Feast of the Baptism of the Lord - Year C

A reading from the prophet Isaiah (40:1-5, 9-11)

‘Comfort, O comfort my people,’
says your God.
‘Speak to the heart of Jerusalem
and cry out to her
that her period of service is ended,
her penalty has been paid;
from the hand of the Lord she has received
double for all her sins.’
A voice crying out,
‘In the desert prepare a way for the Lord.
Make straight across the wastelands
a highway for our God.
Let every ravine be filled in,
every mountain and hill be brought down;
the crooked shall be straight,
the rough places a plain.
Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed
and all humanity shall see it together,
for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.’
Go up on a high mountain, Zion,
herald of good news!
Lift up your voice with power, Jerusalem,
herald of good news!
Lift it up without fear!
Say to the cities of Judah,
‘See, here is your God.’
See the Lord God coming with power,
his arm rules for him,
see, his reward is with him,
his prize goes before him.
He tends his flock like a shepherd,
gathering the lambs in his arms,
holding them against his breast
and leading the mother ewes.

The opening chapter of the second Isaiah, familiar during Advent, is read again on this final day of the Christmas season. It announced to the people: ‘See, here is your God.’ The faithful God cares for his people and like a shepherd brings them home from exile. The feast of the Baptism of the Lord has the Father announce: ‘This is my Son, the beloved!’ The fidelity of God is again apparent in the self-offering of Jesus, as he shows solidarity with the people who seek the good news of God’s forgiveness.

Psalm 104 (103) This great psalm of creation speaks of the Spirit who brings life.

A reading from the letter of saint Paul to Titus (2:11-14, 3:4-7)

The grace of God our Saviour has been revealed to the whole human race, teaching us that, giving up impiety and all worldly passions, we should be self-restrained and live righteous and religious lives in this present world, waiting for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Christ Jesus. He offered himself for us in order to ransom us from all our faults and to purify a people to be his very own, eager to do good. When the kindness and love of God our Saviour for humanity were revealed, not because of any works of righteousness we had ourselves done but in accordance with his own mercy, he saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal in the Holy Spirit which he generously poured over us through Jesus Christ our Saviour so that, justified by his grace, we should become heirs in hope of eternal life.

The two parts of this reading served as the second reading at the Night Mass and the Dawn Mass of Christmas Day. They speak of the ‘revealing (epiphaneisthai)’ of the ‘grace (charis)’ of God (2:11), and of the ‘kindness (chrestotes)’ and ‘love (philanthropia)’ of God our Saviour (3:4). These three attributes of God, which are virtually synonymous, are revealed in the gift of the Son. God through Christ ‘ransomed (lutroun)’ us, and ‘purified (katharizein)’ us. God’s kindness was not deserved by any ‘works of justice (dikaiosune)’ we have performed, but he saved us ‘in accordance with his mercy (eleos)’, ‘through the washing of rebirth (dia loutrou paliggenesias)’, and through ‘the renewal in the Holy Spirit (anakainoseos pneumatos hagiou)’, doubtless references to the baptism by which Christians are given new life through water and the Holy Spirit.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Luke (3:15-16, 21-22)

There was a feeling of expectancy among the people; they were all questioning in their hearts whether John might himself be the Messiah. John answered them all by saying, ‘I baptise you with water, but one more powerful than me is coming, and I am not fit to undo the strap of his sandals; he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.’

Now it happened that while all the people were being baptised and while Jesus, after his own baptism, was at prayer, heaven opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in a physical form, like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; in you I am well pleased.’

This version of the baptism of Jesus taken from the gospel of Luke includes a part of the preparatory preaching of John the Baptist, in which he speaks of baptism ‘with the Holy Spirit (pneuma hagion) and with fire’. The baptism of Jesus is reported rather obliquely because the accent is on the prayer of Jesus, and the manifestation of the Spirit. The voice of God is addressed to Jesus, in words identical with those found in Mark’s account (Mark 1:11).

Why does John refer to baptism ‘in fire’ (Matthew 3:11  Luke 3:16)?

Jesus is frequently found at prayer in the gospel of Luke.

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord - Year B

A reading from the prophet Isaiah (55:1-11)

‘O you who are thirsty, come to the water!
You who have no money, come buy and eat!
Come buy wine and milk without money, free!
Why spend money on what cannot nourish
and your earnings on what fails to satisfy?
Listen carefully to me:
have good things to eat and rich food to enjoy.
Pay attention, come to me; listen, and you will live.
I shall make an everlasting covenant with you –
the mercies of my steadfast love for David.
Look, I have put him as a witness to peoples,
a leader and lawgiver to peoples.
Look, you will summon a nation unknown to you;
nations unknown to you will hurry to you
for the sake of the Lord your God
because the Holy One of Israel has made you glorious.
Seek the Lord while he is to be found,
call to him while he is near.
Let the wicked abandon their ways
and the sinful their thoughts.
Let them turn back to the Lord
that he may have mercy on them,
to our God, for he is rich in forgiveness.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts
and your ways are not my ways – declares the Lord.
For as the heavens are high above earth
so are my ways above your ways,
my thoughts above your thoughts.
For as the rain and the snow come down from the sky
and do not return before watering the earth,
fertilising it and making it germinate
to provide seed for the sower and food to eat,
so it is with the word that goes forth from my mouth:
it does not return to me unfulfilled
or before carrying out my purpose
and achieving what it was sent to do.

The final chapter of the second part of Isaiah begins with the invitation to come to the water and drink, to come and eat. God’s gifts are freely given. ‘Listen and you will live!’ God reaffirms his ‘everlasting covenant (berit ‘olam)’. It is renewed at the return from exile, and further renewed by Jesus Christ, and by baptism into his new life. On this final day of the Christmas season we are urged to ‘seek (darash)’ the Lord, and to ‘call (qara’)’ on him. God’s ways are different and surprising. This is what Christmas has taught. But those who are open to the ‘word (dabar)’ that comes from God, and are ‘watered’ by his rain, will be given new life by his gifts.

Isaiah 12 This canticle from Isaiah offers the ‘water of salvation’.

A reading from the first letter of saint John (5:1-9)

Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ
is a child of God,
and whoever loves the father
loves the son.
In this we know that we love God’s children,
whenever we love God and keep his commandments,
for this is what the love of God is:
keeping his commandments;
and his commandments are not burdensome,
because whatever is born of God
conquers the world,
and this is the victory that has overcome the world –
our faith.
Who can overcome the world
but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
He it is who came by water and blood,
Jesus Christ,
not with water alone
but with water and blood,
and it is the Spirit that bears witness,
for the Spirit is Truth.
So there are three witnesses,
the Spirit, the water and the blood,
and these three are one.
If we accept the testimony of human witnesses,
God’s testimony is greater,
for this is God’s testimony
which he gave about his Son.

The children of God know that Jesus is the Christ. They follow God’s commandments by loving all God’s children.  The Son of God came with the ‘witness’ of water, for he was baptised by John in the Jordan, and with the ‘witness’ of blood, for he is ‘the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world’ (John 1:29). The third witness is the Spirit of truth, who gives testimony with the Father at the baptism of Jesus.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Mark (1:7-11)

And as he proclaimed John said, ‘After me is coming the one who is more powerful than me, and I am not fit to kneel down and undo the strap of his sandals. I have baptised you with water, but he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit.’

It was in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptised in the Jordan by John. And at once, as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit, like a dove, descending on him. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; in you I am well pleased.’

The first action of Jesus in the Gospel of Mark is to seek baptism from John. The text is unambiguous: ‘he was baptised in the Jordan by John’. Baptism for repentance might be considered inappropriate in the case of Jesus, but solidarity with sinners suggests its real purpose. It is Jesus himself who sees ‘the heavens torn apart’ and ‘the Spirit, like a dove, descending’.  The voice of the Father affirms approval of the Son, the ‘Beloved (agapetos)’.

Why does Jesus seek the baptism of John?

Jesus is silent at his baptism in Mark.

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord - Year A

A reading from the prophet Isaiah (42:1-4, 6-7)

Here is my servant whom I uphold,
my chosen one in whom my soul delights.
I have put my spirit upon him,
he will bring fair judgement to the nations.
He will not cry out or raise his voice,
his voice will not be heard in the street.
A crushed reed he will not break
nor will he snuff out a faltering wick.
He will establish fair judgement for the nations.
He will not grow faint or be discouraged
until he has established fair judgement on earth
and the coastlands are waiting for his guidance.
I the Lord have called you in righteousness,
I have grasped you by the hand and watched over you;
I have given you as a covenant for the people
and light for the nations,
to open the eyes of the blind,
to free captives from prison,
and those who sit in darkness from the dungeon.

The second part of Isaiah (40-55) contains four ‘songs’ of the ‘suffering servant’, read during Holy Week. The first song is also appropriate for this final day of the Christmas season, on which we consider the start of Jesus’ ministry with his baptism by John. At the baptism he will be called ‘son’ and ‘beloved’. The names given here, also appropriate, are ‘servant (‘ebed)’ and ‘chosen one (bahir)’. The style of the servant is humble and unthreatening, but he is committed to bringing ‘fair judgement (mishpat)’. He is a person of integrity and truth. The servant is to be ‘light for the nations (’or goyim)’, bringing sight for the blind and freedom for prisoners. These actions are central to the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth.

Psalm 29 (28) The voice of the Lord resounds over the waters.

A reading from the Acts of the Apostles (10:34-38)

Then Peter began to speak to Cornelius and his household: ‘I understand that truly God is impartial, but that in every nation one that fears him and does what is righteous is acceptable to him. You know the message which he sent to the children of Israel proclaiming peace through Jesus Christ – he is Lord of all – the word which spread throughout Judaea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism which John announced: Jesus of Nazareth, whom God anointed with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went around doing good and healing all who were held in the power of the devil, because God was with him.

Peter announces the good news to Cornelius, the Roman centurion, at his house in Caesarea. Peter realises that the God of Jesus Christ is the God of all people, all those who ‘fear’ him and do what is just (dikaiosune). Jesus’ public life had begun after John’s baptism. In Peter’s words, Jesus was ‘anointed’ by God with the ‘Holy Spirit (pneuma hagion)’ and with ‘power (dunamis)’. Peter does not mention his baptism by John explicitly, but simply the descent of the Spirit which is mentioned in the gospel accounts, so that Jesus can begin his work of ‘doing good’ and ‘healing’.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Matthew (3:13-17)

Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptised by John. John tried to prevent him, saying, ‘I need to be baptised by you, and yet do you come to me?’ But Jesus replied, ‘Leave it for the time being; for so it is fitting that we should fulfil all righteousness.’ Then he allowed him. And when Jesus had been baptised he at once came up from the water, and see, the heavens opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming down on him. And see, a voice from heaven, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, in whom I am well pleased.’

The unique feature of Matthew’s account of the baptism of Jesus is that John expresses reluctance to baptise him. John feels the need to be baptised by Jesus. But Jesus insists that ‘righteousness (dikaiosune)’ be fulfilled. The one who stands alongside sinners seeking repentance has the humility to undergo the same rite of penance that they perform. In this account, as in Mark’s, it is Jesus alone who sees the Spirit of God descending, yet the ‘voice (phone) from heaven’ speaks to all present saying: ‘This is my Son, the Beloved, in whom I am well pleased.’

To what extent is Jesus imitating the suffering servant when he goes for baptism?

Consider how each evangelist highlights the presence of the Spirit at the baptism of Jesus.

12th January or Saturday after the Epiphany

A reading from the first letter of saint John (5:14-21)

This is the fearlessness we have towards him,
that if we ask anything in accordance with his will
he hears us.
And if we know that he listens to whatever we ask him,
we know that we already possess whatever we have asked of him.
Anyone sees a brother or sister commit a sin
that is not a deadly sin,
has only to pray, and God will give life to this person,
provided that it is not a deadly sin.
There is sin that leads to death
and I am not saying you should pray about that.
Every kind of wickedness is sin,
but not all sin leads to death.

We know that no one who is a child of God sins,
because he who was born from God protects such a one,
and the Evil One cannot touch such a one.
We know that we are from God,
and the whole world lies open to the Evil One.
We know also that the Son of God has come
and has given us understanding
so that we may know him who is true.
We are in the One who is true
in his Son, Jesus Christ.
He is the true God
and eternal life.
Children, be on your guard against idols.

Love casts out fear (4:18), and ‘fearlessness (parresia)’ allows us to make requests of God with total confidence, whatever our needs. We can pray for the forgiveness of sin on behalf of a brother or sister, and life will be restored to that person. But John also speaks about ‘sin that leads to death (hamartia pros thanaton)’, though it is unclear what he means. He is probably alluding to those who deny Jesus is the Son of God, and who have deserted the community (2:18-19, 22). But those ‘born of God’ do not sin, even though the ‘whole world lies open to the Evil One’. The Messiah has come to give us ‘understanding’ (dianoia) so that we may know ‘him who is true (alethinon)’. We are ‘in the One who is true’ and ‘in his Son, Jesus Christ’. He is the true God and eternal life. The final words of the letter are ‘children, be on your guard against idols’.

Psalm 149 Once again we are invited to sing ‘a new song (shir hadash)’ for the gift of salvation.

A reading from the holy gospel according to John (3:22-30)

After this, Jesus and his disciples went into the Judaean countryside and he spent some time with them there and baptised. And John also was baptising at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water there, and people were going there and were being baptised. For John had not yet been thrown into prison. Now a discussion arose between John’s disciples and a Jew about purification, so they went to John and said, ‘Rabbi, the man who was with you on the far side of the Jordan, to whom you bore witness, is baptising now, and everyone is going to him.’

John replied:

‘No one can receive anything
except what is given from heaven.
‘You yourselves can bear witness to me that I said, “I am not the Messiah;
but I am the one who has been sent ahead of him.”
‘He who has the bride is the bridegroom,
and yet the bridegroom’s friend,
who stands and listens to him,
is filled with joy at the bridegroom’s voice.
This joy of mine is complete.
He must grow greater, I must grow less.’

Only in this text do we have reference to Jesus baptising. But there is of course no rivalry between them, for John affirms, ‘No one can receive anything except what is given from heaven’. John has constantly maintained that his role is to prepare the way. John gives his final testimony about Jesus and refers to himself as ‘the friend of the bridegroom’ (ho philos tou numphiou), who rejoices for his friend. There is a possible allusion here to Isaiah’s song of the vineyard, in which the prophet sings for his friend about his love for his vineyard (Isaiah 5:1). The ‘joy (chara)’ of John is now complete as the ministry of Jesus begins. The remarks of John, that Jesus is to grow greater, while he is to grow less, are a further confirmation of his role as deferring to Jesus, and ‘preparing the way’, found in every gospel. We are reminded that the feast of the birth of John, at the time of the longest day in the northern hemisphere, heralds the time  in which the light will ‘grow less’, while the Christmas feast, at the time of the shortest day, introduces the light of the Messiah which will ‘grow greater’. Nature appropriately reflects the births of John and of Jesus.

Why has John the Baptist been so prominent in Advent and Christmas?

The end of Christmas shows John’s final witness to the one who was to come after him.

11th January or Friday after the Epiphany

A reading from the first letter of saint John (5:5-13)

Who can overcome the world
but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
He it is who came by water and blood,
Jesus Christ,
not with water alone
but with water and blood,
and it is the Spirit that bears witness,
for the Spirit is Truth.
So there are three witnesses,
the Spirit, the water and the blood,
and these three are one.
If we accept the testimony of human witnesses,
God’s testimony is greater,
for this is God’s testimony
which he gave about his Son.
Whoever believes in the Son of God
has this testimony within him,
and whoever does not believe
is making God a liar,
for not believing
the testimony God has given about his Son.
And this is the testimony:
God has given us eternal life,
and this life is in his Son.
Whoever has the Son has life,
and whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.
I have written this to you
who believe in the name of the Son of God
so that you may know that you have eternal life.

The writer speaks once again about the one who ‘has victory’ (nikan) over the ‘world’ (kosmos). It is the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. Jesus came ‘by water and blood’. Does the water allude to baptism, even though no baptism of Jesus is recounted in John’s gospel? Or is this rather an allusion to the water and blood from the side of Jesus at his death (John 19:34)? John then says that the Spirit (pneuma) also bears witness (marturein), the spirit of truth, and that there are consequently ‘three’ who bear witness: the spirit, the water and the blood. The witness, or testimony (marturia), ultimately comes from God, and this testimony is that God has given us eternal life in the Son. This is the essential truth of Christmas and of Christianity.

Psalm 147 (146) The Lord has ‘sent out his word to the earth’.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Luke (5:12-16)

Now it happened that Jesus was in one of the towns when, suddenly, a man appeared, covered with leprosy. Seeing Jesus he bowed with his face to the ground and implored him saying, ‘Lord, if you are willing you can cleanse me.’ Jesus stretched out his hand, and touched him saying, ‘I am willing. Be cleansed.’ At once the leprosy left him. He ordered him to tell no one, ‘But go and show yourself to the priest and make the offering for your cleansing just as Moses prescribed, as evidence to them.’

But the news of him spread still more, and large crowds would gather to hear him and to be cured of their illnesses, but he would withdraw to deserted places and pray.

Jesus heals a man ‘covered with leprosy’ (pleres lepras). The faith of this man is expressed in his bowing ‘with his face to the ground’, and in his words of faith, ‘Lord, if you are willing, you can cleanse me’. Reading this gospel passage in the final days of Christmas reminds us again that he has come ‘to bring good news to the poor’, and that no-one is to be excluded, and no-one is beyond the healing compassion of the Messiah. It is not the healed man who spreads the news. The sheer number of people wanting the attention of Jesus does not allow the news to be contained, but Jesus seeks solitude ‘in deserted places’.

Why is Jesus reluctant that the news of healing be spread?

Jesus combines pastoral activity and prayer.

10th January or Thursday after the Epiphany

A reading from the first letter of saint John (4:19-5:4)

Let us love
because he first loved us.
Anyone who says ‘I love God’
and hates a brother or sister
is a liar,
since whoever does not love the brother or sister whom he has seen
cannot love God whom he has not seen.
This is the commandment we have received from him,
that whoever loves God loves also brother and sister.
Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ
is a child of God,
and whoever loves the father
loves the son.
In this we know that we love God’s children,
whenever we love God and keep his commandments,
for this is what the love of God is:
keeping his commandments;
and his commandments are not burdensome,
because whatever is born of God
conquers the world,
and this is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith.

Once more the writer states that it is God who is the first to love (4:10 4:19). Hatred of a brother or sister is incompatible with love of God. The commandment we have received is that those who love God must also love brother and sister. All who believe that Jesus is the Christ are children of God, loving both the Father and the Son. We have won a victory (nikan) over the world (kosmos) by our faith, a faith lived out in love.

Psalm 72 (71) The Messiah will free the poor from oppression.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Luke (4:14-22)

Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and his reputation spread throughout the countryside. He kept teaching in their synagogues and was glorified by everyone.

He came to Nazara, where he had been brought up, and went into the synagogue on the Sabbath as was his custom. He stood up to read, and he was given the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. Unrolling the scroll he found the place where it is written:

The spirit of the Lord is upon me,
for he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to captives,
sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free,
to proclaim a year of the Lord’s favour.

He then rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the assistant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. Then he began to speak to them, ‘Today this text has been fulfilled in your hearing.’ And all bore witness to him, and were astonished by the words of grace that came from his lips.

The ministry of Jesus in the Gospel of Luke, unlike the other gospels, after a short summary statement (4:14-15), begins with the visit to the synagogue in Nazareth. Luke shows Jesus reading from the book of Isaiah and proclaiming a text from the Third Isaiah: ‘The spirit of the Lord is upon me.’ In this way Luke has Jesus announce his purpose, ‘to bring good news to the poor’. This gospel text is very appropriate during the last days of Christmas, as Jesus emerges from ordinary life and takes on his role as a prophet who will face both acclaim and rejection.

Why is preaching in synagogues so important to Jesus?

This account of Jesus in the Nazareth synagogue precedes the calling of the disciples.

9th January or Wednesday after the Epiphany

A reading from the first letter of saint John (4:11-18)

My dear friends,
if God loved us so much,
we too should love one other.
No one has ever seen God,
if we love one other
God abides in us
and his love comes to perfection in us.
By this we know that we abide in him
and he in us,
because he has given us a share in his Spirit.
We ourselves have seen and testify
that the Father sent his Son
as Saviour of the world.
Anyone who acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God,
God abides in him and he in God.
And we have come to know
and believe the love God has for us.
God is love,
and whoever abides in love abides in God
and God in him.
Love has come to its perfection in us
so that we may face the Day of Judgement fearlessly,
because as he is,
so are we in this world.
In love there is no fear,
but perfect love drives out fear,
because fear has to do with punishment,
and one who fears has not come to perfection in love.

We have never seen God, but God dwells in us if we love each other. Furthermore, God has given us ‘a share in his Spirit (ek tou pneumatos)’, which allows us to witness that the Father sent the Son as ‘Saviour (soter)’. We are fully convinced of the love God has for us. Once again the writer affirms that ‘God is love (ho theos agape estin)’ (4:8 and 4:16). We ‘abide’ (menein) in God, and God in us. God’s love allows us to have confidence (parresia) in the face of God’s judgement, for love casts out fear.

Psalm 72 (71) The Messiah saves the poor and the needy.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Mark (6:45-52)

And at once he made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side near Bethsaida, while he himself sent the crowd away. After parting from them he went off to the mountain to pray. When evening came, the boat was far out on the sea, and he was alone on the land. Seeing that they were hard pressed in their rowing, for the wind was against them, not long before dawn he came towards them, walking on the sea. He was going to pass them by, but when they saw him walking on the sea they thought it was a phantom and cried out; for they had all seen him and were terrified. But at once he spoke to them and said, ‘Courage! It’s me! Don’t be afraid.’ Then he got into the boat with them and the wind dropped. They were utterly and completely dumbfounded, because they had not understood about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.

This gospel passage follows directly from the account of the multiplication of the loaves read yesterday. Jesus is the one who feeds the multitude. Jesus is the one who has power over the sea. The evangelist is suggesting that Jesus has powers greater than Moses, to feed the minds and bodies of the people, and to protect them from harm.  The disciples were ‘completely and utterly dumbfounded’, and yet their hearts remained ‘hardened’.

What relevance does this gospel passage have to the Christmas feasts?

The graces of Christmas can be met with hardness of heart and slowness of faith.

8th January or Tuesday after the Epiphany

A reading from the first letter of saint John (4:7-10)

My dear friends,
let us love one other,
since love is from God
and everyone who loves is a child of God and knows God.
No one who fails to love knows God,
because God is love.
In this, the love of God was revealed among us,
that God sent his only Son into the world
that we might have life through him.
Love consists in this:
not that we loved God,
but that he loved us and sent his Son
as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

This passage returns once more to the theme of love: ‘love is from God (ek tou theou)’, makes Christians ‘children of God’, and allows us to ‘know God’. Indeed, ‘God is love (ho theos agape estin)’.  God’s love was made known when God sent the only Son into the world so that we might have life. Love has its origin in God, who sent his Son as ‘an atoning sacrifice (hilasmos)’. The word hilasmos may also be translated as ‘expiation’. It is not to be translated ‘propitiation’, as if God had to be placated by our actions. As in 2:2, where it was translated ‘sacrifice to expiate’, the word suggests God’s way of removing the barrier between God and ourselves erected by our sins. This is brought about by God’s love shown in the actions of the Son: ‘God loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.’

Psalm 72 (71) The Messiah brings justice and peace.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Mark (6:34-44)

As Jesus stepped ashore he saw a large crowd; and he took pity on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd, and he began to teach them many things. By now it was getting late, and his disciples came up to him and said, ‘This is a lonely place and it is getting late; send them away, so that they can go to the farms and villages round about and buy themselves something to eat.’ He replied, ‘Give them something to eat yourselves.’ They answered, ‘Are we to go and buy bread for two hundred denarii for them to eat?’ He asked, ‘How many loaves have you? Go and see.’ And when they had found out they said, ‘Five, and two fish.’ Then he instructed them to get all the people to sit down in groups on the green grass, and they sat down on the ground in groups of hundreds and fifties. Then taking the five loaves and the two fish, and raising his eyes to heaven he blessed and broke the loaves and began handing them to his disciples to distribute among the people. He also shared out the two fish among them all. They all ate as much as they wanted. They took up twelve basketfuls of the broken pieces and of the fish. Those who had eaten the loaves numbered five thousand men.

This is the first of two accounts of the feeding of the multitude in the Gospel of Mark. In these final days of Christmas it reminds us of Jesus’ compassion and his concern for those in need, which are the motivation for his coming. Jesus is compared to the shepherd and his feeding of the crowds is both for heart and body. He taught them ‘many things’, and followed this by feeding them so that ‘all ate as much as they wanted’. The Christmas feasts invite us to appreciate the gift of his coming, and the gifts he continues to bring to nourish our lives.

Does Jesus fulfil the hopes and dreams of the prophets and the psalms?

Jesus involves his disciples in feeding the hungry.

7th January or Monday after the Epiphany

A reading from the first letter of saint John (3:22-4:6)

Whatever we ask
we shall receive from him,
because we keep his commandments
and do what is pleasing to him.
His commandment is this,
that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ
and that we should love one another
as he commanded us.
Whoever keeps his commandments
abides in God, and God in that person.
And by this we know that he abides in us,
by the Spirit that he has given us.
My dear friends,
do not trust every spirit,
but test the spirits to see whether they are from God,
for many false prophets have gone out into the world.
By this you know the spirit of God:
any spirit that acknowledges Jesus Christ has come in the flesh
is from God,
and every spirit which fails to acknowledge Jesus
is not from God,
but this is the spirit of Antichrist,
of whose coming you have heard.
He is already now in the world.
Children, you are from God
and have overcome them,
because the Spirit who is in you
is greater than the spirit who is in the world.
They are from the world;
therefore what they say is from the world,
and the world listens to them.
We are from God;
whoever knows God listens to us;
anyone who is not from God does not listen to us.
This is how we can know
the spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood.

The ‘commandment’ has two parts: belief in the Son, and love of the brothers and sisters. These themes will be taken up again in what follows. Those who follow the commandments have the Spirit (pneuma) within them. The ‘spirit’ of the world by contrast does not confess that Jesus has come in the flesh. This is the spirit of antichrist mentioned earlier in the letter (2:18 and 22). The ‘children’ (teknia) addressed here are ‘from God’ and have ‘overcome’ (nikan). ‘Whoever knows God listens to us,’ the writer says. We are able to distinguish ‘the spirit of truth (aletheia)’ from ‘the spirit of falsehood (plane)’.

Psalm 2 The Son begotten by God will possess the ends of the earth.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Matthew (4:12-17, 23-25)

Hearing that John had been arrested he withdrew to Galilee, and leaving Nazara he went and settled in Capernaum, beside the lake, on the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali. This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah:

Land of Zebulun! Land of Naphtali!
Way of the sea beyond Jordan.
Galilee of the nations!
The people that sat in darkness
have seen a great light;
on those who lived in a country and shadow of death
a light has dawned.

From then onwards Jesus began his proclamation with the message, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of Heaven is close at hand.’

He went round the whole of Galilee teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing all kinds of disease and illness among the people. His fame spread throughout Syria, and they brought to him all those who were suffering from diseases and painful complaints of one kind or another, the possessed, epileptics, the paralysed, and he cured them. Large crowds followed him, coming from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judaea and beyond the Jordan.

Matthew’s account of the Galilee ministry of Jesus is introduced with a further fulfilment citation. Isaiah’s words about the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali are matched in the geographical note the evangelist gives, as Jesus makes his base in the lake-side town of Capernaum. ‘From then on he began (apo tote erxato)’, says the evangelist with some solemnity. Jesus began to call for repentance (metanoieite), and to announce the arrival of the kingdom of heaven (he basileia ton ouranon). Omitting the verses which concern the call of the first disciples, the gospel reading passes on to a summary of Jesus’ activity, as he is seen ‘teaching’ (didaskein), ‘proclaiming’ (kerussein) and ‘curing’ (therapeuein). There is an extensive list of the sick, and of the locations from which they travelled. The gospel proclaims the arrival of a ‘great light’ in the lives of ordinary people.

How does this gospel reading deepen our celebration of Christmas and Epiphany?

Jesus’ ministry begins far from Jerusalem, the religious centre.

6th January – Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord

A reading from the prophet Isaiah (60:1-6)

Arise, shine out, for your light has come
and the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you.
Look! Though night still covers the earth
and deep gloom the peoples,
over you the Lord has dawned,
over you his glory can be seen.
Nations will come to your light
and kings to the splendour of your dawn.
Lift up your eyes and look around:
all are assembling and coming to you:
your sons coming from far away
and your daughters held firm on the hip.
At this sight you will grow radiant,
your heart will thrill and dilate,
for the riches of the sea will flow to you,
the wealth of the nations come to you.
Throngs of camels will cover you,
young camels of Midian and Ephah;
everyone in Saba will come,
bringing gold and incense
and proclaiming the praise of the Lord.

The third part of the book of Isaiah originates in the time after the exile. This great poem, which builds on the optimism of Second Isaiah, expresses hopes for the future, rejoicing in the salvation brought by God. There are repeated references to the coming of the light, and to the splendour of the dawn, even though ‘night’ still covers the earth, and ‘deep gloom’ the peoples. The words seem to be addressed to Sion, restored and resplendent. ‘Nations’ (goyim) and ‘kings’ (melakim) are attracted by her glorious light. It is first of all the exiled ‘sons’ and ‘daughters’ who return, but the nations follow, drawn to the holy city as they were in the foundational poem of Isaiah 2: ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord.’ The prophet’s imagination envisages the coming of ‘throngs of camels’. From Midian and Ephah, nearby lands, they come, but also, from the far south, ‘everyone in Saba’ comes. Their gifts, gold and incense, are worthy of the Lord.

Psalm 72 (71) The Messiah brings justice and establishes peace, attracting the tribute of Tarshish, and the gifts of Sheba and Saba.

A reading from the letter of saint Paul to the Ephesians (3:2-3, 5-6)

You have surely heard the commission of God’s grace entrusted to me for your sake; that the mystery was made known to me by a revelation, as I have just written briefly. In former generations it was not made known to humanity as it has now been revealed in the Spirit to his holy apostles and

prophets, that the gentiles now have the same inheritance and form the same body and share the same promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

It has been the role of Paul to reveal that the Messiah was born not only for his own people, but for the nations too. He speaks of ‘the commission of God’s grace’ (ten oikonomian tes charitos tou theou) entrusted to him for the sake of the gentiles. It is a ‘mystery’ (musterion) made known to him by a ‘revelation’ (apokalupsis). Paul is thoroughly convinced of his role as ‘apostle of the nations’ (Romans 11:13). He explains that gentiles share the ‘same inheritance’ (sugkleronoma) of the Jewish people, are one in the ‘same body’ (sussoma) and have received the ‘same promise’ (summetocha tes epaggelias).

A reading from the holy gospel according to Matthew (2:1-12)

After Jesus had been born at Bethlehem in Judaea during the time of King Herod, suddenly some wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, asking, ‘Where is the child born king of the Jews? For we saw his star at its rising and have come to worship him.’ When King Herod heard this he was perturbed, and the whole of Jerusalem with him. He called together all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, and enquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, ‘At Bethlehem in Judaea, for this is what was written by the prophet:

And you, Bethlehem,
in the land of Judah,
you are by no means the least
among the leaders of Judah, 
for from you will come a leader
who will shepherd my people Israel.’

Then Herod secretly summoned the wise men and made certain from them the exact time when the star had appeared, and sent them on to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and find out accurately about the child, and when you have found him, report back to me, so that I too may go to worship him.’ When they had heard the king, they set out. And see, the star they had seen at its rising went before them until it halted over the place where the child was. Seeing the star, they rejoiced with very great joy, and going into the house they saw the child with Mary, his mother, and falling down they worshipped him. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. But having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their own country by a different way.

To what extent has the story of the magi been inspired by the poem of Third Isaiah and by psalms such as Psalm 72, prayed after the first reading? The infancy gospels of Matthew, which began with the annunciation to Joseph, proceed now with the arrival of the magi. This scene features the quotation from the prophet Micah (5:2) which provides an answer to king Herod about the location of the Messiah’s birth. The magi evade the clutches of Herod and in the climax of this scene represent the nations of the earth acknowledging their place among the people saved by the life and death of the Christ. The story illustrates that from the very beginning the Messiah is seen as a threat by the powers of the world but as a gift for those who, like the magi, seek the enlightenment of truth.

What motivates Herod the king? What motivates the magi?

Matthew, a Jewish gospel, acclaims the arrival of the nations from the very start.

5th January

A reading from the first letter of saint John (3:11-21)

This is the message
which you heard from the beginning,
that we must love one another,
not be like Cain, who was from the Evil One
and murdered his brother.
And why did he murder his brother?
Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s righteous.
Do not be surprised, brothers and sisters,
if the world hates you.
We know that we have passed over from death to life
because we love our brothers and sisters.
Whoever does not love, remains in death.
Anyone who hates brother or sister is a murderer,
and you know that no murderers
have eternal life abiding in them.
By this we know love,
that he laid down his life for our sake,
and we too ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.
If anyone is well off in worldly possessions
and sees a brother or sister in need
but closes the heart to them,
how can God’s love abide in such a person?
Children,
let us love not in word and speech,
but in action and truth.
By this we shall know that we belong to the truth
and it will reassure us in his presence,
even if our own hearts condemn us,
that God is greater than our hearts and knows all things.
My dear friends,
if our own hearts do not condemn us,
we can be fearless before God.

Love (agapan) of brothers and sisters is now described as the ‘message’ (aggelia) heard from the beginning of the preaching. It is not a later understanding but central to the gospel. Cain who is ‘from the evil one’ naturally murders the one who does what is right. Love of brothers and sisters leads to the ‘world’ (kosmos) hating us, but it is a clear sign that ‘we have passed over from death to life’. The one who does not love ‘remains’ (menein) in death, and becomes a murderer.  We have come to know love (agape) since he (ekeinos) laid down his life for us, and we should do the same. To cling to possessions is another sign of a lack of love. We should ‘belong to the truth (aletheia)’, which will give us ‘reassurance’ (parresia) as we stand before God.

Psalm 100 (99) The psalm invites ‘all the earth’ to cry out with joy (simhah).

A reading from the holy gospel according to John (1:43-51)

The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee; he found Philip and said, ‘Follow me.’ Philip was from Bethsaida, the same town as Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and the prophets wrote, Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth.’ Nathanael said to him, ‘From Nazareth? Can anything good come from Nazareth?’ Philip replied, ‘Come and see.’ When Jesus saw Nathanael coming towards him he said of him, ‘Here, truly, is an Israelite in whom there is no deception.’ Nathanael asked, ‘How do you know me?’ Jesus replied, ‘Before Philip spoke to you, I saw you under the fig tree.’ Nathanael answered him, ‘Rabbi, you are Son of God, you are King of Israel.’ Jesus replied, ‘Do you believe because I said I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than that.’ Then he said to him, ‘Amen, Amen I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.’

The location of the call of Philip is not clear, since Jesus ‘has decided to leave for Galilee’, and John the Baptist is mentioned no longer. As Andrew had brought Peter, so now Philip, also from Bethsaida, who has been called by Jesus with the words ‘follow me’, brings Nathanael into the circle of the followers. Nathanael will be mentioned again at the end of the gospel (21:2), where he is identified as coming from Cana. He has traditionally been identified with Bartholomew. While he is sceptical of a prophet arising from Nazareth, Nathanael becomes enthusiastic and bestows new titles on Jesus: he is ‘the Son of God’ and ‘the king of Israel’. The final words of Jesus concern a larger group: ‘you (plural) will see heaven opened’.

Are titles important to Jesus?

A vision of the life beyond is a gift to all.

4th January

A reading from the first letter of saint John (3:7-10)

Children, do not let anyone lead you astray.
Whoever acts righteously is righteous,
just as he is righteous.
Whoever lives sinfully is from the devil,
since the devil has been a sinner from the beginning.
This was the purpose of the revealing of the Son of God,
to undo the work of the devil.
No one who is a child of God sins,
because God’s seed remains in him.
Nor can he sin, because he is a child of God.
This is what distinguishes
the children of God from the children of the devil:
no one who fails to live righteously
and fails to love brothers and sisters
is from God.

The one who acts ‘justly’, who ‘does ‘justice’ (dikaiosune), is just, as the Lord himself is just. Our translation uses the archaic term ‘righteous’. There is a strong contrast between the ‘children’ who ‘do justice’ (poiein dikaiosunen), and those who ‘live sinfully’ (poiein hamartian). These latter are ‘from the devil (diabolos)’, who ‘was a sinner from the beginning’. The allusion is to Genesis 3 and the power to deceive of the serpent. The Son has been ‘revealed’ (phaneroun) to bring release from the works of the devil. Those ‘born of God’ do not sin, act in justice, and love their brothers and sisters. The new theme of brotherly love is being prepared.

Psalm 98 (97) A ‘new song’ (shir hadash) is sung once again.

A reading from the holy gospel according to John (1:35-42)

The next day John was again standing there with two of his disciples, and looking at Jesus walking by he said, ‘Look, there is the lamb of God.’ And the two disciples heard him speaking and followed Jesus. Jesus turned round, and seeing them following said, ‘What are you looking for?’ They answered, ‘Rabbi,’ – which translated means Teacher – ‘where are you staying?’ He said to them, ‘Come and see’; so they went and saw where he was staying, and stayed with him that day. It was mid-afternoon. One of these two who had heard John speak and had followed him was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter. He first found his brother Simon and said to him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ – which is translated Christ – and he took Simon to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, ‘You are Simon, son of John; you shall be called Cephas’ – which means Rock.

The following day John is with two of his disciples and once again points to Jesus with the words ‘Look, there is the lamb of God (ho amnos tou theou).’ The two immediately follow Jesus and a dialogue begins. Jesus’ question ‘What are you looking for?’ is followed by their addressing him as ‘rabbi’, which means teacher. They join Jesus ‘at about the tenth hour’ and remain with him. The named disciple, Andrew, whose companion may perhaps be John, is revered as the protokletos (‘first called’). He seeks out his brother Simon, and voices his conviction ‘we have found the Messiah’, and then takes Simon to Jesus. Despite the initiative of Andrew, and his statement of faith, the focus shifts to Simon. His being given by Jesus the Aramaic title ‘Cephas’, which is rendered by the evangelist with the Greek Petros (‘Rock’), speaks of his prominence among the disciples of Jesus.

What convinces Andrew he has found the Messiah?

Jesus chooses Peter rather than Andrew.

3rd January

A reading from the first letter of saint John (2:29-3:6)

If you know that God is righteous
you must recognise that everyone who acts righteously
is a child of his.
See what great love the Father has lavished on us
by letting us be called God’s children,
and that is what we are!
The reason why the world does not know us
is that it did not know him.
My dear friends, we are already God’s children,
but what we shall be has not yet been revealed.
We know that when he appears
we shall be like him,
for we shall see him as he is.
Whoever treasures this hope of him
purifies himself, just as he is pure.
Whoever sins, acts wickedly,
because all sin is wickedness.
And you know that he was revealed in order to take sins away,
and that in him there is no sin.
No one who abides in him sins,
and whoever sins
has neither seen him nor recognised him.

What does it mean to be ‘children of God’ (tekna theou)? The child of God is not recognised by the world. The child of God does not yet know what lies in the future, except that ‘we shall be like him’ and ‘see him as he is’. The child of God thus lives in hope, purifies himself, and knows that ‘no one who abides (menein) in him sins’. The theme of ‘sin’ (hamartia) will be taken up next.

Psalm 98 (97) The ‘new song’ is sung by the whole earth.

A reading from the holy gospel according to John (1:29-34)

The next day, John the Baptist saw Jesus coming towards him and said, ‘Look, there is the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. This is he of whom I said, “After me comes one who has passed ahead of me because he was before me.” I did not know him myself, yet I came baptising with water so that he might be revealed to Israel.’ And John bore witness, ‘I have seen the Spirit come down on him like a dove from heaven and it rested on him. I did not know him myself, but he who sent me to baptise with water said to me, “The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and rest is the one who baptises with the Holy Spirit.” I have seen and borne witness that he is the Son of God.’

This part of the first chapter of the Gospel of John chronicles a series of days. This passage, with the words ‘the next day’, marks the second day of a week of revelation. John heralds Jesus with the title ‘lamb of God’ (ho amnos tou theou), and states that he ‘takes away the sin of the world’. The inspiration seems to come from the Servant Song in Isaiah 53. The Lord has ‘laid upon him the iniquity of us all’. He is ‘like a lamb led to the slaughterhouse’. John also testifies to seeing ‘the Spirit’ descend on Jesus (Isaiah 42), and asserts that he ‘baptises with the holy Spirit’. John bears witness that Jesus is ‘the Son of God’.

Is there also an allusion to the Passover lamb (Exodus 12) here?

Explore the Servant songs in Isaiah 42 and Isaiah 52-53.

2nd January

A reading from the first letter of saint John (2:22-28)

Who is the liar,
but the one who claims that Jesus is not the Christ?
This is the Antichrist,
who denies both the Father and the Son.
No one who denies the Son has the Father.
Anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father too.
Let what you have heard from the beginning abide in you;
If what you have heard from the beginning abides in you,
you abide in the Son
and in the Father.
And the promise he himself made you
is eternal life.
So much have I written to you
about those who are leading you astray.
But as for you, the anointing you received from him
abides in you,
and you do not need anyone to teach you.
Since the anointing he gave you teaches you everything,
and since it is true, not false,
abide in him just as he taught you.
Therefore abide in him now, children,
so that when he appears we may have confidence
and not shrink from him in shame
at his coming.

John, having spoken about the ‘antichrist’, indeed several ‘antichrists’ (2:18), now calls the antichrist the ‘liar’ (pseustes). This is the person who is in denial, who denies that ‘Jesus is the Christ’. The thrust of John’s gospel was that ‘Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God’ (20:31) and that such faith leads to life. The antichrist denies both the Father and the Son. In believers, by contrast, what was preached ‘from the beginning’ should ‘abide’ (menein), for they have received the promise of eternal life. Their ‘anointing’ (chrisma) ‘abides’ with them. The word ‘abide’ occurs many times. They are urged not to be led astray but to remain faithful and have ‘confidence’ (parresia) at Christ’s ‘coming’ (parousia).

Psalm 98 (97) As with psalm 96, sung two days ago, a ‘new song’ (shir hadash) is ready to be sung.

A reading from the holy gospel according to John (1:19-28)

This is the witness of John, when the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ He declared, he did not deny but declared, ‘I am not the Messiah.’ So they asked, ‘What then? Are you Elijah?’ He replied, ‘I am not.’ ‘Are you the Prophet?’ He answered, ‘No.’ <So they said to him, ‘Who are you? So that we may give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?’ So he said, ‘I am, as Isaiah prophesied:

A voice of one that cries in the desert:
prepare a way for the Lord.’

Now they had been sent from the Pharisees, and they put a question to him and said, ‘Why then are you baptising if you are not the Messiah nor Elijah nor the Prophet?’ John answered them, ‘I baptise with water; but among you is standing one whom you do not know, the one who is coming after me; and I am not worthy to undo the strap of his sandal.’ This happened at Bethany, on the far side of the Jordan, where John was baptising.

John, presented as a ‘witness’ in the earlier verses of the gospel (1:15), now speaks up to the delegation of priests and Levites sent from Jerusalem. He admits to being, in the words of the prophet, ‘a voice (phone) that cries in the desert’. The fourth gospel takes up the image from Isaiah 40 used by all the gospels (Matthew 3, Mark 1, Luke 3). John testifies further regarding his baptism with water, and announces the coming of another, whose sandal he is unworthy to untie. The scene is being set for his imminent meeting with Jesus ‘the next day’ (1:29).

Why do the Jerusalem authorities show interest in John?

The priests and Levites are gone before Jesus arrives on the scene.

Second Sunday after Christmas

A reading from the book of Ecclesiasticus (24:1-2, 8-12)

Wisdom speaks her own praises,
in the midst of her people she glories in herself.
She opens her mouth in the assembly of the Most High,
in the presence of the Mighty One she glories in herself:
Then the Creator of all things instructed me
and he who created me fixed a place for my tent.
He said, “Pitch your tent in Jacob,
make Israel your inheritance.”
Before the ages, in the beginning, he created me
and till eternity I shall remain.
In the holy tent I ministered before him
and thus became established in Zion.
In the beloved city he has given me rest
and in Jerusalem I wield my authority.
I have taken root in an honoured people,
in the Lord’s property, in his inheritance.

In the wisdom writings we frequently find the  ‘Wisdom’ (hokmah – sophia) which comes from God personified. Here in chapter 24 of the Wisdom of Ben Sira, also known as ‘Ecclesiasticus’, Wisdom ‘speaks her own praises’. She is told to dwell in ‘Jacob’, among the tribes of Israel. She is described as ‘created in the beginning’ and ‘resting’ in the ‘beloved city’. The strongest parallel with the incarnation of the Word comes in the command: ‘Pitch your tent in Jacob’. John 1:14 reads: ‘the Word lived (eskenesen) among us’, or, more literally, ‘pitched his tent with us’. The Word of God is indeed the Wisdom of God.

Psalm 147 (146) God ‘sends out his word to the earth’.

A reading from the letter of saint Paul to the Ephesians (1:3-6, 15-18)

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing of heaven in Christ,
as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world
to be holy and faultless before him in love,
marking us out beforehand for adoption as sons, through Jesus Christ
according to the generosity of his will;
to the praise of the glory of his grace,
which he lavished on us in the Beloved.

That is why I, having once heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to thank God for you, as I remember you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in further knowledge of him; that the eyes of your mind may be enlightened for you to see what the hope of his call is, what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.

The letter to the Christians of Ephesus begins with a hymn of praise for the plan of God, who chose us ‘from the foundation of the world’ to be his adopted children through the abundance of grace (charis) lavished on us in Christ. In later verses from the same chapter, Paul prays for the Christians of Ephesus, that their faith may grow, and that ‘the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory’ may bestow on them a ‘spirit of wisdom’ (pneuma sophias) and of ‘revelation’ (apokalupsis). Paul prays that their eyes be enlightened to be able to see the ‘hope of his call’ (elpis tes kleseos autou), and the ‘richness of the glory’ (ploutos tes doxes) which the saints (hagioi) inherit with Christ.

The beginning of the holy gospel according to John (1:1-18)

In the beginning was the Word:
the Word was with God
and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things came into being,
not one thing came into being except through him.
What has come into being in him was life,
life that was the light of all people;
and light shines in darkness,
and darkness could not overpower it.
There was a man sent by God.
His name was John.
He came as a witness,
to bear witness to the light,
so that everyone might believe through him.
He was not the light,
he was to bear witness to the light.
The true light
that gives light to everyone
was coming into the world.
He was in the world
and the world came into being through him,
and the world did not know him.
He came to what was his own
and his own people did not accept him.
But to those who did accept him
he gave power to become children of God,
to those who believed in his name,
who were born not from blood,
or from the will of the flesh,
or from human will
but from God himself.
The Word became flesh,
and lived among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory as of an only-begotten Son of the Father,
full of grace and truth.
John witnesses to him and cried out, saying,
‘This is the one of whom I said:
He who comes after me
has passed ahead of me
because he was before me.’
Indeed, from his fullness
we have all received,
grace upon grace,
for the Law was given through Moses,
grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God;
it is the only-begotten Son,
who is close to the Father’s heart,
who has made him known.

As Wisdom dwelt among the Israelites, so the Word of God, who was with the Father in the beginning (arche), makes his tent among us. The coming of the Word transforms human existence, assuring men and women of their destiny as ‘children of God’ (tekna theou). The Law (nomos) which was ‘given through Moses’ was the Wisdom which dwelt in Israel (Ecclesiasticus 24:23), but, in accordance with God’s plan, Jesus Christ has brought ‘grace’ (charis) and ‘truth’ (aletheia), the ultimate gifts of the Father. ‘No one has seen God’, but the ‘only-begotten Son’ has ‘made him known’, ‘explained him’ and ‘become his interpreter’ (exegeisthai).

Where does God dwell today among people?

Consider the stages of God’s wonderful plan for our well-being.

1st January – Solemnity of Mary Mother of God

A reading from the book of Numbers (6:22-27)

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to Aaron and his sons and say, “This is how you must bless the Israelites. You shall say:

May the Lord bless you and keep you.
May the Lord let his face shine on you and be gracious to you.
May the Lord show you his face and bring you peace.

‘ “This is how they must call down my name on the Israelites, and I shall bless them.” ’

The blessing to be given to the people by Aaron and the priests is punctuated with a triple reference to the divine ‘Lord’ (YHWH). In the first invocation the Lord is asked to ‘bless’ (barak) and ‘keep’ (shamar) them. In Genesis 1 God ‘blesses’ man and woman, and in Genesis 2 invites them to ‘keep’ the creation. The second and third invocations ask the Lord, as a sign of favour, to make his ‘face’ (panim) shine upon them, to ‘lift up’ his ‘face’ upon them, bringing them ‘grace’ (hen) and ‘peace’ (shalom).  We begin the new year with this ancient formula of blessing.

Psalm 67 (66) The psalmist asks God to let his face shine ‘upon us’. God’s blessing will endure ‘till the ends of the earth revere him’.

A reading from the letter of saint Paul to the Galatians (4:4-7)

When the fullness of the time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born a subject of the Law, to redeem the subjects of the Law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. As you are sons, God has sent into our hearts the Spirit of his Son crying out, ‘Abba, Father’; and so you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir, made so through God.

This unique allusion to the mother of the Son in Paul’s writings underlines once more the full humanity of Jesus, who, in the ‘fulness of time’ (to pleroma tou chronou) was ‘born of a woman’, and ‘born a subject of the Law’. But Paul points us to the new potential for humanity, that human beings are to be ‘redeemed’, their freedom bought back, so that they are no longer subject to the Law, but rather adopted as children of God. The human birth of the Son from a human mother enables the rebirth of his brothers and sisters as children of God. As sons and daughters we are able to receive the Spirit of the Son in our hearts, which cries out ’Abba Father with the confidence that our new relationship with the Father gives us, for we are ‘slaves no longer but sons and daughters’, and ‘heirs through God’. The role of Mary was to bestow humanity on the Son, so that he could bestow divinity on his brothers and sisters.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Luke (2:16-21)

The shepherds went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what they had been told about this child, and everyone who heard it was astonished at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds went back glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as they had been told.

When the eight days were complete to circumcise the child, he was called Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived in the womb.

The gospel reading spans the octave of Christmas. On Christmas night the shepherds, as they had been told, went to visit the new-born child, and announced to all the astonishing birth. Mary however is silent, simply keeping ‘all these things’ (pemata) in her heart. At the end of the octave, on the eighth day, Jesus is circumcised according to Jewish custom, and named yeshua‘, as had been commanded by the angel to Mary and to Joseph, for he is the one who is to ‘save’ his people (Luke 1:31 Matthew 1:21).

Why was Jesus circumcised?

Mary suggests that our human response to Christ should be silence.

31st December

A reading from the first letter of saint John (2:18-21)

Children, this is the final hour;
And as you have heard that the Antichrist is coming,
now many Antichrists have already come;
from this we know that it is the final hour.
They have gone from among us,
but they did not belong to us.
If they had belonged to us, they would have stayed with us.
But this was to show
that none of them belonged to us.
But you have been anointed by the Holy One,
and all have knowledge.
I have written to you
not because you do not know the truth,
but because you do know it,
and because no lie comes from the truth.

Once again addressing the community as ‘children’ (paidia), John speaks of the ‘last hour’. It is marked, as expected, by the coming of the ‘antichrist’ (antichristos), or of several antichrists. The word is used only in 1 and 2 John. This is not a reference to ‘false Messiahs’, as in Mark 13:21-22. It is made clear that these individuals, who were once members of the community, are denying that Jesus is the Christ. They have deserted the community. Those remaining faithful, on the other hand, are reminded that they have, when they became Christians, received an anointing (chrisma) from the ‘holy one’ (hagios). They are in possession of the ‘truth’ (aletheia).

Psalm 96 (95) The whole of the cosmos rejoices at the coming of the Lord.

The beginning of the holy gospel according to John (1:1-18)

In the beginning was the Word:
the Word was with God
and the Word was God.
He was with God in the beginning.
Through him all things came into being,
not one thing came into being except through him.
What has come into being in him was life,
life that was the light of all people;
and light shines in darkness,
and darkness could not overpower it.
There was a man sent by God.
His name was John.
He came as a witness,
to bear witness to the light,
so that everyone might believe through him.
He was not the light,
he was to bear witness to the light.
The true light
that gives light to everyone
was coming into the world.
He was in the world
and the world came into being through him,
and the world did not know him.
He came to what was his own
and his own people did not accept him.
But to those who did accept him
he gave power to become children of God,
to those who believed in his name,
who were born not from blood,
or from the will of the flesh,
or from human will
but from God himself.
The Word became flesh,
and lived among us,
and we saw his glory,
the glory as of an only-begotten Son of the Father,
full of grace and truth.
John witnesses to him and cried out, saying,
‘This is the one of whom I said:
He who comes after me
has passed ahead of me
because he was before me.’
Indeed, from his fullness
we have all received,
grace upon grace,
for the Law was given through Moses,
grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God;
it is the only-begotten Son,
who is close to the Father’s heart,
who has made him known.

On the final day of the calendar year, as we approach the end of the octave of Christmas, we hear again the gospel of the Day Mass of Christmas Day. ‘The Word (logos)’, who was ‘in the beginning (arche)’, has been heard as ‘truth’ (aletheia), has been seen as ‘light’ (phos), has been touched as ‘flesh’ (sarx). The Word is full of ‘grace’ (charis – hesed) and ‘truth’ (aletheia – ’emet), the essential qualities of the Father. The Word has given the power to become ‘children of God’ (tekna theou). He has brought ‘grace upon grace’. He has ‘made known’ (exegeisthai) the God whom ‘no one has ever seen’.

Examine in prayer the central ideas of this passage.

Explore the links between this prologue and the opening verses of 1 John.

30th December

A reading from the first letter of saint John (2:12-17)

I am writing to you, children,
because your sins are forgiven through his name.
I am writing to you, parents,
because you have come to know the One who has existed since the beginning.
I am writing to you, young people,
because you have overcome the Evil One.
I have written to you, children,
because you have come to know the Father.
I have written to you, parents,
because you have come to know the One who has existed since the beginning.
I have written to you, young people,
because you are strong,
and God’s word remains in you,
and you have overcome the Evil One.
Do not love the world or what is in the world.
If anyone does love the world,
the love of the Father is not in such a person,
because everything there is in the world –
desire of the flesh, desire of the eyes,
pride in possessions –
is not from the Father
but is from the world,
and the world with its desires is passing away.
But whoever does the will of God
remains for ever.

In addressing the children, the parents, and the young, John has words for all. As children, those who believe have come to know the Father, and the forgiveness of sin. As parents, they have come to know the one who exists. As young people, they have the strength to embrace the word of God and to overcome evil. John’s letter is addressed to each one, and to everyone, with repeated words of support. He then speaks of the ‘world’ (kosmos) as opposed to God, and as ‘passing away’. Steadfastness is to be found in doing the ‘will’ (thelema) of God.

Psalm 96 (95) The psalm proclaims the kingship of God, who created the world and rules in fairness.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Luke (2:36-40)

There was a prophetess, too, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the Temple, worshipping night and day with fasting and prayer. She came up just at that moment and began to praise God; and to speak about the child to all who looked forward to the deliverance of Jerusalem.

When they had completed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they went back to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom, and God’s favour was on him.

Mary and Joseph also meet the prophetess Anna. She is eighty-four years old, and never leaves the temple, ‘worshipping night and day with fasting and prayer’. Like Simeon, she praises God for the gift of this child. She continues her prophetic role by speaking about him to all who looked forward to the ‘deliverance’ (lutrosis) of Jerusalem. The Messiah comes for the ‘consolation’ of Israel, the ‘deliverance’ of Jerusalem, and stands as a light for all nations. The return to Nazareth allows the evangelist to speak of the growth of Jesus, just as he had spoken of the growth of John (1:80).

What is special about the testimony of Anna?

The voice of the elderly is often a precious gift.

29th December

A reading from the first letter of saint John (2:3-11)

In this way we know
that we have come to know him,
if we keep his commandments.
Whoever says, ‘I know him’
and does not keep his commandments
is a liar,
and truth has no place in him.
But anyone who does keep his word,
in such a one God’s love has truly reached perfection.
By this we know
that we are in God.
Whoever claims to remain in him
must act as he acted.
My dear friends,
this is not a new commandment I am writing for you,
but an old commandment
that you have had from the beginning;
the old commandment is the word you have heard.
Yet in another way,
I am writing a new commandment for you –
and this is true for him and for you –
since darkness is passing away
and the true light is already shining.
Whoever claims to be in light
but hates a brother or sister
is still in darkness.
Whoever loves a brother or sister remains in the light
and has nothing to cause a stumble.
But whoever hates a brother or sister is in darkness
and is walking about in darkness
not knowing the way to go,
because the darkness has brought blindness.

Knowledge of Jesus Christ is demonstrated by living his commandments. Through keeping his ‘word’ (logos), the ‘love’ (agape) of God reaches perfection in the person. One who claims to ‘remain’ (menein) in him must imitate him, acting ‘as he acted’, must ‘walk’ (peripatein) as he walked. For the first time in the letter John addresses his hearers as ‘beloved’ (agapetoi), as ‘dear friends’, for he is about to speak of a special commandment. It is not ‘new’ (kaine) but ‘old’ (palaia). Yet it has become new, because the darkness is being banished by the ‘true light’. Love of the brothers and sisters shows one is living in the light. There is no ‘scandal’ (skandalon), no cause for others to stumble, in a person who loves brothers and sisters. But the one who hates is lost in the darkness, for ‘the darkness has blinded his eyes’.

Psalm 96 (95) proclaims a new song for the God who works wonders among all the peoples.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Luke (2:22-35)

And when the days were complete for them to be purified in keeping with the Law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord – as it is written in the Law of the Lord: Every first-born male shall be called holy to the Lord and also to offer in sacrifice, in accordance with what is prescribed in the Law of the Lord, a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons. Now in Jerusalem there was a man named Simeon. He was a righteous and devout man, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death until he had seen the Christ of the Lord. Prompted by the Spirit he came into the Temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the Law required, Simeon himself took him into his arms and blessed God and said:

Now, Master, you are letting your servant
go in peace according to your word;
for my eyes have seen your salvation
which you have made ready in the presence of all nations;
a light for revelation to the gentiles
and for the glory of your people Israel.

As the child’s father and mother were wondering at the things that were being said about him, Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, ‘Look, he is destined for the fall and for the rise of many in Israel, destined to be a sign that is opposed – and a sword will pierce your soul too – so that the thoughts of many may be laid bare.’

Going up to Jerusalem to observe the requirements of their faith, Mary and Joseph, with their child Jesus, are rewarded by an encounter with the ‘man named Simeon’, who is described as ‘just’ (dikaios) and ‘devout’ (eulabes), and as one who awaited the ‘consolation’ (paraklesis) of Israel. The holy Spirit, who inspires him, is mentioned three times in three verses. Simeon stands at the end of the line of those who longed to ‘see what you see’ and to ‘hear what you hear’ (10:24). The ‘salvation’ (soterion) which he now sees is prepared ‘in the presence of all nations’. This Jewish holy man can see beyond the confines of his nation, describing the child he embraces as ‘a light (phos) for revelation to the gentiles’, and ‘for the glory (doxa) of your people Israel’. Simeon blesses ‘his father and mother’, speaks of the child as ‘a sign that is opposed’, and foresees that ‘a sword’ will pierce Mary’s soul.

How does Simeon come to recognise the ‘Christ of the Lord’?

The coming of Christ ‘reveals the thoughts of many’.

28th December – Feast of the Holy Innocents

A reading from the first letter of saint John (1:5-2:2)

This is the declaration we have heard from him
and are declaring to you:
God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all.
If we say that we have fellowship with him
while we are living in darkness,
we are lying, because we are not living the truth.
But if we live in light,
as he is in light,
we have fellowship with one another
and the blood of Jesus, his Son,
cleanses us from all sin.
If we say, ‘We have no sin,’
we are deceiving ourselves,
and truth is not in us.
If we acknowledge our sins,
he is trustworthy and righteous
so that he will forgive our sins
and will cleanse us from all evil.
If we say, ‘We have never sinned,’
we make him a liar,
and his Word is not in us.
My children, I am writing this so that you do not sin;
but if anyone does sin,
we have an advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ, the righteous.
He is the sacrifice to expiate our sins,
and not only ours,
but also those of the whole world.

The prologue of the gospel has already spoken of the Word as ‘the true light’ (John1:5). The first letter goes further and declares that ‘God is light’ (phos), and with him there is no ‘darkness’ (skotia). Believers can still live in darkness, but by acknowledging sin forgiveness is made possible from the one who is ‘trustworthy’ (pistos) and ‘just’ (dikaios). John addresses his readers for the first time as ‘children’ (teknia), and explains that Jesus Christ, who is described as our defender or ‘advocate’ (parakletos), is a ‘sacrifice of expiation’ (hilasmos) for our sins and for those of the whole world. As stated earlier in the passage, ‘the blood of Jesus cleanses us’ from sin.

Psalm 124 (123) The image of the bird escaping from the ‘snare of the fowler’ recalls the freedom brought to Christians through the incarnation.

A reading from the holy gospel according to Matthew (2:13-18)

After the wise men had left, see, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up. Take the child and his mother, flee into Egypt and stay there until I tell you, for Herod intends to search for the child to destroy him.’ So Joseph got up and, taking the child and his mother by night, left for Egypt and stayed there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfil what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:

I called my son out of Egypt.

Then Herod, seeing that he had been fooled by the wise men, was furious, and sent and killed in Bethlehem and its surrounding district all the male children who were two years old or less, according to the time he had been careful to ask the wise men. Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:

A voice was heard in Ramah,
lamenting and much weeping,
Rachel weeping for her children,
and she would not be comforted
because they are no more.

Two scenes from Matthew’s infancy narrative provide the story of the flight into Egypt and the massacre of the male children of Bethlehem. Joseph is again the focus of attention and in a second dream is told to take ‘the child and his mother’ to Egypt. Joseph is once again willing to respond even ‘by night’ to the Lord’s command. Matthew uses Hosea 11 as a fulfilment citation to conclude this section of the story. The massacre commanded by king Herod would be in keeping with what is known of the historical Herod, king of the Jews, but Matthew may well be drawing a parallel between the situation of the child Jesus and of the child Moses who escapes the slaughter ordered by the Pharaoh in Exodus 1. Matthew uses  Jeremiah 31, ‘Rachel weeping for her children’, to evoke the grief of mothers, and once more to demonstrate that, in the events of the Messiah, Scripture is fulfilled.

Why does Jesus share the experience of his people?

Pray for all victims of massacres, especially the old and the very young.