1st SUNDAY OF ADVENT
Psalter: Week 1 / (Violet)
Ps 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19
Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.
1st Reading: Is 63:16b-17, 19b; 64:2-7
Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.
For you are our Father, whereas Abraham does not know us nor has Israel any knowledge of us. But you, O Yahweh, are our Father, from the beginning, you are our redeemer: this is your name.
Why have you made us stray from your ways? Why have you let our heart become hard so that we do not fear you? Return for the sake of your servants, the tribes of your inheritance.
For too long we have become like those you do not rule, like those who do not bear your name.
Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down! The mountains would quake at your presence.
Let them witness your stunning deeds.
No one has ever heard or perceived, no eye has ever seen a God besides you who works for those who trust in him.
You have confounded those who acted righteously and who joyfully kept your ways in mind. But you are angry with our sins, yet conceal them and we shall be saved.
All of us have become like the unclean; all our good deeds are like polluted garments; we have all withered like leaves, blown away by our iniquities.
There is no one who calls upon your name, no one who rouses himself to lay hold of you. For you have hidden your face, you have given us up to the power of our evil acts.
And yet, Yahweh, you are our Father; we are the clay and you are our potter; we are the work of your hand.
2nd Reading: 1 Cor 1:3-9
Receive grace, and peace from God, our Father, and Christ Jesus, our Lord.
I give thanks, constantly, to my God, for you, and for the grace of God given to you, in Christ Jesus. For you have been fully enriched, in him, with words, as well as with knowledge, even as the testimony concerning Christ was confirmed in you. You do not lack any spiritual gift and only await the glorious coming of Christ Jesus, our Lord. He will keep you steadfast to the end, and you will be without reproach, on the day of the coming of our Lord Jesus. The faithful God will not fail you, after calling you to this fellowship with his Son, Christ Jesus, our Lord.
Gospel: Mk 13:33-37
Be alert and watch, for you don‘t know when the time will come. When a man goes abroad and leaves his home, he puts his servants in charge, giving to each one some responsibility; and he orders the doorkeeper to stay awake. So stay awake, for you don‘t know when the Lord of the house will come, in the evening or at midnight, when the cock crows or before dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him catch you asleep.
And what I say to you, I say to all: Stay awake!“
REFLECTION:
Read: We are the clay and God is the potter – we are God‘s masterpieces. We have been enriched in Christ and therefore, God will not fail us. Gospel gives the message of advent: Be awake and watch for the coming!
Reflect: Is it too hard to be ever watchful? Not really! The watchfulness mentioned here can be understood this way: imagine you are traveling with your friend in a car and you are absorbed in conversation with him. During the conversation, your friend who is at the wheel picks up every signal on the road and drives accordingly. And, at some point he asks you, “Can you check the door?
I do not think it is shut well.“ How did he pick these up while engrossed in conversation? Was it hard for him? The alertness for the coming of the Kingdom is such sort of watchfulness.
Pray: Give me a heart, Lord, which is ever awake to the workings of the Master Potter.
Act: Take a walk in the woods. Or on the beach. Or in the garden. Be awake to the presence of God around you.
Daily Reflection
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Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL
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