Liturgical Readings for : Tuesday, 24th October, 2023
Tuesday of the Twenty Ninth Week in Ordinary Time, Year 1,
Optional Memorial of St Anthony Mary Claret, bishop
FIRST READING
A reading from the letter of St Paul to the Romans 5:12. 15. 17-21
Just as death entered the world through one man, so life will come through one man, Jesus Christ.
Sin entered the world through one man, and through sin death, and thus death has spread through the whole human race because everyone has sinned. If it is certain that through one man’s fall so many died, it is even more certain that divine grace, coming through the one man, Jesus Christ, came to so many as an abundant free gift.
If it is certain that death reigned over everyone as the consequence of one man’s fall, it is even more certain that one man, Jesus Christ, will cause everyone to reign in life who receives the free gift that he does not deserve, of being made righteous. Again, as one man’s fall brought condemnation on everyone, so the good act of one man brings everyone life and makes them justified. As by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by one man’s obedience many will be made righteous. When law came, it was to multiply the opportunities of failing, but however great the number of sins committed, grace was even greater; and so, just as sin reigned wherever there was death, so grace will reign to bring eternal life thanks to the righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 39
Response Here I am, Lord! I come to do your will.
1. You do not ask for sacrifice and offerings, but an open ear.
You do not ask for holocaust and victim. Instead, here am I. Response
2. In the scroll of the book it stands written that I should do your will.
My God, I delight in your law in the depth of my heart. Response
3. Your justice I have proclaimed in the great assembly.
My lips I have not sealed; you know it, O Lord. Response
4. O let there be rejoicing and gladness for all who seek you.
Let them ever say: ‘The Lord is great’, who love your saving help. Response
Gospel Acclamation Lk 8: 15
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Blessed are those who; with a noble and generous heart,
take the word of God to themselves and yield a harvest through their perseverance.
Alleluia!
or Lk 21: 36
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Stay awake, praying at all times for the strength to stand with confidence before the Son of Man.
Alleluia!
GOSPEL
The Lord be with you. And with your spirit
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 12:35-38 Glory to you, O Lord.
Happy those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes.
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘See that you are dressed for action and have your lamps lit. Be like men waiting for their master to return from the wedding feast, ready to open the door as soon as he comes and knocks.
Happy those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes.
I tell you solemnly, he will put on an apron, sit them down at table and wait on them. It may be in the second watch he comes, or in the third, but happy those servants if he finds them ready.’
The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Gospel Reflection Tuesday, Twenty Ninth Week in Ordinary Time Luke 12:35-38
The image of ‘the knock on the door’ tends to have a negative meaning in our culture. The knock on the door is more often than not something to fear and be in dread of. In the wake of the fall of Kabul, those who collaborated with the coalition forces were in dread of the knock on their door that could spell great danger and even death for them.
However, in today’s gospel reading, the knock on the door suggests a benign presence. According to Jesus’ image, when the master of a house returns from a wedding feast, knocks on the door, and finds that his servants are there to welcome him, he shows his appreciation by behaving as a servant to them. He sits them down at table, puts on an apron and serves them. This is an image of a master that goes beyond anything that would have been experienced in reality in that culture. Jesus is really speaking about himself here. He is declaring that if he finds us waiting for him when he comes to us at the end of our lives, he will serve us in ways that will surprise us. He will show himself to be the Son of Man who came not to be served but to serve. The Lord stands ready to serve us here and now; he is among us now as one who serves, and he will serve us in a way that is beyond imagining beyond this earthly life.
What Jesus calls for in the gospel reading is a readiness on our part to welcome his service. He calls on us to be alert to his serving presence, ‘dressed for action’ with our ‘lamps lit’, as he says. We are to be about the business of actively living out our relationship with him, showing ourselves to be his servants by relating to others in love, as he relates to us in love. If we daily show ourselves to be his servants in this way, then we will receive from him a much greater service than we could ever give him.
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The Scripture Readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible.
