by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Jan 13, 2023 | Evangelium
SATURDAY 14 January
SAINT FELIX OF NOLA
Saint Felix of Nola (d. ca. 250) was a Christian presbyter at Nola near Naples in Italy. He sold off his possessions in order to give to the poor. He was believed to have died a martyr’s death.
Entrance Antiphon
Upon a lofty throne, I saw a man seated, whom a host of angels adore, singing in unison: Behold him, the name of whose empire is eternal.
Collect
Attend to the pleas of your people with heavenly care, O Lord, we pray, that they may see what must be done and gain strength to do what they have seen. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading: Hebrews 4:12-16
The word of God is something alive and active: it cuts like any double-edged sword but more finely: it can slip through the place where the soul is divided from the spirit, or joints from the marrow; it can judge the secret emotions and thoughts. No created thing can hide from him; everything is uncovered and open to the eyes of the one to whom we must give account of ourselves. Since in Jesus, the Son of God, we have the supreme high priest who has gone through to the highest heaven, we must never let go of the faith that we have professed. For it is not as if we had a high priest who was incapable of feeling our weaknesses with us; but we have one who has been tempted in every way that we are, though he is without sin. Let us be confident, then, in approaching the throne of grace, that we shall have mercy from him and find grace when we are in need of help.
Psalm 18(19):8-10,15
R/ Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life.
The law of the Lord is perfect, it revives the soul. The rule of the Lord is to be trusted, it gives wisdom to the simple.
The precepts of the Lord are right, they gladden the heart. The command of the Lord is clear, it gives light to the eyes.
The fear of the Lord is holy, abiding forever. The decrees of the Lord are truth and all of them just.
May the spoken words of my mouth, the thoughts of my heart, win favour in your sight, O Lord, my rescuer, my rock!
Gospel Acclamation:Ps118:36,29
Alleluia, alleluia! Bend my heart to your will, O Lord, and teach me your law. Alleluia!
Gospel: Mark 2:13-17
Jesus went out to the shore of the lake; and all the people came to him, and he taught them. As he was walking on he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus, sitting by the customs house, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. When Jesus was at dinner in his house, a number of tax collectors and sinners were also sitting at the table with Jesus and his disciples; for there were many of them among his followers. When the scribes of the Pharisee party saw him eating with sinners and tax collectors, they said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” When Jesus heard this he said to them, “It is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick. I did not come to call the virtuous, but sinners.”
Prayer over the Offerings
May your people’s oblation, O Lord, find favour with you, we pray, that it may restore them to holiness and obtain what they devoutly entreat. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon: Ps 35: 10
With you, O Lord, is the fountain of life, and in your light we see light.
Prayer after Communion
Humbly we ask you, almighty God, be graciously pleased to grant that those you renew with your Sacraments may also serve with lives pleasing to you. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
Jesus knows our sins, yet he calls each of us to follow him. It is for us that came to the world. He associates with us, sinners, not to expose our sins or reflect them as the Scribes think, but rather to cleanse us and associate us with his harvest. Therefore, our Christian vocation comes from Jesus himself and not from the opinions of others. His view of us is different from that of the society we live in. So, we must acknowledge that it is always Jesus who takes the first step and enables us to follow him, no matter how hard the path may be. To each one of us, he still says, “follow me”. Let us respond to him generously and join him for a more just world.
by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Jan 11, 2023 | Evangelium
THURSDAY 12 January
SAINT Marguerite Bourgeoys
Born in Troyes in France, she went to Canada at the age of 33, where she taught and devoted herself to works of corporal mercy and founded the Congregation of Notre-Dame de Montréal. She died on 12 January 1700.
Entrance Antiphon
Upon a lofty throne, I saw a man seated, whom a host of angels adore, singing in unison: Behold him, the name of whose empire is eternal.
Collect
Attend to the pleas of your people with heavenly care, O Lord, we pray, that they may see what must be done and gain strength to do what they have seen. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading: Hebrews 3: 7-14
The Holy Spirit says: If only you would listen to him today; do not harden your hearts, as happened in the Rebellion, on the Day of Temptation in the wilderness, when your ancestors challenged me and tested me, though they had seen what I could do for forty years. That was why I was angry with that generation and said: How unreliable these people who refuse to grasp my ways! And so, in anger, I swore that not one would reach the place of rest I had for them. Take care, brothers, that there is not in any one of your community a wicked mind, so unbelieving as to turn away from the living God. Every day, as long as this ‘today’ lasts, keep encouraging one another so that none of you is hardened by the lure of sin, because we shall remain co-heirs with Christ only if we keep a grasp on our first confidence right to the end.
Psalm 94(95):6-11
R/ O that today you would listen to his voice! “Harden not your hearts.”
Come in; let us bow and bend low; let us kneel before the God who made us: for he is our God and we the people who belong to his pasture, the flock that is led by his hand.
O that today you would listen to his voice! Harden not your hearts as at Meribah, as on that day at Massah in the desert when your fathers put me to the test; when they tried me, though they saw my work.
For forty years I was wearied of these people and I said: “Their hearts are astray, these people do not know my ways.” Then I took an oath in my anger: “Never shall they enter my rest.”’
Gospel Acclamation: Ps118:88
Alleluia, alleluia! Because of your love give me life, and I will do your will. Alleluia!
Gospel: Mark 1:40-45
A leper came to Jesus and pleaded on his knees: “If you want to,” he said, “you can cure me.” Feeling sorry for him, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him. “Of course, I want to!” he said. “Be cured!” And the leprosy left him at once and he was cured. Jesus immediately sent him away and sternly ordered him, “Mind you say nothing to anyone, but go and show yourself to the priest, and make the offering for your healing prescribed by Moses as evidence of your recovery.” The man went away, but then started talking about it freely and telling the story everywhere, so that Jesus could no longer go openly into any town, but had to stay outside in places where nobody lived. Even so, people from all around would come to him.
Prayer over the Offerings
May your people’s oblation, O Lord, find favour with you, we pray, that it may restore them to holiness and obtain what they devoutly entreat. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon: Ps 35: 10
With you, O Lord, is the fountain of life, and in your light we see light.
Prayer after Communion
Humbly we ask you, almighty God, be graciously pleased to grant that those you renew with your Sacraments may also serve with lives pleasing to you. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
We are very often victims or witnesses of physical or emotional suffering that sometimes cuts us off from society, and for which a simple gesture of compassion and solidarity could restore our confidence. This is essentially what emerges from the encounter of the leper with Christ. He teaches us by his request that we must place our trust in the Lord who does not exclude anyone but welcomes us with love. The leper also reminds us to be thankful for all the times that the Lord has restored in us what prevented us from feeling full of life for a long time.
by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Jan 10, 2023 | Evangelium
WEDNESday 11 January
SAINT Theodosius the Cenobiarch
St. Theodosius the Cenobiarch (c. 423–529) was a monk, abbot, and saint who was a founder and organizer of the cenobitic way of monastic life.
Entrance Antiphon
Upon a lofty throne, I saw a man seated, whom a host of angels adore, singing in unison: Behold him, the name of whose empire is eternal.
Collect
Attend to the pleas of your people with heavenly care, O Lord, we pray, that they may see what must be done and gain strength to do what they have seen. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading: Hebrews 2:14-18
Since all the children share the same blood and flesh, Christ too shared equally in it, so that by his death he could take away all the power of the devil, who had power over death, and set free all those who had been held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death. For it was not the angels that he took to himself; he took to himself descent from Abraham. It was essential that he should in this way become completely like his brothers so that he could be a compassionate and trustworthy high priest of God’s religion, able to atone for human sins. That is, because he has himself been through temptation, he is able to help others who are tempted.
Psalm 104(105): 1-4, 6-9
R/ The Lord remembers his covenant forever.
Give thanks to the Lord, tell his name, make known his deeds among the peoples. O sing to him, sing his praise; tell all his wonderful works!
Be proud of his holy name, let the hearts that seek the Lord rejoice. Consider the Lord and his strength; constantly seek his face.
O children of Abraham, his servant, O sons of the Jacob he chose. He, the Lord, is our God: his judgements prevail in all the earth
He remembers his covenant for ever, his promise for a thousand generations, the covenant he made with Abraham, the oath he swore to Isaac.
Gospel Acclamation: cf. Col 3:16a, 17
Alleluia, alleluia! Let the message of Christ, in all its richness, find a home with you; through him give thanks to God the Father. Alleluia!
Gospel: Mark 1:29-39
On leaving the synagogue, Jesus went with James and John straight to the house of Simon and Andrew. Now Simon’s mother-in-law had gone to bed with fever, and they told him about her straightaway. He went to her, took her by the hand and helped her up. And the fever left her and she began to wait on them. That evening, after sunset, they brought to him all who were sick and those who were possessed by devils. The whole town came crowding round the door, and he cured many who were suffering from diseases of one kind or another; he also cast out many devils, but he would not allow them to speak, because they knew who he was. In the morning, long before dawn, he got up and left the house, and went off to a lonely place and prayed there. Simon and his companions set out in search of him, and when they found him they said, “Everybody is looking for you.” He answered, “Let us go elsewhere, to the neighbouring country towns, so that I can preach there too, because that is why I came.” And he went all through Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out devils.
Prayer over the Offerings
May your people’s oblation, O Lord, find favour with you, we pray, that it may restore them to holiness and obtain what they devoutly entreat. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon: Ps 35: 10
With you, O Lord, is the fountain of life, and in your light we see light.
Prayer after Communion
Humbly we ask you, almighty God, be graciously pleased to grant that those you renew with your Sacraments may also serve with lives pleasing to you. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation The healing of Peter’s mother-in-law is a sign of the compassion of Jesus’ heart towards humanity. The many healings Jesus performed on the evening of his visit to the house of Simon and Andrew tell us that Christ wants us alive. As a community of believers, are we available to bring comfort to our sick brothers and sisters? What is the impact of our presence amongst our brothers and sisters, friends and collaborators? Amidst the many social sorrows and various pandemics, the presence of Christ brings and gives us comfort so that we, in turn, can proclaim the Gospel with our lives.
by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Jan 9, 2023 | Evangelium
TUESday 10 January
SAINT William of Bourges
He was Archbishop of Bourges from 1200 until 1209. He was given to a life of exercises of piety and to the acquisition of knowledge. Saint William was canonized on May 17, 1218.
Entrance Antiphon
Upon a lofty throne, I saw a man seated, whom a host of angels adore, singing in unison: Behold him, the name of whose empire is eternal.
Collect
Attend to the pleas of your people with heavenly care, O Lord, we pray, that they may see what must be done and gain strength to do what they have seen. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading: Hebrews 2:5-12
God did not appoint angels to be rulers of the world to come, and that world is what we are talking about. Somewhere there is a passage that shows us this. It runs: What is man that you should spare a thought for him, the son of man that you should care for him? For a short while you made him lower than the angels; you crowned him with glory and splendour. You have put him in command of everything. Well then, if he has put him in command of everything, he has left nothing which is not under his command. At present, it is true, we are not able to see that everything has been put under his command, but we do see in Jesus one who was for a short while made lower than the angels and is now crowned with glory and splendour because he submitted to death; by God’s grace he had to experience death for all mankind. As it was his purpose to bring a great many of his sons into glory, it was appropriate that God, for whom everything exists and through whom everything exists, should make perfect, through suffering, the leader who would take them to their salvation. For the one who sanctifies, and the ones who are sanctified, are of the same stock; that is why he openly calls them brothers in the text: I shall announce your name to my brothers, praise you in full assembly.
Psalm 8:2,5-9
R/ You gave your Son power over the works of your hand.
How great is your name, O Lord our God, through all the earth! What is man that you should keep him in mind, mortal man that you care for him?
Yet you have made him little less than a god; with glory and honour you crowned him, gave him power over the works of your hand, put all things under his feet.
All of them, sheep and cattle, yes, even the savage beasts, birds of the air, and fish that make their way through the waters.
Gospel Acclamation: Jm1:21
Alleluia, alleluia! Accept and submit to the word which has been planted in you and can save your souls. Alleluia!
Gospel: Mark 1:21-28
Jesus and his disciples went as far as Capernaum, and as soon as the Sabbath came he went to the synagogue and began to teach. And his teaching made a deep impression on them because, unlike the scribes, he taught them with authority. In their synagogue just then there was a man possessed by an unclean spirit and it shouted, ‘What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are: the Holy One of God.’ But Jesus said sharply, ‘Be quiet! Come out of him!’ And the unclean spirit threw the man into convulsions and with a loud cry went out of him. The people were so astonished that they started asking each other what it all meant. ‘Here is a teaching that is new’ they said ‘and with authority behind it: he gives orders even to unclean spirits and they obey him.’ And his reputation rapidly spread everywhere, through all the surrounding Galilean countryside.
Prayer over the Offerings
May your people’s oblation, O Lord, find favour with you, we pray, that it may restore them to holiness and obtain what they devoutly entreat. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon: Ps 35: 10
With you, O Lord, is the fountain of life, and in your light we see light.
Prayer after Communion
Humbly we ask you, almighty God, be graciously pleased to grant that those you renew with your Sacraments may also serve with lives pleasing to you. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
“Here is a teaching that is new and with authority behind it”. These were the words of Jesus’ contemporaries when they saw what he was proclaiming and doing. His teaching is different from that of the Scribes because he does not teach tradition and Law as the Scribes do; his teaching is characterised by divine authority and exercised with sovereign freedom. Jesus’ authority is not oppressive; it drives out what is unclean, forgives sins, brings healing and leads us to the freedom of God’s children. This same authority of Jesus is an invitation to enter a new world of love and to remain in it.
by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Jan 8, 2023 | Evangelium
MONday 09 January
The Baptism of the Lord
Feast, Psalter proper
SAINT Adrian, Abbot
Born in Africa, Adrian became abbot of the monastery at Nerida, near Naples. He died on January 9 in Canterbury, and his tomb soon became famous for the miracles wrought there.
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Mt 3: 16-17
After the Lord was baptized, the heavens were opened, and the Spirit descended upon him like a dove, and the voice of the Father thundered: This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.
Collect
Almighty ever-living God, who, when Christ had been baptized in the River Jordan and as the Holy Spirit descended upon him, solemnly declared him your beloved Son, grant that your children by adoption, reborn of water and the Holy Spirit, may always be well pleasing to you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Isaiah 42: 1-4, 6-7
Thus says the Lord: Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom my soul delights. I have endowed him with my spirit that he may bring true justice to the nations. He does not cry out or shout aloud, or make his voice heard in the streets. He does not break the crushed reed, nor quench the wavering flame. Faithfully he brings true justice; he will neither waver, nor be crushed until true justice is established on earth, for the islands are awaiting his law. I, the Lord, have called you to serve the cause of right; I have taken you by the hand and formed you; I have appointed you as covenant of the people and light of the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to free captives from prison, and those who live in darkness from the dungeon.
Psalm 28(29):1-4,9-10
R/ The Lord will bless his people with peace.
O give the Lord, you sons of God, give the Lord glory and power; give the Lord the glory of his name. Adore the Lord in his holy court.
The Lord’s voice resounding on the waters, the Lord on the immensity of waters; the voice of the Lord, full of power, the voice of the Lord, full of splendour.
The God of glory thunders. In his temple they all cry: ‘Glory!’ The Lord sat enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits as king for ever.
Gospel Acclamation: cf. Mk 9:8
Alléluia, alléluia! The heavens opened and the Father’s voice resounded: ‘This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to him Alléluia.
Gospel : Matthew 3:13-17
Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptised by John. John tried to dissuade him. “It is I who need baptism from you”, he said, “and yet you come to me!” But Jesus replied, “Leave it like this for the time being; it is fitting that we should, in this way, do all that righteousness demands.” At this, John gave in to him. As soon as Jesus was baptised, he came up from the water, and suddenly the heavens opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him. And a voice spoke from heaven, “This is my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on him.”
Prayer over the Offerings
Accept, O Lord, the offerings we have brought to honour the revealing of your beloved Son, so that the oblation of your faithful may be transformed into the sacrifice of him who willed in his compassion to wash away the sins of the world. Who lives and reigns for ever and ever
Communion Antiphon: Jn 1: 32, 34
Behold the One of whom John said: I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.
Prayer after Communion
Nourished with these sacred gifts, we humbly entreat your mercy, O Lord, that, faithfully listening to your Only Begotten Son, we may be your children in name and in truth. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
Today, we celebrate the Baptism of our Lord. This marks the end of the Christmas season and the beginning of Ordinary Time. It is also the transition to the public ministry of Jesus. The Baptism of the Lord is indeed a visible and audible manifestation that announces with excellence the divinity of Jesus to his first disciples, as it does to us today. Therefore, we are invited to meditate on the words of the Father who speaks to us of the divinity of his Son: “This is my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on him”. Let us radically choose to follow Christ, who leads us to the Father in this Ordinary Time.
by Jude Thaddeus Langeh | Jan 7, 2023 | Evangelium
SUNday 08 January
The Epiphany of the Lord –
Mass of the Day, Psalter proper
SAINT Thorfinn of Hamar
Entrance Antiphon : Cf. Mal 3: 1; 1 Chr 29: 12
Behold, the Lord, the Mighty One, has come; and kingship is in his grasp, and power and dominion.
Collect
O God, who on this day revealed your Only Begotten Son to the nations. By the guidance of a star, grant in your mercy, that we, who know you already by faith, may be brought to behold the beauty of your sublime glory. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading : Isaiah 60: 1-6
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 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; and dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; everyone in Sheba will come, bringing gold and incense and singing the praise of the Lord.
Psalm 71(72):1-2,7-8,10-13
R/ All nations shall fall prostrate before you, O Lord
O God, give your judgement to the king, to a king’s son your justice, that he may judge your people in justice and your poor in right judgement.
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.
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.
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
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.
Gospel Acclamation: Mt2:2
Alléluia, alléluia! . We saw his star as it rose and have come to do the Lord homage. Alléluia. (Mt 2, 2)
Gospel : Matthew 2:1-12
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.
Prayer over the Offerings
Look with favour, Lord, we pray, on these gifts of your Church, in which are offered now not gold or frankincense or myrrh, but he who by them is proclaimed, sacrificed and received, Jesus Christ. Who lives and reigns for ever and ever.
Communion Antiphon: Cf. Mt 2: 2
We have seen his star in the East, and have come with gifts to adore the Lord.
Prayer after Communion
Go before us with heavenly light, O Lord, always and everywhere, that we may perceive with clear sight and revere with true affection the mystery in which you have willed us to participate. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation Today we celebrate the Epiphany of our Lord. The word epiphany is derived from the Greek word “Epiphaneia”, which means to appear, to show up or to manifest. The Child born to us at Christmas is revealed to us today as the long-awaited Messiah whose humble visit by the Magi represents humanity’s encounter with its Saviour. Having followed the star to the manger, the magi show us that we must follow the divine signs that lead us to Christ. It is also an invitation to discern and choose what those signs are. Following their example of coming to adore Christ in the manger, may we renew our vow to serve the Lord by placing our offerings, intentions and talents at his altar
