Gospel: December 13, 2023
(Wednesday)
2nd Week of Advent
Psalter: Week 2 / (Red)
St. Lucy, virgin & martyr
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 103: 1-2, 3-4, 8 & 10
O bless the Lord, my soul!
1st Reading: Isaiah 40: 25-31To whom, then, will you liken me or make me equal? Says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes and see: who has created all this?
He has ordered them as a starry host and called them each by name.
So mighty is his power, so great his strength, that not one of them is missing.
How can you say, O Jacob, how can you complain, O Israel, that your destiny is hidden from me, that your rights are ignored by Yahweh? Have you not known, have you not heard that Yahweh is an everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth? He does not grow tired or weary, his knowledge is without limit.
He gives strength to the enfeebled, he gives vigor to the wearied.
Youth may grow tired and faint, young men will stumble and fall, but those who hope in Yahweh will renew their strength.
They will soar as with eagle’s wings; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and never tire.
Gospel: Matthew 11: 28-30Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart; and you will find rest. For my yoke is easy; and my burden is light.”
Reflection:“We are called to welcome the light of Christ.”
Today is the memorial of Saint Lucy, one of the virgin martyrs of the early Church. Her very name means light, so it is most appropriate that we celebrate her in the days where the northern hemisphere moves toward the shortest day of the year, the day with the most hours of darkness and the fewest hours of light.
Today’s readings promise us that the Lord will offer us rest and refreshment, making our burdens light and renewing us for the work that lies ahead. But what is this work, the work of the kingdom? We are called to welcome the light of Christ and then to reflect that light to a world steeped in darkness. We are the light of the world when we witness to our faith in Christ through our words and actions. Through our witness, our brothers and sisters can see the truth more clearly and grown in knowledge of and love for God, giving him thanks and praise for all he has done for us and all he is doing in us.
