Thursday December 30

 

 

6TH DAY IN THE OCTAVE OF CHRISTMAS

 

OPEN TO GOD’S MYSTERY      

                          

Introduction

To thank God for the liberation he brings us in and through his Son, Jesus, is the core of every Eucharistic celebration. There we say: “Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.” With the prophetess Anna, let us express our thanks for our liberation to the Lord, our God, and praise him wholeheartedly.

Too easily, as St John says, we lose our heart to the world; we follow its ways of thinking and acting. Let us ask the Lord to forgive us.

 

Opening Prayer

Almighty Father,
you let humble, faithful people
recognize your Son
and welcome him as the Savior,
who brought freedom and life to his people.
May we, too, recognize and welcome Jesus
in all that is little and humble
and with him grow up in wisdom and grace
to the maturity of your sons and daughters,
so that we attain the full stature of Jesus.
We ask this through him, our Lord.

 

Reading 1: 1 JN 2:12-17

I am writing to you, children,
because your sins have been forgiven for his name’s sake.

I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.

I am writing to you, young men,
because you have conquered the Evil One.

I write to you, children,
because you know the Father.

I write to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.

I write to you, young men,
because you are strong and the word of God remains in you,
and you have conquered the Evil One.

Do not love the world or the things of the world.
If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
For all that is in the world,
sensual lust, enticement for the eyes, and a pretentious life,
is not from the Father but is from the world.
Yet the world and its enticement are passing away.
But whoever does the will of God remains forever.

 

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 96:7-8A, 8B-9, 10

(11a) Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!
Give to the LORD, you families of nations,
give to the LORD glory and praise;
give to the LORD the glory due his name!
R. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!
Bring gifts, and enter his courts;
worship the LORD in holy attire.
Tremble before him, all the earth.
R. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!
Say among the nations: The LORD is king.
He has made the world firm, not to be moved;
he governs the peoples with equity.
R. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice!

 

Alleluia

Alleluia, alleluia.
A holy day has dawned upon us.
Come, you nations, and adore the Lord.
Today a great light has come upon the earth.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

 

Gospel: LK 2:36-40

There was a prophetess, Anna,
the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher.
She was advanced in years,
having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage,
and then as a widow until she was eighty-four.
She never left the temple,
but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer.
And coming forward at that very time,
she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child
to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.

When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions
of the law of the Lord,
they returned to Galilee,
to their own town of Nazareth.
The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom;
and the favor of God was upon him.

 

Intercessions

–   For fathers and mothers, that they may give their children the freedom to be themselves and to grow up as mature, responsible Christians, we pray:

–   For all young people, that they may come to love Christ deeply and let his word take roots and grow in them, we pray:

–   For small children, that they may come to love God through their experience of their parents’ love, we pray:

–   For all of us, God’s children, that we may seek God’s will in all we do and form communities that care for one another, we pray:

 

Prayer over the Gifts

God, our Father,
through the food and drink of the Eucharist,
appease our hunger
and quench our thirst,
for all that is good in your sight.
We offer ourselves
together with your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

 

Prayer after Communion

God, our Father,
here in this Eucharist,
your Son, Jesus has offered us
his liberation and victory
to overcome in this world
evil in us and around us.
Dispose us to receive always with gratitude
the life and the light of Jesus
and to follow in his footsteps,
for he is our Lord, for ever and ever.

 

Blessing

Old people, Anna as well as Simeon, women as well as men, often see with eyes the mysteries of God with a perspicacity that puts to shame theologians and holders of degrees. That is what they learn through prayer and reflection. May God bless these wise people, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

 

Commentary

The name Anna comes from the Hebrew word Hannah which means “grace.” Indeed, Anna was a woman full of grace, for she was able to see what generations had longed for. She spent her remaining years ever since she turned a widow—possibly 60—in singular devotion and adoration of God. Luke presents her as a prophetess, almost on par with Simeon. Like Simeon, she gives praise and thanks to God. She goes around and shares the news about the birth of the divine child with all those who had been longing for the deliverance of God’s people.

By bringing Anna onto the scene, Luke wants to present the universality of salvation brought through the person of Christ. Christ is not only for the rich and the learned, but for the poor, the widowed, the shepherds, and everyone else on the margins as well. God is the God of all. Luke also tells us that the child Jesus returned with his parents to his native village and lived there among his people. With God’s grace upon him, the Graced One lived in their midst as one of them.