Mass Readings for : Tuesday, 5th December, 2023

Liturgical Readings for : Tuesday, 5th December, 2023

Tuesday of the First Week of Advent

Today we hear about the Spirit of God ‘resting’ in Jesus and motivating him to fulfil his destiny to usher in a kingdom of peace and gratitude.

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FIRST READING

A reading from the book of the Prophet Isaiah 11:1-10
On him the spirit of the Lord rests.

A shoot springs from the stock of Jesse, a scion thrusts from his roots:
on him the spirit of the Lord rests, a spirit of wisdom and insight, a spirit of counsel and power,
a spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. (The fear of the Lord is his breath.)

He does not judge by appearances, he gives no verdict on hearsay, but judges the wretched with integrity,
and with equity gives a verdict for the poor of the land.
His word is a rod that strikes the ruthless, his sentences bring death to the wicked.

Integrity is the loincloth round his waist, faithfulness the belt about his hips.
The wolf lives with the lamb, the panther lies down with the kid,
calf and lion cub feed together with a little boy to lead them.
The cow and the bear make friends, their young lie down together.
The lion eats straw like the ox.
The infant plays over the cobra’s hole;
into the viper’s lair the young child puts his hand.

They do no hurt, no harm, on all my holy mountain,
for the country is filled with the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters swell the sea.

That day, the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples.
It will be sought out by the nations and its home will be glorious.

The Word of the Lord Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 71
Response In his days justice shall flourish and peace till the moon fails.

1. 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. Response

2. 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. Response

3. For he shall save the poor when they cryand the needy who are helpless.
He will have pity on the weak and save the lives of the poor. Response

4. May his name be blessed for ever and endure like the sun.
Every tribe shall be blessed in him, all nations bless his name. Response

Gospel Acclamation Ps 84:8
Alleluia, alleluia!
Let us see, O Lord, your mercy and give us your saving help.
Alleluia!

Or
Alleluia, alleluia!
Behold our Lord will come with power and will enlighten the eyes of his servants.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL

The Lord be with you. And with your spirit
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 10:21-24 Glory to you, O Lord
Jesus is filled with joy by the Holy Spirit.

Filled with joy by the Holy Spirit, Jesus said,
‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.’

Then turning to his disciples he spoke to them in private,
‘Happy the eyes that see what you see, for I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see, and never saw it; to hear what you hear, and never heard it.’

The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

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Scripture Reflection: Tuesday, First Week of Advent Luke 10:21-24

Very occasionally the evangelists give us access to the content of Jesus’ prayer. Today’s gospel reading is one of the places in the gospels where we hear Jesus praying. He praises God in the joy of the Spirit for revealing the mysteries of God’s kingdom to mere children as distinct from the learned and the clever. The learning of those who claimed to already know God and God’s will blocked them from hearing what God was trying to show them through his Son Jesus. In contrast, those who did not claim to know, who were genuinely searching, were open to receive what God was revealing through Jesus. These were the ‘children’ Jesus speaks about in the gospel reading, those who acknowledged their own need and were open to receive. The religious experts missed the opportunity of God’s visitation through Jesus, whereas those who would have been written off as knowing nothing of God or of God’s Law welcomed God’s visitation and rejoiced at the year of God’s favour that Jesus was inaugurating. Jesus’ prayer reminds us that when it comes to God being too sure of our knowledge can be a dangerous thing. We have to keep acknowledging our need for light. Advent is a season to enter into that poverty of spirit which keeps us open to what God wishes to show us. Such openness of spirit finds expression in the humble prayer, ‘Come Lord Jesus’.