Invitation
May I hereby draw your attention to
the daily reading of the Gospel?
This invitation wants to share with you the joy
of the Gospel. Everyone, no one excepted,
can experience that joy by opening their hearts
to the healing power of God’s word.
Available every day
Consideration
The Lord sends a messenger before coming Himself. This is how He Himself prepares His people to meet Him. This messenger calls the people to turn towards one another. The heralded messenger is given a name and a face in the Gospel: John, ‘God is merciful’. It is a name with a mission, a life calling: He will announce God’s mercy. John will therefore proclaim a baptism of repentance: We are called to repent to God and to one another.
FIRST READING Mal. 3, 1-4 ; 4, 5-6
The prophet Elijah will rise before the day of the Lord comes.
From the Prophet Malachi
Thus speaks the Lord God :
“I am sending My messenger before Me
to prepare the way for Me.
“And soon then the Lord will enter His sanctuary,
the Lord whom ye seek, the angel of the covenant,
to whom ye look longingly.
“Take heed, He is coming,” says the Lord of hosts.
“But who can endure the day of His coming?
“Who will stand when He appears ?
“For He is like the fire of the smelter,
as the lye of the bleachers.
“He sets Himself down to melt and purify the silver,
to purify the levites and purify them, as gold and silver,
so that they may again offer the Lord the required
offerings.
“Then the sacrifice of Judah and Jerusalem will please the Lord again,
as in the past, in the years gone by.
“Behold, I will send you the prophet Elijah
before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes.
“He will win the hearts of the fathers for the children
and the hearts of the children for the fathers ;
if not, I will come and strike the land with the curse.”
INTERLUDIUM Ps. 25(24), 4bc-5ab, 8-9, 10, 14
Raise up and lift up your heads
for your redemption is coming near (Lk 21:28).
Show me your ways, Lord,
teach me to know your paths.
Guide me according to Your Word,
for Thou art my God and Redeemer.
The Lord is good and righteous,
therefore He shows sinners the way.
He leads the lowly along honourable paths,
He teaches the simple what to do.
The ways of God are good and trustworthy
For every one who keeps his covenant.
A friend is the Lord to those who fear Him,
He shows them the value of His covenant.
ALLELUIA
Alleluia.
The day of the Lord is at hand ;
Behold, He comes to deliver us.
Alleluia.
GOSPEL Lk. 1, 57-66
Birth of John the Baptist.
From the holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to
Luke
For Elisabeth the moment dawned when she became a mother ;
she gave birth to a son.
When the neighbours and relatives heard
how great was the mercy
the Lord had shown to her,
they shared in her joy.
On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child
and they wanted to name it after his father Zacharias.
But his mother replied :
“Nay, it must be called John.”
They answered her :
“But there is no one in your family called that.”
With gestures, they then asked his father
what he wanted to call it.
The latter asked for a writing tablet and wrote on it :
“John he will be called.”
They all stood amazed.
Immediately afterwards his mouth was opened,
his tongue loosened
and he proclaimed God’s praise.
Awe filled all the surrounding people
and throughout the mountainous land of Judea
all the events were told around.
Everyone who heard it thought about it and wondered :
“What will become of this child?”
For the hand of the Lord was with him.
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Laudato Si
Encyclic of
POPE FRANCIS
On the care of the common home
145. Many forms of intense exploitation and degradation of the environment can deplete not only local livelihoods but also social resources that have allowed a way of life that has long supported a cultural identity and a meaning of existence and coexistence. The disappearance of a culture can be as serious or more serious than the disappearance of an animal or plant species. The imposition of a hegemonic lifestyle linked to a mode of production can be as harmful as the degradation of ecosystems.
To be continued
The Bible text in this issue is taken from The New Translation of the Bible,
©Dutch Bible Society 2004/2007.
Considerations from Liturgical suggestions for weekdays and Sundays
Laudato Si Official English translation
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