FIRST READING  

A reading from the book of the Prophet Isaiah      9:1-6
A son is given to us.

The people that walked in darkness
has seen a great light;
on those who live in a land of deep shadow
a light has shone.
You have made their gladness greater,
you have made their joy increase;
they rejoice in your presence
as men rejoice at harvest time,
as men are happy when they are dividing the spoils.

For the yoke that was weighing on him,
the bar across his shoulders,
the rod of his oppressor,
these you break as on the day of Midian.

For all the footgear of battle,
every cloak rolled in blood,
is burnt
and consumed by fire.
For there is a child born for us,
a son given to us
and dominion is laid on his shoulders;
and this is the name they give him:
Wonder-Counsellor, Mighty-God,
Eternal-Father, Prince-of-Peace.
Wide is his dominion
in a peace that has no end,
for the throne of David
and for his royal power,
which he establishes and makes secure
in justice and integrity.
From this time onwards and for ever,
the jealous love of the Lord of hosts will do this.

The Word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm       Ps 112
Reponse                               May the name of the Lord be blessed for evermore!
or                                            Alleluia!

1. Praise, O servants of the Lord,
praise the name of the Lord!
May the name of the Lord be blessed
both now and for evermore!                   Response

2. From the rising of the sun to its setting
praised be the name of the Lord!
High above all nations is the Lord,
above the heavens his glory.                   Response

3. Who is like the Lord, our God,
who has risen on high to his throne
yet stooped from the heights to look down,
to look down upon heaven and earth? Response

4. From the dust he lifts up the lowly,
from the dungheap he raises the poor
to set him in the company of princes,
yes, with the princes of his people.       Response

Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia!
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee!
Blessed art thou amongst women.
Alleluia!

Gospel               

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke             1:26-38
You are to conceive and bear a son.

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. He went in and said to her, 'Rejoice, so highly favoured! The Lord is with you.' She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean, but the angel said to her, 'Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God's favour. Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.' Mary said to the angel, 'But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?' 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you' the angel answered 'and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God. Know this too: your kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing is impossible to God,' 'I am the handmaid of the Lord,' said Mary.' 'let what you have said be done to me.' And the angel left her.

The Gospel of the Lord.    


_______________________

Gospel Reflection           Aug 22            Queenship of Mary        Luke 1:26-28

This memorial of Mary is relatively recent in the history of the Church. Pope Pius XII prescribed this feast for the universal Church at the close of the Marian Year in 1954. It is placed on this date, 22 August, exactly a week after the feast of the Assumption, to stress the connection of Mary’s queenship with the Assumption. Even though the official declaration of the Queenship of Mary as a memorial is relatively recent, the appreciation of Mary as queen of heaven has a very long tradition in the Church. I am reminded of some of the wonderful and very ancient mosaics in the apse of some churches in Rome depicting Jesus as king and Mary as queen seated beside each other. The beautiful mosaic in the apse of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome comes to mind. Depicting Mary as queen, alongside her son as king, was a way of showing honour to Mary for the person she had been in her earthly life. The gospel reading today depicts her as saying ‘yes’ to God’s desire for her to be the mother of his Son. Out of all women, she was chosen to give birth to a son who would also be the Son of God, who, in the words of today’s first reading would be a ‘great light’ in the darkness, a Wonder Counsellor, a Mighty God, a Prince of Peace. The Church came to appreciate from its earliest days just how significant Mary’s ‘yes’ to God’s purpose for her life was for all of humanity. It was because Mary surrendered to God’s purpose for her life that God’s purpose for all our lives could come to pass. It was Mary’s faithful response to God’s word spoken by Gabriel that made it possible for us all to become people of faith. Her ‘yes’ created the opening for God’s Son to be given to us all and for us to respond in faith to this wonderful gift. Mary was pivotal in God’s saving purpose, so the Church believed from earliest times that she must have a special place in heaven, alongside her Son. Today, we honour Mary as Queen of heaven. We are also reminded that our own ‘yes’ to the Lord’s call, just like Mary’s, can have important consequences for good in the lives of others. Even if in a lesser way than was the case with Mary, the faith of each one of us is instrumental in helping others come to faith and in nurturing the faith of others.

__________________________________

The scripture readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, published by Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd and used with the permission of the publishers. http://dltbooks.com/

The Gospel reflection comes from: Weekday Reflections for the Liturgical Year 2018/2019; I Want to Know Christ   
by Martin Hogan, published by The Messenger  c/f   www.messenger.ie/bookshop/
____________________________

 

 

 

 

FIRST READING      

A reading from the Book of Isaiah          66:18-21
They will bring all your brothers from all the nations.

The Lord says this: I am coming to gather the nations of every language. They shall come to witness my glory. I will give them a sign and send some of their survivors to the nations: to Tarshish, Put, Lud, Moshech, Rosh, Tubal, and Javan, to the distant islands that have never heard of me or seen my glory. They will proclaim my glory to the nations. As an offering to the Lord they will bring all your brothers, on horses, in chariots, in litters, on mules, on dromedaries, from all the nations to my holy mountain in Jerusalem, says the Lord, like Israelites bringing oblations in clean vessels to the Temple of the Lord. And of some of them I will make priests and Levites, says the Lord.

The Word of the Lord

Responsorial Psalm       Ps 116
Response                            Go out to the whole world and proclaim the Good News.
or                                           Alleluia!

1. O praise the Lord, all you nations,
acclaim him all you peoples!          Response

2. Strong is his love for us;
he is faithful for ever.                        Response

SECOND READING
A reading from the letter of St Paul to the Hebrews       12:5-7
The Lord trains the one that he loves.

Have you forgotten that encouraging text in which you are addressed as sons? My son, when the Lord corrects you, do not treat it lightly; but do not get discouraged when he reprimands you. For the Lord trains the ones that he loves and he punishes all those that he acknowledges as his sons. Suffering is part of your training; God is treating you as his sons. Has there ever been any son whose father did not train him? Of course, any punishment is most painful at the time, and far from pleasant; but later, in those on whom it has been used, it bears fruit in peace and goodness. So hold up your limp arms and steady your trembling knees and smooth out the path you tread; then the injured limb will not be wrenched, it will grow strong again.

The Word of the Lord

Gospel  Acclamation     Jn 14: 23
Alleluia, alleluia!
If anyone loves me he will keep my word, and my Father will love him,
and we shall come to him.
Alleluia!

Or                                         Jn 14: 6
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, says the Lord;
no one can come to the Father except through me.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL

A reading from the Gospel according to Luke 13:22-30
People from east and west will come to take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God.

Through towns and villages he went teaching, making his way to Jerusalem. Someone said to him, 'Sir, will there be only a few saved?' He said to them, 'Try your best to enter by the narrow door, because, I tell you, many will try to enter and will not succeed.

'Once the master of the house has got up and locked the door, you may find yourself knocking on the door, saying, "Lord, open to us" but he will answer, "I do not know where you come from". Then you will find yourself saying, "We once ate and drank in your company; you taught in our streets" but he will reply, "I do not know where you come from. Away from me, all you wicked men !"

'Then there will be weeping and grinding of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves turned outside. And men from east and west, from north and south, will come to take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. 'Yes, there are those now last who will be first, and those now first who will be last.'

Gospel of the Lord



Taken from THE JERUSALEM BIBLE, published and copyright 1966, 1967 and 1968 by Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd and Doubleday, a division of Random House Inc, and used by permission of the publishers.