MASS READINGS & SAINT QUOTE OF THE DAY : Sunday - December 19, 2021

Sunday - December 19, 2021

December 19, 2021

Fourth Sunday of Advent
Lectionary: 12

 

Reading 1                                                     Mi 5:1-4a

Thus says the LORD:

    You, Bethlehem-Ephrathah

        too small to be among the clans of Judah,

    from you shall come forth for me

        one who is to be ruler in Israel;

    whose origin is from of old,

        from ancient times.

    Therefore the Lord will give them up, until the time

        when she who is to give birth has borne,

    and the rest of his kindred shall return

        to the children of Israel.

    He shall stand firm and shepherd his flock

        by the strength of the LORD,

        in the majestic name of the LORD, his God;

    and they shall remain, for now his greatness

        shall reach to the ends of the earth;

        he shall be peace.

 

Responsorial Psalm                                              Ps 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19.

 

R. (4)  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. Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.

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. Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.

May your help be with the man of your right hand,

    with the son of man whom you yourself made strong.

Then we will no more withdraw from you;

    give us new life, and we will call upon your name.

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

 

Reading 2                                                     Heb 10:5-10

Brothers and sisters:

When Christ came into the world, he said:

    “Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,

        but a body you prepared for me;

    in holocausts and sin offerings you took no delight.

    Then I said, ‘As is written of me in the scroll,

    behold, I come to do your will, O God.’“

 

First he says, “Sacrifices and offerings,

holocausts and sin offerings,

you neither desired nor delighted in.”

These are offered according to the law.

Then he says, :Behold, I come to do your will.”

He takes away the first to establish the second.

By this “will,”  we have been consecrated

through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

 

 

Alleluia                                                                     

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.

May it be done to me according to your word.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

 

Gospel                                                                       Lk 1:39-45

Mary set out

and traveled to the hill country in haste

to a town of Judah,

where she entered the house of Zechariah

and greeted Elizabeth.

When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting,

the infant leaped in her womb,

and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit,

cried out in a loud voice and said,

“Blessed are you among women,

and blessed is the fruit of your womb.

And how does this happen to me,

that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears,

the infant in my womb leaped for joy.

Blessed are you who believed

that what was spoken to you by the Lord

would be fulfilled.”

 

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THE JOY OF RECOGNIZING JESUS

The Fourth Sunday of Advent shows Elizabeth and her unborn son, John, reacting to the nearness of the unborn Christ. We know that Elizabeth immediately understood that Mary was pregnant with the Lord, because the Gospel says she was filled with the Holy Spirit. But how could the fetal John understand? How could he leap for joy while still in the womb?

 

If it's true that an unborn baby is not a person with a soul until it takes its first breath, as is claimed by many who believe that abortion is okay, how could the unborn John recognize the presence of the unborn Savior?

 

The faith to recognize the presence of Christ -- in the womb of people's lives, in the Eucharist, in the humanity of unborn children, etc. -- comes from being fully alive in the Holy Spirit, who was given to us fully during our baptisms. However, it takes a humble willingness to let God change our minds about what we think is true in order to be open to God's Spirit teaching us what is indeed true.

 

John as a fetus was incapable of understanding anything, especially when it happened outside the womb, yet he leapt for joy. This teaches us that we don't need to see God working in the world or solving our personal problems before we can leap for joy. We don't have to understand what God is doing, and we don't even have to know his plans.

 

The Holy Spirit enlivened the faith of Elizabeth and John through an act of grace that depended on Christ's future activity. For us, our faith is enlivened by the grace God provides in the Sacraments.

 

The joy that comes from recognizing the presence of Christ is God's Christmas gift to us. It's a joy that's meant to last all year. It's a lifestyle, not a holiday. It comes from a faith that appreciates God for working mercifully in ways that we can see and ways that we cannot see, because we trust in his goodness. Even when we suffer or feel sorrow, we can learn to recognize the presence of Christ.

 

And then what? Like John, we are called to be heralds of Christ's presence. How? First by sharing our joy with others.

 

How much is the joy of Christ's Spirit within you affecting your outward life? What will you do this Christmas to become more aware of the Holy Spirit increasing your faith?

 

Today's Prayer

 

Placing my life in Your hands, Lord, I will travel through paths I have never imagined. Amen.

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God Bless You.....

The Rosary Family

The mother of Jesus promised St. Dominic that, “one day through the rosary & the scapular I shall save the world!”