Mass Readings - Sunday, 05th January 2020

FIRST READING    Isaiah 60:1-6
Above you the glory of the Lord appears

Arise, shine out, Jerusalem, for your light has come,
the glory of the Lord is rising on you,
though night still covers the earth
and darkness the peoples.
Above you the Lord now rises
and above you his glory appears.
The nations come to your light
and kings to your dawning brightness.
Lift up your eyes and look round:
all are assembling and coming towards you,
your sons from far away
and your daughters being tenderly carried.
At this sight you will grow radiant,
your heart throbbing and full;
since the riches of the sea will flow to you,
the wealth of the nations come to you;
camels in throngs will cover you,
and dromedaries of Midian and Ephah;
everyone in Sheba will come,
bringing gold and incense
and singing the praise of the Lord.

The Word of the Lord


RESPONSORIAL PSALM     Psalm 71

Response: All nations shall fall prostrate before you, O Lord

1. O God, give your judgment to the king,
to a king's son your justice,
that he may judge your people
in justice and your poor in right judgment.

2. In his days justice shall flourish
and peace till the moon fails.
He shall rule from sea to sea,
from the Great River to earth's bounds.

3. The kings of Tarshish and the sea coasts
shall pay him tribute.
The kings of Sheba and Seba shall bring him gifts.
Before him all kings shall fall prostrate, all nations shall serve him.

4. For he shall save the poor when they cry
and the needy who are helpless.
He will have pity on the weak and save the lives of the poor.



SECOND READING    Ephesians 3:2-3,5-6
It has now been revealed that pagans share the same inheritance

You have probably heard how I have been entrusted by God with
the grace he meant for you, and that it was by a revelation that I
was given the knowledge of the mystery. This mystery that has now
been revealed through the Spirit to his holy apostles and prophets
was unknown to any men in past generations; it means that pagans
now share the same inheritance, that they are parts of the same
body, and that the same promise has been made to them, in Jesus
Christ, through the gospel.

The Word of the Lord


Gospel Acclamation     Mt2:2
Alleluia, alleluia!
We saw his star as it rose
and have come to do the Lord homage.
Alleluia!



GOSPEL   Matthew 2:1-12
The visit of the Magi

After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem in Judaea during the reign
of King Herod, some wise men came to Jerusalem from the east.
‘Where is the infant king of the Jews?’ they asked. ‘We saw his star as
it rose and have come to do him homage.’ When King Herod heard
this he was perturbed, and so was the whole of Jerusalem. He called
together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, and
enquired of them where the Christ was to be born. ‘At Bethlehem in
Judaea,’ they told him ‘for this is what the prophet wrote:
And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
you are by no means least among the leaders of Judah,
for out of you will come a leader
who will shepherd my people Israel.’
Then Herod summoned the wise men to see him privately. He asked
them the exact date on which the star had appeared, and sent
them on to Bethlehem. ‘Go and find out all about the child,’ he said
‘and when you have found him, let me know, so that I too may go
and do him homage.’ Having listened to what the king had to say,
they set out. And there in front of them was the star they had seen
rising; it went forward, and halted over the place where the child
was. The sight of the star filled them with delight, and going into the
house they saw the child with his mother Mary, and falling to their
knees they did him homage. Then, opening their treasures, they
offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. But they were
warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, and returned to their
own country by a different way.

The Gospel of the Lord