of Mary, His mother. John would go on to be a founding father of the Early Church. From John, we have the fourth Gospel, three Epistles, and the Book of Revelation, which was revealed to him while he was banished to Patmos by Emperor Domitian. John outlived all of the other Apostles, dying in Ephesus at around age one hundred.

• Psalm 34
• Psalm 60
• Isaiah 49:22—51:16
• Matthew 1:18–25
• Large Catechism I:234–244

Today we celebrate the Festival of St. Stephen, Martyr. St. Stephen was one of the first seven deacons of the Church, appointed to distribute food and other necessities to the poor of the growing Christian community. In addition to such duties, the deacons also taught and preached. When some of his colleagues became jealous, they brought him before the Sanhedrin on false charges of blasphemy. Before the Sanhedrin, Stephen confessed his faith in Christ and rebuked members of the Sanhedrin for rejecting the Christ. Infuriated, the Sanhedrin had Stephen dragged outside the city and stoned. Honored as the first martyr of the New Testament Church, Stephen is remembered for his dying words: “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” and “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.”

• Psalm 96
• Psalm 150
• Isaiah 49:1–18
• Matthew 1:1–17
• Large Catechism I:222–233

• Psalm 98
• Psalm 2
• Isaiah 44:21—45:25
• Revelation 12:1–17
• Large Catechism I:211–221

• Psalm 39
• Psalm 144
• Isaiah 43:25—44:20
• Revelation 11:1–19
• Large Catechism I:199–210

• Psalm 115
• Psalm 125
• Isaiah 43:1–24
• Revelation 9:13—10:11
• Large Catechism I:189–198

• Psalm 102
• Isaiah 42:1–25
• Revelation 9:1–12
• Large Catechism I:179–188

• Psalm 119:25–32
• Psalm 141
• Isaiah 40:18—41:10
• Revelation 8:1–13
• Large Catechism I:167–178

Today we commemorate Katharina Luther, née von Bora. Born in 1499, Katharina von Bora was placed into a convent when she was still a child and became a nun in 1515. In April of 1523, Katharina, along with eight other nuns, was rescued from the convent and brought to Wittenberg. In Wittenberg, Martin Luther helped the rescued nuns return to their families or start families of their own. Although initially hesitant to marry — as he feared assassination or execution by Rome — Luther believed that he must place his faith in God and practice what he preached. Katharina and Luther were married on 13 June 1525. God blessed the Luthers’ marriage with six children, and Katharina skillfully managed the Luther household. Although she suffered financial difficulties after Luther’s death in 1546, Katharina remained steadfast in her faith and her care for her children and others. Amongst her last recorded words, Katharina, on her deathbed, said that she would ‘stick to Christ as a burr to cloth.’