Mass Readings

Liturgical Readings for : Saturday, 16th December, 2023

Saturday of the Second week of Advent

Old & New Testament prophets, Elijah and John the Baptist, bear witness to Jesus as the Christ.

FIRST READING

A reading from the book of Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 48:1-4. 9-11
Elijah will come again.

The prophet Elijah arose like a fire, his word flaring like a torch. It was he who brought famine on them, and who decimated them in his zeal. By the word of the Lord, he shut up the heavens, he also, three times, brought down fire.

How glorious you were in your miracles, Elijah!
Has anyone reason to boast as you have? –
taken up in the whirlwind of fire, in a chariot with fiery horses;
designated in the prophecies of doom
to allay God’s wrath before the fury breaks,
to turn the hearts of fathers towards their children, and to restore the tribes of Jacob,

Happy shall they be who see you, and those who have fallen asleep in love.

The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 79
Response God of hosts, bring us back; let your face shine on us and we shall be saved.

1. O shepherd of Israel, hear us, shine forth from your cherubim throne.
Lord, rouse up your might, O Lord, come to our help. Response

2. God of hosts, turn again, we implore, look down from heaven and see.
Visit this vine and protect it, the vine your right hand has planted. Response

3. May your hand be on the man you have chosen, the man you have given your strength.
And we shall never forsake you again: give us life that we may call upon your name. Response

Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia!
The day of the Lord is near. Look he comes to save us.
Alleluia

Or Lk 3:4.6
Alleluia, alleluia!
Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight.
And all mankind shall see the salvation of God.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL

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A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew 17:10-13
Elijah has come already and they did not recognise him.

As they came down the mountain the disciples put this question to Jesus,
‘Why do the scribes say then that Elijah has to come first?’
‘True;’ he replied
‘Elijah is to come to see that everything is once more as it should be; however, I tell you that Elijah has come already
and they did not recognise him but treated him as they pleased; and the Son of Man will suffer similarly at their hands.’

The disciples understood then that he had been speaking of John the Baptist.

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

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Gospel Reflection Saturday Second Week of Advent Matthew 17:10-13

At the time of Jesus there was an ancient Jewish tradition that just before the coming of the Messiah God would send the prophet Elijah back to earth to prepare people for the Messiah’s coming. ‘I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of parents towards their children and of children towards their parents…’ (Malachi 4:5-6). That tradition is behind the question of the disciples to Jesus in today’s gospel reading, ‘Why do the scribes say then that Elijah must come first?’ Jesus identifies John the Baptist as the promised Elijah, and, by implication, he is identifying himself as the Messiah. Yet, as Jesus goes on to say, ‘they treated him (John the Baptist) as they pleased’. John had been beheaded by Herod Antipas. Jesus then announces that he will suffer the same hostile fate as John the Baptist, ‘the Son of Man will suffer similarly’. Jesus announces that his contemporaries have already rejected God’s messenger sent to announce the coming of the Lord and they are soon to reject the Lord himself. We can all fail to recognize God’s messengers. We can even fail to recognize the Lord himself when he comes to us. Advent is a time when we pray the prayer, ‘Come, Lord Jesus’. We might also need to pray the prayer, ‘Lord, help me to recognize you when you come’. The Lord can come to us in ways that we had not expected. He can come to us even in and through those circumstances of our lives that seem to suggest the Lord is absent. He can come to us through people whom we might not associate with the Lord. The Lord is always coming in a whole variety of guises. He is often most powerfully present at those moments when we sense his absence. We pray this Advent for eyes to recognize his various comings to us.