Mass Reading: Sunday - 15th December 2024

First reading
Zephaniah 3:14-18
The Lord, the king of Israel, is in your midst

Shout for joy, daughter of Zion,
Israel, shout aloud!
Rejoice, exult with all your heart,
daughter of Jerusalem!
The Lord has repealed your sentence;
he has driven your enemies away.
The Lord, the king of Israel, is in your midst;
you have no more evil to fear.

When that day comes, word will come to Jerusalem:
Zion, have no fear,
do not let your hands fall limp.
The Lord your God is in your midst,
a victorious warrior.
He will exult with joy over you,
he will renew you by his love;
he will dance with shouts of joy for you
as on a day of festival.

The word of the Lord.

________

Responsorial Psalm
Isaiah 12
The rejoicing of a redeemed people

Sing and shout for joy for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

Truly, God is my salvation,
    I trust, I shall not fear.
For the Lord is my strength, my song,
    he became my saviour.
With joy you will draw water
    from the wells of salvation.

Sing and shout for joy for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

Give thanks to the Lord, give praise to his name!
    Make his mighty deeds known to the peoples!
    Declare the greatness of his name.

Sing and shout for joy for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

Sing a psalm to the Lord
    for he has done glorious deeds;
    make them known to all the earth!
People of Zion, sing and shout for joy,
    for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

Sing and shout for joy for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.

________

Second reading
Philippians 4:4-7
The Lord is very near

    I want you to be happy, always happy in the Lord; I repeat, what I want is your happiness. Let your tolerance be evident to everyone: the Lord is very near.

    There is no need to worry; but if there is anything you need, pray for it, asking God for it with prayer and thanksgiving, and that peace of God, which is so much greater than we can understand, will guard your hearts and your thoughts, in Christ Jesus.

The word of the Lord.

________

Gospel Acclamation
Is61:1(Lk4:18)

Alleluia, alleluia!

The spirit of the Lord has been given to me.
He has sent me to bring the good news to the poor.

Alleluia!

________

Gospel
Luke 3:10-18
'Someone is coming who will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire'

    When all the people asked John, ‘What must we do?’ he answered, ‘If anyone has two tunics he must share with the man who has none, and the one with something to eat must do the same.’ There were tax collectors too who came for baptism, and these said to him, ‘Master, what must we do?’ He said to them, ‘Exact no more than your rate.’ Some soldiers asked him in their turn, ‘What about us? What must we do?’ He said to them, ‘No intimidation! No extortion! Be content with your pay!’

    A feeling of expectancy had grown among the people, who were beginning to think that John might be the Christ, so John declared before them all, ‘I baptise you with water, but someone is coming, someone who is more powerful than I am, and I am not fit to undo the strap of his sandals; he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing-fan is in his hand to clear his threshing-floor and to gather the wheat into his barn; but the chaff he will burn in a fire that will never go out.’ As well as this, there were many other things he said to exhort the people and to announce the Good News to them.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Mass Reflection: Sunday - 15th December 2024

 

ZEP 3:14-18A; IS 12:2-6; PHIL 4:4-7; LK3:10-18


“Rejoice in the Lord always, I shall say it again: rejoice!”

We have arrived at Gaudete Sunday (Gaudete is the Latin word for “rejoice”) this Third Week of Advent, and the Scriptures take on a joyful tone as we continue our preparations for the feast of our Savior’s birth and ultimately for His Second Coming.

Our First Reading, from Zephaniah, certainly gives us cause to rejoice. “Fear not… be not discouraged! The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior.” Even more cause for joy, this Savior delights in us — “He will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in His love, He will sing joyfully because of you.” How can we not be moved by a God who pursues us, who comes to us as Savior, and who actually sings for joy over us!

Our Second Reading gives still more cause for joy as St. Paul reminds us, “The Lord is near. Have no anxiety at all.” Then he gives us a prescription for maintaining this peace: “In everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

Paul’s instructions for obtaining peace come as an early Christmas gift. They remind us that we can and should go to God with all our needs and present them to Him along with our thanks. This guidance calls to mind a vital aspect of a stewardship way of life: gratitude to God in response to His great love and countless gifts to us.

The Gospel passage, from Luke, shows us how to live out this sense of thankfulness, making our lives a “Christmas gift” to Christ in joyful response to His love for us. When the crowds hear John the Baptist’s message that their Savior is coming, they ask him what they should do to prepare. He responds, “Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do the same.” He tells tax collectors to stop collecting more than is prescribed and soldiers, to be satisfied with their wages. In other words, he tells them to be good and generous stewards of all God’s gifts to them!

As the great feast of Christmas draws near, let us rejoice in Christ’s extravagant love. Let’s avail ourselves of the peace He longs to give us. And let’s look carefully at our lives to make sure we are indeed making of them a gift fitting for Him. When we get this “gift” right, all the other gifts and to-do’s on our Christmas list will fall into their proper place.

Mass Reading: Sunday - 08th December 2024

First reading
Baruch 5:1-9
God means to show your splendour to every nation

Jerusalem, take off your dress of sorrow and distress,
put on the beauty of the glory of God for ever,
wrap the cloak of the integrity of God around you,
put the diadem of the glory of the Eternal on your head:
since God means to show your splendour to every nation under heaven,
since the name God gives you for ever will be,
‘Peace through integrity, and honour through devotedness.’
Arise, Jerusalem, stand on the heights
and turn your eyes to the east:
see your sons reassembled from west and east
at the command of the Holy One, jubilant that God has remembered them.
Though they left you on foot,
with enemies for an escort,
now God brings them back to you
like royal princes carried back in glory.
For God has decreed the flattening
of each high mountain, of the everlasting hills,
the filling of the valleys to make the ground level
so that Israel can walk in safety under the glory of God.
And the forests and every fragrant tree will provide shade
for Israel at the command of God;
for God will guide Israel in joy by the light of his glory
with his mercy and integrity for escort.

The word of the Lord.

________

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 125(126)

What marvels the Lord worked for us! Indeed we were glad.

When the Lord delivered Zion from bondage,
    it seemed like a dream.
Then was our mouth filled with laughter,
    on our lips there were songs.

What marvels the Lord worked for us! Indeed we were glad.

The heathens themselves said: ‘What marvels
    the Lord worked for them!’
What marvels the Lord worked for us!
    Indeed we were glad.

What marvels the Lord worked for us! Indeed we were glad.

Deliver us, O Lord, from our bondage
    as streams in dry land.
Those who are sowing in tears
    will sing when they reap.

What marvels the Lord worked for us! Indeed we were glad.

They go out, they go out, full of tears,
    carrying seed for the sowing:
they come back, they come back, full of song,
    carrying their sheaves.

What marvels the Lord worked for us! Indeed we were glad.

________

Second reading
Philippians 1:4-6,8-11
May you become pure and blameless in preparation for the day of Christ

    Every time I pray for all of you, I pray with joy, remembering how you have helped to spread the Good News from the day you first heard it right up to the present. I am quite certain that the One who began this good work in you will see that it is finished when the Day of Christ Jesus comes; and God knows how much I miss you all, loving you as Christ Jesus loves you. My prayer is that your love for each other may increase more and more and never stop improving your knowledge and deepening your perception so that you can always recognise what is best. This will help you to become pure and blameless, and prepare you for the Day of Christ, when you will reach the perfect goodness which Jesus Christ produces in us for the glory and praise of God.

The word of the Lord.

________

Gospel Acclamation
Lk3:4,6

Alleluia, alleluia!

Prepare a way for the Lord,
make his paths straight,
and all mankind shall see the salvation of God.

Alleluia!

_________

Gospel
Luke 3:1-6
The call of John the Baptist

In the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar’s reign, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judaea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of the lands of Ituraea and Trachonitis, Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, during the pontificate of Annas and Caiaphas the word of God came to John son of Zechariah, in the wilderness. He went through the whole Jordan district proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the sayings of the prophet Isaiah:

A voice cries in the wilderness:
Prepare a way for the Lord,
make his paths straight.
Every valley will be filled in,
every mountain and hill be laid low,
winding ways will be straightened
and rough roads made smooth.
And all mankind shall see the salvation of God.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Mass Reflection: Sunday - 08th December 2024

 

BAR 5:1-9; PS 126: 1-6; PHIL 1: 4-6, 8-11; LK 3: 1-6

The readings for the Second Week of Advent offer both encouragement and challenge during this brief but important season of the liturgical year. Recall from last week that the purpose of this season is reflection on and preparation for the two “comings” of Christ – His coming as a baby on the great feast of Christmas, and the anticipation of His second coming at the end of time.

Our First Reading, from Baruch, is a wonderful reminder that God has already triumphed over sin and death and that we, His faithful disciples, will live in the light of His glory one day. “Up, Jerusalem! Stand upon the heights; look to the east and see your children gathered from the east and the west at the word of the Holy One, rejoicing that they are remembered by God… For God has commanded that every loft mountain be made low… that Israel may advance secure in the glory of God… for God is leading Israel in joy by the light of his glory, with his mercy and justice for company.”

Until He comes again, we must remain faithful to Him as true disciples and good stewards of all the gifts He has given us. While it can be tempting to give in to the materialism and calls for self-indulgence that surround us, (ironically more than ever at this time of year), this reading calls us back to the spiritual reality that this life is passing and that we are made for eternal life with God. We are called to prepare for eternal life by the way that we use our time, our talents, and our treasure now.

In the Second Reading, a letter of St. Paul to the Philippians, Paul gives us a pep talk as we make our stewardship journey, and we modern-day disciples can take heart in his words. He tells us, “I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.” Paul reminds us of two important realities that should greatly encourage us. First, that the stewardship way of life is very much a journey. We don’t have to have every aspect of our life perfectly nailed down; we are all “works in progress”’ called simply to take one step at a time closer to Christ. Second, it is God who started this good work in us — on the day of our Baptism — He cares deeply about this journey of ours and He will give us all the grace and strength we need to stay faithful to Him and continue growing in love and imitation of Christ.

The Gospel reading from Luke shows us how personal and detailed is God’s love for humanity as He prepared the way for Christ’s coming among us. We are told the precise time, place, and person, John the Baptist, He appointed to announce the arrival of our Savior. Through John, we are told how to celebrate to the fullest this first “coming” on the feast of Christmas and how to prepare for the second coming — through repentance.

Let’s turn away from any bad habits or sin that may have crept into our lives and turn our hearts and minds back to Christ this Advent. This is what the stewardship way of life is all about —moving closer ever closer in relationship with Christ and imitation of Him, ready to celebrate His birth, with eyes fixed on eternal life with Him.