Today's readings speak about God's offer of salvation, how it was promised through the prophets, accomplished in Christ, and then proclaimed to the nations, but a gift that requires a response of faith. And so the first reading is taken from Saint Paul's letter to the Romans. It's the very beginning of this letter. And what's interesting about Saint Paul's letter to the Romans is that he is writing to the Romans before ever even setting foot in Rome. This is very different from all his other letters, which are usually written after his visiting of the place, for example, Corinth or Philippi or Galatia. So all of those letters are written after the fact.