Liturgical Readings for : Monday, 18th December, 2023
The Advent Octave before Christmas
Day 2 : Monday -18th December.
FIRST READING
A reading from the prophet Jeremiah 23: 5–8
I will raise a virtuous Branch for David.
‘See, the days are coming – it is the Lord who speaks –
when I will raise a virtuous Branch for David,
who will reign as true king and be wise,
practising honesty and integrity in the land.
In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel dwell in confidence.
And this is the name he will be called: the Lord -our-integrity.
‘So, then, the days are coming – it is the Lord who speaks –
when people will no longer say, “As the Lord lives who brought the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt!” but, “As the Lord lives who led back and brought home the descendants of the House of Israel out of the land of the North and from all the countries to which he had dispersed them, to live on their own soil.” ‘
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. For he shall save the poor when they cry and the needy who are helpless.
He will have pity on the weak and save the lives of the poor. Response
3. Blessed be the Lord, God of Israel, who alone works wonders,
ever blessed his glorious name. Let his glory fill the earth. Amen! Amen! Response
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia!
Ruler of the House of Israel who gave the law to Moses on Sinai,
come and save us with outstretched arm.
Alleluia!
GOSPEL
The Lord be with you. And with your spirit
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew 1:18-24 Glory to you, O Lord.
Jesus is born of Mary who was betrothed to Joseph, son of David.
This is how Jesus Christ came to be born. His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph; but before they came to live together she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph; being a man of honour and wanting to spare her publicity, decided to divorce her informally. He had made up his mind to do this when the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.’
Now all this took place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet:
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and they will call him Emmanuel, a name which means ‘God-is-with-us.‘
When Joseph woke up he did what the angel of the Lord had told him to do: he took his wife to his home.
The Gospel of the Lord Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Gospel Reflection 18 December, Monday, Third Week of Advent Matthew 1:18–24
Today’s gospel reading gives us Matthew’s account of the birth of Jesus. Luke’s account of Jesus’ birth has so caught the imagination of artists and storytellers down the centuries that Matthew’s account has found itself in the shade somewhat. In Luke’s account of Jesus’ birth, Mary is more to the fore than Joseph. In Matthew’s account it is Joseph who is to the fore. In our gospel reading the annunciation of Jesus’ birth is made to Joseph, not to Mary. He needs reassuring when he discovers that Mary his betrothed is pregnant before they have come to live together as husband and wife. Out of consideration for Mary, he had initially decided to divorce her informally, until the angel Gabriel announced to him the true nature of Mary’s pregnancy, ‘She has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit’, and the true significance of the child in her womb, ‘She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins’. Apart from the name Jesus, the name ‘Emmanuel’, found in the prophet Isaiah, will also apply to him, ‘God-with-us’. Mary’s child will be the presence of the merciful God among us. In response to that annunciation, that revelation, Joseph took Mary home as his wife. The gospel reading gives us a picture of Joseph struggling to discern what God is asking of him in a situation he doesn’t fully understand. We are all like Joseph in that regard. We make a decision, thinking it is God’s will for our lives, and then we have to review it as it becomes clear to us that, perhaps, this is not what God is asking of us. We are always trying to discern God’s call, what God is asking of us in the here and now. As a man who had much to discern, Saint Joseph can be a very good companion for us in those complex moments in our own lives when there is much to be discerned.
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The Scripture Readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, published 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd Ltd.
