St Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774 – 1821)
She was born in New York into an Episcopalian family, who ostracized her and left her penniless when she became a Catholic in 1805. Seton was the first native born American to be canonized by the Catholic Church.
White
Entrance Antiphon : Ps 111: 4
A light has risen in the darkness for the upright of heart; the Lord is generous, merciful and just.
Collect
Cast your kindly light upon your faithful, Lord, we pray, and with the splendour of your glory set their hearts ever aflame, that they may never cease to acknowledge their Saviour and may truly hold fast to him. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading 1 John 3:7-10
My children, do not let anyone lead you astray: to live a holy life is to be holy just as he is holy; to lead a sinful life is to belong to the devil, since the devil was a sinner from the beginning. It was to undo all that the devil has done that the Son of God appeared. No one who has been begotten by God sins; because God’s seed remains inside him, he cannot sin when he has been begotten by God. In this way we distinguish the children of God from the children of the devil: anybody not living a holy life and not loving his brother is no child of God’s.
Psalm 97 (98) :1, 7-9
R/ All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
1. Sing a new song to the Lord for he has worked wonders. His right hand and his holy arm have brought salvation.
2. Let the sea and all within it, thunder; the world, and all its peoples. Let the rivers clap their hands and the hills ring out their joy
3. At the presence of the Lord: for he comes, he comes to rule the earth.
He will rule the world with justice and the peoples with fairness.
Gospel Acclamation: Jn. 1:14,12
Alleluia, alleluia!The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us. To all who received him he gave power to become children of God. Alleluia!
Gospel: John 1:35-42
As John stood with two of his disciples, Jesus passed, and John stared hard at him and said, ‘Look, there is the lamb of God.’ Hearing this, the two disciples followed Jesus. Jesus turned round, saw them following and said, ‘What do you want?’ They answered, ‘Rabbi,’ – which means Teacher –’where do you live?’ ‘Come and see’ he replied; so they went and saw where he lived, and stayed with him the rest of that day. It was about the tenth hour. One of these two who became followers of Jesus after hearing what John had said was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter. Early next morning, Andrew met his brother and said to him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ – which means the Christ – and he took Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked hard at him and said, ‘You are Simon son of John; you are to be called Cephas’ – meaning Rock.
Prayer over the Offerings
Receive with favour, O Lord, we pray, the offerings of your people, that what they profess with devotion and faith may be theirs through these heavenly mysteries. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon: 1 Jn 4: 9
By this the love of God was revealed to us: God sent his Only Begotten Son into the world, so that we might have life through him.
Prayer after Communion
O God, who touch us through our partaking of your Sacrament, work, we pray, the effects of its power in our hearts, that we may be made fit to receive your gift through this very gift itself. Through Christ our Lord
Meditation
To be begotten by God means being a child of God, and if you are a child of God, then you must live a holy life. This means that there should be no trace of sin in you. Holiness and sin are contradictory; they simply cannot dwell in the same person. If you sin, then you are not holy. Children of God do not sin, because God’s seed dwells in them; their lives are pleasing to God, and they love their brothers and sisters. This seed which makes them holy is Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The true child of God is therefore the one in whom Jesus Christ dwells, the one who lives with Christ and for Christ. Make Jesus your Rabbi, your Teacher. Follow him and live with him. Take your brother, your sister, your child and your friend to him. He is the way to holiness; he is the one who can free you from sin and make you a child of God