MASS READINGS & SAINT QUOTE OF THE DAY : Tuesday - December 07, 2021

Tuesday - December 07, 2021

Man’s maker was made man, that He, Ruler of the stars, might nurse at His mother’s breast; that the Bread might hunger, the Fountain thirst, the Light sleep, the Way be tired on its journey; that the Truth might be accused of false witness, the Teacher be beaten with whips, the Foundation be suspended on wood; that Strength might grow weak; that the Healer might be wounded; that Life might die. 

~~St. Augustine of Hippo

December 7, 2021

Memorial of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Lectionary: 182

 

Reading 1                                                     Is 40:1-11

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.

 

    A voice says, “Cry out!”

        I answer, “What shall I cry out?”

    “All flesh is grass,

        and all their glory like the flower of the field.

    The grass withers, the flower wilts,

        when the breath of the LORD blows upon it.

        So then, the people is the grass.

    Though the grass withers and the flower wilts,

        the word of our God stands forever.”

 

    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                                              96:1-2, 3 and 10ac, 11-12, 13

 

R.    (see Isaiah 40:10ab)  The Lord our God comes with power.

 

Sing to the LORD a new song;

    sing to the LORD, all you lands.

Sing to the LORD; bless his name;

    announce his salvation, day after day.

R.    The Lord our God comes with power.

Tell his glory among the nations;

    among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.

Say among the nations: The LORD is king;

    he governs the peoples with equity.

R.    The Lord our God comes with power.

Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice;

    let the sea and what fills it resound;

    let the plains be joyful and all that is in them!

Then let all the trees of the forest rejoice.

R.    The Lord our God comes with power.

They shall exult before the LORD, for he comes;

    for he comes to rule the earth.

He shall rule the world with justice

    and the peoples with his constancy.

R.    The Lord our God comes with power.

 

Alleluia                                                                      Lk 3:4, 6                    

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

The day of the Lord is near;

Behold, he comes to save us.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

 

Gospel                                                                       Mt 18:12-14

Jesus said to his disciples:

“What is your opinion?

If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray,

will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills

and go in search of the stray?

And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it

than over the ninety-nine that did not stray.

In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father

that one of these little ones be lost.”

 

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HELPING THE LOST SHEEP

Who are the lost sheep in your life? Today's Gospel reading assures us that Jesus is the Good Shepherd and he will not quit going after them. However, he won't be able to reach them until (1) they're ready to be found, and (2) he has our hands and feet and voice through which to minister to them.

 

Sometimes the lost have to experience a very troubling hardship from which they cannot recover by themselves. Even while demonic forces are using misconceptions, hurts, and false theologies to keep them from recognizing their need for Christ, this is nothing to fear. Jesus is pursuing them, seeking out any openness they have toward him, waiting at their side for them to ask for his help, and preparing one (or more) of us to step in to help them turn to the healing love of Jesus.

 

Meanwhile, we can help this along by praying for them and by being a good example of what it's like to belong to the Good Shepherd's flock. Never mind how dark and hopeless it looks. The holy light of Christ has already infiltrated Satan's darkness.

 

Consider the power of light. Imagine two adjoining rooms, one in total darkness and the other lit brightly by a lamp. If you were to poke a hole in the wall that divides these two rooms, will darkness flow through the hole into the lit room or will light pour into the dark room? See, the power of light is completely stronger than the power of darkness! This is the power of Christ. This is what we are called to give birth to by the way we live our lives and reveal Jesus as the source of our faith.

 

I've seen it happen. Back in the year 2000, a dear family member was sucked deeper and deeper into the world of darkness by getting involved in vampire role playing games. Many prayed for her, and we enlisted the help of the Blessed Mother, the girl's Confirmation Saint, and other Saints.

 

During Advent, the problems worsened, but on Christmas Eve, Jesus drilled a hole in the wall that had been dividing the family. God's light penetrated into her darkness, and by the following year, she became a shining light that drew others to Christ -- and she still is.

 

It can take years for some of those who live in darkness to realize that they're in a bad place. Today's first reading gives us a dose of God's comfort. Consider how these verses can give you strength, endurance, courage, and hope.

 

Use this scripture to recommit yourself to "making straight in the wasteland a highway for God" by choosing to love the lost sheep unconditionally; treating them the way Jesus would (which sometimes includes tough love and boundaries set firmly to keep their sins from causing more harm). In this way, you will give Jesus to them whether they realize it or not.

 

Pray daily for Christ's holy light to spread into their lives through many and various holes that get poked into their self-made prisons.

 

Ask the Holy Spirit to transform you into a better lamp that shines brighter with Christ's holiness and healing love. Ask the Blessed Mother to help you give birth to Jesus in their lives through the way you behave around them. And trust that the Good Shepherd is doing more to rescue them than what you can see.

 

Today's Prayer

 

Good Father, your love for me has always pursued me whenever I have turned away from You. Thank You for not allowing my own paths to lead me away from You! 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!”