Churches of the Day
Pictorial Thought for Today
Dec 4 - St John Damascene (675–749) defender of icons
Summary : St John Damascene, priest, doctor of the Church. Born about 675 in Damascus (Syria); died near Jerusalem about 749. He was a Christian official in a Moslem government, became a monk and later presbyter at Mar Saba monastery near Jerusalem, where he was renowned as a theologian and biblical commentator. He was noted for his vigorous defence of the veneration of images against the iconoclasts, his theological writings synthesising the thought of the Greek Fathers, his poetry and his hymnody.
John Damascene worked as a controller of revenues for the Muslim caliph of Damascus before he retired to the wilderness near Jericho to be a monk. Best known for his writings in defence of icons, but also for his systematic theology and for hymns in honour of Our Lady.
Patrick Duffy describes his life.
Controller of Revenues for the Caliph
Islam was already well established in Syria when John, also called Monsur, was born in Damascus in 675. His father (Sergius?) was a Christian who held the post of controller of revenues at the court of the caliph Abdul Malek in the city. Christians were free to worship as long as they paid the poll tax. John was baptised and received a classical Christian education from a monk called Cosmas, whom the Arabs had brought from Sicily as a slave and John's father had purchased for a large sum of money. John succeeded to his father's post and worked at it until a new caliph made his position more difficult.
Monk at Mar Saba
Around 716 John resigned from his post, gave away all his money to his relatives and joined the monastery of Mar Saba in the wilderness between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. Here together with a close friend also named Cosmas he spent his time composing hymns which Cosmas sang and writing theological treatises. The singing disturbed the quiet life of the monastery, but the patriarch of Jerusalem John V appreciated the pair and took them out of the monastery. He appointed Cosmas a bishop and ordained John a priest. John feared the prospect of being an administrator for the rest of his life and returned to the monastery.
The Iconoclasts
This was the time when the controversy between the iconoclasts (who opposed the use of images) and the iconodoules (who were devoted to their use) broke out. The controversy was greatly fanned by the rise of Islam which also opposed images and in 726 the emperor Leo III at Constantinople took a public stand against icons.
Arguments of John of Damascus in favour of ikons
John explained the honour given to icons like this: "Often, doubtless, when we have not the Lord's passion in mind and see the image of Christ's crucifixion, his saving passion is brought back to remembrance, and we fall down and worship not the material but that which is imaged: just as we do not worship the material of which the Gospels are made, nor the material of the Cross, but that which these typify."
Second, John drew support from the writings of the early fathers like Basil the Great, who wrote, "The honour paid to an icon is transferred to its prototype." That is, the actual icon is only a point of departure for the expressed devotion; the recipient is in the unseen world.
Third, John claimed that, with the birth of the Son of God in the flesh, the depiction of Christ in paint and wood demonstrated faith in the Incarnation. Since the unseen God had become visible, there was no blasphemy in painting visible representations of Jesus or other historical figures. To paint an icon of him was, in fact, a profession of faith, deniable only by a heretic! "I do not worship matter, I worship the God of matter, who became matter for my sake and deigned to inhabit matter, who worked out my salvation through matter," he wrote. "I will not cease from honouring that matter which works for my salvation. I venerate it, though not as God."
His threefold fame
John of Damascus is famous in three areas.
Firstly, he is known for his writings against the iconoclasts, who opposed the veneration of images. Paradoxically, it was the Eastern Christian emperor Leo who forbade the practice, and it was because John lived in Muslim territory that his enemies could not silence him.
Secondly, he is famous for his treatise, Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, a summary of the Greek Fathers (of which he became the last). It is said that this book is to Eastern schools what the Summa Theologica of Aquinas became to the West. Indeed St Thomas was influenced by him.
Thirdly, he is known as a poet, one of the two greatest of the Eastern Church, the other being Romanus the Melodist. His devotion to the Blessed Mother and his sermons on her feasts are well known. Three of his sermons deal with the bodily assumption of the Virgin Mary into heaven after her death.
Death and influence
John died in 749. He is appreciated for his quintessentially Catholic sacramental vision. "The one who seeks God continually will find him," he wrote, "for God is in everything."
Pope Leo XIII declared him a doctor of the Church in 1890.
John Damascene worked as a controller of revenues for the Muslim caliph of Damascus before he retired to the wilderness near Jericho to be a monk. Best known for his writings in defence of icons, but also for his systematic theology and for hymns in honour of Our Lady.Patrick Duffy describes his life.
Controller of Revenues for the Caliph
Islam was already well established in Syria when John, also called Monsur, was born in Damascus in 675. His father (Sergius?) was a Christian who held the post of controller of revenues at the court of the caliph Abdul Malek in the city. Christians were free to worship as long as they paid the poll tax. John was baptised and received a classical Christian education from a monk called Cosmas, whom the Arabs had brought from Sicily as a slave and John's father had purchased for a large sum of money. John succeeded to his father's post and worked at it until a new caliph made his position more difficult.
Monk at Mar SabaAround 716 John resigned from his post, gave away all his money to his relatives and joined the monastery of Mar Saba in the wilderness between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. Here together with a close friend also named Cosmas he spent his time composing hymns which Cosmas sang and writing theological treatises. The singing disturbed the quiet life of the monastery, but the patriarch of Jerusalem John V appreciated the pair and took them out of the monastery. He appointed Cosmas a bishop and ordained John a priest. John feared the prospect of being an administrator for the rest of his life and returned to the monastery.
The Iconoclasts
This was the time when the controversy between the iconoclasts (who opposed the use of images) and the iconodoules (who were devoted to their use) broke out. The controversy was greatly fanned by the rise of Islam which also opposed images and in 726 the emperor Leo III at Constantinople took a public stand against icons.Arguments of John of Damascus in favour of ikons
John explained the honour given to icons like this: "Often, doubtless, when we have not the Lord's passion in mind and see the image of Christ's crucifixion, his saving passion is brought back to remembrance, and we fall down and worship not the material but that which is imaged: just as we do not worship the material of which the Gospels are made, nor the material of the Cross, but that which these typify."
Second, John drew support from the writings of the early fathers like Basil the Great, who wrote, "The honour paid to an icon is transferred to its prototype." That is, the actual icon is only a point of departure for the expressed devotion; the recipient is in the unseen world.
Third, John claimed that, with the birth of the Son of God in the flesh, the depiction of Christ in paint and wood demonstrated faith in the Incarnation. Since the unseen God had become visible, there was no blasphemy in painting visible representations of Jesus or other historical figures. To paint an icon of him was, in fact, a profession of faith, deniable only by a heretic! "I do not worship matter, I worship the God of matter, who became matter for my sake and deigned to inhabit matter, who worked out my salvation through matter," he wrote. "I will not cease from honouring that matter which works for my salvation. I venerate it, though not as God."
His threefold fame
John of Damascus is famous in three areas.
Firstly, he is known for his writings against the iconoclasts, who opposed the veneration of images. Paradoxically, it was the Eastern Christian emperor Leo who forbade the practice, and it was because John lived in Muslim territory that his enemies could not silence him.
Secondly, he is famous for his treatise, Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, a summary of the Greek Fathers (of which he became the last). It is said that this book is to Eastern schools what the Summa Theologica of Aquinas became to the West. Indeed St Thomas was influenced by him.
Thirdly, he is known as a poet, one of the two greatest of the Eastern Church, the other being Romanus the Melodist. His devotion to the Blessed Mother and his sermons on her feasts are well known. Three of his sermons deal with the bodily assumption of the Virgin Mary into heaven after her death.
Death and influence
John died in 749. He is appreciated for his quintessentially Catholic sacramental vision. "The one who seeks God continually will find him," he wrote, "for God is in everything."
Pope Leo XIII declared him a doctor of the Church in 1890.
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Memorable Sayings for Today
I need to worship because without it
I lose a sense of wonder and gratitude
and plod through life with blinders on.
I need worship because my natural tendency is
toward self-reliance and stubborn independence.”
~ John Ortberg ~
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Liturgical Readings for: Thursday, 4th December, 2025
Thursday of the First Week of Advent
It is the upright nation, those who hear and do the will of God, that will enter the kingdom.
Saint of the Day; December 4th; St John Damascene, a Syrian monk, theologian,
priest and doctor of the church and defender of icons.
c/f short history of today’s saint can be found below today’s Readings and Reflection.
FIRST READING
A reading from the prophet Isaiah 26:1-6
Let the upright nation come in, she, trusts in you.
That day, this song will be sung in the land of Judah:
We have a strong city; to guard us he has set wall and rampart about us.
Open the gates! Let the upright nation come in,
she, the faithful one whose mind is steadfast, who keeps the peace, because she trusts in you.
Trust in the Lord for ever, for the Lord is the everlasting Rock;
he has brought low those who lived high up in the steep citadel;
he brings it down, brings it down to the ground, flings it down in the dust:
the feet of the lowly, the footsteps of the poor trample on it.
The Word of the Lord Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 117: 1. 8-9. 19-21, 25-27
Response Blessed in the name of the Lord is he who comes.
or Alleluia!
1. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, for his love has no end.It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in men:
it is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes. Response
2. Open to me the gates of holiness: I will enter and give thanks.
This is the Lord's own gate where the just may enter
I will thank you for you have given answer and you are my saviour. Response 3. O Lord, grant us salvation; O Lord, grant success.
Blessed in the name of the Lord is he who comes.
We bless you from the house of the Lord; the Lord God is our light. Response
Gospel Acclamation Is 40:9-10
Alleluia, alleluia!
Shout with a loud voice, joyful messenger to Jerusalem.
Here the Lord is coming with power.
Alleluia!
or Is 55:6
Alleluia, alleluia!
Seek the Lord while he can still be found, call to him while he is still near.
Alleluia!
GOSPEL
The Lord be with you. And with your spirit
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew 7: 21. 24-27 Glory to you, O Lord.
The person who does the will of my Father will enter the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus said to his disciples:
'It is not those who say to me, "Lord, Lord", who will
enter the kingdom of heaven, but the person who does the will of my Father in heaven.'Therefore, everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on rock. Rain came down, floods rose, gales blew and hurled themselves against that house, and it did not fall: it was founded on rock.
'But everyone who listens to these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a stupid man who built his house on sand. Rain came down, floods rose, gales blew and struck that house, and it fell; and what a fall it had!'
The Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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Gospel Reflection Thursday First Week of Advent Matthew 7:21, 24-27
We know that a house is as good as its foundations. If the foundations are flimsy, the consequences for those who live in the house can be catastrophic, especially if unusual stress is placed on the building because of weather or some other disturbance of nature. The most important part of the house is that which is not immediately visible. In the gospel reading, Jesus draws on that image of the house to speak about the foundation of our lives as human beings. He declares that entrusting ourselves to him, listening to his word and trying to live by his word, will provide a foundation for our lives that will enable us to withstand the great storms of life.
We need some solid ground under us as we go through life. Jesus presents himself as that solid ground. If we build our lives on all he says and does, he will prove to be a rock, enabling us to stand firm even when the disappointments and sufferings of life leave us feeling very vulnerable. As human beings we long for security at many levels. Jesus tells us that we will find our ultimate security in him if, in the phrase of Saint Paul, we allow his word to dwell in us richly, and, then, to bear fruit in our lives.
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The Scripture Readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, published 1966 by Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd and used with the permission of the publishers. http://dltbooks.com/
The Scripture Reflection is made available with our thanks from Fr Martin Hogan's book Reflections on the Weekday Readings : The Word is Near to You, on your lips and in your heart published by Messenger Publications cf www.messenger.ie/bookshop/
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Saint of the Day: Dec. 4th; St John Damascene, priest, doctor of the Church
John was born about 675 in Damascus (Syria); died near Jerusalem about 749. He was a Christian official in a Moslem government and became a monk and later presbyter at Mar Saba monastery near Jerusalem, where he was renowned as a theologian and biblical commentator. He was noted for his vigorous defence of the veneration of images against the iconoclasts, his theological writings synthesising the thought of the Greek Fathers, his poetry and his hymnody.
Patrick Duffy describes his life.
John Damascene worked as a controller of revenues for the Muslim caliph of Damascus before he retired to the wilderness near Jericho to be a monk. Best known for his writings in defence of icons, but also for his systematic theology and for hymns in honour of Our Lady.Controller of Revenues for the Caliph
Islam was already well established in Syria when John, also called Monsur, was born in Damascus in 675. His father (Sergius?) was a Christian who held the post of controller of revenues at the court of the caliph Abdul Malek in the city. Christians were free to worship as long as they paid the poll tax. John was baptised and received a classical Christian education from a monk called Cosmas, whom the Arabs had brought from Sicily as a slave and John's father had purchased for a large sum of money. John succeeded to his father's post and worked at it until a new caliph made his position more difficult.
Monk at Mar SabaAround 716 John resigned from his post, gave away all his money to his relatives and joined the monastery of Mar Saba in the wilderness between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea. Here together with a close friend also named Cosmas he spent his time composing hymns which Cosmas sang and writing theological treatises. The singing disturbed the quiet life of the monastery, but the patriarch of Jerusalem John V appreciated the pair and took them out of the monastery. He appointed Cosmas a bishop and ordained John a priest. John feared the prospect of being an administrator for the rest of his life and returned to the monastery.
The Iconoclasts
This was the time when the controversy between the iconoclasts (who opposed the use of images) and the iconodoules (who were devoted to their use) broke out. The controversy was greatly fanned by the rise of Islam which also opposed images and in 726 the emperor Leo III at Constantinople took a public stand against icons.Arguments of John of Damascus in favour of ikons
Firstly John explained the honour given to icons like this:
"Often, doubtless, when we have not the Lord's passion in mind and see the image of Christ's crucifixion, his saving passion is brought back to remembrance, and we fall down and worship not the material but that which is imaged: just as we do not worship the material of which the Gospels are made, nor the material of the Cross, but that which these typify."
Secondly, John drew support from the writings of the early fathers like Basil the Great, who wrote, " The honour paid to an icon is transferred to its prototype." That is, the actual icon is only a point of departure for the expressed devotion; the recipient is in the unseen world.
Thirdly, John claimed that, with the birth of the Son of God in the flesh, the depiction of Christ in paint and wood demonstrated faith in the Incarnation. Since the unseen God had become visible, there was no blasphemy in painting visible representations of Jesus or other historical figures. To paint an icon of him was, in fact, a profession of faith, deniable only by a heretic! "I do not worship matter, I worship the God of matter, who became matter for my sake and deigned to inhabit matter, who worked out my salvation through matter," he wrote. "I will not cease from honouring that matter which works for my salvation. I venerate it, though not as God."
Threefold fame
John of Damascus is famous in three areas.
Firstly, he is known for his writings against the iconoclasts who opposed the veneration of images. Paradoxically, it was the Eastern Christian emperor Leo who forbade the practice, and it was because John lived in Muslim territory that his enemies could not silence him.
Secondly, he is famous for his treatise, Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, a summary of the Greek Fathers (of which he became the last). It is said that this book is to Eastern schools what the Summa Theologica of Aquinas became to the West. Indeed St Thomas was influenced by him.
Thirdly, he is known as a poet, one of the two greatest of the Eastern Church, the other being Romanus the Melodist. His devotion to the Blessed Mother and his sermons on her feasts are well known. Three of his sermons deal with the bodily assumption of the Virgin Mary into heaven after her death.
Death and influence
John died in 749. He is appreciated for his quintessentially Catholic sacramental vision. Pope Leo XIII declared him a doctor of the Church in 1890.
******************************
Memorable Saying for Today
"The one who seeks God continually will find him for God is in everything."
~ St John Damascene ~
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Liturgical Readings for: Thursday, 4th December, 2025
CÉAD LÉACHT
Sliocht as an fáidh Íseáia 26:1-4
Lig don náisiún ionraic teacht isteach, ise atá dílis.
An lá sin, beidh an laoi seo á chanadh ar thalamh Iúdá:
“Tá baile daingean againn; leag sé bábhún agus forbhalla dár ndídean.
Osclaígí na geataí! Lig don náisiún ionraic teacht isteach, ise atá dílis,
atá bunúsach ó chroí, a choinníonn an tsíocháin, óir is asatsa atá a muinín.
Bíodh bhur muinín as an Tiarna go deo, óir is é an Tiarna an charraig shíoraí;
d’ísligh sé an dream a bhí ina gcónaí ar na harda, muintir an dúnfoirt daingin,
leagann sé iad, leagann iad ar lár, caitheann sé síos iad sa láib;
cosa na n-úiríseal agus na mbochtán, siúlann siad orthu ina gcoiscéim.”
Briathar an Tiarna Buíochas le Dia
Salm le Freagra Sm 117
Freagra Is beannaithe in ainm an Tiarna an té atá ag teacht.
Freagra eile Alleluia!
1. Tugaigí buíochas don Tiarna toisc gur maith é: óir maireann a ghrá de shíor.
Is fearr dul i muinín an Tiarnaná bheith ag brath ar an duine.
Is fearr dul i muinín an Tiarna ná bheith ag brath ar fhlatha. Freagra2. Osclaígí dom doirse na fíréantachta: rachaidh mé isteach a gabháil buíochais.
Seo agaibh doras an Tiarna trína rachaidh na fíréin.
Gabhaim buíochas leat de bhrí gur éist tú liom agus gur tú mo shlánaitheoir. Freagra
3. Fóir orainn, achainímid, a Thiarna; a Thiarna, go n-éirí linn.
Is beannaithe in ainm an Tiarna an té atá ag teacht.
Beannaímid sibh as teach an Tiarna. Is é an Tiarna ár solas. Freagra
Comhgháir/Alleluia Is 55:6
Alleluia, alleluia!
Lorgaigí an Tiarna, fad a chuireann sé é féin ar fáil; glaoigí air, fad atá sé i ngar.
Alleluia!
SOISCÉAL
Go raibh an Tiarna libh. Agus le do spiorad féin
Sliocht as an Soiscéal naofa de réir Matha 7: 21. 24-27 Glóir duit, a Thiarna.
An té a dhéanann toil m’Athar rachaidh sé isteach i ríocht na bhflaitheas.
San am sin dúirt Íosa lena dheisceabail:
“Ní hé gach aon duine a deir liom: ‘A Thiarna, a Thiarna!’ a rachaidh isteach i ríocht na bhflaitheas,
ach an té a dhéanann toil m’Athar atá ar neamh.“Duine ar bith, mar sin, a chluineann na briathra seo a deirim agus a dhéanann dá réir, ní miste a chur i gcosúlacht le fear ciallmhar a thóg teach do féin ar an gcarraig: thit an bháisteach ansin agus tháinig na tuilte sléibhe agus shéid na gaotha, agus ghread siad ar an teach sin, ach níor thit sé, mar bhí bonn carraige faoi. “
Ach duine ar bith a chluineann na briathra seo a deirim agus nach ndéanann dá réir, ní miste a chur i gcosúlacht le fear gan tuiscint a thóg teach dó féin ar an ngaineamh:
thit an bháisteach ansin agus tháinig na tuilte sléibhe agus shéid na gaotha, agus bhuailsiad an teach sin agus thit sé, agus ba mhór an titim í.”
Soiscéal an Tiarna. Moladh duit, a Chriost
AN BÍOBLA NAOFA
© An Sagart
Liturgical Readings for: Sunday, 7th December, 2025
- 07-12-2025-
Second Sunday of Advent, Cycle A
John the Baptist is a prophetic voice for all ages: his message speaks to us today of conversion as part of the Christian way of living. Conversion calls for us be tolerant of each other and be united in mind and heart.
FIRST READING
A reading from the book of the Prophet Isaiah 11:1-10
He judges the wretched with integrity.
A shoot springs from the stock of Jesse, a scion thrusts from his roots: on him the spirit of the Lord rests,
a spirit of wisdom and insight, a spirit of counsel and power, a spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
(The fear of the Lord is his breath.)
He does not judge by appearances,
he gives no verdict on hearsay, but judges the wretched with integrity,
and with equity gives a verdict for the poor of the land.
His word is a rod that strikes the ruthless, his sentences bring death to the wicked.
Integrity is the loincloth round his waist, faithfulness the belt about his hips.
The wolf lives with the lamb, the panther lies down with the kid,
calf and lion cub feed together with a little boy to lead them.
The cow and the bear make friends, their young lie down together.
The lion eats straw like the ox.
The infant plays over the cobra's hole; into the viper's lair the young child puts his hand. They do no hurt, no harm, on all my holy mountain, for the country is filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters swell the sea.
That day, the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples. It will be sought out by the nations and its home will be glorious.
The Word of the Lord Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 71:1-2, 7-8, 12-123, R/v7
Response In his days justice shall flourish and peace till the moon fails.
1. O God, give your judgement to the king, to a king's son your justice,
that he may judge your people in justice and your poor in right judgement. Response
2. In his days justice shall flourish and peace till the moon fails.
He shall rule from sea to sea, from the Great River to earth's bounds. Response
3. For he shall save the poor when they cry and the needy who are helpless.
He will have pity on the weak and save the lives of the poor. Response
4. May his name be blessed for ever and endure like the sun.
Every tribe shall be blessed in him, all nations bless his name. Response
SECOND READING
A reading from the first letter of St Paul to the Romans 15:4-9
Christ is the Saviour of all people.
Everything that was written long ago in the scriptures was meant to teach us something about hope from the examples scripture gives of how people who did not give up were helped by God. And may he who helps us when we refuse to give up, help you all to be tolerant with each other, following the example of Christ Jesus, so that united in mind and voice you may give glory to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
It can only be to God's glory, then, for you to treat each other in the same friendly way as Christ treated you.
The reason Christ became the servant of circumcised Jews was not only so that God could faithfully carry out the promises made to the patriarchs, it was also to get the pagans to give glory to God for his mercy, as scripture says in one place:
'For this I shall praise you among the pagans and sing to your name.'
The Word of the Lord Thanks be to God.
Gospel Acclamation Lk 3:4, 6
Alleluia, alleluia!
Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight
and all mankind shall see the salvation of God.
Alleluia!
GOSPEL
The Lord be with you. And with your spirit
A reading from the Gospel according to Matthew3:1-12 Glory to you, O Lord
Repent for the kingdom of heaven is close at hand.
In due course John the Baptist appeared;
he preached in the wilderness of Judaea and this was his message:
'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is close at hand'.
This was the man the prophet Isaiah spoke of when he said:
'A voice cries in the wilderness:
Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight.'
This man John wore a garment made of camel-hair with a leather belt round his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judaea and the whole Jordan district made their way to him, and as they were baptised by him in the river Jordan they confessed their sins.
But when he saw a number of Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism he said to them,
'Brood of vipers, who warned you to fly from the retribution that is coming?
But if you are repentant, produce the appropriate fruit, and do not presume to tell yourselves, "We have Abraham for our father", because, I tell you, God can raise children for Abraham from these stones.
Even now the axe is laid to the roots of the trees, so that any tree which fails to produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown on the fire.
I baptise you in water for repentance, but the one who follows me is more powerful than I am,
and I am not fit to carry his sandals; he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
His winnowing-fan is in his hand; he will clear his threshing-floor and gather his wheat into the barn;
but the chaff he will burn in a fire that will never go out.'
The Gospel of the Lord Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
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The Scripture Readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, 1966 by Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd and used with the permission of the publishers. http://dltbooks.com/
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For homily resources for this Sunday's Gospel click here: https://www.catholicireland.net/sunday-homily/
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Liturgical Readings for: Sunday, 7th December, 2025
- 07-12-2025-
AN DARA DOMHNACH DEN AIDBHINT Bliain A
CÉAD LÉACHT
Sliocht as Leabhar Íseáia, Faidh Is 11:1-10
Tugann sé breithiúnas cothrom i leith na ndearóile.
Tá bachlóg ag eascar as bun chrann Ieise, agus gas ag teacht óna fhréamh;
tá spiorad an Tiarna ag lonnú air, spiorad na heagna agus na tuisceana, spiorad na comhairle agus na cumhachta, spiorad an eolais agus eagla an Tiarna. (In eagla an Tiarna is ea tá a dhúil.)
Ní thugann sé breith de réir na cosúlachta, ná ní chuireann tuairim de ar scéal scéil.
Ach déanann sé cóir agus ceart do na dealbha
agus tugann breithiúnas cothrom i leith dearóile na tíre.
Bata is ea a bhriathar a bhuaileann an t-anduine,
agus gaoth an fhocail uaidh, maraíonn sé an t-urchóideach.
Is í an chóir bréid cheangail a choime,
agus tá an dea-rún ina chrios ar a chorróga.
Tá an mac tíre ina chónaí leis an uan,
an pantar sínte le taobh an mheannáin ghabhair;
tá an gamhain agus an coileán leoin ar marthain in éineacht
agus gasúr óg á mbuachailleacht.
Tá an bhó agus an béar ag snaidhmeadh caradais, agus a gceanna beaga in aon ál le chéile; tá an leon ag ithe cocháin ar nós na mart.
Tá an leanbh cíche ag súgradh faoi phrochóg an chobra, ar phluais na nathrach leagann an naíonán a lámh.
Díth ná dochar ní dhéantar níos mó ar fud mo shléibhe bheannaithe go léir,
óir tá an talamh lán le heolas ar an Tiarna mar a líonann an fharraige leis an lán mara.
Sa lá sin, beidh beangán ó fhréamh Ieise ina sheasamh mar chomhartha do na ciníocha.
Beidh na náisiúin ag dul ina mhuinín agus beidh a áit chónaithe faoi mhaise agus faoi ghlóir.
Briathar Dé. Buíochas le Dia
Salm le Freagra Sm 71:1-2, 7-8, 12-123, R/v7
Freagra Bláthóidh síocháin agus fhíréantacht lena linn nó go meathfaidh an ghealach.
1. Tabhair do bhreithiúnas, a Dhia, don rí agus d'fhíréantacht do mhac an rí.
Go dtuga sé ceartbhreithiúnas ar a 
agus cothrom do na bochta. Freagra
2. Bláthóidh síocháin agus fhíréantacht lena nó go meathfaidh an ghealach.
Beidh a réimeas ó mhuir go muir, ón Abhainn Mór go críoch na cruinne. Freagra
3. Óir saorfaidh sé na bochta nuair a ghlaofaidh siad air agus na hainniseoirí gan chúnamh.
Glacfaidh sé trua don duine lag agus sábhálfaidh sé an duine dealbh. Freagra
4. Go moltar a ainm go brách an fad a bheidh an ghrian ann.
Is tríd a bheannófar gach treibh; beidh gach cine á mholadh. Freagra
DARA LÉACHT
Sliocht as Litir Naomh Pól chuig na Rómhánaigh 15:4-9
SlánaIonn Críost gach aon duine.
Abhráithre, gach ar scríobhadh fadó is dár dteagascna a scríobhadh é chun go mbeadh an fhoighne agus an sólás atá le fáil sa scrioptúr ina n-ábhar dóchais againn. Go dtuga Dia na foighne agus an tsóláis daoibhse a bheith báúil le chéile de réir mheon Chríost Íosa ar shlí go mbeidh sibh d’aontoil agus d’aonghuth ag moladh Dé agus Athair ár dTiarna Íosa Críost.Bíodh glacadh agaibh le chéile, mar sin, mar a ghlac Críost libh féin chun glóire Dé. Is é atáim a rá gur ar son fírinne Dé a tháinig Críost ag freastal ar lucht an timpeallghearrtha chun na gealltanais a tugadh do na patrarcaí a dhaingniú agus san am céanna chun go dtabharfadh na gintlithe glóir do Dhia ar son a thrócaire, mar atá scríofa:
“Molfaidh mé thú dá bhrí sin i measc na náisiún, agus canfaidh mé do d’ainm le duan.”
Briathar an Tiarna Buíochas le Dia
Alleluia Vearsa Lc 3:4, 6
Alleluia, Alleluia!
Ullmhaigí bóthar an Tiarna, déanaigi díreach a chosáin.
Agus feicfidh an uile cholainn shánú Dé.
Alleluia!
SOISCÉAL
Go raibh an Tiarna libh. Agus le do spiorad féin
Sliocht as Soiscéal naofa de réir Naomh Mhatha3:1-12 Glóir duit, a Thiarna.
Déanaigí aithrí mar tá ríocht na bhflaitheas in achmaireacht.
Sna laethanta sin, tháinig Eoin Baiste i láthair agus é ag seanmóir i bhfásach Iúdáia:“Déanaigí aithrí,” deireadh sé, “mar tá ríocht na bhflaitheas in achmaireacht.”
Ag tagairt dó seo a bhí an chaint a dúirt Íseáia fáidh:
“Glór duine ag éamh san fhásach:
‘Réitígí bóthar an Tiarna, déanaigí díreach a chasáin.’”
Agus Eoin féin, bhí éadach de rón camaill air, agus crios leathair faoina choim, agus is é bia a bhíodh aige, lócaistí agus mil fhiáin. Ansin, bhí na daoine ag teacht amach chuige ó Iarúsailéim agus ó Iúdáia go léir agus ó cheantar uile na hIordáine, agus iad ag fáil bhaiste uaidh in abhainn na hIordáine ag admháil a bpeacaí.
Nuair a chonaic sé mórán de na Fairisínigh agus de na Sadúcaigh ag teacht chun baisteadh chuige, dúirt sé leo:
“A sceith na bpéisteanna, cé thug leid daoibhse teitheadh ón díbheirg atá le teacht? Tugaigí, más ea, toradh uaibh is dual don aithrí, agus nárab áil libh a rá libh féin: ‘Tá Abrahám mar athair againn,’ óir deirim libh gur féidir le Dia clann a thógáil d’Abrahám as na clocha seo. Anois féin, tá an tua le fréamh na gcrann, agus gach crann nach dtugann toradh fónta uaidh, gearrfar anuas agus caithfear sa tine é.
Táimse do bhur mbaisteadh le huisce, i gcomhair na haithrí;
ach an té atá ag teacht i mo dhiaidh is treise é ná mise,
agus ní fiú mé a bhróga a bhaint de: baistfidh seisean sibh leis an Spiorad Naomh agus le tine.
Tá a cháiteog ina láimh aige agus déanfaidh sé a láithreán buailte a léirghlanadh;
cruinneoidh sé a chuid arbhair isteach sa scioból, ach dófaidh sé an lóchán le tine dhomhúchta.”
Soiscéal an Tiarna. Moladh duit, a Chriost
AN BÍOBLA NAOFA
© An Sagart
