Gospel: December 5, 2023

(Tuesday) 1st Week of Advent

Psalter: Week 1 / (Violet)

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 72: 1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17

Justice shall flourish in his time and fullness of peace forever.

1st Reading: Isaiah 11: 1-10From the stump of Jesse a shoot will come forth; from his roots a branch will grow and bear fruit. The spirit of the Lord will rest upon him—a spirit of wisdom and understanding, a spirit of counsel and power, a spirit of knowledge and fear of Yahweh. Not by appearances will he judge, nor by what is said must he decide, but with justice he will judge the poor and with righteousness decide for the meek. Like a rod, his word will strike the oppressor, and the breath of his lips slay the wicked. Justice will be the girdle of his waist, truth the girdle of his loins.

The wolf will dwell with the lamb, the leopard will rest beside the kid, the calf and the lion cub will feed together and a little child will lead them. Befriending each other, the cow and the bear will see their young ones lie down together. Like cattle, the lion will eat hay. By the cobra’s den the infant will play. The child will put his hand into the viper’s lair. No one will harm or destroy over my holy mountain, for as water fills the sea the earth will be filled with the knowledge of Yahweh.

On that day the “Root of Jesse” will be raised as a signal for the nations. The people will come in search of him, thus making his dwelling place glorious.

Gospel: Luke 10: 21-24At that time, Jesus was filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and made them known to little ones. Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will. I have been given all things by my Father, so that no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son, and he to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”

Then Jesus turned to his disciples and said to them privately, “Fortunate are you to see what you see, for I tell you, that many prophets and kings would have liked to see what you see, but did not see it; and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.”

Reflection:“The promised Messiah has come—Jesus.”

For thousands of years, the people of Israel waited for the Messiah that God had promised to send. For thousands of years, kings and criminals, merchants and shepherds, had been waiting. Isaiah describes what they were waiting for: a descendant of Jesse, David’s father, on whom the Spirit rests. The Messiah will rule in grace and justice, blessed by the Spirit’s gifts. The Messiah’s reign will be marked by peace and cooperation, even among natural enemies, like lions and lambs. Violence will have no place.

The promised Messiah has come—Jesus. Blessed are we who can know him and learn from his teaching. If we follow his teaching and encounter the Lord, we can help to make his kingdom more present, even if just as a shadow of the kingdom’s fullness. We await the day when the shadows will live and we will see God face to face, gathered as one into his kingdom for all eternity.