31 December 2023 - FEAST OF THE HOLY FAMILY (Year B)

 

First Reading - Sir 3:2-6.12-14

    God sets a father in honor over his children; a mother’s authority he confirms over her sons.

    Whoever honors his father atones for sins, and preserves himself from them. When he prays, he is heard; he stores up riches who reveres his mother.

    Whoever honors his father is gladdened by children, and, when he prays, is heard.

    Whoever reveres his father will live a long life; he who obeys his father brings comfort to his mother.

    My son, take care of your father when he is old; grieve him not as long as he lives.

    Even if his mind fail, be considerate toward him; revile him not all the days of his life. Kindness to a father will not be forgotten, firmly planted against the debt of your sins – a house raised in justice to you.

Responsorial Psalm - Ps 128 

R – Blessed are those who fear the Lord and walk in his ways!

* Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways! For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork; blessed shall you be, and favored. R.

* Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the recesses of your home; your children like olive plants around your table. R.

* Behold, thus is the man blessed who fears the Lord. The Lord bless you from Zion: may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life. R

Second Reading - Col 3:12-21 

    Brothers and sisters:

    Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another. As the Lord has for- given you, so must you also do. And over all these, put on love, that is, the bond of perfection.

    And let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one an- other, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

    Wives, be subordinate to your husbands, as is proper in the Lord.

    Husbands, love your wives, and avoid any bitterness toward them. Children, obey your parents in everything, for this is pleasing to the Lord.

    Fathers, do not provoke your children, so they may not become discouraged. 

Gospel Acclamation - Col 3:15a.16a

Alleluia! Alleluia!
Let the peace of Christ control your hearts; let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.
Alleluia! Alleluia! 

Gospel - Lk 2:22-40 

    When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took the baby Jesus up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, just as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord,” and to offer the sacrifice of a pair of turtle- doves or two young pigeons, in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord.

    Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. He came in the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying: “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in sight of all the peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.” The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted – and you yourself a sword will pierce – so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”

    There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, hav- ing lived seven years with her husband after her marriage, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshipped night and day with fasting and prayer. And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.

    When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions of the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him. 

24 December 2023 - 4th Sunday of Advent (B)

 

First Reading - 2 Sm 7:1-5.8- 12.14.16

    When King David was settled in his palace, and the Lord had given him rest from his enemies on every side, he said to Nathan the prophet, “Here I am living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God dwells in a tent!” Nathan answered the king, “Go, do whatever you have in mind, for the Lord is with you.”

    But that night the Lord spoke to Nathan and said: “Go, tell my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord: Should you build me a house to dwell in? It was I who took you from the pasture and from the care of the flock to be commander of my people Israel. I have been with you wherever you went, and I have destroyed all your enemies before you. And I will make you famous like the great ones of the earth.

    I will fix a place for my people Israel; I will plant them so that they may dwell in their place without further disturbance. Neither shall the wicked continue to afflict them as they did of old, since the time I first appointed judges over my people Israel.

    I will give you rest from all your enemies. The Lord also reveals to you that he will establish a house for you. And when your time comes and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your heir after you, sprung from your loins, and I will make his kingdom firm. I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me. Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me; your throne shall stand firm forever.’ ” 

Responsorial Psalm - Ps 89

R – For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord! 

* The promises of the Lord I will sing forever; through all generations my mouth shall proclaim your faithfulness. For you have said, “My kindness is established forever.” In heaven you have confirmed your faithfulness. R.

* “I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant: Forever will I confirm your posterity and establish your throne for all generations.” R.

* “He shall say of me, ‘You are my father, my God, the Rock, my Savior.’ Forever I will maintain my kindness      toward him, and my covenant with him stands firm.” R.

Second Reading - Rom 16:25-27 

    Brothers and sisters:

    To him who can strengthen you, according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret for long ages but now manifested through the prophetic writings and, according to the command of the eternal God, made known to all nations to bring about the obedience of faith, to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ be glory forever and ever. Amen! 

Gospel Acclamation - Lk 1:38

Alleluia! Alleluia! 
Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

Gospel - Lk 1:26-38 

    The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. Coming to her, the angel said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.

    Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called ‘Son of the Most High,’ and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

    But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” And the angel said to her in reply, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God.”

    Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her 

17 December 2023 - 3rd Sunday of Advent (Year B)

 

First Reading - Is 61:1-2.10-11 

    The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me. He has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor, to heal the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and release to the prisoners, to announce a year of favor from the Lord and a day of vindication by our God.

    I rejoice heartily in the Lord, in my God is the joy of my soul; for he has clothed me with a robe of salvation and wrapped me in a mantle of justice, like a bridegroom adorned with a diadem, like a bride bedecked with her jewels.

    As the earth brings forth its plants, and a garden makes its growth spring up, so will the Lord God make justice and praise spring up before all the nations. 

Responsorial Psalm - Lk 1

 R – My soul rejoices in my God! 

* My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked upon his lowly servant. From this day all generations will call me blessed. R.

* The Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name. He has mercy on those who fear him in every generation. R.

* He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel for he has remembered his promise of mercy. R.

Second Reading - 1 Thes 5:16-24 

    Brothers and sisters: Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.

    Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophetic utterances. Test everything; retain what is good. Refrain from every kind of evil.

    May the God of peace make you perfectly holy and may you entirely, spirit, soul, and body, be preserved blameless for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful, and he will also accomplish it. 

Gospel Acclamation - Is 61:1 

Alleluia! Alleluia!
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. 
Alleluia! Alleluia!

Gospel - Jn 1:6-8.19-28 

    A man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to testify to the light. 

    And this is the testimony of John. When the Jews from Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to him to ask him, “Who are you?” he admitted and did not deny it, but ad- mitted, “I am not the Christ.” So they asked him, “What are you then? Are you Elijah?” And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” He answered, “No.” So they said to him, “Who are you, so we can give an answer to those who sent us? What do you have to say about yourself?” He said: “ ‘I am the voice of one crying out in the desert, make straight the way of the Lord,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.”

    Some Pharisees were also sent. They asked him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ or Elijah or the Prophet?” John answered them, “I baptize with water; but there is one among you whom you do not recognize, the one who is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie.”

    This happened in Bethany across the Jordan, where John was baptizing. 

10 December 2023 - 2nd Sunday of Advent (Year B)

 

First Reading - Is 40:1-5.9-11

    Comfort, give comfort to my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her service is at an end, her guilt is expiated; indeed, she has received from the hand of the Lord double for all her sins.

    A voice cries out: In the desert prepare the way of the Lord! Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God!

    Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill shall be made low; the rugged land shall be made a plain, the rough country, a broad valley.

    Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

    Go up onto a high mountain, Zion, herald of glad tidings; cry out at the top of your voice, Jerusalem, herald of good news! Fear not to cry out and say to the cities of Judah: Here is your God! Here comes with power the Lord God, who rules by his strong arm; here is his reward with him, his recompense before him. Like a shepherd he feeds his flock; in his arms he gathers the lambs, carrying them in his bosom, and leading the ewes with care.

Responsorial Psalm - Ps 85 

R –Lord, let us see your kindness, and grant us your salvation! 

I will hear what God proclaims; the Lord – for he proclaims peace to his people. Near indeed is his salvation to those who fear him, glory dwelling in our land. R.

* Kindness and truth shall meet; justice and peace shall kiss. Truth shall spring out of the earth, and justice shall look down from heaven. R.

* The Lord himself will give his benefits; our land shall yield its increase. Justice shall walk before him, and prepare the way of his steps. R

Second Reading - 2 Pt 3:8-14 

    Do not ignore this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years and a thousand years like one day. The Lord does not delay his promise, as some regard “delay,” but he is patient with you, not wishing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a mighty roar and the elements will be dissolved by fire, and the earth and everything done on it will be found out.

    Since everything is to be dissolved in this way, what sort of persons ought you to be, conducting yourselves in holiness and devotion, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved in flames and the elements melted by fire.

    But according to his promise, we await new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you await these things, be eager to be found without spot or blemish before him, at peace. 

Gospel Acclamation - Lk 3:4.6 

Alleluia! Alleluia! 
Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths: all flesh shall see the salvation of God. 
Alleluia! Alleluia!

Gospel - Mk 1:1-8 

    The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  

    As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way.

    A voice of one crying out in the desert: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.’ ”

    John the Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. People of the whole Judean countryside and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.

    John was clothed in cam- el’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. He fed on locusts and wild honey. And this is what he proclaimed: “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” 

8 December - SOLEMNITY OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

 

First Reading - Gn 3:9-15.20

    After the man, Adam, had eaten of the tree, the Lord God called to the man and asked him, “Where are you?” He answered, “I heard you in the garden; but I was afraid, because I was naked, so I hid myself.” Then the Lord God asked, “Who told you that you were naked? You have eaten, then, from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat!” The man replied, “ The woman whom you put here with me - she gave me fruit from the tree, and so I ate it.” The Lord God then asked the woman, “Why did you do such a thing?” The woman answered, “The serpent tricked me into it, so I ate it.”

    Then the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, you shall be banned from all the animals and from all the wild creatures; on your belly shall you crawl, and dirt shall you eat all the days of your life.

    I will put enmity between you and the woman, and be- tween your offspring and hers; he will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel.” The man called his wife Eve, because she became the mother of all the living.

Responsorial Psalm - Ps 98

R – Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous deeds! 

*Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done wondrous deeds; his right hand has won victory for him, his holy arm. R.

* The Lord has made his salvation known: in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice. He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness toward the house of Israel. R.

* All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation by our God. Sing joyfully to the Lord, all you lands; break into song; sing praise. R. 

Second Reading - Eph 1:3-6.11-12 

    Brothers and sisters:

    Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens.

    He chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and without blemish before him. In love he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ, in accord with the favor of his will, for the praise of the glory of his grace that he granted us in the beloved.

    In him we were also chosen, destined in accord with the purpose of the One who accomplishes all things according to the intention of his will, so that we might exist for the praise of his glory, we who first hoped in Christ.

Gospel Acclamation - Lk 1:28

Alleluia! Alleluia!
Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women.
Alleluia! Alleluia!

Gospel - Lk 1:26-38 

    The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.

    And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” But Mary was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her: “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

    But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?” The angel said to her in reply: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be impossible for God.”

    Mary said: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

3 December 2023 - 1st Sunday of Advent (Year B)

 

First Reading - Is 63:16-17.19; 64:2-7

You, Lord, are our father, our redeemer you are named forever. Why do you let us wander, O Lord, from your ways, and harden our hearts so that we fear you not? Return for the sake of your servants, the tribes of your heritage. Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down, with the mountains quaking before you, while you wrought awesome deeds we could not hope for, such as they had not heard of from of old. No ear has ever heard, no eye ever seen, any God but you doing such deeds for those who wait for him.

Would that you might meet us doing right, that we were mindful of you in our ways! Behold, you are angry, and we are sinful; all of us have become like unclean people, all our good deeds are like polluted rags; we have all withered like leaves, and our guilt carries us away like the wind. There is none who calls upon your name, who rouses himself to cling to you; for you have hidden your face from us and have delivered us up to our guilt. Yet, O Lord, you are our father; we are the clay and you the potter: we are all the work of your hands. 

Responsorial Psalm - Ps 80

R– Lord, make us turn to you, let us see your face and we shall be saved! 

* O shepherd of Israel, hearken, from your throne upon the cherubim, shine forth. Rouse your power, and come to save us. R.

* Once again, O Lord of hosts, look down from heaven, and see; take care of this vine, and protect what your right hand has planted, the son of man whom you yourself made strong. R.

* May your help be with the man of your right hand, with the son of man whom you your- self made strong. Then we will no more withdraw from you. Give us new life, and we will call upon your name. R.

Second Reading - 1 Cor 1:3-9 

    Brothers and sisters:
    Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
    I give thanks to my God always on your account for the grace of God bestowed on you in Christ Jesus. That in him you were enriched in every way, with all discourse and all knowledge, as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you, so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will keep you firm to the end, irreproachable on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, and by him you were called to fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Gospel Acclamation - Ps 85:8 

Alleluia! Alleluia!
Show us, Lord, your love; and grant us your salvation.
Alleluia! Alleluia! 

Gospel - Mk 13:33-37 

    Jesus said to his disciples: “Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come.

    It is like a man traveling abroad. He leaves home and places his servants in charge, each with his own work, and orders the gatekeeper to be on the watch.

    Watch, therefore; you do not know when the lord of the house is coming, whether in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or in the morning. May he not come suddenly and find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to all: 
‘Watch!’ ”